GM Chris Getz not playing numbers game as White Sox look to stave off another 100-loss season
GLENDALE, Ariz. — White Sox general manager Chris Getz is done talking about triple-digit-loss seasons.
At least, he really would like to be.
The Sox have crossed the dreaded century mark three times under his watch, though most of the ugliness of 2023 landed on former GM Rick Hahn before Getz replaced him late in the season.
The Sox lost 101 games that season, took 20 steps backward to their historically bad 121-loss season in 2024, then weathered a relatively cheery 102 defeats last season.
The 2025 vibes were as good as could be expected for a team that won only a little more than an average of two games per week. That was because of the legitimate young talent Getz & Co. started to stack, including a possible superstar in shortstop Colson Montgomery and perhaps the best young catching tandem in baseball in Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero.
Now the Sox even have shelled out some free-agent cash for slugging Japanese wunderkind Munetaka Murakami, but they also have shed the tantalizing ‘‘boom’’ potential of center fielder Luis Robert Jr. after too many frustrating seasons of watching him go bust. And question marks stretch from the outfield into a young starting rotation.
So while things might be getting better on paper, Getz isn’t ready to guarantee the Sox will earn at least 63 victories this season to stave off one of the worst four-season stretches in MLB history.
‘‘We know we are going to make meaningful strides in the right direction,’’ Getz said Monday as players, coaches and staffers trickled into Camelback Ranch the day before pitchers and catchers officially report for spring training. ‘‘That shows up in a lot of different ways.
‘‘Obviously, winning baseball games at the major-league level is why we come here, why we show up. We are building. We’ve accumulated a lot of talent. We have players pushing toward the major leagues. We have players more experienced at the major-league level. We know that’s going to lead to more success. We are focused on what’s in front of us on that particular day. Regardless of what happens on that day, we will have that same mindset on the following day.’’
It wasn’t exactly an oversell on the eve of spring training, where hope springs eternal.
As for the Sox’ chances of potentially surprising rivals in the American League Central, Getz only would say: ‘‘We feel like we can go out there and compete on a regular basis. We showed that in the second half [of last season], regardless of who we were playing against. We won some really good series against some good ballclubs. We hope to take that same mindset and approach into this year. There’s no reason why we can’t get off to a really good start and see where the year takes us.’’
Getz said he’s especially excited to watch the continued development of 23-year-old flame-thrower Grant Taylor and 25-year-old Swiss Army man Mike Vasil, both of whom showed impressive flashes in relief last season but are pushing for shots as starters.
Getz also pointed to right-hander Shane Smith building on his All-Star rookie campaign, plus left-handed power arms Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz likely jumping to the majors at some point.
But he said the season is also about building on ‘‘a fair amount of momentum’’ that was nonexistent when he took the reins, thanks to players who have grown up together through the Sox’ system.
‘‘They love being around each other,’’ Getz said. ‘‘They love playing together. They’re learning how to win.’’
It all might sound familiar to Sox fans still reeling from another rebuild that never built to much of anything with players such as Robert, Eloy Jimenez and Yoan Moncada.
But Getz said second-year manager Will Venable has this younger crew ‘‘focused to start at ground zero’’ for a stronger foundation.
‘‘We feel really good about where we’re at,’’ he said. ‘‘The room is excited; they’re hungry. But we’ve got to go out and play good baseball, and that’s why we’re out here at spring training — to really set the stage for that.’’