The White Sox have had a roller coaster season up to this point. One day Liam Hendriks is blowing saves in the ninth inning the next Carlos Rodón is throwing a no-hitter. One day Yermin Mercedes is hitting bombs onto the concourse the next Lucas Giolito is being shelled for seven runs.
But baseball is a marathon not a sprint so it is important not to overreact to the first month of the season. Despite the White Sox rocky start they find themselves at number 6 in the MLB.com power rankings. A sweep against the Texas Rangers and a four game winning streak certainly helped the cause.
For some fans a sweep against a team projected to finish well below .500 is nothing to write home about. But when you dig into the numbers the White Sox are starting to show some promising signs as the weather warms up.
Behind The Numbers
The White Sox offense got off to a hot and cold start. Many stars like Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada and Yasmani Grandal were in long slumps. The bats have started to heat up as of late and its showed.
The White Sox currently sit number one in baseball in offensive WAR according to FanGraphs with a 5.2 fWAR. They are also second in baseball in a 118 wRC+. What that means is the White Sox are overall the most effective hitters, while adjusting for the effects of the parks and league the team plays in. The White Sox rank 6th in the MLB in RBIs as well as hits.
On top of that they are third in the league in batting average (.262) and second in on base (.341) percentage. The White Sox have done an excellent job of drawing walks this season, a phrase that has not been uttered in nearly a decade. They also have the biggest run differential in the AL and the second best in baseball at +20. These numbers are usually a solid indicator of a good baseball team.
This can be attributed to their top tier pitching staff. The starters (outside Dylan Cease) are starting to round into form. Lance Lynn has already thrown a complete game shutout and Carlos Rodón tossed a no-hitter. Dallas Keuchel was effective in his previous few outings and Lucas Giolito has shown flashes of dominance.
Micheal Kopech has emerged as a super weapon as well. He ranks third in the MLB in expected ERA at 1.33. The only pitchers ahead of him are Jacob deGrom and Corbin Burnes who are literally setting records for dominance.
The scary thing is this team is nowhere near reaching their full capability. Once they begin to fire on all cylinders it could be a scary site for the rest of the league.
As the weather gets warmer the bats will begin to heat up. We have already begun to see this with Jose Abreu. The schedule is pretty favorable for the rest of April so the White Sox should be able to finish the month above .500. Not bad for a team that has had all of the bullpen issues the White Sox have had.
