For Opening Day, I simulated a White Sox roster where the entire position-player portion was composed of Chris Getz, because that's what Pedro Grifol said he wanted. Predictably, it was an utter disaster. The all-Getz lineup averaged a 33-129 record thanks to the war-crime performance of Getz catchers, who were the biggest factors in the Sox routinely allowing 1,100 runs or more.
Feeling like the presence of a -10 WAR player eliminated the trace elements of the exercise's usefulness, I swapped those Getzes out for Martín Maldonado and Korey Lee. The record "improved" to 50-112. That team scored 557 runs while allowing 879, and while a -322 run differential remains severe, the 2023 Oakland A's just showed it could be done in today's baseball (-322).
Based on what the White Sox showed over the first month of the actual regular season, the truth is somehow, somewhere in the middle.
Fresh off an 8-21 April that effectively ended the 2023 season before it began, these White Sox one-downed it with the worst start in the 124-year-old history of the franchise. Their 6-24 record through the first 30 games beats the mark previously held by the 1948 White Sox, who went 7-22-1 en route to a 51-101 season. They were led by a 41-year-old Luke Appling, who wouldn't dramatically alter the average age of the 2024 White Sox roster, even though he would've turned 117 on April 2.
Extrapolate the current White Sox's April pace, and they'd finish with a 32-130 record. That's one win worse than the White Sox roster with the two Getz catchers who would've been murdered by their pitching staff and dangled from the backstop as an example to the others, and yet there isn't a luck element. They went 3-8 in one-run games, but what's to say they couldn't have gone 2-9, 1-10 or 0-11?
Their Pythageorean record only gives them one extra win because their run differential doesn't allow any others. The White Sox were outscored by a league-worst 79 runs. Extrapolate the totals, and they'd end up scoring 454 runs and allowing 880 runs if the current paces held.
What's kinda neat is that the latter number is just one run away from the 11-Getz roster, featuring the actual White Sox pitching staff throwing to their actual catchers, with seven Getz clones behind them. Score one for OOTP there.
What's not at all neat is the offense. The actual 2024 White Sox are currently projecting 100 runs worse than an all-Getz offense, even though this offense opened the season with a fringe MVP candidate, a No. 4 overall pick, and the highest paid free agent in franchise history. Their 2.8 runs per game would also fall short of any actual, historical White Sox offense, even the ones from the Dead Ball Era.
For at least one month, the White Sox were deader than dead. Below are the findings from the autopsy.
White Sox TEAM PERFORMANCE
- Record: 6-24
- Standings: Fifth, 13½ GB
- Longest winning streak: 3, April 26-28
- Longest losing streak: 7, April 19-25
- Largest margin of victory: 5, April 26
- Largest margin of defeat: 10, April 12
HITTING LEADERS
- Batting average: .282, Gavin Sheets
- On-base percentage: .376, Sheets
- Slugging percentage: .465, Sheets
- wRC+: 133, Sheetz
- Home runs: 3, Sheets, Paul DeJong, Eloy Jiménez and Andrew Benintendi
- RBI: 13, Benintendi
- Walks: 12, Robbie Grossman
- Strikeouts: 32, Andrew Vaughn
- Stolen bases: 4, Braden Shewmake
- fWAR: 0.4, Sheets, DeJong and Danny Mendick
PITCHING LEADERS
- Wins: 2, Erick Fedde
- Losses: 4, Garrett Crochet
- ERA: 2.60, Fedde
- Innings: 34⅔, Fedde and Crochet
- Strikeouts: 47, Crochet
- Appearances: 15, Dominic Leone
- Relief innings: 16⅓, Michael Kopech
- fWAR: 0.6, Fedde and Crochet
COMING AND GOING
- White Sox debuts: Martín Maldonado, Nicky Lopez, Paul DeJong, Dominic Fletcher, Robbie Grossman, Braden Shewmake, Kevin Pillar, Tommy Pham, Rafael Ortega, Michael Soroka, Justin Anderson, Tim Hill, Dominic Leone, Chris Flexen, Jared Shuster, Prelander Berroa, John Brebbia, Jordan Leasure, Brad Keller, Jonathan Cannon, Erick Fedde, Steven Wilson, Nick Nastrini
- White Sox departures: Sammy Peralta, José Rodríguez, Bryan Shaw, Pillar
- Going up: Lenyn Sosa, Shuster, Oscar Colás, Anderson, Zach Remillard, Nastrini, Cannon, Ortega, Pham, Keller, Mendick
- Going down: Sosa, Shuster, Colás, Anderson, Remillard, Nastrini, Cannon
#SOXMORGUE
- Max Stassi: Left hip inflammation
- Jimmy Lambert: Right rotator cuff strain
- Shane Drohan: Left shoulder nerve decompression surgery
- Eloy Jiménez: Left adductor strain
- Luis Robert Jr.: Right hip flexor strain
- John Brebbia: Right calf strain
- Yoán Moncada: Left adductor strain
AWARDS
Most Valuable Player: Gavin Sheets
Set aside the lack of defensive value, because if this were a meritocracy, he'd be getting all his plate appearances as a first baseman or DH. In the perverse White Sox universe, it's actually a good thing that Sheets is playing way too much right field, because that means he's producing enough at the plate to even keep considering it. He hit .279/.346/.465 with 10 extra-base hits and 11 walks over 101 plate appearances, and that OPS starts with a ".9" against righties, so he's doing everything within his known profile to contribute to this team. Of the regular position players who didn't join the team in the last week or so, only Korey Lee can say the same.
Least Valuable Player: Andrew Vaughn
It's a three-way race to the bottom between Vaughn, Andrew Benintendi and Martín Maldonado, but Benintendi had the late power surge, and Maldonado is barely underperforming expectations. That leaves Vaughn, who's a first baseman hitting .190/.259/.238 without a homer, and with only one batted ball resembling a homer. This flyout to center is his only batted ball that Statcast said would've left any park in that direction, but it only would've cleared the fence in five of 30 parks. There's nothing you can do with the player Vaughn currently is.
Most Valuable Pitcher: Erick Fedde
The KBO MVP has exceeded all realistic expectations in his first month of the two-year, $15 million contract he signed with the White Sox, with one mediocre outing quickly negated by three excellent starts, over which he's allowed a total of three runs.
Here's a Fedde Fun Fact: Over the course of his first six starts, he never pitched fewer innings than he did his last time out.
- March 31: 4⅔ IP
- April 5: 5 IP
- April 10: 5 IP
- April 17: 5⅔ IP
- April 23: 6 IP
- April 28: 8⅓ IP
If this were blackjack, he'd have to consider staying at this point.
Least Valuable Pitcher: Michael Soroka
This isn't the easiest call, if only because Chris Flexen (temporarily) lost his rotation spot while Jonathan Cannon and Nick Nastrini fell short of impressing in their auditions, so all are theoretically worse than a guy like Soroka, who's made a start in every turn. That said, Soroka's a rare case where he's running a 6.48 ERA that's lucky (6.71 FIP) because he's coming up empty-handed in his search for bread and butter. Unlike Jean Valjean, he can't steal somebody else's.
Fire Man: Jordan Leasure?
So much was asked of the entire bullpen that a handful of relievers had legitimate triumphs among equally critical failures, and it's all washed out. Steven Wilson is the only reliever with a positive Win Probability Added, but it barely registers (0.06), and it's trending in the wrong direction. Michael Kopech has the brightest high-leverage future of the group and has been tasked by Pedro Grifol as such, but he also went 0-3 because of a handful of high-leverage flops, and has allowed 23 baserunners over 16⅓ innings. Somebody like Jordan Leasure could've been expected to fare worse, and he hasn't been terrible, so let's go with him, I guess.
Gas Can: Tim Hill
Hill's 4.15 ERA doesn't stand out, and he hasn't been in line for any decisions. On the other hand, opponents are hitting .364/.436/.394 against him, lefties are 8-for-17 against him, the first batter he faces in an outing are 6-for-10 against him, which is bad news for somebody who's trying to get by as a LOOGY in a three-batter-minimum world. It all adds up to the team's worst WPA (-0.76), and the closest relievers who even got half that far were DFA'd (Deivi García, Bryan Shaw).
Bench Player: Korey Lee
Considering Lee was patently unwatchable in his first audition with the White Sox last season, his .255/.293/.455 line during Max Stassi's prolonged absence is a godsend. He's also thrown out five of 19 baserunners courtesy of the league's best pop time. His receiving leaves a little bit to be desired, particularly at the top of the zone, but he's outplayed Martín Maldonado in every detectable aspect of the game.
Stench Player: Lenyn Sosa
Sosa squandered his third opportunity -- and second golden one -- to prove that he could stick in the big leagues. He hit .132/.154/.184 with one walk against 13 strikeouts over 40 plate appearances before the White Sox optioned him back to Charlotte. The lack of production was one thing, but it was once again compounded by a cluster of mistakes that still haven't been ironed out.
Gold Glove: Nicky Lopez
Lopez best exemplifies what Getz aimed to accomplish with his emphasis on up-the-middle defense, as his glovework at second base has met expectations by OOA, DRS and the eye test. He's also drawn a surprising 10 walks against 10 strikeouts over 98 plate appearances, so he's not giving plate appearances away with his decisions. He just doesn't hit the ball hard enough to be an everyday player. Like Lopez, the rest of the White Sox were expected to have a talent shortage, but he's one of the few withstanding the stress.
Hands of Stone: Martín Maldonado
You could give this to Sosa for the lowlight reel above. You could give it to Benintendi for his diminished range, weak arm and his tendency to airmail cutoff men in vain. You could give it to Sheets for once again being forced to play a position he has no business occupying. I'm choosing Maldonado because of his league-worst receiving and one runner thrown out in 19 attempts, and there's nothing about the pitching staff's performance that suggests his intangibles are essential to the project.
Timeline
An auspiciously inauspicious start: Controversial choice for Opening Day starter Garrett Crochet thrives in the assignment by throwing six innings of one-run ball. He's still tagged with the loss, because the White Sox were shut out by Detroit, 1-0. (March 28)
Peak Robert, or Robert's Peak: Luis Robert Jr. goes 3-for-4 with a walk and two homers while seeing 29 pitches in yet another stirring performance overshadowed by the team's flaws. (March 30)
It begins: Eloy Jiménez pulls up running down to first base on a routine grounder to the left side. (March 31)
Studying positioning 'til he popped a blood vessel: In between two rain delays, the White Sox-Braves game is held up by more than a minute because new first-base coach Jason Bourgeois was nowhere to be found.
Pedro Grifol explained Bourgeois' absence by saying he was studying positioning with headphones on, unaware the game has resumed. (April 1)
Off the schneid: Another strong start by Garrett Crochet results in the White Sox's first win of the year, and over one of the NL favorites to boot. (April 2)
FAST falls apart: The box score says the White Sox lost to the Royals 10-1, but only committed one error. Sure, if you don't count throwing to the wrong base, dropping pop-ups, or sending slow runners to their demise at home plate. (April 4)
Oh No, No, Part I: Luis Robert Jr. pulls up lame between first and second while running out a double, and immediately leaves the game due to a right hip flexor injury. (April 5)
Shut out again: The White Sox are not only shut out for the third time in eight games, but they've been shut out in each of the three series they've played after getting blanked 3-0 by the Royals. (April 6)
Outfield assist: MJ Melendez breaks that game open with a two-run homer that hit off Dominic Fletcher's glove and over the fence. The replay showed that the ball hit the wall before it hit Fletcher's glove, so it should've only been a double. Pedro Grifol did not call for a review. (April 6)
Why are you the way that you are: Before the White Sox are shut out for a fourth time in 10 games in Cleveland, the White Sox and Guardians had the opportunity to take in the eclipse. Grifol showed no interest in the astronomical phenomenon ...
Before the game, Grifol was oddly adamant about not witnessing history.
“I’ll see videos of it, see what it looks like,” Grifol had said, “but there’s baseball. I probably shouldn’t say that, [but] family and baseball. People don’t believe it, but I live it. That’s all that matters.”
... and then it turns out that he viewed it anyway. (April 8)
Oh No, No, Part II: Yoán Moncada collapses before reaching the bag while running out a routine grounder, again to John Schriffen's anguish. (April 9)
Three Sheets to the win loss: Continuing the thread of heroic performances in defeat, the best game of Gavin Sheets' career is wasted. He goes 3-for-5, with all three hits going for extra-bases and driving in runs, in a 7-6 loss to the Guardians in 10 innings. (April 10)
Still getting shut out: The White Sox are blanked for a fifth time -- and series -- in a 5-0 loss to Cincinnati. (April 13)
Run out of their own park: The White Sox are swept by the Reds with an 11-4 loss, but it's how they lost. White Sox pitchers walked more batters than they struck out, Cincinnati stole six bases on Michael Soroka, and all three outfielders should've been charged with errors. The 2-13 start is their worst through 15 games. (April 14)
Schrödinger's DH: Eloy Jiménez returns from the injured list without a rehab stint, but also doesn't start in his first game back. Also, he doesn't know how hard he can run. (April 15)
“I don’t know,” Jiménez said when I asked if he’ll run max effort to first base on slow grounders. “I don’t like to say that I’m not going to do it, because at the end of the day, I try to hustle, I try to play hard every single day. To me, saying I’m going to take it easy, did I really want to take it easy? Or did I really want to keep hustling and keep pushing? But right now, I don’t have a concrete answer to that question.”
Still getting shut out: The White Sox go 6-for-6 with shutouts in series, losing 2-0 to the Royals despite an encouraging MLB debut from Nick Nastrini, and holding a team meeting before the game. (April 15)
Other Stadium deal reached: The Chicago Sun-Times reports that the White Sox will move their broadcasts from NBC Sports Chicago to the Stadium Network, although it still hasn't been formally announced. (April 16)
Still getting shut out: The White Sox are shut out for the seventh time and the seventh series in a 7-0 loss to the Phillies in Philadelphia. (April 19)
No-hit threats, too: After getting no-hit by Spencer Turnbull through 6⅓ innings the day before, Zack Wheeler takes his bid an inning longer. The White Sox only lose this one 9-5. (April 20)
One more for the road: The White Sox are shut out for the eighth and final time this month in an 8-0 loss to the Twins. They fall to 0-8 with six shutouts in series openers, with a run differential of 51-2. (April 22)
His generosity knows bounds: Attempting his version of sweetening a deal -- and feeling the Chicago Bears angling for the same pot of public funds -- Crain's Chicago Business reports that Jerry Reinsdorf suggest he's willing to spend something like $200 million toward the construction of a South Loop ballpark under certain conditions. (April 22)
Power surge, relatively speaking: The White Sox homer twice in a game for the first time all month, but still get doubled up by the Twins, 6-3, to lose their sixth straight game. (April 24)
Patterns are fun: The White Sox started the season losing four before winning one. Then they lost five before winning one. They lost six before winning one. Then they got swept in Minnesota to lose seven, calling Pedro Grifol's job status into question ... (April 25)
Especially when they hold: ... before winning one in a 9-4 victory over the Rays, which also snapped their awful performance in series openers. Martín Maldonado even homered. (April 26)
That's why they call him Tommy Taxes: As he sets out to take over the White Sox's everyday center field job, Tommy Pham explains why he settled for the White Sox. (April 26)
“I wouldn’t say opportunity, because the opportunity would have been there with both teams,” Pham said. “Just in terms of money. You factor in California’s taxes, which I’ve already played there, and I know how it is there. San Diego is gonna have to match it in other ways.”
Let the haters be your debaters: Andrew Benintendi's two-homer, six-RBI culminates in a 10th-inning walk-off homer that causes John Schriffen to explode with a home-run call that divides the fan base. (April 27)
Rays of sunshine: The White Sox double their win total in a weekend against Tampa Bay, as Erick Fedde takes his start in the ninth to cap off a sweep of the Rays. (April 28)
Return to misery: The White Sox miss out on two opportunities to match last April's win total with two more losses to Minnesota, including a one-run loss where they made an array of one-run mistakes. (April 30)
