Happy New Year from The Baseball Kid

 

White Sox sign Adam Engel to one-year deal, avoiding arbitration

Adam Engel

One minor announcement for the White Sox today: The team signed outfielder Adam Engel to a one-year, $1.35 million contract, avoiding arbitration.

Engel had a career-best season in a part-time role in 2020. He batted .295/.333/.477 in 36 games. He totaled five doubles, three home runs, one triple, 12 RBIs and 11 runs scored in 93 plate appearances. Engel, a plus defender, played all three outfield positions and started 23 games last season.

Over the past two seasons, the right-handed-hitting Engel has carved a niche as a platoon player. Since the beginning of 2019, he has batted .310/.355/.466 against left-handed pitching. He homered off Oakland left-hander Jesus Luzardo in Game 1 of the 2020 playoffs.

In 2021, Engel is expected to platoon in right field with left-handed-hitting Adam Eaton, who was signed to a one-year contract earlier this offseason.

Following up: San Diego Padres acquiring Yu Darvish from the Cubs

Yu Darvish

One day after we talked about the San Diego Padres acquiring former Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell from the Tampa Bay Rays, we've learned sources say the Padres also are acquiring Yu Darvish from the Cubs.

According to the report, it's a seven-player blockbuster. Darvish, who finished second in the National League Cy Young voting in 2020, is headed to the Padres along with his personal catcher, Victor Caratini. 

In return, the Cubs receive right-handed pitcher Zach Davies and four kids -- outfielders Owen Caissie and Ismael Mena and shortstops Reggie Preciado and Yeison Santana.

Santana is the grizzled veteran among that quartet of prospects. ... He's 20 years old. Caissie and Mena are 18 years old. Preciado is 17. The latter two don't even have a Baseball Reference page yet.

It's hard not to like this deal for the Padres. Darvish has three years and $59 million remaining on his contract, and that's not cheap. But hey, didn't we just watch Darvish pitch like an ace on the North Side of Chicago in 2020? He was 8-3 with a 2.01 ERA in 12 starts. 

The Cubs don't win the NL Central without him, and you could make a good case that he deserved the Cy Young. With that production, he was earning his big contract.

San Diego's projected starting rotation is as follows:

1. Darvish
2. Snell
3. Dinelson Lamet
4. Chris Paddack
5. MacKenzie Gore

Those top three are formidable. The back of the rotation is young with plenty of upside. You can see a scenario now in which the Padres challenge the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West this year, and that's the whole point of the deal.

What's the point of this for the Cubs? Well, they just cleared a bunch of salary. That's it. They just traded their best starter -- perhaps their best trade piece, given that their entire offensive core had a down year in 2020 -- for a league-average right-hander (Davies) and a package of prospects who have never played about Rookie Ball.

None of these guys ranked any higher than No. 10 on the list of San Diego prospects. I suppose one or more of them could be good in 2024 or 2025, but I'm surprised the Cubs couldn't do better for Darvish.

Sources: San Diego Padres acquire Blake Snell from Tampa Bay Rays

Blake Snell

For all the talk about the San Diego Padres being the hip team in the National League -- if not all of baseball -- they are still looking up at the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West.

The Padres need to swing big if they are to catch up, and they did so Sunday by acquiring left-handed starting pitcher Blake Snell from the Tampa Bay Rays.

Snell, the 2018 Cy Young Award winner in the American League, played five seasons with Tampa Bay, going 42-30 with a 3.24 ERA in 108 starts. He's an established top-of-the-rotation pitcher, and he has three years and $40 million remaining on his contract.

With those years of team control, Tampa Bay needed to get a good package of players in return, and the Rays did secure four players: pitchers Luis Patino and Cole Wilcox, and catchers Francisco Mejia and Blake Hunt.

More on those guys in a minute, but for the Padres, they needed a solution for their starting rotation with Mike Clevinger injured and out for 2021. Dinelson Lamet was injured at the end of the 2020 season, too, and missed the playoffs. Beyond that, San Diego has Chris Paddack -- who was excellent as a rookie in 2019, but struggled this year -- and veteran righty Zach Davies. 

So, even with Snell, and assuming good health for Lamet, the Padres have only four starting pitchers in place. MacKenzie Gore, a high-end left-handed pitching prospect, also is a candidate for the San Diego rotation. But the Padres have a lineup that is ready to win now. They are coming off a 37-23 season, and they needed to get a little more predictability in their starting rotation -- the injuries to their pitching staff caused them to get run over by the Dodgers in the playoffs.

Snell is a great fit for that need, and San Diego may not be done yet. The Padres are rumored to be in talks to acquire Cubs ace Yu Darvish. Stay tuned on that.

As for the Rays, I'm guessing they look at Patino as the main piece of the trade. The 21-year-old made it to the majors in 2020, appearing in 11 games. The right-hander throws 97 mph and has three pitches, and he was the No. 2 pitching prospect in the San Diego organization, behind only Gore. He sounds like the kind of pitcher the Rays make into someone good.

Wilcox is a bit of a lotto ticket. He was the Padres' third-round draft pick in 2020, but he was given first-round money. He's a right-hander with a big fastball. He's 6-foot-5, 232 pounds and has the SEC pedigree, having played his college ball at the University of Georgia.

Mejia is a familiar name. He was once a big prospect in the Cleveland Indians organization. He was traded to San Diego as part of the Brad Hand deal. He fills a need for Tampa Bay, but he's yet to prove he can hit in the big leagues -- as shown by his .225 career batting average and .668 career OPS. To be fair, Mejia has accumulated only 362 career plate appearances, but he's also 25 years old now. If the breakout is coming, it needs to happen soon.

Hunt is a 22-year-old catcher who played in High-A in 2019. He was the No. 14 prospect in the Padres' organization, and he is said to have a good throwing arm behind the plate. At 6-foot-3, 215 pounds, there is hope he can develop power as a hitter, but he only homered five times in 89 games in 2019.

This is a decent haul for the Rays, especially if Patino develops quickly. But if you're the Padres, this is a move you have to make if you want to catch the Dodgers. I applaud them for making it.

Merry Christmas from The Baseball Kid

 

White Sox expected to add Cuban outfielder Yoelqui Cespedes

Some international signing news: The White Sox are expected to add Cuban outfielder Yoelqui Cespedes, according to multiple reports.

The 23-year-old outfielder is the half-brother of veteran MLB outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. Yoelqui Cespedes is ranked No. 1 on MLB.com's list of international prospects. 

Of note, Cespedes is only ranked No. 12 on Baseball America's list of international prospects, which is proof that opinions vary greatly on these guys who we haven't seen play pro ball in the United States.

It's also true that Baseball America tends to favor younger prospects, and Cespedes might be penalized in those rankings because he's a little bit older than the other guys on the list.

In any case, here's what we know: Cespedes will likely sign his deal on Jan. 15, the first day of the international signing period. The agreement is reportedly worth $2 million, which isn't a lot in baseball terms, and that makes Cespedes worth the gamble.

The right-handed hitting outfielder is 5-foot-9, 205 pounds, and like a lot of Cuban players who come to the U.S., he's described as having ample power, with plenty of swing-and-miss in his game. Cespedes has the athleticism to play center field, and the throwing arm to play right field.

If it were to work out for the Sox, Cespedes would probably end up in right field. It's reasonable to believe that Luis Robert is the center fielder for years to come.

Cespedes scores 50 or better in all five tools on MLB Pipeline's 20-80 scale. Do with that information what you will. This is a raw but talented player who needs some time in the minor leagues. For the Sox's sake, let's hope he can get that playing time in a place like Triple-A Charlotte in 2021.

Players coming off mediocre or bad seasons are signing contracts

Michael Wacha

With Christmas only a week away, the Major League Baseball offseason continues to be slow on news. There are plenty of quality free agents still on the market, and, in fact, most of the players who have recently signed contracts are coming off mediocre or bad seasons.

A few examples:

• Pitcher Michael Wacha signed a one-year, $3 million deal with the Tampa Bay Rays. Wacha was 1-4 with a 6.62 ERA in eight starts and 34 innings with the New York Mets last season.
• Pitcher Jonathan Holder signed a nonguaranteed contract with the Cubs. If he makes the club out of spring training, he'll earn $750,000 in 2021. Holder was 3-0 with a 4.98 ERA in 18 relief appearances with the New York Yankees last season.
• Pitcher Anthony DeSclafani is headed to the San Francisco Giants on a one-year, $6 million deal. He pitched nine games (seven starts) for the Cincinnati Reds in 2020, going 1-2 with a 7.22 ERA.
• Catcher Mike Zunino is staying with Tampa Bay on a one-year, $2 million contract that includes an option for 2022. Zunino batted .147/.238/.360 with four homers and 10 RBIs in 28 games for the 2020 American League champions.
• Pitcher Alex Claudio is headed to the Los Angeles Angels on a one-year, $1.25 million deal. The lefty worked 19 relief innings with the Milwaukee Brewers in 2020, posting no decisions and a 4.26 ERA.

It's pretty incredible that guys who are not talked about much are the ones getting contracts, while all the notable names are still unsigned. Just another example of how up is down and down is up in 2020.

The biggest free agent linked to the White Sox is ... Liam Hendriks?

Liam Hendriks

The White Sox are 92-1 when leading after eight innings over the past two seasons. That is good evidence that the bullpen is NOT the greatest area of need on the South Side of Chicago.

Yet, the biggest free agent who has been linked to the Sox is a closer, Liam Hendriks.

Granted, the Sox's incumbent closer, Alex Colome, also is a free agent. As of this writing, it remains unclear who will be tasked with closing games for the Sox in 2021.

We'll also acknowledge that Hendriks is a more dominant relief pitcher than Colome. Based on recent track records, it would be foolish to argue that Hendriks would not help the Sox. Let's take a look at the numbers from these two pitchers over the past two years:

Colome in 2019: 4-5, 2.80 ERA, 30 saves, 61 IP, 55 Ks, 23 BBs, 1.066 WHIP, 8.1 K/9, 3.4 BB/9

Hendriks in 2019: 4-4, 1.80 ERA, 25 saves, 85 IP, 124 Ks, 21 BBs, 0.965 WHIP, 13.1 K/9, 2.2 BB/9

Colome in 2020: 2-0, 0.81 ERA, 12 saves, 22.1 IP, 16 Ks, 8 BBs, 0.940 WHIP, 6.4 K/9, 3.2 BB/9

Hendriks in 2020: 3-1, 1.78 ERA, 14 saves, 25.1 IP, 37 Ks, 3 BBs, 0.671 WHIP, 13.1 K/9, 1.1 BB/9

There's no getting around it. Hendriks was the best reliever in the American League in 2020. And he's better than Colome. He strikes out more batters. He walks fewer batters. In general, fewer batters reach base against him. That's exactly what you want in a closer.

Here's the problem: To sign Hendriks, it's probably going to take a four-year deal, worth somewhere between $50 million and $60 million. That sort of outlay would probably be the biggest the Sox would make in this most unusual of offseasons.

The question isn't whether Hendriks is good. The question is whether he's the best use of (apparently) scarce resources.

Closer has not been a problem for the Sox. If need be, they could probably retain Colome on a two-year commitment for a lot less -- maybe two years, $20 million. And even if Colome leaves, you still have two left-handers (Aaron Bummer and Garrett Crochet) and three right-handers (Codi Heuer, Evan Marshall and Matt Foster) who can be used in high-leverage situations.

Meanwhile, the Sox had a right fielder last season (Nomar Mazara) who posted an OPS+ of 64. League-average is 100, so that means Mazara was 36% below league average.

They also had a DH (Edwin Encarnacion) who posted an OPS+ of 70, or 30% below league average.

These are glaring, massive holes that are begging to be solved through free agency. Colome is not as good as Hendriks, but he's also not below league average. The closer spot simply is not a liability, while right field and DH are.

The Sox have already strangely plugged right field with Adam Eaton, who had a 76 OPS+ last season -- he should fit right in, LOL.

To the Sox's credit, they plugged a hole in the starting rotation by trading for Lance Lynn, who is both good and reasonably priced. Lynn will earn $8 million in 2021.

That means there still should be room with the payroll to make a significant addition on a multi-year deal. Should that money be spent on an upgrade at closer? Not in my world. A better use of money would be adding an impact bat who can help you each and every day. 

You don't need a $15 million closer to win a World Series.

MLB, MLBPA disagree on whether to play 162 games in 2021

The constant labor disputes in Major League Baseball are so tiresome. I don't even have the energy to comment on this too much, but since it's the news of the day in the sport, here's a link that describes what is happening.

In a nutshell, the owners want players to be vaccinated for COVID-19 before they arrive at spring training, and as far as they're concerned, they don't care if that means backing up the start of the regular season until May.

The MLB Players Association disagrees. Players believe they've proven they can follow the protocols and play a full season -- with full pay, of course.

So, get ready for another knockdown, drag-out taffy pull between unreasonable people.

If I thought owners were legitimately trying to delay the season for health and safety reasons, I could respect that. Alas, I don't buy it. I think owners want to delay the season because they don't want to take the financial hit of more games being played without fans in the stands.

I believe we will see fans in the stands before the 2021 season comes to an end. In fact, I think we'll see it by the summer. But it won't happen in April.

Like any fan, I want 162 games. I will return to the ballpark as soon as it is allowed. Hell, I'd go to the ballpark today, if there were a game to be played. I'm hungry for baseball. I miss it as much as I do in any other offseason.

It's going to piss me off to no end if the season is delayed or shortened because of purely financial reasons.

White Sox manager Tony La Russa to plead guilty to reduced charge, report says

White Sox manager Tony La Russa will plead guilty to a reduced charge of reckless driving stemming from his arrest for driving under the influence of alcohol last February near Phoenix, according to a report by James Fegan of The Athletic.

The plea deal stipulates that La Russa be required to serve a day in jail, but the state of Arizona said it is not opposed to reducing that sentence to a work release or home detention, if a judge approves.

La Russa, who is scheduled to appear in court Dec. 21, will also be required to pay $1,383 in fines and perform 20 hours of community service, according to The Athletic.

The general reaction to all this is that La Russa is getting off easy, given that this was his second drunken driving arrest. He pleaded guilty to misdemeanor DUI charges in Jupiter, Fla., in 2007, when he was manager of the St. Louis Cardinals.

It's probably a break for La Russa that this arrest comes 13 years later in a different part of the country. It also probably helps him that he's a member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. Those who are rich, well-known and able to afford good legal representation often seem to fare better than the average person when dealing with the criminal justice system.

Neither the Sox nor La Russa have issued any comment on these reports.

James McCann headed to New York Mets on four-year deal

James McCann

A previous post this week talked a lot about White Sox general manager Rick Hahn's horrible free agent signings, so let's bring up one of his better ones: James McCann.

After two productive seasons in Chicago, McCann is heading to the New York Mets on a four-year, $40 million contract.

This is a really good turn of events for McCann, who was non-tendered by the 98-loss Detroit Tigers after the 2018 season. The Sox picked him up on a one-year, $2.5 million scrap-heap deal, and McCann responded by making the All-Star team in 2019.

In his first season with the Sox, McCann batted .273/.328/.460 with 18 home runs and 60 RBIs in 118 games. McCann didn't have the greatest framing statistics in the world as the Sox's primary catcher, but the offensive production was good.

Still, the Sox were understandably unconvinced that McCann was the long-term answer behind the plate. What if 2019 was just a career year for McCann? So, Hahn jumped at the opportunity to sign Yasmani Grandal to a four-year, $73 million contract last November.

McCann was brought back on another one-year deal, and he and Grandal formed an effective one-two punch behind the plate for the Sox in 2020.

Even with limited playing time, McCann produced. He batted .289/.360/.536 with seven home runs and 15 RBIs in 31 games. He did not complain about his diminished role and often was praised for his leadership. And he became the personal catcher for Sox ace Lucas Giolito, who provided a 2020 season highlight by throwing a no-hitter against the Pittsburgh Pirates on Aug. 25.

But with Grandal in the fold for the long haul, the writing was on the wall for McCann. He sees himself as a starting catcher, and he's proven over the past two years with the Sox that he deserves a shot to be the No. 1 guy. He was not going to get that in Chicago.

He'll get that opportunity in New York. As Sox fans, we wish we could have the Grandal-McCann tandem behind the plate for another few years, but realistically, that was never going to be cost-effective.

You're not going to pay McCann $10 million a year to catch twice a week, and you can't blame the Sox for not being interested in matching an offer like that. You simply thank McCann for a job well done and wish him well with the Mets.

In the meantime, the Sox need a second catcher. The internal options are suspect: Zack Collins, Yermin Mercedes and Seby Zavala. We talked about these guys before: Collins and Mercedes have hit at the Triple-A level, but both are subpar defensively. Zavala is a good receiver, and a good catch-and-throw guy, but it's unlikely he'll ever hit well enough to stick in the major leagues.

So, do the Sox go outside the organization? If the answer is yes, here are your options in free agency: Jason Castro, Robinson Chirinos, Tyler Flowers, Sandy Leon, Yadier Molina, Kurt Suzuki and Mike Zunino.

Do we like anybody on that list? 

White Sox GM Rick Hahn shouldn't be counting on guys on 1-year deals

Adam Eaton

It's no secret that I'm not a fan of White Sox GM Rick Hahn. I think he's replacement level, and I've never understood the irrational love he receives from some segments of the fan base.

I don't think his track record in free agent signings is good, and a lot of that stems from the massive failures we've seen the Sox have over the past six or seven years shopping at the bottom of the market.

And by the bottom of the market, I mean guys who are signing one-year deals. The latest Sox signing, Adam Eaton, comes on a one-year deal and is being sold to fans as a right field solution for a "World Series or bust" season.

Color me skeptical. Kudos to Jim Margalus over at Sox Machine for putting together a list of previous Hahn one-year contracts. It's every bit as bad as you think it is. Let's take a look at some of these names, and the WAR of those players:

2014:

• Felipe Paulino, 0 WAR
• Scott Downs, -0.5 WAR
• Ronald Belisario, -1.5 WAR

2015:

• Geovany Soto, 1.0 WAR
• Emilio Bonifacio, -0.8 WAR
• Gordon Beckham, 0.7 WAR

2016:

• Dioner Navarro, -0.7 WAR
• Alex Avila, 0.3 WAR
• Austin Jackson, -0.1 WAR
• Jimmy Rollins, -0.1 WAR
• Mat Latos, 0.4 WAR 

2017:

• Derek Holland, -1.6 WAR

2018:

• Miguel Gonzalez, -0.7 WAR
• Hector Santiago, 0.7 WAR 

2019:

• Jon Jay, -0.8 WAR
• James McCann, 1.0 WAR
• Ervin Santana, -0.4 WAR

2020:

• Gio Gonzalez, -0.3 WAR
• Edwin Encarnacion, -0.5 WAR
• Steve Cishek, -0.2 WAR

As Margalus notes, that's a total of -4.1 WAR for players that the Sox invested a total of $78.25 million in. Take out the two successes -- McCann and to a lesser extent Soto -- and it's $74.25 million invested for a -6.1 WAR.

So, you can understand the skepticism whenever the Sox sign a one-year stopgap. I'm a fair man, so let me say this: There's a lot of below-average or bad players on this list who were brought on with low expectations. Some of these signings were made to fill gaps in rebuilding seasons.

You can make an argument -- and a good argument -- that a lot of these players were available on one-year deals for a reason. 

That being said, I can retort by saying that Eaton is available on a one-year deal for a reason. He's 32 years old. He's often injured. He's been injured three of the past four seasons, in fact, and he's coming off a down year. His best years were from 2014 to 2016 with the Sox, and he hasn't been the same player since.

These kinds of "take a flyer" signings were fine during a tanking period, but this isn't rebuilding anymore. By the Sox's own words, this is time to win a championship.

So why is the front office still aiming low in free agency? Just asking.

C'mon, Hahn. C'mon, Jerry Reinsdorf. Step up, prove me wrong and sign a difference-making free agent. There are good fits out there.

Minor league affiliates remain the same for White Sox amid restructuring

Minor League Baseball is being restructured and realigned this offseason, causing much confusion and speculation about whether major league teams would be changing their affiliates at multiple levels.

Things are starting to sort themselves out now. On Wednesday, Major League Baseball formally invited minor league affiliates to join the new "system."

Nothing is official yet, because invited minor league franchises need to sign "Professional Development Licenses." The licenses are essentially an acceptance of the aforementioned invitation.

There are 120 minor league teams that received invitations -- four for each major league club. You can find a complete list of invitations here. 

What does this mean for the White Sox? Turns out, not much. The Sox on Wednesday invited Triple-A Charlotte, Double-A Birmingham, High-A Winston-Salem and Low-A Kannapolis to be their minor league affiliates for 2021.

Apparently, Kannapolis is changing its nickname from the Intimidators to the Cannon Ballers, but aside from that, the Sox's minor league affiliates are the same as they were in the good ol' pre-pandemic days of 2019.

As a matter of fact, the Sox are the only team among the 30 to have the exact same full-season affiliate alignment in 2021 that they had in 2019.

Thirteen other clubs maintained their affiliates, but there are changes in hierarchy because of league shifts.

There was some speculation that Winston-Salem and Kannapolis would end up in the same league because of realignments in the East Coast A-ball leagues. If that had happened, the Sox would have had to find at least one new Class-A affiliate.

That ended up not happening, so everything is status quo, and the Sox still comfortably have all their minor league teams tucked in the Southeast.

White Sox trade for pitcher Lance Lynn (OK), sign outfielder Adam Eaton (huh?)

Lance Lynn

We asked for some offseason moves, and now we have two. The White Sox on Tuesday acquired veteran right-handed pitcher Lance Lynn from the Texas Rangers in exchange for right-hander Dane Dunning. 

They also agreed to terms with right fielder Adam Eaton on a one-year, $7 million contract.

Let's start with the Lynn move. The 33-year-old had two good seasons in Texas back-to-back. In 2019, he went 16-11 with a 3.67 ERA and finished fifth in the American League Cy Young Award voting. 

He followed that up in the shortened season of 2020 by going 6-3 with a 3.32 ERA, good enough to finish sixth in the Cy Young voting.

Over those two seasons, Lynn has missed plenty of bats with his fastball-cutter-heavy approach. He struck out 246 batters in 208.1 innings in 2019, and 89 batters in 84 innings this past season. 

Lynn joins Lucas Giolito and Dallas Keuchel at the top of the Sox's starting rotation. In 2020, Keuchel finished fifth in the Cy Young voting, while Giolito was seventh. This means the Sox have three of the top seven American League pitchers in 2020 on their roster for 2021.

And even with the departure of Dunning, there is some depth. Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech and Reynaldo Lopez will be expected to vie for the remaining two rotation spots. Don't be surprised if the Sox add another veteran starter to provide additional competition. (Jose Quintana? Adam Wainwright? James Paxton?)

I like Dunning and thought he showed promised during his seven starts with the Sox in 2020, during which he went 2-0 with a 3.97 ERA. However, he projects as a back-of-the-rotation pitcher over the long haul. Your farm system should be able to churn out pitchers like Dunning regularly, so there shouldn't be a lot of harm in using him as a trade piece for a more established pitcher.

One drawback to this deal: Lynn only has one year left on his contract. He'll make $8 million in 2021, a bargain if he continues to produce in the same manner we saw in Texas. That adds urgency for the Sox next season. If Lynn is your "finishing piece" for the rotation, then you have to do everything possible to win right now.

And since Lynn doesn't make a ton of money, you figured there would be room left in the payroll to sign a high-end right fielder, right?

Well, too bad, we'll get Eaton whether we like it or not. The 32-year-old is coming off a rough, injury-plagued season with the Washington Nationals, in which he batted .226/.285/.384 with four home runs and 17 RBIs in 41 games.

His career slash line is .282/.360/.416, so I'm sure the Sox are hoping he'll bounce back to something resembling that. However, "hope for the best" is not a great strategy in a win-now season. And I'm not really convinced the Sox needed to pony up $7 million to sign this player.

For me, Eaton isn't a guy you sign on Dec. 8. He's the guy you sign when you've whiffed on all your other targets. In short, he's a fallback option. 

Even if the Sox aren't in the bidding for George Springer, I'd still have Michael Brantley, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Eddie Rosario ahead of Eaton on my board -- and maybe the Sox will still sign one of those guys. 

It's just a weird business strategy to make a secondary free agent signing your first offseason move. It's early in the offseason at this point, so maybe as time goes along, we'll see how Eaton fits into the big picture.

I'm OK with the Lynn move, but not overly impressed with settling for Eaton right now.

Dick Allen, who should be in baseball's Hall of Fame, dies at 78

Dick Allen

Dick Allen, one of four players to win an American League MVP award in a White Sox uniform, died Monday at age 78.

The right-handed-hitting slugger played in the majors from 1963 to 1977, mostly with the Philadelphia Phillies. He played three seasons with the White Sox from 1972 to 1974, and his first year on the South Side was the best of his career.

Allen won the 1972 American League MVP award, batting .308/.420/.603 with 37 home runs, 113 RBIs and a ridiculous 199 OPS+. He led the league in home runs, RBIs, walks (99), on-base percentage, slugging percentage, OPS and OPS+ in what was without a doubt one of the best single seasons ever posted by a White Sox player.

In 1974, Allen's last year with the Sox, he again led the AL in home runs with 32. All total, Allen batted .307/.398/.589 with 85 home runs and 242 RBIs in three years on the South Side.

We mourn the loss of Allen, while also pointing out that this man was very clearly a Hall of Fame player. He should be in Cooperstown, but isn't, and while he still might get there one day, it's unfortunate that he won't be around to receive that honor.

Allen was a seven-time All-Star, who won the National League Rookie of the Year award with the Phillies in 1964. He finished in the top 10 of the MVP voting three times in his career, and during his 11-year peak from 1964 to 1974, he led the league in offensive categories 19 times.

During those 11 years, his offensive WAR was 68.5, better than any other player of that time. That's no small statement, because Allen's contemporaries included Hank Aaron (63.9), Frank Robinson (59.0), Carl Yastrzemski (56.3), Joe Morgan (55.4) and Pete Rose (52.4).

Allen's OPS+ of 165 was also best during that 11-year peak, meaning he was 65% above league average for players at his position.

During that same time period, Allen ranked fourth in baseball in runs created and on-base percentage, fifth in home runs (with 319), sixth in WAR, seventh in RBIs, ninth in walks, 11th in batting average and 12th in doubles. 

Allen probably isn't in the Hall because he wasn't a good defensive player, and he wasn't well-liked by writers. To which I ask, who cares? Allen had a period of dominance that lasted more than 10 years, during which he was one of the best hitters in the game by any measure. That, to me, makes him a Hall of Famer.

In 2014, Allen fell one vote short of being elected to the Hall by baseball's Golden Era Committee. The committee was to meet and vote again this winter, but that meeting was canceled because of the COVID-19 pandemic. (You mean to tell me they couldn't have met on Zoom like everybody else does these days?)

There was a chance Allen could have gotten the call this year, had that meeting happened. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. It's a shame. 

Len Kasper named White Sox radio play-by-play announcer

Here's the biggest surprise of the offseason so far: Longtime Cubs TV announcer Len Kasper is moving to the South Side. He will become the radio play-by-play voice of the White Sox on ESPN 1000.

Kasper will join Darrin Jackson as the permanent replacement for Ed Farmer, who died April 1 at age 70. Andy Masur filled in throughout the 2020 season, and I figured he was the front-runner for the job. 

Not so. Turns out, Kasper says he sought the Sox out because he's always wanted to work on the radio. Interesting. 

The general rule of thumb is TV jobs are better and more high profile than radio jobs, and certainly, there are few TV gigs more high profile than the Cubs. But hey, if Kasper wants to work on the radio, welcome to the South Side, Len!

Sox fans have said for years that the radio booth could benefit from a true play-by-play voice, and Kasper is that. I can't say that I have a strong feeling about Kasper's ability one way or the other -- I don't watch many Cubs games -- but I do like that the Sox are adding an experienced broadcaster to their booth.

It's better than hiring a former player, or some other "Reinsdorf favorite" for the job. Like most Sox fans, I look forward to the day when the phrase "Reinsdorf favorite" is put into retirement.

In any case, Kasper won't exclusively do radio work. We'll see him in the TV booth on NBC Sports Chicago for 20 to 25 games a season. He'll fill in alongside Jason Benetti when Steve Stone takes a few games off.

Kasper and Benetti are friends, and word is they will be creating "several multimedia projects" throughout the year. Not sure what that means, but I'm intrigued, and I'll be listening. It sounds as though Kasper and Benetti are planning to start a podcast as well. Once again, I'll be listening.

And I guess that's the point, to get people to listen, right?

Non-tender list adds outfield options for White Sox in free agency

Eddie Rosario

Teams around Major League Baseball non-tendered 59 players Wednesday, and some of them are outfielders who bat left-handed. 

The White Sox need a right fielder, preferably one with some left-handed pop, so the speculation only increases as more options become available.

We all know George Springer, a right-handed hitter, is the top free agent outfielder on the market. If the Sox are to sign him, it would require the biggest contract in team history, and the competition is expected to be fierce. Therefore, I'm not expecting it to happen.

In a previous blog, I advocated for signing *both* Michael Brantley and Jackie Bradley Jr. Another free agent whom I haven't mentioned is Joc Pederson, a left-handed corner outfielder who just won a World Series ring with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

However, three other players can be mentioned in this mix after they were non-tendered by their respective teams: Eddie Rosario, Kyle Schwarber and David Dahl. Let's look at how these players could fit in with the Sox:

Rosario: If we weren't in the middle of a pandemic, the Minnesota Twins probably would have tendered Rosario, who batted .281/.317/.493 over the past four seasons. He's a free swinger, as that low on-base percentage suggests, but he produces runs. 

Over those same four seasons, he's hit 96 home runs and driven in 306 runs. For his career, his 162-game averages are 28 home runs and 90 RBIs. And he doesn't turn 30 until next September, so he's a good bet to continue that production for another couple of seasons. The Twins apparently decided, however, that he is not worth his projected $12 million arbitration number.

I don't think Rosario's worth that, either, because he's not a great defensive outfielder. No way would I put him in right field. The Twins have always put him in left field. This player would be a decent acquisition for the Sox, because he can play left field in a serviceable way -- better than Eloy Jimenez can -- serve as a designated hitter most of the time and give you some pop from the left side.

In short, he's a fallback option if the Sox fail to sign Brantley, who is the best player on the market for such a role. It's worth noting that neither Brantley nor Rosario are good enough with the glove to be the left-handed half of a platoon in right field.

Schwarber: The crosstown Cubs are cutting payroll, and Schwarber getting non-tendered is the first domino to fall on the North Side. As Sox fans, we give Cubs fans a hard time all the time for overrating their own players, and Schwarber is a prime example of that, so let's not fool ourselves into believing that this player is a great fit on the South Side. He is not.

Schwarber is a terrible defensive outfielder. Absolutely terrible. Sure, he stands in left field with a glove on his hand, much like Jimenez does, but he's a significant liability out there. Schwarber has to hit in order to be effective, but in 2020, he did not hit. He batted .188/.308/.393 with a 50.8% percent ground-ball rate and a 30% strikeout rate. 

He hit 11 home runs. That's nice. It's way better than Nomar Mazara, but "better than Mazara" is damning with faint praise. That's still subpar production for a designated hitter, and that's all Schwarber is.

If the Sox sign Schwarber, he'd be nothing more than the left-handed half of a DH platoon with ... who exactly? While Schwarber will hit some home runs and take his walks, this doesn't feel like the best fit among the available players.

Dahl: The Colorado Rockies non-tendered Dahl because he had a terrible 2020 season. He batted .183/.222/.247 with not a single home run and nine RBIs. Remarkably, that's below the Mazara line!

An oblique strain and a right shoulder injury limited Dahl to 24 games this year, and injuries have been a recurring theme for him. In his career, he's suffered from a lacerated spleen and a fractured foot, among other problems.

He's only played 264 games for the Rockies over the past four years, but in general, it's been a productive run. For his career, he's batted .286/.334/.494 with 53 doubles and 38 home runs. 

All that said, the injury problems mean he cannot be a Plan A for any team that looks at 2021 as a win-now season, and the Sox are certainly in that camp. I would expect Dahl to sign with a rebuilding team, maybe the Detroit Tigers, on a one-year deal to try to rebuild his value.

From a Sox perspective, he would be the very last option on this list. 

White Sox non-tender Carlos Rodon, Nomar Mazara

Carlos Rodon

Teams had to decide which arbitration-eligible players to offer contracts to by 7 p.m. Wednesday. Right fielder Nomar Mazara and pitcher Carlos Rodon will not be receiving offers from the White Sox, according to a post on the team's Twitter account.

The Sox also announced that left-handed relief pitcher Jace Fry avoided arbitration by agreeing to a one-year, $862,500 contract. All other unsigned players on the 40-man roster were tendered contracts.

This means that pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Evan Marshall, and outfielder Adam Engel, have received contract offers from the Sox. 

Mazara and Rodon become free agents, meaning the Sox's 40-man roster now stands at 38 players.

The subtractions of both Mazara and Rodon were expected. Mazara was projected to receive about $6 million in arbitration, an unacceptably high salary for a supposed power hitter who slugged .294 during the 2020 season and managed only one home run in 149 plate appearances. 

Mazara's 2020 OPS of .589 was, umm, slightly below his previous career low of .745. The Sox apparently thought they could unlock Mazara's talent when they acquired him from Texas last offseason. Instead, they found out why the Rangers were willing to give up on him. Mazara turned out to be not even as good as he was in Texas, where he was profoundly mediocre.

Rodon, the team's first-round pick in 2014, simply cannot stay healthy. 

Here are Rodon's innings totals over the past four seasons: 69.1, 120.2, 34.2 and 7.2.

Here are Rodon's ERAs over the past four seasons: 4.15, 4.18, 5.19, 8.22.

Rodon's projected arbitration number is $4.5 million. Given the lack of innings, the injuries and the declining performance, there are better ways to spend $4.5 million -- especially during these financially challenging times associated with the COVID-19 pandemic.

Sox general manager Rick Hahn said the team will stay "in contact" with both Mazara and Rodon, leaving open the possibility that they could be brought back for lesser money.

Frankly, I'd move on from Mazara no matter what. Rodon, I'd be willing to give him a minor-league deal, look at him in spring training and see if he can be turned into a reliever, but I wouldn't consider him for a job in the starting rotation. If Rodon still wants to be a starting pitcher, I'd shake his hand and wish him luck elsewhere. It's time for the Sox to move on.

Among the players tendered contracts by the Sox, Lopez was the only question mark. Giolito, Marshall and Engel all did their jobs in 2020 and earned their offers.

Lopez struggled with injuries and underperformance. He made only eight starts and went 1-3 with a 6.49 ERA. However, his projected arbitration number is only $2 million, and his upside is still greater than a lot of the mediocre retreads you'll find on the free agent market this offseason.

Given the price and the overall landscape, it's not a bad play to see if new pitching coach Ethan Katz has an answer to get Lopez on track. If it doesn't work out in 2021, then it will be time to move on from Lopez, as well, but I'm willing to give him one more kick at the can. Apparently, so are the Sox.

White Sox manager Tony La Russa finalizes 2021 coaching staff

Tony La Russa

It took more than a month for a formal announcement, but new (old) White Sox manager Tony La Russa has his coaching staff in place for the 2021 season.

As expected, Miguel Cairo has been named bench coach, replacing Joe McEwing, and Ethan Katz replaces Don Cooper as pitching coach.

McEwing remains on the coaching staff. He will serve as third-base coach, a role he filled for the Sox during the Robin Ventura era from 2012 to 2016.

Shelley Duncan has been named analytics coordinator. As far as I know, that's a new position on the Sox staff. Duncan is the son of Dave Duncan, who was La Russa's longtime pitching coach with the Sox, the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Shelley Duncan, who played for the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians, has managerial experience in the minor leagues with the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He also served as a "field coordinator" with the Toronto Blue Jays. Not sure exactly what that role entailed, but in any case, I'm sure new-school fans will like the idea of the Sox having a coach whose focus is on analytics.

Frank Menechino returns to the Sox as hitting coach. Also returning are first-base coach Daryl Boston and assistant pitching coach Curt Hasler.

The Sox have hired former Toronto infielder Howie Clark to be the assistant hitting coach. Clark was expected to be the hitting coach at Triple-A Charlotte in 2020, before the pandemic canceled the minor league season.

Clark replaces Scott Coolbaugh, who left the Sox organization to become the hitting coach with the Detroit Tigers.

Slow start to the baseball offseason, huh?

Marcus Stroman

So, it's Nov. 30. Thanksgiving has passed, and well, there haven't been any major trades or free agent signings around Major League Baseball.

Here's what has happened so far:

• RHP Marcus Stroman accepted the $18.9 million qualifying offer to remain with the New York Mets.
• RHP Kevin Gausman accepted the $18.9 million qualifying offer to remain with the San Francisco Giants.
• RHP Charlie Morton signed a one-year, $15 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.
• LHP Drew Smyly signed a one-year, $11 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.
• LHP Robbie Ray signed a one-year, $8 million contract with the Toronto Blue Jays.
• RHP Kendall Graveman signed a one-year, $1.25 million contract with the Seattle Mariners.
• RHP Josh Tomlin signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.
• Utility player Josh Harrison signed a one-year, $1 million contract with the Washington Nationals.

The Kansas City Royals reportedly have a two-year agreement in place with LHP Mike Minor, and a one-year deal in place with outfielder Michael Taylor. Those moves have not yet been finalized.

Not exactly, earth-shaking stuff, huh? I figured maybe if I complain about the lack of news, we'll get some news and something to argue about.

Happy Thanksgiving from The Baseball Kid

 

With Mark Buehrle on the Hall of Fame ballot, here are a few more notes about his career

Mark Buehrle

Objectively speaking, Mark Buehrle is a longshot candidate to make the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He is a White Sox great, without a doubt, but I'm not entirely sure he'll get the 5% of votes needed to remain on the Hall ballot in this, his first year of eligibility.

But here a few notes that might cause voters to more strongly consider Buerhle's Hall case:

1. In the history of baseball, there have been four pitchers who have thrown two no-hitters and posted at least 15 double-digit-win seasons: Nolan Ryan, Randy Johnson, Warren Spahn and ... Mark Buehrle.

2. In the history of baseball, there have been four pitchers who have thrown 200 or more innings in 14 consecutive seasons: Greg Maddux, Phil Niekro, Christy Mathewson and ... Mark Buehrle.

3. In the history of baseball, there have been three pitchers who have pitched a no-hitter, pitched a perfect game and won a World Series all with the same team: Cy Young, Sandy Koufax and ... Mark Buehrle.

What do Ryan, Johnson, Spahn, Maddux, Niekro, Mathewson, Young and Koufax all have in common? They are all in the Hall of Fame. In fact, the only pitcher mentioned in this blog entry who is not in the Hall of Fame is ... Mark Buehrle.

Field of Dreams game rescheduled for Aug. 12, 2021

Here I am at the Field of Dreams in July 2020.

If you looked at the 2021 White Sox schedule carefully, you probably noticed the odd day off on Friday, Aug. 13. 

The Sox are scheduled to host the New York Yankees on Thursday, Aug. 12, then again on Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 14-15.

Why the day off? Well, the two teams will be traveling to Chicago from Dyersville, Iowa, where they will play in the Field of Dreams game on Aug. 12. 

Major League Baseball on Monday announced plans for this showcase game, which will be televised nationally on FOX.

The Sox and Yankees originally were scheduled to play at the Field of Dreams in August of this year, but then the COVID-19 pandemic intervened. At first, the St. Louis Cardinals replaced the Yankees as the Sox's opponent, but then the game ultimately was canceled.

With any luck, public health will allow this game to be contested -- with fans in attendance -- in 2021.

Latest White Sox list of top 30 prospects

Andrew Vaughn

With no games to watch, it's always fun to entertain ourselves by talking about lists, right? I visited whitesox.com Monday night and noticed that Jim Callis has his latest list of top 30 White Sox prospects available. 

You can peruse the whole thing by following the link, but the top 10 are usually the most notable, and here they are:

1. Andrew Vaughn, 1B
2. Michael Kopech, RHP
3. Nick Madrigal, 2B
4. Garrett Crochet, LHP
5. Dane Dunning, RHP
6. Jared Kelley, RHP
7. Jonathan Stiever, RHP
8. Matthew Thompson, RHP
9. Micker Adolfo, OF
10. Gavin Sheets, 1B

We've already seen four of those first five players in the majors. Madrigal, Crochet and Dunning were all useful-to-good during 2020, and we saw Kopech make his debut in 2018. He missed 2019 because of Tommy John surgery, and opted out of the 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

All four of those guys figure to be on the roster when 2021 opens, and we'll almost certainly see Vaughn -- who is easily the top hitting prospect in the organization -- sometime next summer.

After Dunning, the depth thins out, but I do find the No. 6 player on the list of interest. Kelley, the 19-year-old pitcher the Sox drafted in the second round of the 2020 draft, stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 215 pounds. Like a lot of kids from Texas, he's got the big fastball, and he was good enough to get invited to the team's alternate training site in Schaumburg this summer. 

Kelley was featured in the organizational reports section of Baseball America's October edition. Here are some of the quotes from farm director Chris Getz, as told to beat reporter Scot Gregor:

"[Kelley's] looked very good. Jared's work ethic has jumped out to everyone observing. His attention to detail and willingness to learn are other factors that have quickly shown, the attributes we had seen and heard about prior to selecting him."

"We will be focusing on his four-seam fastball, breaking ball and changeup. All his pitches flash major league potential, so we're aiming for consistency within his delivery and arm action to fully allow him to be efficient with all his pitches."

"He is a strong, powerful kid who knows how to generate power. He knows how to use his size and strength as a weapon."

It's something new for the Sox to have three pitchers who were drafted out of high school in the top 11 on their prospects list.

Thompson, a 6-foot-3, 20-year-old right-hander, is No. 8 on the list and was drafted in the second round in 2019. Andrew Dalquist, a 6-foot-1, 20-year-old right-hander is just outside the top 10 at No. 11. He was drafted in the third round in 2019.

It will be a good test for the Sox's player development staff to see if they can get at least one of these three guys to become useful members of a big-league rotation in the years ahead.

White Sox add 4 players (including Jake Burger) to 40-man roster

The deadline to add Rule 5 Draft-eligible players to the 40-man roster was 5 p.m. Friday, so the White Sox added three of their prospects to the roster: third baseman Jake Burger, first baseman Gavin Sheets and right-handed relief pitcher Tyler Johnson.

The Sox also claimed right-handed pitcher Emilio Vargas off waivers from the Arizona Diamondbacks. These four additions bring the 40-man roster to its maximum number.

Burger (first round), Sheets (second round) and Johnson (fifth round) all are members of the 2017 Sox draft class.

Of the three, the only surprising addition is Burger, who hasn't played a game in three seasons after twice rupturing his Achilles' tendon. Burger, 24, had a shot to return healthy to affiliated baseball in 2020, but you know, that pesky pandemic got in the way. 

The team's No. 14-ranked prospect ended up playing in something called the CarShield Collegiate League in Missouri this summer, before eventually reporting to the Sox's alternate training site in Schaumburg.

Anyone who gets chosen in the Rule 5 Draft has to stay on his new team's major league roster for the entire season, or else get offered back to his former team, so it seemed unlikely to me that Burger would be chosen -- if he were left exposed. Turns out, the Sox aren't going to risk that possibility with a player they liked enough to select in the first round of the draft.

Johnson, the Sox's No. 24-ranked prospect, doesn't seem all that far from the majors. He's 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, possesses a high-90s fastball and was successful during a stint in Double-A Birmingham in 2019. The Sox gave him a look in summer camp this year, and he was at the alternate training site in Schaumburg for the rest of the season. 

At age 25, it's not too hard to envision Johnson being selected if he were available in the Rule 5 Draft, so it was pretty much a no-brainer to add him to the 40-man roster.

Sheets is an interesting case. He's a left-handed-hitting first baseman, so he's blocked in the organization by American League MVP Jose Abreu and top hitting prospect Andrew Vaughn. But he is the No. 10-ranked prospect in the organization, and he had 83 RBIs in 2019 at Double-A Birmingham.

Even though Sheets, 24, lacks a clear path to the majors with the Sox, he's a decent enough prospect that you'd prefer not to lose him for nothing. Like many players, 2020 was basically a lost season for him, but if he opens 2021 strong, maybe he's a piece that can be included in a trade midseason.

If the Sox would have left him exposed in Rule 5, maybe a rebuilding team snaps him up and gives him a shot -- especially if the designated hitter rule becomes permanent in the National League.

Vargas, the fourth player added to the roster, is a 24-year-old who has topped out at Double-A. He has made 23 starts at that level over the course of 2018 and 2019, pitching 121 innings with 100 strikeouts and a 3.86 ERA. Sounds like an organizational depth piece, and anything more will be a bonus.