Two Weeks of Bi-polar Baseball

Things to be excited about

The Sox have a winning record (7-6) and have thus far been without the services of no. 2 starter (and presumptive ace if Quintana is traded) Carlos Rodon, who has been recovering from a biceps injury on his throwing arm. The eventual return of Rodon will mitigate some of the inevitable regression that the Sox’ rotation is bound to endure (Chicago leads the MLB with a 2.85 ERA; this is likely not sustainable). 2017 figured as a possible breakout campaign for the young lefty.

Speaking of that ERA…Ken Rosenthal of FoxSports recently nominated the Sox as the team with the most arms to potentially sell off at the deadline. Miguel Gonzalez, who just threw 8.1 innings of dominant baseball against the red-hot Yankees, joins a list of Derek Holland, James Shields, and Jose Quintana as starters who could be dangled as trade bait. Not to be outdone is Chicago’s bullpen, which has shut the door on opposing hitters this season late in games.

Closer David Robertson could be viewed as a good closer or an elite setup man, with a ridiculous 0.53 WHIP and an other-worldly 5.0 ground out to air out ratio through six appearances. Yes, those numbers are correct. Robertson is unlikely to fetch a return comparable to what the Yankees received for Aroldis Chapman (Cubs) or Andrew Miller (Indians) last summer, but there is no doubt that general managers around the league will call about his services as the deadline approaches. Sweetening a potential deal for Robertson is the fact that he is signed through next season as well.

Things to be concerned about

What happens with Avi Garcia comes back down to Earth? Garcia leads the league with a .440 batting average, and he has carried the team offensively, reaching base safely in all 13 games. However, his average is buoyed by a BABIP of .543 – a laughable figure. His average exit velocity of 89.54 mph, while above league average, shows that this is on the fluky side. The good news for Avi is that there’s plenty of room for regression AND he could still have by far the most productive season of his career.

Who else can drive in runs, though? Jose Abreu has statistically regressed both years after his ROY 2014 campaign. It is now at the point where one wonders if his best days are behind him. After 51 at-bats, he is hitting .157, with a more disconcerting .380 OPS. Clearly, he will improve, but by how much? After a hot start, Tyler Saladino is slashing .206/.372/.265 with only two extra-base hits. Melky Cabrera once again has been a consistent hitter, but he may be dealt at the deadline to a team looking for veteran outfield/DH help. As a switch-hitter, someone will call about him.

Tim Anderson just has not been good – there’s no other way to say it. Defensively, he is trying to make plays that he cannot make – at times looking more like a ballerina than a shortstop. At the dish he is hitting only .157 with a singular walk in 51 at-bats. Anderson needed to show better plate discipline after his 2.8 WAR rookie season; so far, he hasn’t.

Moving Forward

There are too many holes in the lineup for this team to realistically keep a winning record. If they are around .500 with the best ERA in baseball, what is going to happen when that ERA normalizes? However, these games do count. One cannot disregard solid performances simply due to last year’s results or a sample size that is less than huge. Pitching is a strength of the team, and a good general manager knows how to sell high. The White Sox possess pieces that can and should be moved to deepen the farm system.