2012 Winter Meetings: Jeff Keppinger Signs With Chicago White Sox
Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports
The market for third basemen continues to diminish as another player has signed with a team. Jeff Keppinger has signed a three-year deal with the Chicago White Sox. This deal is reported to be worth $12 million.
The White Sox have been looking to get younger at certain spots on the field but most importantly, they wanted a cheaper option than re-signing Kevin Youkilis, who is most likely leaving for another team via free agency.
Keppinger brings a lot to the White Sox. To start, he is coming off of one of the best years of his career. Last season Keppinger hit .325 in 115 games with the Tampa Bay Rays. He also hit more home runs (9 HR) and had knocked in a total of 40 runners in 418 total plate appearances, which is almost 150 less than in 2010, which was arguably his best MLB season.
There were also other suitors that were in on Keppinger. Ken Rosenthal reported that the New York Yankees were very high on Keppinger’s play and the possibility for him to fill the void left by Alex Rodriguez because of his injury. He would have also been able to give Derek Jeter or Robinson Cano a day off due to the fact that he is able to play both middle infield positions.
This signing is the first of many by Rick Hahn, who is in his first season as White Sox general manager.
Keppinger will quickly continue his success in the American League simply because he will finally be able to get a chance to play consistently and play on a team that is likely to
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