White Sox Notes: Crochet, Hendriks, Clevinger
The White Sox have used flamethrowing lefty Garrett Crochet exclusively as a reliever to this point in his big league career, but the former No. 11 overall pick tells Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times that he still has his sights set on an eventual rotation spot. Asked about the possibility of returning to a starting role down the road, Crochet acknowledged that it’s something that’s “definitely in the back of my mind” and that he “hopes” to eventually have that opportunity.
Any such transition isn’t likely to happen in 2023 after the lefty pitched just 54 1/3 innings in 2021 before missing the 2022 season while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. The 6’6″ Crochet suggested that he’d be open to pitching in longer relief stints this season and building up his innings. Current ChiSox starters Lucas Giolito, Lance Lynn and Mike Clevinger could all hit the open market this offseason. Giolito is a free agent at season’s end, while Clevinger has a mutual option (which are rarely exercised by both parties) and Lynn has an $18MM club option that feels pricey relative to his current struggles.
With a thin collection of pitching in the team’s system and virtually no high-end pitching prospects knocking on the door to the big leagues, moving Crochet into the rotation next season alongside Dylan Cease and Michael Kopech makes sense for the Sox. The looming trade deadline could bring about a shakeup on the pitching staff, with Giolito the likeliest to go in the event of a deadline sale. The asking price on both Cease and Kopech would surely be high, with both under club control through the 2025 season.
For now, Crochet is likely to remain in the ‘pen, where he was recently joined by returning closer Liam Hendriks. The 34-year-old Hendriks’ return from a battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma was one of the best moments of the season for baseball fans, though it was quickly followed by an IL stint due to inflammation in his pitching elbow.
Luckily, imaging on Hendriks’ elbow did not reveal any structural damage, per Alden Gonzalez of ESPN. Hendriks has already received a cortisone shot to help combat the inflammation, and he’ll likely receive a platelet-rich plasma injection as well. Hendriks concedes that he felt “constant pain” throughout each of his past three appearances, wondering aloud whether his still-recent chemotherapy treatments have made it more difficult to recover between appearances.
Hendriks is hoping for a minimal stay on the 15-day IL but is on a wait-and-see timeline and stressed the importance of taking care of any health issues “the right way” during the current season. “I need to be cognizant of the way my body reacts and feels with everything, just due to the fact I still don’t have the strongest immune system,” Hendriks noted.
As for Clevinger, the Sox will perform additional testing on the righty today after he left last night’s start due to discomfort in his right biceps. Via Van Schouwen, Clevinger explained in the postgame that he “Felt my [biceps] grab, it grabbed pretty hard, kind of scared me”, though early testing in the trainer’s room was at least positive. The Sox will have a further update on him once today’s followup imaging is complete.
White Sox Outright Billy Hamilton
The White Sox have outrighted outfielder Billy Hamilton off the 40-man roster, according to the transactions log at MLB.com. Chicago hadn’t previously announced he was designated for assignment; the move drops the club’s 40-man count to 38.
Hamilton made three appearances, all as a pinch-runner, after the Sox selected his contract in early May. He strained his left hamstring a few days after being called up and landed on the 10-day injured list. Hamilton started a rehab stint with Triple-A Charlotte last week. He has well over five years of major league service, so the Sox would’ve had to carry him on the MLB roster or put him on waivers once he was ready to return.
They’ve chosen the latter course of action. The outright suggests Hamilton already went unclaimed. Players with three-plus years of service have the ability to decline an outright assignment in favor of minor league free agency. The team hasn’t announced whether he’ll do so. If he were to stay in the organization, he’d return to Charlotte, where he has a .158/.294/.228 line in 69 trips to the plate.
Hamilton has settled into a journeyman role late in his career. The speedster was an everyday player for the Reds for a half-decade but has appeared for seven different clubs (including two separate stints with the White Sox) going back to the start of the 2019 campaign. While he has a .205/.262/.288 slash in 549 MLB plate appearances over the last five years, he’s stolen 49 bases on 58 attempts during that stretch.
AL Notes: Astros, Fleming, Hendriks, Rucinski
In a radio appearance today, Astros GM Dana Brown provided updates on the club’s pair of injured, lefty-swinging outfielders, as relayed by Chandler Rome of The Athletic and Mark Berman of Fox 26. Brown notes that there’s currently no timetable for the return of slugger Yordan Alvarez to Houston’s lineup, and that one isn’t expected to crystalize in the coming days, with the GM suggesting that it will take “at least a week” for the club to have confidence in a timetable for Alvarez. Any missed time for Alvarez is a severe blow to the Astros, as the slugger has posted another phenomenal season so far in 2023, slashing .277/.388/.589 in 57 games before hitting the injured list with what has been described as “right oblique discomfort.”
In more optimistic news, Brown notes that veteran outfielder Michael Brantley is making good progress in his rehab from shoulder inflammation after he was shut down last month. Brantley has yet to appear in a game this season after undergoing shoulder surgery last summer, but Brown notes that the veteran is playing catch and taking pain-free swings in the batting cage. While the update is certainly a positive one, it sounds as though Brantley is still a ways away from returning to the Astros, who would surely benefit from the boost the 36-year old could provide to their lineup.
More from around the AL…
- The Rays placed left-hander Josh Fleming on the 60-day injured list yesterday, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times notes that Fleming is scheduled to meet with specialist Dr. Keith Meister later this week. When asked about the appointment, Fleming acknowledged to reporters that a ligament issue is possible, leaving a worst case scenario of Tommy John surgery on the table. That’s certainly a worrisome possibility for Tampa, as the club has seen their starting depth tested with as each of Jeffrey Springs, Drew Rasmussen, and Tyler Glasnow have spent significant portions of the season on the injured list.
- White Sox reliever Liam Hendriks was placed on the 15-day IL with elbow inflammation earlier today, temporarily halting the closer’s inspiring return to the big leagues following his recovery from non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma. As relayed by James Fegan of The Athletic, GM Rick Hahn said that Hendriks’s current ailment has similarities to a flexor strain he dealt with last season that left him on the shelf for just under a month. The club is hopeful that this current injury will have a similar timeline, though Hendriks will undergo an MRI to confirm that timetable. After a difficult first outing back from the injured list, Hendriks has posted a 2.25 ERA with a save and three strikeouts in his last four appearances.
- The Athletics provided an update on right-hander Drew Rucinski, who has been on the injured list with a stomach illness since late last month. As noted by MLB.com’s Martin Gallegos, Rucinski’s stomach ailment has improved, but the right-hander is dealing with a low-grade MCL sprain in his right knee that occurred during a bullpen session. The injury will leave him shut down from throwing for 2 to 3 weeks. Rucinski signed with the A’s on a one-year deal with a club option for 2024 this past offseason, but has managed just four starts for the club, pitching to a 9.00 ERA in 18 innings of work with a whopping 14 walks allowed compared to jut six strikeouts.
AL Central Notes: Twins, Jimenez, Pasquantino
The Twins are sending a pair of their players for further examination this weekend, as noted by Betsy Helfand of the Twin Cities Pioneer Press. According to Helfand, second baseman Jorge Polanco went for an MRI yesterday in Toronto after leaving Thursday’s game with hamstring tightness while left-hander Caleb Thielbar is set to return to Minnesota for an MRI of his own this weekend after the club placed him on the injured list with an oblique strain earlier this week.
Both players have been key pieces for the Twins when healthy but have struggled to stay on the field this season. Polanco has been limited to just 30 games, but has slashed .250/.291/.450 with a 105 wRC+ during that time. Thielbar, on the other hand, posted a 1.80 ERA in 10 innings prior to going on the injured list at the beginning of May. The veteran lefty was activated earlier this week but recorded just one out on a major league mound before returning to the injured list with his current oblique issue.
With Thielbar on the shelf, the Twins are relying on Jovani Moran as the sole left-handed reliever in their bullpen, though the 26-year-old has posted a solid 3.86 ERA and 3.67 FIP in 25 2/3 innings of work this season. Meanwhile, Kyle Farmer filled in for Polanco at the keystone yesterday, though if the switch-hitting second baseman requires a stint on the injured list, it seems likely the Twins would turn to Edouard Julien, who has posted a .226/.310/.452 slash line in 72 major league plate appearances while shuttling between the majors and Triple-A this season.
More from around the AL Central…
- White Sox manager Pedro Grifol told reporters, including Rob Schaefer of the Chicago Sun Times, that slugger Eloy Jimenez would be out for the next few days after he sustained a lower left leg injury during Thursday’s doubleheader against the Yankees. While Grifol notes that the injury is more significant than its initial day-to-day designation indicated, the club is still optimistic that Jimenez will be able to avoid a stint on the injured list, which would be his third this season. Jimenez, who has slashed .257/.315/.434 in 35 games with the White Sox this season, figures to be filled in for at DH by Jake Burger.
- Jaylon Thompson of the Kansas City Star notes that Royals first baseman Vinnie Pasquantino, who left yesterday’s game against the Orioles with right shoulder discomfort, is still being evaluated by the team’s medical staff. Any time missed by Pasquantino would be a significant blow to the Royals, as the 25-year-old slugger has been one of the club’s few consistent offensive performers, though his .247/.324/.437 slash line (107 wRC+) hasn’t quite lived up to his phenomenal rookie season, when he posted a wRC+ of 137. Nick Pratto figures to take over at first base if Pasquantino were to miss significant time.
White Sox Release Daniel Ponce de Leon
The White Sox have released right-hander Daniel Ponce de Leon, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com.
Ponce de Leon, 31, had signed a minor league deal with the Sox in April and has been pitching for the Triple-A Charlotte Knights. He had been working largely out of the rotation for them, starting seven of his eight appearances this year. Unfortunately, the results weren’t good, as he posted an ERA of 9.99 in 24 1/3 innings. He struck out just 14.5% of batters faced while walking a huge 18.3%.
The righty has some major league experience, which came with the Cardinals from 2018 to 2021. He tossed 147 2/3 innings over those campaigns, registering a 4.33 ERA with a solid 23.9% strikeout rate but a 12.7% walk rate. Since that time, he’s bounced around to various farm systems but hasn’t been able to get into a good groove. He spent all of 2022 in Triple-A, pitching at that level for the Mariners, Nationals and Tigers. But he had a combined 6.52 ERA in 116 innings for those clubs on the year.
Ponce de Leon will now be free to explore and discover his next landing spot. Though he hasn’t been at his best for a few years, he at least has some decent major league outings on his résumé. With various clubs around the league dealing with significant pitching injuries, perhaps he will find a port of call with another organization in the near future.
Upcoming Club Option Decisions: AL Central
Last week, MLBTR took an early look at offseason option decisions facing teams in the National League. We’re continuing our division by division series moving through the Junior Circuit. Next up, the AL Central, where only three of five teams have players with contracts that contain 2024 options.
Previous posts: NL East, NL Central, NL West, AL East
Chicago White Sox
- Lance Lynn: $18MM club option ($1MM buyout)
Lynn signed a $38MM extension midway through the 2021 season. He was en route to a third-place Cy Young finish at the time but has seen his results go backwards over the past two years. He still managed a solid 3.99 ERA through 121 2/3 innings last season, but this year has been far tougher. The 36-year-old has been tagged for a personal-worst 6.55 ERA in his first 12 starts.
The righty is striking out a quarter of opponents against a manageable 8.6% walk rate. His results on batted balls have been disastrous, though. He’s surrendering a .335 batting average on balls in play and has already given up 15 home runs, tied for third-most in the majors. There’s probably some amount of misfortune there, but Lynn’s a fly-ball pitcher who is giving up a lot of hard contact while pitching in a homer-friendly home park. It’s been a rough couple months and nowhere near the level the Sox would need to consider an option with a net $17MM decision.
- Liam Hendriks: $15MM club option ($15MM buyout)
Hendriks’ free agent deal contained a unique fourth year in which the option price and the buyout were valued the same. That was mostly an accounting measure designed to front-load the Sox’s luxury tax hit to afford more CBT breathing room in 2024. The only material difference at this point is that buying Hendriks out would allow the Sox to pay him in installments over a 10-year period as opposed to a $15MM salary to be disbursed in during the ’24 season.
There’s practically no question the White Sox are going to exercise this. Hendriks came back from a non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma diagnosis to return to pitching at the major league level within a matter of months. He’s one of the best relievers in the game when at his peak.
- Tim Anderson: $14MM club option ($1MM buyout)
Anderson’s option call is almost as obvious as the Hendriks decision. The 29-year-old is typically one of the game’s best-hitting shortstops, an annual threat to bat over .300 with plus baserunning and typically solid defense. This hasn’t been a standard Anderson season. He’s off to a modest .273/.313/.320 start and is without a home run in 42 games. He missed a few weeks with a left knee sprain, and defensive metrics have soured on his glovework.
Rough couple months aside, a $13MM price point is still strong value for a player of Anderson’s caliber. He hit .318/.347/.473 between 2019-22 and earned a pair of All-Star nods. Next year’s free agent shortstop class is also incredibly thin, meaning there aren’t likely to be many alternatives available. Even if 2019-22 proves to be Anderson’s peak, a one-year, net $13MM decision is still an easy call for the team.
- Mike Clevinger: $12MM mutual option ($4MM buyout)
The White Sox signed Clevinger to a $12MM free agent deal over the winter. They were hoping to buy low on a return to form for the righty as he further distanced himself from 2020 Tommy John surgery. It hasn’t really materialized, as Clevinger’s performance in Chicago isn’t far off last year’s work in San Diego.
Through 10 starts, the 32-year-old has a 4.13 ERA in 52 1/3 innings. He’s posted slightly below-average strikeout and grounder rates while walking 10% of opposing hitters. This year’s 9.1% swinging-strike rate is a career low. He’s posting competent fifth starter results, but it’s looking increasingly unlikely he’ll recapture the upper mid-rotation upside of his Cleveland days.
It’s an $8MM decision on the option after accounting for the buyout. That’s a reasonable price point for a back-of-the-rotation arm. The likes of Zach Davies, Johnny Cueto and Kyle Gibson all landed between $5MM and $10MM last offseason, while Jordan Lyles secured a two-year, $17MM pact. Clevinger looks likely to land in that area. Mutual options are almost never exercised by both sides, so odds are Clevinger is headed back to free agency. His next contract just might land around there regardless.
- Joe Kelly: $9.5MM club option ($1MM buyout)
Kelly has had a confounding two seasons in Chicago. Signed to a two-year, $17MM deal coming out of the lockout, he’s posted rough run prevention marks despite excellent peripherals. Kelly carries a 5.43 ERA through 54 2/3 innings since the start of 2022. That’s belied by elite strikeout (32.1%) and ground-ball (62.7%) numbers. Huge walk totals at least partially explained his 2022 struggles, but Kelly has a 4.08 ERA this season despite only walking two of the 70 batters he’s faced.
The right-hander has been an enigmatic player throughout his career. Kelly has always had wipeout stuff and flashed the ability to be an impact high-leverage arm at times. Yet he’s often paired that high-octane arsenal with control that comes and goes. It’s unlikely Kelly sustains anything close to his current 2.9% walk rate over a full season. This is probably headed towards a buyout.
Detroit Tigers
- Miguel Cabrera: $30MM club option ($8MM buyout)
This technically qualifies as an option decision on Cabrera. There’s no suspense about the result, of course. The future Hall of Famer will be bought out as the Tigers finally wrap up a $248MM extension that proved very ill-advised. Cabrera has already declared 2023 to be his likely final season. He’ll leave the sport as one of the greatest hitters ever, but it remains to be seen whether the Tigers will carry him on the roster all year. He’s hitting .202/.283/.245 in 26 games.
Minnesota Twins
- Jorge Polanco: $10.5MM club/vesting option ($1MM buyout)
Polanco would vest next year’s option with 550 plate appearances if he passed a postseason physical. He’s very unlikely to meet the playing time threshold. Polanco has only 118 trips to the dish more than a third of the way through the season. He’s had a pair of injured list stints already, missing time due both to right knee and left hamstring concerns. He’d need to average more than 4.2 plate appearances per game the rest of the way.
That’ll probably be a moot point, as the Twins seem likely to welcome him back regardless. It’s a $9.5MM decision for a middle infielder who’s one of the team’s better hitters. The switch-hitting Polanco posted a .235/.346/.405 line last season and is at a .268/.305/.482 pace in 27 games this year. Dating back to 2018, Polanco is a .272/.337/.456 hitter in nearly 2500 plate appearances. The Twins would have another club option (this time valued at $12MM) for 2025 if they keep him around, only adding to the appeal.
- Max Kepler: $10MM club option ($1MM buyout)
Kepler’s early-career extension looked like it’d be a coup when he connected on 36 home runs in 2019. The former top prospect seemed to be taking his long-awaited step forward. He hasn’t built on it, though, as he posted roughly league average numbers each season from 2020-22.
Even average production would be a welcome departure from Kepler’s showing thus far in ’23. The left-handed-hitting outfielder is off to a brutal .192/.264/.376 start in 140 plate appearances. The shift ban hasn’t resulted in any kind of improvement in his perennially low ball in play numbers. He’s sporting a career-worst .196 BABIP. His strikeouts are up to 20.7% and he’s walking at a career-worst 7.1% clip.
Kepler is an elite defensive right fielder and has shown better offensive form in prior seasons. A $9MM call isn’t out of the question, but he’ll obviously need to markedly improve upon his current pace. Minnesota has a number of controllable corner outfielders who’ve reached the MLB level (Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach and Matt Wallner among them). Perhaps it’s time for a change of scenery for Kepler, who seems to have stalled out in the Twin Cities.
White Sox Release Hanser Alberto
The White Sox have requested unconditional release waivers on infielder Hanser Alberto, who was designated for assignment a couple of days ago, with James Fegan of The Athletic among those to relay the information. His transactions tracker at MLB.com lists him as having been released, indicating he cleared waivers.
Alberto, 30, was signed to a minor league deal this winter and made the club’s Opening Day roster as a reserve infielder. He played each non-shortstop position on the dirt and even took the mound a couple of times. At the plate, he hit .220/.261/.390 for a wRC+ of 75, indicating he was 25% below average. That actually wasn’t too far off of his career batting line of .269/.292/.381 and 77 wRC+ but he was squeezed out of the club’s plans nonetheless.
The Sox have been shuffling their roster and lineup for most of the year as various injuries have altered their primary plans. Some players have made the most of those new opportunities, such as Jake Burger and Romy González. González is a second baseman and Burger is at least being considered as a possibility there. González bounced back from a rough start to hit .289/.298/.644 since late April while Burger is hitting .266/.314/.594 for the whole year. With those players deserving of a longer look and Tim Anderson and Elvis Andrus now returned from their respective IL stints, it seems Alberto didn’t have much of a path to playing time.
Now that he’s been released, the Sox will remain on the hook for the remainder of his $2.3MM salary for the year. That will allow any of the 29 other clubs to sign Alberto for the prorated league minimum for any time spent on the roster with that amount being subtracted from what the Sox pay. Alberto could perhaps serve in the weak side of a platoon role somewhere, as he’s hit .324/.343/.455 against lefties in his career. That’s continued this year, as he’s slashed .357/.400/.714 against southpaws for the season.
White Sox Designate Hanser Alberto For Assignment
The White Sox announced a series of roster moves today, reinstating right-hander Mike Clevinger and infielder Elvis Andrus from the injured list. In corresponding moves, they optioned right-hander Jesse Scholtens and designated infielder Hanser Alberto for assignment.
The White Sox haven’t had a good solution for second base for most of the year. Andrus was signed with the idea of slotting him next to Tim Anderson but Anderson ended up missing most of April due to a knee sprain. Andrus slid over to short to cover for him but hit just .201/.280/.254 before going on the IL himself due to an oblique strain about three weeks ago.
With Andrus out of action of late, the club has tried a couple of different players. Jake Burger had been playing third base, covering for the injured Yoán Moncada, and hit well enough that the club has considered moving him over to second base now that Moncada is back. He has 11 home runs in 40 games this year and an overall batting line of .270/.314/.603, leading to a 145 wRC+. Given that output, it’s unsurprising that the club wants his bat in the lineup, but he’s still only been entrusted with two innings at the keystone so far this year. Another option is Romy González, who had a terrible start to the season but has been on fire lately. He had a dismal .103/.103/.103 line through April 25 but has hit .286/.295/.667 since that time.
Manager Pedro Grifol recently spoke to James Fegan of The Athletic about the situation, essentially saying that the club will try to ride the hot hand. “I don’t think I’m going to be mixing and matching at second base,” Grifol said. “We need to win baseball games so if somebody’s playing as well as Romy (Gonzalez) is playing, then he’s going to play. If Elvis comes in and he does what he can do, then he’s going to play. Those are conversations that I’ll have with whoever’s involved and we’re going to put the best team on the field that’s going to help us win a baseball game every day.”
With the club suddenly juggling multiple options for the second base position, it has squeezed Alberto out of the picture. Signed to a minor league deal in the offseason, he made the club’s Opening Day roster to serve as a bench piece. He has since played in 30 games for the club, around a two-week IL stint due to a quad strain, but has hit just .220/.261/.390. That’s not too far off from his career line of .269/.292/.381, but it seems the Sox will roll with the younger and more exciting players in Burger and González.
The Sox will now have a week to trade Alberto or pass him through waivers. He has more than enough service time to reject an outright assignment and retain his $2.3MM salary. Given that financial commitment and his tepid production this season, it seems likely he simply ends up released in the coming days.
Tigers Acquire Jake Marisnick From White Sox
The Tigers announced that they have acquired outfielder Jake Marisnick from the White Sox in exchange for cash considerations. Marisnick wasn’t on Chicago’s 40-man roster and won’t require a corresponding move.
Marisnick, 32, first appeared in the majors almost a decade ago, debuting in July of 2013. He’s spent most of that time as a glove-first outfielder, generally hitting at a below-average rate while providing good defense and some speed. In over 2,000 plate appearances in his career, he’s hit .228/.281/.384 for a wRC+ of 80 while walking at a 5.4% rate and striking out 30.1% of the time. But he’s stolen 79 bases while also tallying 76 Defensive Runs Saved, 48 Outs Above Average and a mark of 22.9 from Ultimate Zone Rating.
He signed a minor league deal with the White Sox this winter and was added to the big league squad about three weeks ago. He was primarily utilized as a defensive replacement, appearing in nine games but with just a pair of trips to the plate. He was designated for assignment last week when the club selected Clint Frazier, then cleared waivers and accepted an outright assignment.
The Tigers had their outfield depth thinned a bit today, as Matt Vierling was placed on the injured list, joining fellow outfielders Kerry Carpenter and Austin Meadows. Marisnick will presumably head to Triple-A Toledo and provide the club with a veteran option to turn to if they suffer another injury.
White Sox Place Jimmy Lambert On 15-Day Injured List
White Sox GM Rick Hahn told reporters (including The Athletic’s James Fegan) that right-hander Jimmy Lambert has been placed on the 15-day injured list due to right ankle inflammation. Lambert’s IL placement is retroactive to May 28, and it opens a roster space for Liam Hendriks, who is making his return from the 15-day IL today.
The injury adds to what has already been a tough year for Lambert, who has a 5.91 ERA over 21 1/3 innings. Lambert’s 23.8% strikeout rate is slightly above the league average, but he has been allowing a lot of hard contact and heavy damage — his 15.9% barrel rate is among the lowest in baseball, and Lambert has given up six homers over his 21 1/3 frames. A 12.9% walk rate also hasn’t helped Lambert’s cause.
Now in his fourth MLB season, Lambert seemed to be turning a corner after the White Sox made him a full-time reliever in 2022, as he delivered a 3.26 ERA over 47 innings. While walks were still an issue for Lambert last season, he did a much better job of keeping the ball in the park, with only four homers allowed.
Lambert is one of several White Sox relievers who have struggled this year, as only the woeful A’s have a higher bullpen ERA than the 5.17 number posted by Chicago’s relief corps. Beyond the obvious emotional impact of Hendriks’ return, the three-time All-Star should provide some instant help to the bullpen. For more on Hendriks’ cancer diagnosis and recovery over the last five months, ESPN’s Jeff Passan detailed Hendriks’ story in a feature piece earlier today.