Sporcle Saturday: The bare minimum, really
Good morning!
Entering the 2023 season, I was hopeful that the White Sox would be able to have at least one, if not two, first-year hitters record at least one win above replacement. I was particularly hopeful for Oscar Colás, who seemed to be the best candidate to step over that low bar (I was not aboard the hype train of Romy González). Alas, Colás went out and logged the reverse of that: -1.5 WAR, and in just 75 games.
This is, unfortunately, difficult for the White Sox to achieve. Today’s Sporcle will reflect that difficulty: looking at White Sox batters in the first season of their careers, just 37 guys have logged at least one bWAR of value. While this is, admittedly, a bit of a bummer, there are some great names on this list! How many can you name? Good luck!
Quiz Parameters
- To reiterate, this list only contains batters who began their career with the White Sox. If they started their career with a different team, they will not be found on this list.
- I’ve allotted 15 minutes for completion attempts.
- For hints, I’ve provided the season and bWAR compiled, and ordered the list from highest WAR to lowest.
Useless information to amaze, annoy, confuse, and/or confound your friends and family:
- 13 of the players on this list finished in the top ten Rookie of the Year voting.
- From those 13, three went on to win Rookie of the Year.
- The youngest players on this list to make their debut were both 21, while the elder statesmen of the group led the way at the ripe old age of 30.
All data from stathead.com
23/37. I was surprised by some of the names who weren’t on the list.
I had no idea that Tommie Agee had 4 cups of coffee with Cleveland and the Sox before his ROY season. Good to remember when people write off young players when they don’t excel right out of the gate.
Yep, and there are a lot more besides Agee.
Jake Burger comes to mind.
Yep, I know 3 years ago I had pretty much written him off.
27/37, with maybe two names I could have gotten with an extra hour of time.
This….does not speak well of the franchise. Those puzzled by my offseason plan can hold the success of the 2005 2B partially responsible. I’m perplexed that his example did not inspire more sustained scouting in the region.
19/37 – felt good to get a couple of old-timers, though the less mobility among players makes it easier I’d guess. Really embarrassed to miss #1, just not used to thinking of him as a ‘rookie’ that year.
29/37. Got everyone in my lifetime and didn’t have a chance at the other 8. That’s a pretty sorry list for a team that’s been playing for 123 years.
I’d like to see lists from some other teams
I was most shocked that Carlos Lee wasn’t on the list.