White Sox agree to 1-year deal with Austin Jackson
With Opening Day roughly a month away, the Chicago White Sox bolstered their outfield depth Sunday afternoon by agreeing to a one-year, $5-million deal with Austin Jackson.
"We simply felt this was a move that gave us more versatility and depth and improved us overall," general manager Rick Hahn said.
A free agent for the first time in his career this winter, Jackson reportedly received an offer for more money from the Los Angeles Angels, but decided to sign with the White Sox partly because of his desire to stay in center field. As such, Jackson will likely serve as a right-handed complement to incumbent center fielder Adam Eaton, who managed 3.6 WAR with a 118 wRC+ in 2015, but posted just a .648 OPS against left-handed pitching.
It wasn't long ago that Jackson would've laughed at the thought of settling for a platoon role. A fixture atop the Detroit Tigers' lineup for years, Jackson has regressed significantly over the last two seasons, hitting .261/.310/.364 (91 OPS+) with 13 homers, while going 37-for-53 (69.8 percent) in stolen base opportunities across stints with three different teams.
Jackson, who had reportedly been negotiating with the White Sox for weeks, opened 2015 with the Seattle Mariners and finished the campaign on the other side of Chicago, hitting .236/.304/.375 in 29 regular season games with the Cubs, before going 0-for-9 in five postseason games.
Still, though Jackson has been a below-average hitter for the last two years, the former eighth-round pick hit .278/.344/.416 (105 OPS+) while averaging 17 steals per season from 2010 through 2013, and his 49 defensive runs saved over the last six seasons rank fourth among center fielders.
To create a spot for Jackson on the 40-man roster, the White Sox designated third baseman Mike Olt for assignment.