Black Sox Beat Writer
Chicago Sports Online
The Chicago Black Sox addressed areas of need with two free agent signings this week: shortstop Jaime Ramírez and center fielder Grant Lee.
- Ramírez, 31, who played for Portland last season, signed a 4-year contract worth $18,150,000, averaging roughly 4.5 million per year. The contract includes an opt-out after the third season.
- Lee, 28, who played in Yellow Springs last year, signed a 5-year contract worth $36,500,000, averaging about $7.3 million per year. Lee can opt out following the 2044 season.
Ramírez, in particular, has built a reputation for outstanding glove work, both at shortstop and third base, drawing this rave from the BBA Scouting Consortium: “He provides elite defensive value.”
Jaime Ramírez
Grant Lee
In addition, Ramírez has shown an ability to handle himself at the plate, bringing a career .286/.316/.377 slashline with him to Chicago. He also can steal the occasional base – last season, he stole 22 in 25 attempts.
“He’s definitely an upgrade over last season’s starter, Miguel Valdéz,” said analyst Gayle Combs, a contributing editor for Pitchout Punditry. “There’s no doubt he’ll bring the goods in the field, but I don’t think you can expect Ramírez to match those career batting stats in Black Sox Park, which has shown itself to be a pitchers’ park. That said, he should help them in an area that, frankly, needed help.”
The same can be said of Lee, who figures to play centerfield against right-handed pitchers and then move to right field against lefties, with Hao Hang moving over to left and Jim Lorenzen playing center.
Center field was something of a black hole for Chicago in 2042 – especially against right-handed pitching, where neither veterans Manny Cleide nor Lorenzen provided anything resembling acceptable offense. Cleide slashed .225/.276/.326 while Lorenzen slashed .183/.272/.361. (Lorenzen was better against lefties, though, slashing .255/.349/.469).
While Lee is hardly God’s gift to offense, he at least approached respectability against righties, hitting .237/.331/.407 while handling lefties to the tune of .309/.401/.569. Scouts say he has the power potential to hit 30 or so homers a year.
The BBA Scouting Consortium rates Lee as an average starting CF talent – not great, of course, but still a significant improvement at the position for Chicago.
Lee grades out with an outfield range of 8, an ability to avoid errors of 10, and arm strength of 10. Overall, the BSC grades him as an 8 in center and a 10 in right.
“As with Ramírez, there’s no question that Lee is an upgrade for Chicago,” said Combs. “But the question with both of these guys is whether the Sox spent too much and gave them too many years to be considered wise baseball investments.”
Malcolm Wilkes, a columnist who covers the Frick Heartland Division for BBA Weekly, seconded that thought, but offered a possible explanation.
“I’ve heard rumors that their GM – Benny Vitale – over the past season or two has sounded out a couple of teams about trades for center fielders, and in every case the asking price was one or more of the team’s young pitching prospects. Vitale said no, reasoning that while center field is a position of scarcity, viable starting pitchers are even scarcer.
“In the end, I think she was willing to overspend for average-to-slightly-above-average talent rather than gut their starting rotations or bullpens of the future.”
Vitale, for her part, was unapologetic about the signings – and typically bombastic in her defense of the moves.
“Our interest is in making the Black Sox a better team today than they were yesterday, and Mr. Ramírez and Mr. Lee do that without ransacking our minor league system,” she said. “What other general managers think of how we spend our money is of less than no interest to me. I need to please only two people in that regard: our owner, Vinnie Vitale, and me. End of list.”
Rumor has it that the Sox may still be trolling the free agent market for more right-handed hitting and/or relief pitching.
But Vitale refused to confirm or deny the club’s interest in further signings.
“That is our business, not yours,” she said.
Time, of course, will tell whether the Ramírez and Lee signings made sense for the Sox, but they do indicate at least one thing: Chicago is serious about trying to stay in playoff contention in 2043 and beyond.
