The 2018-2019 off season is going to be one of, if not the most important parts of the entire rebuild for the Chicago White Sox. This has been known for a while, but now that the World Series is officially over and the off season is here, it’s time for the White Sox front office to get to work.
You might remember hearing that one of the big reasons the White Sox decided to embark on this long journey of rebuilding the roster was because they watched the team on the other side of town win the Fall Classic in 2016.
Fast forward 2 years, and the White Sox might have some new motivation to go all in on free agency and blockbuster trades this year. That motivation comes from watching Chris Sale record the final 3 outs to clinch the World Series for the Boston Red Sox.
I can’t speak for other White Sox fans, but for me personally, watching Chris Sale pitch the bottom of the 9th yesterday was one of the most emotionally gut wrenching experiences I’ve had as a baseball fan. I was happy for him, but at the same time I was pissed off. Pissed off at the front office that they couldn’t build a contender around him, pissed off that White Sox haters will bring up the “White Sox lost the trade” narrative, and pissed off we have to wait a year to fully reap the rewards of the trade with Michael Kopech out for all of 2019 and Luis Basabe still roughly 2 years away.
“Chris Sale closes it out and the Sox win the World Series!”
When I heard that, I literally shuddered.
And hopefully the front office shuddered as well. Watching Sale win the World Series for the Red Sox should absolutely light a fire underneath them. If the White Sox don’t do anything significant this year, the rebuild could legitimately be a failure. If the White Sox want to be where the Red Sox are at now, they need to spend, and spend big. And if they refuse to do that, then they need to make blockbuster trades.
Watching the Cubs win in 2016 was bad enough for me and other White Sox fans. Watching the greatest pitcher in franchise history win a World Series just 2 years after trading him? That’s arguably worse.
If I’m Rick Hahn, Jerry Reinsdorf, and Kenny Williams, I’m pissed off. I’m ready to get to work. I’m ready to rewrite the narrative that the White Sox will never spend big. Because in the MLB, you need to spend big to win big. Being aggressive this off season will not only improve the team, but it will show the fans that the White Sox are taking the rebuild seriously.
Time to find out just how serious the White Sox are.
