Chicago White Sox general manager Chris Getz feels like he left the Winter Meetings have accelerated the team's rebuild.
Despite the infusion of talent to the team's farm system, the 2025 season looks like the White Sox will lose 100 games for the third straight season. The hope is the loss total does not threaten to break a record the 2024 club just set.
Yet another 100-loss season staring at White Sox https://t.co/AcpkkUS5Cl
— Daryl Van Schouwen (@CST_soxvan) December 13, 2024
Plus, with Garrett Crochet now with the Boston Red Sox, there is really no star power on this team at all. Maybe Luis Robert Jr. can regain the superstar form we saw in 2023. However, he may not be with the club as he could still get traded before Opening Day.
Do not put it past a contender to roll the dice on Robert Jr. because if it comes up sevens on the figurative craps table, a team will have a talented outfielder at $40 million through the 2027 season. That is cheap these days.
Also, do not put it past the White Sox front office to try to get something for him even if this is not the offseason to trade him. There is a good chance the gamble of him returning to 2023 form and then dealing him at the 2025 trade deadline will go bust based on his injury history. If he has another injury-riddled season, it would make more sense to pay his $2 million buyout and move on.
Then you are losing him for nothing like Yoan Moncada or a career minor-leaguer like Eloy Jimenez. That is why the front office is likely motivated to deal him for even half of his ideal value now.
That is why this projection is not going to include Luis Robert Jr.
There is a good chance a team like the Reds or whoever is without a talented bat when the free agent outfield market thins out will circle back, especially since the Sox are rumored to want just something significant rather than the Crochet haul.
So what will the 26-man Opening Day roster look like?
For now, let's go with the assumption the Sox sign a veteran starting pitcher and trade Luis Robert Jr. Otherwise, the only free-agent moves the White Sox could make is adding some bullpen help and more players on minor-league deals with an invite to camp.