Jermaine Dye was the last legitimate long-term solution to play right field for the White Sox. He was on the South Side of Chicago from 2005 until 2009, so it's been a while since that position has had stability.
Jermaine Dye 2005 World Series MVP bobblehead
Here are the players who have started the most games at that position for the Sox, by year, since 2010:
- 2010: Carlos Quentin
- 2011: Quentin
- 2012: Alex Rios
- 2013: Rios
- 2014: Dayan Viciedo
- 2015: Avisail Garcia
- 2016: Adam Eaton
- 2017: Garcia
- 2018: Garcia
- 2019: Ryan Cordell
- 2020: Nomar Mazara
- 2021: Eaton
- 2022: Gavin Sheets
- 2023: Oscar Colas
Eaton had a good year in right field the first time he was here, in 2016. But he was a shell of his former self when he was brought back in 2021, and he ended up getting designated for assignment the first week of July that year.
Garcia was the Sox's 2017 All-Star representative during his injury-plagued tenure with the team, and even though he was around for parts of six seasons, he never was regarded as a franchise cornerstone.
Since 2018, right field has been a revolving door. Daniel Palka shared the position with Garcia and Cordell for a short time. Mazara was a bust in 2020. Adam Engel was always hanging around on the roster, when healthy, and he saw playing time in right field in 2021 after Eaton fell off the map. Brian Goodwin was with the team in 2021, too.
Once 2022 rolled around, there wasn't a right fielder on the roster, so the Sox put two first basemen out there in Andrew Vaughn and Sheets. That was defensive nightmare, with neither man hitting enough to overcome the shortcomings in the field.
Colas was supposed to be the answer in 2023. Instead, his rookie season was poor. He batted .216/.257/.314 with only five home runs in 75 games. His season WAR finished at -1.5, and he was twice demoted to Triple-A Charlotte.
In fact, Colas finished the season at Charlotte. It was quite an indictment that he wasn't welcome on a 101-loss team that was playing out the string in September. Once again, Sheets was getting playing time in right field instead.
As the offseason began, new GM Chris Getz acknowledged that Colas could use more time at Triple-A.
Getz will find no disagreement here. That said, who is the right fielder for the 2024 season? As we sit here on Jan. 9, Sheets still seems to sit atop the depth chart, with Colas next in line.
The Sox recently signed Brett Phillips to a minor league contract. Phillips, 29, can no doubt handle the position defensively, but he's bounced around for seven seasons, playing for five different teams, because he cannot hit a lick.
In his career, Phillips is batting .187/.272/.347.
But hey, he played for the Kansas City Royals from 2018 until 2020, so he knows Sox manager Pedro Grifol! That seems to be a qualification that appeals to the Sox these days. Pedro needs his guys, even if they can't play worth a damn.
I'm not counting Phillips in for the 26-man roster when the season starts. After all, he's on a minor league deal, and he'll have to win a job in spring training. Frankly, I don't see him being better than Colas, and that's saying something, because I'm not a fan of Colas' game.
I assume the Sox aren't going to make the mistake of putting Eloy Jimenez in the outfield again. Sure, he could play right field, but only until he gets hurt again.
Maybe the 2024 right fielder is coming in a trade? If starting pitcher Dylan Cease is dealt, as is rumored, perhaps the centerpiece in such a trade would be a young outfielder to start in right field.
It's just not clear what the answer is here, and it hasn't been clear for years and years. Aren't the Sox sick of having a sinkhole at that position yet?
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