The Chicago White Sox have a lot of question marks coming into spring training. A few of these questions are ones that have needed to be answered for years now but never have been. One of them is the second base position.
Ever since they traded Nick Madrigal to the Chicago Cubs in the Craig Kimbrel trade, there has been no long-term plan for that position. There have been a few bandaids for the situation but nothing stuck long-term.
Now, they are coming into camp with Romy Gonzalez as the guy with Lenyn Sosa as the potential backup. Of course, Leury Garcia is there too but White Sox fans don’t want to hear much from the team’s longest-tenured player.
Pitchers and catchers reported to spring training on Wednesday which meant we got to hear from Rick Hahn for the first time during this part of the season. He was asked a lot and he did address the second base woes that the team is currently dealing with.
The Chicago White Sox don't have much at the second base position.
Rick Hahn on second base competition:
— Chuck Garfien (@ChuckGarfien) February 15, 2023
“There’s been nothing but raves about Romy Gonzalez’s offseason.” He added, “There's still conversations ongoing elsewhere as well.”
When asked about this second base competition, he was clearly very complementary of Romy Gonzalez. He is clearly, in the eyes of Hahn, the guy at second right now. He did make sure to note, however, that there are still conversations going on elsewhere.
Nobody knows exactly what that means but it could be interpreted as the White Sox could still make a move for someone to come play the position. There are plenty of options out there for them to consider.
Gonzalez getting the job pretty much handed to him isn’t ideal but he has shown some flashes over the last handful of years. Now could be his time to shine with the opportunity that is given to him. Hopefully, if Rick Hahn sticks with him, Pedro Grifol helps him take it to the next level.
A big question mark is obviously the bat. At this point in time, it is fair to assume that he bats ninth if he is the Opening Day starter. In order for this to work, he needs to provide some kind of offense from this spot. Turning the lineup over to the top is all they are going to be asking from him.
As far as his defense, he is still learning but he can hold his own at second. It will be fun to see if he can develop any middle infield chemistry with Tim Anderson (who isn’t the greatest fielder ever either) so that they can make some plays.
The White Sox should be looking to address this issue if Romy can’t do the job on a regular basis. Rick Hahn seems confident in it right now but we’ll see how it goes in the first couple of weeks of the season. It shouldn't take long to figure out.