WestEddy Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 25 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: So who are we thinking will open the season as the 5th starter? I got Davis, Cannon, Perez, & Burke as locks. That leaves the following as options: Bryse Wilson Shane Smith Jario Iriarte Nick Nastrini Tyler Gilbert Mason Adams I’ve been thinking Wilson would be a gimme all spring with Thorpe out, but now I’m starting to think that someone else could snag this role. As much as I’d like to see an actual kid grab that spot, I have a weird feeling that Gilbert somehow ends up the victor. Just feels like Smith profiles better as a multi-inning reliever and Iriarte & Adams could probably use more time in AAA. Nastrini is a little bit of a wild card here and his Statcast numbers yesterday were pretty decent. I could see him making a case for some sort of Opening Day role. But right now, my money would be Wilson or Gilbert and I’m sort of leaning towards the lefty given we actually went out and traded for him. I want it to be Shane Smith, but I think Nastrini and Gilbert, in that order. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Y2Jimmy0 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 I’d think Bryse Wilson is the 5th starter until Thorpe is ready Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 21 minutes ago, WestEddy said: I want it to be Shane Smith, but I think Nastrini and Gilbert, in that order. I’d love to see Nastrini snag it. He was a top 115 prospect at BA a year ago and he’d be a much more fun follow than either Gilbert or Wilson. But this job may be incredibly short-term with Thorpe coming back in the not too distant future, which would potentially give an edge to the swingman types in Gilbert & Wilson. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 (edited) 20 minutes ago, Y2Jimmy0 said: I’d think Bryse Wilson is the 5th starter until Thorpe is ready Any particular reason you think it will be him? Edited March 2 by Chicago White Sox Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 24 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: Any particular reason you think it will be him? All I can think of is they guaranteed him an MLB deal with that in mind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 17 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: I’d love to see Nastrini snag it. He was a top 115 prospect at BA a year ago and he’d be a much more fun follow than either Gilbert or Wilson. But this job may be incredibly short-term with Thorpe coming back in the not too distant future, which would potentially give an edge to the swingman types in Gilbert & Wilson. Once Thorpe returns, they're set, and nothing opens up (beyond injury or double headers) until Martin Perez is moved in July. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 19 minutes ago, WestEddy said: Once Thorpe returns, they're set, and nothing opens up (beyond injury or double headers) until Martin Perez is moved in July. The only caveat there is Thorpe didn’t pitch in AAA, so it’s possible they give him a bit more seasoning there if someone takes the fifth starter role and runs with it. That’s far more likely if it’s an actual prospect with upside than a swingman type. I don’t foresee that happening, but it’s possible nonetheless. I also don’t think the main five guys (Thorpe being one of them) are guaranteed roles until July. If guys don’t perform come May / June, I expect Iriarte, Adams, Nastrini, etc. to be challenging them for their starts. It’s absolutely critical this season to figure out who we think can slot into the two or three rotation spots alongside Schultz, Smith, & hopefully Taylor, who can likely hold down bullpen spots, and who should be traded to address other areas. I don’t want to it to be a complete revolving door, but we also have to let the best of the best get the shots because those will be much harder to come by next year. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 (edited) Just spit-ballin' here. These are the spots I think are pretty much locks at this point. 4 rotation spots with the 5th coming from Smith, Wilson or Gilbert. The middle infield is wide open, and they probably need a LF for a few weeks until Benny's ready. That all said, they have 5 bullpen spots and 5 position players to fill. They probably top out at 3 lefties in the bullpen, so it's really between Ellard and Eisert for a bullpen spot. Varland, Leasure and Murfee are on the 40-man, so unless any of them get continuously lit up, I think they make the team. If they go with 3 lefties in the pen, that leaves one spot between Clevenger, S. Wilson, Karinchak and J. Anderson. On the position side, Sosa and Vargas are out of options, so they have to make the team or be moved. LF looks to be a battle between Fletcher and Colas, with DeLoach and Mitchell needing to play out of their heads to be added to the 40-man. The means 2-4 slots get filled from that IF group. Rojas is most probably going to make the team. If Drury is hitting, he makes it, too. That leaves shortstop to be filled by Monty, Amaya, Baldwin or Meidroth. Maybe they use Drury as a backup in the corner OF spots and pick two of those 4 just listed. This is all done assuming Robert doesn't get traded, and Ramos, Benintendi, Thorpe and maybe even Taylor open the season on the IL. Taylor starting in LF would be the weakest option, IMO. Rot- Cannon, Martin, Perez*, Burke BP- S. Smith, Booser*, B. Wilson, T. Gilbert* Bench- Sosa, Slater, Thaiss C- Lee 1B- Vaughn 2B- 3B- Vargas SS- LF- CF- Robert RF- Tauchman* DH- RHBP (5)- Clevenger, Varland, Leasure, Murfee, S. Wilson, J. Anderson, Karinchak, Altavilla, Iriarte, Nastrini, W. Gonzalez LHBP (5)- Ellard*, Eisert*, Shuster*, McGough*, Schoenle*, Eder* MI (2)- Rojas, Amaya, Baldwin#, Meidroth*, Drury, C. Montgomery*, Gray*, Bergolla*, Ramos OF (2)- Fletcher*, Colas*, Julks, DeLoach*, Mitchell*, Taylor Edited March 2 by WestEddy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 1 hour ago, WestEddy said: Just spit-ballin' here. These are the spots I think are pretty much locks at this point. 4 rotation spots with the 5th coming from Smith, Wilson or Gilbert. The middle infield is wide open, and they probably need a LF for a few weeks until Benny's ready. That all said, they have 5 bullpen spots and 5 position players to fill. They probably top out at 3 lefties in the bullpen, so it's really between Ellard and Eisert for a bullpen spot. Varland, Leasure and Murfee are on the 40-man, so unless any of them get continuously lit up, I think they make the team. If they go with 3 lefties in the pen, that leaves one spot between Clevenger, S. Wilson, Karinchak and J. Anderson. On the position side, Sosa and Vargas are out of options, so they have to make the team or be moved. LF looks to be a battle between Fletcher and Colas, with DeLoach and Mitchell needing to play out of their heads to be added to the 40-man. The means 2-4 slots get filled from that IF group. Rojas is most probably going to make the team. If Drury is hitting, he makes it, too. That leaves shortstop to be filled by Monty, Amaya, Baldwin or Meidroth. Maybe they use Drury as a backup in the corner OF spots and pick two of those 4 just listed. This is all done assuming Robert doesn't get traded, and Ramos, Benintendi, Thorpe and maybe even Taylor open the season on the IL. Taylor starting in LF would be the weakest option, IMO. Rot- Cannon, Martin, Perez*, Burke BP- S. Smith, Booser*, B. Wilson, T. Gilbert* Bench- Sosa, Slater, Thaiss C- Lee 1B- Vaughn 2B- 3B- Vargas SS- LF- CF- Robert RF- Tauchman* DH- RHBP (5)- Clevenger, Varland, Leasure, Murfee, S. Wilson, J. Anderson, Karinchak, Altavilla, Iriarte, Nastrini, W. Gonzalez LHBP (5)- Ellard*, Eisert*, Shuster*, McGough*, Schoenle*, Eder* MI (2)- Rojas, Amaya, Baldwin#, Meidroth*, Drury, C. Montgomery*, Gray*, Bergolla*, Ramos OF (2)- Fletcher*, Colas*, Julks, DeLoach*, Mitchell*, Taylor Right now I see 18 roster locks assuming no more trades: Infield (4): Vaughn, Rojas*, Vargas, Sosa Outfield (4): Robert, Tauchman*, Slater, Taylor Catcher (2): Lee, Thais* Rotation (4): Martin, Cannon, Perez*, Burke M.I. Relief (3): Smith, B. Wilson, Gilbert* S.I. Relief (2): Varland, Booser* That leaves three positional spots and four pitching roles open. These are the guys I think will be in the mix for those seven spots assuming that Benintendi, Ramos, & Berroa are all currently out of consideration due to health: Positional Battles: Starting SS: Mongomery*, Baldwin#, & Meidroth Backup IF: Baldwin#, Meidroth, Amaya, & Drury Other Bench: Baldwin#, Drury, Fletcher*, Colas*, & Gallo* Pitching Battles: Rotation: Nastrini, Iriarte, & Adams (Smith, B. Wilson, & Gilbert*) RH Relief: Anderson, Murfee, Leasure, Clevinger, & S. Wilson (Smith & B. Wilson) LH Relief: Ellard*, Eisert*, & Shuster* (Gilbert*) I’ve bolded the seven I think get those jobs plus Gilbert for winning the #5 spot. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 Came out today that Taylor now has elbow issues and is going to be examined. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 5 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said: Came out today that Taylor now has elbow issues and is going to be examined. Which one? The CF or P? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lip Man 1 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 5 minutes ago, southsider2k5 said: Which one? The CF or P? Sorry...the outfielder. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 55 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said: Came out today that Taylor now has elbow issues and is going to be examined. To be honest, I’d be super happy if he misses time. He doesn’t offer much if Robert is on the roster. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 12 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: To be honest, I’d be super happy if he misses time. He doesn’t offer much if Robert is on the roster. Bold of you to assume Robert can stay on the active roster 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted March 2 Share Posted March 2 55 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: To be honest, I’d be super happy if he misses time. He doesn’t offer much if Robert is on the roster. Seems like the plan is to play him in CF when Robert DH’s. They could just run Baldwin, or Slater, or Tauchman out there on those days since it doesn’t matter anyway. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Y2Jimmy0 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 10 hours ago, Chicago White Sox said: Any particular reason you think it will be him? Guaranteed money 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 Shuster is going to be hard to dislodge because he can be a "swing man"along with Wilson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mac9001 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 If the plan is to let Shuster start it seems like he's probably the best candidate to fill starts until Thorpe is ready. You give him 3-4 starts to earn his spot and if he's pitching well you only give the spot back to Thorpe if the "rehab" stint went well. I'm not sure that Shuster has a lot of value out of the pen, but be might have value being a below average starter. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
caulfield12 Posted March 3 Share Posted March 3 2 hours ago, mac9001 said: If the plan is to let Shuster start it seems like he's probably the best candidate to fill starts until Thorpe is ready. You give him 3-4 starts to earn his spot and if he's pitching well you only give the spot back to Thorpe if the "rehab" stint went well. I'm not sure that Shuster has a lot of value out of the pen, but be might have value being a below average starter. Yes, essentially the Flexen role last year. Shuster didn't really do anything to "lose" his job after being rostered all last season...so they must like something about him. The last vestiges of the biggest trade in Getz's career before Garrett Crochet, lol. Along with Gowens. Seems fairly likely that Steven Wilson is on course (at least so far) to make it back to the majors this spring. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 New 26 man roster projection: Lineup: 1B: Vaughn 2B: Rojas* SS: Meidroth 3B: Vargas LF: Taylor CF: Robert RF: Tauchman* DH: Sosa CA: Lee Bench: BC: Thaiss* IF: Drury OF: Fletcher* UT: Baldwin# Rotation: Martin Perez* Cannon Burke Gilbert* Bullpen: CL: Anderson SU: Varland SU: Smith MR: Clevinger (🤮) MR: Booser* MR: Murfee MR: Ellard* LR: Wilson Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 7 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: New 26 man roster projection: Lineup: 1B: Vaughn 2B: Rojas* SS: Meidroth 3B: Vargas LF: Taylor CF: Robert RF: Tauchman* DH: Sosa CA: Lee Bench: BC: Thaiss* IF: Drury OF: Fletcher* UT: Baldwin# Rotation: Martin Perez* Cannon Burke Gilbert* Bullpen: CL: Anderson SU: Varland SU: Smith MR: Clevinger (🤮) MR: Booser* MR: Murfee MR: Ellard* LR: Wilson While Gilbert certainly seems to be in their plans, Shane Smith seems to be in the actual 5-day ST rotation, for all that's worth. I was concerned with Baldwin's lack of starts in ST, but maybe he was just dinged, or they were bringing him along slowly from last year's injury. He seems to be on the regular rotation of every other day starts, now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 Will Venable on the White Sox bullpen/closer role: “There’s potential for our best reliever to pitch the 7th or 8th inning depending on how a game unfolds. We’re gonna lean on all these guys to get out and however their roles organically during the year, so be it,” said… — Elijah Evans (@ElijahEv8) March 7, 2025 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chicago White Sox Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 11 minutes ago, WestEddy said: While Gilbert certainly seems to be in their plans, Shane Smith seems to be in the actual 5-day ST rotation, for all that's worth. I was concerned with Baldwin's lack of starts in ST, but maybe he was just dinged, or they were bringing him along slowly from last year's injury. He seems to be on the regular rotation of every other day starts, now. If they think the stuff can play up as a starter, I’d much rather see Smith get those opportunities while Thorpe is out. Last time he pitched though I don’t think he went very long did he? As for Baldwin, I still have him on the OD roster, but the amount of playing time Meidroth is getting overall and at SS specifically makes me feel like he’s the guy who gets the nod at SS now. I love Baldwin too and would prefer him to get the first crack since his clock has already started, but not what I think they will do. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WestEddy Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 14 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: If they think the stuff can play up as a starter, I’d much rather see Smith get those opportunities while Thorpe is out. Last time he pitched though I don’t think he went very long did he? As for Baldwin, I still have him on the OD roster, but the amount of playing time Meidroth is getting overall and at SS specifically makes me feel like he’s the guy who gets the nod at SS now. I love Baldwin too and would prefer him to get the first crack since his clock has already started, but not what I think they will do. Shane Smith went 2 innings in the 3/01 game against the Mariners. While that seemed to be the normal allotment for that cycle, Nastrini threw 3 in the same game. I'd rather the Sox go into a 2-game rotation of Baldwin and Meidroth at SS and move Amaya out. Brooks and Chase (there's a country duo for you) cover a lot of positions on the same roster. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bob Sacamano Posted March 7 Share Posted March 7 18 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said: If they think the stuff can play up as a starter, I’d much rather see Smith get those opportunities while Thorpe is out. Last time he pitched though I don’t think he went very long did he? As for Baldwin, I still have him on the OD roster, but the amount of playing time Meidroth is getting overall and at SS specifically makes me feel like he’s the guy who gets the nod at SS now. I love Baldwin too and would prefer him to get the first crack since his clock has already started, but not what I think they will do. Agreed. Plus, Baldwin is on the 40-man. I know they opened up 2 spots (depending on how it goes with Carela maybe one) but one spot is likely going to Drury. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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