Eloy Jimenez Trade Talks: White Sox Receiving 'Very Little Interest'

The White Sox have explored the possibility of trading Eloy Jimenez this offseason. However, there is reportedly “very little interest” in the 27-year-old designated hitter. 

Bruce Levine of 670 The Score reports that the White Sox are expected to retain Jimenez for the upcoming 2024 season after he garnered limited interest from opposing clubs. 

Jimenez is under contract through 2024 with club options worth $16.5 million in 2025 and $18.5 million in 2026. He is owed $13 million next season and an additional $3 million if either year of his club option is not picked up.  

Chris Getz has already overseen sweeping changes to the White Sox roster. Continuing the overhaul by trading Jimenez seemed like a logical next step. Jimenez has shown tremendous potential as a hitter. However, it is understandable why teams are hesitant to trade for him. 

During his White Sox tenure, Jimenez has been an injury-prone underachiever. In 2022 he was limited to 84 games due to a strained right hamstring. The following year his name appeared in a report from ESPN’s Jesse Rodgers which detailed issues about the White Sox culture. Rodgers described Jimenez as “happy-go-lucky but really isn’t the hard worker.” Jimenez’s response to the firing of Kenny Williams and Rick Hahn also drew scrutiny.  

The crew goes OFF after certain postgame comments from Eloy Jimenez

Ozzie: The reason they fired Rick & Kenny is because of THEM

Pods: There has been no standard set whatsoever. This team has not been held accountable this entire year. They don't play hard. They don't run hard. pic.twitter.com/ivQXdDowLq

— White Sox Talk (@NBCSWhiteSox) August 23, 2023

There is no denying Jimenez has talent but a change of scenery may benefit both parties. But paying a player who can’t play defense $48 million over the next three seasons is a gamble. 

For context, Lourdes Gurriel, Jr. inked a three-year deal worth $42 million with the Diamondbacks over the winter. Gurriel has hit 50 home runs over the last three seasons and drove in 218 RBIs. During that same period, Jimenez hit 44 home runs with just 125 RBIs. However, he did produce a slightly higher OPS+ last season.

In 2023 Jimenez logged his most games (120) since his rookie year (122).  However, he had 13 fewer home runs, 15 fewer RBIs, and a slugging percentage that dropped from .513 to .441. His barrel percentage and hard-hit percentage also dropped. 

In 2023 he had a career-low 9.3 barrel percentage, 26.0 sweet spot percentage, 46.8 hard hit percentage, and a .421 expected slugging percentage. These numbers suggest that Jimenez was having some issues with his timing.  The revolving door of hitting coaches certainly doesn't help matters. Jimenez did have a higher batting average but the White Sox are paying him to hit home runs and 18 on the year simply isn’t going to cut it. 

His value is further diminished by the fact he has proven to be a defensive liability. Jimenez has a career -19 Outs Above Average. 

Given his well-documented injury history, the White Sox moved him from his primary role in left field to designated hitter. Jimenez was vocal about not wanting to be a full-time DH. He even tried to win the starting job in right field during Spring Training. Pedro Grifol gave him some opportunities in right field and while the defensive numbers were not nearly as bad as they were when he was in left field they still left a lot to be desired. 

In 2023 he had a -1 OAA in right field. To his credit, he did not commit an error in right field. However, his lack of arm strength allowed base runners to advance on balls hit to him at a higher clip than the league average.  

Even if the White Sox were to find a trade partner for Jimenez it is unlikely they would be able to net anything of value unless they ate some of his salary. 

That’s not to say the 2020 Silver Slugger winner couldn’t increase his value. Despite the disappointing start to his career, he has shown flashes of being an elite run producer. 

In 2022 he averaged an RBI every 5.41 at-bats which was the highest rate on the White Sox and sixth-best mark in the American League. He also ranked inside the top 10 in the AL in OPS (.858) and Slugging Percentage (.500). In 2020, Jimenez led the AL in multi-hit games, en route to becoming the youngest White Sox player to ever win the Silver Slugger.  In 2019 he led all AL Rookies in home runs (31), RBIs (79), and total bases (240).

The White Sox are seeking more consistency from Jimenez. Proving that he can stay healthy for an extended period would be a good first step. If he can, the White Sox may not have a reason to trade him as they try and rebuild a 101-loss team back into a contender.