Yesterday the Chicago White Sox set in motion their plans to release Brett Lawrie, which looks to be an indication that they're ready to let Yoan Moncada take over at second base.
The Chicago White Sox have been the talk of the baseball world all offseason after trading away ace left-hander Chris Sale to the Red Sox and sending Adam Eaton to the Nationals, netting the club with a generous prospect haul. Eaton and Sale were two of the team's top three leaders in bWAR, with the other player in the trio being Jose Quintana–certainly no stranger to trade rumors himself.
With the focus on selling off talent for loads of prospects–moving the White Sox from a middling farm system to arguably one of the best–the narrative has shifted on the south side. The future is coming, and White Sox fans may be able to get a glimpse of that future on opening day once the team officially releases Lawrie. The move clears the way for Yoan Moncada to take over at second base and form a double-play combo with Tim Anderson up the middle.
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Thus far this spring Moncada is 3-for-13 with four walks, giving him a .231 batting average and a .412 on-base percentage. While the early returns are nice, there will definitely be some growing pains in 2017, but there should also be some moments of brilliance.
In two minor league seasons, Moncada has stolen 94 bases, which will do more than make up for the speed that Eaton brought to the club, and if he can continue to get on base, the 21-year-old Cuban could be a top-of-the-lineup threat very early on in his career.
Last season in Hi-A, Moncada held an OBP of .427 in 61 games, and in 45 games one level up that mark went down to a still respectable .379. The jump from Hi-A to Double-A is considered the toughest jump outside of the jump to the majors, so the fact that he has yet to set foot on a Triple-A field may not end up being that big of an issue. He showed that he could still produce in a short stint in Double-A, which should at least lead to some optimism.
The fact that the White Sox are willing to give him the reigns at second base shows how excited they are to have him on their club, but they also need to give the fans a reason to come to the ballpark. They've seen the rest of the guys on the club in the past, but Moncada could be a big draw in Chicago. He's going to struggle at times, but he'll be getting on the job experience while also helping at the turnstile, so this appears to be a win-win for everyone involved–besides Lawrie.
