Having all these former players in the postseason is not a good look for the Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox's postseason chances may have died in April, but that does not mean the team does not have a presence in the playoffs.

It is just the type of presence that makes the franchise look bad.

Plenty of former White Sox players were part of teams who made the postseason and are still alive.

It makes you wonder if there is a lot of truth to players thriving once they escape the Southside. You at least have to wonder how the White Sox got the bare minimum for reliever Michael Kopech at the trade deadline.

Also, what do the New York Yankees know about Tim Hill, Jake Cousins, and Duke Ellis that the Sox did not?

Those three players were all on the Sox at one point this season. Tim Hill went from being one of the numerous problems for the Sox this season to being a valuable left-handed reliever for a team in the ALCS.

That is evidence that directly points to a player doing better the moment they are allowed to walk away from the hot mess that is the White Sox.

Cousins was with the club in spring training, but the Sox decided to go with other options in the bullpen and traded him to the Yankees before the season started. His performance for the Yankees would have also made him the Sox's best bullpen arm had he stayed.

Ellis is on the Yankees because they can have a run specialist on their bench with all the talent they have. The Sox were so bad this season that having him getting a cup of coffee with the team turned out to be a detriment.

The Yankees also have former Sox first-round pick Carlos Rodon in their rotation. Starting pitching was not the Sox problem this season, but it would have been nice to have him on the team in 2022.

New York also has two other former Sox bullpen arms on their roster.

The New York Mets are in the NLCS thanks in part to Jose Quintana. The Sox were unable to build a contending team around him and Chris Sale when those two were aces. Sale did not pitch in the postseason, but he was on the Braves roster all season and revived his career with them.

Quintana was traded to the crosstown rival Chicago Cubs to help spur last decade's rebuild. Instead of coming out the total winner in that deal, the Sox will have to settle for a draw at best as Quintana helped the Cubs get back to the National League Championship Series in 2017.

Dylan Cease and Eloy Jimenez were the crown jewel in the return. Both were pivotal parts of the Sox winning the 2021 AL Central. Both were also prime examples of the contention window being so short. Eloy was always hurt and was traded to Baltimore this year at the deadline.

The Sox's unwillingness to extend Cease is a reason he was traded to San Diego during spring training. The Padres might have been eliminated but they were eliminated with him as their ace and Fernando Tatis Jr. as one of their star players. The James Shields trade will always haunt the Sox, even if Tatis Jr. star is a bit tainted with the PED suspension.

The Braves also made the playoffs with former Sox reliever Reynaldo Lopez turning into an All-Star pitcher. Jesse Chavez was another prime example of the Sox not picking the correct veteran bullpen arm out of spring training, as he went from getting cut by the Sox to having another solid year in Atlanta.

The only two players being in the postseason that is not a terrible look for the White Sox is Paul DeJong's time with the Kansas City Royals and Tanner Banks with the Philadelphia Phillies. The Sox traded them at the deadline for future assets.

Otherwise, this former Sox presence in the postseason exploits the team's cheapness, culture, and inability to construct a decent roster.