The Chicago White Sox bolstered their infield over the past week with the additions of Brett Lawrie and Todd Frazier, but they could still use an upgrade in the outfield, as the team is reportedly shopping Avisail Garcia.
With rumors swirling throughout the MLB after the Winter Meetings, could the White Sox be ready to pounce on one of the top available outfielders? Melky Cabrera had a decent campaign in 2015, but Garcia registered another underwhelming year and Adam Eaton didn't get going until much later in the season, which the team cannot afford to have happen in 2016.
"Justin Upton and Yoenis Cespedes are potential targets," writes Bruce Levine of CBS Chicago. "That said, doesn't former Royals standout Alex Gordon make the most sense? The White Sox are in need an RBI bat from the left side. Gordon would also give the team the best defensive left or right fielder in the league, while taking away a leader from the world champion Royals."
The Tigers have also been loosely mentioned in rumors regarding these players, so the White Sox could also take away from another division rival in the event they sign one of them.
Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago doesn't think the White Sox "will wind up with a high-profile free agent," but he also says the team isn't ruling anything out.
Once all of the salaries are settled for their arbitration-eligible players, the 2016 payroll is expected to reach $118 million. They're set up nicely for the future, as the payroll isn't projected to exceed $103 million (including contract options and arbitration salaries) in the five following seasons.
"If [owner Jerry] Reinsdorf signs off on a $20-million player for the outfield, the payroll can still come in around $130 million," Levine adds. "This can be done with some creative back-loaded contracts. This manipulation can be considered, due to the fact the team has $27.5 million coming off the books after the 2016 season with the expiration of the contracts of John Danks and Adam LaRoche."
The outfield market is largely undefined at this point, as we discussed yesterday, since Jason Heyward is the only star outfielder to sign this offseason. Additionally, the deal he received (eight years and $184 million) was anticipated for a while, as opposed to the other names on the market due to various question marks (offensive production, defensive efficiency and age).
If some of the aforementioned names are available late in the offseason and have their prices drop, the White Sox could be a suitor. One more impact bat can go a long way for Chicago and perhaps put them in contention in the AL Central - something they've been estranged from for the past three years.
