White Sox: The Mount Rushmore of second basemen
Mount Rushmore of White Sox second basemen: Yoan Moncada
Yes, Yoan Moncada is the third baseman for the Chicago White Sox. But entering the 2021 season, he has played 203 games at second base for the White Sox compared to just 181 at third. So for now, he’s considered a second baseman. That will change later this season unless something odd happens.
The White Sox acquired Moncada and three other young players in December 2016 from the Boston Red Sox in the trade that sent Chris Sale east.
Taking over at second base in mid-July 2017, Moncada remained at the spot in 2018. A move to third base in 2019 brought with it a huge uptick at the plate, as his average increased from .235 to .315 and his OPS shot up more than 200 points to .915.
In the shortened 2020 season, Moncada’s production dipped — he hit a career-low .225 with a .705 OPS in 52 games and was only 1-for-13 in the Wild-Card Series loss to the Oakland Athletics.
In four seasons with the White Sox, Moncada has hit .261 with a .787 OPS in 387 games and 1,671 plate appearances. He has 56 homers, 186 RBI and has scored 215 runs. As with many young players in this era, he swings for the downs often — he has a 30.9% strikeout rate since coming to Chicago.
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The Red Sox signed Moncada, a Cuban native, in March 2015 and he had a cup of coffee with Boston in September 2016.