White Sox just said the quiet part loud in Luis Robert Jr. trade talks

Perhaps the most polarizing player available at this year's MLB trade deadline is Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. He's shown superstar upside in the past, but has struggled in each of the past two seasons, leading to a massive dip in what the team can realistically acquire for him at the trade deadline. Despite the obvious regression, the White Sox are reportedly keeping Robert's asking price higher than teams expect, thanks to his latest hot streak, giving the league reason to believe Chicago is fine holding onto him if they don't get what they want. Well, the White Sox are saying one thing about Robert's ability to other teams, but their lineup for Monday's game suggests another.

Yes, you read that right. The player that the White Sox expect a lot from in a trade is hitting sixth for the team that's 38-68 on the year. What makes this even more damning is that the White Sox are facing left-hander Cristopher Sanchez.

Well, if Robert is hitting sixth in this lineup against a lefty, why should any contender act as if they should be giving anything of note up to acquire him?

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White Sox say what contenders already know about Luis Robert Jr.

Robert has had a brutal year, but he's crushed left-handed pitching. He's slashing .294/.422/.544 against southpaws, with five of his 10 home runs on the year. His ability to mash against lefties is certainly something contending teams are interested in.

In addition to his dominance against left-handers, Robert is playing as well as he has in quite some time with the White Sox, hitting .325 with a .926 OPS in July. That hot streak has undoubtedly raised his price in Chicago's mind, at least a little bit.

Well, again, I must ask, if Robert is red-hot at the plate and he's crushed left-handed pitching all year, why is he hitting sixth in this White Sox lineup? Is it because, well, he simply isn't worth Chicago's asking price?

Ultimately, actions always speak louder than words. The White Sox can't seriously put a high price tag on Robert, a player who could very well be a free agent at the end of the year if he doesn't have a monster second half, and then proceed to hit him sixth on a team 30 games under .500 against a lefty. They just told the world what they really think of him by hitting him that low in a matchup he should thrive in.

Perhaps a team will still meet Chicago's lofty asking price, but after this, it's hard to envision that happening.