Chicago White Sox: 3 reasons to praise Tony La Russa
The Chicago White Sox has a very good record of 36-23. They are coming out of the off-day on Monday with a four-game lead in the American League Central. That goes into today’s action as the best lead that any first-place team in the league has.
There have been up and down moments for Tony La Russa as the manager but there is no doubt that his guys are playing well. We may not agree with him all the time but there are three good reasons to give him praise.
1. First Place
The Chicago White Sox are in a good spot as they try to dominate their way to a division title.
As mentioned before, the White Sox are in a very good position in the American League Central. The Cleveland Indians are a good team but you like the White Sox chances against them. Every time they battle with one another it is tough but that is natural between two good division rivals. The Minnesota Twins were supposed to be that team that gave the White Sox fits this season but they have not been very good at all. They can still go on a run of course but the White Sox have outperformed them in every way.
Tony has done everything he needs to do to keep this team in first place. We don’t agree with his old school ways a lot of the time but that was to be expected. There is a reason that he is now the second-winningest coach in the history of the sport. With all of the injuries that this team has had, Tony deserves a lot of credit for where they are in the standings. Hopefully, they can continue to build on that lead.
2. Jake Lamb, Billy Hamilton, and Yermin Mercedes
Tony La Russa deserves a lot of credit for Chicago White Sox depth players playing well.
Not many teams would be able to withstand injuries to two guys like Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert. Those two would more than likely combine for 70 home runs and 180 or more RBIs. They haven’t even scratched the surface of their potential yet either which is incredibly scary for the rest of the league. Tony La Russa, however, has found some diamonds in the rough when it comes to replacing them.
Jake Lamb, Billy Hamilton, and Yermin Mercedes have all played very well to get the White Sox to where they are. Of course, other stars like Yoan Moncada, Jose Abreu, and Tim Anderson amongst others play a big part in the offense but these depth players need to contribute.
In the case of Mercedes, it is nice to see that Tony giving him a spot as the DH while they use Andrew Vaughn in the outfield has paid off. He has also let him play through his first career slump and it ended in him producing the game-winning run over the weekend.
The same can be said for Billy Hamilton and Jake Lamb. Those two probably don’t make the team or stay without the injuries. We didn’t like seeing them in the lineup early but La Russa kept them in knowing what it might lead to down in the season. He knows that it is a long season and things can improve if you work at it. That has happened for both Lamb and Hamilton. It would be nice to see Tony keep rewarding these guys.
3. Pitching
Tony La Russa has handled Chicago White Sox pitching very well for the most part.
The Chicago White Sox has the best rotation in all of baseball. The bullpen was a little shaky early on but it is starting to come together so you can make a solid claim that they have the best pitching staff as a whole. That comes with guys like Lucas Gioltio and Dallas Keuchel having “April arm” before their last few starts and Dylan Cease still needing a bit more work. Now, all three of them are guys you would be totally fine going into a playoff series with.
There were a couple of occasions where La Russa left Lucas Giolito in too long or pulled someone too early but that is going to happen with starters. There have also been a few cases of bad bullpen management but he always seems to learn from it. Now you can confidently say that he has a pretty good grasp on the arms in his rotation and bullpen.
The way that Michael Kopech has been handled this season so far has been magnificent. He is a superweapon reliever that has been given a few starts as well. He is one of the most important pieces to the entire project and will be a superstar name in no time. By the end of 2021 or into 2022, he will be one of their frontline starters. Hopefully, La Russa can keep handling this pitching staff well as they get into the summer and work towards the playoffs.
Related Story. An update on the American League Central. light
La Russa isn’t done getting criticized. That is going to happen when he deserves it. However, when you see that he is the second-winningest manager of all time, you have to look at why. He has had some triumphs this season as mentioned and all we can do is hope that the good play continues.