Prior to Friday night's game against the Minnesota Twins, the Chicago White Sox made a roster move that was long overdue.
Veteran utilityman Josh Rojas was designated for assignment while catcher Korey Lee was recalled from Triple-A. Lee gives the White Sox three catchers on the active roster, joining Edgar Quero and Kyle Teel.
White Sox fans have been asking for Rojas to be DFA'd for quite some time now. He has proven himself to not be a Major League caliber player at this stage in his career, and making this move gives Will Venable more lineup flexibility.
Josh Rojas needed to be let go
In 69 games with the White Sox this season, Rojas hit .180/.252/.259 with a .512 OPS. While Chicago gave him a one-year, $3.5 million for his defensive versatility and steady offensive presence, he gave them neither this season.
-1.3 fWAR this season puts Rojas in 1,388th place among MLB players this season. 1,391 players have played in a Major League game.
Miguel Vargas, Curtis Mead, and Colson Montgomery are all capable of playing third base. Brooks Baldwin has also had some playing time there recently.
Montgomery, Chase Meidroth, and Lenyn Sosa have shortstop covered. Meidroth, Mead, and Sosa can also move over to second base.
Defensive versatility does the White Sox no good anymore. Especially when it comes form a player that has had a below-average glove for the first time in his big league career.
Korey Lee deserves another shot in the big leagues
With the team now carrying a third catcher on the roster, Will Venable can roll out both Edgar Quero and Kyle Teel in the lineup at the same time without risking forfeiting the DH if one of them gets injured. I'm not sure we'll see Lee in the lineup much, but his presence alone will be refreshing.
Lee is a good defensive catcher, and he';s earned his way back to the Major League with eight home runs in Trple-A since being sent down.
I think this could also be an audition for Lee to be traded in the offseason. He's clearly on the outside looking in for the White Sox moving forward, but if he flashed enough potential and get into his power, a lot of team could be interested in acquiring some catching help.