The New York Yankees need a left fielder and were considered among the favorites to re-sign Andrew Benintendi.
They had him last year after acquiring him from the Kansas City Royals.
The Chicago White Sox, however, stunned them and secured his services with a five-year deal.
“Andrew Benintendi’s deal with the Chicago White Sox is for five years and $75 million, sources tell ESPN,” MLB insider Jeff Passan tweeted.
Andrew Benintendi’s deal with the Chicago White Sox is for five years and $75 million, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) December 16, 2022
That’s probably more than the Yankees felt comfortable paying for Benintendi after forking out $162 million for Carlos Rodon on Thursday night.
Still, it leaves the Yankees with a big hole in left field and virtually forces them to go to the trade market to get Bryan Reynolds, or bring in a Michael Brantley-type via free agency.
The White Sox Still Need More To Challenge The Guardians
As for the White Sox, they needed their fans to know that they are actually trying to win baseball games consistently in the South Side.
Yes, the Clevinger signing for the rotation was a nice get, but not nearly enough to move the needle for a team that finished 81-81 and 11 games out of first place this past season.
Benintendi, who slashed .304/.373/.399 with a 122 wRC+ and 2.8 Wins Above Replacement (WAR) this past season, will strengthen an outfield that also includes Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert, and potentially Gavin Sheets.
He is no slugger: his career-high in home runs is 20 and he hit just five last year.
However, he is a great all-around hitter with some pop and excellent contact skills.
He is a good guy for any lineup to have.
The White Sox are slowly putting together a better team than last year, but there is still work to be done if they want to catch the Cleveland Guardians.
