Chicago White Sox: Whiff of Manny Machado insults fans

The Chicago White Sox could have accelerated the rebuild by signing Manny Machado but struck out instead.

It’s been 13 years since the Chicago White Sox last appeared in the World Series. Since that time, they have made the playoffs exactly once, and have finished out of first place, on average, by nearly 18 games.

Needless to say, it is been a rough decade plus for the Sox fans. Those days of misery could have been a thing of the past if the White Sox had just signed one of the best young players in the game. Had ownership been serious about Manny Machado they could have been ready to compete for a playoff spot this year.

Chicago only won 62 games last season, which is what Fangraphs.com projects them to have this season, while Baseball Prospectus had them at 70. With Machado on board, this team could have been close to .500 this season. But hey, the fans will never know. And it’s the fans who lost the most with the news that Machado signed a 10-year/$300 million deal with the San Diego Padres.

They lost not just because they miss out on the opportunity to watch a generational talent every day, but because they fell for the lie that the team was serious about pursuing him. All offseason the team led fans to believe they would be aggressive and would not be outbid. Well, yesterday they were in fact, outbid.

What makes it so bad is how their own inability to refrain from ‘penny-pinching’ bit them in the rear. Management tried to sell fans on the idea that their offer was better than the Padres. Despite Machado making it clear guaranteed money was his priority, the White Sox couldn’t help themselves from trying to wiggle a few extra dollars out of him.

While it’s true that the Sox offer if completely realized, would have resulted in more than the Padres offer, but by attaching stipulations to the additional incentives, Chicago made it clear guaranteeing Machado money wasn’t their priority.

They were willing to guarantee $250 million over eight years (~$31 million AAV), but wouldn’t guarantee the final two years at $25 million each to match the Padres offer? Why?

Well, the answer is clear. Money. It’s the only thing that matters to owner Jerry Reinsdorf. It’s the reason why the Chicago Bulls sell second-round draft picks like it’s their job, or why they continue to put a trash product on the floor even though they sell out the United Center almost every game.

The team made promises to deploy the money earmarked for Machado over the next year. Hopefully, they will have loosened up the purse strings enough by then to sign a generational talent. But we’re not holding our breath.