Oh, Mighty Plan

White Sox general manager Rick Hahn doesn’t want to rush the Sox rebuild, so he’s pretty much come out and said that, short a miracle, righty phenom Michael Kopech won’t make the major-league roster out of spring training.  How things have changed in baseball over the past forty years.

Come April, Kopech will turn 22, an age that used to be considered “just right” for a pitcher.  I distinctly remember being a college freshman and watching 19-year old Terry Forster make the team in 1971.  A year later, Goose Gossage joined Forster in the Sox bullpen at the tender age of 20.  Teammate Bart Johnson also got his first call-up as a 19-year old.  Those three learned on the job, if you will.  While Johnson battled arm injuries throughout his career, Forster and Gossage pitched for a combined 38 seasons, regrettably, just not all with the Sox.

So, what gives with Kopech?  In part, Hahn wants to maximize the six years the team will have control of their pitcher as a major leaguer before he qualifies for free agency.  In other words, Hahn is gambling Kopech’s first full season will come with Rookie-of-the-Year stats, not Forster’s 2-3 record with a 3.99 ERA in 49.2 innings (Gossage went 7-1 with a 4.28 ERA in 80 innings as a rookie).  Fair enough, but I have to wonder if Hahn isn’t a little bit scared, too.

What if Kopech were to be pretty good this year and the Sox found themselves in contention for a wildcard berth, then what?  Under pressure by fans and the media, contending teams do stupid things around the July trade deadline; the Sox have a lot of minor-league talent that could get lost dealing for a middle reliever or platoon player.  I think Hahn would rather not be tempted.

Here’s an idea: why not just withstand the pressure?  Every deadline deal is an admission that the front office and/or coaching staff hasn’t done its job.  Stay the course, win with who you’ve got.  Now, that would be a revolutionary plan.