South Side Sox 2021 Player of the Week (ending August 14): Eloy Jiménez

After a dreamy comeback, the Big Baby jumps in the team bus and buckles in. Destination? October

By Mitch Ransdell Aug 18, 2021, 11:55am CDT

For a good part of the season, it’s been one stop after another on the White Sox Transit Authority. A player steps on, another player steps off.

But here we are, locked in the dog days of August, and a couple of cooler days remind us that October baseball is rounding third and heading for home.

All the better that we’ve got Eloy Jiménez back.

His glove hasn’t been missed so much, thanks in part to Andrew Vaughn. But the return of Eloy’s bat and his exuberance for the game have given this team a shot in the arm.

Man, 19 RBIs in his first 15 games of the season? I’d say he’s happy to be back.

Eloy had a chance to flex that power in front of a national audience, too, with his magnificent three-run corn shot at the Field of Dreams game in Dyersville, Iowa. It was a gem among jewels, landing in the fields alongside three other homers from some of the White Sox’s finest.

On a bus full of baseball heroes, there’s always room for one more, especially with autumn around the corner. Eloy is back, and maybe better than ever.

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2021 MVP Top 10

Carlos Rodón (89.4)
Lance Lynn (74.9)
Lucas Giolito (30.4)
Andrew Vaughn (27.7)
Yasmani Grandal (22.4)
Eloy Jiménez (20.4)
Dylan Cease (20.3)
Brian Goodwin (17.2)
Dallas Keuchel (14.4)
Reynaldo López (14.3)

2021 Cold Cat Bottom 10

Leury García (-45.3)
Evan Marshall (-43.1)
Yoán Moncada (-33.1)
Liam Hendriks (-28.0)
Garrett Crochet (-27.5)
José Abreu (-23.1)
Aaron Bummer (-22.8)
Matt Foster (-21.6)
Yermín Mercedes (-18.9)
Craig Kimbrel (-9.6)