Chicago White Sox: Yasmani Grandal deserves a good player grade
Yasmani Grandal had a good year in his first season with the Chicago White Sox.
The Chicago White Sox surprised the baseball world when they announced last November that they have signed Yasmani Grandal to a four-year deal. Nobody had the scoop early and the Sox were the ones who announced it. It was strange to hear at first because James McCann was coming off a great year where he was an all-star catcher. McCann ended up resigning as well and they formed an elite catching duo in 2020.
Every rebuilding team has that one winter where they start to make moves that start turning them around. Grandal was the first of a few big free agent signings that the White Sox made when they decided they were done rebuilding. He came in and was almost everything they needed him to be for most of the year.
Grandal is so good because of his ability to be a defensive catcher and hit baseballs with his bat. In any given year, Grandal can be the best catcher in all of baseball. He was certainly one of the best catchers in 2020. He was a nominee for the American League Gold Glove as a catcher to show his defensive prowess. He didn’t win it but he was certainly one of the best with his glove.
His offensive numbers were pretty good as well. He wasn’t as productive as we have become used to seeing him but it was only a 60 game sample size. He started off cold but then started to turn it on down the stretch. He was one of the White Sox best hitters in the second half of the season and in the playoffs. His final season slashing was .230/.351/.422 with an OPS of .773. He hit 8 home runs and had 27 RBIs to go with 27 runs scored.
Final Grade: B
His grade might not be as good as it would be in other years but he could contribute a bit more offensively. His defensive play all year long was very valuable and he did turn it on with the bat by the end of the season. However, he gets a B instead of an A because the offense wasn’t as good for the entire season as it has been in the past. Hopefully, it is because of the 60 game season and he can keep the momentum he had going into next season.
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2021 Outlook:
He is sure to go into 2021 with a good amount of confidence because of the way he ended the season offensively. He is a key piece to the White Sox being a successful baseball team. We don’t know what the status of James McCann is yet so Grandal may or may not assume the full-time role. Either way, he was a big key to the White Sox turning the corner in 2020 which was the goal when bringing him in. The hope in 2021 is that they are a World Series contender. If that were to happen, Grandal would need to be an impact player.