The White Sox and Lance Lynn have agreed to a two-year, $38MM extension with a third-year club option that could keep Lynn in Chicago through the 2024 season, the team announced.
The White Sox’ acquisition of Lynn this past winter has thus far proved worthwhile. As you may recall, last December 8th, Chicago sent right-hander Dane Dunning and lefty Avery Weems to the Rangers in exchange for Lynn, who was scheduled to hit free agency after 2021. Dunning has proved himself a capable rotation arm, and on a strict measure of value, it’s possible to give the “trade win” to Texas. Dunning, after all, has produced 1.1 rWAR, and the Rangers maintain control for another five seasons, not to mention six years of control for Weems, should he reach his potential.
In actuality, the deal speaks to the changing needs of franchises moving in different directions. The White Sox are no doubt thrilled with their return, not only because Lynn has produced 3.4 rWAR while making the second All-Star game of his career, but because of the peripheral benefits that came with upgrading from Dunning to Lynn. Lynn’s track record brought a slimmer margin for error, he brings a veteran presence to the clubhouse, familiarity with manager Tony La Russa, and the fiery, chip-on-the-shoulder quality that’s long been a staple of South Side baseball.
Sure enough, the 34-year-old has found a home in Chicago, where he’ll now stay through at least the 2023 season. After making $9.33MM this year in the final season of the three-year, $30MM deal he signed with Texas prior to 2019, Lynn will make $18.5MM in each of the next two seasons.
The White Sox hold an $18MM option for 2024 that includes a $1MM buyout, per MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (via Twitter). There are bonuses, as well, should Lynn finish in the top-3 for Cy Young voting, adds MLB Networks Jon Heyman (via Twitter). Though Lynn has never been a top-3 finisher for the award, he has finished in the top-6 in each of the past two seasons.
Lynn’s 94 mph heater is where its been the past couple of seasons, though he’s dropped its usage from around 50 percent to 43.1 percent. The cutter has picked up the slack, going from 22.2 percent usage last year to 32.2 percent this season. Interestingly, Lynn sticks almost entirely to the fastball, cutter, sinker mix, only rarely turning to a change-up or more traditional curve/slider like he threw in his youth.
The cutter has taken over as a go-to put away pitch for Lynn. Opponents are hitting just .183 with a .295 xSLG against his 88.5 mph cutter. In terms of the bottom line results, however, Lynn has been just about the same guy in Chicago that he was in Texas: he pounds the zone (44.1 Zone%), plays to contact with a below-average 26.5 CSW%, all while coaxing batters to swing the bat (72.7 Z-Swing%, 49.4 Swing% — both marks being above-average), despite just an average ability to get batters to chase outside the zone (30.9 O-Swing%). All in all, he’s posted a 1.99 ERA/3.20 FIP in 16 starts covering 90 2/3 innings.
Securing Lynn keeps another member of Chicago’s impressive core in place. Carlos Rodon is the only member of the rotation not currently signed through next season. The White Sox control Dallas Keuchel and Lucas Giolito through 2023 and Dylan Cease through 2025. No matter what happens with Rodon now, the White Sox should feel secure about their rotation moving into next season.
The White Sox have been wisely proactive about signing their young core to extensions. Yoan Moncada is under contract through 2024, Eloy Jimenez and Aaron Bummer through 2026, and Luis Robert through 2027. Free agent signings Liam Hendriks and Yasmani Grandal also have contracts that run through 2024 and 2023, respectively. Other young talents like Nick Madrigal, Andrew Vaughn, Michael Kopech and Codi Heuer have yet to even begin the arbitration process.
Securing Lynn, however, was arguably the most important item on GM Rick Hahn’s agenda. Even still, the White Sox should have financial flexibility moving forward. Their luxury tax payroll for 2022 projects to be around $145MM, still well below this season’s $170MM mark. They have just $106MM against the tax on the books for 2023. Those numbers will go up with arbitration raises for Giolito, Evan Marshall and Adam Engel, but not so much as to seriously hinder Chicago’s flexibility, should they want to expand their payroll further while still avoiding the tax.
Those raises, however, will be enough to bring their cash payroll in 2022 already beyond the $133MM they have on the books this season. With Lynn’s extension now in place, the White Sox cash payroll for 2022 sits around $127MM before those arbitration raises. Still, given Chicago’s market and the aggressiveness they’ve shown to build this contender, they should still have room to grow.
This is very good for Lynn. Congratulations. I didn’t want him to leave the Cardinals.
Rick Hahn is the master of the timely extension.
This town is so interesting because the Cubs on the other hand refuse (or have an inability) to execute extensions.
Which is quite amazing given what their finances and selling points should be. What player WOULDN’T want to play in Wrigley 81 games and be the toast of the town?
Agreed. The White Sox front office just seems to get things done. The north siders on the other hand struggle with extensions. Other than recent extensions for Bote and Hendricks it’s been a no go for whatever reasons. Identify your key players and lock them in. That’s what the White Sox seem to do consistently.
Cue up Dogbone’s disapproval!
Wrong slider, I approve of Lynn staying with the WSox. Congrats.
One question though, what again is the WSox record against teams with winning records, or against teams outside their feeble division?
Boner is muted for me.
The sad sad life of a troll with no known livelihood, avocation, or prospects of companionship. At least he can look back fondly on that one time he garnered 3 likes
When the topic of record against winning teams comes up, it is never noted that a vast majority of those games for the Sox have been on the road. 17 vs 25. I think as the schedule starts to balance out, the Sox record vs over .500 teams will also start to balance out as well.
And besides, what again, does the Sox record vs over .500 teams have to do with the Lynn extension?
Oh , Mr. dogbone, your mom made you a nice sandwich for lunch. If you do your chores, maybe a scoop of ice cream.
Hell, I am going start trolling you guys. Maybe, I can get some likes too!
Sorry it’s a month later but that includes series wins against Tampa Bay, Astros, Toronto, split 4 game series with Red Sox, and just took 3 out of 4 so far from Oakland (4th game pending). Did that answer your question?
That Rickhahn. He’s a baaaad man!
Congratulations white Sox you guys just got a hell of a deal. You guys keep doing things the right way.
Straight from the horse’s (lol) mouth on why Lance Lynn chose a contract extension with the White Sox over a third foray into free agency:
“There’s no point going into free agency if you know where you want to be,” All-Star Lance Lynn said in a video conference session with reporters. “When you start getting older in this game, you realize that where you want to play and where you want to be and what kind of organization you want to be a part of weighs a lot. Over the first half of the season, just being able to see how everybody goes about their business here, the group that’s here and the group that’s going to be here for the next couple of years, it seemed like a pretty easy fit. And then when you started to play in front of these fans and enjoy it like I’ve been able to enjoy it, it was a no doubter.”
I cannot agree with you more Francys01. Lance Lynn is a workhorse today and he reminds of the pitchers from long ago. The Cardinals just have to regret not keeping him. Always rooting for him.
@fran, yup, he sure did fit in, with the culture of Missouri. I’d agree with you.
Nor did I , that should have send MO packing imo. Lynn delivers a week later , men 2nd n 3rd , 2 outs top of the 2nd vs Brewers , with a 2 run single to right center. That a boy Lance
Well done, White Sox.
So roughly 2 Qualifying offers
Or three.
Especially important since Lance Lynn couldn’t be tagged with another QO this offseason after having been given one by the Cardinals following his first trip into free agency following the 2017 season. Lynn rejected the Cardinals QO and eventually had to settle for a one year/$12MM FA contract with the Twins.
That’s a great deal for the whitesox.
Let’s gooooooo!!!!!!
Awesome!
Solid deal for both sides. He likely won’t maintain the level he’s pitched at the first half, but still a fair deal even some with expected regression.
Not sure why Yankees let him go. He was better than all other pitchers they traded for including Happ and Gray.
I knew he wasn’t going to be a rental. Good job for the White Sox.
Great point glass. When the White Sox executed the trade so many on this site said it was awful to trade away so many years of control for a rental. Anybody with a brain that follows baseball assumed the Sox would extend him if he performed. Too many comment without thinking big picture……
An extension doesn’t make a trade better unless it was negotiated at the time of the trade
These are two separate baseball deals. Just like Alex Verdugo and Jeter Downs didn’t acquire 13 years of Mookie betts
It has been clear from the get-go that Lance Lynn was a happy camper with the White Sox. He was born and raised in the greater Indianapolis metro area and relished his time in St. Louis under manager Tony La Russa. He was reunited with his former skipper and is now part of a team and rotation which figures to be a strong World Series contender for the next few years. He wants another ring or three and the White Sox are as good a bet as any team in MLB to accomplish that.
Was sad to see him go from the rangers but it looks like the trade has worked out for both teams
I’m rooting for Dane Dunning still. I liked him a lot in his brief time up on the South Side.
Classic win win. Help them with say an Ian Kennedy and the Sox will pay you guys back.
Very good news
Bag alert
MAJOR Bag Alert
Cheap
A great move by the front office. Lynn reminds me of Mark Buerhle – a battler with great finesse, who eats a lot of innings. His style should keep him healthy.
I once saw Mark Buehrle throw a game in 95 minutes. Dude worked FAST!
Quality comparison. “Work fast throw strikes” is always fun to watch.
The White Sox have a pair of Mark Buehrle ‘comps’ in their current rotation. Southpaw Dallas Keuchel possesses the stuff and a career resume that nearly makes him a Buehrle ‘clone’. Lynn is right-handed and has far more swing and miss ability in his game than the other two.
Except Keuchel whines about something new every week. My man Mark wasn’t like that.
Nice. Good for Him
Now go get a Rodon deal done!
But Boras.
I went to the Hall of Fame on July 4th. They had the binder on display that Boras used to promote A-Rod’s accomplishments when he hit free agency 20 years ago.
Boras probably has someone busy on Rodon’s and Bryant’s as we speak.
Unfortunately you may be right. Rodon does seem happy here tho. He did turn down a million more this off season to come back to WS after he was DFA. Maybe we will get lucky?
Maybe Lancy and Carlosy had a nice chat chat during the ASG while Liam was building his Friends Lego set
Carlos Rodon wasn’t DFA’d by the White Sox. He was an arbitration eligible December non-tender who became an arbitration eligible free agent.
“Lancy and Carlosy?” What about Liamy?
He was playing Legos. Just picked up the deluxe Friends set
Time will tell. But on the surface it seems to be an extremely fair deal for both sides. Also very “White Sox” of them in terms of still finding ways to avoid handing out anything over a $100 million contract (not that Lynn would’ve been a candidate), yet still making competitive moves. I realize that they have offered players contracts of well over the $100 million threshold. Nonetheless, their Grandal contract remains the largest total amount allocated to one player. Although I don’t think that will remain the case too much longer. At the risk of eating crow, I think this was a good move.
You put the offer on the table and see what he says. Gotta be hard for a 34 year old to say no to $40 million though. Also, kinda stupid.
Now go get a Rodon deal done!
Give Rodon QO. That’s all they should do.
This likely closes the door on that possibility. Highly doubtful they’ll carry a $150+ million payroll into 2022.
If Carlos Rodon finishes the 2021 season healthy and productive he is a slam-dunk for a QO this offseason. The White Sox aren’t just letting him go into free agency with zero return. He may not sign a long term extension or FA contract with the only professional organization he has known but a QO is coming his way barring another arm injury or significant regression in his numbers..
This is a win for the Sox. A move like this can give a team a mental boost similar to acquiring someone. They keep hitting gold with these contract negotiations.
Lynn won’t have his pending FA in the back of his mind and can concentrate fully on the stretch run.
Soooo does this make it easier to consider Crochet or Giolito in a blockbuster trade?
I believe Giolito is going to be traded then the White Sox keep Rodon around. Kopech replaces Giolito in the rotation and has more years of control while Jared Kelly develops for three more years.
I know that I am in the minority, but the thought of relying on Kopech to anchor a staff scares the crap out of me. I would keep Gio and sell high on Kopech. He just seems like there is always going to be drama with that kid. I really, really want to like him.
The thing with Giolito is his inconsistency with being shelled here and there but it’s common with pitchers like him, however, he is going be a free agent after the 2023 season. Two more years of control before Giolito before he hits the market but his price tag will go up in the next two years. Kuechel’s contract is the main reason why the Sox may consider trading Giolito in the off-season since the Sox have a clause with Kuechel’s innings pitched this year and next year for his fourth year to kick in. It’s more of a money thing then just getting rid of a player.
This year he has been drama free. It seems like he has gotten his personal life in order, which has translated to dominance on the mound. I think he’s our Ace in 2023.
Giolito might be inconsistent, but he’s still only 26. Pitching is very much a learned art. Young pitchers that dominate are the exception. It’s very typical for pitchers to not put it all together until their late 20’s, or even 30.
Drama? What drama recently? What, sitting out 2020 like a bunch of players did? Kopech will be fine and his stuff is 100 times better than Giolito’s stuff ever will be. Giolito is propped up as an ace, but he is not. Lynn is more of an ace than Giolito is
I don’t know. It is literally true that you cannot have too much pitching. I wouldn’t trade any, of what is, a solid pitching staff.
Trade Giolito, or Crochet, and Lynn and/or Rodon go down with injury, and you’re wishing you hadn’t made that trade.
You complain about Gio being inconsistent, then want to trade him while he’s still under control to sign an extension with a player who is healthy for the first time in five years.
Gio isn’t going anywhere. He’s a solid pitcher. What it means is Cease or Kopech will be on block, or they just let Rodon go in the offseason if he doesn’t sign a QO, assuming he even gets one.
Maximumvelocity, Giolito may be on block in the off-season due to Keuchel’s contract, which has an incentives with how many innings he picks up this year and next year where the White Sox have to pick up the fourth year if he exceeds those innings. For Cease and Kopech they are in the Sox future plans sonce they both came up with Collins catching for them in the minors. It’s not a guarantee that the Sox trade Giolito at all but that all depends if they win the World Series to being knocked out in the playoffs but I am sure teams would be in need of a starter like him during the off-season. This is just a thought since people hated Giolito in 2018 when he was statistically the worse starting pitcher in the MLB.
Why would you trade Giolito? He is under control two more years, and is still a effective pitcher.
If you want a spot for Kopech, don’t resign the free agent with a long, long history of arm problems.
Nah. I’d be shocked to see the White Sox trade Lucas Giolito anytime soon. They just hired his former high school pitching coach Ethan Katz this past offseason to replace Don Cooper. The White Sox will need Giolito to stay on board at least long enough to trade for or entice his former prep rotation mates John Flaherty and Max Fried when they reach free agency. The Harvard-Westlake HS alumni trio and their former coach would make for an intriguing alliance on the southside of Chicago, would they not?
It would not shocking if the Sox traded Giolito but it would be shocking to see the White Sox being in Flaherty and Fried when they are free agents. That will not be cheap but it’s possible. It seems like the White Sox are committed to this year so that pitching staff is good to go for a playoff run. Changes will be made if the White Sox fall short with missing the playoffs or not win it all. The offensive core is set and locked up but the pitching rotation this year is not guaranteed to be the same next year.
Just trying to be realist when it comes to finances to the White Sox not exceeding the luxury tax. They are $38 million under the $210 million right now. The payroll will be higher next season.
Great insight Aaron. I’m sure your Uncle Jerry can’t wait to break open his piggy bank to keep you happy. Uncle Jerry loves spending his money for the fickle fan base.
Watching this Astros game . . . Yeah, Gio isn’t going anywhere.
As I said before Giolito is inconsistent! Giolito can be lights one game then be so so in his next three outings. Giloto is pitching after coming off a long needed rest with the All Star break so we should have expected a good outing from him.
Waaah Waaaaah. Reinsdorf took my binky. Waaaah wah. Too bad no-one can read the perpetual troll now on perpetual mute.
Jack Flaherty is not a happy camper in St. Louis. There was a lot of animosity with him and the Cardinals as a pre-arbitration eligible which has now spilled over into his arb seasons. He may be a prime trade candidate and not even have an opportunity to reach free agency in St. Louis dependent on his health.
Max Fried is quite content in Atlanta but the publicly owned corporate Braves may have other ideas. Liberty Media OK’d the first contract extension for star 1B Freddie Freeman back in 2014 but he is currently a pending FA this offseason. Fried has the least MLB service time of the Harvard-Westlake trio of aces and isn’t scheduled to hit free agency until following the 2024 season, one year later than Giolito and Flaherty. It’s anybody’s guess as to whether Liberty Media will still own the Braves by then and even more speculative in regards to White Sox ownership. Jerry Reinsdorf isn’t getting any younger at 85, his wife just passed and his son Michael will only keep the Bulls. It could be a whole new era of ownership on the Southside of Chicago, likely one that will transpire sooner rather than later with the team winning and at it’s peak value.
I guess it’s possible Flaherty is unhappy with the Cardinals but is staying quiet but from what I’ve heard he’s just unhappy with the system for handling young players salaries in general. I don’t think the Cardinals will resign him but I’m not sure animosity will be a part of that as much as economics and the Cardinals history of pumping out quality starters from their system
Maybe Mike Veeck and Bill Murray can front an ownership bid
Why stop with Bill Murray? There are a host of celebrity Cubs fans who might like to front an ownership bid for the White Sox: foxsports.com/mlb/gallery/the-chicago-cubs-biggest…
Perhaps Barack Obama could front an offer for the Cubs and use some of Oprah Winfrey’s petty cash as a down payment.
Whoa. Just whoa. Crochet and Kopech are elite—future rotation studs. You don’t trade young pitching talent of their caliber.
I certainly wouldn’t trade either for anything less than an elite All-Star with some years left on their respective contract.
Crochet will never be a starting pitcher.
Yeah Chochet will a good starter I think (not certain about elite) but only after a season and a half missed due to TJS.(which I feel will be occurring either this season or next)
@max I agree on Crochet. But Kopech certainly should. I’m guessing this makes the chance of bringing Rodon back close to zero, which is fine by me. He’s just too much of an injury risk for an expensive gamble, much as I like his comeback. With Lynn and Kopech their rotation should be 5 deep with quality starters next year as well, which is great news.
Agreed. QO and if he signs, it, Keep Kopech in bullpen for another season, and start him in 23
I don’t think anything is going to keep Kopech in the pen beyond this year. He may be the best starter they have, even now.
Kopech is in the rotation next year. Some people need to stop coming up with other scenarios. He is a lock. As long as he’s healthy
Steve Stone has commented on multiple occasions that the Sox intend to move Kopech and Crochet to the rotation at some point in their careers. Obviously, Kopech needs to work on his stamina, and crochet needs to get stronger. Kopech should be permanent by ST next year, Crochet by 2023.
It does make sense, but I wouldn’t put much faith in what Steve Stone says. A lot of questionable thoughts and comments come out of his mouth. For now, the White Sox should continue to use Kopech and Crochet as they have, knowing they have depth to absorb injuries to their rotation. Worry about 2022 in the offseason.
Rob, you just made the most insightful comment here: not to put faith in anything that Stevie Stone says. Amen.
Kopech is not a lock, especially if they decide to give QO to Rodon, and he signs it.
I’m a believer in Kopech, but his persistent health issues call into question if he can handle a full load as a starter.
If they can keep the full rotation in tact, I can easily see a scenario where Kopech remains in the bullpen.
And for the record, I think Rodon is gone, so I think Kopech does start, but it’s fully possible they punt another season.
I know that’s the plan and I think Kopech will end up living up to his billing and turn out to be a bonafide ace, however, I have a feeling Garrett Crochet will ultimately be more effective as a high-leverage reliever than as a starting pitcher. Personally, that’s where I’d prefer Crochet as long as his stuff remains as nasty as it is.
Oh noes. No one seems to be listening or responding to Sir Dogtroll. Except for the Orkin man.
If the Sox have to give up one prospect arm- I’d say Garrett. Lot of promise but not sure he has enough to put it all together after an abbreviated 20 and truncated college career. Much more of a question mark and likely to reap a better return than say Kelley.
This isn’t about “Stevie” Stone, it’s about what the potential the White Sox see in these two talented pitchers.
So I’ll reword : The organization intends to use Kopech and Crochet as starters. Apparently they see something you two stooges don’t.
Kopech, TOR stud absolutely yes. Crochette way too early. TBD.
Giolito lights out in Sox 10-1 win over Astros.
3 hitter complete game. Gave up meaningless HR at end of game.
Giolito wants one of those big $$ extensions. Sox lit a fire under him today!
Giolito pitched a great game after a long needed rest during the All Start. His last start was a week ago! Let’s see how Giolito pitches in his next four to five starts in the next month before we discuss giving him an extension. Giloto showed a lot of inconsistency this year where he pitched well one game and be so so in his next few games. Just look at his game logs from this season.
More likely Kopech replaces Rodon next year and Giolito is replaced by Crochet after that.
Nice deal for both sides.
It’s a contract EXTENSION, not a trade or arbitration. BOTH the PLAYER & the TEAM “win”. Even the trade for Lance was mutually beneficial for both teams.
Remember when guys like Dogbone told us the White Sox are cheap and don’t spend money.
Who? You mean the clown that probably has been muted by everyone on the board due to his insane gibberish (though it must be hard for him to type with one hand when he is spanking it to the Cubs logo with the other)
Yeah everyone seems to have sad troll on mute. Except for this poster. Guess someone has to be the Orkin man.
Thank you for setting the market, now Shatkins needs to go get Robbie Ray locked up.
This deal probably disappointed Robbie Ray and his agent. Lynn is obviously a few notches better than Ray, so the AAV of Ray’s next contract should come in significantly lower and with that in mind, I’d say Robbie will find himself with a pretty tough decision if Toronto decides to hit him with the qualifying offer.
Innings eater, good deal as long as larussa doesn’t burn this pitcher out.
His workload under LaRussa is down from his Texas years. Not even averaging 6 innings per start.
Pitch count is up there +100.in a few games of 6 innings. +100 when sox leading well.into the game.
Virtually every SP’s workload is down this season, veteran or otherwise, and for obvious reasons in the wake of the abbreviated 2020 season.
whoa.
I like it.
Yes Keanu. Whoa indeed.
Nicely done
Funny; Lynn is 34, and signing a 2 year extension, And I keep hearing about how the Giants are going to fade because of all their old players. Cueto, the senior member, is 35 in his last season. Jake McGee is 34, and no other pitcher is older than 32.
Don’t get me wrong, I like this extension for the WSox, and think it’s a good, fair deal for Lynn. I just don’t understand all the positivity about this deal, even though I agree, in comparison to all the negativity about the Giant’s age.
Lynn is a workhorse and has been for the last few years after having Tommy John surgery. Guys like him bounce back and come back better after getting Tommy John surgery. Rodon is a perfect example. Cease and Giolito both had Tommy John surgeries at a young age.
I don’t know what your point is. Like I said, I like this deal. In another post I called the WSox rotation solid. Not sure what guys having TJS have to do with the the expectation of a Giants collapse due to their age.
My point is Cueto also Tommy John surgery a few years ago and he bounced back. Guys like Cueto and Lynn are work horses and you can not deny it if you have paid attention to their careers. The Giants’ collapse was a few years ago when their pitching staff was dealing with injuries.
But some people are saying they’ll collapse this year just because they’re old.
Age alone isn’t the issue with pitchers. It’s the amount of innings thrown, and their durability (injury, fatigue, etc.).
I totally agree. And Kapler has been very good at not riding guys too hard, and not just the pitchers either.
Pitchers age much better than hitters. And Lynn is an efficiency beast.
Good deal
Very nice. I like. *Borat Voice*
Amazing – near unanimity in the comments on this one. Amazing.
Sometimes a player just feels comfortable and leaves some ducats on the table. Loves the South Side and the South Sidw lives him back!
One of the most fairly compensated pitchers of the last decade. Great deal for both sides. Love the price and the years. He earned it.
I’m calling it now—Rick Hahn Executive of the year 2021. The entire league will be watching how he manages the trade deadline. Should be VERY interesting.
Thank You for your support!
I’m jealous. If I give you back Q can I get those fellers back.
Hahn is setting the market with how he dishes out the money to young talent rather than overpaying players when they hit free agency. Contracts given to Harper and Trout will no longer be done. Giving out that type of money to guys at the cusp of their primes is crazy. It destroys the market and a team’s future.
What’s going to happen when Ohtani hits free agency when the Angles dished out a ton of money to Trout and Rendon?
Let’s see if he gets help at the deadline.
This is still the same executive who signed Adam Eaton to an $8 million deal, which is hampering the offense.
Good point on Eaton. However, you can’t blame Hahn for lack of effort. He’s tried to spend money on impact FAs, they chose to go elsewhere. I think a trade for younger, controllable pieces like Frazier and Reynolds from the Pirates would cap off the rebuild nicely. The roster would be set for their entire window of contention (next 3-5 years).
Eaton was signed to be a platoon outfielder to play a few days a week but injuries to Jimenez, Engel and Robert sort of changed that plan. Eaton was not physically capable with playing everyday and it caught up to him. Eaton was aware of his role when signed here but that changed due to injuries in the outfield. At the time signing Eaton was a good move but the injuries changed the plan.
Regardless, platooning guys of Eaton’s caliber in RF was not an ideal situation to begin with. I understand it was done more out if necessity than preference, but it’s time the Sox seek a more longterm solution, and do it aggressively. The hitting lineup is very weak against decent pitching.
Eaton was never a good move, because better players were available at a similar price. The idea that injuries would render Eaton useless by mid season was in pretty much anyone’s mind who had followed him the past several seasons.
Dude, one year deals do not destroy a franchise. Get with the times. It isn’t 1990 Max. Better to pay a little more for a one year deal and maintain payroll flexibility.
Don’t mind the gamble on Eaton. No prospects or animals were harmed in the making of that film.
Lets calm down a bit, The Sox still cannot beat good ballclubs (especially after getting their clocks cleaned by the Astros..AGAIN.,) and RF is still a carousel of players, and one can argue their Catcher depth is woeful as well (sorry Collins is still unproven to me). .
The Sox are still a contender with Eloy, Robert and Madrigal out of the lineup. They need Eloy and Robert healthy, plus a few more bats to go deep in the playoffs. Still, the fact they’re still a first place club is a credit to the shrewd moves by Hahn. To accumulate so much big league talent in such a short period of time is remarkable.
ChiSoxCity, Hahn stuck to his plan and it’s been working this year. Hahn had a goal when he took over as the general manager with rebuilding the farm system through trades, draft picks and international signings. It all began once he traded away Sale for Moncada and Kopech when Sox fans were not happy with that move when Hahn cleaned house and started the rebuild.
This is actually Collins first full season as a MLB catcher. There is time for Collins to start living up to his potential but give the guy some
credit in first full season. People were throwing Moncada under the bus after his first season when he struck a lot but he improved in 2019, while last year did not help to the short season and his On Base Percentage this season is over .400. Some guys need a season or two to get better.
Yes, the White Sox are struggling against top teams without Eloy, Robert, Madrigal and Grandal in the lineup. Uh……duh. If three are back by October these ABs by the Billy Hamilton’s and Danny Mendicks are meaningless. Just win the division AND get healthy.
Whifff, the Sox have been playing possum all year with people writing them off due to injuries to key player yet they found ways to win. Indeed, the Sox struggled against the Astros but just imagine if Robert, Madigral, Grandal and Jimenez were in the line up. It would be a different story. October is what matters when the Sox have three of those guys back in the line up while Mendick and Garcia are holding g their own playing second base while Madigral got hurt.
Too many fans are using Jimenez and Robert not being in the lineup as a convenient excuse to cover up how poorly they play against good teams.. I mean the Sox are something like 15 (or is it more now) games UNDER .500 against over 500 teams. Sorry but Robert and Jimenez (and even Madrigal who got hurt later than the others) do not fix this considering how poorly their pitching has performed against said good teams as well. For those that really think this, then the post season results my be a huge disappointment for them. The Sox need at least another starter (though Kopech could fix that bill easily), another known good bullpen arm (or two) and a RF if they want to be taken seriously for the post season. So lets hold off of the accolades.
Sox hit 5 HRs vs Astros tonight!
Yup NRD. Baby steps. But this shows they’re in it for the window. Not one and done.
10-1 Sox over Stros tonight!
Wow, the Sox won a game against a playoff caliber team, well hell I take everything back, they are awesome and MLB should just send the trophy now… Please…… I have seen the Fool’s gold too much on the South side. Its a good first step. Win the Series today vs the Stros and start looking like a major league club against the playoff caliber teams then Ill be impressed. Its not just the losses, its HOW they lose to these clubs and often look like a AAA affiliate when doing so and fans should know this. My point about the record is that while Lynn getting an extension is great and does justify the Dunning trade a lot more to me, there is still a ton of work to be done.
Done. Any other requests for the Genie master?
Ok, and they just took a giant dump against one of the worst teams in baseball right now. Do we really want to do this after every game?
This is what I’m talking about. This makes the trade for Dunning well worth it, no matter how Dunning turns out.
@83 I had the exact same thought about the Dunning deal a few minutes ago. Was going to post, but you got me!
I’m still in shock, I had assumed he would be gone, and might wind up on the Yankees or Astros. And assuming Kopech starts next year, it solves their rotation problems even if Rodon leaves. They should be 5 deep for the next couple years. Just great news.
Assuming they’ll be 5 deep over the next couple years, is assuming good health for all. If the WSox have a shot at a WS title over the next few years, and I think they will, they’ll want a rotation that’s more than 5 deep. If I were Hahn, I’d hang on as much as I could to every pitcher they have.
Yeah, Torn on Rodon as I have seen this club get burned by extensions on pitchers but if Rodon can stay healthy all season maybe its worth an extension to him as well if the number is not absurd (but I doubt Bora$$ is going to let that happen)
Yeah Rodon in re extensions. As the cool kids like to say: what about Danks?
Exactly. This makes the Dunning deal a better value.
I liked Dunning but as I was discussing with other Sox fans, Dane was and is just a guy. Quality innings but not (yet) likely to be a TOR guy who lean on in the playoffs. Whereas Lance is a difference maker for what he brings to the clubhouse- has always been a mentor for other pitchers.
Feels like a steal for the White Sox.
So who’s the odd man out for next year?
Injuries take down pitchers all the time. There may not be an odd man at all next year.
Rodon is my guess. Unless they want to keep Kopech in bullpen, which they may need to do.
Rodon too much of a health risk for extension.
Kopech will not be in bullpen next year!!
Good guess on Rodon but I think the Sox will QO him and see if he bites. Will someone offer him a huge, long term with his injury history?
Yes. Enough to make it worth passing on the OQ.
Rodon but with his injury history and one season of great success (maybe he gets along with Katz great, dunno). Really Cease is on a bubble for me. Not sold on him so much. Take yesterday, sure his struck out 10, but also gave up 3 ER in 5 2/3 inning against a team you should beat if you are a ‘contending’ team like the Sox claim.
I’d be fine with Cease in bullpen, but he’s shown just enough to warrant another year in rotation.
Really, the easy choice is letting the oft-injured player you weren’t counting on in the first place walk.
Cease has a ton of upside and under control for quite some time. They’ll extend Rodon a QO, see if they can work something out and then likely move on. Thinking Reyno is set to be the next Ethan Katz science project.
Those 3 ER were soft runs. Take away the TA/Leury missive and you’re looking at 1 run. Cease has TOR stuff along with Michael and will eventually supplant Dallas when he moves on.
Meh, another excuse for Cease, shocker… I have heard a lot of excuses back in ’06 with the Sox too, then 07, the 08, then 09.. etc etc.”Well this guy just needs to find ‘it’ and when he does he will be a world beater”, or ‘ he has good stuff, just needs to put it all together’..’ (on losing streaks)…its a long season, we’ll be OK’ or ‘he’ll break out of the slump eventually’, ‘this guy will be an all star as he is a terrific athlete’, etc etc.. Sorry I’m not the super duper 100% full throttle fanboy that I was in my youth… Too many excuses on the South side and not enough results.But this is why they needed to keep Lynn around, He has ace stuff, the guy that even with his bad stuff looks like an all star should.
I will say this, I hope Katz can get something out of Lopez enough to make him look desirable in a trade with another team that thinks they can get something out of him…
Excuses, Excuses just needs to put it together, too many excuses. Time to pull the ripcord then….
You mean like Lucas Giolito and Carlos Rodon?
I guess ignorance is bliss.
I still think Cease is better suited for late relief. His stuff just isn’t consistent enough to get thru 5, 6, 7 innings. A np role would allow him to focus in his best pitches and weaponize that 100 mph gas he’s got.
*bp role lol
Angels really needed him. Good for the Sox, sucks for the Angels
Hope Q works out for you guys. Don’t bail on him yet. He’s a good guy
Well done sir! Always was fun to watch in STL.
The White Sox have been wise in locking up their core pieces for some time now. This is something they have done with far more success than failure. I only wish my other favorite baseball team would have used this model. Instead, the Cubs are facing a rebuild or a major retool with a former championship core that is either gone now or mostly left with expiring contracts.
Congratulations to the White Sox for doing the things that Theo Epstein and Jed Hoyer have not been able to do with the Cubs. Extend players contracts and buy out arbitration years and 1 or 2 years of FA with young players.
@cars
The cubs did fine during their window, with payrolls way beyond what the Sox are spending now (in both value and in ranking compared to other teams). Just saying, people want to criticize Epstein in spite of the fact that they had a 4 year run of being in the NLCS three times and winning a WS. I’ll take that from this Sox rebuild, all day.
Damn right! Who cares if Quintana was the key to defeating the Brewers to win the division, and who cares that the Nationals pretty much gave the first playoff series to the Cubs. The Cubs went to the NLCS three times in a row, and its won game win against the Dodgers was not a fluke.
I think people should be more criticizing Cubs ownership for their lack of vision. Lets be frank, they looked at their window to just getting the one WS, that’s it, and had no real plan for afterward. They have a college type air around that club and the problem is when you have this blind loyalty by a fan base then you have an ownership that wants to win enough to justify their gouging of fans (but hey, they got their own sports network now, that makes up for all of this right?). That also comes with a bunch of prima donnas that apparently worry more about their hair than their performance.. I mean David Ross as their manager? Gee I wonder why the Cubs or scuffling.. If Robin Ventura taught me anything is you can have a great guy who cannot manage their way out of a paper sack. I mean seeing them get rid of Maddon and replace them with Ross just brought back flashbacks of Guillen going out the door and Ventura coming in to vill that void. They got their puppet but should be realizing about now that they erred.
Good for him. I think it’s a bit of an overpay.
Nope.
18mil for a #4. That’s a lot. He’ll make half of what Gerrit Cole makes aav. Cole is an ace.
Chicago fans love him and will pack the stadium for all of his starts!
The white sox have yet to sell out Comiskey Park (sorry guaranteed rate field is cheey)
When the cubs visit they will though.
Lynn is a #4 only in the sense that John Smoltz was a #4 starter. (And I’d argue he is the #3 pitcher on the staff, anyway.) He would be a #2 pitcher on many playoff staffs.
I’m okay with paying for five good starters – doesn’t matter if you’re #1 or #5, all five starters have the same impact until playoff time; and nowadays you use a four man rotation in the playoffs and usually get good innings out of number five anyway.
Billy Baggins, your knowledge about baseball is just as bad as Dogbone’s knowledge. Maybe you are Dogbone’s other account? It’s kind of disheartening to have people like yourself come on here saying Lynn is over paid for a number four starter. Most teams would love to have Lynn on their pitching rotation and just look at the comments on here from fans on other teams. As I digress let’s look at this factor behind Lynn.
Lynn was on a pretty bad Rangers’ team before being traded the White Sox during the off-season, even though there were talks of getting him last season but the price was too high. Needless to say, in 2019 Lynn finished in fifth place for the American League Cy Young despite having a 16-11 record, a 3.67 ERA and 246 strikeouts while playing on a bad Rangers team. That says a lot with how the baseball world thinks of Lynn.
Lynn has a very good chance with winning the American League Cy Young this season or at least finish in the top three in votes!
Cole didn’t sign a 2 year contract so there’s not much point in trying to compare this contract to his, they’re very different things.
How is 18mil aav not being overpaid? Most players are overpaid in baseball right now. It’s nothing short of ridiculous to get paid 35mil+aav to play baseball. My knowledge of baseball is great. Never seen Dogbone so I have no clue if you’re trolling on his knowledge about baseball or not.
I don’t care if a pitcher has .25 era during the entire year with a 12 WAR and I guess now it doesn’t matter but 26 wins in 28 tries. And he is offered 300mil over 7 years. That’s massive overpay
Or in a contract year for a hitter. Let’s say Mike Trout (before his extension) he’s on the verge of breaking the single season homerun record needing only 1 to get to 71. And on top of that he’s hitting .410 and has 140SB with 210rbi. He’s still not gonna be worth 38mil aav for 12 years.
It doesn’t even stop with baseball. NFL and NBA players are over paid as well. I don’t care how many super bowls tom Brady wins. He’s not worth 41mil at 42 years old. That’s just insane. If you don’t agree that’s fine. It’s just my opinion that most players are overpaid.
Cole is not worth his contract either. It is a fair comparison though. Cole is an ace at 36mil a year. Lynn is not an ace making half of what Cole makes.
Cole’s contract is going to bite the Yankees in the ass in the next year or two once his velocity starts to dip down. That contract is a prime example what is destroying baseball, especially with all of the acquisitions of Cole using foreign substance up his spin rate. Let’s not forget Cole use to be mediocre pitcher with the Pirates while almost pitching his way out of the MLB where the Astros basically traded nothing for him where his career changed.
Lynn has been a good pitcher in the last three years. As of right now, Lynn has the best ERA in for starting pitchers in the American League at 1.99. For some odd reason he is not even on MLB.com’s stats leader for ERA.
The difference between Lynn and Cole is that Lynn has a World Series ring and probably get another one or two where Cole might not even get one with the Yankees or even get one in his career. Cole pitched great in two seasons with the Astros to get his deal.
I’ve said it many times. I really hope the Cole contract is the modern day Jason Giambi contract. 7 year drought back then. So far is an 11 year drought from the Yankees last pennant win.
I don’t think the white sox win a world series with their wife open window. Who knows how Robert will do after that horrible injury. He’s lost for the season. When it first happened Jimenez was gone for the year too. They are playing in weakest division in baseball. It’s barely a 2 team race. 85 wins will win the division for the white sox.
Eloy will be in the White Sox line up in the next few weeks. Hahn wants Eloy to get in twenty games in the minors before coming back. Robert should be back before September and the Sox are being cautious with him to get at 100%. The White Sox’s offense will be ten times better with them on it and their lead be around 16 games right now if those two guys were on the team.
Yup. Lance is certainly a #4. Because you say he’s a #4. Like all the other #4s get relegated to pitching the 2nd innning of the All Star game.
I wonder how this deal will affect the FA pitching market? While Lynn is on the older side, he is still a bulldog and borderline ace. Getting him for 2 years for under $40M total feels like a big win for Chicago. While free agency tends to take on a life of its own, owners can at least point to the Lynn deal as a comp for a starting point on offers this offseason. I wonder what the MLBPA thinks about this deal?
One less quality arm should drive up the price of those available. Lynn is 35 next season and signed his deal as an extension, not as a free agent, so it won’t impact what’s paid on the open market.
Solid solid deal for both sides. Kudos.
Lynn has been very good for the White Sox. Good move keeping him around
Glad that the Sox not only keep Lynn, but they don’t have to worry about him going to the Astros or Yankees next year.
Now that Lynn is locked up ….. Is Kyle Hendricks trade w/Cubs next? I believe Hendricks has 3 years left, so they will need to take Dallas Keuchel and the 1 year he has left in the deal. Got to believe the Cubs will be salivating at the chance to stock up the farm system. Zack Collins (former 1st rounder), Reynaldo Lopez, Blake Rutherford (former 1st rounder) and Zach Burdi (former 1st rounder) should get it done. We can still add Gavin Sheets to sweeten the deal. Two upside arms in Lopez and Burdi. All should make the opening day roster for the Cubs 2022 rebuild.
And Sox fans like to make fun of Cubs fans’ trade proposals.
Wouldn’t it be great if this poster was President Obama? Then after we all read his post, we could reply “Thanks Obama”.
The Yerminator can then step in as starting C!
NOT!
The Lance Lynn extension is a good insurance policy for the WS in the event that they can’t resign Carlos Rodon. Given the Yankees SP depth problems and the ongoing Trevor Bauer controversy for the Dodgers, you could have a very expensive bidding war for Rodon between the Yankees, Dodgers (if they walk away from Bauer) and White Sox. In that scenario, the WS are probably the lowest bidder.
Would like Carlos back but not if we’re talking 6/170 or some such.
The Yankees are not going to go after Rodon and give him big money! In all reality the Yankees have too many issues right now with taking on Staton’s contract where he can’t stay healthy to overpaying Cole while needing to see if they can keep Judge while filling in other holes.
Meanwhile the Dodgers are almost in the same boat with their contracts to having to pay other players on their roster to filling in other holes. It’s going to be interesting to see how the Dodgers handle the Bauer situation but I think he will be back from what I see what took place.
Trade for McCann. He was Giolito’s personal catcher, and Giolito raved about him. Since McCann is gone, Giolito isn’t the same pitcher.
Giolito will be traded away before the Sox trade for McCann. Maybe the Sox trade Giolito to the Mets?
Check box score for tonight’s game!
Giolito a true ACE!
107 pitches.
Complete game.
8 K’s
0 BB
3 hits including end of game HR.
True Ace? Giolito is coming off seven days rest! I did not expect him to do bad yesterday and that’s why I placed a bet on him to have over seven strikeouts yesterday with a Sox win. It’s different story when Giolito pitches four to five games in a 22 to 28 day time period. There is a huge difference pitching one great game after being off for a week while not doing that all of the time.
I like Giolito in the Sox’s rotation but I am just realist when it comes to pitching. At the best Giolito is a number three starter and he showed signs of dominance in 2019 then slowed down in the second half. I refuse to even mention the 2020 season since it was only 60 games.
@BeeVeeTee, Giolito was dominant in his 2020 post season start…. He had a perfect game through 6 innings
Dude has selective memory. He is also a legend in his own mind.
At David Barista, are you referring to the 60 game season in 2020 where most starting pitchers only had 12 starts and this year most starting pitchers are going into their 17th to 19th start this season. It’s a whole different ball game pitching in a full season like this year then last season’s 60 games. If you look at Giolito’s game logs for this season you can see he was shelled and did not dominant in a few of his starts. Basically, the Tigers offense owns Giolito this season and lit him up on July 4th. If Giolito continues to pitch like he did on Friday, after getting seven days of rest, in his next four or five starts then I will admit I am wrong about him. Until then, I believe Giolito is the number three starter behind Rodon and Lynn.
This
Why didn’t they show a picture of lance lynn?
Hard to say the trade was a win for the Rangers. White Sox end up with Lynn for three years and he has been an ace for far. The writer mentions Dunning has a positive war so far this season. What he doesn’t mention is that Dunning has 17 starts, 3 wins, and averages less than five innings thrown per start. Those numbers speak louder than a positive war. The three wins in seventeen starts are counted in the standings for the team, not war.
Yeah, stupid Dunning, he should magic the team into winning games he pitches in!
Hard to look at that deal as anything but team-friendly. The fact that it includes a team option with a relatively low buyout is just gravy. He could have gotten $23-$24M AAV on the open market, maybe more. Hoping Rodon feels the same way.
There is a good chance the White Sox offer Rodon a three year deal with a fourth year option deal just like the one they gave to Kuechel with the incentives to get the last year picked up with innings pitched and he takes it. Rodon would get around $20 to $22 million a year. That’s my prediction.
@Hyrax Agree, Lynn basically took significantly less money to stay with the Sox. Shows he is a great teammate and not all about $$$.
With Lynn signed, the situation with Rodon is now different. They have 4 solid starters with Kopech set to take the 5th next year. Is always possible they surprise and come to terms with Rodon, but Boras is his agent so I’m skeptical he will not go for a bigger payday than the Sox can afford. With Lynn, their need for Rodon is a lot less, plus Rodon’s injury history cannot be ignored. I think Kopech will be a great starter, and they could take the $20M+ they would have to pay Rodon, and sign 2-3 very solid middle relievers. All speculation at this point, but I’m guessing Rodon will probably be gone. If the Sox really shored up their bullpen with the money, or put toward a RF, they might be better off. Will be interesting to see what they do, hopefully they have a deep postseason run with Rodon remaining healthy first.
Rodon’s injury history is what it is “history”. Rodon had Tommy John surgery later on in his career like Lynn did in 2015 and not like Giolito and Cease had it done when they were minor leaguers. It was just a matter of time with Rodon getting Tommy John surgery but he had the arthroscopic surgery done on his shoulder right before getting Tommy John surgery.
There is no doubt the White Sox will take over as the number one team in Chicago for the next five to seven years if Hahn sticks to what has been doing with building the farm with trades, draft picks and international signings. Hahn is a smart guy and knows the market while Reinsdorf has that local tv deal with NSCHH. In the meantime, the Sox are going to have few of their games on National tv in the next few months. The money is pouring in through tv money and let’s hope the fans continue to show up to the games.
Let’s be honest with ourselves this season is crucial with this team we have right now. If the White Sox make a deep run in the playoffs and win the World Series then we shall see this stay intact for a few more years. Now if the White Sox somehow blow this eight game lead where they lose the division (probably not happening) or just get knocked out in the first round we shall changes. All eyes are ron pitchers like Giolito and Rodon where they were both lights out this weekend but there is still a lot of baseball. Rodon has been sharp all season with a bad outing but that Tommy Surgery is the key to his success. Meanwhile Giolito has been inconsistent all year and has been shelled a few times this season and last night’s game was expected after a long rest.
If all Lucas Giolito needed was extra rest to throw complete games again the best offense in MLB, they would just give him extra rest. It’s a nonsensical assessment that ignores his dominance over the past several seasons, just so you can confirm your own bias.
Stop the hate and give credit to the fact that he is a solid pitcher who has shown he can anchor a rotation.
And I can assure you they are not going to go with Rodon over Giolito. No sane GM would sacrifice Gio to back on a one-hit wonder with a history of arm surgeries.
It’s not hate with a little facts and statistics where I feel that Giolito is no more than a number three starting pitcher. Giolito had shown signs of dominance but he also shows signs of slowing down in the second half like he did in his last full season in 2019. There is a huge difference of Giolito pitching in 30 games this year while only pitching in 12 regular season games and 1 playoff game last year.
If Giolito pitches like he did on Friday in four or five more starts then I will change my opinion on him. In the mean time, I have noticed Giolito shows a lot of inconsistency in his career with the White Sox and that’s why I look at him more as number three pitcher rather than a number one pitcher, however, he has time to flourish. We just have different views! Let’s not forget Giolito was one of the worse pitchers in 2018, improved in 2019 with a great first half and slowed down in the second half, showed signs of dominance last year in two games with a no hitter against the Pirates and his start against Oakland in the playoffs but he only pitched in 13 games, and while he has been a little inconsistent in the first half of this year.
Seriously, I am not saying Giolito is a bad pitcher but he had a few bad outings this year but I hope he does show dominance in the rest of the season. Let’s hope Giolito does not have to face the Tigers in some meaningful games in the last two weeks of this season because they have been hitting him this season. Just look at Giolito’s game logs against the Tigers this season.
And let’s not forget that Rodon has only pitched for more that 120 innings once his entire career, and has had major surgery on both his throwing shoulder and elbow. And that this is his first healthy season in five years.
Seriously, I have no idea where this hate stems from. So what if Giolito is a number three pitcher? That’s a solid rotation piece that is under salary control for the next two years.
And a lot of us have been saying to sign Rodon to the QO, and if he comes back, wonderful. I’m not knocking Rodin’s performance at all.
God forbid if the the White Sox are in the difficult position of having to decide which starting pitcher or pitchers they have to keep in the bullpen. Or if Kopech has to stay in the bullpen another year and serve as a dominant set-up man.
I really do. It understand what all of this complaining is about. The team may even be in a position. Where they don’t need to find a RF, if Goodwin and Engel, who are both under control next year, keep hitting and fielding.
They can keep the pitching staff in tact, keep the lineup in tact, and not have to add anything more than a few bullpen pieces – maybe- and some bench options.
Seriously, you are complaining to complain about a solid rotation arm that is under control for the next two seasons. It’s dumb to get rid of him, especially if you don’t have to sacrifice keeping Rodon to do so.
Great, not pay Rodon since he is not healthy. Will Cease accept a deal now, too?
Hahn makes shrewd moves, but Tony’s the man!!!
how the White Sox lock up players at such a discount rate, priceless
A week Later , the Lance factor vs Milwaukee early. 2 out top of #2 , with 2 RISP , tags a Woodruff pitch over the 2nd basements head to score 2 for a 3-0 lead.
As A Cardinals fan their GM Mozeliak done soiled his GM trousers letting Lance go. Many of us were calling for his firing . Lynn was our best work horse . He munched up innings.