White Sox: The biggest disappointment of spring training so far

The Chicago White Sox have World Series expectations, which they’ve set for themselves.

You can blame Tim Anderson and Luca Giolito for placing these expectations squarely upon the South Side of Chicago, but the Sox are expected to win the AL Central, for better or worse.

Thus far in spring training, most of the attention has been on the expectations for the White Sox, and the introduction of new manager Tony La Russa, who at this point in his career is forced to adapt to a younger version of the ball-player he’s used to.

There’s a lot to be excited about with the White Sox, including the offseason additions of Lance Lynn, Adam Eaton and Liam Hedricks. However, that doesn’t mean spring training has been all positive. For one, Yasmani Grandal has suffered a rough spring, and he needs to be better to hang onto his job as starting backstop come Opening Day.

The White Sox need more from Yasmani Grandal

Grandal is sidelined currently due to inflammation in his right knee. In the meantime, the White Sox have ample competition behind him in Zack Collins and Jonathan Lucroy. Grandal is the proven starter at the position, and they assume he’ll be ready for Opening Day against the Kansas City Royals.

In 2019, Grandal signed a four-year, $73 million deal with the White Sox. That’s a lucrative deal for a catcher, and one Grandal will have to live up to moving forward in the second half of his contract.

It’s a stretch to call Grandal’s spring a failure. as he’s recovering from an injury. However, surely the White Sox expected some continuity in their catcher situation this spring. Instead, they’ve gotten anything but that.