Interested teams may be balking at the price, but the free agent market says the White Sox were smart to bet $20 million on Luis Robert Jr.
For months now, it’s been nearly impossible to talk about the Chicago White Sox center field situation—or Luis Robert Jr.—without mentioning the $20 million salary attached to his 2026 season.
At the 2025 trade deadline, that number felt like an expiration date on his time in Chicago.
Surely the White Sox weren’t going to pick it up. Not with frugal owner Jerry Reinsdorf signing the checks, and not with Robert’s declining production and mounting injury history over the last two seasons.
But the White Sox didn’t flinch.
No team met Chicago’s asking price at the deadline, so Chris Getz chose not to sell low. Instead, the club exercised Robert’s $20 million option for 2026, with an identical club option waiting in 2027 should they choose to go that route.
What Getz really did was extend the shot clock.
He refused to take a discount return for one of the most talented players in the organization. At his best, Luis Robert Jr. is a true five-tool star—capable of taking over a game on his own. And he’s still just two seasons removed from his 2023 campaign, when he made the AL All-Star team and launched 38 home runs. A season like that again would put him right back into “king’s ransom” territory on the trade market.
That’s a gamble worth taking during a rebuild.
Getz believed the market for Robert would be the same—or better—in the offseason than it was at the deadline, so he bought himself more time to find the right deal. And if that deal doesn’t materialize this winter, the White Sox can carry Robert into the regular season and hope for a bounce-back year.
If it still doesn’t happen? You’re not exactly empty-handed.
Players with elite speed, strong defense, and power upside always carry value. Even in down offensive seasons, Robert has remained productive against left-handed pitching and impactful in the field.
Still, the $20 million figure has become the focal point of every rumor.
The New York Mets have interest, but they want the White Sox to eat some of the money. The Pittsburgh Pirates are in a similar position—interested, but unwilling to commit that much of their limited payroll.
And the jury is still out on whether Reinsdorf is willing to subsidize a deal.
It’s understandable why $20 million sounds intimidating. For a long time, that number represented the gold standard for a marquee free agent.
But let's take look around the league.
Adolis García just received $10 million on a one-year deal from the Philadelphia Phillies. Like Robert, García had a career year in 2023—hitting 39 home runs with an .836 OPS for the Rangers—but has struggled offensively since, with declining power numbers.
Combining the last three seasons, Robert actually owns a slightly higher OPS than García (.741 to .730). He’s also over four years younger, a better baserunner, and a superior defender.
García produced 0.7 fWAR in 2025. Robert posted 1.3 fWAR in 25 fewer games.
So if García can command $10 million on the open market, it’s hard to argue that Robert wouldn’t earn significantly more as a free agent.
Then there’s Ha-Seong Kim, who signed a one-year, $20 million deal with the Atlanta Braves—an identical contract to what Robert will play on in 2026.
Kim appeared in just 48 games last season, hitting .234 with a .649 OPS. In 2024, he played 121 games for San Diego and posted a .233 average with a .700 OPS. His best year came in 2023, when he hit 17 home runs, stole 38 bases, posted a .749 OPS, and won a Gold Glove.
That’s a strong season—but it still doesn’t touch Robert’s peak.
Last year, Kim produced just 0.3 fWAR, compared to Robert’s 1.3. Kim is also two full years older and still landed $20 million on the open market, thanks in part to agent Scott Boras.
For what it’s worth, Boras also represents Luis Robert Jr.
So what would Robert command as a free agent? At this point, his $20 million salary looks less like an overpay and more like market value.
The baseball world needs to stop pretending Luis Robert Jr. is wildly overpaid. The gamble Chris Getz and the White Sox made at last year’s deadline hasn’t aged poorly at all—in fact, it’s starting to look pretty smart.