Carlos Rodon as a reliever? He doesn't think so ...

Carlos Rodon

White Sox left-hander Carlos Rodon doesn't have a reputation for durability. While he has quality pitches and his results have been respectable, the five-year veteran has never made more than 28 starts in a season.

And in the past three seasons, Rodon has not made more than 20 starts. In 2019, the former first-round pick made only seven starts before injuring his left elbow, requiring season-ending Tommy John surgery.

That means Rodon won't be available until the second half of this season in the best-case scenario. The Sox have planned accordingly. With Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Reynaldo Lopez, Gio Gonzalez and Dylan Cease projected as the Opening Day rotation -- and Michael Kopech likely to push for a spot sooner rather than later -- there doesn't appear to be any room for Rodon, even if he makes a healthy return come July or August.

Does that mean Rodon is destined for the bullpen? With his velocity and outstanding slider, those two pitches could play nicely in the late innings. However, the pitcher doesn't see himself in that role.

“In my heart, I think I’m a starter,” Rodon told MLB.com's Scott Merkin. “I’m not a bullpen arm. Yeah, I could throw 100 mph, but I’m not a bullpen arm. I know I can be a starter. I’ve shown it in the past. Yes, I haven’t been as durable as I can be, but people have seen me eat eight, nine innings.

“So, why would you take that away from me when you know I can throw? I know this sounds kind of arrogant, going into the eighth inning, you know I throw 98 mph. I think the White Sox think the same way.”

Rodon also indicated he has no intention of stepping aside and conceding a rotation spot to any of his teammates.

“This is not a jab at any of my teammates, but I hope to God they know I’m coming. It’s a competition,” Rodon told Merkin. “Whoever is best is going to have the job.

“That’s a statement to boost my teammates. I don’t want my job taken away. But just know that I’m right here and I’m going to come back, and I’m coming back for my job. I know it’s not going to be handed to me, but I’m coming for it.”

Actually, I commend Rodon for this attitude, and I am pulling for him to make a full recovery and be the pitcher he was drafted to be. For a long time, I've longed for the Sox to have competition for spots in the starting rotation.

Take Lopez, as an example. He had a terrible 2019, and there were times he probably deserved to be demoted to the bullpen, and manager Rick Renteria at times questioned Lopez's focus. However, Lopez remained in the rotation because there was nobody else who could conceivably take his spot.

When that happens, guys are maybe a little bit too comfortable. When you've got five rotation spots, and only two or three guys who are worth a damn, that's a serious problem.

But when you've got seven guys battling for five spots, and all seem like reasonable options, that's actually not a problem at all. That's exactly the scenario you want.

I hope Rodon backs up these words and pushes hard to get his job in the rotation back. That would be a terrific development for the Sox.

3 position battles to watch during White Sox spring training

Nick Madrigal

With the offseason signings of Yasmani Grandal, Dallas Keuchel and Edwin Encarnacion, the White Sox have sent a clear signal that they have made the transition from a rebuilding team to a team that intends to contend in 2020.

Accordingly, there are fewer position battles in spring training this year, with more players considered "locks" for the 26-man roster when compared with what we've seen in the past.

That said, here are three spots the Sox still need to sort out before the season opens March 26 against the Kansas City Royals.

1. Second base

We know Nick Madrigal eventually is going to get his chance to be the second baseman in Chicago. The question is, how soon? The 22-year-old former first-round pick is a career .309/.371/.398 hitter with only 21 strikeouts through 163 professional games.

However, Madrigal has only played 29 games at the Triple-A level, and general manager Rick Hahn has hinted he wants to "see more" from Madrigal before bringing him to the majors for full-time work.

If Madrigal tears apart the Cactus League, it's going to be hard to send him to Charlotte, especially in a win-now season, when every game matters, and when it's imperative to have the best man for the job on the field at every position.

But, if Madrigal is mediocre or struggles in Arizona, he's not coming north with the team when the season starts. The Sox could give Danny Mendick a month of starts at second base, just to see if there's any staying power to the .308/.325/.462 slash line the 26-year-old posted in 16 games during his September call-up last season.

Or, Leury Garcia is always an option, even if he's not an exciting one. Garcia isn't going to be starting in the outfield anymore -- unless someone among the Eloy Jimenez, Luis Robert, Nomar Mazara group gets injured. The Sox obviously like Garcia, so it wouldn't be a surprise if his new job description reads "stopgap at second until Madrigal arrives."

2. Last spot in the bullpen

I hesitate to call the Sox bullpen a strength. I see scenarios in which it could be, but with Alex Colome, Aaron Bummer and Evan Marshall all being regression candidates, I also can see scenarios where the Sox struggle to close games.

However, I'm pretty sure it's going to be an eight-man bullpen. And I'm pretty sure who seven of those eight men are going to be.

Colome and Marshall will be joined by fellow right-handers Kelvin Herrera, Steve Cishek and Jimmy Cordero. Bummer and Jace Fry will be the two lefties.

That leaves who, exactly, for the eighth spot? Maybe Carson Fulmer gets one more kick at the can? He's out of options, and the Sox are notoriously slow to give up on former first-round picks in whom they've invested a lot of time and capital.

Looking at the seven names above, none of them qualifies as a "long reliever," someone who can come in and provide some length on days when the starting pitcher gets knocked out early. Does that open the door for left-hander Bernardo Flores, who has started throughout his minor league career, but maybe lacks a bread-and-butter pitch to stick in a big league rotation?

Matt Foster, Ian Hamilton, Zack Burdi and Jose Ruiz are other possibilities among pitchers currently on the 40-man roster. Hamilton and Burdi both were once regarded as solid prospects, but injuries have derailed their careers. Are they healthy enough to compete for a spot?

Among nonroster invitees, here are three names to watch: Tayron Guerrero, Codi Heuer and Tyler Johnson.

3. Remaining bench spots

For purposes of this blog, let's say Madrigal starts the season in Triple-A, and Garcia starts the season at second base. I happen to think that's the most likely scenario, so let's go with that.

That puts Mendick in the bench infielder role, and we know James McCann will be the second catcher after Grandal. That's two of the four bench spots. What about the other two?

You figure one of them will be an outfielder, and Adam Engel has the inside track with his superior glove. A career .215 hitter, Engel doesn't have a good track record with the bat, but he did slash .313/.360/.482 in 89 plate appearances against lefties in the 2019. That's, well, something, and it's a skill that could keep Engel around as a bench player if he shows a similar ability this spring.

Nicky Delmonico is back with the organization, too, if for some reason the Sox still think he can be a viable lefty bat off the bench. He lacks a position, so he faces an uphill climb. The same can be said for Daniel Palka, who missed an opportunity to establish himself last season.

Veteran infielder Andrew Romine is in camp on a minor league deal, and there's always the possibility he makes the club if Engel falters, and the club decides they're better off with Garcia serving as the backup outfielder.

Then there's Zack Collins and Yermin Mercedes. The Sox have five catchers on the 40-man, which is rare, and both these two guys are bat-first players. Neither has distinguished themselves as a receiver, but there don't seem to be many DH at-bats available with both Encarnacion and Jose Abreu on the roster. Could either Collins or Mercedes stick as a pinch hitter and third catcher?

I'd say Mercedes has a better shot, because bench bat is probably his ceiling. Collins is a former first-round pick, so I doubt the Sox will be OK with him playing once a week in the majors and getting the occasional pinch-hitting appearance. I look for Collins to start the season as the everyday catcher in Charlotte, but he may be the first call in the event an offense-first player gets injured in Chicago.

3 White Sox prospects ranked in USA Today's '100 names you need to know'

Luis Robert

The White Sox are represented well this spring in USA Today Sports Weekly's annual preseason list of "100 names you need to know" for the upcoming baseball season.

To qualify for the list, players must have had more innings (for pitchers) or plate appearances (for hitters) in the minor leagues during 2019 than they have accumulated during all of their major league playing time.

The Sox have three guys in the top 20, with center fielder Luis Robert leading the way at No. 2. Right-handed pitcher Michael Kopech is ranked No. 14, and second baseman Nick Madrigal is No. 19.

Robert, of course, is the only one of the three expected to start the season on the South Side of Chicago, after signing an eight-year, $50 million contract extension during the offseason that alleviates any concerns about service time manipulation.

USA Today notes that Robert posted a 30-30 season across three levels of the minor leagues in 2019, and adds that it seems to be a matter of "when, not if" the 22-year-old provides a similar output on the South Side.

The guess here is we won't see a 30-30 season from Robert in 2020, although with his ridiculous tools, there's nothing wrong with being bullish on his future.

Kopech, 23, missed all of the 2019 season after having Tommy John surgery late in 2018. Based upon everything we heard at SoxFest and in the media since, Kopech is not going to be on the Opening Day roster. His 100 mph velocity has returned, sure, but the team will take it slow with a prospect who has top-of-the-rotation potential.

Look for Kopech to either start the season at Triple-A Charlotte, or perhaps stay in Arizona at extended spring training when the team breaks camp. USA Today offered the possibility of Kopech contributing out of the Sox bullpen this season.

While he's certainly capable of helping in that way, I don't see it. I think the Sox are committed to trying to develop Kopech as a No. 1-caliber starting pitcher. And that means working out of the rotation, even in a season where he may be on an innings limit.

Madrigal, 22, likely will open the year at Triple-A Charlotte, as well, unless he tears up the Cactus League and forces his way into the Opening Day lineup. The second baseman offers a plus glove and elite bat-to-ball skills, as he has only struck out 21 times in 163 minor league games.

His career slash is .309/.371/.398, so power remains a question mark, but the ability to put the ball in play and hit for average is Madrigal's ticket to the majors. USA Today notes, "He might be the perfect fit to slide among the White Sox's boom-or-bust young sluggers.

Indeed, Madrigal is different than some of the other prospects we've seen come up through the Sox organization. His approach should balance the lineup out a little bit once he arrives, and unlike other youngsters in the system, his glove is not a problem.

We'll get our first look at Sox players starting Saturday, when the team opens Cactus League play against the Los Angeles Angels at Camelback Ranch in Glendale, Ariz.

Found this video from old Comiskey Park (circa 1990)

Found this video of old Comiskey Park that some random guy shot and thought it was awesome. It takes me back to my childhood. This is a game from 1990, the last year of the old ballpark, when I was 14 years old.

Hall of Famers on the field for the White Sox: Frank Thomas and Carlton Fisk
Future managers on the field for the Sox: Ozzie Guillen and Robin Ventura
Future Cubs icons on the field for the Sox: Sammy Sosa

Plus, an Ivan Calderon (RIP) home run that sets off the exploding scoreboard. Pitching for the Sox? One of my favorites: Alex Fernandez.

Now that I've reached middle age, I appreciate these memories more.

What are reasonable expectations for Dallas Keuchel this season?

Dallas Keuchel

As White Sox pitchers and catchers report to camp Wednesday, the pitcher who I'm most curious about on the Sox staff is ... strangely, Dallas Keuchel.

I'm not sure what the Sox are going to get from 32-year-old veteran left-hander, who signed a three-year deal worth $55.5 million with the South Siders this offseason.

First, let's take a look at what Keuchel has provided the past five seasons, the first four with the Houston Astros, then last season with the Atlanta Braves:

2015: 20-8, 2.48 ERA, 2.91 FIP, 1.017 WHIP, 216 Ks, 51 BBs, 232 IP
2016: 9-12, 4.55 ERA, 3.87 FIP, 1.286 WHIP, 144 Ks, 48 BBs, 168 IP
2017: 14-5, 2.90 ERA, 3.79 FIP, 1.119 WHIP, 125 Ks, 47 BBs, 145.2 IP
2018: 12-11, 3.74 ERA, 3.69 FIP, 1.314 WHIP, 153 Ks, 58 BBs, 204.2 IP
2019: 8-8, 3.75, 4.72 FIP, 1.367 WHIP, 91 Ks, 39 BBs, 112.2 IP

Keuchel was at the height of his powers in 2015, when he won the American League Cy Young Award. He had a down year in 2016, before bouncing back in 2017. The past couple of seasons have been characterized by a decline that is to be expected with his age, but it's not a precipitous decline.

So what do we expect from Keuchel as Sox fans in 2020? I know we're not getting an ace -- he's just not that guy anymore. But, that stat line from 2018, I think I could live with that. If Keuchel provides 200-plus innings and an ERA below 4.00 in a hitters' park such as Guaranteed Rate Field, that's a solid year at this stage of his career.

What does Keuchel need to do to get to that level? Well, I think he's going to have to do a better job the third time through the batting order than he did last season with the Braves. Check out the splits opposing batters had against Keuchel by pitch count, and note how rough it gets once he gets past 75 pitches:

Pitches 1-25: .278/.345/.398
Pitches 26-50: .206/.292/.299
Pitches 51-75: .265/.320/.434
Pitches 76-100: .320/.294/.608

Yikes on that fourth line there, huh? I certainly can't complain about anything I'm seeing for Pitches 1-50. Heck, 51-75 isn't too bad, but that slugging percentage takes a big leap once Keuchel gets past the 75-pitch mark.

We know Sox pitching coach Don Cooper is old-school, believing that going seven innings is "part of the job description" for starting pitchers.

There's no doubt Keuchel will be allowed to pitch deep into games, and there's every reason to believe his floor is higher than the ceilings for past Sox rotation members such as Ivan Nova, Dylan Covey and Ross Detwiler. That alone makes Keuchel a worthwhile signing.

But the key question here is whether he can be more than a five- or six-inning pitcher at this stage of his career. The Sox definitely need him to be.

Some other photos from SoxFest 2020

Here's a rundown on some of the people I got to meet at SoxFest:

White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease was a big fan of my shirt, which referred to the Sox as "The Good," the Detroit Tigers as "The Bad," and the Kansas City Royals as "The Ugly."

Hanging out with somebody closer to my own age on Saturday morning -- the man who was the starting and winning pitcher in Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, Jose Contreras.

As mentioned in an earlier blog, Danny Farquhar is back with the Sox organization as a pitching coach. He'll be at Class-A Winston-Salem this season.

Hall of Famer Tim Raines was in the house Saturday. Some of Raines' best seasons came in the 1980s as a member of the Montreal Expos. He was on some talented teams there with Andre Dawson and Gary Carter. But he was still a pretty damn good offensive player when he came to the Sox in the early 1990s.

This is the first time I've ever met Tom Paciorek. I'm just old enough to remember Paciorek's career as a player -- he was a member of the 1983 American League West Division champion White Sox. That's the first season I remember -- I was 7 years old at the time. But I'll always recall "Wimpy" best for his years in the Sox broadcast booth with Ken Harrelson. He was the perfect complement to Hawk for many seasons in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

And here's me with former Sox outfielder and current radio broadcaster Darrin Jackson. For some reason, DJ wanted to know if I was a former catcher. No, actually, I played quite a bit of center field. Jackson was intrigued, saying, "So you've got some wheels, huh?" Well, not at age 43. Maybe in my younger years.

Finally, new Sox relief pitcher Steve Cishek, who is one tall dude. We've noted in the past that Cishek may have been overused the past couple of years with the Cubs, so I asked him whether he has another 70 or 80 appearances left in him for this year. His response: "I'm ready. Let's go."








I'm ready, too. March 26 can't get here fast enough.

Chatting with Danny Farquhar about Houston's sign stealing

Danny Farquhar (and me)

Danny Farquhar's career as a pitcher is sadly over. As all White Sox fans and most baseball fans are aware, Farquhar suffered a near-fatal brain aneurysm April 20, 2018, in the dugout during a game against the Houston Astros at Guaranteed Rate Field.

That would be the last time Farquhar would pitch in a major-league game. He pitched in two games at Triple-A in the New York Yankees organization in 2019, before retiring as a player.

Now, Farquhar is back in the Sox organization. He will be the pitching coach for Class-A Winston-Salem during the 2020 season, and it was good to see him make an appearance at SoxFest.

I got in Farquhar's photo line Friday night, and I had a chance to talk to him about a different game against the Astros -- this one a 3-1 Sox victory on Sept. 21, 2017.

Farquhar worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning in this game, but most notably, it was one of the games where the Astros were clearly stealing signs. In this video, Farquhar calls Sox catcher Kevan Smith to the mound to change the signs in the middle of an at-bat against Houston's Evan Gattis.

Turns out, Farquhar heard the Astros banging trash cans every time Smith signaled for a changeup. (Farquhar was mostly a two-pitch pitcher, fastball and changeup.)

“There was a banging from the dugout, almost like a bat hitting the bat rack every time a changeup signal got put down,” Farquhar said in this story in The Athletic. “After the third one, I stepped off. I was throwing some really good changeups and they were getting fouled off. After the third bang, I stepped off.”

So, when I met Farquhar, I asked him if anyone from the media had asked him about the incident immediately after that game. He said no, and he added that it was talked about in the clubhouse that night, so to him, it was somewhat surprising that it took so long for Houston's shenanigans to come to the forefront.

Nobody in the press interviewed Farquhar after his outing. As I stood there talking to him, I noted that relief pitchers don't get many interview requests on days when they do their job effectively, as was the case here. Farquhar agreed and said that had he given up a 3-run homer and lost the game for the Sox, he probably would have had to answer reporters' questions after the game.

The SoxFest police grew tired of me visiting with Farquhar, so they asked me to move along. As we parted, Farquhar said as a player you need to be careful before you accuse another team of doing something wrong -- nobody wants to be known as someone who falsely accuses others, and there's a fine line you have to walk.

The sign-stealing situation came up multiple times at SoxFest, and new Sox reliever Steve Cishek said the Cubs reworked their signs after they lost a game to the Astros in Houston last season.

Cishek wouldn't name names, but said a ridiculous opposite-field home run was hit on a first-pitch slider. The home run ended up boosting the Astros to a 9-6 victory over the Cubs.

I will name names: Alex Bregman hit that home run off Brad Brach.

We haven't addressed the sign-stealing scandal much on this blog, because everyone else is talking about it, and what else is there to say?

I was always taught, if you think someone has your signs, change them. That's what Farquhar did in his scenario in September 2017, and it was fun to chat informally with him about the incident. And, it's good to see him healthy and back with the Sox organization.

We wish Farquhar well in his new endeavor as a pitching coach. He's a smart guy, and I think he'll have a lot to offer for the young pitchers in the Sox organization.