James McCann said goodbye to the Chicago White Sox on social media.
James McCann was a phenomenal player for the Chicago White Sox. We knew he was going to the New York Mets but it was pending a physical. It became officially official on Tuesday. The Mets announced it on Twitter and McCann acknowledged it as well. McCann gave the city of Chicago, the White Sox, and the fans a warm message thanking them for everything. It sounds like he truly loved his time there and is thankful for it.
The White Sox couldn’t justify bringing McCann back after giving good money to Yasmani Grandal during the last offseason. In any given year, Grandal can be the best catcher in the league so they made the right decision but it is still sad to lose McCann.
McCann did a great job helping the White Sox turn the corner as an organization. He was there at the beginning of 2019 and quickly helped fans forget about the disaster that was the 2018-19 offseason. He was an All-Star in 2019 and was even better in 2020. The White Sox also ended a 12-year playoff drought in 2020 and McCann deserves credit for helping them do that. In that season, he did a great job platooning the catcher position with Grandal.
Of course, McCann also worked very well with Lucas Giolito. Before he got there, Giolito was one of the worst starting pitchers in all of baseball. McCann came in and really helped him work things out and now he is one of the best pitchers in the league.
Thank you, Chicago. pic.twitter.com/2RkyUlczNO
— James McCann (@McCannon33) December 15, 2020
It makes complete sense that McCann feels this way about Chicago and the White Sox. The Detroit Tigers non-tendered him before he came to the White Sox so that had to be a low point in his career. Well, he turned it around with the White Sox and he seems extremely grateful for that opportunity. He now has a big contract that set him up financially as a result.
With the Mets, McCann should be able to succeed just as much. He is going to continue being a good hitter for a while which will really help their offense. He is also going to catch some of the best pitchers in the world, including Jacob deGrom. It is going to be fun to watch him go there and play well as their number one guy. He deserves congratulations from everyone because he has earned everything he is currently being given. It was nice to see him acknowledge the White Sox and the fans.