The incredible turnaround of the Chicago White Sox farm system has brought a lot of hope to the South Side. The Sox haven’t made the playoffs since 2008 and needed some drastic changes to happen. With Rick Renteria in as manager and Rick Hahn showing he isn’t afraid to make moves, the entire organization has an entirely different feel to it than it did one year ago. We decided to ask White Sox fans what they thought of the current stage of the White Sox rebuild. Here are the reactions we received:
Justin Bjorseth – @BjorsethJustin
All you need to do is compare their prospect list from 2013, which was just as brutal as the season, to their list now. The way that Hahn managed to make something out of every asset we had is incredible. We’ve gone all in and that’s exactly what you need to do. As long as we don’t rush things, this should all work out in the end.
Sam Kuchta – @skuchta28
This rebuild is something that had been long overdue and something that I think we’ve all been hoping would happen for a long time now. For the past couple of years, as a Sox fan, I’ve felt like we’ve been in such a grey area. I didn’t know what our future held and, at times, it seemed like we were just going in circles, as a team. Ever since the Sale trade and start of this whole process, we have direction, we have a future finally, and it has made being a White Sox fan fun and hopeful again. I feel like I’m finally gonna get to experience that magic that my dad always tells me about when he talks about 2005! And even though the team is bad now, I know that it will get better. I have faith in Hahn to do the right thing and finally take this team back to the promised land.
Shaan Chadha – @ShaanChadha
The rebuild is the correct direction to go in for this team. I’ve loved all the trades so far, and think that we could be set up to dominate in the future. However, I am scared to be super optimistic because of the White Sox record at developing hitters. If everything goes well, we could be posed to win multiple championships. But it’s important to remember that there’s still very few proven commodities, and anything could happen.
Craig Popovich –@CraigONEism
I think the rebuild is going great so far. Hahn has done an amazing job of adding talent and depth to our system in such a short time. It’s exciting to watch the young guys come up, especially the surprises like Matt Davidson. Ricky has done a great job with the boys, other than all the bunts.
Arthur Hartnett – @BuckyWTGoodHair
I’m really, really glad the organization picked a direction and committed to it. I was exhausted with the aggressively half-*ss attempts at contention and binge dumpster diving. The acquired players are really exciting and seem excited for this project. My *only* concern is whether the organization will pony up for free agents when it’s time to supplement the roster (as the Cubs did with Lackey, Lester, Hayward & Fowler).
Monica – @MoniBolis
I’m a relatively new fan, so for me the rebuild is chance to see a team that is truly mine, players I can see grow from the start.
Patrick Barron III – @pbarronII
I love what the Sox are doing with the rebuild right now. I think most Sox fans know we weren’t going anywhere with the players we had, and now we have a great shot at winning it in a few years, when some of our best prospects are called up.
Mario Conforti – @mconforti3
I think the first stage of the rebuild has gone as good as reasonably possible. The Sox, for some time, have had a weak farm, and in a few short months, now have elite prospects and a deep farm. Sox fans obviously want to win, but everyone was tired of floating around the middle of the pack. Excitement is as high as its been in some time, and fans buy into what Hahn has put together. I think the possibility of a potential Cubs-Sox World Series in a few years has produced a lot of hype in Chicago.
Matty Krames – @maor215
As a cautiously optimistic fan, it’s great to see the young talent we’ve accrued and some of the numbers they’ve put up, but it’s also important to remember that they are in fact prospects, and we have to temper our expectations at times, particularly with assuming every single one of them will be major, impact players. I’m excited to see these guys in the majors, but understand that in the world of baseball and its prospects, nothing is guaranteed.
Cam Hoag – @cam_hoag20
When the Sox win the World Series in 2019 or 2020, Rick Hahn should be the World Series MVP.
Cade Grove – @cade_grove
I think the rebuild is off to a great start! I love the moves Hahn has made and the depth in our system. I cannot wait to watch all these young guys grow and develop.
Zach Gordon – @ZGordz
The White Sox rebuild has been an absolute success thus far. Even as the Sox are at the bottom of the entire league (#TankSzn), every diehard’s fandom has been revitalized since Rick Hahn finally took the reigns and provided the organization with a specific direction. It seems as if there’s a handful (not just one), of prospects have big games everyday and the excitement for the future just continues to build. September should be fun as it will provide a glimpse of what 2018 will look like with a handful of the guys coming up. It won’t be a great year, but 2019 has the potential to be.
I think Hahn and the rest of the organization involved has done a wonderful job. Compiling a unique pot of prospects is the way we needed to be successful and that’s exactly what they have accomplished. The future looks extremely bright, but first we have to deal with the incredible poor next few years to come.
Frank Russell – @FrankLeviRuss
Its definitely a mix of emotions, but I’m optimistic. I love the fact that we’re bringing in all this exciting talent who have a lot of potential, but at the same time it’s hard watching them lose. It’s also really hard seeing some of your favorite players go, but I think I’ll be glad we endured the pain in years to come.
Zack Gold – @soxofgold
I am very happy with what the White Sox have done so far. I applaud Rick Hahn for completely blowing everything up and getting anything possible. Through this, we now not only have tons of highly rated prospects, but a bunch of fliers as well. More fliers=more opportunity to find a diamond in the rough, combine those possible diamonds with our higher rated prospects, and you got a dangerous team come 2020.
Jim B. – @jimbo3499
Very excited the Sox have a plan rather than trying to add to the roster each year, trying to compete. Hahn did a great job of acquiring top end talent, even given that some won’t work out, the Sox should be contending within 3 years. Even though their record will be bad, it will be fun to watch all this young talent develop. I am very optimistic about the White Sox future.
Sam Leonard – @Sam_Leonard52
I love Rick Hahn’s aggressiveness to give up the present of being sub .500, to build the future. It takes patience to build a masterpiece, and I believe we are on our way to being great! I cannot wait to see all of the prospects succeed at the highest level, in the majors, and bring another World Series to the South Side.
Jake LePretre – @LePrett_Farve
To think of the rebuild, I need to think of where we came from. A little more than a year ago. I remember hoping and still believing last season that we could catch a wild card, or even the Central, by hovering around .500 and hoping for that winning streak to come. As we know, it never did. Now, I look at the rebuild and how quickly things have changed. Yes, I hung on too long last season before finally giving up or realizing it wouldn’t happen. Now, in this rebuild, I feel something different at this time of year. Something I wouldn’t even call hope but rather expectations. “Trust the prospects” has become an everyday ringing and a positive mood changer. I feel as though every piece of the puzzle is coming together. We first got the pitchers from the Sale and Eaton trades, as well as our prized Moncada. And after we got Roberts, it seemed like it was all too real, too good to be true. That Hahn had this planned & written up all along. He knew, long before it all happened. And he knew it would work out well. And now this rebuild has me anticipating the years to come. Not hoping for a record hovering around .500 or a wildcard but rather winning the central every year. Winning the pennant year after year. And multiple World Series. I feel on top of the world. Knowing that the Sox will be back and soon. That the South Side will rise again!
After reading these reactions from fans, it is clear the moves made by Rick Hahn have brought energy and excitement back to the South Side. While nothing is guaranteed in these prospects, the potential is there for each and every one to be an impact player at the Major League level. For now, many fans are satisfied with the Sox and where they are at right now. I mean, how can you not enjoy having the top farm system in all of baseball?
