White Sox Update – January 2, 2019

On behalf of the entire Sox On 35th crew, I would like to start off this article by saying Happy New Year to all of our loyal followers and readers. Since the start of 2019, there have been some news and rumors that pertain to the White Sox in one way or another so here’s a look at what’s happening.

• • The Yankees have reportedly agreed to terms with free agent Troy Tulowitzki on a league-minimum deal, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN.com. Tulowitzki is expected to fill the vacancy left behind at shortstop by Didi Gregorius, who continues to recover from Tommy John surgery.
    

    Free agent shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is in agreement on a deal with the New York Yankees pending a physical, league sources tell ESPN. Tulowitzki is expected to join the Yankees on a league-minimum deal, with the Toronto Blue Jays paying the remainder of his $20 million salary.

    — Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) January 2, 2019

    Why should White Sox fans care? This may or may not have implications on the Yankees run at Manny Machado. Passan reports that this does not take the Yankees out of the sweepstakes by any means, as it shouldn’t. More or less, this move seems to give New York some flexibility should they not land Machado, especially since they will be paying next to nothing for Tulowitzki in 2019.

  • Jeff Passan also reports that free agent OF Bryce Harper has recently met with representatives of the Washington Nationals. Jon Heyman of Fancred.com revealed that the latest meeting is believed to have been held after the Winter Meetings. Therefore, D.C. cannot be ruled out of the Harper sweepstakes completely, despite their apparent unwillingness to offer the type of contract Harper is looking for. In his article, Passan lists the Phillies and White Sox as the two other teams that are indeed willing to offer Harper a 10-year deal.
  • Bruce Levine of 670 The Score later rebutted Passan’s claim about the Sox being willing to offer a 10-year deal to either Machado or Harper. He claims the highest the Sox will go is seven years for either free agent.
    

    Reports of the White Sox offering ten plus years for Manny Machado or Bryce Harper are ”Without any substance and flat out wrong “ according to high ranking industry sources . Wh Sox will not be giving offer of more than 7 years for either player.

    — Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) January 2, 2019

    Which reporter should fans believe right now? Neither, at least not until a deal is signed. It is extremely difficult for anyone to accurately know what a team is thinking, especially since at the end of the day, one is battling another to sign the same guy. Certain information may be made public, and not completely true, in order for one to gain the upper hand when it comes time to negotiating a deal.

  • Jim Salisbury of NBC Sports Philadelphia reports that Bryce Harper and the Phillies are expected to meet at some point next week. The meeting will apparently be a face-to-face in Las Vegas, similar to the one the White Sox conducted in November that included a contingent headlined by Hall of Famer Jim Thome.
  • NBC Sports Chicago announced a new multi-year media rights deal with the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks on Wednesday afternoon. The company reported that “the deal is subject to formal documentation and pending MLB, NBA, and NHL approval.” The deal would give NBC Sports Chicago “exclusive, multi-platform media rights to present game coverage of all three teams.” When approved, it is expected to begin in October of this year. For the White Sox, this means that NBC Sports Chicago will be the exclusive home for all regular season games. No financial aspects of this deal have been released. For the full press release, click here.

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Featured Photo: Sports Illustrated