PREAMBLE
COACHING STAFF
- Hitting coach: Yermin Mercedes
- Pitching coach: Donn Pall
I don't think either of those guys will get the nod, but in any case fire the new hitting coach in 6-18 months. The Pope should have a spot in light of the current events, but he should also be fired in 3-5 yrs regardless.
ARBITRATION-ELIGIBLE PLAYERS
- Mike Tauchman: Non-tender
- Steven Wilson: Tender
- Derek Hill: Non-tender
Tauch played 73 games in RF this year and was held together with staples, gorilla glue, and flex seal tape by the end. I want him back so his kid is close to his Dr., but strictly as a reserve playing at most 2 days a week and schvitzing the other 5 days.
Every team needs a Steve, and we need arms to fill in all the low leverage innings we play.
Derick Hill we hardly knew ye. Seriously, who is this guy? Getz needs more room on the 40 anyway for all his blue light special waiver wire pickups.
CLUB OPTIONS
- Luis Robert Jr.: Buy out for $2 million
- Martín Perez: Buy out for $1.5 million
I know the White Sox can't quit Luis Robert as much as Luis Robert has quit the White Sox, but I'm declining the option anyway. I like Robert and I'm willing to overlook the many flaws he has except for one. Its not that he doesn't hit enough homers, but he's only hit more than 14 once in his career. Its also not because he doesn't hit enough doubles, but he only had 31 doubles...combined over the last two years. No, that doesn't bother me because he plays great D, and runs the bases like a panther. The deal breaker for me is that he can't play more than 109 games (on average). Its not that I don't like Luis Robert, it's more that I don't like Dominic Fletch or Greg Jones or Will Robertson or any of the other gutter trash that is part of that deal. If we're going to win 72 games then we need a full time player.
Also declining Perez. His 2nd doctor opinion was from Dr. Nick Rivera, and even Dr. Nick said there wasn't much meat left on this bone.
FREE AGENTS
No. 1: Cedric Mullins (1 year, $13 million). I think there will be a lot of one year deals available for the middle class FA's based on the pending lockout. I'm willing to go to $15 mil for Cedric to fill the spot, but I think he's a good fit for playing mostly CF. I like him better than Luis strictly because he's going to play 140 games at least, and he also hits left.
No. 2: Austin Hays (1 year, $8 million) I think he's gettable either early or late, and we probably save a couple bucks by waiting.
No. 3: Trent Grisham or Harrison Bader or Ramon Laureano (1 year, $15million) I think you need to land the first two OF's to get this next guy and sell the new motif. Laureano would be my first preference, but I like this OF either way. Even with the loss of Robert, our overall defense and offense are MLB average or better.
No. 4: Kenley Jansen (1 year, $8 million) He's definitely over the hill but I think he's a stable presence that can close games against 2nd division teams, and maybe gut a few out with the better teams in the unlikely event we have a 9th inning lead vs the likes of TOR/NY/BOS/SEA.
No. 5: Liam Hendriks (1 year, $1.5 million) Can we ask him to play for the $1.5mil deferred money we are already paying? I'm willing to give him another 1.5 mil once the MLBPA declines JR's demand. Chicago likes him, he likes Chicago, and more important he needs a place to pitch. Another great presence guy that can maybe help the other guys not crap the bed every other night.
TRADES
No trades please. I need more time with these guys, and I think Getz gets taken to the cleaners if he attempts to get equal value for anyone we have. Outside of the anyone-could-have-made -that-trade for Crochet, the results have been mixed at best. Leave the trades for the next GM.
SUMMARY
This team isn't going to be great, but it does have that lightning in a bottle element every great White Sox team has. Here is your 2nd place AL Central White Sox: (we made it Jerry)
SP - Shane Smith
SP - Davis Martin
SP - Sean Burke
SP - Jonathan Cannon (I think he'll do fine in the suppressed elements of March/April/May, and hopefully reinforcements are on the way after. I'll also accept Yo Gomez since Cannon has an option)
SP - Grant Taylor piggybacked with Mike Vasil. It's possible Taylor can get stretched by June or July, and how cool would it be if he's the ace by 2027?
(I don't think they'll spend enough to get anyone decent, so its best to spend elsewhere on the roster and roll with what you got. Keep in mind the overall staff in 2025 was right around 100 ERA+. We aren't going to the playoffs in any case so why kid yourself. Maybe a Fedde or Quintana pickup in mid camp to bolster, maybe they strike Rule 5 gold again, but plenty of arms coming on line in July and later to prevent the cave in we had this year.)
Bullpen:
Jansen
Leasure
Wilson
Wikelman Gonzalez
Peyton Pallette (time to light this candle)
Cam Booser or Frazer Ellard (in the random world of relievers, they can't both be that bad two years in a row)
Liam Hendriks (I'm dreaming of a late career arc of Shooter Rod Beck who can bluff his way for three outs)
Line-up:
C - Teel
1B- Benintendi/Sosa (Cats out of the bag. Now you know I have no respect for 1B, but we're going to get league avg production, maybe even 30 dingers total. I think AB can play LF one day a week, maybe two sometimes if we really need to force in all lefty's, but his everyday OF status is terminated. NO ONE is trading for AB, not ever, so enjoy your lemonade and chicken salad)}2B - Meidroth (Sosa can play here a day or two also but they are just occupying until reinforcements arrive)
3B - Vargas (Not a horrible placeholder until the cavalry arrives)
SS - C Montgomery (Please don't be Josh Fields or Gordon Beckham, please)
LF - Austin Hays
CF - Cedric Mullins
RF - Ramon Laureano (another good sales pitch for Laureano will be: "How would you like to be the starting LF for the Dodgers or Yankees on August 1st?". Bader would definitely fall for that. )
DH - Quero (He's the main guy with plenty of other guys sprinkled in, and maybe we try him at 1B also if the slugging improves. I don't think he sticks at C long term, but they should work him in a day or two a week just in case we need to trade him. We can't afford a REAL DH like Dunn or LaRoche or Encarnacion, and after listing all those guys doesn't Quero sound pretty good? )
Bench: Baldwin, Tauchman and Kory Lee. They are all playing some OF at some point so I never see the likes of Noda or Workman or Robertson or Julks. Ramos and Mead are odd men out, hopefully we cut them so late in March no one else is desperate enough to roster them, because we'll need them both after they learn to play OF.
It's not pretty but I think we edge past the Pirates and Angels sometime in late September, and no one is talking about the White Sox in any regard. All of this for well under $90 million makes this another rousing success story for the longest re-build in White Sox history. If the lockout goes right, Getz/JR/TLR might get their real wish of not having to field a team and play any games in 2027.
