The White Sox are adding outfielder Andrew Benintendi on a five-year contract worth $75 million, per MLB Network insider Jon Heyman. ESPN’s Jesse Rogers was first with the report.
The club has not yet confirmed reports of the deal.
Benintendi hit double-digit home runs in each of his first three full Major League seasons while playing for the Red Sox, but he traded some of that power for more contact in 2022 and had one of the better years of his career. In his second season with the Royals, Benintendi batted .320/.387/.398 with three homers through his first 93 games, earning his first All-Star selection along the way. He ranked third in the AL in batting average, sixth in on-base percentage, second in hits (111) and first in multihit games (34) through July 27.
That night, Benintendi was acquired by the Yankees for three pitching prospects. On paper, Benintendi fit New York’s need for more outfield production and less swing-and-miss in the lineup. But the 28-year-old got off to a very slow start in the Bronx, compiling a .188 average and a .601 OPS through his first 21 games. He heated up a little bit near the end of August, but his season effectively ended on Sept. 2, when he injured his right wrist on a swing against the Rays. He was diagnosed with a broken hamate bone a couple of days later and underwent surgery Sept. 6. Benintendi tried to come back before the end of the Yankees’ postseason run, but a setback suffered in mid-October squashed his hopes.
Benintendi set career bests in batting average (.304), on-base percentage (.373) and strikeout rate (14.8%) last season. His 120 OPS+ and 3.2 baseball-reference WAR were second only to his 2018 totals.
Defensively, he took a step back, according to one metric, from his 2021 Gold Glove campaign. His Defensive Runs Saved fell from seven to two, a far cry from when he produced 11 and 12 DRS in 2017 and ‘18, respectively, while with Boston.