Luis Robert Jr. has five-tool player written all over him. Robert Jr. has shown various quantities of talent since his MLB debut. When healthy, he has been a nuisance for other teams to deal with.
When Robert Jr. is at full strength, the White Sox have received a 7.5 career WAR player. On top of that, he has also slashed .289/.334/474 with 36 home runs and 130 RBIs. Without a doubt, he is bound to be a superstar if he can ever play at full health throughout a full Major League season.
This is a big year for the 25-year-old. 2022 wasn't exactly what Luis had in mind for himself and it certainly wasn't what the team was expecting before the year started.
This is a put-up or shut-up year for Robert Jr. and watching how he handles the situation throughout the entire season will be interesting.
The Chicago White Sox have a lot of faith in Luis Robert going into 2023.
If he can stay can healthy and show signs of maturity with talent growth, he should be on everyone's radar for the most valuable player in the MLB. New skipper Pedro Grifol certainly believes so.
Pedro Grifol was asked about Luis Robert Jr. and his praises towards him were high.
Pedro Grifol on Luis Robert: “This guy has an opportunity to win an MVP in my opinion.”
— Daryl Van Schouwen (@CST_soxvan) February 17, 2023
Pedro Grifol has started off on the right foot with his new organization and he shows it by backing up all of his players. One name that stood out was Luis Robert Jr.
Grifol talked about Luis as someone who can catch fire and lead any team to the wins column, that's just how high his potential is. Grifol has been motivated to know not only Luis's goals but his entire team's work ethic.
The first-year skipper truly cares about winning and it's rubbing off on the other guys, giving them an uplifting start for the 2023 Chicago White Sox season.
Pedro Grifol, accompanied by the new hitting coach Jose Castro and the latest field coordinator Mike Tosar, took a trip in December to Luis Robert Jr.'s home.
Pedro Grifol, hitting coach José Castro and field coordinator Mike Tosar paid a visit to Luis Robert at the center fielder's home, as the new White Sox manager continues to meet with players pic.twitter.com/UeGMP1EStl
— James Fegan (@JRFegan) December 7, 2022
It's obvious that Pedro and the entire White Sox coaching staff are ecstatic about Luis Robert Jr. in 2023. They want a huge year from the center fielder and so does everyone in the south side of Chicago. The organization believes this is the year he takes the big leap from good to great.
Pedro Grifol was also asked about his seriousness, his answer:
Pedro Grifol was asked yesterday if he's a serious guy.
— Vinnie Duber (@VinnieDuber) February 19, 2023
"I've got my joking side. But you might not see it that often. ... I just take (spring) really serious. This is important. This is our preparation. This is our foundation. This is how we build our identity and our culture."
On top of his endless support for the gold glover, Pedro also has shown support for this entire organization as a whole. He's been the guy the White Sox have been missing for a very long time now and it shouldn't be swept under the rug without recognition.
The White Sox claim to not be in a rebuilding mode this year and Grifol is taking every second of Spring Training as seriously as possible, rightfully so.
This is a tough task to give Grifol in his first year as a Major League manager but he has a lot of talent to work with.
The White Sox have improved in the manager position. Now, they just need to stay healthy and play competitive baseball, especially Luis Robert Jr.