He's Back: Eloy Jiménez to Make '21 Debut on Monday in Kansas City
The White Sox rank 24th in baseball when it comes to the long ball, but Eloy Jiménez should help that cause.
White Sox fans needed some good news today after dropping the first two games in Milwaukee to the Brewers in a pretty frustrating fashion. White Sox skipper Tony La Russa delivered it to them in his pre-game media availability.
The 58-40 White Sox will receive a much-needed offensive injection on Monday in the form of slugger Eloy Jiménez, per La Russa. La Russa expects Jiménez to be in Kansas City — and in the lineup —tomorrow when Chicago opens a four-game set at Kaufmann Stadium.
La Russa declined to say whether the 24-year-old slugger will be playing left field or DH, but he did make it known that Andrew Vaughn — who is slashing .356/.380/.644 with five home runs, six doubles, and a 176 wRC+ since June 29 — will not be losing any playing time as a result of Jiménez’s return to the lineup this week.
In recent weeks, Tony La Russa has said that Eloy will see considerable time at DH despite Jiménez’s vocal disdain for that role. Having Jiménez healthy and slugging is paramount for the White Sox, and Andrew Vaughn has turned into a better defensive option than the former in left field this season.
Eloy Jimenez has 45 home runs in a combined 681 MLB at-bats under his belt, and during the truncated 2020 season, he was mashing home runs at a rate of one per every 15 at-bats.
Jiménez will help solidify the middle of the White Sox order and create some more consistency from game to game by lengthening the lineup and taking some pressure off guys like Tim Anderson, Yoán Moncada, and Jose Abreu.
Featured Image: Charles Rex Arbogast/Associated Press