If Opening Day was any indication, the White Sox are going to have a tough time scoring runs this season.
Pedro Grifol’s lineup was limited to just three baserunners in their 1-0 Opening Day loss to the Tigers on Thursday. All three baserunners came via a single and not one made it into scoring position. While it is a tiny sample size early in the season some concerning trends rolled over from last season.
The White Sox offense ranked 29th in runs scored in 2023. A big reason why was because they ranked dead last in walks. The lack of walks was paired with a White Sox offense that ranked 20th in home runs and 23rd in hits. Simply put the White Sox failed to hit for power and failed to get runners on base. Luis Robert Jr. encapsulated these issues perfectly when he led the team with 38 home runs but had just 80 RBIs because most of his homers came with nobody on base.
To win in the modern MLB offenses have to hit the ball out of the ballpark or find ways to get on base consistently. Last season five of the top six MLB teams in home runs made the playoffs. The eventual World Series champion Texas Rangers tied for third in the MLB with 233 homers. It was no coincidence that the Rangers also ranked third in the MLB in walks. It followed a trend from the previous season. The 2022 World Series champion Astros ranked fourth in home runs, seventh in OBP, and ninth in walks.
This year’s White Sox roster lacks power hitters. Pedro Grifol is expecting his team to be aggressive on the basepaths to manufacture runs. But to play that style of baseball you must put pressure on opposing pitchers.
The team failed to do so on Thursday. White Sox hitters allowed Tigers starter Tarik Skubal to go six innings in just 83 pitches. They also found themselves frequently behind in the count. By the end of the day, they had combined for 11 strikeouts. In the process, they became just the second team in baseball history to have no runs, walks, or extra-base hits and ten-plus strikeouts on Opening Day.
Luis Robert Jr and Eloy Jimenez are the only two players in the White Sox lineup who are a constant home run threat. The rest of the lineup is expected to set the table for them. This all starts with the top of the order.
While Robert is the White Sox most potent offensive weapon at the moment Andrew Benintendi and Yoan Moncada are going to determine the success of the lineup. One of the reasons Grifol has them batting 1-2 is because they have each shown the ability to work good at-bats in the past. Benintendi led the White Sox in walks last season with 52. That total was tied for the 82nd most by any player in the MLB. It is not exactly a prolific walk rate which is why other players will need to help pick up the slack.
Moncada has been streaky throughout his career. But in 2021 he drew 84 walks and set a career-high in OBP with a .375 mark. That was the third-highest total in the American League and .050 points above the Major League average. He also had a WAR of 4.0. He also set a career-high in contact percentage and a career-low in strikeout percentage. If they can get that type of production out of Moncada the offense will be in a much better position to succeed even if his power numbers are down.
