White Sox DFA Adam Eaton to make room for Adam Engel

With Adam Engel ready to return from the injured list, the White Sox had one of those classic economic decisions where the player with the most tenuous grip on his job in terms of performance also had the most security in terms of guaranteed salary.

The White Sox made the easy/hard decision to resolve the sunk cost, designating Adam Eaton and the remainder of his $8 million commitment for assignment before today's rubber match against Minnesota.

The emergence of Brian Goodwin as a cromulent left-handed corner outfielder made retaining Eaton a lot harder to justify. Stack up the outfielders' performances since May 1 -- which is right after the game where Eaton fell down three times -- and Eaton is the clear straggler:

That doesn't include Gavin Sheets, who can also stand in the same corner and batter's box for a game at a time.

The White Sox didn't telegraph the move, however. Eaton batted leadoff on Tuesday, going 1-for-4 with an RBI single in his last plate appearance. That might say more about Alex Colomé that Eaton. Regardless, the single raised his average from .197 to .201, which improves the aesthetics of his performance ever so slightly.

Daryl Van Schouwen texted Eaton, who said he should've played better in order to avoid this fate. Tony La Russa called it a "very difficult organizational decision," yet praised the White Sox front office for not letting salary dictate his options.

I'll have more about the Eaton experience later. First pitch for White Sox and Twins comes in about five minutes, and the first outfield of the post-Eaton era has Hamilton in left, Engel in center and Goodwin in right.

(Photo by Mike Dinovo/USA TODAY Sports)