The White Sox have opened negotiations on a contract extension with third baseman Yoan Moncada’s newly hired representatives at the Movement Management Group, as first reported by James Fox of FutureSox.com (Twitter link). Bruce Levine of 670 The Score writes that the two sides have had only “initial” talks but cautions that no deal is close at this time. Asked directly about the rumored talks, Moncada himself said he was not aware of any current talks but voiced a desire to stay with the White Sox “for a very long time” (link via Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times).
Moncada, 24, is already under club control through the 2023 season and won’t be eligible for arbitration until next winter. Both Fox and Levine note that a potential extension would likely be the largest in White Sox franchise history. Currently, Yasmani Grandal’s four-year, $73MM deal is the largest the Sox have ever issued.
The switch-hitting Moncada was one of the highest-profile international free agents in history and agreed to a $31.5MM signing bonus with the Red Sox back in 2015. He was arguably the game’s top overall prospect when Boston sent him to Chicago as the headliner in the Chris Sale blockbuster, and while it took some time, Moncada broke out in a big way this past season.
In 559 plate appearances in 2019, Moncada hit .315/.367/.548 with 25 home runs, 34 doubles, five triples and 10 stolen bases — all while cutting his strikeout rate by nearly six percent (from 33.4 to 27.5). Reviews of his glovework were a bit mixed; Defensive Runs Saved pegged him at -7 runs, but Ultimate Zone Rating (4.3) and Outs Above Average (5) both graded Moncada as an above-average defender.
As for what to expect from the extension itself, the number of recent comparables aren’t exactly plentiful. Alex Bregman secured a five-year, $100MM deal a year ago when he was in the same service class that Moncada finds himself right now. That deal technically begins in 2020 and bought out Bregman’s three arbitration years and two would-be free-agent campaigns. Moncada’s 2019 season wasn’t as strong as Bregman’s 2018 platform, but his power numbers and counting stats will play similarly well in arbitration, giving him strong earning potential from 2021-23 (his would-be arb seasons). If the Sox are comfortable offering a term of six or more seasons, then a Moncada extension could well approach or even exceed that $100MM plateau.
From a broad perspective, an extension for Moncada would represent the continuation of the White Sox’ efforts to keep the young core they spent years trying to acquire for the long haul. Chicago signed outfielders Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert to long-term deals before either played his first MLB game. Shortstop Tim Anderson was signed to a six-year deal with a pair of club options prior to the 2017 season, and just this past weekend, left-hander Aaron Bummer was signed to a five-year contract.
The guy has a strikeout rate of 27.5 and this is framed as a good thing because he used to be even worse. Everyone always says that numbers don’t lie, but they sure can be framed to say whatever you want them to say.
just like you can say he’s a good hitter despite that rate, which is saying something given how high it is.
Totally agree, which ironically is exactly what you just did…
Considering it’s trending down is a positive thing. All the other running stats look very promising too. Big risk, but could be worth it for the Sox.
Be careful. He looked overmatched in Boston. I realize he was younger then but last season was the year of the juiced ball. I said the same thing about Devers. Let’s see both do it again, especially Moncada.
@looie, Moncada benefited from a high BABIP, but that BABIP was high in part because of his high hard-hit% and exit velocity were in the top 8% and 3%, respectively, of baseball. He also had a barrel % of 12.2% vs 9.6% in each of the two prior years. He may be due for some BABIP regression, but he was just a better hitter last year, regardless of the ball.
27% isn’t even that high when you consider the average is around 22-23%…
Joey Gallo has a 38% K-rate. Both of these guys can rake.
Nobody claims Joey Gallo is the 2nd coming tho and have seen all sorts of praise here regarding Moncada, which sort of understand, but that K rate and clumsy footwork is scary.
One thing I’d like to point out to ChiSox fans.. he’s on his 3rd agent. 1st was a small time lawyer he didn’t have very long, then these last 2. I’d jump if he’s the player they think he is. probably can get him locked up well below market.
I’m only making the point that a high K rate alone doesn’t mean a player can’t be valuable.
I’m confused. Is it not a good thing that he got better? Or are you trying to say he can’t be good because he strikes out too much?
Newsflash: Strikeouts have gone up every year since 2005… Players don’t care anymore. League average was ~23% last year.
Fun fact – Acuna struck out 26.3% of the time last year. Is that a more acceptable level?
The only thing you got right there is that you are confused. The particular stat I chose in the example is meaningless, so it doesn’t matter if players care about it. The whole point is that stats can be manipulated to enhance your argument.
Player A goes from 33% K-rate down to 27%.
Player B goes from 22% K-rate up to 27%
You can make the argument that Player A is good and Player B is bad when in actuality they performed exactly the same. It was a comment on stat manipulation, not on this particular player.
Also two things. First, saying “newsflash” when you are clearly just saying something in general is a really pompous thing to do. Second, how is Acuna’s K-rate a “fun” fact? Is it the .3 that makes it fun?
“The whole point is that stats can be manipulated to enhance your argument.”
Statistics 101
“You can make the argument that Player A is good and Player B is bad when in actuality they performed exactly the same.”
You can make that argument, if you want to sound dumb. It’s not about “good” or “bad,” which is what your original point (and this one) completely whiffs on; it’s about trends. Unless I’m missing something, there’s absolutely nothing in this article that says or implies Moncada’s strikeout rate is good. All the writer is doing is showing that it improved by 6%, which is substantial.
“Second, how is Acuna’s K-rate a “fun” fact? Is it the .3 that makes it fun?”
Yes, anything that ends in .3 is super fun.
Well done.
I’m changing my jersey number to .3
Acunas 188 KS does show a weakness in his game.
“Acunas 188 KS does show a weakness in his game.”
Yet it doesn’t stop him from being a great player. There’s a lot more to the game than strikeouts.
@Chisox378
You realize that Mike Trout struck out 184 times in ’14, when he won his 1st MVP. Or Babe Ruth 170 times in his 1923 MVP season. Or Pete Alonso winning ROY last season with 183 K’s. Or Kris Bryant winning ROY in ’15 with 199 K’s.
I can keep going if you like, but I’m hoping you get the point.
Use K rate, not counting stats. Especially for a 21 yo. with 1 full season under his belt.
No way he keeps a Bapip of .406 and his BB% dropped in 2019. Maybe he can get that back up, time will tell.
His Bapip in ’18 was .344 when he hit .235 and .209 from the right side and slugged .400…
In ’19 he hit 80 points higher overall and .90 points higher from the right and slugged .150 points higher and his Bapip was only .72 points higher at .406
That.344 was 22nd (last year Acuna was 14th with .344)
That .406 was 1st.
Only other players to finish in top 22 both years were… Yelich, JD, Whit & Acuna.
He was 9th in exit velocity… and only 3 guy’s in that group have a lower launch angle… and he’s #1 in exit velo for switch hitters… and is way faster than anyone ahead of him…and next 30 guys behind him…
So what you have is a guy who crushes the ball on a line who has NFL DB speed who in his first two years has the highest Bapib in that time.
So while it might be .406… if you’re expecting for some massive drop off… you’re probably gonna be disappointed.
If you were going to design a guy who had a high BABIP, you’d make him a left hander who hits the ball hard to all fields and runs fast. That’s Yoan Moncada 72% of the time and he still checks two of those boxes hitting right handed.
His career BABIP is .369. The statisticians say it takes about 820 balls in play for BABIP to stabilize and by my calculations, Moncada has 1307 AB – 50 HR- 457 K = 800.
So while .406 is not sustainable, I would expect him to continue to be among the league leaders until he starts to get slower.
Moncada is not in the class of Bregman. Bregman is a top five hitter in the game. Moncada maybe a top 30. His 457 k’s to 137 bb is troublesome. But Moncada does have a sweet swing and can hit for decent power. If he can hit .300 like he did last year at .315 he is a very valuable piece although should not get Bregman money.
Bro Bregman also cheated let’s see how his next few years pan out
Bet those numbers would look a hell of a lot different if he knew what pitch was coming…
Exactly like Stanton said if I knew what was coming I’d hit 80 dingers!
I mean can’t hit them if you can’t stay on the field.
If he knew what pitches were coming, he’d probably stay on the field. He just has to flick the bat and the damn things goes 425 feet.
Two years ago, where the bulk of those K’s are, Moncada took the most called strikes in the league and the most called third strikes ever… got nothing from the umps, so a load of those K’s could have been BB… sure the number was still a bit higher than you’d like, but he cut 60 K’s off… that’s like a lot,
more importantly, while a glance at those numbers might suggest a free swinger who doesn’t take pitches and doesn’t have much of an eye… it;s actually the reverse, he has a great eye and was taking too many strikes cause of it… so it’s not nearly as worrisome as that ratio would suggest.
Also, he’s a switch-hitter and was near hopeless from right side his first full season and then took a HUGE leap from the right side — HUGE
’18: .209 .287. 297 .585
’19: .299 .345 .500 .845
That impovement really cannot be understated.
He’s a massive talent trending straight up with a bullet… he’s going to be among the truly elite very very soon,
(With the caveat that he really needs to get on a decent stretching program)
Agree here, though the first part of your argument makes me think harder about hiflew’s comment above regarding stat trajectories. If Moncada was actually “unlucky” 2 years ago, it may be that his “expected k-rate didn’t improve as the numbers suggest.
With that in mind, projecting for next year, would you rather have a player improve from 33% to 27%, or have the player maintain 27% across both years?
I honestly don’t know…
Bregman is ridiculously underpaid. That doesn’t mean Moncada will be underpaid.
It’s a good approach to locking up their core. I would love to see all of these guys play together for the next decade. Also helps these players secure guaranteed money in the event they get injured or don’t live up to the hype.
The only question on Moncada are his legs. He can flat out hit and did ok in the field.
Yoan Moncada did more than just OK at 3B in 2020, especially considering it was his first full season there. Take it from a White Sox fan who saw him play the hot corner all season. He has extraordinary athleticism at 3B which is a more instinctive position than his previously accustomed role at 2B.
Moncada’s only other MLB experience at the hot corner was when he made his brief big league debut with the Red Sox in 2016 as part of their September roster recalls. Boston wasn’t getting great production out of the 3B position with Travis Shaw, Aaron Hill and an injured Pablo Sandoval. Moncada had primarily been at 2B throughout his Cuban and professional minor league career until the Red Sox gave him a quick apprenticeship of 13 games at 3B at AA Portland prior to his September promotion. The Red Sox were already set at 2B with Dustin Pedroia healthy and still performing at an All-Star level. Moncada made his MLB debut at 3B late in a blowout win on the day of his recall, started the next 4 games and was then relegated to a bench role as a PR and PH for the remainder of September.
In my opinion, Moncada will be a contender for a Gold Glove Award at 3B in the not too distant future, something he likely would never have accomplished at 2B. After Moncada transitioned to the hot corner last season, Yolmer Sanchez earned a Gold Glove at 2B. That figures to continue once Nick Madrigal settles in at 2B following his anticipated 2020 debut.
* “Yoan Moncada did more than just OK at 3B in 2019″…
Aaron, didn’t you post very recently, that you were a Cub fan – while you were posting on a Cub thread? Your all over the map.
And as far as Moncada defense, I’ve seen him play very often also, and I believe he was just barely average last year. Ground balls at times went by, and through him, at times he showed complete indifference. Maybe an attention issue??
Aaron is a baseball fan.
Don’t label him.
I prefer he be a ChiSox fan!
Anybody who regularly comments here knows that I have been a die-hard fan of both Chicago baseball teams since the early 1960’s. I’m not alone, either. My daughter grew up a fan of both teams like her dad but has leaned more toward the White Sox in recent years due to her distaste for much of Cubs nation. My son-in-law grew up a Cubs fans and paid little attention to the White Sox aside from their cross-town series. After courting and marrying my daughter he has become more of a White Sox fan, especially since he works downtown which prompted him to purchase the White Sox Ballpark Pass over the past 6 or 7 years. It’s tougher getting Cubs tickets so he, my daughter and two grandkids attend far more White Sox games.
@Dogbone
Moncada had 5 Outs Above Average last season, which was 8th among all 3B in MLB and tied for 27th among all IF in MLB. Sounds like “barely average”.
Several times last season he vacuumed up the ball going to his left, to the point of just about stealing the play from the SS, and gunned down the runner. Sounds like “complete indifference” and “an attention issue”.
Your daughter married a good man.
Moncada 2020 MVP!
.320 BA 35 HRs 120 RBIs
You can put in on the board….yes! The White Sox would be wise to lock up Moncada with a contract extension ASAP before he posts another season akin to his 2019 output along with your projection or they will be facing a situation akin to what the Red Sox had with Xander Bogaerts and Mookie Betts as they each approached free agency.
Cue the “Yoan Bustcada” Cubs fans
Cubs fans don’t post on every White Sox article, it’s the Sox fans that post on all the Cubs articles. no one cares about the White Sox.
Nah, both fanbases do.
So why respond? Why are you even reading this thread if you as a Cub fan “dont care?”
Doesn’t he have the right though as a Cub fan to respond?
And there’s one now
Only concerned with durability. 6yrs between 100/105 seems like a nice extension to lock up a couple FA seasons. Moncada’s dilemma is the deal after being when he starts his age 31 season in lieu of 29 (late spring birthday). That said and way WSox operate with loyalty in many cases, if he was living up to the deal, they’d extend again at some point.
It makes sense if they think hell be a 5 WAR guy in year 3 or 4 of a 6 yr deal. 50/1 odds of them winning the WS… they aren’t a real competitor yet. So if they think they will be in 3 to 4 yrs it makes sense to lock him up below market to facilitate FA signings.
If he won’t take 5/$65 guaranteed with a hefty team option for a 6th year, the Sox are better off going year to year with him.
He should tale highest deal possible period. Thats what every player should do. Owners have plenty of money no matter how poor they cry.
He should tale highest deal possible period.
————————————————
I wouldn’t. There are limits on both sides, but if you like the area, and your teammates, and if your team is good, why leave for a few bucks more? Jason Bay went from being a folk hero to a nobody, for money that he will likely never spend.
If Moncada is amenable to a contract extension you can be rest assured it will be for 6 guaranteed years at a total value closer to $100MM which would cover his pre-arb 2020 season, 3 years of arbitration eligibility along with buying out 2 additional free agent seasons. It also figures to include at least two “hefty” option years which could be mutual ones considering Moncada will be entering his age 30 season during that 6th year. The deal would also likely contain some huge bonus incentives based on All-Star appearances and MVP votes among other considerations.
The longer the White Sox wait to offer an extension to Moncada the more it will cost them in any contract talks. Just ask his former employer in Boston when they ultimately agreed to sign SS Xander Bogaerts to a 6 yrs/$120M extension with an additional $20M vesting option last March as he was entering his final year of arbitration eligibility after he had already played 5+ seasons for the Red Sox. Of course, Boston was never able to settle on a contract extension for superstar Mookie Betts which prompted his trade to the Dodgers earlier this month.
Boegarts is a good example of going year to year. The Red Sox were able to get 5 years and 26+ fWAR out of him for only $25ml and still keep him in Boston long term with a below market extension.
$100mil right now would be a mistake given Yoan’s past stats and future risk.
The White Sox just locked up Luis Robert to a 6 yrs/$50M guaranteed contract with the potential to reach $88M with two team options before he even played his first MLB inning. Locking up Yoan Moncada to a guaranteed deal approaching $100M now sounds fair to me before they are forced to pay him even more with a Bogaerts type deal or lose him altogether like the Red Sox did with Mookie Betts as he approached his walk year.
Don’t do it Yoan
Come on, do it, Yoan! Do it!
unlike a lot of other players in moncada’s service time and talent range, he doesn’t actually need to jump on the money right now, since he got a $31 million signing bonus only 5 years ago (so he can afford to wait if he wants, hold out for a big deal rather than something team friendly, unless of course he somehow managed to blow through the cash that quickly).
Many fans were saying the same thing about Moncada’s teammate Luis Robert who received the second largest signing bonus of $26M back in 2017 after his own defection from Cuba and before MLB changed the rules regarding young international free agents.
The White Sox signed Robert to a six-year, $50 million contract extension on January 2nd before he even made his MLB debut. The deal also includes two $20 million team options (or $1 million buyouts) that could stretch through Robert’s age-29 season and push the total value of the deal to $88 million
It’s true that he doesn’t need the money and should already have enough to retire on should he get injured, but there’s also the risk of injury vs future earnings potential. If he signs for, say 6 yrs and $75M, he could completely blow out his knee tomorrow and still get all that and live very well for life. If he doesn’t sign and blows out his knee, he has to watch his money a little more carefully. There’s still an incentive for him to sign a deal now.
Hope they lock him up for 6 years with two more option years. It’d be pricey, but would take out up to the first four years of FA. The longer they can keep this core together, the better. Giolito next, then Madrigal. Even if Madrigal still has no power and his walks go down, his floor as an elite defender with some speed, a fairly high BA, and low K-rate makes him a solid starter. Wait on Kopech and Cease to see if they can pitch at a high level. I know all of this depends on the players wanting to sign extensions, but the possibility of their core staying together for the next 7 or 8 years would be huge.
It’s nice seeing a Chicago team locking up young talent. Paying attention Ricketts?
Ricketts has no money.
Apparently can’t pay his (luxury) taxes.
I’m hoping for something more along the lines of what Acuna got, though I’m sure it will take more money (or less time) than what Acuna got.
For reference, Acuna’s deal was 8 yr/$100MM with the 9th & 10th year options at $17MM each.
Whatever it ends up, I hope they get him extended. It would be nice to get him under team control for another 6 or 7 years (or more), instead of the 4 he is currently under control for.