Baseball season is fast approaching. White Sox pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training on February 15th, while the rest of the team reports on February 20th. Spring Training is always exciting as rosters take shape before the impending season, but this year there will be some added intrigue in Glendale. 

Second base, right field, and the back end of the rotation are up for grabs, resulting in significant roster battles that will determine multiple Opening Day starters. Let’s dive into each battle and who has the edge entering Spring Training. 

Bench 

The competition for the fourth outfield spot could be a dogfight. Leury Garcia has already secured his spot as one of the bench pieces, but Rick Hahn added Jake Marisnik, Victor Reyes, and Billy Hamilton on minor-league deals this offseason. Each of them was brought in for outfield depth purposes. However, the White Sox could also opt to give Jake Burger the final bench spot due to his offensive upside. Burger has the best bat of the bunch but is a liability on defense. It’s the toughest competition to pin down who has an advantage. Here are the power rankings heading into Spring Training:

1. Victor Reyes
2. Jake Burger 
3. Billy Hamilton 
4. Jake Marisnick 

Victor Reyes

Victor Reyes has spent the last five seasons with the Detroit Tigers, so he is familiar with the AL Central. He is a switch hitter that can play all three outfield positions. 

Reyes is a cheaper, slightly less talented version of Adam Engel, who the White Sox non-tendered this offseason. He is a solid runner with a good throwing arm. Baseball Savant places his arm strength in the 83rd percentile and his sprint speed in the 54th percentile. For reference, Engel placed in the 92nd percentile in speed but just the 38th percentile in arm strength.

Reyes is a versatile defender with a handful of experience in all three outfield positions. He’s played over 1076 MLB innings in right field, 925 frames in center, and 680 in left. He is a slightly below-average fielder by most metrics. Reyes has a career .993 fielding percentage and -6 defensive runs saved above average. Baseball Savant rated his outfield jump in the 15th percentile of MLB outfielders. But he will be serviceable in short spurts off the bench due to his athleticism.

The 28-year-old can also be a factor on the base paths. He isn’t as prolific of a base stealer as Engel was, but he stole nine bases in both 2018-19 and was a perfect 2-for-2 in stolen base attempts last season. Reyes swiped 33 bags in his career with a 78 percent success rate.

Rick Hahn has had some luck with minor-league deals in the past, the most recent being with Johnny Cueto, who posted a 3.35 ERA in 25 games last season. The odds of Reyes panning out as well is much lower. He is a career .264 hitter with no power. Reyes has just 16 home runs and a lifetime .379 slugging percentage. Last season he slashed .254/.389/.362 with three home runs and 34 RBIs in 92 games.

The Venezuelan native’s most productive MLB season came in 2019. In 69 games, he batted .304 with three home runs, 25 RBIs, and nine stolen bases, which resulted in a career-high 101 OPS+. He hasn’t had an OPS+ over 100 since then. His wRC+ places him 17 points below the league average.

Reyes began his career in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. Detroit took him with the first pick in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft. During his rookie campaign, he slashed .222/.239/.288 in his first 100 games. Despite his struggles, the Tiger’s front office opted to keep him on the MLB roster. They were in the midst of a rebuild and wanted to gain his long-term contractual rights.

After five seasons of appearing in about half the Tigers games, the front office opted to non-tender him. It was an easy decision for the Tiger’s new president of baseball operations, Scott Harris. Reyes would be owed roughly $2 million if tendered in arbitration.

Reyes is not a better hitter than Burger, faster than Hamilton, or as good of a defender as Marisnick. He is the definition of mediocre. However, Reyes is the most well-rounded player in this competition. He may have the edge as a capable defender, base runner, and hitter. 

It should also be noted that Reyes was the White Sox first pickup this offseason, meaning Rick Hahn had him targeted as someone who could help the roster. 

Jake Burger 

Jake Burger is the only non-outfielder on the list. That is simply because Leury Garcia has the primary utility infielder role locked down. Burger is a fan favorite and has a high offensive upside. When Burger squares up the baseball, he can hit it as hard as anyone in the major leagues. Literally. In 2021 and 2022, he ranked in the MLB’s top five percentile of max exit velocity. 

Last season he played 51 games batting .250 with eight home runs, 26 RBIs, and a .760 OPS. However, there were some issues with the glove. He made six errors at third base last season in 91 chances. There are also some questions about his range and mobility, given his size and injury history. 

Burger would give the White Sox another DH and backup third baseman for Yoan Moncada. He is probably the best player in this group. Unfortunately for him, the issue is that the front office is trying to keep Eloy Jimenez out of the outfield as much as possible. If Burger makes the team, then Jimenez will be the fourth outfielder. The only other player that could play the outfield on the days Andrew Benintendi, or Luis Robert needs an off day is Leury Garcia. Neither option inspires a ton of confidence, especially when you consider Jimenez’s injury history. The White Sox need Jimenez’s bat in the lineup for a full season. The offense is relying heavily on his power. They can’t be risking injury with him if they don’t have to.

Reyes, Marisnick, and Hamilton, could all be pinch runners or defensive replacements late in games. Burger cannot. The White Sox would have more flexibility if they took a fourth outfielder over a backup infielder. 

But because of Burger’s draft pedigree and recent success, he will have a great shot at cracking the roster if he can put together a good spring. 

Billy Hamilton 

If Billy Hamilton makes the team, it will be his second stint with the White Sox. He brings with him extra speed, defense, and energy that this club so desperately needed last season. His speed is by far his greatest asset at this point in his career. 

Hamilton helped the White Sox capture the American League Central crown in 2021. He appeared in 71 games during the regular season, playing a key role off the bench. The speedy outfielder went a perfect 9-for-9 in stolen base attempts, scored 23 runs, and had 13 extra-base hits, including three triples and a pair of home runs. He also contributed some stellar outfield defense. His diving catch in the rain at Target Field on July 7th was a candidate for the season’s best play.

Hamilton reunites with the White Sox after spending splitting time between the Marlins and Twins on a pair of minor league deals last season. He played 20 games with the Marlins and 17 with the Twins. The fleet-footed outfielder swiped ten bases in 11 attempts but logged just one hit in 23 plate appearances for the year.

Hamilton has always possessed an intriguing skill set, which is one of the reasons he has stuck around in the MLB for ten seasons despite being a career .239 hitter. If he was a bit more consistent at the plate, he would be the favorite. However, he is best served as a late-inning weapon to use as a pinch runner or defensive replacement. That being said, his career numbers at the plate are still better than Jake Marisnick’s. He is also a great locker room vibes guy to have around. 

Jake Marisnick 

Marisnick is a 10-year MLB veteran who spent most of his career with the Houston Astros from 2014-2019. During that stretch, he appeared in 23 postseason games, including five in the 2019 World Series. He will be 32 years old once the season begins. Marsnick’s championship experience is something Rick Hahn liked when he brought him on. The battle between him and Hamilton will be tight.  

Since leaving Houston, Marisnick has struggled to find a home. He has had short stints with the New York Mets, Chicago Cubs, San Diego Padres, and Pittsburgh Pirates since 2019.

Marisnick owns a career slash line of .228/.281/.384. As a right-handed hitter, Marisnick has faired much better against left-handed pitching throughout his career. He has a lifetime .704 OPS against LHP and a .640 OPS against RHP, which is a pretty substantial difference.

His best offensive season came in 2017 with the Astros, when he hit .243/.319/.496 with 35 RBIs and a career-high 16 home runs. Marisnik has only reached double-digit home run totals on three separate occasions. The first was during that 2017 season, followed by a pair of 10-home run seasons in 2018 and 2019. Considering that 2017 was the year the Astros got caught with the trash can cheating scandal, it is not surprising Marisnick had one of his best seasons at the plate.

His career .665 OPS and 81 OPS+ are evidence that he doesn’t do anything particularly well in the batter’s box. However, while his offensive numbers don’t jump off the page, he is fast and has a good arm. The ideal skillset for a defensive replacement. Baseball Savant graded his arm strength in the top four percent of the MLB.

Marisnick can play all three outfield positions but has spent most of his time in center field. During his career has played 615 games in center field, 83 in left and 59 in right. He owns a .991 fielding percentage across all three positions. Marisnick has tallied a total +48 Outs Above Average (OAA) for his career. He has never had his OAA dip below zero for a season and had three seasons of +10 or higher. One such season was in 2018, when he recorded a +10 OAA. In 2022 he had an impressive +4 OAA in left field with just 24 chances.

The California native has also proven himself to be a capable base stealer. He has four seasons of 10 plus stolen bases, including swiping 24 bags in 2015.