1. Hunter Pence
Who better to help along with the transition to a new team and environment than a player Mazara was in the same lineup with in 2019?
Pence, 36, had a resurgence this past season in which he hit .297/.358/.552 with 18 home runs and 59 RBI to give himself a 128 wRC+ and 1.8 fWAR in 83 games.
His 1.015 OPS against lefties would serve very well in a platoon role with his former teammate.
Despite his strong season, Pence would almost certainly be willing to have this type of role with the White Sox while also occasionally serving as the team’s DH if Edwin Encarnacion sits or plays first base.
While Pence’s ability on the field is the biggest reason he makes sense for the White Sox, his character and winning pedigree is another reason he’s a good fit.
For a young White Sox team, he can serve as a veteran presence as someone with postseason experience.
He’s also been known to be a great glue guy in the clubhouse and that would be very useful in terms of developing a strong winning culture in a year where the White Sox will have higher expectations than they have become accustomed to.
The only concern about bringing in Pence on what would likely be a one-year deal is that the Rangers had him play a mere 55 2/3 innings in right field last season due to the fact he had -4 DRS and a -1.7 UZR in that span.
That being said, it’s hard to see him playing that badly in a larger sample size there especially when you consider his 0 DRS and 0.6 UZR in left field last season.
Pence is probably the best option of the three that will be mentioned in this article.