The White Sox have agreed to a minor league contract with outfielder Víctor Reyes, tweets Evan Petzold of the Detroit Free-Press. Scott Merkin of MLB.com first reported the sides were discussing a potential non-roster deal with an invite to big league Spring Training earlier this week (Twitter link).
Reyes sticks in the AL Central, where he’s spent the past five years with the Tigers. Previously a member of the Arizona organization, he landed in Detroit as the first pick in the 2017 Rule 5 draft. Reyes managed just a .222/.239/.288 line in 100 games as a rookie, but the rebuilding Detroit club held him on the roster all season to gain his long-term contractual rights. He’d spend four more seasons with the Tigers, typically appearing in around half their MLB games each year.
The 28-year-old has tallied just under 1300 plate appearances at the MLB level. He’s a .264/.294/.379 career hitter, offense that checks in 17 points below league average by measure of wRC+. Reyes has decent bat-to-ball skills and hits for a solid batting average, but he rarely walks or makes much of an impact from a power perspective. It was a similar story in 2022, as the Venezuela native posted a .254/.289/.362 mark through a personal-high 336 trips to the plate.
A solid runner with a strong throwing arm, Reyes has ample experience at all three outfield spots. He has played over 1000 MLB innings in right field, more than 900 frames in center and just under 700 innings in left. Public defensive metrics typically peg him as an average to slightly below-average defender at each spot, but he’s athletic enough to handle any of those positions off the bench.
Reyes’ stint in Detroit came to a close at the end of the season, when he cleared waivers and became a minor league free agent. He’d been projected for a $2.2MM salary if tendered an arbitration contract, making it a fairly easy call for first-year president of baseball operations Scott Harris to move on.
The White Sox have room for improvement at both corner outfield spots. Luis Robert has center field secured, and Eloy Jiménez would be penciled back in left field if he’s not used primarily at designated hitter. Right field is completely up in the air, with rookie Oscar Colás or first baseman/corner outfielder Gavin Sheets looking the favorites for reps. The Sox non-tendered Adam Engel and saw AJ Pollock opt out of the final year of his contract, leaving them with just Robert, Sheets and Jiménez as outfielders on the 40-man roster. They’re sure to add some help later in the offseason, but there’s presently plenty of opportunity for a non-roster invitee like Reyes to earn a bench job in Spring Training.
Good signing
Yeah could be a decent AJ replacement at a fraction
Dumpster Diving Rick!
No. Victor Reyes is pretty good. He wasn’t given much of a chance in the poorly run pseudo MLB franchise located in Detroit. He can play all positions but I think he’ll be the starting RF.
Wow!!!I can’t believe Hahn got someone like Reyes!! Really. I can’t believe it. First Clevinger, now Reyes. Cub fans, the city is all yours.
He was given 5 years of opportunity in Detroit… On a rebuilding team no less.
I don’t why they didn’t bring back Engel.
They probably will bring back Engel.
Couldn’t sign him to a minor league deal
If Victor Reyes is their starting RF the Sox are in trouble. Nothing more than an AAAA player who doesn’t walk and has no power.
So end of career Adam Raton or Nomar Mazara then…basically this is the Sox solution every year with RF.
Don’t say that! Intelligent comments are very threatening to some people here.
A career negative war player with 16 career home runs is going to start for a very talented team? Got it.
I would say dumpster dive but this guys probably going to be starting for them. White Sox haha
Getting Reyes on a minor-league deal is huge for the White Sox; he can be a good 4th OF easily. I know that the options via free agency are limited, but adding a better player for the OF will take a lot of pressure off him and the upcoming prospects. Last year already I had the impression that the White Sox tried to avoid spending another $ 10 to 15m which could have filled quite some holes of their extremely talented roster.
Gruß,
BSHH
Easily? He was cut from a bad team. The Sox are far more talented, and he will be lucky to make the club. This is an organizational depth move.
What is the deal with Grub and bshh? You act like your responses are a work of art.
It doesn’t matter that he was cut from a bad team, he just didn’t fit their roster composition.
The article’s author, Anthony Franco, needs to fact check his statement that Reyes was “Initially a member of the Arizona organization……..” Sorry, but no, he was not. He was first signed as an international free agent in 2011 by the Atlanta Braves. In 2015, the Braves traded him to Arizona for the 75th pick in the 2015 draft (comp round B pick.) The Braves selected AJ Minter w/that pick.
You need to reread the article. He wrote “Previously,” but maybe it was edited.
This is a great pickup. Victor needs a change of scenery. A good hitting coach will make him more consistent. This is a guy that I do believe could put together a few good seasons where he hits 30 or more homers and bats in the ball park of .300. Coolbaugh screwed his development up.
30 homeruns?!? He has 16 total in his 5 year career!
Victor batted from a crouch until last year, which helped his bat to ball skills but limited his power. His new stance is upright. 30 is pushing it, but he looks capable of 15-20 with full time opportunity.
Again, I think the track record speaks for itself. He didn’t crouch last year and he was still a slap hitter. He’s a 4th outfielder.
Victor didn’t change anything. His numbers have been relatively the same each year. Making things up to look smart actually has the opposite effect when you have an intelligent audience. He had a career high in rbis last year and his average was near his career average.
I will never understand people who choose feelings over facts. Reyes, at best, is an average reserved outfielder as evidenced by his career war. He’s not 20, he is what the back of his baseball card says.
Holy god! You think a player with 16 career home runs is going to suddenly hit 30 in a season at age 28?
Google dunnning Kruger effect.
Jose Bautista?
Hah! What? So Victor Reyes is the new Jose Bautista? What similarities do Bautista and Reyes share? Bautista walked, and also hit 16 homeruns his first full season. Something it took Reyes 5 years to do. Plus, I’m pretty sure Bautista juiced.
Whoa gear down big rig. Bautista totally changed his game when he hit Toronto. Maybe Reyes can tap into something with a new organization.
I mean maybe? But are you in the camp that he could hit .300 with 30 homeruns?
30 HR will not happen. 10 in a single season would be his peak I think. He needs to work on his eye and pick his pitches. Maybe a change of scenery could get him there. If he can work the count and get some confidence I think this could be a good signing.
Was this the guy with the older Brother Victor Victor
Was that the Marlins?
Whatever happened to those 2
No, Víctor Victor’s last name is Mesa and this is Reyes plus they’re from different countries.
Pardon my ignorance. I wasn’t trolling. Reading his name just regurgitated that Victor Victor memory
Reyes will be lucky to make the White Sox’ 26 man roster out of spring training. Most likely, he’ll spend most of next year in AAA.
Not necessarily. If Colas starts the year at AAA (which is incredibly likely) and Sheets starts in RF to open then Reyes could easily make the team as a 4th Outfielder (barring another addition).
If Sheets is the starter in RF then the Sox have completely failed. Again.
you overestimate the white sox roster and its ability to stay healthy, I bet 5 dollars he’s in there opening day lineup
I know nothing about Victor Reyes, I know a little about the Whitesox because the Big Hurt was one of my favorite players and my first baseball hat was actually a Whitesox hat (little trivia for yall in case I become famous or infamous lol)
But even though it’s fiscally irresponsible and I’m likely to lose the bet not only because of my ignorance but also because of luck lol.
I take that bet, in fact I double it!!
10$$…….
Are we committing a crime?? And if not, how do we pay? Bitcoin? PayPal? Do you own cattle?
LOL
What was the point of your post?
alr lets go, ill be back come april.
Tigers fan here. Victor has a career ops+ of 85 and obp of .294
He just doesn’t walk and is light-hitting. I like him and hope he can improve and be a 4th outfielder. But he’s more like a AAAA player.
Don’t use facts as you will upset some very obtuse people.
What a huge pickup by dumpster diving Hahn.
Start printing those 2023 playoff tickets……………NOT!
Nice
Are the wsox supposed to be a PO contender or not? If so, as they pretend to be, picking up Reyes and Clevinger aren’t going to cut it. They need a catcher. Vazquez is available. They need a second baseman. Trade for one. Corner outfielders. Minor leaguers who couldn’t even get off the bench for the last place team in the division. Reinsdorf. If you really want a contending team, open your wallet and start spending on quality MAJOR leaguers. Stop tying Hahn’s hands and let him do his job. Stop running the team on the cheap, hoping the team gets lucky like in 2020 and 2021 because the rest of the ALC wasn’t that good.
They’ve hit their spending limit. Hahn’s early extensions are not working out this time. Those players would be getting less in arbitration if they hadn’t signed.
Reinsdorf isnt going to throw good money after bad. I’d cut off the spigot too. This is a .500 team
If they aren’t going to upgrade the OF and 2B they should trade Moncada, TA,Grandal,Giolito and start over. Why keep TA when he only plays 83 games.Teams are calling about him so get players that want to play. He’s disruptive not a leader. Get Mendick back. He had zero errors, geez!
Agree
Exactly. Get rid of all that bunch of golden chain bumps when they still have some value.
The White Sox will most certainly add at least one outfielder this offseason, perhaps two. It could come in the form of a relatively inexpensive free agent and/or via a trade. Whoever they add will almost certainly bat left-handed.
The top four remaining corner OF’s in free agency are all left-handed hitters and none have QO’s attached to them. They include in my order of preference, Andrew Benintendi, Michael Conforto, Michael Brantley and Joey Gallo. None figure to sign for an AAV exceeding $20MM with only Benintendi likely to garner a contract exceeding two years in length. Kevin Kiermaier is an additional lefty hitting FA who could provide Gold Glove caliber defense across the OF including in CF. He’d provide an excellent insurance policy for oft-injured Luis Robert and a logical replacement for non-tendered OF Adam Engel.
The trade market could also offer many alternatives for the White Sox. Possibilities include switch-hitters Brian Reynolds of the Pirates and Ian Happ of the Cubs. The Diamondbacks have a few lefty hitting OF’s who might appeal to Rick Hahn including Daulton Varsho.
The 2B market is more limited, especially via free agency. The top option is Jean Segura who also figures to secure a contract limited in years and well below a $20M AAV. The White Sox might also be interested in taking a flier on lefty hitter Adam Frazier to fill their hole at 2B. Another possibility would be SS Elvis Andrus who provided one of the few highlights for the 2022 White Sox late last summer when they signed him as a FA to replace injured Tim Anderson down the stretch. Andrus stated he would amenable to a position change. He would also provide an additional insurance policy for oft-injured TA at SS. My guess is that Andrus will most likely secure a starting SS gig once Carlos Correa and Dansby Swanson sign their FA deals.
The White Sox could also explore the trade market for their 2023 second baseman. Unlike their outfield situation, the team does possess more internal options to man 2B. They include 4 players on their current 40-man roster, Romy Gonzalez, Lenyn Sosa, Jose Rodriguez and Leury Garcia (yikes!). The White Sox also have Cuban prospect Yolbert Sanchez who finished the 2022 season at AAA. He figures to get an invite to spring training as a non roster player with a chance to compete for the 2B job along with vying for a utility role after playing 2B, SS and 3B in the minors last year.
And Aaron : Exactly what could your White Sox trade, that could possibly get them Reynolds or even Happ?
Brian Reynolds would clearly cost more than Ian Happ, something comparable to what A’s catcher Sean Murphy would command in a trade. Reynolds and Murphy both man premium defensive positions, will play the 2023 season as 28-year olds and they each possess 3 more years of arbitration control before potentially hitting free agency in 2026.
The A’s are said to be prioritizing pre-arb MLB talent and near ready prospects for Murphy which would help the White Sox in their pursuit of him considering their farm is currently weaker than most other contenders. I’m not sure what Pittsburgh would prioritize or even their motivation in making a deal since Reynolds wasn’t being shopped around like Murphy was. It was Reynolds who was ‘demanding’ a trade after failing to negotiate a contract extension with the Pirates.
I’d previously suggested a package for Murphy revolving around pre-arb players like LHP Garrett Crochet, 2B/SS Lenyn Sosa, 3B/1B Jake Burger and 1B/OF Gavin Sheets along with a couple of near MLB ready prospects such as SS/2B Jose Rodriguez and 3B/2B Bryan Ramos who were recently added to the White Sox 40-man roster. The White Sox would be less likely to move 1B Andrew Vaughn and OF Oscar Colas since each are expected to be major contributors to their 2023 lineup.
As for Ian Happ, I could certainly see the Cubs having a keen interest in Crochet with Brandon Hughes the only current southpaw reliever on their projected opening day roster. Crochet also profiles as SP down the road, likely as soon as 2024. I’m not sure how motivated the Cubs are to trade Happ as we post. He has one more season of team control and the front office is hardly done with their offseason additions. We both know the Cubs top 3 prospects are all OF’s which might give Happ less leverage in negotiating a contract extension this offseason. I’m guessing Happ would be a more likely trade candidate this summer than right now. What do you think about Happ’s trade value and the likelihood of him being dealt in the coming year?
Sunshine, Unicorns and Rainbows.
Aaron, Crochet and a minor leaguer would be fair for Happ, but I think Jed is being pressured to win now with the mandate to spend. So I don’t see Happ being traded unless they’re out of it near the deadline.
The Baseball Trade Values simulator agrees with you. It currently gives Happ a 14.9 value and Crochet a 13,5 value. A lottery pick prospect from the White Sox would even out the deal.
baseballtradevalues.com/trade-simulator/
Anderson for Happ.
Aaron, first of all, the Cubs won’t be trading Happ because they are looking FOR LHbats, not getting rid of them.
Second, until Crochet shows he is healthy AND can throw strikes – nobody is going to take him to headline a trade. Especially the Pirates for Reynolds. Burger and Sheets aren’t players an organization would take for an established, good starting, middle of the lineup hitter. The rest of the bums you mention, have AA to AAA careers written all over them.
Franco I have news for you: Moncada and Grandal have Negative value – they cannot get rid of them.
Dogbone,Yes they can, DFA them and the front office that got them
White sox have very limited depth on their roster as most would be considered 1B/DH types (Vaughn, Sheets, Grandal, Jimenez, Burger)
Someone should goggle “how to construct a MLB roster” and send it to Hahn. This team is once again going to run out AAA guys nightly because of injuries and no depth.
Are we sure it was Hahn, cause Kenny Williams is on his “I’m running this train” horse$hit again this year.
Looking like it’s going to be another long season on the South Side in 2023. Their window of opportunity is closing fast and the “big” moves are what again? They can use help just about at any position and the big news has been Clevinger (hoping he stays healthy), their rule 5 pick up and this? Excuse me if I’m not excited so far.
could of signed Louis Brinson and gave him a look in LF, Haseley and/or Rutherford both had good seasons in AAA
Without or without injuries, this guy could be a starting outfielder on Opening Day because he is exactly what the Sox want from a ballplayer: will work for scraps. More players on the payroll like Reyes allows Hahn to piss his boss’ money away never-beens and has-beens,
Take a breath and step back from the ledge. This is a minor league signing and all your looking for is someone not named Adam “waste of a uniform” Engel to compete for the last bench OF spot. I for one would prefer baby Cespedes to somehow make this team.
this guy might be legit, has MLB experience and is a good contact hitter, but I like our guys, Rutherford been with the Sox for a while and is ready for a look, Haseley is too, but I guess it will be hashed out this spring.
A “good contact hitter” hits more than .260. An outfielder with that BA and no walks or power is simply not MLB material. If someone “fixes” him, maybe, but not as he is now. But he doesn’t cost anything so why not?
This miller guy must be a parody Sox fan. Tries to be earnest liking AAAA guys like Brinson and Haseley plus busts like Rutherford. Would trade TA for three replacement level players. Thinks Mercedes is a better hitter than Willson Contreras.
Can’t take a walk. Switch hitter so he will be platooned if he makes the team.
The O’s were supposedly interested in him too. Decent hitter with upside. I guess he was too rich for us too. Disappointing off-season in Birdland.
Looks like White Sox material. Below average defense and can’t hit. Giddy up.
Detroit’s pretty woeful, Reyes goes from starter, to bench piece. We have high hopes we’ll actually get a good hitter in the draft this season, hopefully. With a few teams letting their shortstops an pitcher’s walk away, perhaps they can move Baez an Erod ? Then with Miguel an Schoop off the books at the end of the year, start with a clean slate. They can be a feeder team for the majors with it’s bullpen, while it’s draft picks mature, the Oakland model.
Sales of the old world pepperoni and calzone should provide the basis for more investment in the Tigers, as that pizza is pretty darn good. Well it’s hard to keep up with teams signing guys for decade or more, but thankfully we’re in the Central where Cleveland looks to be a lock for a few more years.
Little Caesars good? Well, maybe when you’re hungry and it is better than Dominos.
Reyes was never a starter.
If Rodriguez and Baez walk away, that means they had good seasons. Teams can only lose from player options.
Little caesars is bad pizza.
News flash: the Tigers don’t have a stud shortstop waiting in the wings.
Mercedes is a better hitter than Contreras
The prosecution rests, your honor.
prosecution? we dont need no court room, MiLB posts their minor league numbers, its a fair comp
Sox are perhaps the most pathetic organization in professional sports. I hope they win 72 games and draw less than the Rays.
LOL. Whatever – typical White Sox-type moves, which mean nothing. In the meantime, real teams are spending real money. What a joke!