White Sox Say Goodbye to Gavin Sheets After Four Seasons

Gavin Sheets has been non-tendered by the Chicago White Sox, according to a report from MLB Network Insider Mark Feinsand. The move cuts the White Sox 40-man roster down to 38 players.

Sheets was projected to make roughly $2.5 million in arbitration. The White Sox decision to move on from him comes after a sudden decline in power over the last three seasons and an inability to hit left-handers. The 28-year-old owns a career .168/.216/.242 slash line against southpaws compared to a .239/.306/.405 line against righties. 

When Gavin Sheets burst onto the scene in 2021 he looked like he could be a productive left-handed bat moving forward. In just 54 games he hit 11 home runs drove in 34 RBIs and hit .250. He followed that up with four hits in the ALDS. 

In 2022 he followed that up by hitting a career-high 15 homers and 53 RBIs in 124 games but dropped his average to .241. Since then his production plummeted.

In 2023, he slashed just .203/.267/.331 with 10 homers and 43 RBIs. This past season, he struck out 106 times with a .233 batting average and .660 OPS and once again only hit 10 homers. Across the board, Sheets' offensive numbers were below league average. He ranked in the league's 35th percentile in slugging percentage (.389), 23rd in average exit velocity (87.8%), 24th in chase rate (32.4%), and 22nd in hard-hit percentage (35.3%). 

Adding insult to injury is his sub-par defense. Sheets is a first baseman by trade. However, early in his career, the White Sox experimented with him as an outfielder to fit him in the lineup with Jose Abreu and Andrew Vaughn blocking first base. The experiment was a disaster, resulting in 10 errors,-22 Defensive Runs Saved, and  -13 Outs Above Average in  1,618 innings patrolling the outfield. However, his work at first base still left much to be desired In 2024, he owned an OAA of -8, which ranked in the MLB’s fourth percentile. 

While Sheets once promising career with the White Sox fell flat he was a very easy player to root for. He rarely complained despite being put in uncomfortable positions by the organization and contributed to an AL Central Title. One of his most memorable moments with the organization came on July 19, 2021, in the second game of a doubleheader against the Twins. With the White Sox trailing 3-2 and down to their last three outs Sheets drilled a walk-off three-run homer off of Jose Berrios to secure a 5-3 victory and salvage a doubleheader split.

He still has three years of control left if he gets picked up by another team and could theoretically be brought back to the White Sox on a lower salary. However with the recent signing of Austin Slater, whose secondary position is first base, a reunion with the White Sox seems unlikely for Sheets.