PREAMBLE
I firmly believe that the White Sox could contend if they choose to do so next year. The team's second-half run differential was only -15, and the young talent is only going to keep developing and being added to as guys like Noah Schultz and Braden Montgomery graduate to the majors. With this in mind, I tried to construct a team capable of contending for a Wild Card spot without going all-in in a way that would jeopardize the future.
COACHING STAFF
- Hitting coach: [Left blank]
- Pitching coach: [Left blank]
I know pretty much nothing about who would be interested in such a role. I'm simply going to defer to Getz and Co on this one.
ARBITRATION-ELIGIBLE PLAYERS
- Mike Tauchman: Tender
- Steven Wilson: Tender
- Derek Hill: Non-tender
Tauchmann was good when healthy, and the Sox outfield depth is thin enough already. Steven Wilson is a solid reliever at a bargain at that price.
CLUB OPTIONS
- Luis Robert Jr.: Exercise $20 million contract
- Martín Perez: Buy out for $1.5 million
Luis was much more unlucky than bad in 2025. If his health holds up (which is admittedly a big if) he's primed for a major rebound next year.
FREE AGENTS
No. 1: Dylan Cease (6 years, $175 million). I went a bit higher than Spotrac's estimate on this one but I'm still not sure it would be enough. If so, Cease is an incredibly talented pitcher who was pretty unlucky this past year. He would be a great acquisition to bolster a rotation that desperately needs stability.
No. 2: Josh Naylor (4 years, $60 million). Again, went a bit higher on this one. Naylor is a consistently solid hitter who would be an upgrade to the lineup. With that being said, I think you could argue pursuing a mid-rotation starter would be more important here.
No. 3: Austin Hays (1 year, $8 million). Hays pushes Benintendi to the bench and hits lefties well.
No. 4: Griffin Canning (1 year, $6 million). Canning was effective for the Mets before his achilles rupture. I'm assuming he will be good to go for Opening Day, but this is just an idea for a low-risk, high-reward starter to fill in the rotation.
TRADES
No major trades this offseason.
SUMMARY
I ended up just under $120 million in terms of payroll. This is substantially above the limit, but still far below what the Sox were spending even just a few years ago. If the Sox decided to try to contend next year, I doubt pushing the payroll to that extent would be a major impediment.
Preliminary Lineup:
C Kyle Teel
1B Josh Naylor
2B Chase Meidroth
SS Colson Montgomery
3B Miguel Vargas
LF Austin Hays
CF Luis Robert Jr.
RF Mike Tauchmann
DH Lenyn Sosa
Preliminary Rotation:
SP Dylan Cease
SP Shane Smith
SP Grant Taylor
SP Griffin Canning
SP Davis Martin
The lineup is solid. There isn't an easy out anywhere, and if guys like Teel, Montgomery, and Robert Jr. can stay healthy and live up to their potential, it actually looks quite deadly.
The rotation is much more iffy. There is certainly major upside here, but also the potential for things to go sideways very quickly. Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith figuring things out at the upper minors quickly would be a major benefit to this team.
This team could contend in 2026. It wouldn't be the favorite to win anything, but in a weak AL Central, the Sox could plausibly make some noise. Even if this proposed team struggled and went, say 75-87, there are still two strong reasons to do things such as sign Dylan Cease and Josh Naylor:
1) Even if the Sox fail in 2026, guys like Cease and Naylor would still presumably be around for 2027. Any key free agent you sign this offseason is one you don't need to worry about next offseason.
2) Winning 75 games is better than winning 68 games, especially since the Sox can't pick higher than 10th in 2027 anyway. This should not be a controversial sentiment.
The White Sox underperformed their Pythagorean W/L by 11 games in 2025. This team is closer than you think. A good offseason, and the Sox could be playing meaningful games in September as soon as next season.
