WHITE SOX HEADLINES OF OCTOBER 5, 2016 Rebuild or spend big? Two differing routes to White Sox change Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune Renteria will place his own stamp on White Sox Daryl Van Schouwen, Chicago Sun-Times Baines, Belle, McGwire up for Hall of Fame consideration Daryl Van Schouwen, Chicago Sun-Times McKnight: Which path will Chicago White Sox take now? Connor McKnight, Daily Herald White Sox GM Rick Hahn: We know fans are open to a complete rebuild Staff, CBS Chicago Rebuild or spend big? Two differing routes to White Sox change By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune October 4th, 2016 General manager Rick Hahn says the White Sox have a plan. But no, you don't get to hear it yet. After announcing new manager Rick Renteria as the first major change one day into the Sox offseason, Hahn again said the organization needs to consider changing its tack from its recent efforts to piece together teams each season while also trying to keep their very best young prospects. That strategy has resulted only in extra vacation time during the club's eight straight seasons without the playoffs the fourth-longest postseason drought in baseball behind the Mariners (15), Marlins (13) and Padres (10). "You do run a risk of having half-measures when you try to serve two masters, when you try to serve the future as well as the present," Hahn said. "We've tried that, and we've obviously not had the success we've wanted in Chicago going that path. We aren't going to shy away from it just because other clubs haven't done it. At the same time, we have to be fully cognizant of the fact it hasn't work thus far, and therefore something has to change." That means the Sox likely are going to spend big or rebuild this offseason. Hahn said revealing the direction won't benefit his dealings with other teams and agents, so he's keeping quiet for now. Here's a look at both courses. Rebuild This route can seem oh-so-appealing when you gaze north from 35th and Shields to Clark and Addison and see what it has brought the Cubs. And the Sox without a doubt have the pieces to bring in a massive haul of nearly major-league-ready prospects. Chris Sale alone might be expected to net four or five promising young players. Throw in Jose Quintana, Jose Abreu, Melky Cabrera or Todd Frazier and the Sox are on their way to restocking their farm system, if the right decisions are made on the returns.
The Sox still could keep some of their top young players considering left-hander Carlos Rodon, outfielder Adam Eaton and shortstop Tim Anderson are all under control through at least 2021. That even could include Quintana, who has team options through 2020. Combined with a recent draft class that includes potential late-innings reliever Zack Burdi, catcher Zack Collins and starter Alec Hansen, that's a decent core. This option looks even better when considering Hahn agrees it could be a seller's market this offseason given a weak free-agent class. "There are limited options on the free-agent market, so therefore proven and controlled talent is going to continue to be highly valued," Hahn said. Spend big The rebuild may sound good in theory, but is it really 80-year-old Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf's style? Reinsdorf and the Sox front office very well could look at the current roster and think they're about four big moves away from being contenders. Throw significant money or the last remaining good prospects at a top-tier catcher, center fielder, infielder/designated hitter and reliever, then insulate the roster with some depth, and perhaps the story line changes. Hahn said he thinks the biggest problem with the 2016 Sox is injuries and underperformance from some of the small-scale moves they made exposed their depth issues. "I don't think the problem with this roster is necessarily the top," Hahn said. "Where we got ourselves into trouble is the layer below that. We lacked the depth and we had some setbacks to fill in on the fly, and the middle and bottom of the roster would be the area that you would want to improve. Ideally, you would add more premium talent that mixes in with that group at the top." That top group includes two of the top pitchers in the American League in Sale and Quintana, and considering how affordable their contracts are, selling them for the wrong price could be a regret waiting to happen. Maybe the Sox splurge and give it one more shot or maybe not. The result of the Sox's secret plan is Hahn spends a lot of time giving either/or scenarios to the media, but he did have a definitive opinion about the club's first move. "We all feel very strongly that Ricky is the right guy regardless of which direction we go," he said. "Even if we go with the full rebuild, take it to the extreme, Ricky's background in player development and as a teacher is going to serve us extremely well as we go through that process. We feel he's the right man whether that championship-caliber team is on the field in 2017 or something that was built over a number of years." Renteria will place his own stamp on White Sox By Daryl Van Schouwen / Chicago Sun-Times October 4th, 2016 Rick Renteria is not Robin Ventura, and he will put his own stamp on the White Sox as soon as pitchers and catchers report to spring training in mid-february. Renteria, hired Monday to replace Ventura as Sox manager, was Ventura s bench coach, sure, and his one season with the Sox links him to a recent Sox history fans want to separate from. But things will be different with Renteria, 54, at the helm.
Once he s in the managerial chair and has the ultimate final say, I think you re going to see a real change, general manager Rick Hahn said. Described by Adam Eaton as a bundle of baseball joy because of the upbeat, positive, nose-to-thegrindstone approach taken to his bench job, Renteria would tell you there s another layer to Eaton s cute description. Don t take my kindness for weakness, Renteria said, because if things aren t done right I ve been known to get upset, also. Those who ve worked with and played for Renteria, who managed the Cubs in 2014, say he has a quiet yet firm, assertive way of getting his points across. His structured plans for change in 2017 have already been spelled out to the front office. Aside from Renteria and a new bench coach, however, there may not see much change on the coaching staff. Joe McEwing, Ventura s third base coach since Ventura was hired, is a possibility to move over to the bench. One potential addition to the staff is Nick Capra, the Sox director of player development who managed 10 years in the organization s farm system. Capra coordinated the Sox spring training camp in 2016 and traveled with the major league club in September. We ve had a few conversations already the last few weeks [about the staff], Hahn said. Hahn said Renteria suffered through the team s 78-84 season like everyone else and has very strong opinions about various areas we need to improve on and how we are going to start doing that in spring training. Hahn hasn t confirmed which direction he will go this off-season, and Renteria said he s prepared to manage a young and developing roster in rebuild mode or one built to win now. Our job is to handle the players we have, Renteria said. When you take a managing job, I can tell you that you try to do both win and develop with younger players. It might be a little tougher proposition because there are quite a few bumps in the road. But in either case you re trying to end up at the same place you re trying to develop an organization and a club that s going to give you some consistency over an extended period of time and hopefully post up in the postseason. Baines, Belle, McGwire up for Hall of Fame consideration By Daryl Van Schouwen / Chicago Sun-Times October 4th, 2016 Former White Sox Harold Baines and Albert Belle, as well as former Oakland Athletics and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Mark McGwire and Cubs manager Lou Piniella, are among 10 players, executives and managers on the Today s Game Era ballot to be considered for election to the Hall of Fame. Will Clark and Orel Hershiser, executives Bud Selig, George Steinbrenner and John Schuerholz and manager Davey Johnson round out the class of 2017 candidates on the new ballot, to be considered for election to Cooperstown in December. The ballot is part of changes to the election process announced by the Hall s board of directors in July. It includes five players, three executives and two managers who made their biggest impact from 1988 on. It s flattering. It s fantastic. I mean, thank you, McGwire told The Associated Press in a phone interview. It s very flattering to have another opportunity to possibly get into the Hall of Fame. It s exciting.
Selig served as baseball s acting commissioner from September 1992 to July 1998 and then as commissioner until January 2015. He oversaw an era of immense change that included expansion, wild cards and interleague play. Voting is Dec. 5 at the winter meetings in Maryland. Candidates need votes on at least 75 percent of the ballots cast by the 16-member Today s Game Era Committee for enshrinement. McGwire ranks 11th on the career list with 583 home runs. Tainted by performance-enhancing drugs, however, he never came close to getting elected by the Baseball Writers Association of America and dropped off that ballot this year after his 10th and final chance. Baines, a six-time All-Star, played for the Sox, Orioles, A s, Rangers and Indians over a 22-year career, batting.289 with 384 home runs and 1,628 RBI. Belle was a five-time All-Star during a 12-year career with the Indians, Orioles and Sox. He led the American League with 50 homers in 1995, when Cleveland reached the World Series. In 1998, his second and final year with the Sox, he batted.328 with 49 homers and 152 RBI. McKnight: Which path will Chicago White Sox take now? By Connor McKnight / Daily Herald October 4th, 2016 Last Thursday, about two hours before Carlos Rodon threw his first 90-plus mile per hour slider past the bat of Brian Dozier, I watched Tyler Saladino sit on the dugout bench and address the end of his season with the gathered media. "Sit," isn't a great verb for how Saladino was arranged himself. Perched, maybe. Propped could be another one. Saladino had his season end 10 games shy of the finish line. A herniated disc in his back -- something he'd fought a time or two earlier in the year -- was the culprit. Saladino talked about the injury. About the epidural he got for the pain. About how he isn't worried about aggravating the injury because, pretty simply, he just can't move. As painful as all that sounds, his face didn't twist into agony until he had to describe the feeling of not being able to be out there with his teammates one more time this season. "It kind of stinks to " Saladino trailed off but picked up again after a beat, "As long as I'm able to play, I mean, I could pinch run and I'd be stoked to be able to be out there with the guys. At this point, the back thing. I just can't control that." He went on to credit those teammates he wants to rejoin so badly. "The whole kind of approach we've had all year of just, still grinding. Every game was its own. They're still doing it." It's bit corny, I know. And it's not much solace to White Sox fans who were told about plans on competing for a division and snapping an eight-year playoff drought. Something I think I've learned, though, while covering my first full season of baseball has been that the stuff that feels corny from the outside can be as real as any game. Around the organization, whether it be Saladino, pitching coach Don Cooper, or general manager Rick Hahn the White Sox will tell you they didn't execute this year. It wasn't a lack of effort, preparation or opportunity. They didn't execute. Frankly, that's baseball-speak for "not good enough." That's what the 2016 season, with it's 23-10 start and 55-74 finish, really comes down to. The White Sox just didn't have enough.
That's not to say they don't have anything, however. Jose Quintana turned in the best season of his career. Chris Sale should finish in the top-five of AL Cy Young voting. Tim Anderson showed he belongs. Adam Eaton put himself in the conversation for "best right fielder in baseball." Still, keeping all that talent may not be the best route to the next White Sox division winner. The free agent class is woefully, painfully bereft of talent. The White Sox 2016 draft may turn out to be fantastic, but it needs time. The question facing Rick Renteria's team is massive. Decade-defining, even. Can this core of talent be surrounded and buoyed before it ages out of its prime or is the only way to build a winner by selling of the biggest names? White Sox GM Rick Hahn: We know fans are open to a complete rebuild By Staff / CBS Chicago October 4th, 2016 (CBS) While the White Sox have yet to publicly reveal their offseason direction after a fourth straight losing season, general manager Rick Hahn emphasized the organization isn t afraid to do a complete overhaul and rebuild. And on that note, he s heard from plenty of fans about doing just that. I get that, I get that, Hahn said Tuesday in an interview on the Mully and Hanley Show. And the Sox fans I hear from I spend a fair amount of time interacting with, whether it s season-ticket holders or people on the street or people at my kids hockey games they make it clear that they are completely open-minded and ready perhaps for a movement they haven t seen on the South Side in an extended period of time, probably going back to the 90s. And we get that. Ultimately, it s got to be about what path puts us in the best position to win and if that does entail a full rebuild, there certainly isn t the concern based on those reactions that the fans aren t going to get it or aren t going to support it. It s just a matter of whether this makes the most sense to put us in the position that the fans and ourselves want to be in and that s the ability to win on an annual basis. The White Sox have settled on an offseason plan, Hahn said, though they won t be detailing it, so as to not lose any leverage for no good reason. We know what we want to accomplish, and we know the path that we want to take to get there, Hahn said. Listen to Hahn s full interview below.