Breaking: White Sox re-sign Leury Garcia

Re-signing Leury Garcia grades out as the best move of the offseason. Photo Credit: Matt Marton-USA TODAY Sports

Leury Garcia will remain the longest-tenured White Sox. 

First reported by Jon Heyman of Audacy Sports, the Chicago White Sox are re-signing Garcia to a three-year deal. According to Baseball-Reference, in 2021, Garcia hit .267/.335/.376 with a 96 OPS+ and was worth 2.1 WAR. It was also a pretty even spread of games played six different positions. 

  • 277.2 innings at second base
  • 235 innings in right field
  • 164.1 innings  in center field
  • 156.1 innings at shortstop
  • 110.2 innings in left field
  • 74 innings at third base

Also, can’t forget Garcia providing one of the 2021 season’s brightest moments, hitting a three-run homer in Game 3 of the ALDS. 

Now, the expectation is Garcia will continue his super-utility role and not be the de facto starting second baseman or right fielder on Opening Day 2022. That requires a couple of other moves by the White Sox to make that the case. If they find other starting options with right field or second base, then the White Sox bench just got stronger, keeping Garcia. 

It’s just hard to imagine signing a bench player to a three-year contract, though. So if you have concerns that this is the White Sox move at second base – they could be warranted. We all have to wait and see what’s next, but bringing back Garcia at least gives general manager Rick Hahn a safety net.

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Yolmer

I think Rick Hahn timed out the off season to optimally infuriate White Sox social media.

calcetinesblancos

The funny part is that Hahn has shown me that he 100% knows how Sox fans think, so I guarantee he knew the reaction to this would not be pretty.

jhomeslice

It’s not his fault that he has no money to work with. But all else equal, with the BS narratives and defending “the money will be spent”, he’s a complete tool as far as I’m concerned.

hitlesswonder

On Fangraphs Kevin Goldstein has had nice things to say about Hahn, as in he doesn’t seem to be a tool FWIW.

Trooper Galactus

Yeah, I wouldn’t fault him for not having money to spend if not for the disingenuous way he’s gone about misleading fans regarding their end-game strategy. Rather than go all-in financially when the time came, they made, what, one signing that was somewhat out of character (Grandal) and otherwise they’ve just nabbed relievers and dumpster dived everywhere else?

Hahn has exhausted my patience for his BS. If he doesn’t have the financial power to call on to finish this thing off, fine, but his bargain basement signings and trades have almost invariably been not just bad, but disastrous. Few people sabotage their own work like Hahn.

Buehrlesque

Bringing Leury back? Unexciting, but OK, there’s some rationale to it. But three years? What is the justification for that? Salary figure isn’t out yet, but if it comes in on the higher side, this will be another example of the Sox misallocating a limited budget and overspending around the margins while neglecting actual important pieces.

calcetinesblancos

In my book there’s no rationale.

AshnodsCoupon

EDIT: Ok I had a salary number here but I must have imagined it, ignore me.

Just please, Jerry, don’t stop here and plan to start him!

Last edited 2 years ago by AshnodsCoupon
HallofFrank

It’ll depend on the $ amount, but this makes some sense for a guy like Leury. He strikes me as a useful enough guy, and a guy the Sox know well, that they were going to bring him back for $3-5m/year regardless. So, if guaranteeing him 3 years drives the AAV down a bit, why not? They need someone like him, and he’s an affordable way to fill that UTL hole. As long as they didn’t overpay and commit like $15-20m to him, this is a fine signing and doesn’t at all suggest they are neglecting other important pieces.

snoopy369

$16.5MM, apparently… shrug.

Trooper Galactus

Well, it appears it didn’t drive the AAV down to sign him for 3 years. And for as much as we’re all fine with him in a utility role, I have a terrible feeling that we’re looking at our starting second baseman for 2022 here.

HallofFrank

Yep. $16.5m/3 years seems high for Leury. That, plus TLR’s love for all things Leury is disconcerting. I still don’t mind it if they actually solve 2B, but this will rival the Eaton signing if he’s their 2B plan A.

Trooper Galactus

I wouldn’t go that far. Leury will at least probably be a 1-WAR player or better depending on health and general circumstances, whereas I think almost everybody not deluding themselves saw Eaton as a near-certainty to be sub-replacement level. In that context, $5 million or so isn’t necessarily bad for a 1-ish WAR player, but it’s not a good sign if that’s the extent of their ambitions.

As Cirensica

He has to play a lot to be a 1 WAR player. That’s the only caveat. It didn’t help Yolmer, but Leury brings value for being a super utility player.

Trooper Galactus

As stated below, from 2017-20 he produced 2-WAR per 162 games. He only needs to play half the season to be a 1-WAR player.

HallofFrank

Eh, yeah, you maybe right, perhaps a little too far. But Eaton a “near-certainty” to be below replacement level is too far. He was coming off a rough, shortened 2020, but in 2019 he put up 2.4 fWAR. Plus, he is the *type* of player that’s perfect for the Sox—lefty who gets on base (he’s just not a good version of that type).

Either way, my point was more that, if Leury is plan A at 2B, he’s the move we can first guess as a horrible decision, like we did with Eaton. I have more grace for Hahn when good ideas don’t work out (for example, Madrigal for Kimbrel). It’s much more frustrating when obviously bad ideas don’t work out.

Trooper Galactus

His entire defensive profile cratered, and that typically doesn’t recover. That, on top of his general health history and what appeared to be a bad decline in his bat made me pretty confident he was gonna do more harm than good.

Buehrlesque

The TLR-Leury thing reminds me of the old joke about Ozzie and Darrin Erstad, or even Mark Kotsay. A manager’s misuse or overuse of a marginal player craters their value and removes the justification for bringing them in in the first place.

PauliePaulie

The Sox have issues on defense. So does Leury.
The Sox have issues vs. RHP. So does Leury.
The Sox have issues getting on base. So does Leury.
He doesn’t properly address what this team needs from it’s main bench bat.
And they gave him a 3 year deal.
What did Z call them the other day? Unimaginative?

dwjm3

The money has been spent. yipee!!

calcetinesblancos

I wonder how many times they’ve regretted that quote.

Trooper Galactus

Regret requires a sense of shame and accountability. There is none in this organization.

HallofFrank

Fair enough. I’m just pointing out that the Eaton signing had *some things* going for it, even if it was clear that it was a bad idea.

Trooper Galactus

Those “things” were so insignificant and unlikely that he wasn’t even considered a potential option, even a BAD potential option, by anybody here.

armchairGM

no matter how much valtrex Sox fans throw at him, Leury refuses to go away and will surely break out for a few weeks a year.

hopefully this is the end of the bench signing and not the starting 2B solution.

hitlesswonder

Higher WAR than future White Sox starting 2B Didi Gregorius !

AshnodsCoupon

That’s Sir Didi Gregorius to you!

Joliet Orange Sox

I won’t know what to think of this without more information about the contract and other moves. This could be ok if Leury signed cheap to stay home and he’s not viewed as a starter. I think we are all concerned he will be overpaid and overused.

calcetinesblancos

Who cares how he’s “viewed.” We know The Russa thinks he’s a starter.

burning-phoneix

I mean, he was worth 2 WAR last season. That’s literally the statistical benchmark for a starter caliber player.

Trooper Galactus

I might feel better about that were 2021 not something of an outlier in his career in terms of both performance and health.

burning-phoneix

I don’t really think it’s that much of an outlier, he traded some power to draw more walks and that’s about it. His WAR total came about due to actually playing enough games to tally 2 WAR

Trooper Galactus

His best season before this was 1.3 bWAR in 140 games, with the latter being a career high. Yes, I think that producing 50% more WAR in 14 fewer games qualifies as an outlier. It’s roughly the same story comparing his body of work from 2017-20 (the time when he became a relatively regular player) with his 2021. His 2021 numbers are also bolstered because he hit out of his mind in September, and I’m not counting on him repeating that.

burning-phoneix

50% more WAR isn’t huge when the numbers we’re dealing with is 1.3 and 2.

The reason he got only 1.3 bWAR in 2019 was simple: He played the majority of those games in the outfield, where he ( a natural shortstop) was stretched and resulted in a negative defensive WAR. In 2020 he played more games in the infield, giving him a better dWAR and bump him up. The offensive WAR for both seasons is similar.

His body of work from 2017 to 2020 bolsters this: He played about half a season worth of games in 2017 and 18 and racked up about 1 WAR or nearly 2 WAR over a full season.

Also, why should we ignore Leury’s good hitting in september? By that metric I can say Leury’s numbers are dragged down by his early season woes and we should ignore that to fairly assess him.

Trooper Galactus

Because it’s an outlier in his career, just like the season numbers. It would be foolish to make plans assuming Leury has morphed into an every day, 2+ WAR player and pencil him in at 2B when his history suggests that is not the likely outcome for him.

Joliet Orange Sox

Last year at age 30 was the highest bWAR of his career at 2.1. Prior to last year, Leury’s career bWAR total was 3.1 over 578 games and 1613 plate appearances. There’s absolutely no reason to believe Leury can be counted on to produce 2 WAR seasons consistently going forward. It’s not impossible but not the likely outcome based on his track record.

That said, I think Leury can be a useful piece as a utility guy. However, I think having him as Plan A as the starter at any position is not a winning strategy.

burning-phoneix

His track record when he became a regular starting in 2017 clearly show a 2 WAR player. Positional stability (ie not playing the infielder in the outfield) might even make him better statistically.

Trooper Galactus

He was a 2 WAR player per 162 games played from 2017-20. That’s basically Yolmer Sanchez all over again, which isn’t ideal unless the entire rest of the lineup is stacked like crazy (and Leury’s glove isn’t as good as Yolmer’s was at the keystone).

Hulksmash

Oh thank god. And here I was envious of the Marlins, Mariners, Rangers, Mets, Tigers…

burning-phoneix

Why?

Trooper Galactus

Those are teams that are trying to win. The White Sox, barring a move of actual significance, just seem to be expecting to win.

burning-phoneix

After years of losing? The Marlins are trying to win by signing Jacob Stallings as a starter when he would be a backup on the Sox? Avisail Garcia? Joey Wendle? The Mariners got Robbie Ray, fair, but Adam Frazier is a Leury tier signing.

I am not envious of a single team on that list, even the ones splashing big like the Mets and the Rangers. The Mets, Rangers and Tigers might be the most cursed franchises in the sport.

Trooper Galactus

Adam Frazier is better than Leury, don’t be ridiculous. And I don’t think we’re in any position to be criticizing another team for trying to win “after years of losing”.

burning-phoneix

Adam Frazier is better than Leury, but not by any significant amount.

Trooper Galactus

Enough to be the difference between an actual starting-caliber player and a utility player.

Hulksmash

It’s hilarious you single out certain franchises as the most cursed in all of sports while the White Sox have won two World Series in a century+. I love the Sox with all my heart, but it’s not like we have a charmed history. We rarely ever even make the postseason.

But Trooper Galactus said it best: these are teams trying to win. I don’t care what their pasts are, what they did last season, etc. They’re paying market value for players (contracts exceeding $100 million! the insanity!) and trying to win. Meanwhile, the Sox have gaping holes in two positions, and they’re either doing A. nothing or B. trying to fool us into believing Leury is a starter or C. a little of both. None are good.

And here’s the major thing: The Sox have the money to spend. Let that sit with you for a moment.

They have.

The money.

To spend.

But they don’t. They poormouth their way through every offseason, and I’m just sick and tired of it.

Drdoctor

If Leury Garcia were ice cream, what ice cream would he be?

Butterscotch?

texag10

Bubblegum

WrongWay

Turkey Dinner
A real flavor which is just as it is named. Christina’s Ice Cream Inman Square

calcetinesblancos

Beige.

DuckSnorting-CanofCorn

Vanilla. Excellent supporting flavor that you like on your team. Terrible as the star of the bowl.

joewho112

You think a bowl of vanilla ice cream is terrible?

PauliePaulie

The dried remnants at the bottom of the bowl the next morning.
There’s probably still a little flavor there, but you’re over it and have some regrets. So you decide you’re going to switch to something healthier.

Trooper Galactus

Emphasis on the Butt.

jhomeslice

Wow, did not see a move of this magnitude coming. Christmas has arrived early!

Does this improve the Sox chances of winning in the postseason? Maybe….

calcetinesblancos

KAGHM!

NorthSideHitman

Reading Sox Machine commenters overreact during the off-season and complain about Jerry is one of my favorite forms of entertainment. Bring it on, people!

Drdoctor

Come for the vitriol, stay for the dour!

calcetinesblancos

So boring. This move is Ben Stein calling “Bueller” over and over, and I’m the kid napping/drooling on the desk. 

Root Cause

If this is the answer for filling 2nd base, then we are 2 years from a rebuild.

Trooper Galactus

Just think of all the prospects they can get for Robert!

tbsoxfan

This move was always going to happen, I’m not sure why there’s so much vitriol. If Garcia ends up starting at 2B, then I’ll be upset. If he’s back to resume his supersub role? Great! He is as elite a true utility man as you’ll find anywhere.

I actually think he could be a league average starter at 2B over a full season as well and much prefer him to an Odor-type prayer stopgap. I would hate to settle for that outcome, but it’s better than the scrap heap or Danny Mendick

a-t

“elite” is a strong word. Chris Taylor is more of an elite superutility guy, who not coincidentally I would very much like to see in black and white

tbsoxfan

I feel like guys like Taylor, Kris Bryant, etc who are “utility” guys are in a different class than a guy like Leury, guys like the aforementioned are everyday starters with flexibility, Leury is more of a traditional superutility guy. I can see how somebody wouldn’t car to distinguish between the two groups, but I personally do

Root Cause

Clearly, this is the year to become elite if you want to go deeper in the playoffs. I doubt this would get much attention if the White Sox were adding quality pieces to fill some holes.
Heck, there hasn’t even been a rumor connected to a star RF, 2nd or backup catcher.
There is good reason to feel betrayed if we view this through the lens of history.

a-t

this, like graveman, is a very sensible needs-oriented signing which is mostly maddening because everyone else is going bonkers right now lol. this is a good and necessary move— for a superutility player— completely outside the need for a starting 2B & RF. if Leury is the starting 2B, that’s a problem with not acquiring a true starting 2B, not with re-signing Leury. the ghost of alex rios will not die!

burning-phoneix

The problem is that the only two real upgrades at 2B are gone: Semien and Baez. I don’t know who else they could get that would be an upgrade over Leury

Trooper Galactus

From free agency: Trevor Story

Trades: Jean Segura or Ketel Marte

I think most people would turn the dour around in a hurry if they signed Story, but nobody believes it will happen because he’s almost certainly going to command well into a nine-figure deal, probably more than Abreu and Grandal’s contracts combined. Marte would also be a good get, but that probably means waving good-bye to Andrew Vaughn, so it would be tempered by the outgoing production. Seems like most people are resigned to Segura, given the alternative (Leury as the 2B) is unacceptable.

burning-phoneix

Trevor Story would be great but even if the Sox ponied up the best offer, I wonder if he would decline because he would rather play his preferred short stop position?

I’m also a big fan of Ketel Marte (after he tore it up for my fantasy team in 2019 lol) but I think the amount and quality of prospects the D-Backs would require in exchange is something the farm system can’t provide.

Trooper Galactus

Like I said, you’re looking at losing Andrew Vaughn for Marte, and probably Crochet as well, but it certainly fills a need with a cost-controlled player with elite production potential. As for Story, I wouldn’t worry about that. Machado was rumored to be dead set on signing somewhere he could play shortstop and he took the best offer and played third in deference to a rookie.

Last edited 2 years ago by Trooper Galactus
hitlesswonder

It would take more than Vaughn and Crochet to get Marte. A below average hitting 1B and middle reliever don’t get that done.

You’d have to add Kopech+ other stuff or Robert to get Marte.

HallofFrank

LOL this is some all-time framing right here. How ridiculous. Let me try one: “why would the Sox trade Vaughn and Crochet for a 1.8 WAR 2B when they just signed a 2.1 WAR 2B for $5.5m?”

Trooper Galactus

For a second there I thought you were serious.

HallofFrank

No no. I’d be thrilled if the Sox traded for Marte. The framing was just so laughably silly, I had to show what the opposite framing would look like.

Trooper Galactus

Yeah, I caught onto that once I properly contextualized it. Marte was a beast last season before he got hurt.

Trooper Galactus

I didn’t say it wouldn’t take more than them, but they’d have to be the headliners. If it involves Kopech, the talks probably end there, because that’s a roster hole they can’t even pretend to fill if they create it.

Torpedo Jones

I think actual baseball professionals would argue Vaughn and Crochet are valued far beyond “a below average hitting 1B and middle reliever”, respectively. Recent first round picks with high upside and several years of control might be a better way to frame them.

joewho112

Never heard than Machado was set on playing SS. He played SS in his last year with the Orioles to expand his market to teams that needed 3B or SS.

TylerDurden

Um Chris Taylor

Trooper Galactus

Except if they sign Taylor he’s probably their RF unless they sign or trade for a different one.

joewho112

Sign Taylor and Kris Bryant. Boom steak dinner

Trooper Galactus

I’d be stoked with that.

ForsterFTOG

Expecting the ‘we signed Correa with Anderson moving to 2nd’ presser any minute now.

GrinnellSteve

Joey Wendle to the Marlins…

hitlesswonder

Kim Ng has filled all the holes on the Sox….got a RF, 2B, backup C all at good prices.

Unfortunate that she works for the Marlins…

burning-phoneix

Jacob Stallings will be the STARTING catcher for the Marlins, not a backup. Are you seriously wishing we signed Joey Wendle, Avisail Garcia and traded away Yasmani Grandal for Jacob Stallings?

Trooper Galactus

No, I think the idea was trading for Wendle, who would be an excellent addition at 2B, avoiding Avi like the plague, and trading for Stallings to be the backup catcher (and potentially more if they use Grandal at DH more often).

hitlesswonder

No…Stallings would be the backup. In any case, my point is that Ng legitimately addressed all the problem spots the Sox have with legit major leaguers. Yet somehow it’s a bridge to far for the Sox to do it.

Trooper Galactus

I don’t think Stallings is their backup C.

hitlesswonder

That’s true. I’m just shocked that apparently it’s possible to find major leaguers to play C, 2B, RF.

Augusto Barojas

I think they’re thinking is something like “We need a RF. And a 2b. Leury plays both positions, so we’ll fill two holes with one signing!”

Root Cause

That won’t work. They would have to apply the shift for him to play both spots.

a-t

Eh, that’s a little unfair. They clearly plan on an Engel/Vaughn/Sheets right field…

asinwreck

Meanwhile, the other guy to spend the last couple of months at second base has a new home.

Joliet Orange Sox

José Rondon and Juan Minaya were both non-tendered today. Now who says there are no good options at 2nd base and the bullpen?

Last edited 2 years ago by Joliet Orange Sox
chibaseball35

You have got to like this one, especially after seeing the clown contracts of recent. I don’t blame Rick or Jerry one bit, I prefer to see this team perform well long term than give out an obnoxious contract. I trust Rick.

dwjm3

Pretty strange to put your trust in an owner that has 3 playoff series wins in 40 years of ownership…or a GM that has two playoff appearances in 9 years as a GM.

I posit you might want to place your trust elsewhere.

Last edited 2 years ago by dwjm3
chibaseball35

Rick Hahn has certainly become one of the best GMs in all of baseball IMO. You sound very ignorant, no offense, or simply frustrated the Sox didn’t sign someone you wanted them to.

Trooper Galactus

Explain how a GM who has been on the job for almost a decade with one division title and no playoff series wins is one of the best GMs in all of baseball. He has his strengths, yes (locking up young talent to team-friendly deals, signing Cuban stars), but the weaknesses remain glaring and crippling (can’t find remotely productive FAs on a budget, drafting and development remain a weakness).

chibaseball35

Look at what Rick started with and look at where the franchise is now, and how it is run. Obviously, Rick only has so much money available. Tell me, who did Rick miss on this offseason? Two post seasons in a row and from the looks of it many more to come. When is last time the Sox looked to be set up like this? I’ll answer for you, never, at least not in the past 30 years or so. He signs a 2 WAR player over the past 2 years (atleast, he was good for .8 war in 16 games in 2020) for 3 and 16 and you guys complain, yet Javy Baez got 140 for 6! Take off your blinders and look at how well this franchise is sitting now and for the foreseeable future.

Torpedo Jones

Credit where it’s due: they have made the postseason two years in a row, and for that I’m grateful. However, do they have what it takes to win a playoff series against the true class of the AL? The AL Central was practically won by default last year, and they seemed to sleepwalk through the end of the season. That’s still potentially the case in 2022, unless the Tigers are ready to make a huge jump. I’m not going to turn my nose up at a division title, but the Astros series demonstrated the talent gap versus the serious WS contenders.

He did find solid value in trading away Sale, Quintana and Eaton. I don’t take for granted that he hit on Giolito, Moncada, Jimenez, Kopech and Cease (and possibly Lopez in his opener/swingman role). Once he wasn’t trading away obviously high-value MLB talent that contenders would seriously bid for, where has Hahn succeeded in the trade market? He made three deadline trades last year, and Tepera was the only one that really worked out.

But where’s the genius from the drafts and international development? One of your high first rounders who seemed like a contributor was traded away for a two year rental of Craig Kimbrel. Last year was subpar for recent highly-drafted HS arms (Kelley, Thompson, and Dalquist). Cespedes clearly needs more time and there’s still a lot of downside risk with what we’ve seen of his bat. The farm system is lacking depth at nearly all positions, which is fine if you’re a serious WS contender who traded that depth away to get to the peak. But we’re not there yet.

Where’s the genius in recent free agency? James McCann worked out great but we had to let him walk, and they’ve hit on the two spots where they actually paid market value (Grandal and Hendriks).What about our starting RF Adam Eaton? What about our DH Edwin Encarnacion? Was it starting pitcher Gio Gonzalez?

I’m not as hard on Hahn as many are, but I’m also not going to pretend like he’s done a great job as GM. If the team is to keep operating with Poor Mr. Reinsdorf’s aversion to big spending on free agents, we have to hit on other inexpensive talent streams like international signings and draft picks, which we largely haven’t done. And with such a thin farm, Hahn would really have to nail his trades, which he hasn’t done a particularly good job of since the initial rebuild deals.

Sorry if I’m not sufficiently grateful for the currently good-not-great roster Hahn has assembled. I guess I’d like to see us win a playoff series before I toast the GM, but you do you.

Trooper Galactus

His biggest successes in the rebuild was getting real value out of trading elite, cost-controlled players. Beyond that, his talent acquisition leaves quite a bit to be desired. He built a team good enough to win the worst division in baseball after years of trading away talent and top-10 draft picks. Congrats.

ParisSox

Is this Rick?

knoxfire30

Come on

burning-phoneix

I don’t hate bringing back Leury, with Semien and Baez off the board there’s no real upgrade at 2B. Hope this means they don’t need to trade Kimbrel for Segura now.

Trooper Galactus

Why on earth would you prefer having Leury/Kimbrel to getting Segura and keeping Leury as a super-utility?

burning-phoneix

No, I don’t want Kimbrel or Segura. That’s why a swap of the two doesn’t appeal to me. I prefer Kimbrel be traded for something useful like a backup catcher or some lottery ticket prospects.

Trooper Galactus

You’d prefer trading Kimbrel for a backup catcher or prospects(?!?!?) over a starting second baseman? I mean, that’d make sense if I actually believed the money saved would go toward solving second base or right field in free agency.

As Cirensica

Leury’s value hinges in his super utility status. If he was extended to be a 2B regular or a RF, then his value plummets to the point that Cesar Hernandez made more sense (like it did during the deadline). I want to believe Hahn has some other moves under his sleeve.

knoxfire30

So 16.5 for Garcia (assuming 5.5) a year….
24 for 3 for Graveman 8 a year…
kimbrel’s option 16 mil

29.5 mil on the books

Semien 25 a year
my guess is tepera is gonna get about 4 or 5 mil

So for equal money would you rather have Marcus Semien and Tepera or Kimbrel, Garcia, and Graveman

Its easy to continue to take shots at Jerry Reinsdorf and I am always here for that, but the allocation of resources by Hahn is a disaster so far.

HallofFrank

Kimbrel will almost certainly be traded and I doubt Tepera comes back. Graveman is the new Tepera. $5.5m isn’t ridiculous for Leury, nor $8m for Graveman. The problem will be if Leury is plan A for 2B.

Trooper Galactus

…or whoever they get for Kimbrel, plus Garcia and Graveman. Regardless, even in the best-case scenario I’ve heard (Segura), that’s still not as appealing.

texag10

Gonna be real interesting to see which Semien shows up in Texas. Do they get the MVP candidate from 2019 and 2021 or do they get the average-ish hitter with good defense that he’s been in every other year in his career?

Trooper Galactus

The average-ish hitter with good defense was still a 3-4 WAR player, so while not ideal it’s not exactly a waste of $25 million.

texag10

Don’t disagree but most Rangers fans are idiots that will be screaming bloody murder if he doesn’t hit 50 home runs next season, which is something I’ll enjoy watching immensely.

Trooper Galactus

I mean, most fans of every team are kinda idiots. Just look at White Sox fans obsessing over Grandal somehow being bad.

chibaseball35

Equal money? 7 years of service for 56.5 for Garcia, Graveman, and Kimbrel (and Kimbrel is gone anyways) vs 9 years of service for 187 (if Tepera went for 2 and 12).

hitlesswonder

The money makes it pretty clear that Leury is the starting 2B.

What a fiasco.

Trooper Galactus

I don’t think the money makes it clear, but the absence of a major signing otherwise sure makes it feel that way.

jhomeslice

This was my last year being a fan, unless something changes. I won’t buy a ticket until they put forth a good faith effort to improve the team, or their owner is dead. Any narrative that they are trying or that this is the best they can do is an insult to the intelligence of the fan base. What a waste.

Augusto Barojas

This offseason for them has been just as boring and lifeless as they were to watch in the 2nd half and playoffs.

Trooper Galactus

I get the anger, and I share it (I didn’t attend a single game at Sox park last year). But there are still viable, if less spectacular, options available via free agency (Castellanos, Conforto, Taylor, Bryant, Story) and trade (Segura, Marte, Reynolds), and while history says we shouldn’t get our hopes up, it ain’t over ’til it’s over.

In 2020 we didn’t see the team swooping in to scoop up Encarnacion, and while that turned out horribly and was a smaller, short-term expenditure, it was an unexpected 11th hour signing on a team that had given every indication they were done spending. With the lockout looming and the furious activity likely to commence once it ends, there’s always a chance we could get a late Christmas present.

But yes, with each name that comes off the board and each one the White Sox sign that isn’t solving one of their still-glaring problems, fan anger will only intensify.

knoxfire30

Im not going to give the sox the benefit of the doubt that they are stealthily waiting out the market to come in at the last second and get value deals. However the market does still offer a ton of corner outfield types and the sox have never been shy on testing people’s boundaries defensively so a big RF upgrade still seems viable. I do worry the 2nd base, backup C, and SP market is drying up a bit, some options sure but not nearly as many as a couple weeks ago.

Trooper Galactus

I’m not trying to suggest giving them the benefit of the doubt, I’m just saying that so long as a half dozen or so pretty exciting options are still out there and relatively conceivable even for a skinflint like Reinsdorf, don’t haul out the pitchforks just yet.

calcetinesblancos

Yeah. I understand you can’t build an entire team full of guys on $300 million contracts. But if the point of some of our team friendly deals wasn’t to have money on hand to fill holes through free agency, what was it? Just to be cheap?

GrinnellSteve

This sums it nicely.

metasox

La Russa likes Leury as the guy he can play everywhere. I doubt he would be in favor of him at 2B everyday. Someone else should end up there on the depth chart. Though that does not mean it will be anyone exciting.

Trooper Galactus

I try to keep the faith, but I’m bracing myself for Jake Burger and Micker Adolfo as the Opening Day 2B and RF respectively.

peanutsNcrackerjack

Jerry was never going to spend Semien-kind of dollars on a second baseman, particularly since his GM just traded away his low-priced, long-term answer for that position.

Maybe the bright side here, and yes, it’s a big maybe, is that Leury at full time 2nd base takes him out of the mix to help cover RF, and they sign a decent RF FA. A trade of Kimbrel for a backup catcher covers the cost of a Castellanos/Conforto.