Chicago White Sox buried by doubters
Winning solves so many problems.
Major-league teams that win baseball games and advance to the playoffs feel good about themselves and make the front office look good.
For the most part, winning teams play in front of packed crowds filled with appreciative fans.
Winning teams - again, for the most part - get the benefit of the doubt.
The Chicago White Sox were a losing team in each of the last three years.
That is very helpful in explaining why their fan base and many in the media are anything but excited about this off-season.
General manager Rick Hahn appeared on the Sox' former flagship radio station, The Score (AM-670), last month after acquiring Todd Frazier from the Cincinnati Reds in a three-team trade.
Instead of receiving a verbal pat on the back for filling a longtime hole at third base by landing a player who's averaged 32 home runs and 85 RBI the past two seasons, Hahn again found himself questioned about his working relationship with Kenny Williams, the White Sox' former GM and current executive vice president.
And instead of getting credit for making upgrades at third base, second base (Brett Lawrie) and catcher (Dioner Navarro, Alex Avila), Hahn and the Sox have been buried for failing to sign one of the Big 3 free-agent outfielders - Yoenis Cespedes, Justin Upton and Alex Gordon.
All of the disgust and dismay leads back to getting the benefit of the doubt. The Sox simply do not qualify after posting a combined 212-274 record the past three seasons.
Even worse, they have won just one playoff game since sweeping the Houston Astros in the 2005 World Series.
Hahn has not spoken to the media since Dec. 16, the day of the Frazier trade.
That changes later this week at SoxFest, which runs Friday-Sunday at the Hilton Chicago.
After meeting with reporters on Friday afternoon, Hahn and manager Robin Ventura will team up for "Your 2016 White Sox" seminars Friday and Saturday.
Not signing Cespedes, Upton or Gordon is guaranteed to be the weekend's hot topic, but let's be honest.
Gordon pulled a Paul Konerko and returned to the Kansas City Royals on a "discounted" four-year, $72 million contract.
Upton was the next domino to fall, and there was no way the Sox were going to exceed the six-year, $132.75 million contract he got from the Detroit Tigers.
Last Friday night, Cespedes reportedly turned down a five-year, $110 million offer from the Washington Nationals and accepted a three-year, $75 million deal to return to the New York Mets. Cespedes can also opt out of the final two seasons of the contract.
Call the White Sox cheap if you want, considering Jose Abreu's six-year, $68 million contract - seemingly a pittance - is the largest in franchise history.
But over the last five years in major-league baseball, the Sox have been in the upper half of team payroll. Over the same stretch, they've ranked 25th out of 30 teams in attendance.
With spring training starting in just over three weeks, there is still time for the Sox to sign a free-agent outfielder who's still out there, like former Chicago Cub Dexter Fowler.
There is still time to make a trade for an outfielder like Carlos Gonzalez.
Or maybe Hahn ends all of the speculation and announces underachieving right fielder Avisail Garcia is going to get another chance this season.
Stay tuned to SoxFest this weekend, when the doubters should be out in full force.