At the trade deadline, Andrew Benintendi’s name was thrown around in potential trades. At that point, Benintendi was one of the worst players in all of baseball, so it would have likely been a salary dump, lessening the return for a one of the better players on the White Sox, which might not be the best practice.
However, over the last two months, Benintendi’s standalone value may have changed significantly. Along with a significant increase in his batting average, he seems to have found his power again, making him a potentially intriguing player for another team to inquire about in the offseason.
While Beinintendi has 3 years and 45 million left on his contract, that isn’t an overly expensive contract for teams that actually spend money. If he plays like he has in the second half, that might actually be a much better deal.
On top of his recent success, he has been quite clutch for the White Sox, as he has been responsible for two walk-off wins in the last week or so. That kind of stuff matters, as if you are known as a clutch player, that can surely help your value.
In today’s game, Benintendi added another homerun, bringing his season total to 20 homeruns. For a guy who hit just five last year, that is a good sign. He also added his 64th RBI, which is almost 20 more than he had last year, quite impressive considering the fact he has played about 17 less games.
In August and September, Benintendi has hit .269, adding 11 homeruns and 31 RBIs, over 167 at-bats. That is much of what White Sox fans expected when they signed him to the largest contract in team history.
It was never a question of talent for Benintendi, as he had an impressive resume before coming to the White Sox. Teams may see his stats to end the year and be intrigued in a trade, clearing up cap space for the White Sox, which they would love to do.
While he still has negative one WAR, he may have some value for a team that is on the brink of contention. If he is on a winning team, it’s likely he plays significantly better throughout the whole season, as opposed to just the second half, as he will be more engaged. The White Sox will by no means get a top-100 prospect, but they could potentially add him in a deal and this time the other team will throw a better prospect in, instead of giving up less to eat the money.
Freeing up Benintendi’s spot in LF will allow younger players like Zach DeLoach or Oscar Colada get some at-bats, which would be key for their development.
We will see if they end up trading him in the offseason, but if they don’t, then he could add more value at the deadline if he has a first half like this season’s second half.
