PREAMBLE
There's no reason the Sox shouldn't try to win in '26. Talented young cores often arrive more quickly than expected and the AL Central is basically giving away free Wild Card spots to anyone who tries hard. Moreover, there are very clear holes to fill and a wide open payroll with which to work.
Cody Bellinger has been the lynchpin of my plan for several months and I see absolutely no reason the White Sox shouldn't pursue him to play left field, to back-up center, and to hit in the middle of our lineup. $120M would be a totally reasonable (and still below-average) payroll for a large market team looking to emerge from three very sad years, but the constraints of this exercise (and of Jerry's pocketbook) require me to leave Bellinger at the altar and go a different way.
COACHING STAFF
- Hitting coach: [Left blank]
- Pitching coach: [Left blank]
I actually trust Getz' judgment when it comes to finding intelligent folks to fill out the staff and I have no clear ideas of my own.
ARBITRATION-ELIGIBLE PLAYERS
- Mike Tauchman: Tender
- Steven Wilson: Tender
- Derek Hill: Non-tender
Tauch is a no-brainer. He's a veteran leader who's happy to be in Chicago. In spite of his age and injuries, he has vastly outplayed a meager $3.5M salary in each of the last 3 years and will likely do so again in '26. Furthermore, there are no better options out there in free agency--certainly not at this price.
Steven Wilson is neither good nor bad. $1.5M sounds about right.
CLUB OPTIONS
- Luis Robert Jr.: Buy out for $2 million
- Martín Perez: Buy out for $1.5 million
I pick up neither option, but I choose to retain both players. I instead extend Luis (negating the buyout) for $35M/2yr with an $18M team option for 2028. This seems like a fair compromise, as LuBob gets significant security from another guaranteed year and the Sox pay a little less than the $40M they'd pay by picking up both option years on his current contract. Let's face it, there aren't any remotely better CF options on the open market this year and there won't be any next year either. Let's get ahead of this thing and keep a talented player home.
Martin Perez is re-signed for $4M/1yr. Just like Tauchman, Martin is a solid veteran in the clubhouse who actually wants to be on the Sox and proved he's able to perform here. He adds a lefty with upside to the rotation. Yes, there is injury risk, but I'd argue that with so many arms due back mid-season the Sox are uniquely positioned to absorb injury risk. Worst case scenario we see more Jonathan Cannon in May/June than we'd hoped. Shrug.
FREE AGENTS
No. 1: Austin Slater ($1.25M/1yr). He seemed comfortable on the Sox last year and he'll serve the same purpose next year--mashing lefties. Spend the whole winter stretching out those hammies, Austin!!
No. 2: Josh Naylor ($45M/3yr). Naylor has a career OPS of 1.054 at Rate Field across an entire month's worth of games. I think he'd jump at the chance to hit here regularly. If you can't beat 'em, sign 'em. His power numbers don't jump out at you, but he's a lefty and the guy just hits. Still, I think the lack of traditional 1B power keeps him within our price range.
No. 3: Ryan Helsley ($6M/1yr). This year was pretty disappointing for Helsley, but for 3 years before that he was lights out. He's a buy-low candidate with "closer" upside to add some heft to the beleaguered back end of our bullpen.
No. 4: Drew Pomeranz ($6M/1yr). On the other side of town the guy was dependable as can be in 2025 after a few lost seasons. We could really use a lefty in the pen who can handle some leverage.
TRADES
No. 1: Trade Tyler Schweitzer to the A's for JJ Bleday. I don't expect Bleday to light the world on fire, but we know left-handed power plays at the Rate and JJ is probably crowded out of the Athletics' OF. For $2M or so in arbitration we'll get a placeholder who will bop some zingers from the bottom of the order and be a major upgrade in LF. He can even cover CF in a pinch. Bleday and Brooks Baldwin can battle it out in spring training and the loser becomes optionable depth. As for Schweitzer, he looks like he hit his ceiling in AAA but another club might take a chance on the fastball.
SUMMARY
Fill out the roster with pre-arb salaries and you end up right around $90M.
LINEUP:
1. C Teel
2. 1B Naylor
3. SS Montgomery
4. CF Robert
5. DH Benintendi
6. 3B Vargas
7. RF Tauchman
8. 2B Sosa
9. LF Bleday
BENCH:
C Quero
IF Meidroth
IF Mead
OF Slater
Though it lacks for elite talent, I think that's a pretty deep lineup 1-9. Benintendi moves out of the field most days, allowing for an average outfield defense. The infield defense won't be anything special, but I'm plenty comfortable with Vargas at 3B. The lineup is lefty-heavy by design, but there are ample righties on the bench who should play against lefty starting pitchers and get used to pinch hitting. Meidroth honestly profiles best as a utility infielder, though he would still play in lots of matchups and as a defensive replacement. Likewise, I still like Mead's upside, but I didn't see enough power to pencil him into the starting lineup.
ROTATION:
1. S. Smith
2. Martin
3. Perez
4. Taylor
5. Burke
(6. Gomez)
(7. Cannon)
Taylor will obviously be on an innings limit but we may as well begin his move into the rotation as soon as possible. About the time he's ramping down the team should have Tommy John reinforcements ramping up. No one in that rotation is a true ace, but there shouldn't be any days that I dread watching (any more than usual). If all 5 of those starters emerge healthy from Spring Training then Gomez can slide into the bullpen.
BULLPEN:
1. Helsley
2. Pomeranz
3. Leasure
4. Wilson
5. Vasil
6. Eisert
7. Gilbert
8. Rule 5 Pick
(9. Pallette)
(10. Gonzalez)
(11. Booser)
(12. Ellard)
Not a dominant bullpen by any means, but it shouldn't be as much of a weakness as it was this past year.
