Chicago White Sox: Is Aaron Bummer a long term closer?

Aaron Bummer could be the new closer of the Chicago White Sox.

The Chicago White Sox might be in a weird spot with the closing pitcher right now. We don’t know if Alex Colome is going to be brought back or not. It would be really smart to bring him back but both sides have to be willing. They have a very good bullpen and bringing back Colome would only make it better. However, if he is gone, using Aaron Bummer in that role wouldn’t be the worst thing to ever happen. He might be the best relief pitcher on the team.

Bummer has been used to finish games in the past so it wouldn’t be completely new for him. He is more known for being one of the best setup men in the American League but he surely has what it takes to be a closer. If he stepped into that role next year, the White Sox would surely feel good about it.

Of course, they need to make sure that he is healthy to get the most out of him. He suffered a bicep injury during the 2020 season and that limited him to nine appearances. In 9.1 innings during those nine appearances, he threw a remarkable 14 strikeouts. He had a 0.96 ERA and a 1.071 WHIP as well. It is a small sample size but it’s not like it was his first time being an awesome pitcher.

In 2019, he had a 2.13 ERA and 0.990 WHIP. He threw 60 strikeouts and only issued 24 walks. All of that came in 67.2 innings pitched over 58 appearances. He wasn’t credited with a decision so his record was 0-0 but he did have one save. All of this is a very good level of production over a full season. Going into his age 27 season, we can be confident that he has a lot more gas left in the tank.

For that reason, the White Sox signed him to an extension over the 2019-20 offseason. Now, they might need him more than they ever did. There are a lot of great relievers in the White Sox bullpen and Bummer is expected to be the best of them all. Hopefully, he is good at whatever role the White Sox provide for him.