Rising above the messy rubble of a lost, disappointing season is Luis Robert Jr.
Above center field walls to steal home runs from opposing hitters, above the rest of a White Sox season that crashed and burned weeks ago.
In a 7-1 loss to the Yankees Tuesday, Robert slugged his 31st homer of the season, tacking on to his record for the most in club history for a center fielder. Sporadically slowed by injuries during his young career, the 26-year-old Robert has played in a team-high 111 of the 46-69 Sox’ 115 games and is batting .269/.323/.562 with 30 doubles, an .885 OPS and 14 stolen bases in 16 attempts.
Robert, an All-Star in his fourth season and the Sox’ only mid-summer classic representative, ranks second in the American League in home runs, slugging percentage and extra base hits (62) and is fourth in OPS.
The only Sox player to get 30 homers, 30 doubles and 20 stolen bases in one season is outfielder Magglio Ordonez, who posted 31, 40 and 25 in 2001.
“I didn’t know that,” Robert said. “But yeah, I would like to steal 20. But actually the real goal, the real number is 30. We’ll see if I’m able to do it.”
The eye test tells you enough about the 6-3 Robert, who glides through the outfield gaps and back to the wall covering large chunks of ground. His portfolio could be stacked with picturesque photos at the wall. FanGraphs shows Robert, who won a Gold Glove as a rookie in 2020, ranking fifth in overall in fielding among major league center fielders and second in outs above average.
Signed out of Cuba as a coveted prospect for a $26 million bonus in 2017 that cost the Sox an additional $26 million for exceeding their bonus pool, Robert committed to a $50 million, six-year extension in 2020 that keeps him under club control through 2027. One player was untouchable at the trade deadline, and one player stands above the rest as reasons to attend or watch a Sox game in the last eight weeks of the season.
It’s Robert.
The Sox have a leadership shortage in the clubhouse, but Robert, a cool, calm and sometimes under-the-radar funny guy, doesn’t seem to fit the perfect mold unless ability and overall talent matter. Robert’s work ethic and desire to play every day — he set a goal of 150 games and is on pace to exceed it — rate as qualifications, too.
“Every athlete, every player that has the chance to go out there every day and play has the chance to lead by example,” Robert said Tuesday through translator Billy Russo. “That’s something that if you are able to do it, you have that opportunity to lead by example. You need to be able to stay healthy and be on the field.”
Russo often must coax Robert from his reluctance to talk to media, a chore that comes with the territory of being a leader. In Anaheim in June, Robert sat in his locker, well hidden, bringing laughter from teammates and a Japanese reporter waiting on him. It was part Robert entertaining teammates, part demonstration of his unwillingness to do a lot of interviews.
“If you’d asked everyone in that clubhouse who’s the funniest guy in the clubhouse, the vast majority of them would say Luis Robert,” general manager Rick Hahn said recently.
Asked about clubhouse culture, a thing rookie manager Pedro Grifol is intent on changing, Robert offers this:
“Each one of us has to take care of what we need to do to win games. If you prepare yourself to go out and win games, that’s all you want. That’s what we are trying to do.”
Robert will garner MVP and Gold Glove votes if he stays healthy. As for what the team can accomplish down the stretch, Robert keeps it basic.
“Win. That’s our goal,” he said. “Try to win as many games as we can and try to finish the season strong and find something in these two months we can carry over for next season.”