Jake Burger SNUBBED From White Sox Opening Day Roster
After a flurry of roster news from the White Sox, one surprising name was left off the Opening Day roster, Jake Burger. After a great spring that saw him hit .263 with four bombs, many thought that Burger was going to hit himself onto the roster. But, according to sources, it does not seem like that’s the case.
Burger Has Come A Long Way
Burger, a former first-round pick, has battled adversity his whole career. After being hailed as one of the best pure hitters in his draft class, injuries derailed his first couple of years in the minors. After finally getting healthy, he rocketed through the minors and made his debut in late 2021. He then filled in for Yoan Moncada early in the season last year and provided a power bat to a relatively dead lineup. While 3rd base is Yoan Moncada’s position for the foreseeable future, I thought his performance earned him at least a spot on the bench.
All off-season Jake Burger was focusing on improving. He mentioned how he was working specifically on his defense, even taking reps at both first and second base to become more versatile if needed. He has also worked on becoming leaner to avoid any major injury.
But it seems Pedro Grifol either believes that he cannot fully field those positions, or wants another lefty bat. At the end of the day, Burger is the best bat option the Sox could have on the bench and he should be on the roster.
The White Sox Would Benefit From Jake Burger’s Power
After a 2022 season that saw the White Sox rank 22nd in home runs, it seemed that they would opt for Burger’s power bat off the bench in some capacity, but sources say they go with Gavin Sheets for the last bench spot.
Perhaps they believed Sheets was the better option as a lefty power bat, but I still believe Sheets is best suited for first base. While he can play right field, if he is consistently taking reps there, something has gone terribly wrong, as that is not his natural position. There is always a need for lefty bats in the White Sox lineup, but after adding two lefty bats in Andrew Benintendi and Oscar Colas, I felt that need was not as important.
Jake Burger can consistently hit for power and has the most potential out of any player on the White Sox bench. While Gavin Sheets is still a very solid player, Burger has the first-round draft pedigree and the higher ceiling. Getting Burger consistent major league reps could benefit the White Sox, as he could blossom into an all-star. Burger could easily hit 25-30 home runs for the Sox every year if given the chance. Considering the power drought from last year, they could really use that.
There Is Still Room For Improvement
Nonetheless, Jake Burger is a major-league player and he deserves to be on a major-league roster. The White Sox could potentially look to trade him to a team that would play him every day. Philidelphia is an option, as they had an injury that left a vacancy at first base. I believe with consistent playing time that Burger would become an above-average major league contributor for a long time.
Still only 26 and only 200 at-bats to his name, Burger has plenty of room for improvement. I would assume Rick Hahn wants him to get consistent at-bats in AAA, but after a certain point, a player needs to get major league at-bats to fully improve.
Maybe the White Sox feel Burger is the full-time replacement if an injury were to happen to Moncada, but we cannot bank on injuries to get someone at-bats. Burger could have easily rotated around third, first, and DH to get some at-bats and give players a rest. But, after recent reports, it seems Grifol wants his starting nine to play as close to 162 as possible.
While I was a fan of many of the roster moves the White Sox made, this was the one that puzzled me the most. Both Romy Gonzalez and Hanser Alberto can play the outfield, and Eloy can fill in if needed. The need for extra versatility in the outfield was filled, and I believe Burger would have been the perfect bench spot for this roster. Hopefully, he starts off hot in AAA and forces the Sox’s hand sooner rather than later.