Chicago White Sox: Gordon Beckham’s rebirth in 2015

(Editor’s note: All stats are from before game on Friday night at Oakland.)

Gordon Beckham is thriving in his new role with the South Siders, that being a utility infielder. For most of his career with the Chicago White Sox, he has been the team’s primary second baseman. That has changed this season, as the team is giving younger players a shot at that position.

With Micah Johnson getting the majority of the starts at second (just demoted to the minors) and Carlos Sanchez on his way up, Beckham is left to be a bench player. Beckham is looking better than he has in years. Could it be that he has found his role in the big leagues?

Playing every position other than first base, Beckham has spent the majority of his time at third base. He has been a good platoon partner for Conor Gillaspie, not to mention a defensive replacement.

Surprisingly, Beckham has out-hit Gillaspie to this point in the season. Even more surprisingly, Beckham has been hitting righties much better than lefties (.292 to .222). Beckham has more home runs (2) and just as many RBIs (8) as Gillaspie in fewer at-bats.

More from White Sox News

Here is a breakdown of Beckham’s improvement.

While his average has dropped some over the past week, he is still batting .262, which is higher than his career average of .245. While Beckham is unlikely to have anywhere near the at-bats in 2015 as in past years, it is very possible for him to post his best batting average of his career. On-base percentage could be among his best as well, considering the fact that it stands at .333 (before Friday’s game).

Another question is how will his power numbers shake out?

With two home runs already, considering when it warms up at U.S. Cellular he should be able to reach double digits in home runs, which would be impressive considering in past years he when reached double digits three times (since 2009), he had no less than 378 at-bats.

May 1, 2015; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Chicago White Sox second baseman Gordon Beckham (15) hits a double in the ninth inning against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. The Twins won 1-0. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

The big question with Beckham is how will he finish? Any writer or analyst can project how he will perform over the next several months; however, there are so many variables that will impact his play. Other players could get injured, he could get injured, slumps … I could go on and on.

Right now, I think Beckham’s role is perfect and hides any weakness he has. It keeps him fresh, along with giving the team a good defender on the bench. Not to mention he isn’t the slowest runner, giving the White Sox a good pinch runner. Beckham was a signing many questioned, but the role he is in seems to fit him perfectly so far.

Next: Streaking White Sox at Oakland

More from Southside Showdown

Home/White Sox News