The White Sox optioned right-hander Reynaldo Lopez to their alternate site Monday, per a team announcement. The move means Lopez won’t open the season on the big league roster.
Lopez, who came to Chicago in a blockbuster trade with Washington heading into 2017, has had an up-and-down run with the White Sox. Now 27 years old, Lopez has pitched to a 4.76 ERA/4.98 SIERA across 446 2/3 innings as a member of the club. The previous two seasons were especially rough for Lopez, who combined for a 5.52 ERA/4.96 SIERA over 210 1/3 frames. He also walked a career-worst 12.4 percent of batters last year.
Lopez entered spring training with the hope of claiming a season-opening roster spot, but he allowed 11 earned runs in as many innings, gave up 16 hits, and totaled just six strikeouts against four walks in exhibition play before the White Sox demoted him. As of now, the White Sox appear as if they’ll enter 2021 with a rotation consisting of Lucas Giolito (whom they acquired in the same trade as Lopez), Dallas Keuchel, Lance Lynn, Dylan Cease and Carlos Rodon.
Maybe send him to the minors and let him work out of the bullpen fulltime. Can’t hurt to try.
They are better off keeping him stretched out in AAA to fill in the rotation when need be. Their bullpen is already pretty loaded as is.
He is not a starter.
See if he can gain velocity and thrive in short bursts. If they need another starter, they can call up Flores or Lambert.
Starting him is as futile as when they kept thinking Dylan Covey could help the team. His future, if any, is out of the pen.
Agreed
Well said maxvelo.
Can’t argue with that. He’d excel at being a 1-2 inning bridge. Thinking how Andrew Miller found lightning in a bottle in that role
I’d rather take a hit or miss start with Lopez than anything Flores can give. Stiever needs to be option 1 in AAA, Lopez # 2 and Lambert a distant 3rd.
You have the order completely backwards. Out of those 3, Lambert has looked like the best option in limited appearances. If he’s stretched out to go 5+ when called upon, he should be option 1. As much as I like Stiever, he’s option 3 right now. Until being thrown into the fire last year, he had never pitched above High-A; he absolutely needs more time in the minors. And Lopez is Lopez. He probably will get the first look, but I’d like to see him at least do something to earn that shot.
Of course there won’t be a AAA season until early May. In the meantime, hopefully Reynaldo Lopez can figure things out at the alternate site. I agree that he should be stretched out as starting pitcher insurance for now. The White Sox bullpen is not only “loaded” at the big league level but at AAA as well.
Meanwhile, AAA Charlotte will have a thinner rotation with most of the White Sox highly regarded starting pitcher prospects being recent high school draft picks Jared Kelley (#5), Matthew Thompson (#7) and Andrew Dalquist (#9) along with young international signee Norge Vera (#11). The only other SP prospect rated among their very best is Jonathan Stiever (#8) who made his brief MLB debut last season along with his 2021 AAA rotation mates Jimmy Lambert (#20) and Bernardo Flores Jr. (#21).
No MLB rotation is guaranteed to be injury free. The White Sox can especially attest to that with Carlos Rodon who has definitely earned the #5 spot this spring over Lopez. That said, it makes more sense for the team to stretch out Lopez as their top insurance policy should a rotation injury crop up early in the season.
Despite Lopez struggling the past two seasons he has far more MLB experience than any other White Sox minor league pitching prospects. If the team was still rebuilding then I could see them rolling with a SP like Stiever or Lambert but with World Series ambitions Lopez would be my choice, at least until the trade deadline approaches. Another midseason possibility could be stretched out reliever Michael Kopech.
Many White Sox fans forget that Lopez was the team’s best starting pitcher as recently as 2018, the same season that Lucas Giolito was being labeled a bust by many of the ‘faithful’. I’d still like to see if new pitching coach Ethan Katz or some of his disciples in the minors can finally help Lopez figure things out before the organization bids him adieu.
What is the point?
Lopez has regressed badly the past two years, and looked even worse this spring.
The team is past the point of settling for another Dylan Covey. All he did was take innings away from guys like Kyle Kubat, Flores and others who were never given a chance to see if they offered anything.
I also disagree with the idea that the bullpen is too “”loaded” to develop another option in the pen.
The bullpen was pretty well stocked last season until players failed or got hurt. And already, they are looking at beginning the season with a castoff from the Pirates due to injury.
Lopez’s fate is in the bullpen. If you need another starter, you are better off giving a chance to Lopez or Lambert, because frankly, they can’t possibly be any worse than Lopez.
Yeah, wasting time on the unfixable definitely costs you looks at other maybe less thrilling (but also useful) talent. You’d think a team that employed Mark Buehrle for so long would understand that concept.
It would also be good to see if Reynaldo can learn to focus for an inning at a time in relief. Then maybe we can go from there.
@maxvelo
Spot on. Maybe Lopez has a future, more likely he doesn’t. Not every player pans out. It’s been 3 years since he has done anything in games worth being remotely positive about. His stuff is not all that good as you pointed out, which is why with fewer walks this spring he is getting clobbered instead. He is a head case as well at this point, you could see with his body language last year that he has very little confidence in himself. He has possibly made his last appearance as a starter in a Sox uniform, even if they have an injury. I don’t see him as depth or insurance, he is going to have to prove he can get somebody out somewhere before he is going to be given any consideration at all. With Fry coming back in May, there would not be a roster spot for him anyway. Which is why Cordero’s surgery was a non event as well. Actually it’s better that Lopez had a terrible rather than mediocre spring, makes it clear that they have no choice but to leave him off the roster, which was probably best all along.
The good news is that Rodon on the other hand has been the best story of the spring. I know his health is always a question, but unlike the past couple years, at least he is throwing really, really well. Very pleasant surprise. I saw a few of his innings and highlights, against real Padre and Diamondback hitters, and that’s as good as he could possibly look. Dominant, and able to go 3 and 4 innings. If he is healthy, they have no need for Lopez at all. If he isn’t, they have got to find a better option than ReyLo, which would probably wind up being Kopech for 3+ innings. Their bullpen should be able to handle that if need be. You can only hope they limit Rodon to 5 innings, he needs to stay healthy to contribute. Would be a great story for him to come back from all he has been through and have a full season. He could be immensely more valuable than I or many others thought possible. Could totally change the outlook of their staff and team, really.
Agree with this as well. As inconsistent as he was, there have been stretches of dominance, even last year
He probably isn’t a starter long term, but he just changed his mechanics in the last couple of months. Give him a few more months to see if he can figure it out. If not move him to the pen full time. The White Sox are loaded with quality RP so there is no need to rush it now.
“The bullpen was pretty well stocked last season until players failed or got hurt.”
The bullpen performed well last year, but they are on a completely different level this year. Over 1/3 of the bullpen’s innings in 2020 were pitched by Cordero, Detweiler, Fry, and Cishek. Replacing those innings with a combination of Bummer, Kopech, and a full season of Crochet is an unbelievable upgrade for an already good bullpen – not to mention swapping Colome with the best closer in baseball. This bullpen is absolutely stacked with high quality options.
As long as they don’t have to deal with a ridiculous amount of injuries (no team can deal with that), they’ll be really, really good. They have no less than 6 guys that can be relied upon for high leverage innings (7 if you include Kopech). Anybody coming up from the minors will pitch in long relief or low leverage spots; with that kind of quality depth, a perceived lack of quantity isn’t very concerning. I’m not sure there’s another bullpen in baseball with the amount of high quality options the Sox have.
They’ve given Lopez every chance to start, but his lowest ERA/FIP came in 2018 at 3.91/4.63. The Sox have plenty of better options to start. Kopech and Crochet could eventually move into the rotation and also have Stiever, Flores, Lambert as SP options as well. If Lopez can get his velo back up into the mid-to-upper 90’s and refine his slider, he could be a plus reliever.
He could find some success out of the bullpen eventually but Steve is right, I think they need innings from him this year even if they’re not very good innings.
I would package him in a trade… 27 years old, controllable salary, look around MLB, there is room for him in someone’s rotation… he just has to find a pitching coach who can harness his talent
This is CLEARLY service time manipulation!!!!!
Huh? Dude is 27 and struggling. If there’s one team that never uses service time manipulation, it’s the White Sox.
I’m guessing you are really fun at parties.
Clearly Steve was being sarcastic. Lopez became arbitration eligible this past offseason. He and the White Sox agreed on a $2.1M salary to avoid the arbitration process.
Technically, the White Sox could cut Lopez in the coming days before opening day for a fraction of that salary but the front office optioned him to their alternate site instead. It’s evident they still see some future value in Lopez as either a starter, reliever or as a potential trade asset. He is still young enough at 27 to roll the dice on. Lopez still possesses great stuff and has proven to very durable since his acquisition from the Nationals in December of 2016. Lopez also proved to be a pretty solid young pitcher in his first full MLB season with the White Sox back in 2018 before regressing the past two seasons.
Btw: It’s not quite accurate to say the team “never uses service time manipulation”. They have used it in the past. The difference between the White Sox and most other teams is that they do a much better job of extending their arbitration eligible players including Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert before their actual MLB debuts.
Enjoy this
It’s a shame. He has a live arm and has stretches where he’s excellent for a month or so. He *can* be good, but I think his head gets in the way.
Long overdue.
Rodon has looked great this spring. This was an easy choice.
See ya, bye now.
We saw enough of Lopez last season to know he had no business starting anymore.
Stop speaking for all White Sox fans. Yes, Reynaldo Lopez has struggled the past two seasons but he is still just 27, still has great stuff and has been more durable than virtually any other young White Sox pitcher since 2016 including two prospects who were acquired during the same December Winter Meetings in Dane Dunning and Michael Kopech. Lopez was also the best young White Sox pitcher as recently as 2018. At that time it was him and not Lucas Giolito who looked like the ‘keeper’ from the Adam Eaton trade with the Nationals.
I don’t speak for most fans, but I also believe most fans have been off the Lopez train for some time.
He really doesn’t have great stuff. He has a great fastball with two breaking pitches he can’t command. Once people realized that after his first full season as a starter, they stopped swinging at anything sliding and sat on his fastball.
He’s not the first pitcher who had a decent beginning as a Starter who eventually had to move to the bullpen. But if he can get command of the slider, he could be a very good reliever.
I don’t think he’s beyond hope, but it’s getting close. He’s like the pitching version of Mazara. Talent, tools, occasional flashes, but just can’t seem to put it together.
Nope. Also not in the “most fan” camp. You’re actually both right. He has more intermediate value as the emergency 6th or 7th starter- frankly think he should have been on the playoff roster and would have been less likely to choke like Dane Dunning. But Max is right, longer term he profiles as a plus reliever, when hopefully Garrett and Michael step up to the rotation to replace Dallas and Lance (23-24)
Dunning didn’t choke…..the manager did. It was 1st and 3rd with 2 outs in the 1st inning still scoreless. We’ll never know if he would have closed out the inning and settled in nicely for a few more innings before rushing to the BP.
The teams handling of game 3 was an absolute joke. It was very clear that the goal was to do everything possible to win 1 series, not a World Series. Dunning deserved much, much better.
Amen!
You tell him, Aaron!!! Speaking for all W Sox fans, is nothing YOU would ever do!! Ha ha ha ha lol!!
I typically buck the trend of most White Sox fans. I was one of Rick Renteria’s most ardent supporters, not only as a White Sox manager but also when he was in the Cubs dugout during their final rebuild season of 2014. I thought Renteria deserved a shot to manage both the Cubs and White Sox after performing well for both teams as their player development skipper.
On that note, I was also one of the minority of White Sox fans who also supported the hiring of Tony LaRussa. Most Sox fans couldn’t wait for Renteria to be fired and then became outraged when owner Jerry Reinsdorf insisted on his long time pal LaRussa taking over. Most of the faithful were clamouring for the hiring of ‘analytical’ cheaters A.J. Hinch or Alex Cora to replace Renteria and were even more pissed off when JR insisted on the “old fart drunkard” instead. I found a new sense of Karma with the LaRussa hiring despite the fact that I appreciated what Renteria had done for the organization.. I had been a long time fan of LaRussa since his days of managing the White Sox when JR first owned the team. I have also been a long time fan of The Chairman as well, yet another unpopular person among most of the southside faithful.
In addition to Renteria, LaRussa and Reinsdorf, I have also been a supporter of two key front office executives, Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn who often get criticized by the White Sox fan base. I don’t hate on KW like most Sox fans do. I believe the majority like what Rick Hahn has done although even he was taking a lot of heat this past offseason for re-signing Adam Eaton and Carlos Rodon and not prioritizing the likes of George Springer, Michael Brantley or any number of other veteran free agent SP options. I was on board with Hahn’s prioritization of the bullpen this offseason including the FA contract given to Liam Hendricks which was panned by many.
I understand that many of Hahn’s decisions are tied directly to Reinsdorf. Afterall, it is JR who has to sign off on any major financial additions. That said, I believe the White Sox are better served off going the route of multiple and affordable internal contract extensions to their identified young core over nine digit FA contracts. I believe it not just better for the White Sox but also for the long term health of MLB. I supported Reinsdorf and his stand with the smaller market franchises in past labor disputes and will continue to do so if any work stoppage occurs this offseason. MLB needs a system in place similar to what he helped achieve as a powerful NBA owner where there is a salary cap AND revenue sharing among teams AND players. The current CBT is BS and needs to be replaces with a salary cap, a minimum spending floor, shared revenue by owners and players, along with a system that would minimize all the ‘tanking’ that has occurred with so many teams in recent seasons including some major market franchises like the one of the northside of Chicago.
Well said Aaron.
How many Dylan Coveys do we have to give chances to from season to season?
I say ship him off to Pittsburgh or some similar outpost, already.
He’s shown more upside than the Dylan Coveys, and frankly Rodon. I think Dallas will likely fade to more of a back of the rotation guy by next season and Dylan is unproven. Let’s give Reyno the benefit of added time to work in the mechanical adjustments Ethan and Yaz have been making with him. The Sox are not in a position to discard talented arms (no team is really- except maybe the Tribe)
@ Dogbone
I typically buck the trend of most White Sox fans. I was one of Rick Renteria’s most ardent supporters, not only as a White Sox manager but also when he was in the Cubs dugout during their final rebuild season of 2014. I thought Renteria deserved a shot to manage both the Cubs and White Sox after performing well for both teams as their player development skipper.
On that note, I was also one of the minority of White Sox fans who also supported the hiring of Tony LaRussa. Most Sox fans couldn’t wait for Renteria to be fired and then became outraged when owner Jerry Reinsdorf insisted on his long time pal LaRussa taking over. Most of the faithful were clamouring for the hiring of ‘analytical’ cheaters A.J. Hinch or Alex Cora to replace Renteria and were even more pissed off when JR insisted on the “old fart drunkard” instead. I found a new sense of Karma with the LaRussa hiring despite the fact that I appreciated what Renteria had done for the organization. I had been a long time fan of LaRussa since his days of managing the White Sox when JR first owned the team. I have also been a long time fan of The Chairman as well, yet another unpopular person among most of the southside faithful.
In addition to Renteria, LaRussa and Reinsdorf, I have also been a supporter of two key front office executives, Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn who often get criticized by the White Sox fan base. I don’t hate on KW like most Sox fans do. I believe the majority like what Rick Hahn has done although even he was taking a lot of heat this past offseason for re-signing Adam Eaton and Carlos Rodon and not prioritizing the likes of George Springer, Michael Brantley or any number of other veteran free agent SP options. I was on board with Hahn’s prioritization of the bullpen this offseason including the FA contract given to Liam Hendricks which was panned by many.
I understand that many of Hahn’s decisions are tied directly to Reinsdorf. Afterall, it is JR who has to sign off on any major financial additions. That said, I believe the White Sox are better served off going the route of multiple and affordable internal contract extensions to their identified young core over nine digit FA contracts. I believe it not just better for the White Sox but also for the long term health of MLB. I supported Reinsdorf and his stand with the smaller market franchises in past labor disputes and will continue to do so if any work stoppage occurs this offseason. MLB needs a system in place similar to what he helped achieve as a powerful NBA owner where there is a salary cap AND revenue sharing among teams AND players. The current CBT is BS and needs to be replaces with a salary cap, a minimum spending floor, shared revenue by owners and players, along with a system that would minimize all the ‘tanking’ that has occurred with so many teams in recent seasons including some major market franchises like the one of the northside of Chicago.
How many Dylan Coveys do we have to give chances to from season to season?
I say ship him off to Pittsburgh or some similar outpost, already.
I’m not sure if the Sox have enough pitching.
Dude has a live arm but he needs to figure it out quick – mental, mechanical or both.
Doesn’t have to be quick. He just started working with Ethan a few months ago and is getting comfortable with Yaz. The Sox have the luxury of letting him work in the mechanical adjustments and testing out the new approach over a larger sample size than the 12 innings or so of the inhospitable Arizona air
No brainer. He didn’t belong. Get your act together and wait for an injury.
This is obviously the right decision based on what we’ve seen in Spring Training. But ReyLo was a reasonably effective starter as recently as 2018 — 188.2 IP / 3.91 ERA / 4.63 FIP. He continued to be durable in 2019 with 184 IP but gave up way too many home runs that year. Maybe he peaked in 2018 and will never figure it out, but he’s only 27-years-old.
I’m not sold on the White Sox minor league starting depth like Steiver or Flores (I like Lamber more), so I think it’s worth keeping Lopez around at the alternate training site/AAA as an option in case of injuries.
Quite simply, his talent is what makes him so irritating. The potential is there but he hasn’t figured out how to harness his skillset. Live fastball though, if the Sox moved on from him he’d be picked up in a nanosecond.
Southpaw Kubat is a soft tosser with good command. He also has done pretty well in ST.
He had 8 appearances. 4 meh, 2 horrendous. But 2 gems against the Indians and Tigers. So the talent is there. Willing to give him a shot with Ethan Katz. We’ve seen how Gio was able to turn it around as recently as 2019 after finishing at the bottom of the league in ERA and BB/IP. How soon we forget.
A 12.4 BB% is pretty darn good.
For a hitter.
I’m not putting too much weight on his 26 innings in 2020, especially when he was affected by injuries. His 8% BB% in 184 IP in 2019 and 9.4% B% in 188 IP in 2018 were much more reasonable.
I’m not arguing that he’s a great pitcher. But his BB% last year is barely noteworthy.
Ya know, I’ll buy that.
& those numbers are much more palatable, uh?
I’m pretty sure I recall him throwing really well against the Yanks in ’18.
Really good change up right? I’m sure he’s the one I’m thinking of.
The stuff is there.
Good memory Ducky. In fact he threw two 7 inning, 1 run gems against the Yankees in 2018. The Sox in their interminable mediocrity only managed to split those two games.
Knew it was him.
& – yeah – it *was* twice wasn’t it?
I remember being petty impressed. That ’18 lineup was second in MLB in runs scored. He completely throttled us, man.
No idea what is going on with him currently. But I’d be very hesitant to move him to the bullpen yet, just based on that.
Lucas had an 11.6% walk rate as recently as 2018. The more relevant stat is WHIP. Reyno’s career 1.39 isn’t that far off Rodon’s 1.37 and Reyno’s season best of 1.27 in 2018 isn’t too far off Keuchel (1.25) and Lynn (1.29). In other words, if Reyno is able to figure it out and get back to 2018 productivity, he slots in with the career averages of Dallas and Lance, at a fraction of their salaries.
This is the team that will take the Yankees to the brink? I wish there we’re more betting people out there. Not even sure if the Chisox will win the AL Central. I think they definitely got a chance to, but thinking they will come up short. They just don’t have much playoff experience just yet. They definitely need more time.
Personally, when I troll I troll individual posters as opposed to an entire team.
But I certainly see why some of the Yankee fans on the board let it rip with entire teams.
Earlier in the off-season, I actually was excited for the white sox, man. I used caps for their name & everything as a sign of respect (i.e White Sox). But that one particular poster (VB) kinda soured me on their entire squad & fanbase.
Which actually kinda sucks & is pretty unfair.
But – well – there ya go.
This is your response to Lopez being sent down? He sucks.
Yankee homer bets have kept NY bookies rich for years.
You’re right Yank, the Sox are not quite there yet and profile as an AL central contender/wildcard team as opposed to a clear co favorite. But directionally the Sox (like the Pods and Jays) are headed up. Let’s revisit this in 2022-24 when the Sox young core should be peaking.
If they get expected development out of their younger players and good luck with health, they can absolutely contend with the Yankees.
My concern is that there are too many ifs, and not enough backup plans if a few things don’t go their way. Lopez flaming out was one of the ifs they didn’t want to happen.
@maxvelo
They certainly took a big risk to go with Lopez/Rodon as their 5th starter. Both were long shots to succeed, combining for an ERA of close to 6 in 2019/20. However, Rodon has looked good enough so far that their choice seems to have some merit and might turn out ok, or gasp, better than ok. I did not think it even mattered if he was healthy or not, last year it looked like his ability was all but gone. His ability certainly looks like it is there now, and he does not even have to pitch that well all that often to be a decent number 5 starter. He might be much better than a number 5 if he pitches anything like he has so far this spring.
Now that Lopez has pitched himself off the team, I don’t think that’s a negative or something gone wrong at all. I don’t think they were counting on both him and Rodon. They were hoping that one of the two would turn out ok, that now looks like a possibility. I think it is much better than if both looked mediocre, so they won’t waste a roster spot on the other pitcher. When Fry gets back in May I assumed the weaker one of those two would get booted off the roster anyway.
I know it is far from certain that Rodon will stay healthy, but if he is even healthy for part of the season, Kopech should be able to get stretched out to handle the 5th starter for the rest of it. He is probably ready to go 3 innings if Rodon got hurt immediately. So in spite of the fact that you and I, and many, would have wanted the Sox to pick a much more solid 5th starter, Rodon may prove to be a gamble that paid off for a change. We’ll see… if not, I think Kopech will make good on the #5 slot soon enough, he looks like he will probably be better than Cease almost immediately. He and Cease don’t have to be great, just fill out their back 2 rotation spots. I think this team is in pretty good shape for starting pitching, surprisingly. Outfield not so much at the moment with Engel out… but if their pitching is good with no disasters like the 2019/2020 versions of Rodon or Lopez in the rotation, they should score more than enough runs to win a lot of games, and the division.
I didn’t mind the Rodon signing, because he’s always had great stuff, and I think he could become a solid RP in the vein of Matt Thornton. His fastball/slider combo is more than enough for him to become a high-leverage reliever.
I in no way saw this Spring happening, and hope he can stay healthy, as he could because the X Factor that puts them over the top.
But yes, even if he can manage 20 starts, that could buy time for Kopech to get integrated into the rotation.
@Yankee-4-Life 75
We are talking about the 8th out of 8 relievers in the pecking order. It’s not like he was penciled in as the closer or the ace of the rotation. But, yes, they are far from guaranteed the division. In fact, until the Twins prove otherwise, they are the favorites for the division. I still think the Sox are a playoff team. Things would have to really go sideways for them to miss the playoffs.
The Yankees have issues of their own also. That being said, I still consider the Yankees the favorites in the A.L. But they are far from a certainty to go to the WS.
All you have to do is make the playoffs and anything can happen. The Yankees unfortunately know that from the other end. Otherwise they probably would’ve had at least a 10-peat with the rosters they had when Ol’ George was still alive.
The Yankees have one starting pitcher and nothing but question marks after. They are also losing players every other day now to injury. Overall, outside of the White Sox and Blue Jays most other AL teams are either worse or no better than they were in 2020.
Do the Yankees even have a full rotation? Good luck with Cole and a bunch of massive question marks.
Reynaldo Lopez for Roughned Odor / Kyle Cody?
@Kennethk
Why?
He’s just not consistent. We’ve all seen flashes of brilliance from him. He gets in his head way too much. He’s young, hope he can figure it out and join that bullpen.
When you saw the Sox dumpster dive for the lefty the Pirates threw away you knew Lopez was being sent down. No surprise. They have decided to pay the two million and keep trying to get him to be a serviceable pitcher. He will most likely see the mound on the south side this season. Hopefully not in October.
Frustrating player. He has the talent, but until (or if) he gets his head on straight, all he will be is wasted potential.
I know the Sox have other pitching coaches in the system, but he won’t have Katz to help fix him except for home games over the next month Lopez is in Schaumburg. Yes, they can communicate via Zoom (or whatever they use), but it’s not the same as Katz actually being there.
Speaking of which, I watched a video of Lopez, Katz, and Lucroy not too long ago (of course I can’t find it). Lopez must know some English, but I wonder how much he actually knows. Katz and Lucroy were talking to Lopez like he was Cease or Kopech. Lopez seemed like he was understanding them, but it makes me wonder how much he actually understood (and how much it was just noise until he heard words he actually understood).
I say this because if he makes it back up with the team (which is very possible), how much will he be able to understand on the mound when Katz comes out there to calm him down. I’m sure Grandal knows Spanish, but what about Lucroy or Collins? It’s not like interpreter Billy Russo can come out to the mound with Katz to translate. That was a benefit of Ricky as manager.
Maybe Lopez does have a fairly strong command of the English language now (which makes this a moot point), but since he still uses Russo to translate, I’m not so sure. Again, I think Lopez knows enough English to have a very basic understanding of what’s being communicated, but there’s still a lot that he could be missing without the interpreter.
I doubt language is an issue.
There is a difference between being conversationally fluent and understanding enough of a language to perform a task.
I’m sure Lopez knows enough English, or Katz and Collins know enough Spanish to discuss issues during a mound visit.
Keep in mind Katz is from Los Angeles, and Collins is from the Miami area. They likely have had plenty of exposure to Spanish.
Besides, it shouldn’t always be on the Latin players to learn English, and not vice versa, no matter how much Chuck Garfien talks about it on his podcast. There are plenty of teams where the English-first speakers are in the minority, and that has certainly been the case with the White Sox in the recent past.
LaRussa speaks Spanish, and so does Grandal. Actually in that video you mentioned doesn’t Lucroy keep saying “muy bueno” to him?
I think these foreign players learn basic English quick, especially as it relates to baseball. Even the guys who use interpreters know some English, just not enough to answer long dumb questions from reporters comfortably.
Each team can carry up to five players from the alternate training site on their taxi squad for road games in 2021. One of them must be a catcher who will perform duties in the bullpen if he isn’t promoted to the active roster. When the rule was three players last season, the trio was usually a catcher, a utility player and a pitcher.
With this in mind, Reynaldo Lopez will probably be one of the pitchers who travels with the White Sox. He has ample big league experience and could start or relieve if needed to replace an injured pitcher on a road trip. This would also keep him connected with new pitching coach Ethan Katz. It’s not as if Lopez or any other player at the alternate site will have normal game opportunities anyway with the minor league season not beginning until early May, including AAA.
Assuming that the White Sox opening day 26-man roster will have 3 catchers on it including Zack Collins, look for Yermin Mercedes to be part of the taxi squad as well. I would also expect utility infielder Danny Mendick to travel with the team assuming he is the odd man out for the 26th roster spot. This trio of Lopez, Mercedes and Mendick would fulfill the minimum taxi squad requirement.
I suspect the White Sox will carry the maximum number of 5 since they are opening the season on the West Coast with 4 games in Anaheim and 3 in Seattle before returning to Chicago for their home opener on April 8th versus the Royals. If the team does carry 5 on their taxi squad I suspect the two additional players will be another pitcher and an outfielder.
@Aaron Sapoznik
I forgot about the taxi squad. Good point.
—
@maximumvelocity
@CalcetinesBlancos
Maybe that dynamic is fine between them, which is great if it is. I was just surprised to hear Katz and Lucroy talking pretty fast to Lopez and he seemed like he was actually following along like English was his primary language. CalcetinesBlancos, now that I think about it, that probably is what he said. I don’t know a lot of Spanish (which I really don’t have an excuse not to), so I might have missed that. I wish I could find that video again and give it another listen.
Very good point, maximumvelocity, about that it shouldn’t be just on the Latin players to learn English. It’s nice when the Latin players do, but there should be compromise, for lack of a better word. I imagine there’s more respect between the teammates when Americans are putting in the effort to learn Spanish and Latin players learning English. It’s good to break down some of those barriers.
twitter.com/whitesox/status/1369741583944359940
@CalcetinesBlancos
Thank you very much for the link. I appreciate it.
After watching it again, Lopez definitely has at least a decent grasp of the English language, enough to where he wouldn’t need a translator on the mound.
Earlier I watched a video of Katz interacting with Cease on MLB.com, and the more I see Katz, the more I like him. He communicates so well with the pitchers. You never know how the prospects like Cease, Kopech, etc. will pan out over the next few years, but I feel more confident in them after watching Katz in action with them.
Even among those White Sox fans who opposed the addition of Tony LaRussa as the new manager, I believe most of are happy with the new additions to the coaching staff that include new pitching coach Ethan Katz and Analytics Coordinator Shelley Duncan.
Btw: Thanks again to CalcetinesBlancos for that link!
Lopez is currently re-working his mechanics, and it’s a good idea to have him get a better grasp of his new arm slot in an environment w/o consequences (like the alternate site or Charlotte). I’m not optimistic that he can take a Giolito-like turn-around or even come back as a good pitcher; but as an occasional spot starter, the Sox could do a lot worse.
He’s just not a good enough pitcher to get professional hitters out when he’s not sitting at 95+ mph and touching ~98. He has shown flashes of excellence before, but they’re becoming few and far between.
Hopefully Rodon can finally stay healthy – he has looked excellent so far. Or at least last until Kopech or Lambert is stretched out enough to go 5+.
I’m not convinced that Lopez is fully healthy. I read reports that his fastball velocity was down this spring, and his last outing he was 90-92 mph, topping out at 93. He’s usually 95-98.
I doubt that is due to any injuries. The White Sox had Lopez stretching out with the same workload as Carlos Rodon who were each competing for the #5 spot all spring and generally piggy-backed in the same Cactus League game together. The loss in velocity is more likely due to an adjustment with his new mechanics or the fact that Lopez was also prioritizing other pitchers during game situations including a curve ball that he basically shunned the past two seasons.
If Lopez is not pitching at 100% we should all find that out fairly quickly since it would very convenient for the team to just place him on their 60-day IL in order to open up a spot on their currently full 40-man roster. The White Sox are expected to add three NRI players to the active roster before opening day, C Jonathan Lucroy, OF Billy Hamilton and DH Andrew Vaughn. A spot can only open up with a rostered player moving to the 60-day IL or with a DFA.
Recent waiver claim Nik Turley, a left-handed reliever, was just added to the 40-man roster when RP Jimmy Cordero was added to the 60-day IL following his TJ surgery. Turley will have an opportunity to impress the White Sox in their final 7 Cactus League games before they determine his future with the team. Turley is one of 3 White Sox players who are out of options and must be added to the active roster or face a DFA before April 1st. The other two out of option players are also relievers. Evan Marshal is a lock for the White Sox bullpen while Jose Ruiz will likely be DFA’d and exposed to a waiver claim. Turley might join Ruiz on the waiver wire or could be the 8th reliever who will replace just optioned Reynaldo Lopez.
Just FWIW I love that SIERA is used as a measuring stick on this site. That’s it. Carry on
Let’s see how Lopez does with some time at the alternate site. I like our position in regards to young talent that teams can view as reclamation projects. Lopez can now be added to that list. Former 1st rounder Jake Burger has never even really played due to injury. Former 1st rounder Blake Rutherford is an outfielder who at one time was hyped because he was drafted by the Yankees. Former 1st rounder Zach Burdi is a guy who 3 years ago we would have had pegged as our closer. Like his brother, can’t stay healthy.
Based on the article I just read on CSN Chicago, they are going to keep Lopez as a starter, in case he will be needed at some point in the rotation.
That information was confirmed by manager Tony La Russa in the following article:mlb.com/whitesox/news/carlos-rodon-earns-fifth-sta…
Manager Tony La Russa admitted they thought about López as a long reliever, but that role wasn’t best suited for him or the White Sox.
“We just think there’s going to be a priority on protection starters, and it’s much better that Reynaldo is stretching out,” La Russa said. “If we need him, he can come up and throw 100-something pitches. Better use for his talents and our needs. In most cases like Reynaldo, what he needs are extended innings. And the innings are not there.
“It’s the time in the spring where, right now, the priority has gone to Carlos, and the other guys are taking innings and you have a bunch of relievers that are going to get the rest of it. So, that was true for several guys that we sent out. To keep them in shape, they are better off going down and working regularly and getting extended.”
Btw: If the White Sox are in need of a long reliever on their active roster that role figures to go to Michael Kopech who will be on a strict pitch/inning limit this season but is also viewed as a potential starter later this summer, down the stretch and potentially into the postseason with any injury issues to the rotation.
Lopez has some dominating stuff when he is on but his biggest flaw is when he has those mental breakdowns when an umpire makes a bad call on a great pitch that should be a strike and not a ball. Lopez needs to stay focused when he is on the mound while not letting bad calls make lose his concentration. This has been Lopez’s biggest issue over the years.