CHICAGO (AP) — Luis Robert Jr. isn’t thinking about the trade deadline at the moment, not with his play so far for the Chicago White Sox.
“I think right now as my season is going I don’t think anybody is going to take a chance on me,” Robert said through a translator. “I just focus on trying to get better. I can’t think of anything else.”
Robert is off to a rough start in his sixth season with Chicago, batting just .186 with five homers and 17 RBIs. He also has a .589 OPS and 52 strikeouts in 44 games.
The 27-year-old Robert is still a strong defensive center fielder, a Gold Glove winner in his rookie season in 2020. He also had a major league-leading 17 steals going into Tuesday night’s matchup with the Mariners.
But he is struggling at the plate, and that has been frustrating for him.
“Yes of course. Everybody here works hard to get the results every day,” Robert said. “When you are working hard and the results aren’t there, it’s sad. You feel a little sad for sure.”
Robert has been the subject of trade conversations in the past, but the last-place White Sox haven’t found what they think is the right deal for the rebuilding franchise. Robert’s contract has $20 million club options for 2026 and 2027, with a $2 million buyout for each season.
If Robert heats up, he could be one of the top sluggers on the market at the July 31 deadline. But he has shown no signs of a turnaround so far.
“We’ve talked, and for me, as an observer, you see a guy that has one mentality on the bases and in the outfield and that’s an aggressive one and then maybe a little in between at the plate,” first-year White Sox manager Will Venable said.
“For me, it’s just about making sure he felt supported. At the same time, we’re challenging him to do all the right things that he needs to do to make adjustments to get better and he’s doing those things.”
Robert was regarded as a rising star as late as 2023, when he batted .264 with 38 homers, 80 RBIs and 20 steals in 145 games. He made the AL All-Star team that year.
But he missed almost two months of last season with a right hip flexor strain, and he finished the year on a career-long homerless drought of 34 games. He batted .224 with 14 homers and 35 RBIs in 100 games.
He thinks his slow start this year has to do with overthinking and his timing at the plate.
“I feel good in the cage. I feel good throughout my preparation for the game,” he said. “It’s just a matter of the results haven’t been there in the games. But I’ve been feeling good with my routine.”
A year after Chicago went 41-121, breaking the post-1900 major league record for losses in a season, it dropped to 14-34 with Monday night’s 5-1 loss to Seattle.
The White Sox signed Adrian Houser to a $1.35 million, one-year contract on Tuesday, and the right-hander was slated to start against the Mariners. To make room for Houser on the roster, right-hander Yoendrys Gómez was designated for assignment.
Houser, 32, was released by Texas on Tuesday. He went 2-2 with a 5.03 ERA in nine games with Triple-A Round Rock this year. He is 32-39 with a 4.21 ERA in 152 appearances in the majors with Milwaukee and the New York Mets.
With Houser joining the rotation, Bryse Wilson is going back to Chicago’s bullpen.
“(Houser’s) got experience, over 100 starts in the major leagues, so happy to slot him in and he’s going to put the ball on the ground against righties and got some different ways to get lefties out,” Venable said. “Excited to add him to the mix.”
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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB
Jay Cohen, The Associated Press
