Lenyn Sosa Quietly Leads A Step Forward For White Sox Hitters
The White Sox were last in almost every offensive category last season and weren't a lot better in the first half of this season. But since the All-Star Game they've been one of the most productive lineups in baseball, largely thanks to improvements from holdover players like Lenyn Sosa, Miguel Vargas and Brooks Baldwin. Oh, Luis Robert Jr., too.
Getz moved quickly to hire the 34-year-old Fuller when the Orioles made him a scapegoat for their disappointing '24 season, firing him from his position as co-hitting coach. He also agreed to acquire a state-of-the-art Trajekt pitching robot, which accurately simulate pitches from specific big-leaguers, and let Fuller identify other tools for the development of hitters.
Fuller joined the Orioles in 2019 as a minor-league hitting coach and was promoted to hitting coordinator in '21. He was given significant credit for the development of Adley Rutschman, Gunnar Henderson, Jordan Westburg, Colton Cowser and Connor Norby, among others in Baltimore's wave of young hitters. But his value goes beyond the guys at the top of the lineup.
'I really pride myself on helping create a team that's dynamic,' Fuller told James Fegan of Sox Machine. 'Whatever challenges are presented that night, we are going to have the skills to match up accordingly. Whatever is called for, we are going to be trained to execute.'
Reports from spring training showed an impressive jump in bat speed from some veteran hitters, including Sosa (+3.6 mph), Baldwin (+2.7) and Vargas. None of them have maintained that increase throughout the season — some believe the Statcast cameras weren't completely accurate at Rate Field last season — but all three of them have started hitting.
Sosa, who was given a $350,000 bonus to sign out of Venezuela in 2016, is a 25-year-old infielder who reached the big leagues in 2022 and entered this season with a .229 batting average and .604 OPS in 163 games. This year he's hitting .277 with a .749 OPS while making an argument he can be an everyday second baseman, not just a utility man.
Working with Fuller and big-league hitting coaches Marcus Thames and Joel McKeithan, Sosa has given himself for a chance at a 20-homer season (he has 14). He's increased his hard-hit rate to 43.9 and his average exit velocity to 90.8 mph. He could reach arbitration as a Super 2 player after this season and figures to be rewarded for the improvement.
Vargas, like Sosa, has been raking since the All-Star break. The 25-year-old middle infielder acquired from the Dodgers last season is starting to get closer to the results that had been projected off his 35 homers and .923 OPS over 214 games in Triple-A.
Robert and rookie shortstop-third baseman Colson Montgomery arguably have been the two brightest signs in recent weeks. Getz held onto Robert at the trade deadline rather than resign himself to diminished value, and Robert is looking like his old self, hitting .333 with 3 homers and 9 stolen bases in 19 games since the All-Star break.
Montgomery, who has been a special project for Fuller, made his big-league debut on July 4. He's hitting .241 with 10 homers, 26 RBIs and an .876 OPS in 32 games..
It's hard to believe but the White Sox are leading the majors with 41 home runs since the All-Star break, one more than the Phillies, led by Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper. They are third in runs (121), fifth in batting average (.262) and fifth in slugging (.470).
They're likely to experience some regression before the season ends but that won't diminish the progress they're showing. This stretch will speak loudly to management and especially the players when the White Sox begin looking forward to next season.
Fans would love to see the White Sox ownership group spend more heavily to build a competitive roster. But this is a much improved team from a year ago, with players getting better as games fly off the schedule. First-year manager Will Venable and his coaches are doing good work.
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