We've been wondering all offseason who will be the White Sox right fielder in 2024, and we've been hoping it will be someone other than Gavin Sheets or Oscar Colas.
Turns out, fans might not have to put up with either Sheets or Colas in right field after a series of moves Sox general manager Chris Getz made over the weekend.
Here are the moves:
- Signed Kevin Pillar, 35, to a minor-league contract. Pillar will be paid $3 million if he makes the team out of spring training.
- Traded relief pitcher Gregory Santos to the Seattle Mariners for right-hander Prelander Berroa, outfielder Zach DeLoach and the No. 69 overall pick in the 2024 draft.
- Traded pitching prospect Cristian Mena to the Arizona Diamondbacks for outfielder Dominic Fletcher.
What does this mean for the right field scenario? DeLoach and Fletcher are both major league-ready prospects. Both are left-handed batters. I expect them to compete in spring training for the right to be the right fielder when the Sox are facing a right-handed pitcher. Pillar likely has an inside track to make the team, and play right field when the Sox are facing a left-handed pitcher.
Fletcher, 26, played 28 games in the majors last season for the National League champion Diamondbacks. He posted a solid line of .301/.350/.441 with two homers and 14 RBIs. He's only 5-foot-6, so don't expect big power out of him, but he hit right-handed pitchers hard at both levels he played at last season:
- Triple-A: .325/.412/.555 over 310 plate appearances
- MLB: .369/.423/.523 over 72 plate appearances
I think we can agree that the Sox could use a lefty bat who punishes righties.
Then, there's DeLoach, 25, who has yet to play in the majors. He has more swing-and-miss in his game (173 Ks last season), but he also offers more power. At Triple-A Tacoma in 2023, DeLoach batted .286/.387/.481 with 23 home runs and 88 RBIs.
I can't promise either of these two guys are the answer, but we know Sheets is not, right? And we know Colas needs more Triple-A time, which means it's time to try someone else.
That brings us to Pillar, who is the insurance policy against both Fletcher and DeLoach failing. Pillar is a plus defender, who can be counted on to play an effective right field, and he can play center field competently when Luis Robert Jr. needs a day off.
However, Pillar isn't much of a hitter at this stage of his career. He batted a ghastly .228/.248/.416 with nine homers and 32 RBIs in 81 games with the Atlanta Braves last season.
Pillar did bat .250/.261/.472 with six of his nine homers against lefties, so there is hope for decent production if he's deployed correctly as a platoon player.
What did the Sox lose in these deals? Well, Santos was pretty good in 2023 before he got hurt. He was a pleasant surprise out of the bullpen, going 2-2 with a 3.39 ERA, with 66 strikeouts in 66.1 innings pitched over 60 relief appearances.
Thanks to attrition and trades, Santos was closing by the time August and September rolled around -- on the rare occasions where the 2023 Sox needed a closer. Santos totaled five saves before elbow inflammation ended his season. His innings total in 2023 represented a career high, casting some doubt on how durable he will be in 2024.
However, there's a case to be made that Berroa, 23, will simply take Santos' spot. The right-hander struck out 104 batters over 65.1 innings in Double-A last year, and he earned a two-game cup of coffee with the Mariners. If he looks decent in spring, expect him to be a member of the Sox bullpen.
As for Mena, 20, he split time between Double-A Birmingham and Triple-A Charlotte last season. He went 8-7 with 4.85 ERA in 27 starts, and he was ranked among the top 10 prospects in the Sox system.
For that reason, I saw a lot of fans melting down over his trade. My recommendation to those folks is to relax.
Mena is right-handed and throws a 92-mph fastball. He might be a useful pitcher for the Diamondbacks, but there's nothing special about right-handed and 92. There are plenty of pitchers out there just like him, and if you can move that guy for a position of need, you have to consider that.
And outfield is without question a position of need for the Sox. The options have increased as a result of these moves. Now we wait to see whether the moves work out.
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