3 reasons why the Brett Phillips signing was a good move
Three reasons why the Chicago White Sox made the right move by signing Brett Phillips.
Weary Chicago White Sox fans, who have been hungering for a big free agent signing these last few weeks should, by now, be aware of the signing of Brett Phillips. Phillips, an outfielder, signed a minor-league contract with the White Sox that could, should he make the big-league roster, net him $1.2 million for the 2024 season. This is not a bad deal by any means.
The White Sox do need help in the outfield, but they might have needed more star power out there compared to what they have there with everyone not named Luis Robert Jr. Chicago doesn’t have that potent of an outfield and could use some hitters to make their lineup much more offense heavy.
As we all know, the outfield is a great place to stash some big-time hitters.
So, just how does signing Philips help the Chicago White Sox? What could it do for them in 2024? Why is it a good thing to have Phillips in the Sox system as we prepare to head into the 2024 campaign? Well, there are three reasons why he might become an asset to the White Sox in 2024 and we will take a look at those three reasons below.
He’s a cheap date
The signing of Phillips doesn’t hurt the White Sox if he succeeds or doesn’t. He’s not that expensive and the White Sox wouldn’t lose much money if he didn’t pan out. If he does work out, we hope, and ends up being a top-of-the-line outfielder with a solid bat who makes the majors, then I would suspect the White Sox would have gotten a great deal. If he falters, there is no harm or foul.
The White Sox do need help in the outfield, this is true and perhaps his glove will be just as handy as his bat. We shall soon see.
Throughout his career, Phillips's average is .187. His slash line is .187/.272/.347. That’s not stellar but Phillips could be due for a career revival, of sorts, in Chicago and maybe he will find youth. Perhaps he will end up being one of their top players. Or maybe not. Either way, the White Sox need all the help they can get, and Phillips is there to help. How much, we don’t know yet.
He has some potential
I can hear people laughing right now thinking that all Phillips is going to be is a bust. I don’t believe that’s going to be entirely accurate. Honestly, the White Sox or their fans don’t know what they have in Phillips, no one does until he gets up to the plate, gets out on the field, and plays. The 29-year-old isn’t that old (in what I call baseball years) and still has some fight left in him.
Right now, the White Sox are looking to get as much help as they possibly can from their players both in the majors and in the minors. I think that Phillips stands a chance of not only making the big-league roster before it’s all said and done but will also perform well at the plate. He just needs his opportunities and I think he has a shot at doing something good.
We can’t judge him on the past. We can only consider what Phillips will do in the future. His future is cloudy but quite possibly filled with a lot of great possibilities.
The X-factor
I talked a lot about the potential above and what Phillips might be able to do for the White Sox. We know that it’s hard to predict exactly what a player is going to do. There are so many factors. We know that before signing with the White Sox, Phillips was a marginal player who hadn’t done a whole lot in his time in the big leagues.
Quite frankly, if you look at his stats, he is underwhelming and that might signal to fans that Phillips is not going to pan out. But that could be wrong and White Sox fans hope that is wrong. We hope that he turns out to be a spectacular find that does a lot of good in Chicago.
Phillips will have some competition from the other guys that are on the roster who are pinned to outfield positions. It’s going to come down to whether he can shine at the plate. That’s what the White Sox need, someone who can hit the ball consistently and complement Luis Robert in the outfield.
Now, if Andrew Benintendi can pick it up a bit, and Phillips can shine, the White Sox could have a solid collection of outfield-hitting talent that could help them win games in 2024.