Chicago White Sox: Could Yoan Moncada hit leadoff?

How serious is Rick Renteria about potentially batting Yoan Moncada in the leadoff spot for the Chicago White Sox?

Coming to this season, it certainly seems to make a lot of sense for Yoan Moncada to bat near the top of the lineup for the Chicago White Sox.

He has great speed, a good eye and just has natural ability to hit the baseball, both for contact and for power.

But could the White Sox be experimenting with a new approach: making Moncada the leadoff man?

Here’s what Renteria had to say to the Chicago Tribune’s Chris Kuc about that possibility yesterday:

"“He likes the leadoff role (and) he likes hitting second,” Renteria said. “It gives me another option. If I can find someone who’s really comfortable in that situation and if he can manage that situation maybe we’ve found a guy we can use there.More from Da Windy CityJuan Soto appears headed to the Yankees which is not a big blow Chicago Cubs offseason3 takeaways from Chicago Blackhawks shootout loss to NashvilleChicago Cubs in the middle of chaos that is Shohei Ohtani’s free agencyThe Chicago Cubs are on a roller coaster of emotions chasing Shohei OhtaniChicago Bears quietly compiling list of head coaching candidates"

In particular, Renteria noted that Moncada has a penchant for getting on base at a decent clip. Despite his .231 batting average last year, Moncada did post a .338 on-base percentage to go with it.

And though Moncada didn’t get a hit yesterday, he did come up with two walks, two runs and a stolen base. The hits will come, of course. But the ability to get on base and make an impact even when they aren’t is a big deal for a young player.

In particular, that plate discipline could make him a slightly better option to lead off than Tim Anderson, another young candidate for the spot.

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Anderson has a lot to improve on yet as far as his plate discipline and raising his walk totals above last year. For someone with his speed and ability to wreak havoc on the base paths, a .276 on-base percentage is hideous.

Until he can figure that out, other players deserve shots at earning the leadoff spot. And Moncada, if he can merge his relatively solid plate discipline with good contact, arguably represents the option with the biggest upside for the White Sox.