Name: Jaime Navarro
Rank: 486
Position: P
Years With White Sox: 1997-1999
Following the 1996 season, there were 2 big free agent pitchers available on the open market. One had decided that Chicago was the place for him. Intrigued by a lineup that included both Frank Thomas and Albert Belle, Roger Clemens had his agents reach out to Jerry Reinsdorf. GM Ron Schueler had other ideas, which included Navarro, who was coming off of a 29-18 record in 2 years with the Cubs. Clemens ultimately ended up in Toronto, where he won back-to-back Cy Young awards in 1997 and 1998. Navarro went completely off the rails, going 25-43 with a 6.06 earned-run average in his three seasons with the White Sox. “For me Navarro was just a better value than Roger,” Schueler said. “There wasn’t as much risk. . . . We talked to our scouts about [Clemens]. They did not recommend him for even a three-year deal. They felt like there is a danger he’s going to have arm problems.”
At the end of the day, Navarro’s most valuable contribution to the White Sox was the trade that sent him out of town. The Brewers, for reasons that I can not comprehend, sent Cal Eldred and Jose Valentin to the Sox for Navarro in January of 2000. Of course, those two helped lead the White Sox to the AL Central title later that same year. Navarro, meanwhile, pitched in 12 more major league games before being sent to the scrap heap.
Navarro’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
| Wins | Losses | ERA | Saves | IP | Hits | Runs | ER | Walks | Strike Outs | HR | HBP | Appearances |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | 2 | 7.98 | 0 | 14.667 | 19 | 15 | 13 | 7 | 11 | 3 | 1 | 3 |
| 25 | 43 | 6.06 | 1 | 542 | 696 | 416 | 365 | 221 | 287 | 81 | 21 | 102 |