The White Sox re-signed Mark Payton to a minor league deal earlier this month, but it appears he’ll instead play the 2023 season in Japan, having signed with the Seibu Lions, per an official announcement from the team.
Payton made just eight appearances for the White Sox in 2022, tallying 25 plate appearances and picking up three hits. In a far bigger sample size at Triple-A, Payton hit 25 home runs and put up a .293/.369/.539 line in 539 plate appearances.
The 31-year-old was drafted in the seventh round of the 2014 draft by the Yankees, but never made it to the big leagues with New York. Instead, his first opportunity in the majors would come with Cincinnati in 2020. Over two seasons with the Reds, Payton would hit .175/.250/.200 over 44 plate appearances.
While Payton’s never really had an extended opportunity in the big leagues, he has posted strong numbers in Triple-A, putting up a combined .296/.370/.515 over 1,853 plate appearances in six seasons in the top level of the minors.
Good move on his part. The opportunities weren’t coming in MLB. I always thought he could hit, but maybe he’s just a AAAA hitter, although a strong year in Japan might lead to a reevaluation by some teams, or at worst, some nice financial rewards in Japan.
He had a Brady Anderson type season in 2019 other than that he wasn’t very successful.
Wow!
Nope, he had 2 Brady Anderson seasons, 2019 & 2022. Take the chance…
Keep your eyes open MLBTR, the trolls are following Santa across the net!
Question I wonder if these guys still have to be tested for PEDs while they are overseas in these leagues?
There’s many guys like Payton who kill AAA pitching, but still can’t find a spot on the major league roster. That’s why tons of players have been successful going to Japan and Korea for playing time and then coming back to the US.
MLB should really expand but then they wouldn’t have as much leverage in getting taxpayer money from Oakland and Tampa.
I believe one of the issues with expansion is the larger (and even mid-market) teams having to supplement financially the smaller markets through revenue sharing, as well as splitting equally the national TV contracts, which are built on the backs of the larger markets. Expansion will split the revenue pie even further, which even the smaller market teams might object to. MLB will eventually expand, but there’s more resistance to expansion than many may realize. There will be a one-time windfall for every team with the large expansion fees the new teams will pay, but splitting the revenues more forward is an obstacle. MLB has created a system where some markets don’t even have to worry that much about attendance. The result? They don’t worry about attendance! They’re not expanding the game.
He had a monster season at AAA in 2019. I wonder how he suddenly stopped performing with just a 1 level jump to MLB. If a guy can transition from AA to AAA fine, this shouldn’t be an issue.
Dead ball
It’s starting to look like Leury Garcia, Billy Hamilton, Victor Reyes, Adam Haseley or bust for the White Sox 4th OF spot. Even non-tendered FA Adam Engel looks like a better fit now.
WTF was AJ Pollock thinking? Whatever it was, at least it ‘allowed’ Rick Hahn to sign Andrew Benintendi. ChiSox fans are still thanking the baseball gods for small favors.
Engel could not stay off the DL. Was ok as a bench player otherwise. Probably a platoon in right of Tyler Naquin and Oscar Colas.
FA Tyler Naquin would be an odd platoon partner with Oscar Colas since both are left-handed hitters. Adam Engel would be a better option as an ‘occasional’ lefty masher. Engel also possesses the superior glove, even golden at times, so long as he’s chasing balls in fair territory. lol
Pollock may be ready to hang ‘em up or at least if he’s going to play—he wants it to be on his own terms.
He never signed up for the dumpster fire in Chicago. Just got sent into it.
That fire was kindled by Tony La Russa who was known to be not returning when Pollock decided to forego his $13MM player option in favor of the $5MM buyout he gets instead. It’s questionable that he will make up the difference in free agency this offseason.
If Pollock is prioritizing a winning situation the White Sox would still have been a good choice with a talented and relatively young core still in place. The ChiSox still reside in MLB’s weakest division and they no longer have the TLR baggage and all of his hand picked coaches around. The 3 remaining holdovers on the coaching staff were already in place before La Russa took hold of the White Sox managerial reigns, courtesy of his pal Jerry Reinsdorf.
He got what he needed from MLB, great medical benefits for life. I remember him well from the Yankees farm system. I hope he likes Japan.
It seems Payton found his Place.
Why is this even news
Because MLBTR has already reported transactions. What site do you believe you’re on?
Most people don’t even know who this guy is. I think they should just stick to superstar player articles like Correa and Verlander etc. Everything else is just filler
@Yanks2, I think you should stick to a fly strip. Many transactions, seemingly unimportant to you can be major to folks who really follow MLB. The only filler up here is you getting a gas tank of yourself….
You know it’s a really slow day on MLBTR when a rumor involving a MLB player signing with a Japanese league team remains the lead item for a couple of hours.
@budman3, a slow day @ MLBTR, but it’s what they do, including Xmas day. That’s dedication, that’s what these guys do. I’ve been hooked up with these folks for years, they tolerated my bad days & even bounced me off the site for a period of time, but I love the site & keep coming back. Peace on earth…
The better question is why you (those complaining) click the link, much less post to it. I mean no harm and find it entertaining. It is just perplexing.
I am thankful for all of the content. Even “lesser” players are great players that have fans.
Good luck Mark Payton.
Agreed, FoxSox. I remember Payton coming up in the minors, curious to see if he’d get a shot, then lost track of him, so in my case I was interested to see he was heading to Japan. MLBTR shouldn’t be editing based on name value. Their value is in reporting everything.
This guy seems like an Adam Eaton type of player. It’s too bad that nobody ever gave him a shot.
agree…give him 300/400 abs and see what Oakland Pitt Cincy Miami..could be a flip at trade dead line like Brandon Drury.
Good kid. At least he got a cup of coffee playing before friends and family, from neighboring Orland Park