The White Sox received 5 of their final six video games however couldn’t keep away from historical past, because the 41-121 membership had probably the most losses of any crew within the trendy period. In an open letter to followers immediately, White Sox proprietor Jerry Reinsdorf described the season in such phrases as “a failure,” “embarrassing,” “utterly unacceptable,” and others, whereas noting that “because the chief of this group, that’s my final accountability. There are not any excuses.”
When it comes to what’s subsequent, Reinsdorf mentioned the crew is “embracing new concepts and out of doors views” to get issues on observe. “This can embrace additional improvement of gamers on our present roster, improvement inside our system, evaluating the commerce and free agent markets to enhance our ballclub and new management for our analytics division, permitting us to raise and enhance each course of inside our group with a spotlight for competing for championships….When named common supervisor in 2023, Chris Getz and his workers instantly started conducting a top-to-bottom analysis of our present operations. Chris is rebuilding the inspiration of our baseball operations division, with key personnel adjustments already occurring in participant improvement, worldwide scouting, skilled scouting and analytics. A few of these adjustments will likely be obvious shortly whereas others will want time to provide the outcomes all of us need to see on the major-league degree.”
Extra from across the American League…
John Schneider listed catching, bullpen, and energy hitting because the Blue Jays’ greatest offseason wants, the supervisor advised The Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath and different reporters immediately. “I believe you want slightly bit greater than only a [catcher] that’s going to play a couple of times every week,” Schneider mentioned, implying that Toronto will likely be in search of a timeshare associate for Alejandro Kirk quite than a backup. Discovering assist behind the plate may very well be tough in a usually skinny free agent catching market, although Kirk’s offensive enchancment within the second half of the season gives some hope that Kirk can get again to his All-Star kind from 2022. Principally any enchancment is required for a bullpen that was one of many worst in baseball, however Schneider specified that “I believe that you simply want distinctive appears and distinctive stuff — stuff that enhances each other, guys that may do various things.” How the Jays deal with these wants and a number of other different roster holes will likely be a problem for a crew that’s already projected to be over the luxurious tax threshold, and remains to be largely reliant on such core gamers as Kirk, Bo Bichette, George Springer, and others to be significantly better than they have been in 2024.
The Rays are one other AL East crew with an underachieving lineup, and Yandy Diaz unsurprisingly feels that “one or two extra bats” are wanted this winter, the infielder advised Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Occasions. Diaz’s personal manufacturing dropped from the highs of his 2022-23 seasons, as a sluggish begin diminished his numbers even when Diaz returned to his standard kind over time. In truth, Diaz’s best month (.879 OPS) got here in September, though he mentioned he was coping with patellar tendinitis in his left knee. Diaz isn’t anxious that the damage would require any surgical remedy, and mentioned “I must work on my power, my knee and workout routines, and prepare for Spring Coaching, and hopefully all the things’s going to be OK.”
In different Rays information from Topkin, the crew intends to retain its teaching workers for subsequent season. After all, exterior components may complicate these plans, as rival golf equipment routinely interviews Rays coaches for different jobs, resembling managerial or bench coach vacancies.
