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Sox Spring Training notes


southsider2k5

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Somebody asked on Twitter, and Grok stepped in with the answer:

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Determining the exact Major League Baseball team with the worst spring training record of all time is tricky because comprehensive historical spring training records aren’t as meticulously maintained or widely available as regular season stats. Spring training games are exhibition matches, and their outcomes don’t count toward official standings, so documentation is spotty, especially for older seasons.
That said, based on available data, one of the worst recorded spring training performances in recent history belongs to the 2020 Pittsburgh Pirates. They finished with a 3-18 record, giving them a .143 winning percentage. This comes from a discussion on Reddit’s r/mlb community, where a user compiled spring training records back to 1984 using MLB.com data. The 2020 season was shortened due to the pandemic, which might have impacted the number of games played, but this dismal winning percentage stands out as one of the lowest in modern times.
Historically, it’s harder to pinpoint a definitive "worst ever" because records before the 1980s are incomplete. Teams in the early 20th century didn’t always play as many spring training games, and results weren’t consistently tracked. Anecdotally, struggling teams like the 1899 Cleveland Spiders (who had a 20-134 regular season record) or the 1962 New York Mets (40-120 in the regular season) might have had awful spring trainings, but there’s no hard data to confirm this.
So, while the 2020 Pirates hold the title for the worst known spring training record in recent decades at 3-18 (.143), the true all-time worst could be buried in unrecorded history. Spring training’s informal nature means we may never know for sure.
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Edited by WestEddy
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https://www.mlb.com/news/jake-burger-hits-home-run-after-daughter-s-surgery

 

A slimmed-down Dominic Fletcher has been impressive early on in camp and is already on the 40-man roster. Among the many veteran non-roster invites, Brandon Drury has corner outfield experience and most recently put forth a successful season at the plate. But as a left-handed power threat who wouldn’t need to make a full-time return to the outfield to serve as a Benintendi replacement, Joey Gallo’s presence in camp only takes on greater prominence. Bobby Dalbec is athletic enough to play the outfield and willing to boot, as is Brooks Baldwin. Oscar Colás is definitively still here. Wilfred Veras Island is always open to new residents.

https://soxmachine.com/2025/02/andrew-benintendi-to-miss-4-6-weeks-with-broken-right-hand/

 

No mention of Zach DeLoach, Cal Mitchell, lol...

 

Edited by caulfield12
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  On 2/28/2025 at 5:22 AM, caulfield12 said:

https://www.mlb.com/news/jake-burger-hits-home-run-after-daughter-s-surgery

 

A slimmed-down Dominic Fletcher has been impressive early on in camp and is already on the 40-man roster. Among the many veteran non-roster invites, Brandon Drury has corner outfield experience and most recently put forth a successful season at the plate. But as a left-handed power threat who wouldn’t need to make a full-time return to the outfield to serve as a Benintendi replacement, Joey Gallo’s presence in camp only takes on greater prominence. Bobby Dalbec is athletic enough to play the outfield and willing to boot, as is Brooks Baldwin. Oscar Colás is definitively still here. Wilfred Veras Island is always open to new residents.

https://soxmachine.com/2025/02/andrew-benintendi-to-miss-4-6-weeks-with-broken-right-hand/

 

No mention of Zach DeLoach, Cal Mitchell, lol...

 

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Slimmed down? Was he considered big before?

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MLB Trade Rumors lists out each team's list of out of option players. The only one that even requires brain cells would be Jacob Amaya. Sosa and Vargas should make the team. Tauchman, Thaiss and Bryse Wilson were brought here to make the team. Tristan Gray looked viable, and he hits a bit better and has way more power than Amaya. Plus, Gray has 2 options left. 

I also think it's telling that when Colson Montgomery was scratched, yesterday, Gray got the call to replace him, not Baldwin, even when Baldwin was on hand to replace Benintendi when he was pulled for x-rays. 

article: Out Of Options 2025 - MLB Trade Rumors

White Sox

Edited by WestEddy
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  On 2/28/2025 at 6:04 PM, WestEddy said:

MLB Trade Rumors lists out each team's list of out of option players. The only one that even requires brain cells would be Jacob Amaya. Sosa and Vargas should make the team. Tauchman, Thaiss and Bryse Wilson were brought here to make the team. Tristan Gray looked viable, and he hits a bit better and has way more power than Amaya. Plus, Gray has 2 options left. 

I also think it's telling that when Colson Montgomery was scratched, yesterday, Gray got the call to replace him, not Baldwin, even when Baldwin was on hand to replace Benintendi when he was pulled for x-rays. 

article: Out Of Options 2025 - MLB Trade Rumors

White Sox

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Baldwin can play pretty much any spot on the field except catcher.

Think you're reading way too much into a singular decision.

 

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/tristan-gray/19877/stats?position=1B

Gray is actually still listed at 1B 3B.

Then he moved to the middle infield more recently...if they wanted to roster him, there was zero reason to sign Rojas.

The only logical argument is that Josh Rojas will somehow lead to more wins...and avoiding 121 losses again.

Edited by caulfield12
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  On 3/1/2025 at 1:12 AM, caulfield12 said:

Gray is not a great SS.

He's a utility guy.  Look at his Rays' background.

Amaya is the defender who will help out contact pitchers the most.

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You don't need a "great" shortstop. Gray has more power. 

Not sure what you're really responding to. My original comment was more about Gray seeming to get more early action than Baldwin. The other part was that Amaya was the only one on that list who wasn't exactly a lock. 

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  On 3/1/2025 at 1:12 AM, caulfield12 said:

Gray is not a great SS.

He's a utility guy.  Look at his Rays' background.

Amaya is the defender who will help out contact pitchers the most.

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  On 3/1/2025 at 1:18 AM, WestEddy said:

You don't need a "great" shortstop. Gray has more power. 

Not sure what you're really responding to. My original comment was more about Gray seeming to get more early action than Baldwin. The other part was that Amaya was the only one on that list who wasn't exactly a lock. 

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Gray is also a NRI... his options don't get used if he gets sent to Charlotte. No reason to add him unless he straight up wows in camp.

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  On 3/1/2025 at 6:12 AM, CWSpalehoseCWS said:

 

Gray is also a NRI... his options don't get used if he gets sent to Charlotte. No reason to add him unless he straight up wows in camp.

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https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/player/187997/

Gray is already 28 and has less than 30 minor league homers in seven years.

Career .764 minor league hitter.

.622 lifetime in the majors.

Would rather watch Amaya/Gonzalez/Bergolla than someone at 28 with limited trade value.

That said all of those guys would probably hit .175 and their defensive advantages would be eradicated.

So just play Baldwin at SS.

Really quite simple.

Him becoming a 2-2.5 fWAR player would a great development coup.

Edited by caulfield12
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  On 3/1/2025 at 6:18 AM, caulfield12 said:

https://www.thebaseballcube.com/content/player/187997/

Gray is already 28 and has less than 30 minor league homers in seven years.

Career .764 minor league hitter.

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WTF are you talking about? Get out of the opium dens. Gray has 127 minor league homers. 

Tristan Gray College, Amateur, Minor & Independent Leagues Statistics | Baseball-Reference.com

Edited by WestEddy
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