To say things have not gone the White Sox’ way this spring would be the understatement of the season. The team came into the year hoping to prove their 81-81 finish in 2022 was an anomaly, and that they’d be back in the playoffs in 2023. The key would be staying healthy.
Of course, the White Sox have been anything but healthy. Just a few weeks into the season, their Injured List already resembled a CVS receipt. Things appeared to be finally turning around in early May, but the team suffered another setback when Eloy Jiménez needed to head to the hospital in the middle of the night for an appendectomy earlier this weekend.
Heading into Sunday’s series finale with the Reds, the White Sox have an 11-23 record and are eight games out of first place in the division. But it’s not just the injuries that have held the White Sox back this year.
“The White Sox have the Bermuda Triangle of lousy hitting, awful pitching and horrendous defense,” said Bob Nightengale in his latest column.
According to Nightengale, if things don’t turn around there are going to be some changes on the South Side.
“If the Rangers wait, they could pick up veterans Joe Kelly or Kendall Graveman if the Chicago White Sox are out of the race by July,” Nightengale said.
While the decision to move Kelly or Graveman could come near the trade deadline, it sounds like the White Sox have already made their mind up about one of their starters.
MLB
“The White Sox don’t plan to keep starter Lucas Giolito after this season, and will make him available at the trade deadline if they are out of the race,” said Nightengale.
Giolito is playing on a one-year deal this season, so he’s set to become a free agent after this year. Not too long ago it appeared Giolito would be a part of the team’s future for years to come. From 2019-2021 he had a 3.47 ERA to go with a 1.076 WHIP and a 526/127 K/BB ratio. But his play dipped last year, and he finished 2022 with a 4.90 ERA and 1.495 WHIP. Through seven starts this season, Giolito’s performances have been somewhere between his former dominance and last year’s disappointment.
If the White Sox don’t mount any sort of comeback over the coming months, it’s reasonable to believe they won’t just move one or two players at the deadline. However, according to Nightengale the White Sox want to keep at least one big piece of the pitching staff.
“The White Sox certainly plan to pick up the $15 million option on closer Liam Hendriks in 2024 considering the buyout is also $15 million.”