Thus, the non-tendering of four players–Al Alburquerque, Jake Petricka, Zach Putnam, and Alen Hanson–weighs in as the update of the moment.  Taking each of these in turn, my thoughts are as follows:

• Alburquerque has been good in the past, but this caliber of pitcher is basically always floating around.  He was picked up for free and you don’t necessarily need to cling to those guys;
• Petricka threw 144 solid innings from 2013-2015 after the White Sox selected him in the second round of the 2010 draft.  2016 and 2017 were riddled with injuries and ineffectiveness. Even for someone with plus velocity, the Pitch To Contact profile can often leave you with a very thin margin for error, and Petricka may not be able to stay above that line anymore;
• Putnam is coming back from Tommy John surgery and may miss most of 2018, but unlike Petricka he has at least been extremely effective in between his stints on the disabled list; and
• In a universe where the White Sox aren’t protecting Jake Peter and have a crowded depth chart of utility players, Hanson got squeezed out.

Some, all, or none of these guys could return on minor league deals and even make the 25-man roster out of camp next year depending on what other moves the team makes over the course of the winter.  Hahn & Co. may have identified more than one target they like in the Rule V draft, which could suddenly make things quite crowded, and with these moves, the 40-man roster sits at 36. To my mind, Putnam was the only close call, and that depends on how his rehab is going, when he looks like he’d be able to pitch again, and whether or not they can work something else out such that he’s back in the organization at such time as he is healthy.  Or, it could be that Tommy John took enough out of him that he’s not the same pitcher anymore, which would be a shame, as he was a fairly unique guy.

And so the calm before the storm continues, but with Tyler Chatwood getting plucked up by the Cubs and the Winter Meetings rapidly approaching, some activity is due sooner or later.  And, even if you don’t see the move coming, as the Castillo acquisition shows, you never know when you might get surprised.

It’s a shame that the most memorable moment of Willy Garcia’s season (aside from being part of the All-Garcia outfield) was his terrifying collision with Yoan Moncada during a July 31 game against the Blue Jays, because while the 25-year-old outfielder played in only four more games after suffering a broken jaw on the play, his abbreviated debut season featured enough enticing skills to dream on.

There’s a reason, of course, that Garcia was available to the White Sox in the first place. Seven years after the Pirates signed him as a 17 year old out of the Dominican Republic, Garcia had stalled out at Triple-A in an organization that wasn’t exactly lacking in outfielder depth. The book appeared to be out on him, as noted in the 2017 BP Annual:

Garcia is a 24-year-old who’s yet to reach the majors, yet in many ways the book is already out on him: great arm, good raw pop and no semblance of plate discipline. Not every prospect needs to project as a future superstar to be worth our time, and there’s a potential role player in here somewhere. Still, Garcia needs to sock more dingers or strike out less (or both) if he wants to hold our attention.

A year after putting up a miserable .245/.293/.366 line at Triple-A Indianapolis, Garcia competed for a roster spot with the White Sox out of Spring Training, tore up Triple-A Charlotte for a month, and found himself with the major league team for about a quarter of the season in total.

What we saw during that small sample size was an incomplete player with signs of competence. As mentioned above, Garcia’s track to regular major league playing time is tapping into his power and improving his plate discipline. His strikeout rate was about normal for him at 26 percent, but he walked in 9 percent of his plate appearances, up 3 percent from his prior season. The power numbers weren’t overly impressive, but 10 of Garcia’s 25 hits at the major league level went for extra bases.

The small sample gives up little to draw conclusions from, but incremental improvement from a player who didn’t turn 25 until September gives hope that Garcia can turn into the type of player worth rostering when the White Sox are closer to contending. If nothing else, he’s become a player worth tracking.

As far as major league debuts go, things couldn’t have been much worse for Brad Goldberg. The former 10th round pick was once expected to be a low ceiling but quickly ascending bullpen arm, but didn’t reach Triple-A until he was 26 and at the age of 27, tossed 12 major league innings, walking 14 and striking out just two.

Goldberg has excellent velocity with a fastball that easily touches 97, but it simply doesn’t miss bats. He’ll be 28 at the start of the 2018 season, and the chances of him being a viable major league reliever are all but gone.

TL;DR version of Goldberg’s 2017 season:

Alen Hanson was teammates with Garcia at a few different minor league stops during their time together in the Pirates organization, but was always more highly regarded for a number of reasons. After fizzling out as a top prospect, he became yet another post-hype former prospect the White Sox took a flier on after he was designated for assignment by the Pirates.

Hanson has essentially been the same player for a number of years now, a light hitting utility player capable of handling a number of positions and filling in as an injury replacement. That versatility is valuable, but Hanson has become, more or less, the “R” in WARP.

The problem for Hanson’s ability to stick around, particularly with the White Sox, is that there are a few guys like him who’ve shown more signs of competence. Still, there’s a non-zero chance of him figuring it out as he’s still just 24 with 267 major league plate appearances under his belt. And if nothing else, he’s the type of player worth keeping around as minor league depth.

Lead Photo Credit: Dennis Wierzbicki-USA TODAY Sports

Pure fan devotion could be enough motivation to watch, of course, but even fan devotion is put to the test by the second-worst team in baseball. Even fans that are dedicated to the team through thick and thin need something to look forward to and care about. Yoan Moncada hasn’t set the world on fire, but as the best prospect in baseball he’s always worth paying attention to. It’s likely that he’ll improve even more in the coming weeks, making him the highlight in the White Sox lineup. Carlos Rodon has improved drastically over his last three starts, showing the top of the rotation potential that has always been buried inside. Reynaldo Lopez’s debut Friday and final two months in Chicago will also be worth keeping an eye on. Those are the obvious bright spots, but there are things beyond that to watch.

There isn’t much luxury in rebuilding. It’s almost entirely a drudge through a mucky, miserable season with slight glimmers of hope about the future to come. If one luxury can be found, however, it is in the fact that the team can give chances to players that otherwise would not receive them. Now that the roster is devoid of veteran talent, the focus can be narrowed even more on players like Leury Garcia, Yolmer Sanchez, Matt Davidson, Tyler Saladino, Alen Hanson, and Nicky Delmonico.

Coming into the season, none of those names really sparked a fire in the hearts of White Sox fans or analysts. Sanchez had been given a full-time role on the 2015 team, but he produced just a 61 wRC+. Garcia was a prospect with promise, but he never quite put things together in the big leagues. Saladino had proven himself as a useful utility player but nothing more, and so on. They were all players that weren’t worth getting excited about and yet, they had plenty of potential if given the right opportunity.

Given the opportunity to succeed, Garcia has stood out more than any of the others. He did have more potential all along, but his 107 wRC+ while playing good defense in a premier position has been a revelation. Even if in the long run he is merely a fourth outfielder, that’s value gained simply through giving him an opportunity. Watching how he proceeds this season following his hand injury is certainly worth giving attention to.

Sanchez has seen his playing time take a hit since the promotion of Moncada, but he’s still worth keeping an eye. Hope was all but lost for his offense entering 2017, but he’s produced mildly well with a .313 on base percentage and 85 wRC+. That’s not awe-inspiring, but it’s an improvement on his past production. Perhaps on the other side of the coin is Saladino, who has disappointed in his season shortened by injury.

These players are the ones worth keeping an eye on despite the team being pummeled night after night. They’re not the prospects that are going to dazzle on the 100-loss team, but they are the players benefitting the most from the White Sox being bad. Each of them is being given an opportunity that they normally would not have. If even one of them is a contributor on the next good White Sox team, it’s a big win for the rebuild. Even when the games are miserable, long, and seemingly worthless eyes can be put on these players, and thoughts can be churning about what their future might hold. 

Lead Photo Credit: Winslow Townson-USA TODAY Sports

The expectations for Rodon should be tempered. He’s had a wildly untraditional start to the season, which could naturally have an effect on his performance. With the first two seasons of his career being tumultuous it would be silly to expect him to immediately step into a top of the rotation role. The best thing Rodon can provide right now is innings. As Collin Whitchurch noted last week, the White Sox have been incredibly poor at getting starters to stretch beyond the fifth inning. If Rodon can simply do that while attempting to hone command for the first time in his career, the White Sox pitching staff will breathe a much needed sigh of relief and perhaps not have their arms all fall off.

2. The White Sox defense has somewhat notably been good in some aspects while failing at others. A couple weeks ago they led the league in BABIP allowed. They have since fallen all the way to tied for third with a .283 average on those balls in play. Some of that is sneaky good talent, but it’s probably mostly do to the White Sox tendency to shift. They’re fourth in the league in batters faced with any sort of shift on.

An area of the defense that hasn’t been discussed is how often the outfielders have thrown out baserunners. The White Sox outfield ranks third in baseball in outfield assists. While Avisail Garcia was lauded for his arm as a prospect and continues to have that reputation and Melky Cabrera is sneakily good in the area, it’s a bit surprising that this particular White Sox defense would excel in outfield assists. A lot goes into throwing a runner out, of course. It depends on the runner’s aggression, where the ball is hit, the speed of the runner, and the game situation. Those are a lot of unpredictable variables. What is known is that the White Sox have been good at it, which has certainly helped prevent runs for a defense that looked shaky entering the season.

3. The White Sox addition of Alen Hanson was a typical rebuilding team move. Hanson was at one point a Top 100 prospect who failed to live up to those expectations. A change of scenery has possibly affected his play in a positive direction. It’s a teeny tiny sample, but Hanson is hitting .333/.385/.423 with a home run. He’s managed to fit right into the top of the order despite his limited time in the big leagues as well. If he could remain even an average player at the plate, the White Sox will have found a nice diamond in the rough in just their first year rebuilding.

4. Jose Quintana‘s season has been heavily discussed because of his inadequacy along with the failure of the Chicago front office to move him before some sort of decline hit. What could erase all of that is an excellent second half of the season that reaffirms what most teams and fans already knew about Quintana: he’s good. His start on Thursday was a step in the right direction. He went nearly seven innings without giving up a single run. More importantly, he had nine strikeouts with no walks.

5. The AL East is highly competitive this season, because of course it is — it’s the AL East. One point of weakness among the teams at the top, mainly the Yankees and Red Sox, is a gaping whole at third base. Each of those two teams had a young option in their minor league system that could have been slotted in if needed. However, Gleyber Torres of the Yankees just tore his UCL and Rafael Devers of the Red Sox doesn’t appear to be ready for the promotion. That puts both teams in excellent position to make a trade for a rental at the hot corner.

It just so happens that the White Sox have one of those players. Todd Frazier hasn’t been overly impressive with his .209/.314/.418, 12 home run, and 93 wRC+ line. Necessity, combined with a limited number of options at the position, could be advantageous for Chicago. Mike Moustakas and Eduardo Nunez may provide equal or better options, but the White Sox should be able to unload Frazier for something. Jon Heyman, however, reported that Chicago would have to practically give him away to move him. If a bidding war arises in the AL East, though, the White Sox may be able to receive more value. They would likely have to be willing to pay a good portion of Frazier’s salary. What we know about the organization seems to hint that such a thing won’t happen, but they should ideally be willing to do so if it means they receive better young talent.

Lead photo credit: Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports