PEORIA, Ariz. — White Sox GM Rick Hahn had just finished sweating when he got the call that made his heart race. On the line was Dan Lozano, who represents free-agent shortstop Manny Machado, the player Chicago most coveted this offseason. Hahn was drenched, having just returned to the locker room from his morning run of the ballpark stairs. It had been a rough workout.
“In retrospect,” he said, now that the Padres have reportedly given Machado the richest free-agent contract in sports history and the White Sox have been left pondering counterfactuals, the run “was the highlight of my day.