White Sox win a franchise-record three Silver Sluggers

We’ve done the Gold Gloves, and now it’s time for the Silver Sluggers. The White Sox won a franchise-record three in 2020, it was announced on Thursday.

All entrees on the way to José Abreu: MVP, right?

For José, it a third career Silver Slugger, and the first for both Tim Anderson and Eloy Jiménez.

Here’s the White Sox release:

THREE WHITE SOX WIN SILVER SLUGGER AWARDS

CHICAGO – First baseman José Abreu, shortstop Tim Anderson and outfielder Eloy Jiménez of the Chicago White Sox have been named American League Silver Slugger Award winners.

The three White Sox recipients of the award are a franchise record, breaking the mark of two set on four other occasions (last 2014). The Sox are the first AL team with three different Silver Slugger winners since Boston’s Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts and David Ortiz won in 2016.

Abreu, 33, batted .317/.370/.617 with 15 doubles, 19 home runs and 60 RBIs in 60 games this season as he earned his third career Silver Slugger award (also 2014 and 2018), tying Carlton Fisk for the second-highest total in White Sox history behind Frank Thomas (four).

He led the AL in hits, RBIs, slugging percentage, total bases (148) and extra-base hits (34), tied for the lead in multi-hit efforts (21) and WAR (2.9), ranked second in home runs, fourth in average, and fifth in OPS (.987). Abreu was the only player to rank among the AL Top 5 in hits, RBIs, slugging percentage, extra-base hits, total bases, home runs, average and OPS.

“I am very happy to win the Silver Slugger Award, but I am happier of winning it this year along with Tim Anderson and Eloy Jiménez,” Abreu says. “I am happier for them because I’ve seen them grow and develop. I feel like a proud father. This means a lot for me and for the future of the Chicago White Sox. I want to thank God, my family, teammates, coaches and everyone who has helped me and supported me”.

Abreu is looking to join Thomas (1993-94), Dick Allen (1972) and Nellie Fox (1959) as the only Sox players to win AL Most Valuable Player honors when the BBWAA announces its annual winner on November 12. He already has been chosen as The Sporting News Major League Baseball Player of the Year and Players Choice AL Outstanding Player, and is a finalist for the 2020 Hank Aaron Award.

Anderson, 27, batted .322/.357/.529 with 11 doubles, 10 home runs, 21 RBIs and 45 runs over 49 games in 2020 as the White Sox reached the postseason for the first time since 2008. He tied for the AL lead in runs and ranked second in average, fourth in hits, fifth in WAR (2.6) and multi-hit games (20), tied for ninth in total bases (110) and 12th in OPS (.886).

Anderson joins Alexei Ramírez (2010, ’14) as the only shortstops in White Sox history to win the Silver Slugger Award, He also joined Johnny Mostil (135 in 1925) and Thomas (106 in 1994) as the only players in White Sox history to lead the AL in runs scored.

“It’s such a great honor to win the 2020 Silver Slugger award,” Anderson says. “I’m just grateful for the opportunity each day to go out on the field and give it my all. It’s an amazing feeling.”

Jiménez, 23, batted .296/.332/.559 with 14 doubles, 14 home runs, 41 RBIs and 26 runs over 55 games last season. He ranked among the AL leaders in multi-hit games (tied for first, 21), extra-base hits (tied for third, 28), total bases (5th, 119), home runs (tied for seventh), slugging percentage (8th), hits (9th) and RBIs (9th).

Jiménez is the youngest player in franchise history to win the award and just the second Dominican-born White Sox player to receive the honor, joining Julio Franco in 1994.

“This is a reward for all the work and all the sacrifices I have made,” Jiménez says. “I feel very proud with the work and performance I showed on the field this year. I know this is just the first one of many to come, with God’s blessing. I will keep working hard to get more awards and recognition, and with that hopefully more team accomplishments will follow.”

Later tonight, Anderson and Jiménez will talk with the media, where questions are likely to stray from Silver Sluggers to the club’s new manager, Tony La Russa. We’ll be back to update this story, or have another up.