5 designated hitter possibilities for Chicago White Sox
As the offseason rolls on and fans wait for the lockout to end, there has been a reoccurring theme in the Chicago White Sox free agency wishlist. Second base, right field, and pitching depth have dominated the conversation.
There is a good reason for this. After the White Sox traded former first-round pick Nick Madrigal and their trade for Cesar Hernandez flopped, there is a gaping hole in the middle infield. Meanwhile, the White Sox have not had a good right fielder since Adam Eaton, the 2016 version that is.
The starting rotation which was the strength of the team during the 2021 regular season completely imploded in the ALDS. For these reasons, those three position groups have been on the top of the White Sox checklist.
However, there is another position that needs also needs to be addressed. The White Sox need to solidify who their designated hitter will be. This is an issue that has flown under the radar over the past couple of seasons but has never been properly addressed.
The Chicago White Sox could really use a great designated hitter full time.
In 2021, Andrew Vaughn was slated to be the designated hitter. However, injuries to Eloy Jimenez and Adam Engel in Spring Training quickly forced him to learn how to play the outfield.
In 2020, the White Sox added an experienced designated hitter in Edwin Encarnacion. Encarnacion was a three-time All-Star that had racked up over 400 home runs before coming to the White Sox. He made a living as a DH with Toronto for eight seasons. Throughout his 16-year career, he played more games at DH than anywhere else.
The move did not work out as planned. While he did hit 10 home runs in 44 games, he failed to really do anything else. Encarnacion only had 25 hits and batted an abysmal .157. He hasn’t been back in the league since.
In 2019, Yonder Alonso was slated as the designated hitter. Like, Encarnacion, Alsonso was a former All-Star who looked like he could be the long-term solution. He was released before the end of the year after hitting just .178, the lowest mark of his career and just seven home runs.
The White Sox trotted out Matt Davidson in 2018. Once again the results were disastrous. While Davidson did manage to hit 20 home runs, he batted just .228, with 62 RBIs and 165 strikeouts.
As you can see, mediocre production from the designated hitter slot has been a reoccurring theme for the Chicago White Sox. If the White Sox hopes to fulfill their championship aspirations then it needs to be addressed. One of these would be best:
Andrew Vaughn
Andrew Vaughn has been a great hitter for the Chicago White Sox since his arrival.
If Rick Hahn turns to an internal solution then Andrew Vaughn would be the leading candidate. He was selected third overall in the 2019 MLB draft. He was touted as the best hitter coming out of college baseball and Baseball America quickly named him the Best Power Hitter in the White Sox system.
When the 2021 season rolled around, Vaughn seemed like the perfect candidate to be the new designated hitter. He showed a mature approach at the plate and impressed his coaches and teammates during Spring Training.
However, there were a couple of things working against Vaughn. Because of the COVID-19 pandemic, he spent the entire 2020 season at the Schaumburg training facility. Before that, he played only 55 minor league games.
Hitting in the Major Leagues is hard, even when you have Minor League seasoning. However, coming in with limited professional experience made his job hard.
His challenges as a hitter increased exponentially when injuries forced him to learn an entirely new position in left field on top of how to adjust to major league pitching. So while his .235/.309/.309 slash line and 15 home runs seem, pedestrian, they are quite impressive considering the circumstances.
With more stability on the depth chart and a year of experience under his belt, Vaughn should only improve. One cause for concern was his splits against right-handed pitching. He hit just .221 against righties with 69 strikeouts.
Against lefties, those numbers improved to .269 and his strikeouts dropped to 32. If Vaughn is the designated hitter he needs to figure out how to hit righties or a platoon system may need to be in order.
Gavin Sheets
The Chicago White Sox should be all-in on Gavin Sheets as a full-time employee.
If the White Sox opts for a platoon system with Andrew Vaughn, then Gavin Sheets may be the man for the job. Sheets burst onto the scene in 2021 and excelled with the White Sox.
In his first game in the majors, he became the first White Sox player since Craig Wilson in 1998 to have multiple hits and RBIs in his Major League debut. One game later, he launched his first of 11 home runs he would hit in just 54 games.
Sheets quickly gained the confidence of Tony La Russa who penciled him into the lineup more frequently as the season progressed. When it was all said and done, Sheets hit .250 with 34 RBIs, a .506 slugging percentage, and a .830 OPS.
The rookie even carved out a spot on the postseason roster, which came as a surprise to many. Sheets didn’t disappoint in the ALDS either. He was one of the few right spots for the White Sox offense, batting .333 with one home run, one RBI, and a 1.000 OPS.
What Sheets brings to the table is a left-handed power bat that the White Sox desperately needed. At 6’5″ 230 lbs, he is even built like a DH. However, with such a small sample size it is fair to wonder if pitchers will adjust to him.
His splits against left-handed pitching are also not promising. He hit .111 against lefties with no home runs and just two hits. Sheets lacks the defense to play right field so his easiest route to a roster spot is at designated hitter. Platooning with Andrew Vaughn would be awesome.
Kyle Schwarber
It would be awesome to see Kyle Schwarber come play for the Chicago White Sox.
While Kyle Schwarber was bumbling in the outfield on the Northside of Chicago, Cubs fans dreamed that the DH would come to the National League. While Schwarber’s defense has improved over the years, he is built to play in the American League.
He is coming off a career year that saw him make his first All-Star team. After spending the first seven seasons with the Chicago Cubs, he signed with the Washington Nationals. He batted a career-high .266 and launched 32 home runs. Before the trade deadline, he was sold off to Boston and his production increased.
He hit .291 with the Red Sox and had a .435 OBP. Schwaber played half of his games as the designated hitter for the Red Sox. Left-handed power in a hitter-friendly ballpark like Guaranteed Rate Field is a perfect combination for a designated hitter.
Schawrber’s postseason resume also makes him an attractive option. Schwarber is battle-tested and has a ring to show for it. In the 2015 NL Wild Card Game, he went three-for-three with a home run and three RBIs.
He hit .500 in the NLDS that season with two home runs and added more two home runs in the NLCS making it a grand total of five postseason home runs in his first nine games.
In 2016, he missed a large portion of the season due to injury, including the first two rounds of the playoffs. He returned for the World Series and had seven hits in five games with three walks and two RBIs. He finished the series with a .500 OPB and helped the Cubs capture their first World Series title since 1908.
In his most recent postseason action with the Red Sox, he had three home runs and hit above .300 in the ALDS and ALCS. He also drove in six. In six seasons of postseason action, he has a .878 OPS and .518 slugging percentage. That will play.
Most importantly, he has a ring. Championship experience is always a good thing to have in a clubhouse, especially with a young and hungry team like the White Sox.
The one thing standing in the White Sox way is his potential asking price. He will demand upwards of $70 million and that’s not the type of money the White Sox typically shell out for a player.
Nelson Cruz
Seeing Nelson Cruz play for the Chicago White Sox would surely be interesting.
Nelson Cruz has tormented the White Sox for years. He played with the Minnesota Twins for three years and hit 76 home runs, seemingly half of those coming against the White Sox.
Cruz is a 17-year veteran that has accumulated quite a resume. He has 449 career home runs, 1238 RBIs, a lifetime .277 batting average, seven All-Star appearances, four Silver Slugger awards, and took home 2011 ALCS MVP.
Cruz has also finished in the top-10 of the MVP voting five times. Best of all for the White Sox, he is the most experienced DH on the market. He has 881 games as a designated hitter under his belt.
Like a fine wine, he seems to get better with age. In his age 41 season, Cruz hit 32 home runs and drove in 86 RBIs. He also hit a respectable .265. Before being traded to the Tampa Bay Rays, he was hitting .297. Just imagine what he could do next to Jose Abreu and Eloy Jimenez.
Because of his age, Cruz would not require a long-term commitment. This is ideal for a White Sox team looking to capitalize on their championship window without being tied down by a long-term commitment. He has shown he can still rake at an old age and that he is more than comfortable hitting at Guaranteed Rate Field.
Mitch Moreland
The Chicago White Sox might take a different turn for their DH in the 2022 season.
Mitch Moreland is not a splashy move, nor is he a big name. But it is exactly the type of move the White Sox have made in the past.
Moreland was an All-Star in 2018 with the Boston Red Sox. He also won a Gold Glove as a first baseman with the Texas Rangers in 2016. Last season, Moreland was primarily relegated to designated hitter and pinch hitter.
He played 61 of his 69 games there in 2021. For his career, he has 130 games at the position. Moreland is coming off a sub-par year with the Oakland Athletics. He batted .227 with 10 home runs and 30 RBIs.
However, had he played a full season, he would have been on track for around 20 home runs. He was playing his home games hitting in a pitcher-friendly park which likely affected his total. For his career, he has hit 186 out of the ballpark, with six seasons of 20 plus homers.
His career batting average is a solid .251 to go along with a .446 slugging percentage and .764 OPS. With the right lineup protection around him, Moreland can be a productive player. At the age of 36, he should come at a reasonable price too.
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