The White Sox have been second citizens in the second city for too long.
They have their World Series title from 2005, and the Cubs had theirs in 2016. Who’s going to get the next one in this blessed two-team town?
It just might be the Sox.
But likely not in 2020. As we sit here today, the Cubs roster is better equipped to compete for the postseason. But they appear to be taking a step back, assessing their window and retooling under first year manager David Ross.
The Sox, meanwhile, are on the cusp of taking the next step with a young core on their roster led by third baseman Yoan Moncada, left fielder Eloy Jimenez, shortstop Tim Anderson, right-handers Lucas Giolito, Michael Kopech and Dylan Cease, minor league player of the year center fielder Luis Robert and second baseman Nick Madrigal, the No. 4 overall draft choice in 2018.
With an expected offseason addition of two proven starting pitchers, a right fielder such as free agent Nicholas Castellanos and a proven designated hitter, it’s no stretch to envision a significant improvement from their 72-89 team, perhaps enough to push for a title in an AL Central Division inhabited by the suffering Tigers and Royals at the bottom and the Twins and Indians at the top.
With even more spending and tweaks to the roster next offseason, and continued development in 2020 from the aforementioned core coupled with near-full seasons of major league time for Robert and Madrigal, it’s no major stretch to fancy the Sox aiming higher than a division title in 2021.
The Sox would like nothing more than a parade with Jimenez and Cease wearing black caps in a Cubbie blue city. 2005, after all, was 14 seasons ago.
That’s general manager Rick Hahn’s dream. He likes to say a parade is all that matters. But in 2020? Hahn’s not even ready to declare it as “.500 or bust.”
”It’s way too early [in November] to talk about that,” he said this week at the GM meetings in Arizona. “We don’t have a roster. ... we don’t have any of the needs I talked about addressing done yet.”
“Knock on wood, everyone gets through the winter healthy, we’re going to look in spring training, look at the roster and say ‘That team is capable of doing X.’ No one’s looking to extend this rebuild longer than need be. Nobody’s looking to continue the talent accumulation stage of this rebuild. As I talked about at the end of the season, we feel like we’re at the end of that first stage of this rebuild. It’s time to move on to the next one where it’s progress at the big league level and augmenting with impact talent around the core we have. That should translate into more wins if we do this properly. That’s the goal.”
The Sox not only need to spend on free agents, they need to spend more wisely than in years past – see Adam LaRoche, Yonder Alonso, Welington Castillo et al.
After Hahn’s signings are complete, we’ll know whether they can realistically talk playoffs.
“In terms of can this roster be above .500, can this roster compete for the playoffs, can this roster compete for a World Series, we’re going to have to wait on that until we see what we have this offseason,” Hahn said.
Help is out there. Pitchers Gerrit Cole, Stephen Strasburg, Madison Bumgarner, Cole Hamels, Zack Wheeler are free agents. So are right field possibilities Castellanos, Yasiel Puig, Kole Calhoun and others. And switch-hitting catcher, Yasmani Grandal, one of the best pitch framers in the business.
Land a name or two from that pack and the Sox might start pushing the Cubs off the back page, not that Hahn cares about that.
At least he says he doesn’t.
“It’s really not some concern myself with,” he said. “I concern myself more with trying to build something that wins championships and makes White Sox fans more proud. And if there’s some sort of potential slighting by the media once we’re winning championships, that’s going to take care of itself. It will be happily covered by all outlets when we’re winning championships.”
