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Today in White Sox History: January 2

For the second straight year, the South Siders spend millions on a player with no MLB experience.

By Brett Ballantini
Sports Contributor Archive 2020
No, his contract extension wasn’t written on a baseball, but less than a month before this Sox Fest photo was taken, Luis Robert signed an $88 million deal with the White Sox without ever having played a major league game.
Ron Vesely/Getty Images

1946

The White Sox buy pitcher Alex Carrasquel and shortstop Fred Vaughn from Washington. While Carrasquel would throw just three career games for the South Siders, his nephew Chico Carrasquel would make a major impact with the club. Interestingly, after acquiring Chico in 1949, the White Sox dealt away Uncle Alex for relief pitcher Luis Aloma — who would also act as Chico’s English interpreter.

1951

Both Jim Essian and Royle Stillman were born on this day. Not only did they both grow up to be White Sox, they were teammates on the 1977 South Side Hit Men.

1986

Two-time White Sox owner Bill Veeck died in Chicago, at age 71. He remains the last owner in baseball history to have bought a major league team (White Sox, 1975) without being independently wealthy.

2020

The White Sox signed Luis Robert to a multiyear contract without him having played a single major league game. The future Gold Glove winner agreed to $50 million for six years, with team options worth $38 million more over two final seasons. Per WAR value estimates, La Pantera has already provided $21.6 million in value over the first two (truncated) seasons of the deal.

If Robert’s “blind” extension given without a major league day of service seems familiar, it’s because the White Sox did the same thing with Eloy Jiménez just one year earlier, in 2019.

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