Adam Eaton was the White Sox starting center fielder. For most White Sox fans, Eaton has been a terrible liability since the Sox acquired him from Arizona.
He is a Jekyll and Hyde player. His stats look good on the surface, but fans of daily games saw Eaton running into outs, playing bad defense, missing cut-offs and showing a low situational baseball IQ.
Eaton hit .287, 14 HR, 56 RBI with a 3.9 WAR. That looks pretty good for a lead off hitter.
But that WAR includes a negative 1.1 dWAR.
Clearly, the White Sox are looking to upgrade their outfield and defense talent.
That is why Dexter Fowler has been mentioned as a possible free agent signing.
But Fowler poses two problems. One, it takes Eaton, 27, to the bench. He won't be happy about that.
Two, Fowler signing would cost the White Sox the No. 28 pick in the June draft. The Sox No. 10 pick is protected so this is the Samardzija compensation selection.
The White Sox have enough young pitching in the pipeline to really go after the two best available college hitters in the draft and push them along to the majors like the Cubs did with Bryant and Schwarber. The No. 28 pick may have more value than Fowler's asking price for a long term deal.
