I honestly think the White Sox are the AL equivalent of the Phillies. Took them a while to get a squad together to break .500, we thought they had something last season, they didn't, and now they stocked up. Getting Yasmani Grandal, Dallas Keuchel, Edwin Encarnacion, Nomar Mazara, Gio Gonzalez and Steve Cishek, AS WELL AS the arrival of mega-prospect Luis Robert to finally fit into the lineup with other former mega-prospects Yoan Moncada, Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, Lucas Giolito and Eloy Jimenez...that has ultimately reignited the already-strong South Side fanbase.
On paper, this is a team that could go far, outdo the Cubs, bring the Sox their first playoff appearance since 2008, and bring credibility to a club that has been searching for it for an entire decade.
However...this is a lot of potential we're talking about.
Let's just emphasize that in order for 2019 to have worked as well as it did, which is still not pristine, the Sox needed the best from four assets- Lucas Giolito, Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada and Tim Anderson. Thankfully, all four totaled 16.6 WAR last year, with Anderson leading the league in batting average, and Abreu leading the league in RBIs.
For 2020 to work, those same four people need to continue to have on seasons- two of them, Anderson and Giolito, had their first GREAT seasons after years of being alright, so they'll both need to prove that their peak material is the norm for them, rather than a fluke. Abreu will need to prove that 2019 was not his final taste of maximum production, and that the Sox were not fools in re-signing him.
So, those four need to be great...and we also need Grandal and Keuchel, who also had big 2019s, to continue their consistent records as well. AND we also need the other, smaller guys, like Leury Garcia, Eloy Jimenez, Nomar Mazara, Reynaldo Lopez and Gio Gonzalez to produce strong numbers, AND the oncoming Robert and Kopech to not disappoint once they're brought up.
A lot needs to come together in order for this season to work in Chicago, a lot more than they had to account for in 2019, or even in 2005. So while I want to say that this team could be a contender for the AL Central this year...I can't be certain. A lot of luck factors into it.
But...if everyone's on, they won't need luck.
Coming Tonight: Speaking of Grandal, the guy the Brewers got to replace him at catcher.
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