Former White Sox slugger Dick Allen elected to Hall of Fame

My copy of "Chili Dog MVP"

If you've been following the present-day White Sox, can you even imagine a player posting a 1.023 OPS over the course of a full season?

Probably not, but that's what Dick Allen did when he won the 1972 American League MVP award as a member of the Sox.

That year, Allen led the league in WAR (8.6), home runs (37), RBIs (113), walks (99), on-base percentage (.420), slugging percentage (.603), OPS (1.023) and OPS+ (199).

An OPS+ of 199! That's 99% better than the league average.

Allen died almost four years ago to the day, and I used that occasion to call for him to be inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame. You can read that blog here. 

On Sunday, Allen's family finally got the long-awaited news, learning that he has been elected (along with Dave Parker) to the Hall by the Classic Baseball Era Committee. 

To be elected, candidates must receive 75% of the vote, or 12 votes from the committee's 16 members. Parker received 14 votes. Allen got 13.

Allen played 15 years in the majors. In addition to the aforementioned 1972 AL MVP, he won NL Rookie of the Year in 1964 as a member of the Philadelphia Phillies. He was a seven-time All-Star, and during his three years with the Sox (1972-74), he twice led the American League in home runs.

Some people have questioned whether Allen really belongs in the Hall. He didn't have 3,000 career hits, or 500 home runs, or a lifetime .300 average (although .292 is pretty damn close).

Here's what I say to those people: Sometimes a dominant peak is more important than counting stats. From 1964-74, there weren't many people who were better hitters than Dick Allen. 

Allen accumulated 68.3 offensive WAR during those 11 years of excellence. That's better than Hank Aaron, Frank Robinson, Carl Yastrzemski and Joe Morgan. And those four men are all unquestioned Hall of Famers. It speaks to how good Allen was.

I'm too young to have seen Allen play with the Sox, but I'm a student of the organization's history, and I understand the impact he had during his relatively short time on the South Side. This vote is something that all Sox fans should celebrate.

Congratulations, Dick Allen!

Bill Melton, former White Sox 3B, dies at age 79

The White Sox family mourns the loss of former third baseman Bill Melton, who died Thursday in Phoenix after a short illness. He was 79.

Melton played with the Sox from 1968 to 1975, with his peak years being 1970 and 1971. He blasted 33 home runs in each of those seasons, with that total leading the league in 1971. That was also the year when Melton made his only All-Star appearance.

During his tenure on the South Side, he batted .258/.340/.432 with 154 home runs, 134 doubles and 535 RBIs. That total of 154 home runs ranks ninth in team history. 

In fact, Melton was the franchise's all-tiime home run leader when he left the team in 1975, and that record stood until Harold Baines passed him in 1987.

I never saw Melton play with the Sox, as I was born in 1976. But for my generation, we remember "Beltin' Bill" for his work as a TV commentator on pre- and postgame shows over a period of two decades. He worked for WGN, Comcast SportsNet and NBC Sports Chicago from 1998 until his retirement in 2020.

Melton was funny, relatable and candid, and his passion for the Sox and the game of baseball was always evident. I'll remember Melton for being a truth-teller on the air. He praised the Sox when they played well, and when the team was terrible, he would indicate that they were terrible.

That seems like an obvious thing to do, but we've seen plenty of people come through the White Sox universe who are full of it. Melton was not full of it. He was honest, and Sox fans appreciate that. 

Our sympathies go out to Melton's wife and his family and friends. He will be remembered fondly.

'Reimagined' SoxFest: We'll take a pass

Michael Kopech, Dylan Cease, Don Cooper and Steve Stone at SoxFest 2020.

We haven't had a legitimate SoxFest since 2020, and we won't have one in 2025 either.

Instead the White Sox will be hosting "SoxFest Live" on Jan. 24-25 at the Ramova Theater in Bridgeport. According to the team's website, the "reimagined" event "promises a unique blend of entertainment, interactive experiences with players and White Sox greats, and celebration of seasons’ past and those ahead."

I'm not sure what the hell that means. I can tell you the program is from 5 to 9 p.m. each day, and while they haven't specifically said so, it seems like it's the same show each night. It's $56, plus fees, for a single-day general admission, or $225, plus fees, for a single-day MVP Experience. 

The fact that they aren't offering two-day passes is telling. If you go one night, why go the next?

We'll be taking a pass on this, even though we've been frequent SoxFest attendees in the past. 

It used to be a three-day experience with a two-night stay in a downtown hotel. Now? It's four hours in a renovated theater that (generously) holds 1,500 people.

There have been no announcements about who will be there. Current players? Former players? Who knows? It's as if they want you to spend the money now, and then they'll tell you later what the experience will be. It makes no sense.

This is just another in a long line of cheapened White Sox experiences. They want you to support a team that has nothing but Triple-A players on it, but they'll charge you major league prices. The game day experience has been stagnant for years. They are out of fresh ideas, but hey, it's better at the ballpark!

They launched a new regional sports network that looks low-budget, and they don't have a deal with the largest cable provider in the Chicago area. So, we're all hanging antennas in the window to watch the games. Hope it doesn't storm.

And now this watered-down version of SoxFest is introduced. It's the latest absurdity.

White Sox baseball: Settle for our crap, or else. If you don't like it, too bad.

Happy Thanksgiving from The Baseball KId

 

Garrett Crochet wins AL Comeback Player of the Year

Here's a story we probably wouldn't have had on our Bingo card back in March: White Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet has been named 2024 American League Comeback Player of the Year.

Crochet didn't pitch at all in 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He didn't return until late in 2023, making only 13 relief appearances. And if we're being honest, he wasn't impressive. He walked 13 batters in 12.2 innings pitched.

The idea of Crochet ever becoming a quality starting pitcher seemed far-fetched, but the Sox decided to give him a shot in spring training 2024. As a matter of fact, they made him their Opening Day starter, and the "experiment" worked far better than anyone could have imagined.

Despite the Sox being an absolutely terrible team, Crochet had a breakout season. His first half, in particular, was dominant. He made the All-Star team after striking out 150 batters in 107.1 innings over his first 20 starts.

The second half, well, Crochet was on a strict innings limit in his first full season back from surgery. He made all 32 of his starts, but after the All-Star break, he never pitched deep enough into a game to qualify for a win.

Final season totals: 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA in 146 innings pitched. He struck out 209 and walked only 33 batters. That strikeout-to-walk ratio never could have been foreseen given the way Crochet looked in his brief return in 2023.

There was a period of time during the season in which the only time the Sox were worth watching was the day Crochet pitched. His performance was a glimmer of hope in a sea of deep, dark misery.

Unfortunately, this is probably the last time we'll celebrate anything Crochet has done. He is likely to be traded for futures sometime this offseason, as the Sox try to dig out from the abyss of a 41-121 season.

The next time you read a blog about Crochet here, it will probably be because he was dealt to the Dodgers, Red Sox, Phillies, Orioles, Cubs or Mets.

It's too bad, really. I guess we'll wait and see what happens when the trade winds blow.

White Sox November roster moves so far

The Moncada bobblehead is a candidate for the dustbin of history.

Let's catch up on some of the roster moves the White Sox have made since the season ended:

Declined the $25 million contract option on Yoan Moncada. The oft-injured third baseman played in only 12 games for the Sox in 2024, during which he totaled zero home runs and zero RBIs. Moncada played eight seasons on the South Side, and only two of them were good (2019 and 2021). He never made an All-Star appearance. He never won a Gold Glove. The Sox never won a playoff series during his tenure. So, no, he didn't live up to the hype that comes with being the No. 1 prospect in baseball. Moncada's departure means there is nobody left on the team from the Chris Sale trade. Call it vindication for those of us who hated that trade from the start.

Declined the $7.5 million contract option on Max Stassi. Did you even know this 33-year-old catcher was even on the team this season? No? Me neither. Stassi missed the whole season with a hip injury. He had surgery in June. Chances are he's played his last game in the majors.

Relievers Jimmy Lambert and Matt Foster decline outright assignments, elect free agency. More ties were cut with the walking wounded here. Lambert, 29, didn't pitch in 2024 with a rotator cuff injury. He had season-ending surgery in August. Foster, 29, started the year on the injured list after undergoing Tommy John surgery in April 2023. He returned in August and made six appearances, but a back injury shut him down. He underwent back surgery Sept. 25. These are two more guys you might not see in the majors again.

Claimed pitcher Penn Murfee off waivers from Houston. It's the first dumpster dive of the offseason! Murfee, 30, had Tommy John surgery in July 2023 and missed the entire 2024 season. He pitched in a combined 80 games over two years with the Seattle Mariners -- 64 appearances in 2022 and 16 games before the elbow injury in 2023. He's 5-2 with a 2.70 ERA in his career, so if he can regain his health, well, I guess he becomes a leverage option on what figures to be a subpar 2025 Sox team.

Nicky Lopez and Sammy Peralta decline outright assignments, elect free agency. Lopez, who will turn 30 before the start of the 2025 season, was a Gold Glove finalist at second base. However, he ultimately doesn't have the bat to hold down a starting position, as evidenced by his .241/.312/.294 slash line with the 2024 Sox. If you can't *slug* .300, then you shouldn't be an everyday player. Given that Lopez would be due more than $5 million in arbitration, it doesn't make sense to retain him as a bench option, either. You can find utility players for a lot less money. Heck, if Lopez can't find work elsewhere, he might come back to the Sox for far less money. Peralta, 26, posted a 4.80 ERA over nine relief appearances in 2024. He is a forgettable left-handed reliever. The Sox have other internal options who were ahead of him.

Will Venable to be named White Sox manager

Say this for White Sox general manager Chris Getz: He said he was going to hire a manager from outside the organization. He said he was going to hire someone who was in uniform for another team.

Getz did exactly that. 

Will Venable, who is currently the associate manager of the Texas Rangers, is expected to be named the 44th manager in Sox history in the coming days.

Venable, 42, played nine seasons in the majors from 2008-16. All but the last of those years were spent with the San Diego Padres. 

After his playing days ended, Venable joined the Cubs in 2017, where he served as a special assistant to Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer. Later, he coached first base during his three years on the North Side. From 2020-22, Venable served as the Boston Red Sox bench coach. He joined the Rangers in 2023, where he won a World Series as a member of Bruce Bochy's coaching staff.

It remains to be seen whether Venable is the right man to fix the White Sox mess, but at least it appears that the process was legitimate. Getz was allowed to conduct an outside search and name his guy.

The Sox resisted the temptation to make the internal hire (Grady Sizemore), and they did not hire someone who is "Tony La Russa's guy." (Phil Nevin)

Perhaps I'm guilty of setting the bar a little low here, but the Sox have cleared the low bar I've set for them.

Venable comes to the Sox with no previous managerial experience, which of course has prompted some comparisons to Pedro Grifol, who was an unqualified disaster as Sox manager.

Let's be fair to Venable: He comes to the Sox with stronger credentials than Grifol did. He's a former player, which should give him more credibility in the locker room, and he's worked for some organizations that have had more success than, say, the Kansas City Royals, where Grifol toiled for years in relative obscurity.

Also notable: Even if Venable does everything right, he could still fail in Chicago. The Sox have bad ownership and an inexperienced GM. That's like stepping into the batter's box with two strikes already on you. And, of course, the roster is at rock bottom.

If you're a Sox fan right now, the mindset has to be, "Give the man a chance and hope for the best." What else can you do?