Anyone who watched the 2022 White Sox for an extended period could tell they were mailing in games. It was evident from the stands, the box score, and the opposing dugout.
After being named the 42nd manager of the White Sox, Pedro Grifol detailed how he could tell when the White Sox were not ready to play as the bench coach of the Royals.
“The energy was a big part of it. I can’t deny that. That’s something I saw from the other side,” Grifol told reporters. “If the energy was high and they were ready to play that day, you had your hands full, and that’s just the bottom line. If the energy wasn’t high, you can tell from the very beginning. If the energy wasn’t high, then, you know, you obviously had a good chance to win a ball game.”
The numbers tell the story. The team dropped from third to 18th in OBP, eighth to 19th in RBIs and runs scored, and 10th to 18th in slugging percentage. The White Sox also hit 41 fewer home runs, committed 11 more errors, and ran into the first-ever 8-5 triple play in MLB history.
The lack of hustle was so apparent that Tony La Russa was forced to answer questions about guys dogging it to first base. He defended the players saying, “We literally have five of the nine guys who are playing under instructions that if they make a routine out, they slow it down,” La Russa told reporters. Those players included Andrew Vaughn, Jose Abreu, Tim Anderson, AJ Pollock, and Luis Robert.
They all played significant roles on the 2022 squad, and the visuals of half the lineup giving up after weak contact spread like a virus throughout the team. Winning is contagious, and so is laziness.
During an interview with USA Today, Joe Kelly admitted that the lack of effort was not due to medical concerns like La Russa suggested.
“Guys were taking it easy, not being cautious, and that was not coming from the training staff or strength coach,” Kelly told USA Today. “It was us as players not going pedal to the medal. We were running out of time, and then we kind of speeded as fast as we could, but then obviously, we couldn’t catch up.”
This should come as abusively no surprise. Kelly is just confirming what everyone already knew. However, it is significant, considering he is the first player to come out and admit it.
There weren’t many additions to get excited about this offseason for the South Side faithful, but Pedro Grifol is one of them. The first-year manager is trying to raise the bar.
“There’s such a big difference,” Kelly said. “This is the most intense spring I’ve been part of in five seasons. It’s been like, ‘Go go go.’ I didn’t see that many guys run that hard in spring training last year, and now you see them working on their base running, sprinting, all these crazy drills.”
Talk is cheap. Time will tell if the White Sox will actually practice what Grifol preaches. But if they do, it will go a long way toward converting a mediocre season into a division title.
