With Spring Training finally upon us, there will be no shortage of stories across the league. Which prospects will make the biggest impact in camp? What position battles will be the most interesting to keep an eye on? Can the Cubs repeat? Will the Indians suffer a World Series hangover, or come out of the gates firing?
These are just a handful of stories that MLB fans across the nation will be tuning into. One that Chicagoans in particular will be eager to hear about is what the future holds for the White Sox. After two blockbuster deals done already, fans of the team are waiting for more A-list assets to be traded, and a plethora of A-list prospects in return. It is no secret that the White Sox are going to have a boatload of young talent in their farm system when the waters have calmed and all the trades have been completed. With luck, the team on the South Side should be contending for a World Series within the next 3-5 years. However, perhaps the best asset that the White Sox will have on their side during this rebuild isn't a future prospect or manager at all.
It is the timing.
As of today, the A.L. Central is probably the weakest division in all of baseball. There are the Cleveland Indians... and everybody else. Cleveland is without question the cream of the division crop and should have no trouble whatsoever repeating as division champs in 2017. After that, things get pretty terrible.
The Detroit Tigers maybe have a shot at a Wild Card, but I would be shocked to see them make the playoffs. They are somewhat stuck in the middle as of now. Not good enough to really be any type of postseason threat, but not bad enough to tank or be in a position to trade any of their assets. Definitely not the best position to be in.
For the Kansas City Royals, 2017 could very well be the last year they have a chance at a World Series run. After this season, Eric Hosmer, Lorenzo Cain, Mike Moustakas, and Alciedes Escobar will all be free agents. AKA, their entire core. That's not even counting the fact that the Royals have also lost Wade Davis, and tragically, Yorando Ventura. Depending on how hot or cold the Royals start, we could very well see them blow up the team at the deadline, strengthen their farm, and start building another young core.
Minnesota is currently horrible, perhaps even more so than the White Sox. However, unlike the Tigers and Royals, they have some young talent in the MLB already, (emphasis on Byron Buxton) and 4 prospects currently in the top 100 according to MLB.com. However, while they may take a solid step forward in the next couple years, they still do not have enough of that young talent to build around as of today.
Which leads us to the White Sox. By the time the South Side is finally ready to compete, the division may be wide open for them to take by the throat. Although Cleveland is a phenomenal team right now, it is incredibly hard to keep a championship caliber roster around for an extended period of time. Just ask Kansas City. Players become too expensive, injuries happen, and age starts to factor in.
Then there is Kansas City and Detroit, who may be in full blown rebuilds themselves a couple years down the road. And finally, there is Minnesota, who I think will be in the good-not-great category come 2019. Could they maybe compete for a Wild Card? Absolutely, but as far as having enough to win the division, I personally do not see it unless they can bring in some additional young talent to round out their roster.
The influx of young talent that the White Sox have been getting, and will continue to get, is obviously going to get all of the attention. Rightfully so. However, when the Sox are finally ready to compete for a World Series, don't be surprised to see the A.L. Central in another state of mediocrity. Right now, Cleveland's path to the playoffs is nothing short of a cakewalk. Don't be surprised if the White Sox find themselves in a similar position in the not-so-distant future.
B
BearsRecord:--
