The Chicago White Sox are going to be without Michael Kopech for the 2020 season.
The Chicago White Sox were so looking forward to Michael Kopech making some starts for them this season. He is a bright young kid who has a great future ahead of him but he is going to opt-out of this season. The White Sox put out a statement from Rick Hahn on the matter on Friday afternoon.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) July 10, 2020
This is awful news as a fan. First and for most, it is Kopech’s decision and we need to support it. This fanbase owes it to him because he is going to be great for the White Sox. This is a kid with Cy Young talent that just needs to get out there when he is ready. This is a deeper team than it has been in a while but Kopech’s future is so bright and it would have been nice to have him this year but we respect his decision. As Rick Hahn said, we can’t wait to see him with the White Sox in 2021.
The worst part about this is that when Kopech makes his first start in 2021, we will be pushing three years since he made his electric MLB debut at the end of 2018. He had Tommy John’s surgery so that kept him out for the remainder of 2018 and all of 2019. COVID-19 shut down 102 games of this season which could have caused a mess of things for a lot of players. Kopech is choosing not to play in this 60 game slate that begins in 14 days.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) July 10, 2020
The White Sox didn’t really stop at Kopech with the bad news either. A few minutes later they announced that Yoan Moncada and Jose Ruiz are going on the ten-day injured list. A lot of people are putting two and two together to speculate that they are the two players who tested positive for COVID-19. It is especially tough for Moncada because the White Sox desperately need him.
The news today wasn’t fun to read but a good team overcomes these types of things. Both Kopech and Moncada are going to come back better than ever in due time. Hopefully, whatever is wrong with Moncada doesn’t go beyond the ten days and he is able to pick up where he left off in 2019. As for Kopech, I am so excited to see him back in the White Sox clubhouse in 2021.