How will first basemen Tim Elko and Andrew Vaughn coexist in the White Sox’ lineup?
Quite easily, according to the guy writing those lineups each day.
Manager Will Venable plans to play them together often, utilizing the designated-hitter spot so both can be in the lineup.
It’s not exactly the straight swap at first base Sox fans were begging for, with the struggling Vaughn still seemingly entrenched in the batting order. He hit third as the DH Saturday in the Sox’ 3-1 loss to the Marlins while Elko made his major-league debut as the first baseman, batting eighth. Elko went 0-for-3, and Vaughn homered for the second time in as many nights.
Vaughn’s early-season slump — which had him batting .188 entering the game — had plenty of fans ready to move on from the No. 3 overall pick in the 2019 draft, whom the Sox once pegged as a future franchise cornerstone but who has instead failed to be much more than a league-average hitter.
The 26-year-old Elko, who isn’t even ranked as one of the organization’s top 30 prospects, excited fans with huge numbers at Triple-A, owning a 1.100 OPS at that level at the time of his promotion.
But on a roster not exactly built to contend, there’s room for both, and Venable plans to play both often.
“I think [we’ll be] mixing and matching,” Venable said before the game. “There’s going to be times where [Miguel] Vargas might be at first base. So I think we are going to take this day by day. But I think you can expect to see both Tim and Vaughny at first base.
“The fact that those guys don’t play other positions besides first base, mostly, it does change [our outlook for the DH position] if you are trying to get them both in the lineup, obviously. At the same time, we are going to take each day and build out our lineup kind of how we set it up with who the best guys are for that day. Sometimes that might involve both of them, sometimes it might not. Other times it might be someone else at DH.
“We’ll just take it day by day and see how it all fits together.”
The Sox could still try to squeeze something out of Vaughn. He’s not due for free agency until after next season, though that might not be long enough to allow Chris Getz’s front office to include him in their long-term plans. Does that make Vaughn a trade candidate this summer? Probably only if he dramatically improves his offensive numbers.
But it seems he’ll have an opportunity to try to do so.
Elko, meanwhile, is getting his shot to work his way into those long-term plans. He might not have had much of a place in them when he was drafted in the 10th round in 2022, the same year he helped Ole Miss to a national championship, an effort that earned him a statue at his alma mater. But he has hit well throughout his minor-league career, his most recent efforts at Triple-A Charlotte forcing the issue of a promotion.
Is forcing the issue of being part of the -future next?
“He’s going to be in [the lineup],” Venable said. “We want to see what it looks like, and obviously we’re excited about the potential offensively and defensively. And he also makes a huge impact in the clubhouse. He’s going to be in there, and I’m excited to see it.”
Sox fans finally got what they wanted in Elko’s major-league arrival. But what kind of player are they getting?
“Just somebody who cares about winning, cares about their teammates, wants to do anything I can every single day to help us win,” Elko said before the game. “Always going to give it 110% and just be the best teammate and player I can be for this organization.”