The tragic tale of the 2022 White Sox actually began last October when the Houston Astros exposed them in the ALDS, breezing through a 3-1 postseason series victory and leaving no doubt where the Sox stood in baseball’s hierarchy of teams.
The Sox admitted they were outclassed and said they would chalk up the failure to experience after watching a superior team demonstrate how the game is played at the highest level.
Weeks later, manager Tony La Russa sat watching Sox prospects in the Arizona Fall League. He was talking about 2022, and with a gleam in his eye promised the Sox, who had won 93 games and the AL Central title, would be better.
They were not. In fact, they were worse, and before the most disappointing Sox season in recent history was over, La Russa’s managerial career was also done due to health problems. He had guided them to a 63-65 record.
Injuries were a big part of it. Garrett Crochet had Tommy John surgery, Lance Lynn suffered a knee injury in spring training and Yoan Moncada strained an oblique muscle on the last day, setting the tone.
Luis Robert, Tim Anderson, Eloy Jimenez, Michael Kopech and Liam Hendriks missed significant time on the injured list.
But the Sox led the majors in errors, plodded on the bases with station-to-station speed and ran into too many outs. They chased bad pitches, watched their walk rate plummet from fourth in the majors last season to last this year and hit 149 home runs after hitting 190 in 2021.
The injury rash put the training staff and front office on edge. There was puzzling reluctance to put players on the IL, and La Russa permitted players to cruise at three-quarter speed on routine plays. It was a bad look, especially in stark contrast to the hustling, young Cleveland Guardians, who surprised everyone by finishing 11 games ahead of the Sox.
When La Russa stepped aside on Aug. 30, the team played with vigor under bench coach Miguel Cairo, winning nine of the next 12 games and cutting Cleveland’s lead to 11⁄2 games with a 10-2 win at Oakland, a day after scoring five runs in the ninth to beat the A’s 5-3.
But the Sox would get no closer, retreating to mediocrity. The next day, La Russa, in Oakland for Dave Stewart’s jersey retirement ceremony, walked through the visitors clubhouse, looking refreshed as he shook hands with players after 12 days off the job. La Russa watched from a suite as the Sox lost 10-3 that Sunday, falling to 72-69 and 2 ½ games behind the Indians, who were on their way to a torrid 24-6 finish.
In the end, the rebuild that had begun with the admission from general manager Rick Hahn that the Sox were “mired in mediocrity” produced the most mediocre season possible, an 81-81 record in the third season of a contention window.
As statistics guru JayCuda noted, the Sox were remarkably mediocre from start to finish in 2022. They were 5-5 in their last 10 games, 15-15 in the last 30, 25-25 in the last 50, 30-30 in the last 60, 35-35 in the last 70, 60-60 in the last 120, 75-75 in the last 150 and 80-80 in last 160.
You get the picture.
That will happen with under-performing, mediocre player performances. Here were the Sox’ top performers, according to Baseball Reference wins above replacement:
Dylan Cease 6.4, Jose Abreu 4.2, Johnny Cueto 3.5, Michael Kopech 2.2, Luis Robert 2.1, Elvis Andrus 1.7, Jimenez and Hendriks 1.7, Reynaldo Lopez 1.5, Josh Harrison 1.4, Anderson 1.3, Seby Zavala 1.0, Moncada 1.0.
Catcher Yasmani Grandal, entering the fourth year of a Sox record $73 million contract, was at minus-1.5 after struggling defensively and batting .202 with five homers in 99 games.
At his end of year press conference Monday, Hahn said he won’t “throw money at the problem” of a flawed Sox roster overloaded with first baseman and designated hitters in the outfield.
Anything would seem to be on the table, including trades of All-Stars Anderson and Hendriks.
As always, the Sox might not be fun to watch. But they’ll be worth watching this offseason.
