I'm seeing a narrative emerge on social media about White Sox center fielder Luis Robert Jr.
The thinking goes, the Sox stink. Therefore, Robert no longer cares about the organization. He doesn't want to be here, and he's mailing in the season. He's just hoping to get traded, and that's the reason for his poor performance.
There's no getting around it: Robert has been absolutely terrible in 2025. He went 0 for 3 with a strikeout in Monday's 13-1 loss to the first-place Detroit Tigers. His batting average is down to .177. His OPS is down to .552.
We're in June now, so this isn't a "slow start." This isn't because of "cold weather." This is a tire fire, a prolonged slump that is dragging an already-bad Sox team to even lower depths.
However, this whole "Robert doesn't care" business is a load of bull, and I'll tell you why. Let's take a look at the details of Robert's contract.
After this season, there are two club options remaining on his deal. Each is worth $20 million, one for 2026 and one for 2027. If the option is not exercised, Robert can be bought out for $2 million.
Let's think about this from Robert's perspective: Do you want $40 million over the next two seasons, or do you want $2 million after the 2025 season ends?
You want the $40 million, right? You want to play well enough so that those options get exercised, no?
Well, guess what? Robert isn't going to get that money unless he's turns his season around dramatically over the course of the next four months. If he continues to fail, he's not getting his $20 million next year, or in 2027. He's getting $2 million.
His poor performance this season is literally costing him millions. He could be leaving $38 million on the table.
Do you really think he's mailing it in when he has 38 million reasons to play well? If you believe players are motivated by money (and I most certainly do), then the answer to that question is "no."
Robert hasn't thrown in the towel on the White Sox. He just flat out sucks at the plate this season. No more, no less. Sometimes, it isn't more complicated than that.