2024 Record: 41-121
General Manager: Chris Getz (entering year 2)
Manager: Will Venable (entering year 1)
Notable Offseason Acquisitions: SP Martin Perez (1 year, 5.5 million), 3B Josh Rojas (1 year, 3.5 million), CF Michael A. Taylor (1 year, 1.95 million), OF Mike Tauchman (1 year, 1.95 million), SP Bryse Wilson (1 year, 1.05 million)
The 2024 Chicago White Sox were one of the worst baseball teams of the modern era, going 41-121 and truly embarrassing their fans and the city itself. I think everyone was excited when the season concluded in late September.
The offseason was a quiet one for Chicago, as the team was clearly not in a place where competing for a playoff spot, let alone the championship, is even feasible right now with the talent deficiencies that were clearly telling. General Manager Chris Getz continued to fully jump into the rebuild stage, hiring a first-time manager named Will Venable to replace the interim manager in Grady Sizemore.
Venable is a former 9-year big leaguer who quickly moved to coaching after his retirement and moved up the ranks with multiple franchises to finally land his 1st managerial gig. It’s weirdly a very good opportunity for him to learn and grow without the heavy expectations that come from a team that is expected to win right away. Time will tell if Venable will ultimately be the right move, but he should have a longer leash than most.
The White Sox’s only notable move that moved the needle was trading away the hard-throwing starting pitcher Garrett Crochet. He was sent to the Boston Red Sox for four prospects headlined by catcher Kyle Teel. This trade helps the White Sox get some young talent in the building that can hopefully help their team when they are ready for contention. However, in the short term, the loss of Crochet does hurt them big time as he was Chicago’s clear ace.
Are the White Sox going to lose 121 games this year? Probably not. It’s hard to be that bad for multiple years, and at the end of the day, these are professionals who will have a chip on their shoulders the whole year as everyone will be counting them out. However, even if they do improve in the win column by a sizeable margin, I expect them to still place last in the AL Central.
The starting pitching at the moment does not look promising at all. Signing Martin Perez should help by putting up dependable innings and acting as a resource for the young guns. But in reality, he’s a number five starter on most teams and Perez being your number one is concerning. Someone will have to break out in a big way, and I’m not sure if that guy exists right now.
If there is one player that should give White Sox fans hope is shortstop prospect Colson Montgomery. Highly rated by prospect ranking lists, he has a great shot at winning the opening job as there is no competition ahead of him. He has drawn comparisons to Corey Seager, and that type of outcome gives the Chicago faithful something to look forward to.
Overall, the Chicago White Sox are in the early stages of their rebuild and won’t be looked on as contenders this season. A successful season will be if they can be competitive to not embarrass themselves again and if a couple of players can establish themselves who will be a part of the team’s winning formula for the future. Patience is a must for the fans in the South Side.
