First baseman Jose Abreu, most recently the focal point of the Chicago White Sox roster, will be wearing a Houston Astros uniform this coming season.

Abreu, who will turn 36 January 29, has departed the White Sox after signing a three-year, $58M contract with the Houston Astros.

Now, the White Sox will turn to right-handed hitting Andrew Vaughn to take over first base.

Vaughn, 24, will be entering the prime of his career with a return to his most familiar, and best defensive position.

To this scout, Vaughn is a dynamic, intriguing baseball player, with a terrific future.

Because Abreu was a fixture at first base for the White Sox, the team had to find a way to get Vaughn’s valuable right-handed bat in the lineup. He primarily played in the White Sox outfield for the past two seasons.

Vaughn certainly survived his outfield experiences, but he is much better suited to playing his natural position, which has always been first base.

Andrew Vaughn was a 1st round draft pick by the White Sox in the 2019 MLB First Year Player Draft.

Signed as the third player taken overall in the draft, Vaughn played three seasons of baseball at University of California-Berkeley. He hit a combined .374/.495/.686/1.183 with 50 home runs and 163 RBIs in his 745 collegiate plate appearances.

The Golden Spikes Award honors the top amateur baseball player in the United States. The award is based upon athletic ability, sportsmanship, character, and overall contribution to the sport.

Andrew Vaughn won the Golden Spikes Award following his sophomore season at UC- Berkeley.

The White Sox gave Vaughn a $7.221,200 signing bonus.

Vaughn was drafted so highly due to his combination of good hitting ability and very positive power potential.

At 6-0, 215 pounds, Vaughn isn’t the biggest athlete, but he has a very easy, powerful swing that finds the barrel of the bat.

In a time when many hitters try to destroy the baseball with an aggressive, upper-cut approach at the plate, Vaughn relies upon the strength in his wrists, hands and forearms to generate power to all fields.

Put very simply, this scout has seen Vaughn’s measured, compact swing in action. He makes hitting look simple and easy.

A good contact hitter, Vaughn uses the entire field as he puts the ball in play. He can hit the gaps and get his share of extra base hits.

Vaughn has the skill to hit for a very solid, run-producing batting average. He also has the ability to be a 30 home run force in the middle of the lineup.

While Vaughn’s best tools are on offense, he is capable as a first baseman. He has soft hands, good footwork, and enough agility and coordination to provide the range and first-step quickness to produce average, or a bit better than average defense at first base.

This past season, Vaughn hit .271/.321/.429/.750 with 17 homers and 76 RBIs for a disappointing White Sox team that finished 11 games behind the Central Division Champion Cleveland Guardians.

RosterResource.com indicates the White Sox estimated 2023 payroll will be $193M, or the exact same total as the 2022 season.

If the season were to begin tomorrow, and the White Sox made no other offensive changes and additions, RosterResource.com lists the following potential lineup for the 2023 edition of the White Sox:

Tim Anderson-SS

Andrew Benintendi-LF (new, free agent signing)

Luis Robert Jr.-CF

Eloy Jimenez-DH

Yoan Moncada-3B

Andrew Vaughn-1B

Yasmani Grandal-C

Gavin Sheets-RF

Romy Gonzalez-2B

To this scout, the White Sox still need to shop for a veteran second baseman, as Gonzalez remains relatively untested at the big league level.

It is highly probable that with a good showing in spring training, Vaughn can hit even higher in the batting order, and drive in more valuable runs.

If, in fact, players like Anderson, Robert, and Jimenez can stay healthy, the offense should produce more than the 686 runs they scored last season, which was 110 fewer runs produced than in 2021.

There is every reason to believe Vaughn can be a big part of any potential improvement in White Sox overall team run production.

Two factors give this writer enthusiasm about Vaughn’s future with the White Sox.

To begin, Vaughn is entering only his third big league season. He hasn’t had the experience that would dictate a final evaluation of his abilities. He is still a work in progress. This could be the year he “breaks out” and takes the next step to realizing his offensive potential.

Also, Vaughn will be playing his natural position. His position of comfort, if you will. It means he can play with less pressure, and with more confidence. He can return to his natural defensive roots and call upon his training as a first baseman, rather than having to continue to learn with every fly ball or every hit to the gap that was unfamiliar.

Right-handed hitting first baseman Andrew Vaughn will try to fill the shoes of highly regarded, veteran White Sox team leader, Jose Abreu.

Abreu spent parts of the past nine seasons as the White Sox first baseman. He was an American League All Star twice.

Abreu will now be playing first base for the Houston Astros, having signed a free agent contract to join the World Champions.

Andrew Vaughn, still only 24, and with only parts of three seasons behind him in the big leagues, takes over first base for the White Sox.

To this writer, as a disciplined contact hitter with a measured swing, Vaughn has the potential to hit 30 home runs and drive in 85.

Vaughn can be a run producer for the White Sox, as he returns to his natural position at first base.

Now that he is being given the opportunity, this could be a huge, “break out” season for White Sox first baseman Andrew Vaughn.