Chicago White Sox: A good playoff designated hitter plan
The Chicago White Sox need to have a good plan for the DH in the playoffs.
The Chicago White Sox need to have some more production from the designated hitter position going into the playoffs. They haven’t been to the playoffs in a very long time and they haven’t had a good DH in a long time either. It is almost like the two coincide with each other. They thought that Edwin Encarnacion would be the answer this season but he hasn’t lived up to the hype. We know what he has done in his career but they might need to come up with a new DH plan for the playoffs.
It felt like it might be worth it to give Andrew Vaughn some MLB at-bats before the season ends but with four games left, it feels unlikely at this point. Encarnacion’s struggles would have made it an acceptable transaction but now they might want to go another route. The kid isn’t going to be much of an upgrade at this stage of his development so we can look forward to him mashing baseballs in 2021.
If the White Sox want too keep Encarnacion on the bench but have a different plan for the DH come October, the answer to the problem is simple. You go with the elite catcher on the roster that isn’t behind the plate on that given day.
When James McCann is behind the plate, Yasmani Grandal should be the DH. When Grandal is catching, McCann should be the DH. It, as of right now, is the best way to get the best 1-9 lineup possible. They need to put their best foot forward if they are going to have a chance in the playoffs. They both play their position in the field well so they aren’t giving up anything defensively if one of them is the DH.
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The dynamic duo of McCann and Grandal in the starting batting line-up would also leave Encarnacion as a bench option. He might not be having the best season but the circumstances of this 2020 year are strange and that could be why. He is also one of the only players in the organization that has played in high leverage playoff games. He has produced big in a lot of those games as well. No matter what Rick Renteria decides, we have to hope it works out for the White Sox.