Robert Option Picked Up

[CWSpalehoseCWS]

4 minutes ago, almagest said:

Mauricio and Acuña seem like utility guys. Not super interested there. Vientos maybe? He's 26 and could be a nice 2-3 WAR guy at first (he's bad defensively at 3rd). I think Vientos was also available during the season if the Sox wanted him, which they apparently didn't.

If Vientos is the best you're going to get I'd probably hang onto Robert and see what he does during the season though. I'm not much for making trades for limited value, which these three guys are IMO

You're better off trading for Vientos and letting him bounce back than rolling the dice on Robert, again. You know Robert is guaranteed to get hurt at some point. He repeatedly has proven his inability to stay on the field. Sox would be smart to move on from him.

[Chicago White Sox]

41 minutes ago, WhiteSox2023 said:

Ugh.  This Acuna thing is going to happen, isn’t it?

This is so going to be you this Christmas

 

[Chicago White Sox]

9 minutes ago, almagest said:

Mauricio and Acuña seem like utility guys. Not super interested there. Vientos maybe? He's 26 and could be a nice 2-3 WAR guy at first (he's bad defensively at 3rd). I think Vientos was also available during the season if the Sox wanted him, which they apparently didn't.

If Vientos is the best you're going to get I'd probably hang onto Robert and see what he does during the season though. I'm not much for making trades for limited value, which these three guys are IMO

Vientos is RH and is a low OBP player.  Don’t think that would interest Getz much.

[Lukakke Appling]

1 minute ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Vientos is RH and is a low OBP player.  Don’t think that would interest Getz much.

R/R, low OBP, high whiff, bad defense, and slow. Stick him at first and you’ve got your Andrew Vaughn replacement. 

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

Picking up the option and immediately trading it would be hilarious. Pushing the Sox payroll under 50 million. Then Getz would get to go make his big splash and sign some bum like Luis Arraez.

[Chicago White Sox]

7 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

Picking up the option and immediately trading it would be hilarious. Pushing the Sox payroll under 50 million. Then Getz would get to go make his big splash and sign some bum like Luis Arraez.

I mean, depends on what they get for him.  That being said, going under $80M would be a complete embarrassment after gaining some momentum in the 2H.

Edited 18 hours ago by Chicago White Sox

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

1 minute ago, Chicago White Sox said:

I mean, depends on what they get for him.  That being said, going under $80M would be a complete embarrassment after gaining some momentum in the 2H.

It will have been 22 years since they had a payroll as low as they're about to have.

League revenues have tripled since then. Adjusting for inflation and revenue growth, this will be the lowest White Sox payroll since I have a record.

[caulfield12]

18 minutes ago, Look at Ray Ray Run said:

Picking up the option and immediately trading it would be hilarious. Pushing the Sox payroll under 50 million. Then Getz would get to go make his big splash and sign some bum like Luis Arraez.

Having watched him pretty closely the last couple of years...he's almost the very last player to buy low on when he's still going to get something like $12-15 million on name/reputation alone.

https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/2025-atlanta-braves-player-review-170000563.html

M.Ozuna...or Conforto, in following the Encarnacion/Alonso tradition, just somehow feels likelier, because both SHOULD be under $10 million and willing to sign one year "make good" deals that allow them to be flipped to contenders with better performances.

Edited 17 hours ago by caulfield12

[ChiSoxFanMike]

I don’t know how you could have Vargas, Sosa, and Vientos on the same team. They are all basically variations of the same player.

[caulfield12]

3 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

I don’t know how you could have Vargas, Sosa, and Vientos on the same team. They are all basically variations of the same player.

Not to mention Meadiocre.

[poppysox]

On 12/13/2025 at 6:30 PM, CWSpalehoseCWS said:

Do you really believe Jerry is going to pick up money to get a better return?

Jerry is cheap...not dumb.   I presume, at the end of the day, it depends on what the deal is.

[Sambuca]

3 hours ago, poppysox said:

Jerry is cheap...not dumb.   I presume, at the end of the day, it depends on what the deal is.

He’s made his share of both cheap and dumb baseball decisions. 

[southsider2k5]

3 minutes ago, Sambuca said:

He’s made his share of both cheap and dumb baseball decisions. 

Look no further than hiring buddies and yesmen.

[ChiSoxFanMike]

Seeing some of these free agent contracts, I’m really interested to see what Robert would have gotten on the open market.

[caulfield12]

7 minutes ago, ChiSoxFanMike said:

Seeing some of these free agent contracts, I’m really interested to see what Robert would have gotten on the open market.

$12.5-15 million or a deal with a lot of incentives...or combination thereof.

[michelangelosmonkey]

Robert has played about 120 games a year on average the last three years.  He's only 28.  We have no legit centerfielders in the system.  He is an elite defender with some power. Increased his walk rate to 10%. Stole 33 bases at an 80% success rate.  I know he's not the super star we all hoped...but isn't that a useful player as your #9 hitter?  What about extending him 3 years for $45.  

[Lip Man 1]

8 minutes ago, michelangelosmonkey said:

Robert has played about 120 games a year on average the last three years.  He's only 28.  We have no legit centerfielders in the system.  He is an elite defender with some power. Increased his walk rate to 10%. Stole 33 bases at an 80% success rate.  I know he's not the super star we all hoped...but isn't that a useful player as your #9 hitter?  What about extending him 3 years for $45.  

If I remember right his agent is Scott Boras, if he has a good season he is going to hit the free agent agent. No way he signs an extension with the White Sox. 

[nrockway]

17 minutes ago, michelangelosmonkey said:

Robert has played about 120 games a year on average the last three years.  He's only 28.  We have no legit centerfielders in the system.  He is an elite defender with some power. Increased his walk rate to 10%. Stole 33 bases at an 80% success rate.  I know he's not the super star we all hoped...but isn't that a useful player as your #9 hitter?  What about extending him 3 years for $45.  

Right, Robert is in his prime playing years and the only players in the system who could potentially play CF are 12th rounder Ely Brown and 19-year-old Marcelo Alcala. Dumping him without a realistic replacement in place would be negligence. At his absolute worst, he's still a useful player, one of the best defensive players in the league, and he's probably more so the offensive player he showed to be after returning from the IL (293/.349/.459, 124 wRC+) than what he's shown over the last 2 seasons. 

Although, if the Sox could trade Robert and get Jake Meyers in a different deal, I'd be pretty happy with that. Still, I'd wait to trade him and see if he can rebound to 5.0 WAR form. I'd rather gamble and get nothing than trade him for less than what Gregory Santos netted as another poster suggested.

[michelangelosmonkey]

13 minutes ago, Lip Man 1 said:

If I remember right his agent is Scott Boras, if he has a good season he is going to hit the free agent agent. No way he signs an extension with the White Sox. 

I think the Sox are legitimately trying to compete by 2027. For that they need a CF.    We have some goodwill built up with Robert and Boras (giving him this $20).  Boras is only an obstacle as he wants his client to make the most money. Sox will have money to spend.  JR is not as cheap as people make out on here...he's just a businessman.  Low payrolls with low attendance, high payroll with high attendance.  

[michelangelosmonkey]

On 11/4/2025 at 2:51 AM, caulfield12 said:

Thomas/Ventura over 35 years ago the only two Sox prospects that could be even close to guys like Boggs (and Gwynn, by extension).

 

7 minutes ago, nrockway said:

Right, Robert is in his prime playing years and the only players in the system who could potentially play CF are 12th rounder Ely Brown and 19-year-old Marcelo Alcala. Dumping him without a realistic replacement in place would be negligence. At his absolute worst, he's still a useful player, one of the best defensive players in the league, and he's probably more so the offensive player he showed to be after returning from the IL (293/.349/.459, 124 wRC+) than what he's shown over the last 2 seasons. 

Although, if the Sox could trade Robert and get Jake Meyers in a different deal, I'd be pretty happy with that. Still, I'd wait to trade him and see if he can rebound to 5.0 WAR form. I'd rather gamble and get nothing than trade him for less than what Gregory Santos netted as another poster suggested.

I think Sammy Zavala still has a chance...raised his batting average 70 points this year and is apparently a plus defender with plus speed...only 21.  

[caulfield12]

15 minutes ago, michelangelosmonkey said:

 

I think Sammy Zavala still has a chance...raised his batting average 70 points this year and is apparently a plus defender with plus speed...only 21.  

He's not a big league CFer.

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/foster-griffin-rumors-multi-year-offers-mlb.html

Which unidentified team offered Foster Griffin two years?  Or just an agent smoke screen to drive up interest?

[caulfield12]

31 minutes ago, nrockway said:

Right, Robert is in his prime playing years and the only players in the system who could potentially play CF are 12th rounder Ely Brown and 19-year-old Marcelo Alcala. Dumping him without a realistic replacement in place would be negligence. At his absolute worst, he's still a useful player, one of the best defensive players in the league, and he's probably more so the offensive player he showed to be after returning from the IL (293/.349/.459, 124 wRC+) than what he's shown over the last 2 seasons. 

Although, if the Sox could trade Robert and get Jake Meyers in a different deal, I'd be pretty happy with that. Still, I'd wait to trade him and see if he can rebound to 5.0 WAR form. I'd rather gamble and get nothing than trade him for less than what Gregory Santos netted as another poster suggested.

We're probably 7 months away from drafting an NCAA CFer in the second or third round with a 2028-29 timeline...

[michelangelosmonkey]

2 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

He's not a big league CFer.

 

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/foster-griffin-rumors-multi-year-offers-mlb.html

Which unidentified team offered Foster Griffin two years?  Or just an agent smoke screen to drive up interest?

Why?  He's only 21.  BA has his run, field and arm look like a centerfielder.  

Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 

 

[caulfield12]

12 minutes ago, michelangelosmonkey said:

Why?  He's only 21.  BA has his run, field and arm look like a centerfielder.  

Run: 50 | Arm: 55 | Field: 50 

 

He's a CFer in the same way Braden Montgomery is....

And he has to hit much much better on a consistent basis over 4+ months at AA to be even considered as a viable option.

 

https://worldbaseball.com/npb-the-top-15-position-players-entering-the-2025-seaons/

The best Japanese outfielder remaining in Kensuke Kondoh, but he's 32 already and needs to come to the US as quickly as possible if he's ever going to try.  No later than 2027.

[greg775]

I wonder why Getz didn't trade Robert this offseason. It's a lot less controversial to trade his salary now while the Bears are still in contention.

Seems weird to keep one star on the team (as well as Colson) when the Sox still are not on paper considered contenders. Dump him now and it's a sidelight to the Bears. Seems weird Jerry would elect to pay him rather than dump him to the Mets for prospects.

Edited 10 hours ago by greg775