The White Sox have agreed to a deal with utilityman Josh Harrison, his representatives at MSM Sports Management announced. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports (Twitter links) that it’s a one-year, $5.5MM guarantee. He’ll make $4MM in 2022 and the deal also contains a 2023 club option with a $1.5MM buyout.
An 11-year MLB veteran, Harrison has remained a productive player into his mid-30s. He’s never been an elite offensive player, aside from a .315/.347/.490 showing with the 2014 Pirates that earned him some down-ballot MVP support. Yet he’s typically been a solid hitter throughout his MLB run, including over the past couple seasons. Harrison rebounded from a down two-year stretch between 2018-19 to post decent numbers since the start of the 2020 campaign.
Over the past two seasons, Harrison owns a .279/.343/.402 line across 649 plate appearances. That’s four percentage points better than league average, by measure of wRC+. Harrison doesn’t have huge power — he’s hit 11 home runs with a .123 ISO (slugging minus batting average) — but he brings excellent bat-to-ball skills to the table. He’s only punched out in 13.4% of his plate appearances over the past couple seasons, and he made contact on 82.7% of his swings last year. That’s more than six points higher than the league mark, a continuation of career-long success putting the bat on the ball.
Midway through last season, it seemed as if Harrison might even be playing his way into a multi-year contract. He saw regular action bouncing between second base, third base and left field with the Nationals and was hitting at a well above-average level (.294/.366/.434) in 359 plate appearances through late July. The A’s acquired him alongside Yan Gomes as part of Washington’s deadline teardown, but Harrison stumbled down the stretch. He hit just .254/.296/.341 in his two months in the Bay Area before reaching the open market.
That late-season downturn coupled with Harrison’s age (35 in July) combined to limit him to a one-year guarantee. He should have a decent path to playing time on a postseason contender with the South Siders, though. Chicago is presently slated to open the year with Leury García at second base after re-signing him to a surprising three-year deal in November. Given Harrison’s and García’s respective price points, the latter might remain the nominal “starter” at the keystone, but both players figure to bounce around the diamond.
Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.
STOVE IS HOT
Dumpster Diving Rick
I was reliably told all winter that the White Sox were going to trade Craig Kimbrel for an All-Star 2B.
Love the username… used that joke once on here when talking about John Jaso. Honestly though, Kimbrel could still be a White Sox.
He’s going to remain a member of the White Sox.
He could have been a member of the Chicago White Sox for just 8M, but Rick Hahn wanted him for double. So generous!
They didn’t even need to trade Kimbrel! Harrison has been an all-star 2B twice!
I’d think Harrison flourishes in that lineup. I like the move, excellent value to fill a position of need with a solid player. Also leaves $ to b spent elsewhere on roster.
I’m glad Red Sox didn’t sign him.
Love this dudes energy during the short time he was with the A’s.
I enjoyed watching him avoid tags when he was with the Pirates. Good YouTube video on it.
We’ll see you guys in Atlanta in October.
You going to visit Disney World from there?
Excellent move. In 2014.
Excellent move in 2022 for the price they paid, as long as they invest the savings elsewhere in roster.
It would be, if I trust the Sox get to get a top caliber 2nd baseman and not be content with a hodgepodge of solution at RF and at 2nd. I like Sheets and Vaughn as well, but not as a platoon in RF on a ‘win now’ team.
Originally drafted by Cubs. Ugh.
Well, he hit .294 in 320 AB’s with Washington in 2021 before moving to Oakland.
Can he turn a DP? How is his range?
Sox still need a power lefty bat for RF.
He’s not a very good fielder.
Just SMH. Kenny and Jerry get there man. Enter used up veteran work nothing on the tank that was decent, maybe, 10 years ago.
Interesting. What is your primary language?
Tell us you don’t know that Rick Hahn is the GM without telling us you don’t know Rick Hahn is the GM
I think they could of done better. But he could be a utility guy with Garcia if they do find a better option at 2B. Still say they could play Moncada at 2B and let Burger have a shot at 3B.
The Sox don’t want Moncada at 2B again…
These 2 bottem fishing moves – include Kelly – reflect what the White Sox have to do because of that horrific trade.
Their budget is shot.
I’ve never seen a team go through such a long rebuild then so quickly paint themselves into a corner coming out of it.
How about Padres?
Hey now. The Padres are in a completely different class. Not only did aj build them but he also helped build the guardians mariners pirates and the rays. Oh and the cubs.
They were 35 million below the Luxury tax before these signings and the probable trade of Kimbrel. Reinsdorf is like 90 years old so I think the Sox will be all in this year. So WTF are you talking about Sammy?
Baseball was locked out for 3 months, and White Sox fans are still under the belief that anyone is giving up ANYTHING for Kimbrel at $16M???
I guess baseball truly is back.
They don’t need anything back except the fact they don’t have to pay him. 16 million isn’t all that much for a proven closer. Duh.
The White Sox don’t want to pay a “proven closer” $16M, which isn’t all that much money?
Man, if he’s so good, this shouldn’t be a problem.
Good news for you: I think the White Sox will get to keep their proven closer!
The White Sox not offering Rodon a qualifying offer is a pretty big indication they are going to be budget shopping this year.
Rodon’s arm is falling off.
That’s why he was “let go”.
Okie dokie
@ unclemikie;
1. Please make sensible points instead of using language which shows your obvious weakness there.
2. What does the luxury tax have to do with the budget individual teams have which they base on revenue? This is not rotisserie league baseball where every team has the same amount of revenue to spend. When ALL MLB revenues are put into a fund and distributed evenly to all 30 franchises then your working hypothesis make be valid. Until then you’ll have to make an attempt to think as adults in the real world do.
I’d talk slower but you still wouldn’t get it. I said Reinsdorf is like 90 years old so the Sox will be all in to win a WS asap. Hahn has said they are all in. What part is tough for a feeb like you to get? They will spend up to the 230 million if they have to. I hope you can get this Sammy, Hey you’re not Sammy Sosa are you? Maybe I should of tried Spanish. Kimbrel sucked as a set up man last year. He’s a top closer. Se Habla?
If the Sox really are in a ‘Win now’ mode then RF should not have a platoon, and 2nd base should be filled with a top tier 2nd baseman by end of ST this season (to be fair, wasn’t sure Madrigal would be that guy either). The issue with Kimbrel is that Hahn has to convince other teams to give up whatever for such a guy cause -barring injuries- I doubt Kimbrel is closing anything here with the Sox, and like you said, he has to convince another team that Kimbrel really is a top notch closer still.. Maybe Hendriks gets hurt and then Hahn looks like a genius, who knows. But if Reinsdorf really wants to ‘win now’ and will go to great efforts to do this (and actually get the right pieces), then I’m ready to see it actually occur once in my life but Im not holding my breath.
Josh Harrison is a good fit for any team. Position versatility and will hit for average. Some years you get lucky and he hits .300. Bullpen is great. Didn’t need anyone elite. Didn’t need anyone really.
@yourdream
Didn’t need anyone? Did you watch the playoffs last year against the Astros? They lost 8 of 11 to them last year, most by a big margin. The Sox finished only 1 game ahead of Boston/NY, and 2 ahead of Toronto last year, while having the weakest schedule in all MLB because not a single inner division opponent was over .500. If they were in the AL East with much tougher schedule, they would not have even made the playoffs. They have a lot of talent, but still the most overhyped team in MLB because their record/stats are all completely inflated because of the division they play weighted schedule against.
They had a great bullpen. Even better now even before kelly.
The Sox got repeatedly ‘pantsed’ by good teams all of last season. Everyone said ‘don’t worry’ and then the Sox got walked out of the playoffs real easy by the Astros (though part of me would not be surprised if it comes out that the Astros were cheating again last season somehow).
Sox need heart and the will to win, and Im not sure that was in the locker room last season at all (and jury is out on this coming season and Im not sure how many players coming it would fix that).
Since no one else has done it, the $1.5 million is the buyout.
“The money will be spent.”
Lets just hope its on the right players, and players that want to win and not just show up for their check when the good teams come to town to play.
Just what they need. A right handed hitting guy who hasn’t posted an OPS over .800 since 2015, and has basically no upside other than being slightly better than if Garcia was the starter. Some things never change. Reinsdorf can go F himself.
His upside is he can play infield and outfield. Their farm system is weak. Harrison is their injury insurance.
Good news. These moves are what they consider going all in.
The highest league-average OPS in any of the last 15 seasons has been .758, so not topping .800 isn’t exactly disgraceful. He’s a decent player getting paid a decent amount.
Let me guess, A’s didn’t even make an offer. FU John Fisher!!!!
Players usually decline in their mid 30s and the white sox tend to sign all of them
Absolutely awful. Harrison might be a good role player on another team but is exactly the kind of player that Tony La Russa will give way too many starts to.
I’m thinking the same thing. ChiSox are in win now mode and need a full time 2B with speed to match up with this team. Leury Garcia fits the same role as Josh Harrison.
I thought the ChiSox would sign Jonathan Villar.
I’m guessing that as for now, he’ll be their 2B? As far as I can remember, the WS don’t have anybody aligned to fill that position
2B depth for CWS.
The issue is you need a starting 2nd baseman before you have ‘depth’
Before last year Harrison ks like 90 times to 20 walks per year. Decent average and can hit alot of doubles. My guess a versitile platoon man here unless he can continue to cut down on ks and draw some walks and stay locked in. He is older so that will be hard to do but not impossible.
His 2021 stats:
WAR 2.1 AB 505 H 141 HR 8 BA .279 R 58
RBI 60 SB 9 OBP .341. SLG .400. OPS .741
OPS+ 106
His numbers are decent. He can play IF and OF.
I suspect that he and Anderson will have a lot of fun this year and Harrison will be even better.
Okay signing, but I wouldn’t count on him being a starter.at almost 35. Really good rep in the clubhouse from what I’ve heard.
White Sox starting 2B next season?
Kind of was hoping he would re-sign with the A’s but oh well…
The front offices of both Chicago franchises are masters at treading water. Why add viable MLB talent to the roster when you can hire some washed up thirty something to clog up a roster spot, then disappear midway through the season?
I get why a lot of White Sox fans wished the team aimed higher to fill their need at second base (yes Harrison can and will play outfield and third but this was primarily done to cover innings at second) given the win now state of the rest of the roster but this is a great low risk signing. Harrison brings professionalism, energy and a great work ethic to help mentor Robert, Vaughn, Burger and Sheets as they establish themselves in the big leagues. He doesn’t walk much but he’s a tough out in the batters box and fouls off a ton of pitches making it tougher on pitchers to get through the lineup even though his standalone results are just OK and not particularly exciting. Ultimately the White Sox just turned their biggest hole on the roster into a league average spot which is very valuable in itself and as an added bonus Harrison has all the intangibles both as a player and as a person that you want from someone on your team.
@jimmyz
Filling your biggest hole with at best a league average player who is 35 and may be on the decline is not what good organizations do that are trying to win a championship. It’s what teams do when they care only about saving money like Reinsdorf has done for the past 40 years. I’ll be surprised if by year end they get a league average 2b out of Josh and Leury. Something closer to what they got from Carlos Hernandez last year will probably be more like it. If they would just do something exciting FOR ONCE and sign somebody like Schwarber, it would make their team legit. This signing barely has any impact at all on their chances of winning a playoff series. Just a boring, stupid ownership. They waste 16M on Kimbrel, who they probably won’t be able to trade, instead of getting a legit 2b.
When is Reinsdorf gotta ever shop for players at somewhere besides Dollar Tree. Get some free agents in their prime.
And there you have it, straight from Rick Hahn. “The money will be saved”.
So prior to the lockout the Sox sign Leury Garcia. Then immediately after, they sign someone who projects to be… about as good as Leury Garcia. This is what teams that are serious about saving money and jerking fans around do, not ones who are serious about intending to compete for a World Series. So their big “splash” a couple days after the lockout is a couple guys approaching 35, for a little more than what they spent last winter on Eaton.
I was hoping for a second baseman who could hit for average, steal bases and play excellent defense.
So this and the Joe Kelly BS is what they can’t sign a real 2B or pay Kris Bryant to pay corner outfield. Wonderful.
Return to your Nintendo DS.
I’m surprised how upset people seem to be by this. Maybe Harrison isn’t a full answer at any one position, but if you want to contend you need 13 playable position players plus depth and Harrison can play on any given day and not hurt your team. Plus he’s by most accounts a really good guy if your team values clubhouse culture. At that price, I don’t understand why anyone would complain. I would have been more than happy with Josh Harrison joining my hopeful contender team.
The Sox already have an (overpaid) utility guy in Leury Garcia, and by all accounts their clubhouse is already in good shape. Meanwhile, they continue to devote an inordinate amount of resources to the bullpen with glaring holes at 2B, RF, and the rotation. It’s not that there’s anything wrong with Harrison, it’s that we were expecting some difference-making moves and we’re not getting them.
But you haven’t been cut off from them either and the off-season only just restarted.
Trying not to dump on the Sox, but its hard when the holes -RF and 2nd- are still there somewhat. I like Vaughn and Sheets but I do not like a platoon in RF. I want to see a top caliber starter there, and there are a few right now in the market. I guess its too much to expect a splash signing like that for the Sox now though. Despite my obvious cynicism with this management team, Ill try to reserve judgement until end or Spring training, but the Sox also have a serious ‘will’ and ‘heart’ problem in that locker room (their play against over .500 ball clubs was atrocious last season) which also needs to be addressed.. someone should wake up LaRussa from his nap and make that his #1 priority… and I really could do without everyone in the Sox media brigade trying to urinate on my leg and tell me its raining like they tried to do when talking about said poor record vs over 500 clubs last season. The Fans do not want excuses, they want wins against good clubs too. If you are a world beater club then act like it and be competitive against all clubs, not just the bottom feeders cause you aren’t going to see them in the playoffs.