Today in White Sox History: February 14
A player who will become a South Side phenomenon, albeit briefly, is born
1993
Sadly, his impact on the South Side was brief, but the clubbing machine who would rise to prominence on the South Side, Yermín Mercedes, was born in La Romana, Dominican Republic.
It took Mercedes 10 years and three organizations to make the major leagues, but once he arrived, with the White Sox in 2021, he did so with authority. Starting the season’s second game and making his first career start, Mercedes went 5-for-5 in a 12-8 win over the Angels. The next day, he went 3-for-3 to cap an 8-for-8 run — a season start unique in the 121 years of AL-NL major league history.
Mercedes ended April still hitting .415 and remained better than .350 into late May. But a prolonged slump dropped him back to earth and sent him back to Triple-A, where on July 21 he left the Charlotte Knights, quitting the game in frustration. He returned to the game quickly — but never made it back to the White Sox.
2012
The White Sox sign former Japanese League star and Cubs veteran Kosuke Fukudome to a one-year, $500,000 contract. At 35, it turned out that Fukudome was well-cooked as a major-leaguer, earning -0.2 WAR over 24 games (following up a -0.5 for Cleveland in 2011). The White Sox would cut Kosuke on June 26.
For all of the hype, Fukudome would earn just 4.4 WAR in the majors, at a cost of $48.5 million. After his release in Chicago and a brief flirtation with the New York Yankees, the outfielder returned to Japan and played until 2022, at 45 years of age.
2018
Brief White Sox pitching great Esteban Loaiza appeared in court in San Diego to face charges of possessing and transporting 44 pounds of cocaine, having been arrested two days earlier. Loaiza pleaded not guilty, but given the fact that his car (stopped for a minor traffic infraction) had a sophisticated hiding spot for contraband (warranting a home search), reversed course. His guilty plea resulted in a three-year sentence; Loaiza was released on Aug. 5, 2021 and deported to Mexico.
Loaiza flashed greatness in Pittsburgh as a young pitcher, but flagged enough to arrive in Chicago nine seasons into his career on a flier of a $500,000 contract. With that, he achieved his crowning season in 2003, his first with the White Sox: Loaiza started the All-Star Game at Sox Park en route to a 7.2 WAR season and runner-up finish for the Cy Young. GM Ken Williams completed a masterstroke of moves around Loaiza by then flipping him to the Yankees during the 2004 season for José Contreras, who would become an elemental part of the 2005 White Sox World Series champions.
Even on a pitching-rich franchise like the White Sox, Loaiza’s 2003 season stands as the 22nd-best in team history.