Grandal received the richest contract in White Sox history at four years, $73MGETTY IMAGES
The White Sox "handed out two contracts in two days" worth a combined $123M over a total of seven years to C Yasmani Grandal and 1B Jose Abreu, moves that "ought to do the job when it comes to dispelling the notion that the team is either unable or unwilling to spend big on impact players," according to Vinnie Duber of NBC SPORTS CHICAGO. A day after "handing out the richest contract in club history" to Grandal at $73M, the White Sox on Friday signed Abreu to a three-year deal worth $50M (NBCSPORTSCHICAGO.com, 11/22). ESPN.com's Bradford Doolittle wrote it is "now winning time on the South Side." The narrative about the White Sox' offseason "changed on Thursday" with the Grandal signing, as there is no longer "musing about when or if Chicago can contend." The White Sox are the "right team at the right moment and, perhaps most important, in the right division" -- the AL Central -- to "become baseball's most improved team" in '20 (ESPN.com, 11/22). In Chicago, Daryl Van Schouwen wrote the White Sox are "getting serious" about "winning now." The Grandal signing was an "aggressive, early quick strike in the free-agent market," and indications are that the Sox "aren’t done" (CHICAGO SUN-TIMES, 11/23).
