https://soxmachine.com/2024/11/white-sox-add-austin-slater-shaped-balance-to-lopsided-outfield-mix/

14 minutes ago, Bob Sacamano said:

There's definitely guys still here that we can non-tender, DFA though. Justin Anderson, Enyel De Los Santos, Ron Marinaccio (who?), Pen Murfee, Gus Varland, Chuckie Robinson, Jacob Amaya, Braden Shewmake, Corey Julks, Gavin Sheets are easily guys that can be cut and no one would care about. And someone who some seem to think could be a candidate to be non-tendered like Vaughn.

I'd believe this was a guy selling italian sandwiches at the park before learning that he's a player on the 40-man.

23 minutes ago, Bob Sacamano said:

There's definitely guys still here that we can non-tender, DFA though. Justin Anderson, Enyel De Los Santos, Ron Marinaccio (who?), Pen Murfee, Gus Varland, Chuckie Robinson, Jacob Amaya, Braden Shewmake, Corey Julks, Gavin Sheets are easily guys that can be cut and no one would care about. And someone who some seem to think could be a candidate to be non-tendered like Vaughn.

The Sox should have multiple non-tenders coming up.

Preparing for a trade of Beni? Probably not but maybe.

6 minutes ago, JUSTgottaBELIEVE said:

Preparing for a trade of Beni? Probably not but maybe.

Platoon with Beni more likely. He's not replacing a LHH. Julks is a guy who should be more worried.

Edited November 18, 20241 yr by Bob Sacamano

Slater, Robert, Fletcher, Beni, Sheets, Deloach, Colas are the current OF options.

I think the front office has pretty much ruled out Colas as a mlb player so that still leaves 6 guys. Obviously, Sheets is disposable but I kind of think they’re going to give Fletcher and Deloach an extended look in 2025. SSS but Deloach showed improvement at the plate during his September call up.

Assuming they can’t move Beni but find a way to move Robert, that would leave Beni, Slater, Fletcher, Deloach with another veteran dumper dive move that can play CF very much in play. Perhaps someone like Bader or Taylor. That type of signing would likely send Fletcher or Deloach back to AAA.

edit: forgot about Julks so I think he’d be fighting with Deloach and Fletcher for the final OF spot. Not sure what their options situation looks like but that might dictate who stays up when ST breaks.

 

Edited November 18, 20241 yr by JUSTgottaBELIEVE

8 minutes ago, Bob Sacamano said:

Platoon with Beni more likely. He's not replacing a LHH. Julks is a guy who should be more worried.

Oh yes, I forgot about Julks. I think Julks, Fletcher, and Deloach are all fighting for one roster spot in spring training.

Slater has hit righties very well in his career, which is a weakness for the Sox, and he had a slight rebound (though without much power) in Baltimore after a concussion sidelined him for most of 2024. He's worth taking a flyer on and see if he can put together a decent first half for a lotto ticket, or at least make this team somewhat more competent against righties.

10 minutes ago, almagest said:

Slater has hit righties very well in his career, which is a weakness for the Sox, and he had a slight rebound (though without much power) in Baltimore after a concussion sidelined him for most of 2024. He's worth taking a flyer on and see if he can put together a decent first half for a lotto ticket, or at least make this team somewhat more competent against righties.

Lefties*

1 hour ago, nitetrain8601 said:

Someone get this over to Chris Getz. I agree with this overall. The only thing I can possibly think is that Getz is so adamant about signing these players and the only way they come here is with a guarantee, so he gives it to them. Otherwise, if your Austin Slater and know you're going to get a minor league deal, why bother signing with the White Sox over anyone else? Heck, why sign with the White Sox over going overseas and starting there?

Yep, Getz did this last offseason as well.  He wanted to improve the team defense and signed a bunch of scrubs early in free agency that matched his awful vision, even though teams were rushing to sign these old has-been vets.

Edited November 18, 20241 yr by WhiteSox2023

1 hour ago, nitetrain8601 said:

Someone get this over to Chris Getz. I agree with this overall. The only thing I can possibly think is that Getz is so adamant about signing these players and the only way they come here is with a guarantee, so he gives it to them. Otherwise, if your Austin Slater and know you're going to get a minor league deal, why bother signing with the White Sox over anyone else? Heck, why sign with the White Sox over going overseas and starting there?

 

Re: your first question, because the Sox still present one of the easier paths to the majors.  

Slater had a 137 wRC+ vs. LHP from 2019 to 2023 and then put up a 66 in 2024.  He did put up a 114 wRC+ with the Orioles, so there is some reason to believe a partial bounce back is very possible.  Depending on the price, there is some logic to the signing, especially when almost all our non Robert OFs are lefties in Benintnedi, Fletcher, DeLoach, & Colas.  Again, just depends on the price.

1 hour ago, Bob Sacamano said:

Lefties*

Oops, you're right. My bad

He is to the White Sox like Centers are for the Bears nw OC's.   A guy the new guy likes.

Seems like a “wouldn’t be a bad signing if not a Major League contract before Thanksgiving” signing.
Like, this seems like an overly-assertive move, compared to what it is / could be.

Seems like a guy worth taking a flyer on for sure.

14 minutes ago, JoeC said:

Seems like a “wouldn’t be a bad signing if not a Major League contract before Thanksgiving” signing.
Like, this seems like an overly-assertive move, compared to what it is / could be.

Seems like a guy worth taking a flyer on for sure.

It screams the guy we just hired as Hitting boss recommended him so we signed him.

Ryan Fuller’s first guy

7 hours ago, Y2Jimmy0 said:

Fuller has talked a lot about being a place for bounceback candidates in Baltimore and I'm sure he'd like to do the same here. Slater was pretty decent for a years in San Francisco. 

Being a place that can rehabilitate a player’s performance bodes well for making trades and getting more prospect capital into the system. It also could allow for some flexibility financially going forward too. 

1 hour ago, JoeC said:

Seems like a “wouldn’t be a bad signing if not a Major League contract before Thanksgiving” signing.
Like, this seems like an overly-assertive move, compared to what it is / could be.

Seems like a guy worth taking a flyer on for sure.

Yes, he seems like a guy that should garner a minor league deal rather than an MLB deal like you said.  Seems like Getz did the same thing last offseason and struck early on guys he wanted, rather than waiting and seeing what the market would dictate for these bottom of the barrel type players — signing DeJong and trading Bummer rather than waiting to see if the Braves would non-tender Soroka and Lopez.

13 minutes ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

Yes, he seems like a guy that should garner a minor league deal rather than an MLB deal like you said.  Seems like Getz did the same thing last offseason and struck early on guys he wanted, rather than waiting and seeing what the market would dictate for these bottom of the barrel type players — signing DeJong and trading Bummer rather than waiting to see if the Braves would non-tender Soroka and Lopez.

He was also overly aggressive in signing Fedde. I remember reading similar sentiments when he was signed- “why the big rush to sign THIS guy?” That one worked out well and for that matter Dejong was a perfectly fine signing as well.

12 minutes ago, JUSTgottaBELIEVE said:

He was also overly aggressive in signing Fedde. I remember reading similar sentiments when he was signed- “why the big rush to sign THIS guy?” That one worked out well and for that matter Dejong was a perfectly fine signing as well.

Fedde had other suitors (I seem to remember the Mets) and he was signed for 2/$15 million.  That’s a different situation than DeJong, Soroka, and Lopez.  DeJong turned out well but at the time he was signed, he was coming off of 4 bad seasons in a row.

Getz jumping the market again on that scorching hot commodity of former fringe guys coming off terrible years at the end of their careers. 

30 minutes ago, JUSTgottaBELIEVE said:

He was also overly aggressive in signing Fedde. I remember reading similar sentiments when he was signed- “why the big rush to sign THIS guy?” That one worked out well and for that matter Dejong was a perfectly fine signing as well.

Erick Fedde was signed on December 14th of last year. This was more than a week after the winter meetings, after the rule 5 draft. I would like to know who thought this was too early.

.266 average last year. Slugging average.

More cannon fodder from Getz