Jordan Hicks changed the conversation for the White Sox in a hurry.
What looked like a bullpen need at the trade deadline has started to feel a lot less urgent, thanks in large part to Hicks’ recent run. He was the escape artist in Wednesday night’s wild win over the Yankees, working out of a bases-loaded, nobody-out jam and helping set up the White Sox to finish the job in the bottom of the 12th inning.
And this wasn’t a one-night fluke. Since coming off the injured list on June 21, Hicks has thrown 13.1 scoreless innings and punched out 21 hitters. After an uneven start to the season, he’s suddenly giving the White Sox the kind of late-inning presence they were hoping to find.
That matters because the bullpen picture has changed in other ways too. Tanner McDougal and Hagen Smith are back from injury and have been moved into relief roles, a move that helps get them to the majors faster while also protecting their innings. Both have handled the switch well enough to look like legitimate big league relief options.
Tyler Schweitzer has also bounced between Triple-A and the majors and could be headed back to Charlotte to keep building up bulk innings. If Hagen Smith takes that spot, and with three left-handers already in the bullpen, Chris Murphy looks like the other possible candidate to go down. That’s part of the problem for any outside bullpen addition: there isn’t an obvious arm to remove.
The White Sox have gotten strong work from Grant Taylor, Sean Newcomb, and Bryan Hudson at the back end, while Trevor Richards, acquired from the Phillies earlier in the year, has given them a useful middle-inning option. Seranthony Dominguez has struggled, but he’s owed $20 million over the next two years and has no minor league options, so he’s not going anywhere.
So if the bullpen no longer sits at the top of the list, the White Sox can turn their attention elsewhere. The rotation and catcher position now look like the bigger issues.
Kyle Teel’s injury has left Edgar Quero and Drew Romo handling most of the catching work, and the club could use an upgrade there. Tyler Stephenson, Jonah Heim, and Ryan Jeffers are the kind of rental names that could fit.
The rotation, though, is the real priority. The White Sox would ideally add two starters who can give them six or seven innings and lighten the load on the bullpen. Whether they chase pricier controllable arms like Reid Detmers or go after rentals such as Clay Holmes is still unclear, but the need is obvious.
Hicks’ rise also gives the White Sox something they didn’t have before: a reliever they can trust in high-leverage spots, with another year left on his contract after this one. For a team trying to piece together the next version of this roster, that changes the shape of the deadline conversation. Credit goes to Brian Bannister, Zach Bove, and the rest of the pitching development staff for finding and shaping a pitcher who has always had the raw ability to be this good.
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