White Sox: Plate Discipline Must Improve Next Season
White Sox led MLB in team strikeouts in 2018, broke the single-season record for team strikeouts. The team will need better plate discipline in 2019.
The White Sox led MLB this past season in team strikeouts. With their 1,594 strikeouts as a team, the Sox also set the MLB single-season record for team strikeouts during the 2018 season. In order for the team to become better offensively, their plate discipline will have to improve.
Of all the teams to reach the postseason this year, the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees were also in the top 10 in MLB in teams strikeouts. The Sox won’t have to make major improvements to their plate discipline to be competitive next season, but they can’t lead MLB in team strikeouts.
One of the main culprits on the Sox offense in strikeouts this past season was Yoan Moncada. The 23-year-old nearly set the MLB single-season record for strikeouts. Moncada had a team-high 217 strikeouts for the Sox in 2018. In his first full major league season, Moncada came seven strikeouts away from surpassing Mark Reynolds 2009 strikeout total of 223 in a single season.
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The Sox lineup consisted of many young players this past season. With many young players adjusting to major league pitching, this Sox team saw a lot of poor plate discipline from their hitters in 2018. Matt Davidson (168) and Daniel Palka (153) were second and third on the Sox respectively in strikeouts.
While the Sox had three players with more than 150 strikeouts this past season, one player that did improve his strikeout totals at the plate was Tim Anderson. However, it was a slight decrease from 162 strikeouts in 2017 to 149 strikeouts in 2018. Anderson would struggle to end this season but he showed that he could cut down his strikeouts at the plate..
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The Sox will need better approaches at the plate to have success offensively going forward. If the Sox are going to become contenders soon, their younger players will have to cut down on strikeouts and get on base often. The Sox might be a primarily young team, but improving plate discipline can help many of the young players reach their potentials.