Every position player struggled at the plate for the White Sox last season during their trudge to a historic 41-121 record. But their catching in particular was poor.
Sox catchers had a combined -2.3 WAR, according to FanGraphs, and ranked last in the majors in batting average (.173) and on-base percentage (.217) and second-to-last in slugging (.291). They also struck out at the highest rate in the majors.
After an offseason in which general manager Chris Getz didn’t do much to improve the offense in free agency, overall production has mostly remained lackluster. Entering Monday, the Sox (2-7) were tied for the fourth-fewest runs in the majors (32), more than half of which came in blowout wins on Opening Day and March 31.
Add to that the unclear status of left fielder Andrew Benintendi, who left Sunday’s loss to the Tigers with tightness in his left adductor. He had been batting .290/.333/.484 with an .817 OPS — production that would be missed badly if he’s out for an extended time.
“It’s still early for this season,” third baseman Miguel Vargas said. “Obviously, we [were] facing really good pitchers. We have a couple of good games offensively. We just need to be consistent with that. And it’s still early, and I think we are going to be in a good spot.”
The catchers, one of the Sox’ few bright areas, might be a key to making that happen. Korey Lee (.385/.429/.538) and veteran Matt Thaiss (.250/.409/.313), an offseason trade acquisition, have been having good at-bats and committing to the smaller details the Sox are focused on, such as taking extra bases or fouling off pitches to extend at-bats. Entering Monday, the Sox duo was first among catchers in batting average (.360), third in walk rate (18.8%) and 28th in strikeout rate (15.6%).
Thaiss even made a highlight-reel play Friday in Detroit. Racing from first base on a double by Brooks Baldwin and sent home by third-base coach Justin Jirschele, he dodged Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler’s fumbled tag, then circled back to tap the plate and score.
“[Sox outfielder Travis Jankowski] was giving me great information, telling me to slide away,” Thaiss said. “And that’s kind of what I tried to do. I saw, based on how [Dingler] was setting up, that he was getting ready to catch it, and it was probably a good chance of being close.”
While Lee and Thaiss’ batting averages are unsustainable, seeing them becoming more selective in their approaches has been encouraging. Lee, who has doubled twice, said he worked in the offseason on being more patient after striking out 31% of the time last season, which was in the bottom sixth percentile in the majors, according to Baseball Savant.
Thaiss, too, is whiffing at fewer pitches and has improved his chase rate. Both he and Lee credit hitting coach Marcus Thames for their improvements.
“I’ve always been able to draw some walks, but I’m getting to more pitches at the top of the zone right now, where in years past I’ve swung and missed,” Thaiss said. “It’s good to be back with Marcus and shortening things up.”