In 2021, Luis Robert had a breakout half-season where he hit .338/.378/.567 in 68 games for the White Sox. The following year his OPS dropped by 200 points, but he was still good in his 98 games played. In 2023 he was able to play the entire season and in 145 games he hit 38 home runs, stole 20 bases, had a .264/.315/.542 line and made his first All-Star team.
Since then, he has fallen off a cliff in the production department. He played in 100 and 110 games in each of the past two seasons, hitting 14 home runs in each of those years. In both seasons he batted under .225, had an on-base percentage under .300 and a slugging percentage under .380. He has stolen 23 and 33 bases, both of which marked new career highs at the time. You can view his career stats here.
Despite major problems at the plate over the past two seasons, the White Sox picked up their $20,000,000 option on Robert next year. Instead of paying him $2,000,000 for the buyout, they seem to be hoping to find a trade partner who will offer them something of value worth more than that to land the outfielder.
With Robert you don’t have to squint hard to see the positive side. He hit 38 home runs and stole 33 bases in one season over the past three years. He is a quality defender in the centre. But even though you can see it, you also can’t ignore the fact that he hasn’t had a hit in two straight seasons and owes $22,000,000 (he has a $20,000,000 option for 2027, including a $2,000,000 buyout).
If Chicago picks up some of the money owed, the Reds may be more willing to take the risk that they can “fix” Luis Robert and have him be a fixture in their lineup. But they would also run the risk of adding another bat to their lineup, with the potential for automatic elimination in a lineup that has simply had far too many.
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