White Sox: There is no need to target Whit Merrifield in free-agency

As you've probably heard by now, the Chicago White Sox are interested in trading for Kansas City Royals catcher Salvador Perez. That would not be a good idea as they don't need to be trading assets for an aging catcher like that.

Well, Perez isn't the only player who was a member of the Kansas City Royals for a long time that the White Sox like right now. The same rumor suggests that they are also interested in trading for Whit Merrifield.

The White Sox need a second baseman and have needed one for a long time. However, Merrifield is not the one they should be targeting in the year 2023. He is someone that would need to be signed in free agency which is something that makes him different than Perez.

It is also different because Merrifield has spent the last season and a half with a different team besides the Royals. Kansas City sent him to the Toronto Blue Jays in 2022. He was an All-Star twice in Kansas City and once in Toronto.

The Chicago White Sox don't need to be thinking about Whit Merrifield.

Merrifield is not a World Series champion with the Royals either. He was a rookie in 2016 when they were the defending champions. He was, however, a great player for most of his career.

In 2023 with Toronto, he had an okay year. He was an All-Star but he might not have deserved it as much as he did in other years. He slashed .272/.318/.382 for an OPS of .700. He hit 11 home runs, had 67 RBIs, and 66 runs scored. This led to a WAR of 0.8. It's very okay production.

The reason that adding Merrifield makes no sense for the White Sox is that they are not going to be a competing in 2023 so adding a player entering his age 35 season won't help them in the long term. They would add him and then have the same problem in two years or less.

If a team like the Atlanta Braves or Los Angeles Dodgers needed a quick fix at second base for 2024, they would make sense for Merrifield. They have a championship window open and could use an older player like that if needed. Chicago is not there.

This White Sox team needs to focus on the future and getting things set up for the long term. Finding a young second baseman to develop should be more at the top of mind. Paying Merrifield would not work out well for them.