Chicago White Sox - The Covid-19 Years (2020-2029)

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2020

2023

101

Decade

2021

2024

121

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2022

2025

102

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Titles:

Top White Sox Players during the Twenty Twenties

2020 - WC Lost to A's

2021 - ALDS Lost to Houston

Pitchers:

Dylan Cease (11.93) - 31

BallPark: New Comiskey Park

Lucas Giolito (8.36) - 23

Liam Hendriks (4.35) - 18

Team Name: White Sox

Lance Lynn (5.06) - 13

Dallas Keuchel (1.04) - 11

Owner: Jerry Reinsdorf

Michael Kopech (4.75) - 8

Carlos Rodon (4.76) - 8

General Managers:

Mike Clevinger (3.3) - 6

Ken Williams (2020-2023) President

Erick Fedde (4.7) - 6

Rick Hahn (2020-2023) GM

Garret Crochet (5.84) - 6

Chris Getz (2024)

Jonathan Cannon (1.4) - 6

Davis Martin (2.4) - 6

Managers:

Shane Smith (2.4) - 6

Rick Renteria (2020)

Tony LaRussa (2021-2022)

Catchers:

Miguel Cairo (2022)

Yasmani Grandal (2.46) - 16

Pedro Grifol (2023-2024)

Grady Sizemore (2025)

First Basemen:

Will Venable (2025)

Jose Abreu (10.14) - 26

Andrew Vaughn (1.16) - 23

Hall of Famers:

None

Second Basemen:

Elvis Andrus (2.39) - 7

No Hitters:

Leury Garcia (1.74) - 5

2020 - Lucas Giolito Pittsburgh)

Lenyn Sosa (-1.66) - 5

2021 - Carlos Rodon (Cleveland)

ShortStop:

Rookie of the Year:

Tim Anderson (6.33) - 28

None

Colson Montgomery (-1.66) - 5

MVP:

Third Base:

2020 - Jose Abreu

Yoan Moncada (6.03) - 19

Cy Young:

Outfield:

None

Luis Robert (13.173) - 47

Eloy Jimenez (4.04) - 14

Notable Events:

Andrew Benintendi (-0.6) - 11

Gavin Sheets (-2.46) - 7

2020 - After a very poor seven year run to close out the previous decade in which

Adam Engel (2.14) - 6

the Pale Hose averaged a 71-91 record, Chicago turned it around in '20

Michael Tauchman (1.9) - 6

with a second place finish and a 35-25 mark. They lost in the Wild Card round

to the A's. Massive improvements were made both on offense and pitching.

Notable Events:

The Sox had been gathering high draft picks due to their poor performance

also picked up some top youngsters thru trading their top assets like ace

2024 - The question is - what to do with this team? A complete rebuild looks

LHP Chris Sale and OF Adam Eaton. They also picked up some prospect depth

pretty much inevitable. But new management might want to keep some guys

dealing the likes of RHP Jose Quintana, Closer David Robertson and OF

around. This was a bad team last year, 61-101 and they don't look any

Melky Cabrera. Trading these players just made things worse during the

better for '24. Not really much positive to write about other than Luis Robert.

bad times, but that was OK, as Chicago got better draft positions.

No one else on the team is performing anywhere near above replacement level.

Sensing that they were on the cusp of their youngsters turning things around,

the White Sox spent on free agents in '20 picking up ace righthander Dallas

The once promising offense:

Keuchel and excellent catcher Yasmani Grandal. They also invested in a couple

Out of all the highly valued prospects, the only one that didn't turn into a suspect

of big names that didn't pan out in Gio Gonzalez and Edwin Encarnacion.

was CF Luis Robert. Even tho' he's only twenty six, by the time the Sox turn

this thing around, his time frame won't be matching the rest of the club.

□ Jerry Reinsdorf has owned the White Sox for forty years. The Sox performance

Therefore, if the right deal comes along, he probably should be moved.

has been middle of the road over that period with six division titles and thirteen

The suspects are: 1B Andrew Vaughn, 26; 3B Yoan Moncada, 29;

second place finishes. Jerry has been one of the league's more reactionary

OF Andrew Benintendi, 29; 1B Gavin Sheets, 28; OF Eloy Jimenez, 27.

owners during his tenure. He played a major role in the near disastrous player

It wasn't just White Sox management, everybody thought these guys would be

lockout in '94. He's also blown hot and cold with his spending over the years.

good and they aren't. There were several more, but these are the ones that

All that being said, Reinsdorf opens the decade with a team with loads of talent.

are still left in the organization.

□ Rick Hahn took over the GM spot in 2013 when Kenny Williams was kicked up

The once promising pitching staff is mostly gone.

to team president. Good timing for Williams as he left the cupboard bare for Hahn.

Guys like Carlos Rodon, Lucas Giolito, Aaron Bummer and Dylan Cease.

Hahn has spent the last seven years trying to build something and his hard work

Only Michael Kopech remains of the suspects.

finally started paying off in '20.

Twenty five year old lefty Garret Crochet remains the only prospect.

□ Tony La Russa, 76, that's right - seventy six, has been hired to manage the

2025 - The 2024 season was "Nightmare in Chicago". The Pale Hose had

White Sox for 2021. I suppose if Joe Biden, 78, and Donald Trump, 74, can

one of the worst seasons in major league history going 41-121. And that

try to run a country, La Russa can manage a team. Rick Renteria was fired to

was with a "hot finish" that saw them going 10-15 in September. Before that

make way for La Russa despite finishing 35-25. The reasoning for this move

they were on a pace to easily become the worst major league team ever

is that Chicago wants an experienced manager that can guide the club to the

at a horrific 31-106 mark. Historically bad. The Sox traded away their

next level now that the talent is there. They may have over shot the mark on

best pitcher twenty five year old lefty Garret Crochet to the Red Sox.

the experience thing on this one, however.

The change of Sox should help Garret's 6-12 W-L record.

2021 - All is going according to plan. Chicago wins the Division with a 93-69

No point in dwelling on the specific's of this team, the team is awful.

mark and the arrow is pointing up everywhere. A young team loaded with talent.

If there is any mercy amongst the management staff, they will liberate

The Core (Mostly young and not yet in their prime) :

OF Andrew Benintendi, 1B Andrew Vaughn and OF Luis Robert, their three

Pitching:

decent players, and trade them to somewhere less depressing.

□ RHP Dylan Cease, 25, obtained from the Cubs in '17 for Jose Quintana

□ RHP Lucas Giolito, 26, obtained from Washington in '17 trade for Adam Eaton

□ LHP Carlos Rodon, 28, 3rd overall pick in '14 draft

□ RHP Michael Kopech, 25, obtained from Boston in '17 trade for Chris Sale

□ RHP Codi Huer, 24, 6th round pick in '18 draft; '21 dealt to Cubs for Craig Kimbrel

□ LHP Garret Crochet, 21, 1st round pick in '20 draft

□ RHP Reynaldo Lopez, 26, obtained from Washington in '17 trade for Adam Eaton

□ Closer Liam Hendricks, 31, '22 FA signed from the A's

□ RHP Lance Lynn, 34, obtained from Texas in '21 for two pitching prospects

Hitting:

□ C Yasmani Grandal, 31, '20 High priced FA from Milwaukee

□ 1B Jose Abreu, 34, '14 IFA

□ 2B Leury Garcia, 30, obtained from Texas in '13 for Alex Rios

□ 2B Nick Madrigal, 24, '18 4th overall pick; dealt to Cubs in '21 for Craig Kimbrel

□ SS Tim Anderson, 28, 1st round pick in '13

□ 3B Yoan Moncada, 26, obtained from the Red Sox for Chris Sale in '17

□ OF Andrew Vaughn, 23, 3rd overall pick in '19 draft

□ OF Eloy Jimenez, 24, obtained from Cubs in '17 for Jose Quintana

□ CF Luis Robert, 23, '17 IFA

□ OF Gavin Sheets, 25, '17 2nd round pick

□ OF Adam Eaton, 32, FA signed from Nationals after '20 season

2022 - The Sox drop twelve games in the standings to a mediocre 81-81.

This was a major surprise to everyone.

Both the hitting and the pitching go backwards. The core of the team are all

in their early to mid twenties, they should be improving, not going backwards.

And, for the most part, they all did go backwards, hitting and pitching.

Before the '22 season, you would have bet on the Sox getting to around a

hundred wins just based on natural progression of their players' careers.

To drop down to 81 wins was bizarre.

The culprits on Offense:

□ C Yasmani Grandal, 33, catchers get old quick, fell off a cliff in '22

□ 1B Jose Abreu, 35, home runs dropped from 30 to 15 in '22

□ SS Tim Anderson, 29, OPS dropped from 806 to 734 in '22

□ 3B Yoan Moncada, 26, OPS dropped from 787 ito 626 n '22

□ OF Andrew Vaughn, 24, the final straw - proved he's a horrific fielder

□ OF Eloy Jimenez, 25, 858 OPS good in '22; defense horrible

□ CF Luis Robert, 24, OPS dropped from 946 to 746 in '22

□ OF Gavin Sheets, 26, OPS dropped from 830 to 706 in '22

□ OF Leury Garcia, 31, OPS dropped from 711 to 500 in '22

The Culprits on the Mound:

□ RHP Carlos Rodon, 29, missed entire '22 season with injury

□ RHP Lucas Giolito, 27, ERA jumped from 3.53 to 4.90 in '22

□ RHP Lance Lynn, 35, ERA jumped from 2.69 to 3.99 in '22

□ LHP Garret Crochet, 23, missed entire '22 season with TJ surgery

□ Righty reliever Aaron Bummer, 28, arm problems limited him to 26 in's in '22

□ RHP Dylan Cease, 26, bucked the trend and was 14-8 2.20 in '22

□ RHP Michael Kopech, 26, bucked the trend and had a decent year in '22

2023 - The inexplicable collapse is complete. Because the team was so young,

the thought was that the Sox would bounce back after an off '22. Instead,

Chicago free-fell twenty more games to 61-101 and upper management

were all fired after lengthy tenures (president Ken Williams, 23 years, and

general manager Rick Hahn, 11 years).

In just two seasons, the Sox collapsed 158 runs from the league average

in runs scored and 200 runs from the league average in runs given up.

Remarkable.