Living the dream: Robert, White Sox agree to six-year, $50 million deal
Luis Robert realized several dreams on Thursday.
The White Sox's monster outfield prospect has long envisioned the day he played in the major leagues, and that's going to happen.
He's been anxious to join Eloy Jimenez, Jose Abreu, Yoan Moncada on the same field, and that's going to happen.
Robert's also dreamed of winning multiple championships, and the Sox's chances are only going to increase when his name is in the starting lineup every day.
Already ticketed to be a big part of the White Sox this season, Robert's arrival might have been delayed for close to a month for service time reasons.
Now, there is little doubt the 22-year-old center fielder is going to be in uniform from Opening Day on after Robert and the Sox agreed to a six-year, $50-million contract. The deal includes two club options that could extend the deal through the 2027 season.
Under terms of the contract, Robert receives $1.5 million this season, $3.5 million in 2021, $6 million in 2022, $9.5 million in 2023, $12.5 million in 2024 and $15 million in 2025.
The White Sox hold $20 million options for 2026 and 2027, with $2 million buyouts for either season.
Robert will wear uniform No. 88 with the Sox. Among others, he heard from Abreu, Jimenez and Moncada after signing the deal.
"It's going to be fun," Robert said through White Sox translator Billy Russo on Thursday. "We're going to have a lot of fun and I'm going to enjoy that. I think all those good wishes that people are sending me, it's motivating me more for what is coming in the future.
"I'm going to work harder and I'm going to do all my best to help this team win multiple championships. I know we're going to be able to do it because we have very good players."
Robert played at three levels in the minors last season, and it's very fair to say he was the top talent in the Carolina League, the Southern League and the International League.
The White Sox's No. 1 prospect combined to hit .328/.376/.624 with 32 home runs, 92 RBI and 36 stolen bases in 122 games with high Class A Winston-Salem, AA Birmingham and AAA Charlotte. Robert also played Gold Glove caliber defense in center field.
"It's easy to lose sight of how young he is and how limited his experiences have been as a professional," Sox general manager Rick Hahn said. "Seeing how easy he makes the game look. There will be growing pains, it's going to be a learning process. We saw how Eloy, in the early part of (last) season, the way big-league pitchers treated him, and we're going to see a similar treatment with Luis and a similar evolution of the skill set over the course of his time at the big-league level.
"That said, so far in the minor-league system, he has made the game look extremely easy, which we all know it isn't. And it can be humbling at times. One of the reasons we were comfortable making this size of a commitment this early in his career is his work ethic and ability to do everything in his power to put himself in the best position to succeed. That's a very important trait that will serve him well, not only maximizing his ability but adjusting to whatever the big leagues has in store for him."
A star player in his native Cuba as a teenager, Robert slashed .312/.381/.551 with 35 homers, 123 RBI and 63 stolen bases over 200 minor-league games with the White Sox from 2017-19.
He joined the Sox in May 2017 after agreeing to a $26 million signing bonus.
In 2019, Robert became the first minor leaguer since Joc Pederson (2014) to record 30 home runs and 30 stolen bases in a season.
"Last year, I felt very good in the minors," Robert said. "I was very comfortable with my work and with the results I was getting. I feel at this point, I just need to have experience of playing in the major leagues and see what areas I need to improve or make adjustments."