Headlines

Go To Pro Hockey Rumors
Go To Hoops Rumors

White Sox Rumors

White Sox To Sign Austin Jackson

By | at

The White Sox have agreed to terms with outfielder Austin Jackson on a $5MM contract, Jon Heyman writes (all Twitter links). Jackson is a Scott Boras client.

Heyman notes that Jackson could have signed with the Angels for more money, but preferred to stay in Chicago (where he played with the Cubs last season) and play center field, rather than left. Late last month, it was reported that Jackson had rejected an offer from the Angels in the $5MM-$6MM range.

USATSI_8834544_154513410_lowresJackson, 29, batted .267/.311/.385 in 527 plate appearances last season, spending most of the year with the Mariners before heading to the Cubs in a late-August deal. His hitting has, on the whole, been mildly disappointing the past two seasons, as he struggled to hit home runs in pitcher-friendly Seattle and has largely continued his career-long trend of being strikeout-prone. He has generally produced good value on the bases, however (despite stealing only 17 bases compared to ten times caught last year). Jackson is also fairly young and has maintained a reasonably high baseline level of performance, producing over 2 fWAR in five of his six seasons in the big leagues.

Jackson played center in Seattle but spent most of his time in the corners after being traded. His defense has graded as about average in center field — UZR rated him as 7.5 runs above average in center last season but was less favorable in the two years before that, while Defensive Runs Saved has marked him as about average in all of the last three seasons. He has rated as a better defender than incumbent White Sox center fielder Adam Eaton, who had a good year with the bat in 2015. It’s possible Eaton could move to a corner, or maybe Jackson could take at bats in center when Eaton isn’t playing and also play occasionally in a corner himself. Eaton is currently dealing with a shoulder issue, but via CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes (on Twitter), the White Sox do not seem overly concerned about Eaton’s health.

It isn’t surprising that the White Sox would be interested in Jackson, given their reported pursuits of outfielders like Dexter Fowler and Alex Gordon. Jackson’s signing will likely cut into Avisail Garcia’s playing time, and though Jackson is far from a perfect player, he appears to be a significant upgrade (keeping in mind that Garcia is 24 and could improve). Garcia hit a disappointing .257/.309/.365 last season while struggling defensively in right. Jackson’s presence strengthens a White Sox defense that rated as worst in the Majors last season, via Fangraphs. The Jackson deal continues a busy South Side offseason that has also included the additions of Todd Frazier, Brett Lawrie, Mat Latos, Alex Avila, Dioner Navarro and others, as the Sox have attempted to remake a roster that came up well short of expectations in a  76-win 2015 season.

Jackson’s $5MM price tag appears very reasonable for a player of his caliber. Before last offseason began, MLBTR projected that Jackson would receive more than twice that much, at $12MM for one year. Perhaps, though, the slow-developing outfield market influenced Jackson’s payday. Last week, MLBTR’s Steve Adams listed the White Sox as one of several teams that could have interest in Jackson.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

AL Notes: Correa, Beltran, Gordon

By | at

Astros shortstop Carlos Correa is just the megastar-to-be for Major League Baseball, Yahoo! Sports’ Jeff Passan writes — Correa is not quite as brash as Bryce Harper can sometimes be, but more outwardly confident than Mike Trout, and might just have that kind of exceptional talent. Last season, when he was a 20-year-old rookie, he quickly won over teammates with his play and with his confidence.  “It was kind of like us saying; ’Here you go, dude. You own this place,'” says outfielder George Springer. Here’s more from the American League.

  • Yankees slugger Carlos Beltran hopes to continue playing beyond the expiration of his contract following the 2016 season, ESPN’s Wallace Matthews writes. “My goal is to play 20 years,” Beltran says. “I would love to play 20 years in the big leagues. So that means two more years if possible.” Beltran’s first season in the big leagues was 1998, so playing through 2017 would mean he appeared in 20 straight big-league seasons. Beltran has become more and more of a defensive liability as he’s aged, but his hitting bounced back nicely in 2015, when he batted .276/.337/.471 with 19 home runs. His best path forward after 2016 might be as a DH, although, as Matthews notes, Alex Rodriguez appears set to man that position with the Yankees through 2017.
  • Alex Gordon confirms that the White Sox had strong interest in him this offseason, Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago writes. His first choice, though, was always to head back to the Royals. “After every conversation I had with (agent Casey Close) it was always, ’Have the Royals said anything?’” says Gordon. “This is where I grew up. Its where I wanted to be. Coming from the bad times to really cherish the good times, why not stay here?” Both Gordon and Yoenis Cespedes were reportedly possibilities for the White Sox, although both ended up returning to their former teams, with Gordon taking a $72MM guarantee to stay in Kansas City.

Minor MLB Transactions: 3/4/16

By | at

Here are today’s minor moves from around the league…

  • Veteran minor league outfielder Felix Perez has also signed on with the Orioles on a minor league deal, Rich Dubroff of CSNmidatlantic.com tweets. The 31-year-old has yet to crack the majors since signing under somewhat controversial circumstances. He had a four-year run in the Reds system and spent most of last year playing in the Mexican League, slashing a robust .312/.390/.580 with 20 home runs in 395 plate appearances.
  • First baseman/outfielder Mike Carp is headed to the Orioles on a minors pact, as Jon Meoli of the Baltimore Sun reports. The 29-year-old won’t receive an invitation to MLB camp in the contract after playing little in 2015 and failing to crack the majors for the first time since his debut year. The left-handed-hitting Carp was coming off of a hugely disappointing 2014 season, so it’s been some time since he’s produced in the majors. But over 2011 to 2013, he did carry a .267/.334/.454 slash and hit 26 home runs over 745 plate appearances.
  • The White Sox have inked right-hander Kameron Loe to a minor league contract, reports MLB.com’s Scott Merkin (Twitter link). The 34-year-old Loe has spent parts of nine seasons in the Major Leagues, most recently appearing with the Braves in 2013. He’ll head to minor league camp for the Sox, making him more of a veteran depth piece than an immediate option in the bullpen. Loe struggled through the 2014 season with the Triple-A affiliates for the Royals, Braves and D-backs, which led to a 2015 stint with the Bridgeport Bluefish of the independent Atlantic League. Loe had a strong showing in the Dominican Winter League this offseason and will look to rediscover the form that allowed him to pitch to a 3.61 ERA and 3.60 FIP from 2008-12 with the Rangers and Brewers.

White Sox Still Seek Outfield Upgrade

By | at

The White Sox have long been connected to both free agents and trade targets that can help the club in the corner outfield, and Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670 The Score writes that the Sox aren’t done searching for upgrades. The Sox could turn their focus to Rockies right fielder Carlos Gonzalez and Reds right fielder Jay Bruce, per Levine, though his report makes no indication that there have been trade discussions about either player. One rival general manager told Levine that the Rockies asked for his top two minor leaguers, plus a big league player and absorption of most of the remaining $37MM on Gonzalez’s contract. Of course, that’s a highly subjective statement; for instance, the top two minor leaguers for a club like the Angels — a team that has been linked to outfield trade targets — would be considerably less valuable than the top two minor leaguers for a club like the Rays or Cardinals, each of which was linked to outfield trade targets this winter as well. What’s clear from the anonymous GM quoted by Levine is that the Rockies’ asking price would be steep, and the team seemingly doesn’t have much interest in eating salary on the deal.

Robin Ventura: Expects Jimmy Rollins To Make Club

By | at

Dexter Fowler Notes: White Sox, Orioles, Jones

By | at

Here’s some of the fallout surrounding Dexter Fowler’s surprising return to the Cubs, especially as it pertains to his would-be new team in Baltimore…

  • The White Sox offered Fowler a two-year contract worth more than $17MM, CBS Chicago’s Bruce Levine reports.  The offer was for a set two years and didn’t include an opt-out clause or a mutual option after the first season.  Fowler’s deal with the Cubs guarantees him $8MM in 2016, and then he and the team can either both enact a $9MM mutual option for 2017 or the Cubs can buy Fowler out for $5MM.  It’s clear that Fowler and agent Casey Close were focused on flexibility after the 2016 season, as the Orioles’ refusal to include an opt-out clause is what caused the breakdown in talks between the two sides.  The Sox have been known to be interested in Fowler and others this winter as they continue to look for corner outfield help, though the club hasn’t yet done much in the way of major moves to address left or right field.  Melky Cabrera and Avisail Garcia are still on hand as the incumbent starters, though both had sub-replacement level seasons in 2015.  Signing Fowler would’ve represented a major upgrade for the Pale Hose yet also cost the team the 27th overall pick in the draft since Fowler was a qualifying offer free agent.  The top White Sox pick (the 10th overall selection) was protected, with the later first-round selection given to the team as compensation for Jeff Samardzija signing with the Giants.
  • With Fowler no longer an option, the Orioles are likely to pursue another corner outfielder, MLB.com’s Brittany Ghiroli writes.  Manager Buck Showalter is satisfied with his internal options, which include the likes of Mark Trumbo (who will probably see lot of DH time), Nolan Reimold, Henry Urrutia, Dariel Alvarez and Rule 5 draft pick Joey Rickard on the 40-man roster.  Urrutia is the only left-handed hitter of the bunch, so one of the righty-swingers will be used to complement new addition Hyun-soo Kim in left field.  Ghiroli cites Jay Bruce, Austin Jackson or Pedro Alvarez as possible targets for the Orioles, with Alvarez joining the club as a DH and Trumbo then getting most of his playing time in right.  With so many right-handed hitting outfielders already in the mix, left-handed hitting free agents like David Murphy, Grady Sizemore or David DeJesus also make sense as speculative fits.
  • One of the many unusual aspects of the Fowler/Orioles drama was that Adam Jones seemingly had verbal confirmation from Fowler that the outfielder was indeed joining the team.  Jones addressed that situation with reporters (including Eduardo A. Encina of the Baltimore Sun), saying he was surprised to learn Fowler wasn’t signing with the O’s but there was no issue between he and Fowler.  “At the end of the day, he’s happy where he’s at. His family is happy in Chicago, so good for him,” Jones said.  He also expressed that this gives an opportunity to the Orioles’ other outfielders, and noted that the O’s could pursue midseason upgrades with the money they saved on Fowler’s contract.

Sullivan On Potential Rodon Comps

By | at

  • In searching for comparables for White Sox lefty Carlos Rodon, Jeff Sullivan of Fangraphs found that Rodon’s slider bears a striking resemblance to that of Clayton Kershaw in terms of velocity, horizontal movement and vertical movement. That, of course, doesn’t mean that Rodon is on the cusp of becoming the best pitcher in baseball, but it offers a glimpse into the upside that he carries if he can improve his fastball and changeup. Alternatively, Sullivan found that the entirety of Rodon’s arsenal looks very similar to that of Francisco Liriano when looking the pair’s arsenals through the lens of PITCHf/x values. Sullivan concludes that Liriano is a more accessible upside for Rodon if he can make improvements to his changeup in the coming season, noting that Rodon will serve as somewhat of an X-factor in what should be a tightly contested AL Central division.

White Sox Co-Owner Eddie Einhorn Passes Away

By | at

White Sox co-owner Eddie Einhorn has passed away at age 80, reports Chris De Luca of the Chicago Sun-Times. MLBTR joins those around the league in celebrating Einhorn’s life and accomplishments. We offer our condolences to his family, friends, and fellow White Sox colleagues.

Einhorn was a forward-thinker in the sports television realm. He founded TVS Television Network which broadcast college basketball’s “Game of the Century” way back in 1968. Later, he had a key role in baseball’s first billion dollar TV deal.

While Jerry Reinsdorf has served as the public face of the White Sox ownership, Einhorn was active behind the scenes championing youth baseball programs which aired on MLB Network and MLB.com. According to Dan Evans (on Twitter), Einhorn helped to work on the original Wild Card concept too. Baseball America also dredged up a fun quote from 1984 regarding farm systems:

It’s an antiquated system we cannot afford. We’re taking 17-year-old kids with no real chance to make the majors just because we have to have them play catch with a few guys who do … we’re taking away their chances to go to college and get on with their lives. We’d be doing a social service by getting rid of the farm system as we know it. 

 

White Sox Sign Jimmy Rollins To Minors Deal

By | at

12:53pm: Rollins would earn a $2MM salary upon making the Major League roster, Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago tweets. MLB.com’s Scott Merkin adds that there are no additional incentives in the deal (Twitter link). Hayes also tweets that Saladino still has a good chance to be the club’s everyday shortstop, though Rollins is an option there, and the veteran shortstop can fill a utility role if Saladino does indeed get the everyday nod.

11:09am: The White Sox announced on Monday that they’ve added shortstop and former Phillies cornerstone Jimmy Rollins on a minor league contract with an invitation to Major League Spring Training. Rollins is a client of MVP Sports.

Jimmy Rollins

Rollins, 37, would seem to have an excellent chance at breaking camp as the team’s everyday shortstop, on paper. Defensively gifted sophomore Tyler Saladino is presently projected to serve as Chicago’s everyday shortstop, but the 26-year-old has little big league experience and didn’t hit in a 254-plate-appearance debut with the Pale Hose last season. Were Rollins to make the club and serve as the team’s shortstop, Saladino could shift into a valuable utility role; he showed strong defensive chops at second base and third base in addition to shortstop last season.

Last season was a struggle for Rollins, who spent the year with the Dodgers after being picked up in an offseason trade with the Phillies, making the 2015 campaign the only season of Rollins’ illustrious career that hasn’t been spent with the Phillies. Rollins tallied 563 plate appearances with the Dodgers but batted just .224/.285/.358 in that time. While those rate stats are unsightly, Rollins did still swat 13 home runs and swipe 12 bases, showing that there’s still some combination of power and speed left in his tank.

Looking for further positives, Rollins’ 15.3 percent strikeout rate was still more than passable, and his 7.8 percent walk rate was in line with his career averages. Beyond that, Sox fans will perhaps take solace in noting that Rollins’ numbers from July through season’s end (.244/.310/.395) vastly outpaced his production from Opening Day through June 30 (.208/.262/.326). While those endpoints are admittedly arbitrary, the fact that Rollins produced at a roughly league-average clip over the final three months of the regular season gives some hope for a return to his previously more successful ways at the plate (although certainly not to his NL MVP levels).

The main source of Rollins’ struggles would appear to be a .246 average on balls in play — one of the worst marks of his career. While Rollins has never had the BABIP marks that one might expect for a player with his considerable speed, last season’s drop is indeed curious, as his line-drive rate and hard contact rates remained in line with his marks from a 2014 season that saw Rollins bat .243/.323/.394 with 17 home runs. If Rollins can return to those levels, he’d serve as a more-than-adequate stopgap to perceived shortstop of the future and top prospect Tim Anderson, who could make his debut in 2016.

While Rollins was unproductive last season, it still seems surprising that he ultimately commanded a minor league deal, as he was productive as recently as 2014. Then again, it’s possible that Rollins took a minors deal with a fairly substantial guaranteed base salary over some big league deals with lower salaries or a questionable role. The Sox do present a very clear path to everyday at-bats at the shortstop position, and it’s possible that the seasoned and well-respected veteran felt this route offered him the best opportunity to play everyday and reestablish his stock. The Sox do, after all, offer a hitter-friendly environment and a club with raised expectations after adding Todd Frazier and Brett Lawrie to what was a highly unproductive infield unit last season. Indeed, FOX’s Ken Rosenthal now reports, shortly after the signing, that Rollins did have a pair of big league offers, though each was for a super-utility role (Twitter link). Rollins’ preference was to try to earn his way into an everyday role with the Sox.

Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago first reported the agreement (via Twitter).

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

White Sox Could Make One More Outfield Addition

By | at

Following their reported signing of Juan Uribe to a one-year deal, the Indians “seem to be considering” a run at free agent outfielder Austin Jackson, tweets Jon Heyman. Cleveland has a well-documented need in the outfield that has yet to be addressed — as Jeff Todd and I discussed on this week’s MLBTR Podcast. Jackson would add some stability to the picture at a potentially bargain rate at this juncture of the offseason and on the heels of a pair of so-so seasons at the plate. Heyman notes that there are other possibilities for Jackson, though, citing the White Sox, Angels, Brewers and “maybe” the Rangers, noting that Texas may not want to spend the money. It’s unclear whether Heyman was merely speculating on that last grouping of teams, though given the Angels’ reluctance to spend on free agents this winter and Texas GM Jon Daniels’ recent comments suggesting the payroll isn’t likely to grow much more, Jackson could be a stretch for either club.

  • Heyman also tweets that the White Sox appear to be open to one more outfield addition — one that can handle playing some center field. Austin Jackson, of course, would fit the bill in that regard, he notes, as would Dexter Fowler, if the Sox are willing to spend more. Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago/670 The Score also writes that the Sox are interested in adding to their outfield depth and are indeed considering Fowler. However, Fowler is said to be one of Baltimore’s top targets, and the O’s reportedly “expect” that they’ll be able to land both Fowler and free-agent right-hander Yovani Gallardo.
Show all

MLB Trade Rumors is not affiliated with Major League Baseball, MLB or MLB.com

hide arrows scroll to top