5 Reasons To Watch The Chicago White Sox This Season
It starts with Luis Robert Jr.
This is going to be a tough year for the Chicago White Sox no matter what manager Pedro Grifol tries to tell you.
The Sox lost 101 games last year and did not do much to upgrade the roster.
“I like what Chris Getz has done this offseason” yeah man it’s crazy how he took a 61-win team that lost many of its best players and didn’t replace any of them. That really took some doing.
— Patrick Nolan (@SoxMach_pnoles) March 5, 2024
When Paul DeJong is the biggest free-agent signing and trading for Nicky Lopez and Michael Soroka are the biggest moves of the offseason, that is not going to be enough to turn things around quickly.
That does not mean you have to completely ignore the White Sox.
Well, yes it does considering the owner wants more than a billion dollars in taxpayer money to build a new stadium because Bridgeport supposedly cannot help him financially support a team he barely puts money into. Remember, the White Sox are now the only team except the Oakland Athletics to not sign a player to a deal over $100 million. You know the standard doing rate for elite players (in some cases, just good ones).
If you are still a diehard who has stuck with this team going back to the "Kids Can Play" era, then there are still a few reasons to still watch this team.
Luis Robert Jr.'s pursuit of a 40/40 season.
Despite the team's weird attempt to replicate the Kansas City Royals this season, the Sox do have an MVP contender on the roster.
Robert Jr.'s 2023 season should have netted him the AL MVP had the Sox not lost 101 games and Shohei Ohtani not played for the Los Angeles Angels. The man hit 38 home runs with a .264/.315/.542 slash line and was a five fWAR player.
Fangraphs projects he will have another great season with a .267/.318/.492 slash line, 33 home runs, and will finish as four fWAR player.
Luis also wants to be more of a threat on the basepath. He stole 20 bags last season, but he has the speed to swipe even more.
40/40 season 🔜 https://t.co/IE8naT4Z7n
— Mike (@ChiSoxFanMike) March 5, 2024
Ideally, the White Sox should have traded him in the offseason for a haul of prospects to further accelerate the rebuild. He is signed through 2027 and is only 26. Plus, the Sox need at least one player worth the price of admission. Watching Robert Jr. pursue 40/40 is worth tuning in.
Eloy Jimenez attempts to have a breakout season
He has a tremendous amount of talent at the plate. He also has trouble staying off the IL. Eloy has yet to play over 135 games during his five-year career.
Last season, he appeared in 120 games where he hit 18 home runs and was just a .4 fWAR player. Injuries have left Jimenez as still nothing but potential. He crushed 31 home runs during his rookie season in 2019. Outside of the abbreviated 2020 season, he just cannot avoid injuries to stay in the lineup.
If he can avoid the IL, this has to be the year he puts it all together. The first reason is he has a club option next year. The second reason is it will help his trade value. His market will be limited to the DH as he struggles in the field. He may not have to play the outfield much this season.
The Sox have Kevin Pillar in Spring Training and should make the roster to play right field. We know the Milwaukee Brewers were rumored to be interested in adding his bat before the trade deadline. If he can stay healthy to produce the home run numbers of 2019, it could entice more contending teams to want to trade for him.
Plus, watching him hit home runs during a terrible season is nice to see.
Dylan Cease farewell tour.
He was the subject of trade rumors all offseason. The White Sox were reported to have an asking price equal to asking for the sun and the moon.
That is why he will be this year's Opening Day starter. The starting rotation is pretty bleak behind him. He does give the Sox a chance to win every five days. Well, as long as he returns to the Cy Cease form we saw in 2022.
If he dominates like he did that year, that will help general manager Chris Getz' demand for a major return in a trade. Make no mistake about it, the Sox need to trade Cease.
He is only under club control for one more year after this season. The Sox have made no public intention of offering him an extension. His value will still be high at this year's trade deadline since teams will get his services for a one-and-a-half (with the chance to trade him before next year's deadline to recover some of the costs).
This team is going nowhere with him in the starting rotation. It could go somewhere if he gets traded for the right return.
Colson Montgomery's debut.
The Sox' top prospect should make his major-league debut at some point this season. He is most likely headed to Triple-A to start the year since an injury limited how many at-bats he got in the minors last season.
At some point, Paul DeJong is going to be hitting south of .220 and Colson will be raking in Charlotte. That temptation to call him up will be too great especially if the Sox need a draw at the gate.
The shortstop is a top-10 prospect overall. He is 22 and can hit from the left side. He is probably the team's most exciting prospect since Robert Jr. and Eloy.
Hopefully, he lives up to the hype.
"Once I started getting compared to a World Series MVP... you can't help not to go look at all that stuff."@MLBPipeline's No. 9 prospect Colson Montgomery and @JonathanMayo talk Big League comparisons and untapped potential at @whitesox camp. pic.twitter.com/DyAM0SImVf
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) March 5, 2024
If he does, he has the potential to be a franchise anchor for a decade. Also, he could be the team's first 100-million-dollar contract.
Nick Nastrini and Jake Eder making their debuts.
It is highly likely these two young arms start a game or come out of the bullpen. Michael Kopech is bound to fail. The hope is Michael Soroka can stay healthy, but chances are good he ends up on the IL at some point. Hoping Erick Fredde and Chris Flexen can have career years is foolhardy.
Even if that does happen, it means those two should be flipped at the deadline.
That means at some point the Sox' two top pitching prospects after Noah Schultz should be making their starting debuts at some point.
Eder came to the Sox in the Jake Burger trade while Nastrini came over in the Lance Lynn deal. Both have the stuff to lead a rotation or at least be solid starting pitchers for six years. Hopefully, we get to see that potential at some point this season.
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