Grading the White Sox: Jimmy Lambert
In a bullpen then often struggled, this young righty proved to be solid
At midseason, the SSS staff graded the 46-46 White Sox, from head of the class Dylan Cease all the way down to Dallas Keuchel. We invented a WARsss metric that could very well be just a cute way to trot out our special site grades — but really for all you know could be the product of years of research in a stats lab.
Our expanded report card will take us through everyone who saw time in uniform for the White Sox, plus some front-office types. Most of our writers will take on a couple of players, with final grades and short writeups, running through the end of November. Enjoy!
Jimmy Lambert
Right-Handed Relief Pitcher
Midseason: 1.9 WARsss
Final: 5.2 WARsss
It is no secret the White Sox bullpen struggled this season. Lambert’s season, however, was a bright spot.
Lambert spent much of the first half of the season between Charlotte and Chicago, but his call-up on July 6 would keep him on the South Side for good, as 29 of his 42 appearances this season came in the second half of the year.
Lambert pitched a total of 47 innings, posted a 3.26 ERA, struck out 45 hitters, and walked 24. Jimmy did struggle in the months of August and September, putting up 4.82 and 4.38 ERAs, respectively. But prior to the 2022 season, Lambert had pitched just 15 innings in the big leagues, and with this being Lambert’s first season spending significant time with the ball club, it makes sense that he hit a bit of a wall as he navigated an MLB bullpen role.
Lambert saw himself in a save situation 11 different times throughout the season, but did not record a save once, holding a 3.38 ERA over those 10 2⁄3 innings. In the 28 games the righthander was not in a save situation, his ERA dropped to 2.83, over 28 2⁄3 innings. While the sample size is not huge, these numbers indicate that in the future Lambert will likely stick as a middle reliever.
One high note that should be mentioned from Lambert’s 2022 campaign and a perfect example of his potential role in the bullpen moving forward came on August 16 against the Houston Astros. In a game that was started by Justin Verlander and Dylan Cease, Lambert came in for the eighth inning and struck out both Chas McCormick and future World Series MVP Jeremy Pena en route to a scoreless inning. Lambert would earn the win in this game.
I am excited to see what is to come for this young righthander. He could become a key cog in the bullpen and be relied on heavily for middle relief. I look forward to seeing Lambert build off of his 2022 successes and fine-tuning some of his struggles for the 2023 season.
2022 White Sox Grades
Jimmy Lambert, RHRP, 5.2
Eloy Jiménez, “LF,” 4.9
Michael Kopech, RHSP, 4.86
Liam Hendriks, RHRP, 4.85
Danny Mendick, UTIL, 4.4
Ethan Katz, PIT COACH, 4.3
Tanner Banks, LHRP, 4.27
Andrew Vaughn, “LF,” 4.25
Davis Martin, RHSP, 4.1
Seby Zavala, C, 4.0
Luis Robert, CF, 3.7
Lance Lynn, RHSP, 3.5
Miguel Cairo, Bench Coach/MGR, 3.48
Tim Anderson, SS, 3.43
Kendall Graveman, RHRP, 3.1
Josh Harrison, 2B, 3.0
Gavin Sheets, RF-1B, 2.5
Jake Burger, 3B, 2.2
Romy González, IF, 2.0
Aaron Bummer, LHRP, 1.8
AJ Pollock, OF, 1.3
Matt Foster, RHRP, 1.2
Yoán Moncada, 3B, 0.92
Lenyn Sosa, SS, 0.85
José Ruiz, RHRP, 0.83
Mark Payton, OF, 0.6
Carlos Pérez, C, 0.399
Lucas Giolito, RHSP, 0.392
Adam Engel, OF, 0.237
Vince Velasquez, RHP, -0.4
Reese McGuire, C, -1.1
Kyle Crick, RHRP, -1.65
Joe Kelly, RHRP, -1.75
Daryl Boston, 1B Coach, -2.0
Anderson Severino, LHRP, -2.2
Jerry Reinsdorf, OWN, -2.321
Jake Diekman, LHRP, -2.366
Rick Hahn, GM, -2.401
Bennett Sousa, LHRP, -2.425
Frank Menechino, BAT COACH, -2.469
Yasmani Grandal, C/DH, -2.549
Leury García, UTIL, -2.7
Adam Haseley, OF, -3.146
Joe McEwing, 3B Coach, -3.167
Ryan Burr, RHRP, -3.4
Tony La Russa, MGR, -3.5
Dallas Keuchel, LHSP, -3.9