The Chicago White Sox are quite possibly only hours away from clinching the AL Central, and will have a few weeks to nail down their 26-man roster. Here’s my prediction on who’s in and who’s out. 

Starting Pitching

Lucas Giolito, Carlos Rodón, Lance Lynn, and Dylan Cease have all pitched well enough this season to be considered locks to make the postseason roster. Reynaldo López has also impressed in a starting role, though he is more likely to work in a long relief role than start in October.

Bullpen

The White Sox bullpen was predicted to be one of, if not the best, in all of baseball before the season. After an up-and-down season, I believe this prediction still holds true heading towards October. The back end of the bullpen will always be Liam Hendriks and Craig Kimbrel. Tony LaRussa will most likely rely on Aaron Bummer, Ryan Tepera, Michael Kopech, or Garrett Crochet in high leverage situations, or simply to pass the torch to Kimbrel and Hendriks. While there are a few more spots currently filled by others in the Sox bullpen, I believe that José Ruiz, Dallas Keuchel, and Reynaldo López are better equipped to fill the last three spots.  

Lineup

While LaRussa has a lot of decisions to make, oddly enough, the usual starting lineup seems simple to put together. Tim Anderson (SS) will lead off, followed by Luis Robert (CF) and José Abreu (1B). Assuming he stays hot, Yasmani Grandal (C) should bat cleanup, in front of Eloy Jiménez (DH/LF) and Yoán Moncada (3B). I’m putting Andrew Vaughn (DH/LF) seventh, and Adam Engel (RF) eighth. The last spot in the order gets interesting. In my opinion, Leury García (2B) should play every day over César Hernández. 

Bench

Tony LaRussa has one of the most versatile benches in the league, and will surely use it to his advantage in the postseason. César Hernández is a veteran who can provide defense off the bench, as well as a good contact bat. Gavin Sheets has proven to be one of the most powerful young hitters in the American League and can pinch-hit with the best of them. Although he is currently at AAA Charlotte, Seby Zavala has received high praise for his catching, which is why I believe he should take the backup catcher spot over Zack Collins. The utility infielder spot on the bench will be a battle between Danny Mendick and Romy González, who both are currently in AAA. Last, but certainly not least, I don’t know of many catchers that can throw out Billy Hamilton on the bases, and his defense is outstanding. 

Outside Looking in

Everyone knows baseball is a business, so sometimes hard decisions have to be made. I do not believe that Ryan Burr, Mike Wright Jr., and Jace Fry will have a spot in the bullpen come playoffs due to lack of skill and experience. Evan Marshall is currently nursing an arm injury, and his lack of innings this year worries me. As I mentioned earlier, Zack Collins may be the odd man out at the catcher position, and assuming Hamilton takes the last outfield spot, that leaves Brian Goodwin to kick rocks while the team moves forward.