Quinn Harris/Getty ImagesPerhaps a more immediate goal for the White Sox is to finish with more wins than the 2003 Detroit Tigers, who currently own the worst 162-game record in MLB history at 43-119.
Right now, it looks like the 2024 White Sox are in danger of going down as the worst team in MLB history.
But general manager Chris Getz didn’t trade LHP Garrett Crochet or center fielder Luis Robert Jr. before the trade deadline, which puts continued injury risk on the White Sox as they try to protect two players they will almost certainly deal at some point.
There’s a fairly simple solution for Crochet, which involves shutting him down for the year probably before September. While he leads the AL in strikeouts (162) and FIP (2.63), he has already logged 118.1 innings this season.
As he worked his way back from Tommy John surgery, Crochet threw a grand total of 12.2 innings at the MLB level last year. Pushing him much further risks him getting hurt again, which would destroy his trade value and potentially his career. In a season that’s been lost since April, there shouldn’t be any debate about shutting him down in the near future.
Sox On Tap @SoxOnTapHappy birthday to Luis Robert Jr.! pic.twitter.com/fksMXZrIhZ
As for Robert, he already missed close to two months with a right hip flexor strain. Even if he plays every game for the remainder of the season, he will finish the season with under 110 games played this year. He played 145 games a season ago, but has never played more than 98 in another season. His trade value is going to be hurt by his injury history, that’s just the reality of the situation.
With that said, if Roberts is able to play well over the final two months, he’ll remind teams why he’s such an intriguing player at a position that has so few impact players, despite his injury history.
If the White Sox manage things the right way—which shouldn’t be assumed—both Crochet and Robert could be traded in the offseason, helping to further set Chicago up for a future that can’t possibly be worse than the present.
Source : Bleacher Report