Mike Clevinger to Sox per Rosenthal

[CWSpalehoseCWS]

 

[SoxBlanco]

3 minutes ago, CWSpalehoseCWS said:

 

@Pal

This the name you heard?

[Tnetennba]

7 minutes ago, CWSpalehoseCWS said:

 

??

[Chisoxfn]

Yes please 

[Chicago White Sox]

21 minutes ago, SoxBlanco said:

@Pal

This the name you heard?

I just want to say that @Pal is the GOAT insider unlike those fraudulent foodies.  Can’t wait for them to try and piggyback off this somehow.

[ChiliIrishHammock24]

I absolutely hate the way the fidgety way this guy acts on the mound. Reminds me of Karinchak. Also is very close with Trevor Bauer.

From a baseball standpoint he seems like a reasonable #4 or #5 option for us, with upside if Katz can fix him, but I'm not going to enjoy rooting for him. ?

[Chicago White Sox]

5 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

I just want to say that @Pal is the GOAT insider unlike those fraudulent foodies.  Can’t wait for them to try and piggyback off this somehow.

????????????????????????

[Tnetennba]

2 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

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Like clockwork huh?!  Always gotta be outing themselves by trying to piggyback. 

[Balta1701]

This one seems too obvious.

[BigHurt3515]

So is this the Cueto replacement in the rotation? Really would like a lefty in the rotation 

[maxjusttyped]

Hahn always gets his guy.

[SoCalChiSox]

How about LHP?

Oh wait i forgot we hate left handed anything.

[Chicago White Sox]

Couple interesting things to note about Clevinger.  His K rate was horrible this year, but what’s interesting is his four seamer was basically the same as it was in 2018 in terms of velocity, spin rate, & movement.  His declining K rate has more to do with his slider and curveball than anything else.  The curve was simply not effective this year and he cut its usage substantially.  The slider was still effective at generating whiffs, but not as strong as 2018 and he made more mistakes with the pitch given the sizable increase in ISO against.  However, his spin rates for both breaking balls was as good or better than 2018.  

Not sure if he was dealing with rust coming off TJS or if the knee injury he dealt with hurt his mechanics / command, but it seems like the pure stuff might still be at 2018 levels when he put up a 3.52 FIP and 4.2 fWAR over 200 innings.  He’s obviously not going to average 6.25 innings per start and I think we can rule out 32 starts right out of the gate.  However, I think we can probably get ~135 innings out of him next year and that could be worth 2.5 to 3.0 wins.  Obviously there are no guarantees and he could easily bust, but I think there is reason for optimism here and it doesn’t require him returning to his Cy Young caliber form from 2019.

[hi8is]

1 hour ago, Chicago White Sox said:

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We need a clown reaction emoji @Chisoxfn

[ChiSoxFanMike]

4 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Couple interesting things to note about Clevinger.  His K rate was horrible this year, but what’s interesting is his four seamer was basically the same as it was in 2018 in terms of velocity, spin rate, & movement.  His declining K rate has more to do with his slider and curveball than anything else.  The curve was simply not effective this year and he cut its usage substantially.  The slider was still effective at generating whiffs, but not as strong as 2018 and he made more mistakes with the pitch given the sizable increase in ISO against.  However, his spin rates for both breaking balls was as good or better than 2018.  

Not sure if he was dealing with rust coming off TJS or if the knee injury he dealt with hurt his mechanics / command, but it seems like the pure stuff might still be at 2018 levels when he put up a 3.52 FIP and 4.2 fWAR over 200 innings.  He’s obviously not going to average 6.25 innings per start and I think we can rule out 32 starts right out of the gate.  However, I think we can probably get ~135 innings out of him next year and that could be worth 2.5 to 3.0 wins.  Obviously there are no guarantees and he could easily bust, but I think there is reason for optimism here and it doesn’t require him returning to his Cy Young caliber form from 2019.

Good post. Hoping he signs for relatively cheap so there is still financial room to add an outfielder.

[Chicago White Sox]

 

 

[ShoeLessRob]

8 minutes ago, hi8is said:

We need a clown reaction emoji @Chisoxfn

We have one, I gave it to you. 

[hi8is]

3 minutes ago, ShoeLessRob said:

We have one, I gave it to you. 

Priceless.

[Chicago White Sox]

4 minutes ago, YouCanPutItOnTheBoardYES! said:

Good post. Hoping he signs for relatively cheap so there is still financial room to add an outfielder.

I think Fangraphs crowdsourcing had him getting a 1/$8M deal and MLBTR had getting a 1/$10M deal.  Both seem a little light to me and I went with $12M in my off-season plan.  Regardless, if we only have $15M to work with it, any of those prices would eat up a good chunk of our flexibility assuming an $180M payroll.  Would almost make me believe there is a little more in the coffers.

[hi8is]

4 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Would almost make me believe there is a little more in the coffers.

Yup.

All of this budget s%*# is using the media to be proactive in contract negotiations, I suspect.

[Chicago White Sox]

Fegan already has a piece up on the Athletic on Clevinger.  It’s almost written like the deal has been agreed to.  Not overly surprising, but probably the most interesting quote:

Quote

The White Sox don’t make these kinds of deals for high-upside pitchers without a plan in place with Katz for how to get the most out of it, and a power arm who’s run into choppy results due to health issues sounds a lot like Carlos Rodón pre-2021.

 

[chw42]

4 minutes ago, Chicago White Sox said:

Fegan already has a piece up on the Athletic on Clevinger.  It’s almost written like the deal has been agreed to.  Not overly surprising, but probably the most interesting quote:

 

If Katz can get him to stop fidgeting before the pitch I would be so happy. 

[Boopa1219]

1 hour ago, BigHurt3515 said:

So is this the Cueto replacement in the rotation? Really would like a lefty in the rotation 

I agree but I wouldn’t be mad if they signed Clevinger, especially on a one year prove it deal.

Plus, I’m of the mind that the Sox need to sign TWO starters. That second starter could be a lefty, a 4/5/6 starter type. Guys like Quintana, Yarbrough, Smyly, Boyd. 

[Chick Mercedes]

2 hours ago, BigHurt3515 said:

So is this the Cueto replacement in the rotation? Really would like a lefty in the rotation 

I feel like Cueto is more likely to have a 3.35 ERA in 2023 than Clevinger.

[Sarava]

I'd be good with this. It's a typical White Sox move. They buy high on relievers and utility infielders, and buy low on most everything else. If this happens, hopefully it works again like it did with Cueto