When 'just play the kids' doesn't work ...

White Sox fans have been screaming into the void on social media, calling for the team to discard veterans and "just play the kids."

It's understandable, because the team is 20 games below .500 on May 22. The Sox are going nowhere fast in 2024, and it's time to look ahead to 2025 and beyond.

Nobody wants to watch dead-end veterans such as Mike Clevinger, Chris Flexen and the recently DFA'd Brad Keller start games for the Sox. Hell, I don't want to watch these guys, either.

Those types of pitchers are short-timers. They won't be in the majors much longer, and they are just here to eat innings and cross days off the calendar.

Those players are here because "the kids" aren't ready. Fans who wanted to see rookie right-hander Nick Nastrini pitch got their wish Wednesday night, and boy, that did not go well.

Nastrini gave up seven runs in the second inning, plus two more in the fourth, in a 9-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays.

His final line was brutal: 3.1 IP, 7 H, 9 R, 8 ER, 6 BB, 0 K, 1 HR. 

Six walks and no strikeouts? My goodness, it was like the Blue Jays knew what was coming. This is the type of performance that can kill a young pitcher's confidence. 

It sounds as though Nastrini will get another start next Monday, against Toronto once again. Let's keep in mind, the Blue Jays are in last place in the AL East. It's not *that* difficult of an assignment. If Nastrini gets bombed again, I'm not going to be able to make a case for him to stay in the bigs.

If he has to go back to Triple-A, get ready for more Michael Soroka in the rotation, like it or not. That's what happens when you don't have any "kids" who are ready to pitch in Chicago. 

Mike Clevinger's 2024 debut a brutal one

Two things are true about Mike Clevinger: 1) He's a pariah among White Sox fans. 2) He was the most reliable Sox starting pitcher in 2023.

While pitching for a team that was 40 games below .500 last season, Clevinger compiled a respectable 9-9 record with a 3.77 ERA. Still, questions about his off-field character continue to dog him, and he found no takers in free agency over the winter.

The Sox, who are severely lacking in credible starting pitchers, signed him to a one-year deal after the season had already started, on April 4.

Clevinger completed a monthlong ramp-up in the minor leagues, and with reliever Dominic Leone going on the injured list with back tightness, Clevinger was activated to start Monday's series opener against the Tampa Bay Rays.

It did not go well.

Clevinger was expected to throw 80-90 pitches. Instead, he threw only 54. He lasted two-plus innings, allowing four runs (three earned) on six hits. He struck out nobody, getting only one swing-and-miss during the outing, and walked four.

The Sox lost, 8-2.

This was pretty brutal. Clevinger's purpose is to be a starting pitcher who can get the game into the sixth or seventh inning. The Sox's overtaxed bullpen sorely needs that. 

The pitcher we saw Monday night looked like someone who isn't ready to pitch in the majors. Clevinger will need to be much better his next time out.

The Sox are 8-27. There are 127 more games of this crud.

Mike Clevinger coming back to White Sox on 1-year deal

The White Sox and right-handed pitcher Mike Clevinger agreed to terms on a one-year contract Monday, sources told MLB.com.

The team has yet to confirm the signing of Clevinger, 33, who went 9-9 with a 3.77 ERA over 24 starts with the Sox in 2023.

There are significant question marks in the starting rotation for the Sox, who fell to 0-4 with a 9-0 loss to the Atlanta Braves on Monday afternoon.

Chris Flexen started this latest loss, allowing four earned runs on six hits over only 4.1 innings pitched. Flexen walked three, struck out one and threw just 45 of his 85 pitches for strikes.

Among the first four starting pitchers used by the Sox this season -- Garrett Crochet, Michael Soroka, Erick Fedde and Flexen -- only the converted reliever Crochet recorded an out in the sixth inning.

Enter Clevinger, because there are 158 games to go and about 1,400 more innings to pitch this season. I'm guessing Sox GM Chris Getz does not have a high level of confidence that he can get through the year with the arms that are available.

So, he's adding a veteran on a short-term contract. Not that we expect Clevinger to cause the team's win total to increase in a significant way.

The Sox have perhaps the worst MLB roster I've ever seen. It's loaded with mediocre and bad veterans who are just trying to hang on to their professional careers. Most have no future with the Sox, or with any other team.

Clevinger is another such mediocre veteran.

White Sox decline 2024 contract option on Tim Anderson

Tim Anderson

As recently as a year ago, some might have said Tim Anderson was the face of the Chicago White Sox. Now, he's off the team.

The Sox on Saturday announced that they declined the $14 million club option on Anderson for the 2024 season. Instead, they bought him out for $1 million. He is a free agent.

Anderson played for the Sox for eight seasons, and in many ways, his South Side tenure was a victory. Quite a few of the franchise's first-round draft picks have amounted to little, but Anderson was far from a bust. 

He had three excellent seasons between 2019 and 2021, batting over .300 in every one of those years. He won the American League batting title in 2019 with a .335 average. 

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, he won an AL Silver Slugger award after posting a .322/.357/.529 slash line. Following that season, he finished seventh in the AL MVP voting.

His game-winning homer in the 2021 Field of Dreams Game is one of the franchise's signature moments.

Anderson twice made the All-Star team -- 2021 and 2022 -- and he started at shortstop for the AL in the 2022 midsummer classic. He also represented Team USA in the 2023 World Baseball Classic.

However, professional sports is "What have you done for me lately?" Anderson slumped badly the second half of the 2022 season and had the worst year of his career in 2023.

He batted a terrible .245/.286/.296 in 2023, and unfortunately, it doesn't seem as though this is a one-year anomaly. Dating back to June 2022, Anderson is batting .246/.286/.295. At some point, it's no longer a slump, and that's who you are now.

In 524 plate appearances in 2023, Anderson hit only one home run. Injuries have mounted, as he hasn't played more than 123 games in any of the past five seasons. And his defense? Oh boy. His SABR defensive index for 2023 was negative-7.3. I don't always know how they calculate that stuff, but that figure is bad, and the eye test tells us that Anderson's glove is in severe decline.

You add all this up, and the end result is the Sox parting ways with a player who will turn 31 next season.

I know what some are saying: How could the Sox lose Anderson for nothing? Well, I don't think there's a huge market for a shortstop who is no longer playing well in any aspect of the game.

On Friday, as expected, the Sox announced they were declining their 2024 team option on Liam Hendriks. They also announced that pitcher Mike Clevinger is opting out of his 2024 contract and electing free agency.

It was notable that announcements were made about those two players at the same time, while nothing was said about Anderson.

On Friday, I thought to myself that one of two things must be true: 1) The Sox were planning to retain Anderson, or 2) The Sox were trying to trade Anderson.

Thought No. 2 was correct.

If you've been following the transaction wire, you might have noticed the Milwaukee Brewers traded outfielder Mark Canha to the Detroit Tigers for a prospect. The Brewers decided they did not want to pick up Canha's $11.5 million option for 2024, so they moved him to the Tigers, who were willing to pick up the option.

I believe the Sox spent Friday trying to work out a similar deal for Anderson, but they found no team willing to take him at a price of $14 million. So, they chose to cut ties.

Honestly, that's the right thing for general manager Chris Getz to do if he wants someone other than Anderson to be his shortstop in 2024. The whole idea of picking up Anderson's option and then trying to trade him is an accident waiting to happen.

It takes a willing trade partner to swing a deal, and there's a strong chance that there is no such partner, especially given the contract involved. Then you run the risk of going into next season with an unhappy player who knows he isn't wanted. That's the worst-case scenario.

There's always a chance that Anderson will re-sign in Chicago for less money later in the offseason, but the guess here is this is a permanent goodbye. I expect someone else at shortstop for the Sox when the 2024 season begins.

A few notable numbers as White Sox play out string

There's no need to report everything that's going on with the White Sox as they play out the string in a miserable 2023 season. But here are a few notable things that have happened recently:

• Mike Clevinger pitched all six innings of Sunday's rain-shortened 3-2 victory over the Boston Red Sox. The right-hander gave up two runs on five hits, and he neither struck out nor walked a batter. This is notable because it's the fifth straight start for Clevinger without a walk. He should get one more start before the season ends. The last time a Sox pitcher went six straight starts without a walk? That was LaMarr Hoyt in his 1983 Cy Young-winning season. Clevinger is 9-8 with a 3.40 ERA this year.
• I was talking baseball with some people at a party Saturday afternoon, and a Sox fan who is in his 70s asked me, "How many hit batters do they have this season? My whole life, I've never seen a pitching staff hit so many batters." I guessed, "More than 70," then went about the business of looking it up. Turns out, the Sox had hit 88 batters as of Saturday afternoon. Well, Clevinger hit two Boston batters on Sunday. That makes 90 hit batsmen, and yes, that is a new team record.
• Dylan Cease had perhaps his best outing of the season Saturday in a 1-0 victory over Boston. He went seven innings, allowing no runs on six hits. He struck out 11 and did not issue a walk. During this performance, Cease cleared the 200-strikeout mark for the third straight season. He has 207 strikeouts this year, after posting 226 strikeouts in 2021 and 227 strikeouts in 2022. Cease becomes only the third pitcher in Sox history to compile 200 or more strikeouts in three different years. The others are Chris Sale, who did it four times from 2013-16, and Ed Walsh, who holds the franchise record with five such years (1907-08, 1910-12).
• In that 1-0 victory, the winning run scored in the top of the ninth inning on Luis Robert Jr.'s 38th home run of the season. With six games to play, Robert still has an outside shot at reaching both 40 doubles and 40 home runs for the season -- he has 36 doubles. The All-Star center fielder also collected his 20th stolen base of the year in Sunday's win. Unfortunately, Robert slid awkwardly in the wet dirt and had to leave the game with right knee soreness. Hopefully, he'll be able to return to the lineup Tuesday against the Arizona Diamondbacks and continue his pursuit of the 40-homer mark.
• The Sox won two of three in Boston despite only scoring six runs in the three-game series. Man, this offense is sleepy. The Sox are 60-96. They will need a 3-3 homestand to avoid a 100-loss season. 

Is Mike Clevinger going to pitch for the 2024 White Sox?

Mike Clevinger

This question would have been unthinkable at the start of the season, given Mike Clevinger's off-the-field problems, but is it possible the White Sox will pick up his contract option for the 2024 season? 

Clevinger pitched six innings of one-run ball Wednesday night and earned the victory as the Sox defeated the New York Yankees, 9-2.

For the season, Clevinger has the lowest ERA of any Sox starting pitcher -- 3.55. He's made 15 starts, going 5-5. That doesn't seem spectacular, but when you're pitching for a team that is 47-69, a .500 record isn't that bad.

According to baseballreference.com, Clevinger is worth 2.0 WAR this season, which puts him third on the team behind Luis Robert Jr. and Lucas Giolito. Well, actually, maybe Clevinger is second on the team, now that Giolito has been traded to the Los Angeles Angels.

At this point, you'd have to say Clevinger is one of the few players on the Sox who has met or exceeded expectations in 2023.

The big question with Clevinger remains his health. He's had two stints on the injured list this season, notably being out from June 14 until July 29 with a biceps strain. Can he pitch without hurting himself? It's a legitimate concern.

Also a concern, the Sox have only two starting pitchers under team control for 2024: Dylan Cease and Michael Kopech.

That leaves three spots open, and at this point, you can't count Clevinger out for next season. There's a mutual team option worth $12 million. Would the Sox pick that up? Or would they gamble on finding somebody better on the free agent market?

If the Sox do pick up the option, would Clevinger opt in to stay in Chicago? Or would he bet on himself and elect free agency? Given his "character issues" and injury history, it's unclear to me whether Clevinger would get another $12 million on the open market. 

His best bet might be to stay, if the Sox want him.

So, Justin Verlander is better than Touki Toussaint? No kidding ...

Touki Toussaint vs. Justin Verlander.

I've talked before about how some days I check the pitching matchup in the morning, and I'm 100% sure the White Sox are going to lose. Wednesday was one of those days.

During the rebuilding years of 2017 to 2019, you could live with the Sox being at a severe disadvantage in the pitching matchup on some days. But this is 2023. The team is supposed to be contending, but it isn't. And it's especially annoying when you see games like Wednesday's, which ended as a 5-1 victory for the New York Mets.

The Sox had no answers for Verlander, the future Hall of Famer. The 40-year-old right-hander needed only 59 pitches to breeze through the first six innings, during which he allowed no runs on only one hit. 

Luis Robert Jr. finally got the Sox on the board with his 28th homer in the seventh inning, but that was the sum total of the Chicago offense. Verlander (4-5) threw 100 pitches over eight innings, allowing one run on three hits. He struck out seven and walked one.

Toussaint? Well, he is a reclamation project who was picked off the waiver wire on June 20. Now he's starting games because Mike Clevinger is hurt, and the Sox have nobody else.

At least give Toussaint (0-3) credit for eating innings. He allowed five earned runs on four hits over six innings. He struck out three and walked four. He was relieved by 29-year-old rookie Jesse Scholtens, who kept the Mets off the board for two innings. 

Toussaint and Scholtens ... don't you think they would have fit in nicely on the 2017 White Sox rebuilding roster? I'm sure they're nice guys and all, and they are survivors in professional baseball. 

But the fact that they are pitching for the Sox is proof positive that the "contention window" is shut and locked. These guys are no match for Verlander, even in the twilight of his career.

White Sox split doubleheader with Yankees

Good news: I was wrong. The wildfire smoke in New York did clear in time for the White Sox and Yankees to play two games on Thursday.

Like most doubleheaders, this was a split. The Sox took the opener, 6-5. The Yankees came back to take the second game, 3-0. 

If you would have told me Thursday morning that the Sox would win one game in the doubleheader and leave New York having taken two of three games in the series, I would have taken it. A series win here exceeds expectations.

Here's a look at what happened:

Game 1. The Sox scored all six of their runs on homers. Jake Burger, Luis Robert Jr., Yoan Moncada and Eloy Jimenez all homered. Jimenez delivered a two-run shot in the top of the seventh that turned a 5-4 deficit into a 6-5 lead. The bullpen made it stick.

The offense was welcome, because starting pitcher Lance Lynn had another shaky outing. He lasted five innings, allowing five earned runs on eight hits. He struck out four and walked three. His season ERA is 6.72.

Fortunately, the Sox bullpen threw four scoreless innings. Gregory Santos (2-0) picked up the win after a clean sixth inning. Kendall Graveman allowed the first two runners to reach in the bottom of the ninth, but an infield pop fly and a double play got him out of trouble. He is 6 for 6 in save opportunities.

For the first time ever, Robert Jr., Moncada and Jimenez homered in the same game. Given that this is their fourth year as teammates, that's sort of unbelievable. But then again, at least one of them is usually hurt; they haven't been in the same lineup enough to make that happen -- until now.

Game 2. The Sox were limited to two hits, and Jimenez is day to day after pulling up lame after hitting a grounder to shortstop in the ninth inning. It's always something with these guys, isn't it?

This loss snapped the Sox's season-best five-game winning streak. They had no answer for Yankees rookie Randy Vasquez (1-1) and two New York relievers. A single by Jimenez and a single by Gavin Sheets ... and that was it for the Sox offense.

Mike Clevinger (3-4) had a serviceable start, but took the loss. He allowed three runs over 5.2 innings.

The Sox are 28-36 and will come home to face the Miami Marlins in a three-game weekend set at Guaranteed Rate Field.

White Sox sweep Detroit Tigers

Guaranteed Rate Field moments before first pitch Saturday.

The White Sox limited the Detroit Tigers to only three runs total in a three-game weekend sweep at Guaranteed Rate Field. 

Here's a look back at the weekend that was:

Friday, June 2

White Sox 3, Tigers 0. Detroit pitcher Reese Olson made his MLB debut and held the Sox hitless through five innings. But the South Siders broke through with two runs on four singles in the bottom of the sixth. Andrew Benintendi and Eloy Jimenez delivered the RBI hits. Tim Anderson added an RBI double in the seventh, and the Sox bullpen made the lead stick.

Mike Clevinger pitched five innings of scoreless ball in his return from the injured list. Four relievers pitched a scoreless inning each. Keynan Middleton (1-0) got the victory after working the top of the sixth. Kendall Graveman pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for his fifth save.

Saturday, June 3

White Sox 2, Tigers 1, 10 innings. This was one of the weirdest games I've ever attended. There were only three runs scored, and all of them came home on wild pitches. In fact, this was the first game in MLB history with three run-scoring wild pitches and no runs scored on anything else.

In the fourth inning, Benintendi singled, stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a wild pitch. The Tigers answered in the sixth when Zach McKinstry tripled and scored on a wild pitch by Sox starter Dylan Cease.

The game remained tied until the bottom of the 10th. With the bases loaded and two outs, and Anderson at the plate, Detroit reliever Jose Cisnero threw a high fastball that catcher Eric Haase missed. The ball struck umpire Cory Blaser square in the mask and deflected away. Yoan Moncada came home from third to score the winning run, while Anderson and Haase helped a stunned Blaser back to his feet. 

The Sox celebrated a win, but there was also a great deal of concern for the injured umpire, who ended up missing Sunday's game with concussion symptoms. You may never see an ending like that again.

Sunday, June 4

White Sox 6, Tigers 2. Jake Burger became the ninth Sox player to hit a walk-off grand slam, and the first since Jose Abreu on April 25, 2014.

With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, Burger got a 1-0 curve from Detroit closer Alex Lange and golfed over the left-field fence for the game-winning hit. It was Burger's 12th home run of the season.

The blast made a winner of Liam Hendriks (1-0) on National Cancer Survivors Day. The veteran right-hander worked a 1-2-3 top of the ninth with two strikeouts, and this was by far the sharpest he has looked in three outings since returning to the mound after winning his battle with non-Hodgkin lymphoma. Hendriks' fastball topped out at 97 mph, and he was throwing his slider for strikes -- both positive signs.

Also a positive sign: Michael Kopech had a strong outing. He allowed only two runs on three hits. He struck out nine and walked one. He has struck out at least nine batters in each of his past four starts, totaling 38 strikeouts in 26.1 innings during that span. 

The Sox are 26-35 heading into an off day Monday. Next up, a three-game series in the Bronx against the New York Yankees (36-25).

Will Lance Lynn get DFA'd by White Sox?

Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani combined to hit 1,345 feet of home runs off White Sox right-hander Lance Lynn on Wednesday afternoon at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Trout hit a 461-foot cannon shot in the first inning on a pitch that I would hesitate to call a slider -- it did absolutely nothing. Ohtani's home runs -- one in the third inning and another in the fourth -- traveled 425 feet and 459 feet, respectively.

Yes, it was a rough day for Lynn (4-6), as the Los Angeles Angels routed the Sox, 12-5.

The final line for Lynn: He pitched four innings, allowing eight runs (all earned) on eight hits. He struck out four, walked two, hit two batters and surrendered three titanic home runs. He gave the Sox no chance to win.

His ERA ballooned to 6.55 in 12 starts. His WHIP was an ugly 1.453 coming into Wednesday, and that's about to get worse. His velocity is down -- bad news for a fastball pitcher -- and at age 36, it's fair to wonder if Lynn's best days are past.

In the wake of this terrible game, I've seen Sox fans on social media calling for Lynn to be designated for assignment.

It is true that a roster move is due -- Mike Clevinger is ready to come off the injured list and rejoin the starting rotation. That will probably happen this weekend against the Detroit Tigers.

However, I expect Jesse Scholtens to be optioned to Triple-A Charlotte, even though Scholtens did a reasonable job in relief Wednesday. He worked four innings, gave up only two runs and generally went about the business of getting this terrible game over with as quickly as possible.

Here's the problem with getting rid of Lynn: Scholtens, a 29-year-old who just made his big league debut earlier this season, is the only pitcher in the Sox system who looks credible enough to provide depth in the rotation. 

Say you let Lynn go and install Scholtens in the rotation, and then you have another injury (a very likely possibility with this fragile team). Then what? Cover your eyes when you look at the pitching statistics for Triple-A Charlotte. With Davis Martin out for the season after elbow surgery, there isn't anyone else who can help.

There are 104 games left in the season. That means there are somewhere between 900 and 950 innings left to cover. The Sox are 23-35. They are out of race, but they still have to play these games and somebody has to take the mound and wear it. Might as well be Lynn.

Then, when the season ends, you decline Lynn's option for 2024 and regroup.

White Sox limited to three hits in loss at Cleveland

So much for the good vibes from that series sweep of Kansas City, huh?

The White Sox managed only three hits Monday and lost, 3-0, to the Cleveland Guardians in the first game of a three-game series in Cleveland. 

Cleveland starter Hunter Gaddis entered this game with a 6.86 ERA in five previous games. He last faced the Sox on Sept. 15, 2022. In that game, he gave up seven earned runs -- including five homers -- over four innings pitched.

But on Monday, he threw six scoreless innings of two-hit ball to earn his first major league victory. 

Embarrassing for the Sox, although we shouldn't be surprised.

What's frustrating is the Sox got exactly what they needed from Triple-A call-up Jesse Scholtens (0-2), who was added to the roster after Mike Clevinger hit the 15-day injured list with right wrist inflammation.

Scholtens pitched five innings and allowed one run on two hits. The only run scored on a wild pitch, which should have been caught by Yasmani Grandal -- frankly, I thought it was a passed ball.

The Guardians got some breathing room in the seventh inning when Mike Zunino hit a two-out, two-strike, two-run homer off Gregory Santos to make it 3-0. 

Zunino had been in a 1-for-31 slump, so giving up a big hit to him right now is tough to accept.

As a matter of fact, everything about this game was tough to accept, but there is a reason the Sox are 19-30.

Home runs fuel White Sox offense in win vs. Cleveland

It stands to reason that a team increases its odds of winning by hitting two or more home runs in a game.

The White Sox have done that 14 times in 44 games during the 2023 season. In those 14 games, they are 7-7. That doesn't seem like much until you realize the team is 16-28 overall, which means they are 9-21 when they don't hit at least two homers.

But, they are 2-0 in their last two games against the Cleveland Guardians, and they've hit six homers in these two wins -- including three Wednesday in a 7-2 victory.

Gavin Sheets (No. 6) and Andrew Vaughn (No. 5) hit solo home runs, and Jake Burger (No. 10) had a two-run homer to fuel the offense. 

Burger went 3 for 4 and finished a double short of the cycle. It's fair to say he enjoys hitting at Guaranteed Rate Field, where he has hit nine of his 10 homers. For the season, he has only 89 plate appearances. One home run per every 8.9 plate appearances ... yeah, that's something you like to see from the player who is serving as your designated hitter.

In 52 at-bats at home, Burger has 50 total bases. In 27 road at-bats, he has nine total bases. Those are insane home-road splits.

Mike Clevinger (3-3) picked up the win for the Sox. He went six-plus innings, allowing two earned runs on six hits. He struck out five and walked four, with two of the walks coming in the seventh inning.

Clevinger departed in the seventh inning, leading 7-1, with the bases loaded and no outs. Reynaldo Lopez walked in a run, but was able to get three outs without allowing any further damage.

Joe Kelly and Kendall Graveman each worked a scoreless inning to close it out.

The Sox have not swept a series yet this season, and they'll have the opportunity to so Thursday afternoon. Given the hole this team has dug for itself, realistically, they need to sweep some divisional opponents if they hope to get back in the race.

PItching matchups for White Sox series at Cincinnati

The White Sox begin a seven-game road trip Friday, starting with a three-game series against the Cincinnati Reds. Here's a look at the pitching matchups:

Friday, 5:40 p.m.: Lance Lynn (0-4, 7.16 ERA) vs Hunter Greene (0-1, 2.89 ERA)

Saturday, 5:40 p.m.: Mike Clevinger (2-2, 4.60 ERA) vs. Nick Lodolo (2-1, 6.16 ERA)

Sunday, 3:10 p.m.: Michael Kopech (0-3, 7.01 ERA) vs. Luke Weaver (0-2, 7.88 ERA)

The Reds enter this series in fourth place in the NL Central. Their record is 13-18.

I've heard a lot about how the Sox are 10-22, in part, because they've played a "tough schedule." Well, the Reds are a rebuilding team. If the Sox believe they can recover from their horrendous start and get back into contention, this is the type of series where you better win at least two of three.

Mike Clevinger investigation casts pall over White Sox spring training

Mike Clevinger

The day when pitchers and catchers report to spring training is supposed to be one of the happiest days on the calendar for baseball fans.

But not for a lot of White Sox fans. Not this year. The 2023 season is starting with a dark cloud over Sox camp in Glendale, Ariz. Most of the questions on Wednesday's first day of workouts for pitchers and catchers centered on MLB's investigation into domestic abuse allegations made against pitcher Mike Clevinger.

In fact, 25 minutes of general manager Rick Hahn's 35-minute-long press availability was devoted to answering questions about Clevinger.

Not that Hahn said much, or even could say much. The Sox are (rightfully) being questioned about their processes when performing background checks on free agents. Clevinger has been under investigation since last season, when he was a member of the San Diego Padres, but that somehow escaped Hahn's attention before he added Clevinger to the roster.

Hahn said Wednesday that the Sox have no other option but to let the process play out. On that point, I would say he is correct.

According to the MLB-MLBPA Joint Domestic Violence, Sexual Assault and Child Abuse Policy, the commissioner’s office holds sole authority to discipline players for violating the policy, unless it transfers the authority over to the team. 

That policy is collectively bargained. It must be adhered to, and at this time, the commissioner's office has not placed Clevinger on administrative leave, nor has it transferred authority over to the Sox.

Thus, Clevinger reported to Sox camp Wednesday and took questions from the media. During that session, he denied any wrongdoing -- as expected -- and, on the advice of his attorneys, didn't say much about the allegations or the investigation. 

Bottom line: The Sox can't hand out any discipline here, because they would be in violation of the collective bargaining agreement. They could just cut Clevinger, but if they did, they would still be on the hook for paying him his $12 million salary, and they would open themselves up to a grievance or a lawsuit from Clevinger.

The Sox are basically stuck because they signed a free agent they never should have signed, and they are taking all of us on an express elevator to hell with them. It's Day 1, and everyone's already pissed off.

I feel as though I should be doing something baseball-oriented this weekend ...

Me with Dylan Cease at SoxFest 2020

If only the White Sox hosted some sort of event where fans were allowed meet current and former players and ask questions of the manager and general manager ...

That would be fun, right? And it would get you excited for the start of spring training, no?

Instead, all the baseball discussion in Chicago right now centers around domestic abuse and child abuse allegations made against Sox pitcher Mike Clevinger. Disgusting and gross.

This sucks.

SoxFest better return in 2024.

Former White Sox pitcher Johnny Cueto signs with Miami Marlins

Insert the lame lead about a professional athlete taking his talents to South Beach here. Former White Sox pitcher Johnny Cueto has agreed to a one-year contract with the Miami Marlins.

Cueto, who turns 37 years old next month, will earn $6 million in 2023. The deal includes a $10.5 million club option for 2024, with a $2.5 million buyout. So, that means the veteran right-hander is guaranteed $8.5 million in this contract.

Quick reaction: Couldn't the White Sox have afforded that? Cueto was one of the pleasant surprises of the 2022 season. His 8-10 record was unspectacular, but his 3.35 ERA over 25 games (24 starts and one emergency bullpen appearance) and 158.1 innings was impressive.

Cueto is certainly a regression candidate, especially at his age. Before last year, he hadn't topped 150 innings since his last All-Star campaign in 2016, and you have to wonder if his style of pitching to contact will blow up on him moving forward. He struck out only 5.8 batters per nine innings in 2022.

Earlier this offseason, the Sox signed Mike Clevinger, who essentially takes Cueto's place in the rotation. Clevinger tossed only 114.1 innings with San Diego last season, and only once during his six-year career has he topped 126 innings. So, he's not guaranteed to replace Cueto's workload.

And the Sox paid Clevinger a guaranteed $12 million. The 32-year-old right-hander will earn $8 million in 2023. There's a $12 million mutual option for 2024, with a $4 million buyout. 

It's almost a guarantee that mutual option will get declined. If Clevinger pitches well, he'll opt out and seek a long-term deal in free agency. If Clevinger pitches poorly, the Sox will let him go. It's hard to see a scenario where the two sides would agree on a one-year arrangement for 2024.

However, the moral of this story is Clevinger will cost more than Cueto, and it's hard to say one way or the other whether the Sox improved their rotation by signing Clevinger and letting Cueto walk.

Clevinger's production vs. Cueto's will be one of the subplots to the 2023 season.

Winter Meetings Day 3: Some thoughts on the signings

Aaron Judge

Some thoughts on the signings that occurred on the third and final day of the Winter Meetings:

Aaron Judge, N.Y. Yankees, nine years, $360 million. The reigning American League MVP chose to stay in New York, turning down offers from San Diego and San Francisco, according to reports. I saw one report that said the Padres were willing to go 10 years, $400 million, but ultimately, Judge wanted to remain a Yankee. He did carry New York to the ALCS last season. It's worth noting that Judge turns 31 years old in April. I'm sure he's got some high-level baseball left in him, but nine years? The back end of that deal is likely to be ugly, so Judge needs to help deliver at least one World Series to New York in the next four or five years. Otherwise, he could be subject to boos as a struggling, overpaid 38-year-old seven years from now. If he's a World Series champ, he'll get diplomatic immunity from the Yankees fans.

Willson Contreras, St. Louis, five years, $87.5 million. Remember the Cubs' last home game before the trade deadline? There were hugs and tears as it was presumed the veteran catcher would be traded. He was not traded. He finished the year in Chicago, and during the last home game of the season at Wrigley Field, there was yet another round of emotional, over-the-top, syrupy Cubbie goo as the faithful said goodbye to a longtime favorite. I'm guessing Contreras will get a very different reception next time he visits Wrigley, now that he'll be wearing a St. Louis Cardinals uniform. Contreras replaces Yadier Molina, who finally retired at the end of the 2022 season. This was a necessary move to fill a need by the Cardinals.

Kenley Jansen, Boston, two years, $32 million. This move created a ripple for White Sox fans, because there has been a lot of speculation that Liam Hendriks is a candidate to be traded. Now that Jansen -- an experienced, accomplished closer -- is off the free agent market, the thought is that other teams looking for a closer might be calling the Sox to ask about Hendriks. If the Sox move the veteran right-hander, his 2024 option automatically vests, and the acquiring team would owe him $29 million over the next two seasons. That's actually pretty good value in this market, so the Sox should be able to get a good return, should they be willing to part with Hendriks. The question is, if the Sox are serious about winning in 2023, why would they trade their closer? Perhaps they would fill a hole on their roster with such a trade, but they'd also be creating a hole. Can you tell I'm not on the Reynaldo Lopez for closer bandwagon?

Jose Quintana, N.Y. Mets, two years, $26 million. Good for Quintana. I've always been a fan. The veteran lefty had two seasons of injury struggles in 2020 and 2021, but he bounced back to post a 2.93 ERA in 165.2 combined innings with the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals last season. That earns him one more decent payday entering his age-34 season. I'll be interested to see who ends up providing the greater value: Quintana with the Mets or Mike Clevinger with the White Sox? 

Jameson Taillon, Cubs, four years, $68 million. I remember when only pitchers at the top of the market received contracts such as this. Now, it's the going rate for a mid-rotation starter. If you can make 30 starts and post an ERA around 4.00, you can get yourself $16 million or $17 million a season. Taillon went 14-5 with a 3.91 ERA last season with the Yankees. That was a nice year for him, and now he's cashing in. The Cubs needed to add at least one starting pitcher this offseason, so there's the fit.

Sources: Mike Clevinger agrees to 1-year deal with White Sox

Mike Clevinger

Injuries played a major part in derailing the 2022 White Sox, so you would think adding players with a track record of good health would be a priority this offseason.

That's what makes the signing of injury-plagued pitcher Mike Clevinger so baffling. According to reports, the Sox and the 31-year-old veteran right-hander are in agreement on a one-year, $12 million contract.

Like so many guys the Sox have signed through the years, Clevinger was good once upon a time. In 101 games (88 starts) with the Cleveland Indians from 2016 to 2020, Clevinger went 42-22 with a 3.20 ERA, while striking out 10 batters per nine innings.

The Sox tried to acquire Clevinger at the 2020 trade deadline, but instead he went to the San Diego Padres in a nine-player deal -- a move that ultimately allowed Cleveland to acquire four players who contributed to its 2022 AL Central Division championship.

Once in San Diego, Clevinger suffered an elbow injury late in 2020, and he missed the entire 2021 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery for the second time in his career. 

Credit to Clevinger for overcoming that -- he's one of only 47 pitchers in the history of baseball to return to major league competition after undergoing that particular surgery twice.

However, his 2022 season in San Diego was also injury-plagued. A right knee sprain, a right triceps injury and a bout with COVID-19 conspired to limit Clevinger to 22 starts and 114.1 innings. He went 7-7 with a 4.33 ERA. These days, he's striking out 7.2 batters per nine innings. His average fastball velocity sat at 93.2 mph, down from its 95.5-mph peak in 2019.

Clevinger figures to occupy the No. 4 spot in the Sox rotation, behind Dylan Cease, Lance Lynn and Lucas Giolito, and ahead of Michael Kopech.

However, there are two reasons I don't like this signing. First, Clevinger can't be counted on to be healthy, and the Sox really need people to be healthy. According to pitching coach Ethan Katz, Kopech is behind schedule in his rehab after having right-knee surgery last fall. The hope is Kopech will be able to throw 85 pitches and go five innings by the time spring training ends in 2023.

In other words, you already have one injury concern going into the season with Kopech, and now you have two with Clevinger. The Sox have very little starting pitching depth in their organization, with only Davis Martin capable of coming up from Triple-A Charlotte and giving you a few credible starts in a pinch.

So that means Clevinger doesn't really solve the rotation hole. You're going to need at least one more guy as an insurance policy, but the Sox are on a tight budget, and they've already blown $12 million of whatever resources are being put toward free agency with this signing.

My other issue is that Clevinger is basically a five-inning pitcher at this point. The times-through-the-order penalty hits him hard. Here's a look at his 2022 numbers:

First time through the batting order: .588 OPS against

Second time through the batting order: .692 OPS against

Third time through the batting order: 1.032 OPS against 

When the opposition comes to the plate to start its third time through, bullpen get ready!

Here's another way to look at it, by pitch count:

Pitches 1-25: .605 OPS against

Pitches 26-50: .642 OPS against

Pitches: 51-75: .810 OPS against

Pitches 76+: .921 OPS against

Yeah, you're not getting any seven-innings outings out of Clevinger. If you get more than 20 starts, be happy. If you get 120 or more innings, be happy.

Now ask yourself: Should the Sox be making a guy who will be fortunate to make 20 starts and throw 120 innings their first major signing of the offseason? 

This player was a priority? I'm not impressed. The Sox need a workhorse for their rotation, not another question mark.

2 trades that helped the Cleveland Guardians win the AL Central

Francisco Lindor

Monday night's Game 5 of the American League Division Series between the Cleveland Guardians and New York Yankees was postponed because of inclement weather in New York.

The game will be played at 3 o'clock CDT Tuesday. The winner will travel to Houston to face the Astros in Game 1 of the AL Championship Series on Wednesday.

That's a quick turnaround, so the big winner in this postponement would appear to be the Astros.

Regardless, I've been thinking lately about how the Guardians managed to win 92 games and basically blow the White Sox and Minnesota Twins out of the water in the AL Central this season. 

Hell, Cleveland was picked to finish third or fourth in a lot of preseason magazines, which is only proof that one never knows.

Two trades that Cleveland made in the recent past come to mind:

Aug. 31, 2020: Cleveland traded Mike Clevinger, Greg Allen and a player to be named later to the San Diego Padres for Josh Naylor, Owen Miller, Austin Hedges, Cal Quantrill, Gabriel Arias and Joey Cantillo.

Jan. 7, 2021: Cleveland traded Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco to the New York Mets for Andres Gimenez, Amed Rosario, Isaiah Greene and Josh Wolf.

Look at that return that Cleveland got in that Clevinger deal. Is that about half their roster? 

Naylor is their cleanup hitter and second-best run producer. Miller appeared in 130 games for the Guardians this season as an all-purpose player. Hedges can't hit a lick, but he's Cleveland's primary catcher because of his outstanding defensive work at a premium position. 

Quantrill went 15-5 in 32 starts this season as Cleveland's No. 3 starter. Arias is a 22-year-old who appeared in only 16 regular season games for the Guardians, but hey, he was in the lineup for Game 4 against the Yankees.

Of those six guys in the Clevinger deal, five of them are helping the Guardians right now.

And Clevinger? He missed all of 2021 with an injury. Since the trade, the 31-year-old right-hander has posted a 4.12 ERA and 4.60 FIP over 27 appearances. 

Yes, I think the Guardians are happy with that trade.

I remember when Lindor was traded in January 2021, and many people -- including me -- thought Cleveland got fleeced. We were wrong.

Sure, Lindor is still a good player. He bounced back from a lackluster 2021 to post 26 homers, 107 RBIs and a 125 OPS+ for the New York Mets this season. And Carrasco provided New York with 29 decent starts in 2022 -- he was 15-7 with a 3.97 ERA.

However, I don't think the Guardians are disappointed in the return they got for those two players -- Gimenez and Rosario now are starting middle infielders for them on a playoff team.

Gimenez had a 7.2 WAR and made the All-Star team in his age-23 season this year. He batted .297 with 17 homers, 69 RBIs, an .837 OPS and a 141 OPS+. And oh yeah, he's the likely Gold Glove winner at second base in the American League this season.

That 7.2 WAR equals the best season Lindor had in a Cleveland uniform -- that coming in 2018.

The 26-year-old Rosario isn't quite as good Gimenez, but I don't think Cleveland fans are disappointed in the 4.1-WAR season they have received from their shortstop. Rosario batted .283 with 11 homers, 18 steals, 71 RBIs, a .715 OPS and a 106 OPS+ in 2022. That's not All-Star level, but it's certainly above league average.

So, how did Cleveland get this good? There are a few different reasons. Shane Bieber is an elite, reliable starting pitcher. Triston McKenzie has made strides to join him at the top of the rotation. Emmanuel Clase is the best closer in the AL, and he has two good relievers setting him up in James Karinchak and Trevor Stephan.

But when you're telling the story of this Cleveland Guardians team, you have to look at these two trades, which netted them three-quarters of their starting infield -- including one All-Star -- a starting catcher and a starting pitcher, plus two other players who are at least helping on the margins.

While the Guardians did move three decent-to-great players in those deals, they absolutely got quality coming the other way.

White Sox quiet as trade deadline passes Monday

Mike Clevinger

Major League Baseball's trade deadline passed Monday afternoon, and the White Sox made no major moves.

Sure, they tinkered on the margins of the roster, activating infielder Yolmer Sanchez and designating infielder Ryan Goins for assignment, but I don't think that's the move Sox fans had in mind.

The South Siders were rumored to be interested in starting pitchers, with Cleveland's Mike Clevinger, Texas' Lance Lynn, the Los Angeles Angels' Dylan Bundy and Arizona's Robbie Ray among the names mentioned.

As it turns out, Lynn and Bundy stayed put. Ray was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays, and Clevinger went to the San Diego Padres as part of a blockbuster nine-player swap.

Given the prospect haul the Padres gave the Indians, I do not believe the Sox could have matched that deal. And, frankly, I wouldn't have traded that much for Clevinger, who has had some injuries the past couple of seasons. I'm not convinced he is the "finishing piece" the Sox need.

I would have been interested in Lynn for the right price. The 33-year-old has a reasonably priced contract for 2021 ($8 million), and he could have helped the Sox in the middle of the rotation both this year and next. However, I was not willing to part with any of Michael Kopech, Nick Madrigal or Andrew Vaughn to acquire Lynn. If that was the asking price -- and none of us here knows that for sure -- then I believe Sox general manager Rick Hahn was right to pass.

It is somewhat disappointing the Sox didn't add to their bullpen, given the more reasonable asking prices for relievers, Aaron Bummer's status on the injured list, and the struggles we saw the Sox have over the weekend trying to bridge the gap between their starting pitchers and closer Alex Colome.

Right now, the middle reliever that Sox manager Rick Renteria seems to trust most is Evan Marshall. Beyond that, he's throwing darts, overusing Jimmy Cordero and lacking a left-handed reliever that can be used in high-leverage situations. (Garrett Crochet, anyone?)

When I saw David Phelps move from Milwaukee to Philadelphia and Archie Bradley move from Arizona to Cincinnati for reasonable prices, I thought to myself, "Damn, the Sox couldn't outbid those teams?"

Thinking back to SoxFest, we all knew at that time that the Sox had four great prospects -- Luis Robert, Madrigal, Vaughn and Kopech. But beyond that, the organizational depth was looking a little thin. I asked Hahn in January whether the Sox had enough prospect capital to swing midseason deals to patch holes in the roster for the playoff drive.

Of course, he gave a long-winded answer of "yes," but it turns out the answer was "no."

Too bad, because the Sox are certainly in good position with 25 games to play in the 60-game season. They stand at 22-13 after Monday's come-from-behind, 8-5 win over the Minnesota Twins. They lead Cleveland by one game in the AL Central. They are 2.5 games ahead of the Twins.