The Chicago White Sox enter spring training, having one of the more interesting camps to follow.
The White Sox enter camp with their top prospects, who they invited, looking to make an impact and hopefully make the major league roster.
One player coming into camp with a lot to prove is the White Sox first baseman, Andrew Vaughn. Vaughn is entering his fifth season with the White Sox and is one year away from becoming a free agent.
Vaughn has a lot to prove and has to show he’s worth investing in and giving a contract extension to.
A pivotal year for the Chicago White Sox first baseman
This will be a pivotal season for the soon-to-be 27-year-old, enters his fifth season with the White Sox. In Vaughns’s four seasons, the former first-round pick has been right around league average. For his career, Vaughn has a career slash line of .253/.310/.415, with a career OPS and OPS+ of .725 and 101.
Vaughn has also proven to be a subpar first baseman defensively, posting -5 for defensive runs saved and having -9 for his range per Baseball Savant. Last season was a mixed bag for Vaughn, who had a career-low on-base percentage of .297 and a career-low OPS of .699.
Vaughn also had a career-high in strikeouts last season striking out 132 times in 570 at-bats. The University of California Berkely product did manage to tie his career high in doubles, posting 30 on the season.
Vaughn needs to have a breakout season
Vaughn has one more year left before he becomes a free agent. The White Sox enter the second year of their rebuild, and Vaughn needs to have a breakout season not just for him to get paid, but for the White Sox to see if he’s worth keeping around.
The White Sox brought in competition for Vaughn this offseason by signing sluggers Joey Gallo and Bobby Dalbec to minor-league deals. Both will hopefully light a spark under Vaughn to be better offensively, with Gallo being a possible platoon partner.
FanGraphs projects Vaughn will have a similar year this season to his 2023 season. They project that Vaughn will appear in 144 games, hit 29 doubles, 21 HRs, drive in 76 RBI, and have a slash line of .256/.315/.428 and an OPS of .743.
These numbers would be great on any other team but for the White Sox to keep Vaughn around long-term, he will need to do more.
Time will tell
We shall soon see what Vaughn brings to the table for this season, with players starting to trickle into camp.
Given that Vaughn is a league-average player and still has one more year left on his deal, he could be a valuable trade asset if he shows he’s not the long-term solution at first base.
Time will tell if Vaughn is up to the task with the first games of spring training set to begin soon.
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