Lance Lynn pitching well since joining Los Angeles Dodgers

Former White Sox right-hander Lance Lynn has been rejuvenated since the late-July trade that sent him to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

At the time of the deal, Lynn was 6-9 with a 6.47 ERA across 21 starts with Chicago. That 6.47 ERA was the worst among qualified starting pitchers in all of baseball.

But since escaping the Sox and their "bad culture," the 36-year-old has discovered the fountain of youth. In four starts with the Dodgers, he's 3-0 with a 1.44 ERA.

Lynn received a no-decision Thursday night, but he tossed seven shutout innings in a 1-0 Los Angeles victory over the Milwaukee Brewers.

Here's a look at the pitching lines for Lynn with the Dodgers:

Aug. 1 vs. Oakland: 7 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 7 Ks, 1 BB -- WIN

Aug. 6 vs. San Diego: 6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 6 Ks, 2 BBs -- WIN

Aug. 11 vs. Colorado: 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 9 Ks, 1 BB -- WIN

Aug. 17 vs. Milwaukee: 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 Ks, 1 BB- ND

Total: 25 IP, 17 H, 5 R, 4 ERs, 25 Ks, 5 BBs

So, what's different? Well, the Dodgers told Lynn to throw fewer cutters and more four-seam fastballs. Obviously, it's working, and that's led to some irate Sox fans. Why didn't pitching coach Ethan Katz order this adjustment while Lynn was still pitching on the South Side?

Before we get too mad, let me point out one thing: Lynn hasn't been facing good offenses since he joined the Dodgers.

He has pitched against one mediocre offense (San Diego) and three bad offenses (Oakland, Colorado and Milwaukee).

The Padres rank 16th out of 30 teams in runs per game. The Rockies are 22nd, the Brewers are 24th, the Athletics are dead last. That's three bottom-10 offenses out of four.

So, I'm not 100% sold that Lynn is back on track for good. Here's my question: When a good offensive team adjusts to his new pitch mix, will he have a counter that will still allow him to thrive? 

I don't have a firm answer to that question. Just throwing it out there. It's something to watch.

And if you're feeling as though Sox players always improve as soon as they leave the team, don't despair. That's a myth. After all, just look at what Lucas Giolito has done through his first four starts with the Los Angeles Angels: 1-3 with an 8.14 ERA. Woof.

White Sox announce 2023 coaching staff

Daryl Boston

The White Sox have announced the complete list of coaches who will work for new manager Pedro Grifol. And here they are:

• Bench coach: Charlie Montoyo
• Pitching coach: Ethan Katz
• Bullpen coach: Curt Hasler
• Hitting coach: José Castro
• Assistant hitting coach: Chris Johnson
• First-base coach: Daryl Boston
• Third-base coach: Eddie Rodríguez
• Major League field coordinator: Mike Tosar
• Senior director of sports performance: Geoff Head

There are names both familiar and unfamiliar to Sox fans on this list. Montoyo, of course, started last season as the Toronto Blue Jays manager before being fired midseason. At the time of Grifol's hiring, it was mentioned that Montoyo would be coming aboard as bench coach. Katz and Hasler are holdovers from the Tony La Russa regime.

Castro comes to the Sox from the Atlanta Braves. He was their assistant hitting coach for the past eight years. Based on that, I think fans can be optimistic about this hire. The Braves are a successful organization; they are just 13 months removed from winning the 2021 World Series championship, and they were a division winner again in 2022. Johnson, a former MLB infielder, earns a promotion to the big-league level after earnings good reviews as the hitting coach at Triple-A Charlotte last season.

Rodriguez is a baseball lifer. He's 63 years old, and he's been coaching for 40 years. Like Grifol, he comes from the Kansas City organization, where he was a minor-league field coordinator. He's known for being a good infield coach, which the Sox could surely use. Basically, he's a replacement for Joe McEwing, who left on La Russa's coattails.

Tosar also comes from the Kansas City, where he served as a hitting coach. I'm not entirely sure how we define the role of Major League field coordinator, but I'm assuming it's a promotion for Tosar. Otherwise, the Royals might not have let him out of his contract.

Head spent the last three seasons as the senior director of health and performance with the Cincinnati Reds. Perhaps most notably, he owns three World Series rings from his tenure with the San Francisco Giants, which spanned from 2008-19. He had three different titles there -- strength and conditioning coordinator, Major League sports scientist, and assistant director of player development/director of sports medicine.

And then ... we get to Daryl Boston. The Sox just can't quit him. Grifol will be the fourth manager for whom Boston has worked. Under La Russa, Boston was in charge of baserunning and outfield defense. As all Sox fans are aware, the team has been absolutely terrible in those two areas.

I'm not sure why Boston was retained, but the folks on Twitter seem to believe he excels as a spy for Ken Williams. I have no evidence of that, but I wish I could laugh it off as being ridiculous. Alas, given the dysfunction in the Sox organization, anything seems plausible.

If the Sox fail in 2023 and start yet another rebuild, you can count on two things: Leury Garcia will still be on the 26-man roster, and Daryl Boston will still be on the coaching staff. They are immovable objects.

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.

Who will fill the final two spots in the White Sox starting rotation?

Dylan Cease

White Sox general manager Rick Hahn opened spring training by saying that anything less than a World Series championship in 2021 would be a "disappointment."

That is a bold statement when we're talking about an organization that hasn't won a division championship since 2008, and hasn't won a playoff series since the 2005 World Series.

Let's just say I don't expect the Sox to achieve that goal. They most certainly should have a winning season. They should be a playoff contender, but I don't know if they belong on the short list of teams that deserve to be talked about as World Series contenders.

One of the reservations I have is the lack of depth in the starting rotation. We know who the top three are, don't we? Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel and Lance Lynn ... You could do a helluva lot worse than that. The only question there is, who starts Game 2 of the regular season?

Giolito is the ace and should start April 1 against the Los Angeles Angels. After that, it's Keuchel and Lynn in any order. But what about those No. 4 and No. 5 spots? I see five contenders, and let's list them in order from most likely to win a job, to least likely:

1. Dylan Cease. Of all the candidates, Cease is the only one who has both plus stuff and a track record of health over the past year. The 25-year-old right-hander made all 12 of his starts in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, and he went 5-4 with a 4.01 ERA. Not bad, but his shabby control -- a league-high 34 walks in 58.1 innings pitched -- led to him being relegated to the bullpen in the playoff series against the Oakland Athletics. New pitching coach Ethan Katz apparently is executing a plan to stop the glove-side run on Cease's fastball. We all know Cease has high-90s velocity, a good breaking ball and a usable changeup, so he's the No. 4 guy if he can find the plate a little more often.

2. Carlos Rodon. I've already vented on this blog about the decision to bring Rodon back. Every season, he seems to be worse and more injured than he was the season before. Nevertheless, the Sox can't quit him, and he was signed with the promise that he would be given an opportunity to compete for a starting role. Given how badly Rodon fared in relief last season, it's hard not to agree that he's better off as a starter. Accordingly, if he's healthy, it's hard not to see him having the inside track for the fifth spot in the rotation. If that's not his role, then what is? He's on a major-league deal, and he can't be sent to the minors without clearing waivers. One positive is he would provide a second left-hander for the rotation behind Keuchel, and he's obviously a different type of pitcher. Rodon has the high velocity and a power slider, while Keuchel is a sinkerballer with plus control.

3. Reynaldo Lopez. The once-promising 27-year-old has had two lousy years in a row. His ERA swelled to 5.38 in 33 starts in 2019, and 2020 brought injury problems and a 1-3 record with a 6.49 ERA in eight starts. Lopez pitched so poorly that he was left off the playoff roster. He's yet another project for Katz, and the focus seems to be on shortening Lopez's arm swing -- a fix that worked for Giolito between 2018 and his breakout season of 2019. But does Lopez have the mental focus to be a consistent starting pitcher? That remains to be seen. Of note, he has an option remaining and can be sent to Triple-A Charlotte if he doesn't win a job in camp.

4. Michael Kopech. Once we get to April, it will have been 31 months since we last saw the 24-year-old Kopech on a big-league mound. He blew out his elbow late in the 2018 season, missed all of 2019 after Tommy John surgery, and opted out of the 2020 season because of the COVID-19 pandemic and assorted personal issues. Kopech is back this year for sure, and he's saying he's in a better mental place than he's been at any point in his career. And make no mistake about it, he isn't going to Charlotte. He's going to be on the club when camp breaks. I just think he's going to start the season in the bullpen. Because he has not pitched in two years, he will be on an innings limit, and the Sox are already talking about how they will need to be "creative" with his usage. For me, that means something other than starting every fifth day. I don't see Kopech opening the season in the rotation unless there are a bunch of injuries that force the Sox's hand.

5. Jimmy Lambert. The forgotten 26-year-old right-hander also had Tommy John surgery in 2019. He returned in 2020 and made two scoreless relief appearances with the Sox before a forearm strain sidelined him for the rest of the season. Lambert doesn't have the stuff that some other guys on this list have, but he has three pitches that he can get over the plate, and he's not afraid out there. The most likely scenario? Lambert pitches at the top of the rotation in Triple-A Charlotte, and he's a candidate to be called up if injury woes strike the major league rotation.

So, who do you have going into those last two spots, assuming good health? I'm obviously going with Cease and Rodon. 

I think both Lopez and Kopech will be on the team April 1, but both will be in the bullpen to start the season. Don't forget, Jace Fry is out until May after having back surgery, and Jimmy Cordero has a leftover suspension to serve after beaning Willson Contreras with a pitch in a late-season game against the Cubs in 2020.

That opens up a couple of bullpen jobs in the short run. Ultimately, though, Cordero will come back from his suspension, Lopez will head to Charlotte to stay stretched out to start, and we'll see him in the likely event that Rodon needs time on the injured list. That's my prediction.

White Sox manager Tony La Russa finalizes 2021 coaching staff

Tony La Russa

It took more than a month for a formal announcement, but new (old) White Sox manager Tony La Russa has his coaching staff in place for the 2021 season.

As expected, Miguel Cairo has been named bench coach, replacing Joe McEwing, and Ethan Katz replaces Don Cooper as pitching coach.

McEwing remains on the coaching staff. He will serve as third-base coach, a role he filled for the Sox during the Robin Ventura era from 2012 to 2016.

Shelley Duncan has been named analytics coordinator. As far as I know, that's a new position on the Sox staff. Duncan is the son of Dave Duncan, who was La Russa's longtime pitching coach with the Sox, the Oakland Athletics and the St. Louis Cardinals. 

Shelley Duncan, who played for the New York Yankees and the Cleveland Indians, has managerial experience in the minor leagues with the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He also served as a "field coordinator" with the Toronto Blue Jays. Not sure exactly what that role entailed, but in any case, I'm sure new-school fans will like the idea of the Sox having a coach whose focus is on analytics.

Frank Menechino returns to the Sox as hitting coach. Also returning are first-base coach Daryl Boston and assistant pitching coach Curt Hasler.

The Sox have hired former Toronto infielder Howie Clark to be the assistant hitting coach. Clark was expected to be the hitting coach at Triple-A Charlotte in 2020, before the pandemic canceled the minor league season.

Clark replaces Scott Coolbaugh, who left the Sox organization to become the hitting coach with the Detroit Tigers.

Miguel Cairo expected to be hired as White Sox bench coach

Miguel Cairo

Slowly, the White Sox are assembling a coaching staff around new manager Tony La Russa. Last week, we learned that Ethan Katz will replace Don Cooper as pitching coach. Now comes news that Miguel Cairo is expected to be named bench coach.

The hiring was first reported in an article by James Fegan of The Athletic.

Cairo was a utility player during his 17-year career in the major leagues. He played for La Russa in St. Louis on two separate occasions -- from 2001 to 2003, and again in 2007. In total, Cairo played for nine different teams.

He finished his career with Cincinnati in 2012, and he stayed with the Reds as a special assistant to the GM from 2013 to 2017. His most recent role was that of minor league infield coordinator for the New York Yankees.

So, when Cairo joins the Sox, this will be his first time in a uniformed role at the big-league level since he retired as a player. Everybody's got to start somewhere, so we'll see what he can do.

More details are expected on the rest of the Sox coaching staff next week, but we've heard that one before -- they said that just last week, in fact.

The latest report from Scott Merkin on MLB.com says that hitting coach Frank Menechino, first-base coach Daryl Boston and assistant pitching coach Curt Hasler are expected to be retained.

It already has been announced that third-base coach Nick Capra will not be returning. The fate of former bench coach Joe McEwing is unknown. Obviously, Cairo is taking his role, but it's possible McEwing will get the third-base coaching job -- a role he served in previously with the Sox during the Robin Ventura era from 2012 to 2016.

McEwing does have ties to La Russa. He played for him as a member of the Cardinals in 1998 and 1999.

Ethan Katz expected to be named White Sox pitching coach

The White Sox are expected to announce new manager Tony La Russa's full coaching staff sometime this week, but sources are saying Ethan Katz will be the new pitching coach.

Katz, who will replace Don Cooper, was most recently the assistant pitching coach for the San Francisco Giants. However, most Sox fans will recognize the 37-year-old as Lucas Giolito's high school coach.

Three major leaguers -- Giolito, Max Fried and Jack Flaherty -- played for Katz at Harvard-Westlake High School in Los Angeles. 

That said, Katz has a lot more experience than just coaching star high school pitchers. The Los Angeles Angels hired him in 2013 to coach pitchers in rookie ball, and Katz was moved up to be the pitching coach at the Angels' Midwest League affiliate in Low-A the next season. 

Later, Katz worked in the Seattle Mariners organization, where he won 2016 Coach of the Year in the California League. He made the jump to coaching big leaguers last year, when the Giants promoted him to the aforementioned position of assistant pitching coach.

When Giolito struggled in 2018 -- going 10-13 with a 6.13 ERA -- he turned to Katz in the offseason to help him refine his mechanics. We're all familiar with the story from there. Giolito is now the undisputed ace of the Sox's pitching staff. He's finished in the top 10 of the Cy Young voting in the American League in each of the past two seasons. He was a 2019 American League All-Star, and assuredly would have been an All-Star in 2020, as well, had an All-Star Game been played.

But this is more than just a hire to cater to Giolito. Katz obviously has a track record of success. He keeps getting promoted everywhere he coaches. And as a 37-year-old, the hope is he will be a better communicator when working with young pitchers than Cooper, whose best success stories are now several years in the past. 

Can Katz unlock the talent of Dylan Cease, Reynaldo Lopez, Dane Dunning, Michael Kopech and Jonathan Stiever? That's what he's being brought in to do.

Both Cease and Lopez have regressed over the past year, much to the frustration of everyone associated with the Sox, and that regression is one reason the Sox are in the market for more starting pitching this offseason.

If the Sox can do a better job of developing their own pitchers, owner Jerry Reinsdorf's unwillingness to spend and cries of poverty become less of an issue. 

Katz obviously helped Giolito secure his spot in the Sox's rotation for both the short and long term. Now we'll find out whether he can do the same for some of the other young pitchers listed above.