White Sox: Eloy Jimenez Likely To Be In Opening Day Lineup
White Sox top prospect likely will be in Opening Day lineup as he recently signed a new deal that will pay him handsomely for six years.
White Sox fans have gone through a lot this offseason. From missed opportunities for their favorite team to add talent via free agency to seeing yet another pitching prospect lose a year to Tommy John surgery, 2019 hasn’t gotten off to a good start for Sox fans.
That could change beginning on Opening Day as it appears likely that Eloy Jimenez will make his major league debut on March 28 against the Kansas City Royals. Jimenez recently signed a new deal that pays him up to $43 million over six years with the possibility to make $75 million over eight years.
With his new deal, Jimenez could very well be in the Opening Day lineup for the White Sox. While it hasn’t been announced officially by the team, many writers that cover the Sox are hinting towards Jimenez being in the Majors on Opening Day. Scott Merkin of whitesox.com tweeted on Friday that he believed Jimenez would be in the Opening Day lineup for the Sox.
Jimenez will be the team's Opening Day left fielder in Kansas City. It's more a question of where he hits in the lineup
— Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) March 23, 2019
He would later clarify his tweet stating that although it wasn’t official yet, he believed that Jimenez would, in fact, be in the Sox lineup on Opening Day. Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times wrote an article about Jimenez’s big day on Saturday where he went 3-for-3 with a solo home run against the Dodgers.
In his article, Van Schouwen mentioned that all signs were pointing towards Jimenez being in the Opening Day lineup for the Sox this Thursday in Kansas City. Sox general manager Rick Hahn hasn’t officially commented on Jimenez’s status for Opening Day but with his new deal in place, it would be hard to see the talented slugger still in the minors to start the new season.
If Jimenez is in the lineup for the Sox to open the season, it would be great news for him, the team and fans. Last September when the Sox held off on promoting Jimenez although he had a great year in Triple-A, many fans were okay with the decision as they strangely supported service time manipulation so the franchise could get an extra year of team control.
Thankfully the Sox front office didn’t allow Jimenez to enter this season with any more doubt as to where he would be to start 2019. Jimenez now has financial security for himself and his family and likely won’t have to begin this season in Triple-A where he doesn’t have much more to work on.
Next. Eloy Jimenez Hits Home Run in White Sox Win. dark
2019 might be another losing season or the Sox might surprise many people and have an exciting year. Whatever the case may be, Jimenez could get his first taste of MLB on one of the better days of the year, Opening Day. It will be interesting to see if Jimenez has a strong debut if he is in the lineup for the Sox against the Royals.