3 Necessary Breakouts:

Chicago White Sox’s

By: Michael A. Chase Jr.

4/26/2020

       Despite the start of MLB season being on hold there is still plenty to discuss in terms of teams and players. One topic is which players on certain teams need to or are on the verge of having breakout seasons for their clubs. This topic brings up both position players and pitchers whose development and uptick in production can directly affect the success of their franchise. The Chicago White Sox’s had an active offseason and were coming into 2020 with significant expectations. A team who despite a 72-89 record in 2019 showed promise with the first wave of their young talent reaching and making an impact at the big-league level. Now with some key acquisitions to add to their growing core it is key to identify a few players whose production will be crucial to the club’s success. That is why this piece will look to highlight 3 players who are breakout candidates for the White Sox’s. Depicting the need for each of these players to produce in order to give Chicago a shot to be in postseason contention.

            Outfielder Eloy Jimenez:

-        The first player to discuss is Outfielder Eloy Jimenez who will play a huge part in the Sox lineup. After posting a .267 average, with 31 homers and 79 rbi’s in his rookie season, the 23-year old outfielder showcased immense potential. The White Sox’s hope for an increased and sustainable level of run production from Jimenez. Yet, there are two main areas of his game that need improvement going into next season. These being his defense and plate discipline, and if he grows in these areas, he will continue his ascension to becoming a star. First with his plate discipline Jimenez needs to up his walks and cut down on his strikeouts. By doing this his on-base percentage should rise significantly, while his contact rate will increase and allow him to show off his raw power even more. With 134 strikeouts to just 30 walks contributing to his .315 OBP, it is impressive the numbers he put up. If Jimenez can learn the strike-zone more and increase his contact rate he will be able to show off his power and up his batting average as well. As for his defense Jimenez had a solid .985 fielding percentage with 3 errors committed in 114 games. Though the young outfielder does still need to improve the reads he gets on the ball. Leading to better jumps on balls in the air and growing more comfortable in left field. Jimenez if he continues to learn how ballparks play around the league. While working on the nuances of the outfield to become an above average defender Jimenez will become a complete player. With these subtle refinements in his game Eloy Jimenez will only further blossom into star middle of the order hitter for Chicago.

Starting Pitcher Dylan Cease:

-        Cease is a player the White Sox’s need to improve significantly from an uneven rookie season. As this will give the Sox another reliable starting pitcher to fortify what looks to be a good rotation. Cease in his rookie season posted a 4-7 record, with a 5.79 ERA in 73 innings pitched. He did strikeout 81 batters in those 73 innings, showcasing the swing and miss stuff he possesses. His lack of control was an issue at times with 35 walks and 15 homers allowed, but these issues are fixable. Cease who they acquired through trade from the Chicago Cubs along with Eloy Jimenez is another young piece they will be counting on. For Cease to become a rotation mainstay he needs to improve in two areas. One being lowering the number of base runners allowed, and the other working on consistently getting deeper into games. To first address the limiting of base runners, this will come with improved control. As his 1.55 WHIP with the stuff he possesses is not the correlation you expect. With him handing out 3 or more walks in 6 of his 14 starts his lack of command kept him under constant duress. By being more aggressive in the zone, while continuing to learn tendencies of big-league hitters he will learn more effective ways to attack the zone while staying out of the middle of the plate. In terms of him getting deeper into games Cease pitched 5 or less frames in 8 of his 14 starts. Cease will be looked to provide more innings to help the Sox preserve their bullpen. While it will help him build up innings in his arm to handle heavier workloads down the line. By becoming another reliable starter this will make the job of managing the pitching staff much easier on manager Rick Renteria. Dylan Cease has great stuff and just needs to command his arsenal better to become a stallworth in what could be a strong White Sox rotation.

Reliever Aaron Bummer:

-        For Aaron Bummer he had his breakout season last year for the White Sox. Posting a 2.13 Era in 67.2 innings pitched. Though the key for this hard throwing lefty is to show this past year is a sustainable run of production that will make him a fixture in their bullpen. He showed some strikeout stuff with 60 K’s to just 24 walks, while also posting 27 holds as he became a trusted reliever for manager Rick Renteria. Bummer must continue to prove to be a true left-handed weapon to be utilized to deal with the tough batters in the AL Central. From Max Kepler and Eddie Rosario with the Twins to Francisco Lindor of the Indians. Along with young power threats like Hunter Dozier and Jorge Soler in Kansas City these are the type of hitters Bummer will be relied upon to get out. As he will look to continue to prove he can be trusted in high leverage situations against the American League’s best. If Bummer can continue to harness his command, and especially keep contact rates on his fastball low he will be dominant. Aaron Bummer at 26 years old has still a good chunk of his prime ahead of him. If he adjusts his command and learns major league competition through further opportunities, he will quickly become one of the best left-handed relievers in the sport. A player that can be the backbone of the White Sox’s pen for the foreseeable future.

These three players for the White Sox are all major contributors that need to have breakout campaigns to better the club. Players that with strong seasons could strengthen each level of the roster they contribute to. The White Sox will still be a young team relying on bevy of young players including this trio to produce results. Thanks in part to an active offseason, in which they added needed veterans, management believes this team will make a huge leap. They will need contributions from across the roster to reach their ceiling. This trio of players discussed though each will have a huge impact on this team’s potential contention.