WHITE SOX HEADLINES OF NOVEMBER

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1 WHITE SOX HEADLINES OF NOVEMBER 9, 2016 Hahn hints at focus on rebuilding Scott Merkin, MLB.com GM Rick Hahn hints that rebuild could be on horizon for White Sox Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago White Sox RF Adam Eaton edged by Mookie Betts for Gold Glove Award Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago As White Sox focus on long term, Chris Sale one of hottes commodities Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune Rowand enjoying taste test as manager Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune Cubs success offers Sox cover to hold nose, tank and rebuild Gordon Wittenmyer, Chicago Sun- Times Mookie Betts edges Adam Eaton for Gold Glove Daryl Van Schouwen, Chicago Sun-Times Imrem: Hughes, Hawk both worthy of Fame Mike Imrem, Daily Herald Can White Sox, Tigers stomach trading Chris Sale, Miguel Cabrera and Co.? Bob Nightengale, USA Today Rick Hahn: Chris Sale s past riffs with front office will play zero role in trade considerations Jerry Crasnick, ESPN Levine: White Sox begin building for Longer-term benefits Bruce Levine, CBS Chicago Levine: Rick Hahn knows Cubs title can be hard on White Sox fans Bruce Levine, CBS Chicago White Sox ballpark transforms into football field for Toledo vs. NIU CBS Chicago Game at Sox Park still big for Northern Illinois, but not for expected reasons Mike Helfgot, Chicago Tribune Silverman: Red Sox should be all-in to deal for White Sox Sale, Quintana Michael Silverman, Boston Herald White Sox to collect $13M from U.S. Cellular Paul McNamara, Athletic Business Hahn hints at focus on rebuilding White Sox looking to long-term solutions this offseason By Scott Merkin / MLB.com November 8th, 2016 CHICAGO -- White Sox general manager Rick Hahn was putting his 11-year-old son to bed during the historic Game 7 World Series victory for the Cubs over the Indians last Wednesday night when the boy asked his dad a baseball-related question not related to either team. "'How long until the White Sox are back in the playoffs?'" said Hahn, recounting the story to the media Tuesday at the General Managers Meetings in Scottsdale, Ariz. The current streak for the White Sox stands at eight years since they last reached the postseason, in '08, exiting in a four-game American League Division Series loss to the Rays. That stretch might run a little longer if the White Sox enact a rebuild this offseason, but it's a wait White Sox fans appear willing to make if their team follows that clear-cut path. Hahn wouldn't confirm a direction Tuesday -- there really is no point to announce they are rebuilding or going for it until they make significant moves. But it sounds as if the White Sox are moving toward a rebuild, and a full rebuild that makes pretty much anybody, outside of a handful of players on the 40-man roster, available to trade for high-end, near Major League-ready talent.

2 "We're veering away from the standpoint of looking for stopgaps," Hahn said. "A lot of what we did the last few years has been trying to enhance the short-term potential of the club, and put ourselves in the position to win immediately. "I feel the approach at this point is focusing on longer-term benefits. It doesn't mean we won't necessarily be in a good position in It means that our targets and what we're hoping to accomplish have a little more longer-term nature." This plan has been discussed extensively internally, with White Sox organization meetings finishing last Sunday in nearby Glendale, Ariz. The front office has a pretty firm idea of what it wants to do, and moves will be explained once they start happening. A rebuild could involve the trade of starters Chris Sale, a five-time All-Star and most likely a Top 5 finisher in the '16 AL Cy Young Award voting who is under affordable team control through '19, and Jose Quintana, a first-time All-Star who is under similar affordable control through '20. They certainly would bring the most talent in return, but then again, the White Sox don't have to trade anyone unless the talent package enhances their product in the present and the future. "Our goal is to put ourselves in position to win on a sustainable basis," Hahn said. "We've taken an approach the last several years and for an extended period of time and obviously some years [have been] more successful than others -- focused on short-term benefit. "We've gotten to the point where we've had our conversations internally with [White Sox chairman] Jerry [Reinsdorf] and [executive vice president] Kenny [Williams] and the coaches, our staff and our scouts. We realize putting ourselves in better position for the long term is a more prudent path." GM Rick Hahn hints that rebuild could be on horizon for White Sox By Dan Hayes / CSN Chicago November 8th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Arizona -- It does Rick Hahn no good from a strategical standpoint to come out and say the White Sox are ready to facilitate the sale of a number of highly-valuable assets this offseason. But if you look at all the hints the White Sox general manager has dropped since he noted in July that the club was yet again mired in mediocrity, including several more at Tuesday s GM meetings, the franchise appears to have a clear direction on the horizon. The White Sox could be on the verge of a historic roster teardown that includes the trades of pitchers Chris Sale and Jose Quintana, among many others. With a free agent class thin on talent, especially among starting pitchers, and a top-heavy 25-man roster that has several critical, expensive holes to fill, the common belief is the White Sox are well-positioned to build for a bright future if they make their players available. And while Hahn took every opportunity Tuesday to qualify that he wasn t defining which direction the White Sox are headed during a 45-minute media session, he also continued to hammer home that the franchise is ready for a change. We ve always been focused on putting ourselves in the best position to win, Hahn said. At the same time, I think we re veering away from the standpoint of looking for stopgaps. A lot of what we did in the last few years had been trying to enhance the short-term potential of the club to put ourselves in a position to win immediately. I feel the approach at this point is focusing on longer-term benefits. It doesn t mean we won t necessarily be in a good position in It means that our targets and whatever we re hoping to accomplish have a little more longer-term fits in nature.

3 If they ve truly reached the conclusion a rebuild is their best plan, the White Sox haven t arrived at that point easily. A rotation complete with Sale, Quintana and power-arm Carlos Rodon would lend most teams to the believe they re only a few players away from postseason glory. But several years of frustration and disappointment -- they haven t had a winning record since 2012 and have no postseason appearances in eight seasons -- and an honest assessment about what they d need to compete in 2017 could force them into action. At the very least, the White Sox as constructed need a starting catcher, a center fielder and a big lefthanded bat --- potentially upwards of $30-35 million in contracts --- as well as another reliever. It s very clear we have certain needs on this roster, Hahn said. None of those things are in great supply out in the free agent market right now. So in order to add to this group and put ourselves in position to win we d have to get a little more creative and do it via trade in all probability. After several years of trying half measures and stop gaps, Hahn sounds as if the White Sox have come to the conclusion those wouldn t do any more. No longer is a team that is too thin at the top of its farm system -- Baseball America s top-10 White Sox prospect list released Monday included five players drafted in June -- hopeful it can catch lightning in a bottle with players on one-year deals, ie: Mat Latos, Jimmy Rollins and Austin Jackson. The White Sox would find themselves in an enviable position if they move forward with such a plan. A five-time All-Star who s owed $38 million over the next three seasons if his options are picked up, Sale would likely be the best pitcher, possibly best player, available this offseason. A first-time All-Star in 2016 who has produced 18.1 f-war the past four seasons, Quintana is owed roughly $37 million over the next four years if his two team options are picked up. David Robertson is owed $25 million over two seasons in a year where Kenley Jansen could fetch $70 million. Adam Eaton, who produced 6.0 f-war and is a Gold Glove finalist for the second time in three seasons, is owed $38.4 million if his options for 2020 and 2021 were to be picked up. Todd Frazier is in the final year of arbitration and Melky Cabrera has one season left on his three-year deal. But who would stay and who would go all depends on what s being offered. Should we go to the position of selling off assets and looking more toward the long-term future, the market will dictate how deep of a cut that is based upon the return for some of our players potentially, Hahn said. But the market plays a huge role and part of that is being patient and making sure you have a firm understanding of the value of first, what s available elsewhere, as well as how your players are viewed by the industry. The White Sox concluded their organizational meetings at the nearby Biltmore Resort on Sunday afternoon. Hahn characterized the three-day session as a great benefit to us all. Not only did the organization have a chance to determine its direction, but manager Rick Renteria also had his first chance to address the group, Hahn said. Hahn said the White Sox have had discussions about where they are headed for several seasons. Those talks intensified in July when the club determined it wouldn t try to supplement its 2016 roster with shortterm additions. One reason the club has long cited its continuance of an aggressive win-now approach is chairman Jerry Reinsdorf s desire to bring the club another World Series title. But several months after Reinsdorf promised his front office would be in lock step this offseason, Hahn said he thinks the White Sox front

4 office is on the same page about what they must do. And if the White Sox are headed for a rebuild, it would only come with Reinsdorf s blessing. The offseason plans are crafted with his involvement and his approval, Hahn said. So it s not a shock when we come to him and say we need to commit fully to this direction, regardless of what direction that is, because he s been part of that conversation for a number of years. Ultimately he s a competitor, just like the rest of us. Ultimately he wants to win as quickly as possible like the rest of us. But at the same time, he also understands where we sit in the likelihood of getting ourselves in that position, and what it requires to get ourselves in that position in the short term, and if that s not feasible, the reasons why we have to take a longer-term view. As frank as he was Tuesday, Hahn isn t yet ready to state which direction the White Sox are headed. Given how baseball s offseason is always a high-stakes game of poker, where posturing and bluffing matter, Hahn doesn t want to give away his position. But once the White Sox do, Hahn promises their frustrated fanbase won t have any trouble figuring out which way they re headed. I don t think it s real beneficial for us to lay it all out there publicly, Hahn said. Once we start making transactions, we ll explain our rationale behind what we re doing and why we did it. But at this point, to announce intentions to every other club and agent that s out there that we may be doing business with, there s not a ton of strategic advantage for us. However, once we start making moves, which ultimately is what people care about, is what is the transaction going to be and what s the direction signaled by those transactions, we ll spend a fair amount of time explaining why we got to where we got to. White Sox RF Adam Eaton edged by Mookie Betts for Gold Glove Award By Paul Roumeliotis / CSN Chicago November 8th, 2016 Adam Eaton was edged out by Boston's Mookie Betts for the Rawlings Gold Glove Award for right fielders in the American League. Eaton was second in Defensive Run Saved with 22, according to fangraphs.com, behind Betts, who had 32 DRS. Betts, 24, is the youngest Red Sox to win the award since Eaton also led all outfielders with 18 assists and had an Ultimate Zone Rating of 23. Eaton was a finalist in 2014 at center field, but Orioles' Adam Jones took home the award. As White Sox focus on long term, Chris Sale one of hottest commodities By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune November 8th, 2016 Rick Hahn is a North Shore native, so he watched many friends and neighbors bask in the Cubs' first World Series title in 108 years over the last week. If that didn't drive home feelings of envy and motivation in the White Sox general manager, he received this question at home during Game 7. "How long until the White Sox are back in the playoffs?" Hahn's 11-year-old son asked. "They see all of their friends having fun and partaking in it all, and that gnaws at me personally," Hahn said of his two boys. "I feel that at home, and we know what White Sox fans are feeling in reaction to watching the celebration and the excitement of Cubs fans. "(The Cubs' championship) is good for baseball, good for the city. No doubt this is a positive. But is there an emotional reaction to it? Yeah, absolutely.

5 "Does it change where we are as an organization in terms of how close we are to winning a championship or how available championship caliber players are to us? No, so you don't let that change the decision making." In other words, the Cubs' success will not drive the decision whether or not to trade valuable left-handers Chris Sale or Jose Quintana. But four straight losing seasons under former manager Robin Ventura and eight straight years without the playoffs have forced the Sox to rethink their strategy with a longer-term focus. Hahn didn't detail the plan Tuesday at the general managers meetings, but as was the case at the Aug. 1 trade deadline, he said the Sox no longer are looking for stopgap solutions for their roster. They are looking for more long-term fits, and if they happen to help the Sox win in 2017, all the better. "We aren't approaching this offseason thinking we can make a couple of short-term tweaks to put us in position to win on a sustainable basis," Hahn said. "We intend to make a firmer commitment to a direction to put ourselves in a better long-term position." Sale is one of the top pitchers in the American League and has one of the most team-friendly contracts in baseball, and Quintana is not far behind. Given the weak supply and high demand for starting pitching, they could be two of the most sought-after trade pieces this offseason. That's nothing new. Hahn estimated he has been fielding offers for Sale since 2011, but he thinks the expectation he is available and the limited pitching market could make teams more aggressive in their pursuits. Complicating matters for the Sox it that even though their greatest need is for position players, they also must try to maintain pitching as a strength. "It wouldn't be just trading an older piece for a younger piece if we made any of these moves," Hahn said. "It would be more about trying to diversify or spread out through various positions including the pitching staff the depth and strength of the roster. Instead of one or two spots, you look at five or six to improve upon. It's a balancing act." If the Sox opt for a rebuild, one issue could be enticing their fan base to back it. With several valuable trade pieces under control, perhaps the Sox wouldn't have to go to the depths of the North Side rebuild. But Cubs President Theo Epstein said Monday night the key was being open with their fans. "We told them what we were trying to do and that we knew we had to be good at it," Epstein said. "We couldn't miss. We had to hit on our first-round picks. We had to hit on our trades. We didn't want it to last any longer than it had to. We asked for their patience, to follow the drafts and the minor leagues along with us, and they responded." Hahn said he intends to be clear about the reasoning for Sox moves once they start to make them. "If we were to go down that path (of total rebuild), we'd be transparent about why we're doing it," Hahn said. "There certainly would be other examples throughout baseball, the most recent one being the Cubs, but Houston and others that have had success from taking that step back. I don't know if those explanations would resonate more now that the Cubs have had success and people in Chicago have seen that."

6 Rowand enjoying taste test as manager By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune November 8th, 2016 Former White Sox outfielder Aaron Rowand said he doesn t have any specific aspirations for the next step in his career, but he is having fun with his first foray into managing. Rowand has spent the last month at Camelback Ranch managing the Arizona Fall League s Glendale Desert Dogs, a combination of the top prospects from the Sox, Astros, Phillies, Dodgers and Pirates. Rowand, who played five of his 11 major-league seasons with the Sox, was offered the opportunity this summer after joining the Sox staff last November as the minor-league outfield and baserunning instructor. The Desert Dogs have gone but continued a five-game winning streak on Monday, as he said his players were hitting their stride. Rowand didn t hint at future managerial aspirations. He said he simply likes being involved in the game again, though the amount of pregame work that goes into managing was the biggest challenge at first. I like dealing with the players, he said. I like giving them information to help them get where they want to go. After the first couple of days you get into a routine and it s easy to get that (pregame) stuff done. The easy part is actually managing the game. The role has given Rowand a deeper look at some of the Sox s top prospects, including this year s No. 10 overall draft pick Zack Collins and left-handed pitcher Brian Clark, who was named to the league s Fall Stars Game team after posting a 1.69 ERA in 10 2/3 innings. Rowand also spoke highly of Nolan Sanburn, who gave up two earned runs over five innings on Monday, and lefty Louie Lechich, an outfielder-turned-pitcher who has thrown 9 2/3 scoreless innings. He s a laidback but also motivational coach, Collins said. He definitely wants to help every guy here, even though three-quarters of the guys aren t from the White Sox. Rowand, of course, is well known among Sox fans for his role in winning the 2005 World Series. He has been busy managing, but he said watching the Cubs celebration following their World Series victory from afar brings back that run. Absolutely, it brings back memories, Rowand said. Both teams have won in the recent past, and now we re going to see who does it again. Obviously there is a friendly rivalry there. I think everybody in this organization looks at it as, All right, now we both won, and we want to try to be the next one. But right now, the Cubs have a very good team. They re young, going to be there for a while, and they re set up for the next few years because of the guys they have under contract. There are a lot of good things going on on that side of town, and that s what we re trying to achieve. Cubs success offers Sox cover to hold nose, tank and rebuild By Gordon Wittenmyer / Chicago Sun-Times November 8th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer on Tuesday called manager Joe Maddon s hire two years ago one of the most significant keys for the Cubs turning a rebuilding, last-place team into a World Series champion as quickly as they did it. In the same ballroom on the same day of the general managers meetings, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn called Rick Renteria the manager the Cubs kicked to the curb to hire Maddon the kind of

7 manager capable of doing the same thing on the South Side, as the Sox embark on what looks like a similar tank-and-rebuild process as the Cubs. Oh, I don t know, Hahn said. If you re asking me if Rick Renteria is capable of winning a championship? Absolutely. There is zero doubt in my mind about that. Ricky not only has deep player development roots and is a teacher, so he s well suited for a young club like he had when he was over on the North Side, but he has the strategic ability and intellect and feel for the game to certainly take a championship caliber roster deep into the postseason. The bigger question might be: When will the Sox newly hired manager get that chance. The Sox are poised for a Cubs-like teardown and long-term rebuild as they enter the offseason in perhaps the best position of any team to exploit a weak free agent market by shopping controllable, affordable, high-caliber starting pitching (Chris Sale, Jose Quintana), two years of a veteran closer (David Robertson) and a Gold Glove outfielder who can lead off (Adam Eaton). Our goal is to put ourselves in position to win on a sustainable basis, Hahn said. We ve taken the approach the last several years obviously some years more successfully than others where we ve been focused on a short-term benefit. I think we ve gotten to the point where we ve had our conversations internally with [chairman] Jerry [Reinsdorf], [top baseball exec] Kenny [Williams] and our staff and scouts, where we realize putting ourselves in a better position for the long term is the more prudent path. Hahn spent a lengthy part of a media session Tuesday alluding to a full tank-and-rebuild process and expressing frustration about not being able to put ourselves in a position with this current core while occasionally declining to actually specify what his offseason plans are. But we aren t going to continue to take half-measures, so to speak, in order to hopefully, in some instances, catch lightning in a bottle or catch some upside here on a short-term basis in order to win, he said. We want to put ourselves in the best and firmest position to win on a sustainable basis going forward. If that requires a longer term view or perhaps some short-term hardships along the way, we realize it s going to be for the greater good. The Cubs success, Hahn admits, is a driving force not only to win for the fans of the city s other team but also offers an up-close example of the potential rewards for taking that step back that the Cubs and several other rebuilding teams have in recent years. I don t know if those explanations would resonate more greatly now that the Cubs have had success, and people in Chicago have seen that, Hahn said. But I think it would certainly be something that, again, if we go down that path, that we would be able to justify based on what s coming back in exchange as well as how we view this coming together in the future. Four consecutive losing seasons despite efforts to build around a talented core obviously cry out for a different approach. But Hoyer is quick to point out the difficulties of the approach and the trap of assuming a championship is assured at the end of the tanking tunnel. The messaging in your clubhouse is really difficult; the messaging to your fan base is really difficult, he said. Fans grow to like players on their team. And when you trade away the guy whose jersey they just got for Christmas, or you trade away a guy s friend or mentor in the clubhouse whoever that might be that s hard messaging. And you have to try to be transparent about it, but it is difficult. I don t think every rebuilding situation is going to work, Hoyer added. You ve got to hit on a lot of different transactions. You ve got to fix your culture after you ve taken a step backwards. There s a lot of steps to getting it right. A number of teams have done a good job of it and been successful, and we re one of those teams.

8 But I think that just the idea that you can rip the Band Aid off, be bad for a couple of years, make some trades and always end up on the positive side, I don t think that s realistic. Mookie Betts edges Adam Eaton for Gold Glove By Daryl Van Schouwen / Chicago Sun-Times November 8th, 2016 Boston Red Sox right fielder won the Gold Glove Award for American Leaguers at his position on Tuesday, edging the White Sox Adam Eaton and Astros George Springer the other two candidates for the award. Eaton, who shifted to right field in 2016 after playing center in 2014 and 2015, led major-league outfielders with 18 assists and ranked second behind Betts with 22 defensive runs saved in Betts had 32 runs saved. Eaton had 18 assists, the most by a Sox outfielder since Jim Rivera had 22 and Minnie Minoso 19 in He was also a finalist in 2014, as a center fielder. Voting was based on 75 percent voting by AL managers and coaches and 25 percent on defensive metrics. Imrem: Hughes, Hawk both worthy of Fame By Mike Imrem / Daily Herald November 8th, 2016 The calendar screams autumn but two of our voices of summer are back in the news. Chicago Cubs play-by-play announcer Pat Hughes hardly had time to leave after describing the Cubs' run to a World Series title. Now Hughes and Ken "Hawk" Harrelson have been named finalists for the Ford C. Frick Award, which the Hall of Fame presents for excellence in baseball broadcasting. Could there be two more diverse men to enter our homes, workplaces and maybe Cooperstown some day than Hughes and Harrelson? They're as different as their home run calls: Hughes' "It's got a chaaaance GONE!" and Harrelson's "You can put it on the boaaaard YES!" Hughes paints pictures of Cubs games on radio and Harrelson expands on what we see of the Chicago White Sox on TV. Before we go any further, let's officially endorse both Harrelson and Hughes for this year's one available Frick honor. A good guess is that among the criteria are longevity, authenticity and presentation. Hughes and Harrelson qualify on all three counts. Pat Hughes has spent 34 years doing baseball games, the past 21 with the Cubs, and this season might have been his best among a career full of bests. That's understandable, considering the Cubs' first championship in 108 years provided Hughes with a historic platform.

9 After a series of dreadful Cubs seasons, Hughes sounded regenerated last year and even more so this year. Such a wonderful wordsmith and so wonderfully precise, Hughes provided Cubs fans with everything they needed to know about every pitch of every game from April into November. Each monumental moment was another opportunity for Hughes to demonstrate that he's up to every challenge. Unscripted, Hughes instinctively knew exactly when to say what and when to say nothing. Hughes doesn't go on rants or raves, instead raising his voice to the perfect pitch when something noteworthy occurs. Something noteworthy like, say, the Cubs winning the World Series. Hughes and Harrelson both root, root, root for the home team, but the former comes across as a baseball broadcaster pulling for the Cubs and the latter is more like a Sox fanatic broadcasting their games. Diverse? Well, if they were actors, Pat Hughes would do Shakespeare while Hawk Harrelson would do Marvel. Harrelson has lost a step in recent years, just as other longtime broadcasters and longtime sports columnists have when they reached their 70s. (Please don't bring up Vin Scully as someone who didn't; we're talking about mortals here.) But Harrelson's collection of signature calls -- "catbird seat" "get foul, it does" and, yes, "YES!" -- still resonate with a certain segment of Sox fans. Then when Sox circumstances allow, echoes will awaken from when Harrelson was in his prime and he was as special a broadcaster as baseball had. A friend told me not long ago that his son and his son's friends still use Harrelson's calls when they're playing ball: "Right size, wrong shape" "Can of corn" and so many others. Overall, Hawk Harrelson and Pat Hughes have been so distinct and authentic for so long that both belong in the broadcasters' wing of baseball's Hall of Fame. Perhaps one will be elected as soon as this year. Can White Sox, Tigers stomach trading Chris Sale, Miguel Cabrera and Co.? By Bob Nightengale / USA Today November 8th, 2016 PARADISE VALLEY, Ariz. -- The World Series champion Cubs may be feted for life in Chicago, but considering the adoration and attention that Al Avila of the Detroit Tigers and Rick Hahn of the Chicago White Sox are receiving at baseball s general manager meetings, they may not have to buy dinner or drinks all winter. For the first time in nearly two decades, the Tigers and White Sox are letting teams know that anyone and everyone on their roster are for sale, trying to emulate the Cubs rebuilding success, and surviving long enough to bask in the glory.

10 You want future Hall of Famer Miguel Cabrera, former MVP and Cy Young winner Justin Verlander, or All- Stars Ian Kinsler, Justin Upton, J.D. Martinez, and Victor Martinez of the Tigers? Pick up the phone, and an operator will be on hold, waiting to place your call to Avila. This is a change in philosophy how we do business, said Avila, whose payroll has ballooned to $216 million. We ve been working well over our means for so many years. We keep adding, keep paying the luxury tax and keep putting the organization in peril because we don t have young guys coming through the system as much as you need. At some point, you are going to hit a brick wall. We are at that brick wall right now. This is a process that could take three winters, not just one. But the first step is always the hardest. You want 2016 All-Star starting pitcher Chris Sale, fellow lefty All-Star Jose Quintana, closer David Robertson, power-hitting third baseman Todd Frazier, or outfielders Melky Cabrera or Adam Eaton? Hahn is there to make your dreams come true. We have a pretty firm idea what we want to do, Hahn says. We have taken an approach the last several years that were focused on the short-term benefit. I think we ve gotten to the point a better position for the long-term is a more prudent path. Our goal is to win on a sustainable basis. It hasn t even been a week since the Cubs won their first World Series since 1908, and now everyone wants to expedite the teardown, welcome the growing pains and laugh about it all of the way to baseball s mountaintop. Well, be careful what you wish for, Cubs GM Jed Hoyer says, because there s no guarantee it will provide anything but heartache. It s not an easy strategic decision, Hoyer says, because you re going to put your fans through a difficult time, and you re going to endure a lot of losses. It s painful. There has to have the stomach for that. You have to go through a lot. There were a lot of long nights after games thinking about how we re going to turn this around. Any time you re trading away good veterans, you re setting yourself up for some really long summers. For us, there were some factors that allowed us to come together quickly, but there s no assurances. The idea you can rip the Band-Aid off after a couple of years and end up on the positive side, I don t think that s realistic. It may not be two down years. It may be four. And not every rebuilding situation is going to work. These are painful and gut-wrenching decisions for Mike Ilitch of the Tigers and Jerry Reinsdorf of the White Sox, two of the most competitive owners in sports. Ilitch s hockey team, the Detroit Red Wings, have won four Stanley Cup championships during his ownership, but he badly craves that first World Series title. Reinsdorf s basketball team, the Chicago Bulls, have won six NBA titles, but he d love a World Series ring for his other hand, joining the 2005 championship. The White Sox haven t had a winning season since 2012, and haven t reached the playoffs with Sale, so now they can t help but wonder if trading Sale, with an asking price of five key players, could re-boot their title efforts. Chris is a very desirable target in the game, and it s always been our obligation to listen to the value in Chris, Hahn says. He s not alone on our roster but he s certainly one that attracts the most headlines and speculation, and with good cause. He s in his prime. And he s controllable for the next three years.

11 Our goal is was always to have him on the front end of a White Sox championship club, but we need to understand what the market value is for him, and other players, and do what s in the best of our team in 2017 and beyond. If Sale indeed is traded, the Boston Red Sox, Los Angeles Dodgers, Texas Rangers and Houston Astros figure to be in the forefront, with the farm systems deep and powerful enough to pull off the deal. If the Tigers unload Verlander or Cabrera, only the richest of franchises will be able to take on their contracts. Yet, you ask around at the annual general manager meetings, seeking predictions where these stars may land, and executives are skeptical whether the White Sox and Tigers will have the courage to actually pull the trigger. Considering Sale is under control for just $39.5 million through 2019, he may have the most value of any player in the game. There is no more popular Tigers player than Cabrera, a future Hall of Famer, unless it s Verlander, who this year will finish in the top three in the Cy Young balloting for the fourth time. Yet, it s a whole different price tag than Sale. Verlander is owed $84 million over the next three years, and Cabrera is owed $220 million over seven years. And get ready for a clubhouse mutiny among the veterans who remain standing, volunteering to be the next one out the door when there s no chance of winning. I think that s the most difficult thing, Hoyer says, the messaging in your clubhouse. The messaging to your fan base is really difficult. Fans grow to like players on your team, and when you trade away the guy whose jersey you just got for Christmas, or you trade away a guy who s a friend or mentor in the clubhouse, that s hard messaging. You have to try to be transparent about it, but it sure is difficult. Soon, we ll find out just who has the stomach for it. Rick Hahn: Chris Sale s past riffs with front office will play zero role in trade considerations By Jerry Crasnick / ESPN November 8th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- As the White Sox gauge the trade market for Chris Sale, their decision to pursue a deal or stand pat will be rooted in baseball concerns rather than any lingering animosity from past confrontations with the team's ace. Sale's ongoing differences with the Chicago front office came to the fore in July when he sliced up the team's throwback uniforms rather than wear them in a game. He received a five-game suspension for insubordination and destroying team equipment. But White Sox general manager Rick Hahn told ESPN.com on Tuesday that past rifts will play no part in the team's offseason deliberations. "It's a nonfactor,'' Hahn said from the MLB general managers meetings. "It's zero factor from our standpoint in terms of his fit with us or our belief that he can help be the anchor of a championship-caliber rotation. "Whether it influences some other club's view of him, I don't know. I don't think it should. I think a lot of what we've seen from Chris is part of what makes him great. It's that competitiveness, that fight, that sometimes spills over a little bit into areas outside the white lines. It's part of what makes him so good during the game.'' White Sox general manager Rick Hahn told ESPN.com on Tuesday that Chris Sale's past rifts with the front office will play no part in the team's offseason deliberations. AP Photo/Paul Beaty

12 Sale, 27, is likely to be a hot commodity for teams in search of a front-line starter because of his track record and his contract. Since 2012, Sale ranks fifth among MLB starters with a 3.04 ERA, third in strikeouts (1,133) behind Max Scherzer and Clayton Kershaw, and third in baseball-reference.com's wins above replacement (27.6) behind Kershaw and Scherzer. Sale is under contract for $12 million next season, and the White Sox have club options for $12.5 million in 2018 and $13.5 million in Sale, Chris Archer, Zack Greinke, Justin Verlander and Sonny Gray are among the front-line starters who have been mentioned as potential trade targets in an extremely weak free-agent market. Rich Hill, Ivan Nova, Andrew Cashner and Jeremy Hellickson are the top available free agents. The White Sox finished fourth in the American League Central with a record this past season and haven't finished above.500 since Manager Robin Ventura resigned at the end of the season, and Rick Renteria was chosen to replace him. While a Sale trade would be a clear indication that the White Sox plan to rebuild rather than try to make a playoff push in 2017, Hahn declined to address which way the team might be leaning. "We have a pretty firm sense internally about what we want to accomplish,'' Hahn said. "But I've been saying this for months back in Chicago: There's just not any advantage to us to declare publicly exactly what we're trying to accomplish. "Once we start making deals, we'll explain precisely the rationale behind them. Are we looking to add and compete right now, or are we looking for a more long-term benefit? The last few years, we've taken a shorter-term, stopgap type of approach, and obviously that hasn't borne fruit.'' Levine: White Sox begin building for Longer-term benefits By Bruce Levine / CBS Chicago November 8th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (CBS) We hold these truths to be self-evident that all offseasons are not created equal. In the case of the Chicago White Sox, this could be a franchise-altering offseason of blockbuster trades and new directions. White Sox general manager Rick Hahn should be the busiest man in baseball, and the perception that he will among the most active people in offseason talks was perpetuated by his open candor as the GM meetings began in earnest Tuesday. Our goal is to put ourselves in a position to win on a sustainable basis, Hahn said with a strong sense of purpose in his tone. We have taken the approach for a number of years that we were focused on a shortterm success. We have gotten to the point when we have had our conversations internally with Jerry (Reinsdorf) and Kenny (Williams) where we realize a better position for the long-term is a more prudent path. Left-hander Chris Sale, the ace of the White Sox staff, will be the hot name bandied about at the GM meetings in Arizona. Due to four consecutive seasons of sub-.500 baseball results, White Sox brass must try and reshape the direction of their ball club. At the same time, tearing apart a youthful and productive young pitching staff would be tricky and full of risks. We have always been focused on putting ourselves in the best position to win, Hahn said. At the same time, I think we are veering away from looking for stopgaps. A lot of what we did in the past few years was to add to the short-term potential of the club. That was we put ourselves in a position to win right away. I feel the approach now is focusing on longer-term benefits.

13 The minor leagues have certainly produced enough starting pitching over the past decade for the parent club. The real problem for the franchise has been developing position players. The team appears to have hit on 2013 first-round draft pick Tim Anderson, who as a rookie in 2016 proved to be a major-league caliber shortstop with plenty of upside going forward. After that, it would appear only position players under contract control like outfielder Adam Eaton and first baseman Jose Abreu can be projected long-term fits. This does not mean we won t be in a good position to win in 2017, Hahn said. What it means is our targets will have a little bit longer fits in nature. The translation is pretty transparent here. The White Sox will move parts that are marketable to other clubs for more contract- and team-controllable players of the future. In the past Hahn, has stated he has no untouchables. The marketplace is very weak on free-agent starting pitching. This puts the White Sox in a strong position to explore creative and possible multi-player deals without hesitation. The market is hugely important to understand, Hahn said. First, from the standpoint of setting your direction. Doing what you have to be realistic where you stand as a club. When you make a fair assessment of your chances in 2017, it sends you on a certain way down a path. Should we go to the position of selling off assets, looking toward a more long-term future, the market will dictate how deep of a cut that is. That would also be based on the return for some of our players (in trade talks). The market plays a huge role. Part of that is being patient. You must be sure of what is out there. The other part is how your players are valued by the industry. We would not be just trading a younger piece for a younger piece. We would want to diversify the use of players, depending on the depth and strength of the roster. You may look at five or six spots to improve on. Hahn is pretty clear on his team s marching orders. The future is no longer right now for the White Sox. A new plan for a more sustainable group of good players is being put in place. Levine: Rick Hahn knows Cubs title can be hard on White Sox fans By Bruce Levine / CBS Chicago November 8th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. (CBS) The pressure of having another team eight miles north win a World Series is real for the White Sox. As the GM meetings got started in earnest Tuesday, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn was questioned about the Cubs winning their first championship in 108 years, and he was candid in his responses. His message was the emotional component of it is real and understandable, but the White Sox can t allow that to divert implementing their strategy in practice. These plans that we have for this offseason, we have been exploring this possibility for years, Hahn said of the team potentially getting younger and focusing on the long term rather than the short term. We have been looking at this potentially happening this offseason since July or August. So I don t think what happened in October (with the Cubs winning) changes that at all. Any time you don t win the World Series, you feel a level of frustration. It s difficult for any of us in the organization to watch the postseason. That includes the American League side of it. That is without getting to what the Cubs did. You as a group want to be there. That is why we do this.

14 Hahn addressed how city bragging rights that go with a championship team can affect a crosstown rival. The competitiveness of seeing someone else reap the benefits is hard, Hahn said. When you add in the element of that going on in our city I do feel happy for my friends and neighbors who are Cub fans. I know a ton of people who have been waiting a long time for that. I realize it s good for baseball, good for the city, it s good for my friends in the Cubs organization. You are certainly happy for all of them. At the same time, it reinforces getting our fans back in that position. The White Sox are coming off of one of their longest periods of sub-.500 baseball in decades, with four straight losing seasons. That downturn has wreaked havoc on attendance and moral around Guaranteed Rate Field. We realize there is very real frustration within our fan base, watching their friends and neighbors celebrate the highest level of success, Hahn said. It has been since 2005 since we have been able to celebrate that kind of success. I don t think it changes our plans. You try not to be emotional or reactionary to what other clubs are doing. It doesn t change what is available in the open market or the value of your players. It does not change the needs you currently have. Certainly there is the emotional side of it. You want our fans to enjoy what their friends and neighbors are enjoying right now. White Sox ballpark transforms into football field for Toledo vs. NIU CBS Chicago November 8th, 2016 CHICAGO (CBS) For the first time ever, the home of the Chicago White Sox will host a football game, when the Northern Illinois Huskies face off against Toledo on Wednesday. WBBM Newsradio s Terry Keshner was the first to see the field s new look. You have a tough time telling it was ever a baseball field, said Roger Bossard, the head groundskeeper for the Chicago White Sox. Bossard has been busy transforming the field from a baseball diamond to a football gridiron. This certainly is new to me, he said. Usually at this time of year, I m rebuilding my clay, my pitching mounds, my bullpens. I have no pitching mound right now as we look around. So, it is different. Bossard is considered the best groundskeeper in baseball and is known as The Sodfather. I can guarantee you there is no baseball groundskeeper that s ever going to tell you that I want to see football on my field, he said. However, the weather s been great. That s what I want to hear. I don t want to hear heavy storms, and 300 pound guys running on my field, and so obviously it was a lot of work. One end zone sits along the third-base line, with the other in right field near the bullpen. The infield dirt has been covered in sod. The NIU-Toledo game at the White Sox s ballpark won t only be the first football game at the stadium, it will be the first game ever played there since the ballpark got its new name, Guaranteed Rate Field. The game also will be kind of a throwback to the days when the Bears and Cubs shared Wrigley Field and the White Sox and Cardinals (who have since moved to Arizona) shared the original Comiskey Park. You know what, we do a little bit of everything here in Chicago, Bossard said.

15 Game at Sox Park still big for Northern Illinois, but not for expected reasons By Mike Helfgot / Chicago Tribune November 8th, 2016 It was a sunny August afternoon, Guaranteed Rate Field still was known as U.S. Cellular Field and the Northern Illinois Huskies were the envy of the Mid-American Conference. The Huskies were holding their annual Chicago media day at the White Sox ballpark for some early publicity for the game they're calling the "Chi-Town Showdown" against Toledo, and athletic director Sean Frazier was talking about how to seize on the football program's success in the ever-changing landscape of college sports. In a nutshell, Frazier said, interest has to improve in the form of attendance and donor contributions, and it has to come from the estimated 145,000 alumni in the Chicago area. "I think right now is our time," Frazier said. "I know it is.... That is where my focus is because once we activate this thing, look out." What happened next, no one saw coming. The Huskies lost. Again. And again. And again. And though they have played much better since that 0-4 start, the fact of the matter is they're 3-6 with no shot of extending their MAC West title streak to seven heading into what was supposed to be a big game against Toledo (7-2) on Wednesday night. In more than one way, it still is. NIU needs to win its final three games to qualify for a ninth straight bowl appearance, extending its MAC record. As long as there's a bowl game to play for, the emphasis remains on the present rather than the unknown future. And the game is in Chicago, a crucial locale in terms of former and future students. "It probably doesn't have everything riding on it the way people thought," NIU coach Rod Carey said. "The same appeal might not be there, but it is a big game for those reasons." Things might have been different that is to say the same as the last six years had third-year starting quarterback Drew Hare stayed healthy. But the Huskies did lose their opener to Wyoming in a game Hare played well before he was lost for the season to a knee injury in Week 2. Carey said last week that recent NIU teams probably would have struggled if quarterbacks Chandler Harnish or Jordan Lynch got hurt, but Harnish had Lynch behind him, while Hare learned from Lynch. Hare's backup, Ryan Graham, played well after being pressed into duty against Toledo last season, but he was unproductive when Hare went down this fall. The offense has thrived since Anthony Maddie replaced Graham after the 0-4 start, but Maddie is a fifthyear senior and it's not clear whether the next Harnish, Lynch, Hare or even Maddie is on the roster. Carey has consistently expressed support for Graham as the quarterback of the future, and it would be interesting to see if he goes back to Graham if the Huskies are eliminated from bowl contention. At the low point of the season, a loss to Western Illinois, Frazier did not reject an inquiry about Carey's job status. He gave Carey support for the rest of the season but went no further. Frazier was a member of Wisconsin's athletic department when Carey replaced Dave Doeren before the Huskies' improbable appearance in the Orange Bowl after the 2012 season.

16 The team continued to play hard for Carey after dropping to 0-4, and the turnaround may have changed things. If the Huskies win out, it would be a lot easier to interpret the season as a hiccup rather than a crossroads. "We're in a situation," Carey said, "that because we had such a bad start to the season, every game is a playoff game to try to get to that next game." Silverman: Red Sox should be all-in to deal for White Sox Sale, Quintana By Michael Silverman / Boston Herald November 9th, 2016 SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. Go try to get Chris Sale, Red Sox. Try very, very hard to go get him. Jose Quintana, another 27-year-old White Sox pitcher who would come relatively cheap and is entering the peak of his career, is the other name the Sox should begin pestering and nagging White Sox general manager Rick Hahn about night and day, starting five minutes ago and right up to next July s trading deadline. Why? Because starters that good and that cheap and that young simply do not come available that often. And the Red Sox are not as deep and not as good in the starting rotation as they think, or want us to believe that they think. Believe me, I m not a total adrenaline junkie who feels badly let down that all the Sox say they want to do this offseason is snag a set-up reliever and a big bat to replace David Ortiz. In truth, that really does sound dull. The Red Sox did go really big a year ago when they made a massive investment in free agent David Price. And, after all, the team did rise from the ashes of a 2015 last-place finish to wind up atop the AL East this year by virtue of a potent blend of young position players and veteran pitching talent, so one can totally get why they say they re going to lay relatively low this offseason. It won t be that easy to find a replacement for Ortiz, and it might be even tougher to find an eighth-inning set-up savant to slot behind clean-inning-only closer Craig Kimbrel. But after hearing Hahn yesterday acknowledge openly about the value Sale and Quintana represent, how thin the free agent starting pitchers market is and how his ballclub no longer can tweak its way to becoming a contender and has to think about a long-term turnaround, that s the equivalent of the White Sox taking out an ad in the middle of Times Square. They re open for business, and everybody s available. And the Red Sox should be in buy, not hold, mode. Of course, the cost will be high, maybe even exorbitantly high. Last summer when the clubs spoke, some of the rumored combinations going to Chicago included both Mookie Betts and Xander Bogaerts. And there were other names in the mix as well. Take Betts and Bogaerts out of the equation, however. That s the core the Red Sox should be building around. Everyone else? They have to be in the mix.