The White Sox made a couple of highly anticipated moves in advance of their homestand-opener against Cleveland tonight, reinstating Yoán Moncada and Joe Kelly from the injured list. Only the latter comes at a cost.
Moncada completed his rehab stint for the strained oblique he suffered in spring training while Kelly has recovered from the nerve issue in his right biceps that abbreviated his postseason with the Dodgers last October. To make room for Moncada, the White Sox optioned Jake Burger, whose command of the strike zone had gotten away from him. For Kelly, the White Sox placed Aaron Bummer on the injured list with a right knee strain.
The arrival of Moncada and Kelly to the 2022 regular season obviously, intrinsically benefits the Sox, but they stand a chance of making an enhanced impact because their strengths address some specific weaknesses.
Moncada returns to a team that has a .598 OPS against right-handed pitching, which sounds awful -- and make no mistake, it is. Yet this number is also a great way to take stock of the misery of scoring runs around baseball.
For one, there are four teams worse than the White Sox against right-handed pitching. More illuminating is that the league's .661 OPS against right-handed pitching in 2022 would rank dead last on such a list in 2021, as Texas brought up the rear in that split at .678.
One can't really overstate the White Sox's struggles against righties, especially since the four teams below them aren't contenders. One just shouldn't understate the offensive difficulties around the league. Combine the two, and a little bit of Moncada can go a long way. It's not so much that he can make the offense above-average by himself, but his positive contributions would also remove some of the responsibility from players who have offered little, and may continue to do so.
As for the bullpen transaction, Kelly is the closest thing the White Sox have to a Bummer replacement, because he kept both lefties and righties in check during his time with the Dodgers:
- vs. RHB: .211/303/.327
- vs. LHB: .220/.310/.353
And when you narrow the sample size to his most recent two seasons, it's even better:
- vs. RHB: .178/.294/.280
- vs. LHB: .193/.255/.307
Perhaps Kelly will need some time to knock off the rust, but he's replacing just about the least reliable form of Bummer, who had allowed 10 free bases (eight walks, two HBPs) in 11 innings. Between his control problems, his command problems and the missing tick or so of velocity, Bummer had established enough consistency in his inconsistency that he has a chance not to be missed in the short term.
The bigger question is whether the knee had been hampering all year, and whether it (and Bummer, for that matter) stands a chance of materially improving with rest. They might be able to bypass the scuffling version of Bummer for a series at a time, but when looking at the shape of the bullpen over the course of an entire season, a prolonged absence of the Bummer they banked on will be a lot harder to cover.
