After almost two years of rumors and speculation, the White Sox finally traded center fielder Luis Robert Jr. last month, sending him to the Mets for utility man Luisangel Acuña and righty Truman Pauley. Considering Robert hit 38 home runs and was a 4.9 WAR player in 2023, it’s an underwhelming return, but his last two years were full of injuries and ineffectiveness.
Acuña is Ronald’s younger brother and he’s a utility guy who does his best work on the bases and in the field. Last season, he authored a .567 OPS with the Mets, but also went 16 for 17 stealing bases and played four positions (second base, shortstop, third base, center field). The White Sox figure to play Acuña most of the time in center field this season.
White Sox GM Chris Getz has spoken highly of Acuña since the trade, as GMs are wont to do, but there is one small problem: Getz keeps calling Acuña a switch-hitter, which he most certainly is not. He’s a righty bat. Four times — four! — Getz has publicly called Acuña a switch-hitter:
If it happens once, fine. People misspeak. But four times — again, FOUR! — is a bit of a problem. Getz doesn’t know his player and also his staff has not bothered to correct him, which is another problem in and of itself. Things got to the point that Getz issued a statement Thursday regarding Acuña’s handedness as a hitter.
“So I probably have been getting carried away describing his versatility,” Getz told Sox Machine. “Why does it have to stop there? I called Luisangel and told him that even though he’s just right-handed, we still love him.”
On one hand, this is so stupid and silly that all you can do is laugh. On the other hand, the GM had to call a player and mend fences because he didn’t seem to know which side of the plate he hits from. It’s not a great look for Getz. It’s not the end of the world either — this will be forgotten in about a week — but a basic detail like this should not escape the GM.
Getz’s White Sox went 60-102 last season. That represents a 19-win improvement from their modern record 121-loss season in 2025. After trading Robert, the ChiSox used the savings to sign Seranthony Domínguez, Erick Fedde, and Austin Hays.
