Chicago White Sox: This is the perfect 2021 starting lineup 2.0

The Chicago White Sox have been so good at building their roster up from nothing. We are seeing it with starting pitching, the bullpen, and the batting order. They have everything they need to contend for a World Series. They just have to put all of those tools together to form a team that is good enough to do it. With Tony La Russa there and a lot of new members on the coaching staff, they should be able to take a big leap forward in 2021.

The Chicago White Sox is a team set to have a scary batting order in 2021.

Earlier in the offseason, we went over what would be their perfect 2021 lineup. It included potential free agents or trades that could be made along with the usual suspects. Not every one of those dreams came true so it is a bit inaccurate now. They do, however, have some new faces ready to fill in the empty spots that were left after the 2020 season came to an end.

The White Sox now have a better idea about what they are going to send out on a daily basis. The pieces are there in spring training and the names that are going to show up on the first lineup card are pretty clear. We don’t know for sure the order but it is always fun to take a guess. It is, of course, an educated guess based on the 2020 season and what we have seen so far in spring training.

This lineup has a lot of depth, power, and speed. There are some great players who will come off the bench but the starting nine should look relatively similar in almost every game. This is the perfect order for them going into this new season:

2. Yoan Moncada is the biggest x-factor in the Chicago White Sox lineup.

Yoan Moncada had a tough year in 2020. He had a COVID-19 diagnosis right before the season started and he never really got going. He had bursts of brilliance at the plate because he is so talented but it was clear that the energy wasn’t there. It didn’t hurt his defense at all as he was a Gold Glove Award nominee but the bat was an issue for him.

When he is healthy, he is one of the best players on the team. Fortunately for the White Sox, they had one of the best offenses in the history of the team in 2020 with very little production from Moncada. It is scary that a lot of the guys around him are only getting better and he is returning fully healthy this year. If he does return to his 2019 form, this lineup is even better than we could have imagined.

Moncada is a guy who can have 30 home runs, 30 stolen bases, and a .300 batting average. This all comes while playing stout defense so he really could be in the MVP conversation. His name appeared on a few ballots in 2019 so don’t be surprised if that is in his 2021 future as well. This is an important player that needs to have a marvelous year.

3. Yasmani Grandal is one of the best and the Chicago White Sox needs him to be elite.

The Chicago White Sox are fortunate to have one of the best catchers in the world on their team. In any given year, he can be the number one best catcher but you are always locked into him being top three. He got off to a bit of a slow start with his new team in 2020 but really turned it on towards the end of the season and into the playoffs. He was one of the best players on the team in the postseason so that is a really good sign.

Grandal is one of the only players on the team that has deep playoff experience. He can be a huge piece to a wildly successful team every year. The White Sox need that now more than ever as James McCann is no longer there. They formed the best catching duo in the entire league last season but McCann took a deal with the New York Mets. McCann deserves all of what he got because he is awesome.

Now, the White Sox just needs the best version of Yasmani Grandal. There are backup options like Jonathan Lucroy and Zack Collins but Grandal is the guy. He is an elite pitch framer and one of the best offensive catchers going. He can also play some first base or DH on days that they want to rest his legs but have his bat.

4. Jose Abreu is the best option for the Chicago White Sox cleanup hitter.

Some people might have expected Jose Abreu to be batting third but it is better to have him fourth. Tim Anderson, Yoan Moncada, and Yasmani Grandal are always reliable to be on base. They don’t rely on power as much as some other elite White Sox hitters so that is where Abreu comes in. He is one of the best RBI machines in the history of the White Sox. He led the league with an RBI per game pace in 2020 as he had 60 RBIs in 60 games.

Abreu’s efforts in 2020 won him the American League MVP. It was an outstanding effort by an outstanding player. He is truly making a name for himself as one of the best players the team has ever had. The two sides stayed loyal to each other over some hard rebuilding years and now they are reaping the benefits of it all.

Abreu has more talent around him now than he ever has. When he first showed up they were still a shell of their glory days in the mid-late 2000s. They rebuilt but kept him around and now he is happy to be there. Now we can only hope that he is able to continue taking advantage of the fact that there is some serious talent around him. He doesn’t need another MVP (although that would be nice), he needs to help lead this team on a deep playoff run.

5. Eloy Jimenez is going to have an amazing year for the 2021 Chicago White Sox.

The Chicago White Sox has something so special in Eloy Jimenez. He even feels lost in the shadows of some other players that the White Sox have but Jimenez might truly be their best pure hitter. This guy is so good and is only getting better. This is a player who can hit 50 home runs and have an outstanding batting average. If he cleans up his defense just a little bit, he could win the MVP.

When he first joined the White Sox at the Major League level, it was clear that he was one of the most polished hitters to ever come through the system. It took him a few weeks to get truly going but once he did, it was an unreal season. He hit 31 home runs during his rookie year with that season-opening slump and two somewhat lengthy stints on the IL that year. His potential at the plate is unlimited.

White Sox fans get a little bit of an extra jolt rooting for him because of where he came from. He came over with Dylan Cease and two other prospects from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Jose Quintana. The White Sox dominated the Cubs in that trade. In 2021, he is going to make them regret it even more because this is the year that he becomes a well-known superstar in a full season.

6. Luis Robert is a very nice option to have hitting sixth for the Chicago White Sox.

Let’s be clear with each other. Luis Robert has the potential to be one of the best players in all of Major League Baseball. He is a true five-tool player and is as good at everything as any player on the team. He was remarkable during his rookie season and it is only going to get better. Robert hitting sixth might not last very long but it is the perfect spot to start him going into the 2021 season.

As he starts to be a bit more of a consistent power hitter, he will move up in the lineup. The problem is that there are so many players worthy of being the fourth hitter so it is a really good problem to have. Hitting behind Abreu and Jimenez isn’t too bad for Robert in year two. This lineup is so deep now and Robert hitting sixth is a prime example.

Robert was the clear favorite for the rookie of the year after his first month but went into a little bit of an offensive slump in games 40-55. He got hot again to end the season and was one of their best hitters in the playoffs. He was also elite defensively all year long and won the centerfield Gold Glove. It was a brilliant rookie season with the circumstances and it is only going to get better for Robert.

7. Andrew Vaughn’s Chicago White Sox rookie season would look nice batting seventh.

The Chicago White Sox were in lots of rumors regarding their DH situation this offseason. There were guys like Joc Pederson and Marcell Ozuna to consider but there were actual legs to the Nelson Cruz rumor. He sure would have looked good in a White Sox uniform and he also would no longer be on the Minnesota Twins if he did that. Unfortunately, he went back to the Twins so the White Sox had to decide something else for the DH spot.

It sounds like Andrew Vaughn is going to be taking that spot. He has never played a single game in Major League Baseball but he is already one of the best hitters the White Sox have. When he was drafted, he was the best power hitter in the nation and we are starting to see why. He has been awesome so far in spring training which is a very good sign.

A hitter like Vaughn batting seventh could look really nice as the season goes along. He might be the future three or four-hitter but this team is so deep that they can have him hit this low in the lineup. He will be coming up after the team’s six best hitters which could really help him. He also has some talent coming after him in the lineup which should allow him to see some nice pitches.

8. The Chicago White Sox lineup is a lot different from when Adam Eaton last played for them.

The Chicago White Sox had a lot of rumors swirling about who their new right-fielder was going to be. It was clear that the Nomar Mazara experiment was a failure so they let him go. Instead of signing one of the big free agent right fielders that were out there, they went with an old friend named Adam Eaton. He is back to try and bring some more help to the White Sox organization.

Eaton was traded away to the Washington Nationals in 2016 and the White Sox returned Lucas Giolito, Dane Dunning, and Reynaldo Lopez. It was a fantastic trade for both sides as the Sox had some new arms to develop (which they did) and the Nationals won the World Series with Eaton. Now, the White Sox are hoping that they can get their championship out of the deal.

Eaton certainly isn’t going to be betting first as he did back in the day. There might be a game or two where he hits first or second but the eight-spot is perfect for him. In this spot of the order, he will certainly be able to hit for contact with some of the power bats that come ahead of him. Eaton is going to play right field for most of the season. He may platoon at times with Adam Engel but you can expect to get a healthy dose of Adam Eaton this season.

9. Nick Madrigal is a dream number nine hitter for this Chicago White Sox team.

A lot of the White Sox lineup, as you can see, is power-driven. There are some explosive bats in this group but they are almost all good for contact as well. Following them comes Nick Madrigal batting ninth. He is one of the most unique players in the game today. He has little to no power in his bat. Don’t be surprised if he hits exactly zero home runs in 2021. He rarely even ever hits for extra bases. What he does do at an elite clip is hit singles.

With guys like Tim Anderson and Yoan Moncada always set to come after him in the lineup, having Madrigal on base will be very useful. He has a very good eye and rarely strikes out. He has the potential to win a batting title with a majority of his hits coming via the single. That is something that is really going to help the top of the order generate runs.

Madrigal already has a Minor League Gold Glove Award under his belt as well. He plays very good defense at second base. It was a bit of an adjustment at first last season and it was clear that there were some nerves but he will have it going well in 2021. He isn’t a nice hitter that you just deal with because he is so good at defense. He can do both. Expect him to be one of the best number nine hitters in all of baseball to cap off an elite lineup.