Yoan Moncada envisions being with White Sox ‘for a very long time’

Young core players signing long term deals shows they are “buying in, trying to keep this thing together as long as we can,” shortstop Tim Anderson said. Could Moncada be next?

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“But that’s not my concern right now. I just want to play baseball and enjoy the game and do great things,” Yoan Moncada said of getting a long-term extension from the White Sox.

“But that’s not my concern right now. I just want to play baseball and enjoy the game and do great things,” Yoan Moncada said of getting a long-term extension from the White Sox.

Jennifer Stewart/Getty Images

GLENDALE, Ariz. — Left fielder Eloy Jimenez, 23, is signed for the long term. Center fielder Luis Robert, 22, is, too.

So are shortstop Tim Anderson and left-hander Aaron Bummer, both 26.

The White Sox are stockpiling young pieces of their core on their long-term contract list, paying big dollars before they’re obligated to for the purpose of keeping the band together.

Who’s next? Third baseman Yoan Moncada? Right-handers Lucas Giolito and Dylan Cease?

“We don’t want no odd man out,” Anderson said. “We all want to be in on the same thing.”

Viewing Moncada, 24, as a cornerstone at the hot corner, the Sox want to wrap him up. Could he be next? They announced Anderson’s $25 million deal three spring trainings ago; Jimenez’s six-year, $43 million contract last spring, and Bummer’s five-year, $16 million deal last week. A few years back, they did the same for Chris Sale and Jose Quintana.

’Tis the season.

“If my agent calls me and tells me there is something, then we’ll consider it,” Moncada said through a translator.

Moncada changed his agency this year to Movement Management Group. He said he was unaware of ongoing talks with the Sox, although it has been assumed for some time there are conversations at some level. Indications are he wasn’t being coy.

“Honestly, I don’t pay too much attention to that,” he said. “My focus is just in the game and preparing myself to be in the best position that I can be for the season. Just work hard. That’s my goal right now.”

Like Robert, who received a $26 million signing bonus when he inked a six-year, $50 million deal this winter, Moncada already has financial security from the $31.5 million he got when he signed with the Red Sox in 2015. But Moncada said Tuesday he wants to be with a White Sox long term. Next season would be his first arbitration year, and he’s not eligible for free agency until 2024. He is under contract for $627,000 this season.

A new deal would undoubtedly surpass the $100 million mark, making it the largest in Sox history.

“Obviously, money is a big part of our career,” Moncada said. “What motivates me is just playing baseball. That’s what gives me real joy. . . . [A contract] is not my concern right now. I just want to play baseball and enjoy the game and do great things.”

For the Sox?

“Yes, I feel comfortable on this team,” he said. “I have been feeling comfortable on this team since the moment I came here. I actually see myself on this team for a very long time.”

Moncada enjoyed a breakout season in 2019. Batting .315/.367/.548 with 25 homers and 10 stolen bases, he was the Sox’ best offensive performer and made a smooth transition to third. Giolito, 25, broke out with an All-Star season. Cease, 24, was already approached about a multiyear contract last year.

“It’s a natural time for that type of speculation,” Sox assistant general manager Jeremy Haber said Saturday. “Our track record in terms of the organizational approach to these is pretty clear at this point.”

The Sox’ clubhouse is already full of enthusiasm as their rebuild begins to come together. Moncada is under team control for the next four seasons, but adding more years is something everyone would celebrate.

“It shows you these guys are buying in, and also giving them security for their family,” said Anderson, who in 2017 signed the richest contract given to a player with less than one year of major-league service. “I think it says a lot. It says a lot for these guys to take those contracts and just trying to keep this thing together as long as we can.”

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