The Chicago White Sox have clinched a playoff berth for the second year in a row. Last season was their first time back in the playoffs since 2008, but they were eliminated in the three game Wildcard round to the Oakland Athletics. Will they be a tough team to beat this year? Let’s take a look at the White Sox Playoff Profile for 2021.
Offensive Success
The White Sox have a lot of switch hitters and three left handed hitters on their roster. This allows them to create balanced line-ups and opt for the platoon advantage when appropriate. In the below list of players, black is representative of right handed hitters, red is for left handed hitters and blue is for switch hitters.
Not only is the line-up balanced, it is also very strong. White Sox hitters generally have high weighted on-base averages (wOBA), power, and patient plate approaches. The team is 3rd in the majors for on-base percentage, 5th in the majors in terms of wOBA and average, and 11th in slugging percentage.
Getting on Base
The biggest threats to just getting on base are:
- Yasmani Grandal: Â 23% Walk Rate & .416 OBP
- Luis Robert: 4% Walk Rate & .393 OBP (Doesn’t walk but puts ball in play)
- Yoán Moncada: 14% Walk Rate & .377 OBP
The White Sox are not an overly aggressive team in terms of stealing bases, but they so have a few stolen base threats, including Tim Anderson and Billy Hamilton. Hamilton’s strikeout rate of 35% and on-base percentage (OBP) of .246 don’t provide him as many opportunities to steal, but he still has 8 stolen bases on the year. Anderson, however, gets on base frequently with a .333 OPB. He has 17 stolen bases as a result.
Hitting for Power
There are several White Sox that are also able to hit for power. But instead of just hitting for power, the White Sox line-up focuses on putting the ball in play. Players with the most power this season include:
- Yasmani Grandal
- Luis Robert
- Adam Engel (partial season due to injury, 36 games with career high .509 SLG)
Yasmani Grandal has put up one of the best seasons offensively for catchers in the league. He has a very patient plate approach, and has improved his walk rate to 23% this season, in addition to having a .524 slugging percentage, which is the among the highest on the team.
Many White Sox hitters do a great job of hitting for both power and average. For example, José Abreu uses the whole field, but also has pullside power. Similarly, Tim Anderson uses the whole field, but has opposite field power. Anderson in particular hits a lot of ground balls, but is not as hurt by them as other players because of his above average speed and ability to run them out.
To summarize, the White Sox offensive can attack a lot of different ways and are patient hitters. With the exception of Billy Hamilton, they strikeout a league average amount. So opposing pitchers and defenders will have to be focused, and cannot rely on the strikeout to escape an inning.
In addition to pitchers with elite stuff, pitchers who induce weak contact should be a tough match-up for the White Sox.
Speaking of Billy Hamilton, while he strikes out more than the rest of the team, I think his role for the playoffs will be focused around speed off the bench (Hamilton has elite speed) and as a late innings defensive replacement.
White Sox Pitching
The White Sox have a very strong rotation and bullpen.
In terms of the starting rotation, Carlos Rodón and Lance Lynn both have had incredible seasons. Rodón has a 2.47 ERA and strikeout rate of 35%, which is in the top 4% of the majors. He’s also done a great job of limiting damage, and has an expected opponent batting average, slugging percentage, and wOBA that falls in the top 10% of the majors or higher.
Lynn also has a 2.47 ERA and expected opponent statistics that fall in the top 10% of the majors or higher. While he does not get as many strikeouts as Rodón, he has still done a great job at getting outs with minimal damage or extra base hits.
The rest of their rotation is not so easy to get through to either. It includes Dylan Cease, Lucas Giolito, and Dallas Keuchel.
Bullpen
Just like the starting pitchers, the bullpen has done a great job of limiting damage. They have given up the second fewest hits and fourth fewest home runs of any team in the majors. In general, the pitchers also have plus control. The White Sox bullpen ranks 4th in walks on the year.
Notable relievers include Liam Hendriks and Aaron Bummer.
One Potential Team Weakness: Defense?
While the White Sox do have some plus defenders, if the team has any weaknesses this would be it. The team ranks 24th in terms of defensive runs saved and is 7th worst in errors.
Their best defender is centerfielder Adam Engel, who spent a lot of time this season on the injured list. Luis Robert is also a plus defender, with good range and 4 outs above average on the year.
Shortstop Tim Anderson has improved his defense over the past couple seasons. This year he has 3 outs above average and 0 defensive runs saved.
And not only did Yasmani Grandal put up an incredible offensive performance this season, he also remains an above average catcher defensively.
While this is not a major team weakness, being the best at all facets of the game is important when it comes time for playoffs. It would be nice if the White Sox defense as a whole was a bit tighter, and closer in caliber to the teams they will be up against.
One thing working for the White Sox, however, is that three of their most important positions (centerfield, shortstop, and catcher) are all covered with plus defenders.
Injury Notes
- Ryan Tepera (RP): Expected to return before playoffs
- Adam Engel (LF): Off and on with injuries throughout the season, expected to be fine for playoffs
- Carlos Rodón (SP): Was day to day with arm related issues, but is expected to make his next start against the Reds
How far do you think the White Sox will make it this year?