White Sox avoid arbitration with 5 players

Dylan Cease

As you may recall, the White Sox began the offseason with eight arbitration-eligible players.

They reduced that number to five by non-tendering infielder Danny Mendick and outfielder Adam Engel, and outrighting relief pitcher Kyle Crick.

Mendick signed with the New York Mets. Engel is now a member of the San Diego Padres. Crick remains a free agent.

Here's a look at the other five players who are still with the Sox and have their 2023 salary settled, after agreements were announced last Friday:

1. Dylan Cease. In his first year of arbitration eligibility, Cease will make $5.7 million, which is slightly higher than the MLB Trade Rumors projection of $5.3 million. The right-hander is coming off a season in which he finished second in the AL Cy Young award voting. Cease went 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA and a career-best 227 strikeouts in 32 starts and 184 innings pitched. Last year's AL Cy Young award winner, Justin Verlander, has since signed with a National League team, so Cease enters 2023 on the short list of preseason Cy Young award candidates.

2. Lucas Giolito. Giolito is in his last year of arbitration eligibility, and his $10.4 million 2023 salary is probably less than he envisioned for himself at this time. His MLB Trade Rumors projection was $10.8 million. However, the right-hander is coming off a down 2022 season. He was 11-9 with a 4.90 ERA in his 30 starts, a profile that is less than league average. Giolito had finished sixth, seventh and 11th in the Cy Young voting the previous three seasons, so 2022 was a huge step back for him. This coming season is a crucial year for him. He's a free agent next offseason, and his future earnings hinge on his performance in 2023.

3. Reynaldo Lopez. After three years of inconsistent performance, mostly as a starting pitcher, Lopez carved a niche in the Sox bullpen in 2022. He appeared in 61 games, going 6-4 with a 2.76 ERA across 65.1 innings pitched. Aside from closer Liam Hendriks, Lopez was probably the most reliable relief pitcher the Sox had last season. For his efforts, he'll earn $3.625 million in 2023, beating the MLB Trade Rumors projection of $3.3 million. With Hendriks sidelined indefinitely after being diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma, Lopez is among the candidates to close games for the Sox this season.

4. Michael Kopech. The 26-year-old Kopech is kind of like the new version of Carlos Rodon, only right-handed. We know he's a good pitcher -- when he's actually available -- but will he be healthy? Kopech managed to make 25 starts in 2022, going 5-9 with a 3.54 ERA across 119.1 innings. However, he battled a right-knee injury throughout the season, which required surgery. His availability is in doubt for Opening Day, with the Sox expressing hope that he'll be "ready to throw about 85 pitches" in a game by late March. His 2023 salary will be $2.05 million, below the MLB Trade Rumors projection of $2.2 million. If Kopech ever puts it together, he's a bargain.

5. Jose Ruiz. Give credit to Ruiz, because he's yet to fall off the roster despite being out of options for the past two years. He made 59 appearances in 2021 and 63 appearances in 2022. He was 1-0 with a 4.60 ERA in 60.2 innings of mostly low-leverage work last season. Ruiz has never done particularly well when entrusted with a clutch late-inning situation, but he's held his roster spot by chewing up innings in lopsided games. His salary in 2023 will be $925,000, less than the $1 million projected by MLB Trade Rumors. Odds are Ruiz will hang on the roster for another season. Unlike some of his bullpen brethren, he has a habit of being healthy and available. As we've noted before, availability is a skill, and it's been in short supply for many Sox players over the past two years.

The total outlay for the Sox in arbitration this year? It's $22.7 million. It's looking as though their payroll is right about $180 million, assuming no further additions. The Opening Day payroll last year was $193 million. Do with that information what you will.

Some updates on the White Sox roster

Tim Anderson

The Houston Astros defeated the Philadelphia Phillies in the World Series, which means the 2022-23 offseason can finally begin.

Let's go over some of the roster moves the White Sox have made thus far.

Shortstop Tim Anderson, who is coming off an injury-plagued season, had his $12.5 million contract option exercised.

However, it looks like his double play partner will be someone new. The Sox declined a $5.5 million club option on second baseman Josh Harrison, instead opting to pay him a $1.5 million buyout for a savings of $4 million.

The Sox cleared additional space on their 40-man roster by outrighting relief pitcher Kyle Crick and outfielder Adam Haseley. Look for those two players to have their jerseys on the clearance rack at the garage sale if the Sox ever host a SoxFest again.

First baseman Jose Abreu, shortstop Elvis Andrus, and pitchers Johnny Cueto and Vince Velasquez have elected free agency.

That leaves the Sox roster at 35 players, although they will have to reinstate infielder Danny Mendick and pitchers Garrett Crochet and Jonathan Stiever from the 60-day disabled list at some point. That would take the roster to 38 players, so there's still room.

The most notable of these moves is the decision to cut ties with Harrison, who played 119 games and batted .256/.317/.370 with seven home runs and 27 RBIs in 2022. The veteran basically met expectations. Maybe Harrison wasn't part of the solution, but he wasn't a problem either. He essentially earned his salary.

Had the Sox picked up that option, they probably could have gotten similar production next season. But perhaps they are looking to cut costs, figuring they can get the same numbers for less money from other internal options. Those options include Mendick, Romy Gonzalez and ... gulp ... Leury Garcia.

OK, actually Garcia makes $5.5 million, so he's making the same money as Harrison would have. But the two are somewhat redundant on the roster, so it makes little sense to carry them both.

Perhaps the Sox intend to fill second base via trade, since the free agent market at the position is thin. We'll find out in the coming months.

Yoan Moncada (finally) contributes to White Sox offense

Yoan Moncada

There's nothing like a series against the sad-sack Detroit Tigers to cure what ails you, right? 

The White Sox completed a three-game sweep in Detroit with a 13-0 victory on Wednesday afternoon. Their 22-hit attack was powered by ... Yoan Moncada?

Yes, Yoan Moncada. It's about time.

Moncada entered Wednesday's game with a .141/.198/.222 slash line. He had only two home runs, two doubles and seven RBIs in 106 plate appearances. Since May 22, he had just two extra-base hits, and one of them was a "bunt double" down the left-field line against a shifted infield.

Well, Moncada had two extra-base hits on Wednesday alone. He went 5 for 6 with a home run, a double, two runs scored and five RBIs. He nearly doubled his season RBI total, going from seven to 12. His batting average improved 40 points to .181. His OPS went from .420 to .527.

And, Moncada had the biggest hit of the game. He came to the plate with two on and two out in the first inning, and roped a fastball from Detroit starter Alex Faedo into the right-field seats for a 3-run homer.

That staked the Sox to an early multi-run lead, and they cruised from there.

Sure, the Tigers used position players to pitch the last three innings, and Moncada piled on with two of his five hits against those guys. But it's worth noting that Leury Garcia also had two at-bats against Detroit position players, and he made three outs.

Amusingly, or not amusingly, depending on your perspective, Garcia struck out against Harold Castro and grounded into a double play against Tucker Barnhart.

Garcia was 0 for 2 off the bench. He gave center fielder Luis Robert a few innings off after the game got out of hand. But enough about Garcia and his inept nonsense. The nine Sox players who started the game all had at least one hit.

Jose Abreu went 4 for 5 with three runs scored and two RBIs. Andrew Vaughn totaled three hits, and AJ Pollock now has seven straight multi-hit games after a 2-for-4 day. Pollock reached base four times and scored twice.

Danny Mendick and Seby Zavala homered for the Sox.

Rookie right-hander Davis Martin picked up his first career victory with 5.1 innings of scoreless relief. Vince Velasquez was activated off the injured list to start Wednesday's game. He worked 2.2 scoreless innings before being removed. Perhaps he was on a pitch count.

Reliever Kyle Crick was placed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation to make room for Velasquez on the roster.

The Sox are 30-31, still five games behind the Minnesota Twins in the American League Central.

The next six games are a little tougher. The South Siders play three games at Houston over the weekend, before coming home for three games against Toronto.

Not that anyone needs a reminder, but the Sox were 0-6 in Houston last season -- regular season and playoffs combined -- so we'll see if they can compete a little better in this next series.

Andrew McCutchen trade makes little sense for Pittsburgh or San Francisco

Andrew McCutchen

Is anyone else confused by this trade between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the San Francisco Giants?

San Francisco acquired former league MVP Andrew McCutchen from the Pirates in exchange for right-hander Kyle Crick, outfield prospect Bryan Reynolds and $500,000 of international money.

Do the Giants really believe they can win this year with this move? They are coming off a 98-loss season. They finished 40 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West, and oh yeah, that division produced three playoff teams last season -- the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies were the NL wild-card teams.

I know the Giants added Evan Longoria this offseason, too, but he's similar to McCutchen -- still a good player, but a veteran on the downside of his career. McCutchen will be a free agent after the 2018 season, so this is very much a win-now move. But to me, San Francisco is going to have to hope other clubs in its division take big steps backward. The Giants look like a 75-win team to me, at best.

And what about the Pirates? That isn't a very good return for McCutchen. I had never heard Reynolds' name until he was included in this deal. Apparently, he's a switch-hitting outfielder who was drafted 59th overall in the 2016 draft. Good for him.

Crick is entering his age-25 season. He broke into the big leagues last year and compiled a 3.06 ERA in 30 relief appearances for the Giants.

Good for him, too, I guess, but if I'm a Pirates fan, I'm saying, "That's all we got for the player who has been the face of the franchise for the past five or six years?"

Yuck, all the way around.

Pittsburgh obviously is entering a rebuild phase. The Pirates traded Gerrit Cole to the Astros, too, in a move that makes a lot of sense for Houston.

The Astros are the defending champs, and they just added another guy who is top-of-the-rotation material in an effort to boost their chances of repeating. Unlike the Giants, the Astros have legitimate hopes of "winning now."

What did that cost Houston? Its fifth-best prospect in infielder Colin Moran, plus pitchers Joe Musgrove and Michael Feliz and an outfield prospect named Jason Martin.

You make that deal in a second if you are the Astros. If you are the Pirates, well, you got some guys in exchange for Cole and McCutchen, but I'm struggling to find any names in those trades that project as future franchise cornerstones. And make no mistake about it, Cole and McCutchen were franchise cornerstones for the Pirates.

There might be some tough years ahead in Pittsburgh, and in San Francisco, too, for that matter.