Rebuild of the Chicago White Sox,or clique developing within the ballclub?

The key to the rebuild of the Chicago White Sox? Or development of the clique that could demolish any hopes of a championship in the near future?

Will trio be the key to 2020s White Sox? Photo by The Players Tribune

Those are the thoughts running through my brainpan on Tuesday, as I learn of the deal the White Sox pulled off this week to help strengthen their outfield.

JON JAY, WHO played last season with Kansas City and Arizona but was part of that Chicago Cubs championship team of 2016, will be a part of the White Sox this season – whose spring training begins in just over a month out in the Phoenix suburb where the Arizona (and one-time Chicago) Cardinals play.

Theoretically, he could be a piece of the White Sox’ outfield equation this year. He has some skills. But what is more noteworthy are two of Jay’s best friends within the world of professional baseball.

Those friends are Yonder Alonso, whom the White Sox recently acquired in trade from Cleveland, and Alonso’s brother-in-law. Who happens to be the baseball star Manny Machado – the infielder who currently is free-agent and is trying to get the big-money, long-term contract that will ensure he’ll never have to work for real so long as he lives.

The White Sox are in competition with the New York Yankees, the Philadelphia Phillies and possibly other teams that might want to give themselves an injection of talent for the near future.

IT HAS BEEN reported that the White Sox have made a definitive offer to Machado that falls short of the so-called $300 million over a 10-season period that Manny supposedly wants.

Could it be that the White Sox are gambling Manny will be eager enough to have his brother-in-law and long-time friend as teammates that he’ll take a Chicago offer? Helped by the fact that even though Machado has hinted he’d love New York, the Yankees themselves don’t seem too eager to kiss his behind to get him in their version of pinstripes.

Could the White Sox of the 2020s be reliant on the Machado clique for their on-field talent? Could Jay become the guy who played for both the ’16 Cubs championship team, along with whatever winner the White Sox produce?

Will Machado clique work well w/ Abreu batch?

Or is this a lot of wishful thinking?

FOR I CAN’T help but notice that much of the “Rebuild of the White Sox” talk has focused on the large number of Cuban exiles the White Sox have been able to obtain – with hopes they’ll develop with minor league affiliates into stars.

With those peloteros Cubanos eager to play baseball for Chicago someday because they see existing White Sox star Jose Abreu as their leader on-field.

Have the White Sox set up conditions for dueling cliques – with one group of Cubanos convinced this is the team of Abreu and which might be counting on the beisbol fan base in Havana to give the White Sox an international cheering base?

Or are we going to have a team with the Abreu people and the Machado people – with the latter figuring that he’s the one getting the big money so he’s the one who should dominate the ball club’s attention?

IT WILL BE interesting to see how the two factions (should Machado decide to come to Chicago) co-exist, because supposedly his wife Yainee (also Alonso’s sister) really, really wants to live in New York. Would this Miami girl with ethnic origins in the Dominican Republic regard Chicago’s Latino population that is heavily Mexican and Puerto Rican just a bit too different?

Could Jay be champ on both sides of Chicago?

Then again, ballplayers don’t necessarily have to like each other personally. Take the Oakland A’s of the 1970s that won three straight World Series despite constant infighting amongst themselves. But they had their mutual contempt for owner Charles O. Finley to unite them – and that contempt is what ultimately broke the ballclub up.

But it could be said that the Machado clique that considers Miami to be its home base could unite with the many Cubans who regard Miami as their home in exile.

Could a future White Sox championship team wind up getting just as many cheers in Miami as on the South Side? We’ll have to wait and see how it all shapes up – and if it is meant to become a reality.

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Brawl for big-name stars could peter out into whole lot of Chicago nothin’

Harper, along with Machado (below) … 

It’s becoming the big joke this winter amongst certain baseball people – that the Chicago White Sox are spewing a whole lot of talk about how they’re trying to win over the two big-name ballplayers available through free agency, yet all they’re really going to do is sign one of those star players’ brother-in-law.

It’s true. The White Sox have managed to pull off a trade – acquiring Yonder Alonso from the Cleveland Indians.

OF COURSE, THE two big names that are getting baseball teams all aroused are Bryce Harper of the Washington Nationals and Manny Machado of the Los Angeles Dodgers; the latter of whom is married to Alonso's sister.

.. are the big names baseball teams are dreaming of

Both are stars who’d be capable of rejuvenating just about any ball club. The White Sox have gone about stirring up a lot of speculation that they’re willing to make serious bids to try to acquire at least one of the two – if not both.

Yet you have to admit it would be oh so typical if it turned out that the White Sox didn’t manage to acquire either. Which would make their acquisition of Alonso come off as quite pathetic.

There is one big reason why the White Sox are so eager to engage in such talk – they need to do something to show the fan base that their talk of wanting to some day have a winning ball club has a basis in reality and is not just wishful thinking.

Are Nova and Alonso (below) … 

BECAUSE THUS FAR, all the youthful talent is NOT holding up to the stories of being on the verge of turning into future stars. Yoan Moncada, who when he was Boston Red Sox property was regarded as the best ballplayer in all the minor leagues, has turned into a .235 hitter for the White Sox.

While supposed future star pitcher Steve Kopech has managed to injure himself, underwent surgery and likely won’t play ball at all during 2019, and Eloy Jimenez has suffered a quad injury while playing baseball this winter with the Cibao Giants of the Dominican League.

Meaning the tales of Jimenez becoming the rookie star of the White Sox for 2019 may have to be postponed – if not tabled altogether.

… the ones the White Sox will settle for?

If the Chicago Cubs rebuild of the early 2010s was the example of everything going right and resulting in a World Series title in 2016, we have to wonder if the White Sox rebuild is evidence of everything going wrong.

WHICH IS WHY gaining a big-name star would be beneficial for the Chicago Sout’ Side ballclub. Particularly if it were to turn out that they acquired Harper – who during his time playing ball in the District of Columbia never made a secret of it that he’d like someday to play for the Chicago Cubs.

On some level, it would be a psychological victory if the White Sox were to gain the guy who could have been a Cub – if only the Cubs weren’t crying broke; in large part because they blew their own money on the big-money deal they offered pitcher Yu Darvish.

Is Darvish the reason Cubs can't compete?

The deal that got the Cubs a 1-win, 3-loss record with a 4.95 earned run average in eight games (only 40 innings pitched) before his own injuries became too serious for him to continue playing.

Then again, could it turn out to be that all the White Sox’ talk of trying to gain Harper is what ultimately motivates the Cubs to try to figure out a way to “do” the big bucks needed to acquire Bryce – who seems determined to want to get the biggest contract ever in baseball history!

Dominican League injury delays Jimenez?

PERSONALLY, IT WOULDN’T bother me in the least if Harper were to choose to go elsewhere – largely because I actually think Machado (a Miami native of Dominican ethnic origins) would be the better fit for this rebuilt White Sox team.

This is one that supposedly can have Cubans (Moncada, Jose Abreu and Luis Robert) as its stars, with a whole slew of other peloteros from Latin American nations, including Jimenez. Machado of Miami might be a better fit and wouldn't have the attitude that has a lot of baseball fans thinking Machado is not worth the fact that HE wants to get the biggest contract ever in baseball history!

Is Moncada really just a .235 hitter?

But one way or another, those two big stars are going to wind up somewhere and likely will get contracts giving them enough funds that (unless they get stupid and waste money) will enable them to never have to work for real for the rest of their lives.

And if it turns out that neither Harper nor Machado choose to come to Chicago, well then White Sox fans will just have to settle for the brother-in-law and the one-time New York Yankees pitcher Ivan Nova as their off-season acquisitions leading into 2019.

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