Earlier today we looked at the probable 2018 White Sox rotation. Now we shift our focus to the lineup. The 2018 White Sox lineup will feature pretty much the exact same players from 2017 plus the addition of catcher Welington Castillo, although the order of those players figures to be a little different. In my opinion, the Opening Day starting lineup will look something like this:

1. Yoan Moncada-2B

2. Avisail Garcia-RF

3. Jose Abreu-1B

4. Matt Davidson-DH

5. Nicky Delmonico-LF

6. Welington Castillo-C

7. Tim Anderson-SS

8. Yolmer Sanchez-3B

9. Adam Engel-CF

The Reasoning Behind The Lineup

Yoan Moncada has openly stated that he feels most comfortable out of the lead-off spot. He will see more pitches and get more at-bats, which will lead to him getting on base at a higher clip where he can use his speed to punish defenses and get into scoring position for…

Avi Garcia. He was a man on a mission last season posting career highs in essentially every offensive category. Skeptics will say it was a fluke year, but even if he doesn’t hit in the .330’s, he can definitely hit in the .290’s. His contact rate plus his mix of power and speed make him an ideal no. 2 hitter in any lineup.

Jose Abreu is going to be Jose Abreu. You can essentially plug him in for his 100+ RBI’s and 30+ home runs. And if the first two guys in the order can get on base for him, then the White Sox should be scoring early and often.

Matt Davidson comes with some huge swing and miss concerns, but if you like to go off of spring training numbers, then you are in luck. Davidson has cut down on his strikeout numbers by more than 10 percent so far in spring. He has stated that his main goal is to draw more walks and hit for more contact. He has enough raw power to where he could lead the team in home runs. Last season he had 26 in 118 games played. He missed a big chunk of time with a wrist injury, so if he can stay healthy, look for those home run numbers to spike into the 30-35 range.

Nicky Delmonico burst onto the scene last season, getting on base almost at will. He ended the year with a .373 OBP. That should drop a bit once pitchers adjust to him, but then he will have the opportunity to adjust right back. That’s all baseball is in a nutshell. A game of adjustments. If he can still hit .260 and get on base at a .350 clip, that’s good enough for me from the 5-hole. Honestly, you can pretty much flip Delmonico and Castillo in the 5/6 spots in this lineup. I have Delmonico here because of his lefty bat behind Avi and Abreu, who are right-handed batters. (Moncada is a switch-hitter).

Welington Castillo was the main addition the White Sox brought in this off-season. Not only did he set new career highs in home runs (20) and runs scored (44), he also threw out a league-leading 44 percent of would-be-basestealers, all while playing only 96 games. His veteran presence behind the plate will also help the younger White Sox pitchers.

Tim Anderson will look to bounce back from a forgetful 2017. So far his head seems to be in the right place and there should be much less pressure on him batting 7th as opposed to 1st or 2nd. Fans will just have to accept his aggressive approach and the fact that he will never be a big on-base guy. Once he gets on he has the speed to swipe bags, go 1st to 3rd on shallow hits, and pick up some easy doubles. He has deceptive strength where he can go for 20 home runs on a yearly basis. Add in 20 doubles and 20 steals and you’re looking at great production from the 7-hole in the lineup.

Yolmer Sanchez is the perfect fit at 8 behind Tim. In fact, Sanchez would be a great 2-hole hitter and will probably get some looks there throughout the season. Yolmer is a contact hitter, so if/when Tim gets on in front of him, hit-and-run opportunities will pop up. Yolmer’s main job here is to move runners up with solid contact and/or produce productive outs, i.e fly balls that allow the runners to tag. When Yolmer gets on, he can be a decent base stealing threat, but won’t wow anyone with his speed.

Finally we have Adam Engel. While a freak of nature in center field, he had an ugly year at the plate last season. “Ugly” is actually underselling it, but you get the point. This off-season, Engel has been working tirelessly on fixing his swing. He has added a leg kick that seems to be helping him find a consistent rhythm at the plate. Even if he can hit in the .230 range, fans will take it granted he batted .166 last year. He has absolute wheels although he needs to refine his base stealing technique to truly tap into his potential of another 20-steal threat. If he can get on he essentially becomes a second leadoff man for Moncada back at the top of the lineup.

To Wrap Up

When you look up and down this potential lineup, it really isn’t that bad. Teams could certainly do worse that is. The first full season of Moncada should be an exciting one to say the least. There is a healthy mix of speed and power from top to bottom, and more should be on the way by the name of Eloy Jimenez and some other mid-level prospects such as Ryan Cordell. They definitely aren’t going to be one of the top offensive teams in the MLB, but they have enough talent to stay in games and grind out wins. In year 2 of a rebuild, that is more than enough.

With the 2018 season looming nearer each day, the White Sox are just making some final adjustments before their Opening Day Roster takes its final shape. One of the more interesting topics of discussion is what the starting rotation will look like. James Shields got the Opening Day nod from manager Rick Renteria, but who falls in after him?

Number 2 Starter- Lucas Giolito

It would be a very safe bet to say that Giolito is the most talented pitcher on this year’s squad. The young righty boasts a six pitch repertoire- 4-seam fastball, 2-seam fastball, curveball, slider, 4-seam circle change, 2-seam circle change. After his short but very successful stint with the White Sox last year (2.38 ERA in 7 games), he will look to take a huge step forward this season. Look for him to hit the 200 inning mark by year’s end.

Number 3 Starter- Reynaldo Lopez

Lopez is another young White Sox righty who got 8 major league starts last season. While his ERA was higher than Giolito’s at 4.72, his posted a better WAR. (0.6 compared to 0.3). Some say that his future is in the bullpen, but until more pitching prospects come up, the White Sox are going to give him every chance to succeed as a starter. Out of 8 starts last season, 5 were considered quality starts, meaning he went at least 6 full innings while giving up no more than 3 runs. No one is asking him to be a dominant starter, but if he can keep racking up those quality starts, the White Sox should be in most games he pitches in.

Number 4 Starter- Miguel Gonzalez

Another starter, another righty. This is the main problem in the rotation. There is no righty/lefty balance. However, Gonzalez is a veteran and will prove to be a solid innings eater which should help out the bullpen later in the season. He isn’t flashy and won’t wow people with his stuff, but he carries himself like a professional, is looked up to in the clubhouse, and will serve as a great mentor to the younger pitchers on the team.

Number 5 Starter- Hector Santiago

Finally we have a lefty! Hector Santiago comes in as the no. 5 starter, beating out Carson Fulmer for the job. Santiago brings a much needed lefty arm into the rotation while also giving Fulmer more time to work on his stuff either in Triple-A or in the White Sox bullpen. Santiago has had a phenomonal spring, pitching 12 total innings with a 0.75 ERA. Now it is only spring, but if Santiago is even average on the White Sox, he could be one of those valuable trade pieces Rick Hahn obsessively covets, in turn opening up a spot for Fulmer when he is more prepared to regularly start.

Honorable Mentions- Carlos Rodon, Michael Kopech, Carson Fulmer

Carlos Rodon said himself at SoxFest 2018 that he plans on being back in the rotation by the All-Star Break. When he is healthy and his stuff is on point, he is one of the tougher pitchers to face in baseball. When he comes back, look for him to potentially take James Shields’ spot in the rotation, giving them a much needed second lefty.

In my opinion, the last bit of development for Michael Kopech needs to be done at the MLB level against MLB hitters. It is for this reason that I firmly believe the White Sox are just implementing the “Kris Bryant plan” the Cubs used back in 2015. That being that the White Sox are just stashing Kopech in the minors until they obtain that extra year of team control. Kopech will more than likely use Triple-A to work on getting ahead of hitters and establishing his changeup, so don’t be surprised or concerned if he has a bad outing or two. I’m thinking we see him get the call no later than mid-June. Once he is on the White Sox, he could take Miguel Gonzalez’ spot.

Carson Fulmer has definitely had a forgettable spring. Lucky for him that’s all it is. Spring. Where the games don’t matter. Nevertheless he still has a lot to work on. I’ve long been a believer that Fulmer is destined for the bullpen, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing if he can become a specialist. Hopefully he can prove me wrong and become yet another one of those good problems for the White Sox to have. It really wouldn’t surprise me if the White Sox give him the no. 5 spot out of the gate after his impressive spring training start a few days ago and just have him learn by experience. We should find out within the next few days whether he heads to Charlotte or is given another opportunity to figure things out at the MLB level.

Final Word

The rotation surely won’t be anything flashy when Opening Day rolls around, but the mix of savvy veterans and young talent can definitely keep the White Sox afloat until the reinforcements arrive. Remember, it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish. If the White Sox finish the year with Fulmer, Giolito, Lopez, Kopech, and Rodon, then the future of the White Sox is in good hands.