In the spirit of the holiday season, SSS duty geezer Leigh Allan and his son and west coast correspondent, Will, raise glasses high to José Abreu, reportedly at the top of the San Diego Padres wish list, thanking him for all of his years of being about the only player on the White Sox worth watching and, often, the only one who seemed to be trying. If the reports are true, José finally has a real chance of playing deep into the postseason, and may that happen for him. We do, however, refrain from breaking into Auld Lang Syne.

As for the players left behind after the White Sox finished emptying the outfield defense by non-tendering Adam Engel and the infield defense by doing the same with Danny Mendick, well, there are some.

In the outfield, during the half of the season Luis Robert can’t manage to play, the lineup should be Eloy Jiménez-Leury García-Gavin Sheets. In the infield, Rick Hahn apparently thinks things will be swell with either Romy González (three BBs, 50 Ks in MLB) or Lenyn Sosa (one BB, 12 Ks) at second, or with both of them forming the up-the-middle defense when Tim Anderson takes off half the season. Don’t be surprised if every pitcher goes on bended knee asking to be traded.

Ho-ho-ho.

But we are a holiday ahead with the ho-ho-hoing. Instead, it is time to baste the turkey, along with Ken Williams and Jerry Reinsdorf, and look on enviously as other teams ladle on the gravy of prime free agents and trade tasty desserts the White Sox have to pass on because they have nothing anyone wants to trade for.

But, hey, the holiday season is upon us, so ...

Happy Thanksgiving!

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