Three relievers White Sox should try to sign
1. Collin McHugh
The right-hander has somewhat become a jack-of-all-trades pitcher at this stage of his career as he’s proven capable of starting and relieving.
Over the last two seasons, McHugh has mostly been pitching out of the bullpen with a superb 2018 season highlighting his success there.
He very well might have had his best season as a major leaguer that season with an elite 1.99 ERA, 2.72 FIP, and 0.912 WHIP which was aided by a career-high 11.7 K/9 as compared to 2.6 BB/9.
In 2019, though, the Houston Astros pushed him back into the rotation with Lance McCullers Jr. out for the season after undergoing Tommy John Surgery and Charlie Morton leaving during the previous offseason to join the Tampa Bay Rays.
His 6.37 ERA in eight starts led the team to move him back to the bullpen where he looked much better over 27 appearances with a 2.67 ERA. His strikeout rate was notably higher as a reliever (10.7 K/9) than as a starter (9.2 K/9).
Well, the White Sox only really need him to be dominant as a reliever and given the 32-year-old’s success over the last two seasons in that role, there’s no reason for the team to not sign him.
2. Will Harris
Unfortunately, this other Houston Astro will forever be remembered by fans as the pitcher who gave up the game-deciding two-run home run to Howie Kendrick in Game 7 of the World Series against the Washington Nationals.
While it certainly was a heartbreaking moment, he will be grossly underrated in Astros history as he actually was the model of consistency during his time in Houston.
Over five seasons, Harris registered a superb 2.36 ERA, 2.99 FIP, and 0.987 WHIP with 9.5 K/9 as compared to 2.2 BB/9.
His ERA during that time only shot over 3.00 once (2018). In fact, Harris’ best season in the category came in 2019 (1.50).
However, he’s now made 60 or more appearances in four of the last five seasons which means he has a lot of wear-and-tear on his arm that could result in him breaking down sooner rather than later.
On top of it, being 35-years-old doesn’t exactly bode well for success going forward for him and it’s possible his best days could be behind him.
It shouldn’t deter the White Sox enough to avoid pursuing him, though, as his age might actually bring down his price. Also, despite father time creeping up on him, it hasn’t hindered his ability to perform yet.
3. Steve Cishek
Speaking of models of consistency, Cishek has been one as well throughout his entire career so far.
In parts of 10 seasons, the right-hander has a 2.69 ERA, 3.22 FIP, 1.151 WHIP, 9.5 K/9, and 3.4 BB/9. His ERA has never risen over 3.58 in his career which is very impressive.
Over 70 appearances in 2019, Cishek had a 2.95 ERA, 4.54 FIP, 1.203 WHIP, 8.0 K/9, and 4.1 BB/9.
His FIP is somewhat concerning given it was over 1.50 runs higher than his ERA. Considering how poorly the White Sox ranked defensively this past season, it is certainly alarming.
However, his consistency throughout his career should combat those concerns somewhat.
The biggest issue with regards to signing Cishek is the new three-batter minimum that will be implemented in 2020.
A submarine arm like Cishek might not fare well in a scenario where the team can’t pull him out of the game if a tough left-handed hitter comes to the plate.
His career splits show a significant decrease in performance for him when he has faced lefty hitters as they have a .694 OPS as compared to same-handed opponents who have a .553 OPS against Cishek.
Concerns for that didn’t really get assuaged in 2019 either as left-handed hitters actually had a .733 OPS against him.
While he’s much better against right-handed hitters, his splits aren’t bad to the point where you couldn’t reasonably leave him in against left-handed hitters.
The advantage of being a submarine arm is that injury concerns are not as big for him as they would be for other pitchers who have made 150 appearances over the last two seasons.
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All three of these relievers should be considered heavily and the White Sox must look to sign at least two relievers from the Harris, McHugh, Cishek, and Hudson tier for bullpen help.