Rick Hahn’s lone 2022 trade deadline acquisition was shipping backup catcher Reese McGuire to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for lefty Jake Diekman. The Chicago White Sox exhausted all of their left-handed options internally to fill the void left by the season-ending injury to Garrett Crochet.
Aaron Bummer’s injury cost him most of the season and the team had little success with internal options in high-leverage situations. This forced Hahn’s hand and with a healthy Yasmani Grandal and capable backup in Seby Zavala he made the move.
Jake Diekman's 2022 Season
First impressions are usually lasting, but Jake Diekman was an exception to the rule. Diekman looked good in his White Sox debut on Aug. 2 against Kansas City. He’s a hard-throwing, side-arming, skinny lefty with a beard. If you squinted your eyes, you might have thought Chris Sale was pitching when he struck out two in a perfect inning of work. He pitched again the next day against KC with the same result.
But after those two magical innings, Diekman allowed at least one run in 11 of his 24 appearances to close the season. He amassed a 6.52 ERA and a 1.914 WHIP in 19.1 total innings after coming over to the White Sox. Perhaps we can take solace in his 13 K/9 because he is under contract next year.
Rick Hahn waited far too long to try to address the need for a high-leverage left-handed reliever after Crochet and Bummer went down. Jake Diekman didn’t work out and arguably made the team worse.
Final Grade: F
What's On Tap Next?
Jake Diekman is under contract for 2023 and will provide no value in a trade besides a salary dump. If the Chicago White Sox don’t release him or pull off the latter, he will be pitching at 35th/Shields next year.
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