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White Sox Win Draft Lottery

The White Sox have won the MLB Draft Lottery and earned the first pick. They had the best odds to land the top spot at 27.73%. Chicago will be followed by the Rays and Twins.

Here’s the first round order:

  1. White Sox
  2. Rays
  3. Twins
  4. Giants
  5. Pirates
  6. Royals
  7. Orioles
  8. Athletics
  9. Braves
  10. Rockies
  11. Nationals
  12. Angels
  13. Cardinals
  14. Marlins
  15. Diamondbacks
  16. Rangers
  17. Astros
  18. Reds
  19. Guardians
  20. Red Sox
  21. Padres
  22. Tigers
  23. Cubs
  24. Mariners
  25. Brewers

This is the fourth edition of the draft lottery. The system was introduced through the most recent collective bargaining agreement to deemphasize tanking. The top six overall selections are determined by the lottery. There are limitations on picking in the lottery in multiple years. Clubs that aren’t revenue sharing recipients are barred from getting lottery picks in consecutive years, and no team can pick in the lottery three years in a row. Those parameters knocked out the Rockies, Nationals, and Angels this year.

Record still has weight when it comes to the draft order, which propelled the 60-win White Sox to the top of the odds board for the No. 1 selection. The Twins had the second-highest odds to earn the first pick at 22.18%, followed by the Pirates at 16.81%. No other team had better than a 10% chance to win the lottery.

This is the second time the team with the best odds received the top pick. The Pirates, along with two other teams, had the top odds when they won the 2022 lottery and earned the right to select Paul Skenes. The Guardians were a long shot to win in 2023, and the Nationals had the fourth-best odds in 2024.

The Giants and Royals came out as big winners, finding themselves with lottery picks after winning 80+ games last season. San Francisco went .500 and finished just two games out of a Wild Card spot. Kansas City ended up above .500 for the second straight year.

The Cardinals had a significant drop, falling from the eighth-best odds down to the 13th pick. The Marlins also fell five spots, going from the ninth-best odds to the 14th pick.

UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky is widely regarded as the top prospect in the 2026 draft. High school shortstop Grady Emerson and Alabama infielder Justin Lebron are candidates to be selected with early picks.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-win-draft-lottery.html
 
2025 Rule 5 Draft Results

The 2025 Rule 5 draft is taking place this afternoon at the Winter Meetings in Orlando. This post will be updated with the results as they come in.

As a refresher, the Rule 5 draft is a way for players potentially talented enough for the big leagues but blocked by their current clubs to find opportunities elsewhere. Any players that were 18 and under at the time of their original signing and went professional in 2021, and any players who turned pro at 19 years of age or older in 2022, are eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft if they are not on a 40-man roster.

Though the amateur (Rule 4) draft now has a lottery to determine the selection order, the Rule 5 draft still goes the old-fashioned way of reverse order of standings from the season that just ended. Clubs need to have an open 40-man roster spot in order to make a pick but aren’t obligated to make a selection on their turn. If they do make a pick, they will have to pay $100K to the team they select from. The selected players must stay on the active roster (or injured list) for the entire 2026 season or else be placed on waivers. If they clear waivers, they must be offered back to their original team. They cannot be optioned to the minors.

Players like Anthony Santander and Ryan Pressly have been notable picks in other recent years while guys like George Bell and Roberto Clemente are found deeper in the history books. Last year, 15 players were selected. Only four of those remain with the club who selected them and only three of those have had their rights fully transferred to their new club. The White Sox took Shane Smith from the Brewers. The Marlins took Liam Hicks from the Tigers. Mike Vasil was taken by the Phillies from the Mets but was later traded to the Rays and then went to the White Sox via waivers.

The one other pick from last year’s draft which is still live is Angel Bastardo, who the Blue Jays took from the Red Sox. He was recovering from Tommy John surgery and spent the entire 2025 season on the injured list. He is still on Toronto’s 40-man but they don’t yet have his full rights, as a player needs at least 90 active days to remove the Rule 5 restrictions. If the Jays are willing to roster him for about three months during the 2026 season, they could then gain his full rights and option him to the minors. All other picks were eventually returned to their original organization and/or became free agents.

This year’s picks will be featured below as they come in…

  1. Rockies: RHP RJ Petit (from the Tigers) (Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs was on this before the official announcement)
  2. White Sox: RHP Jedixson Paez (Red Sox)
  3. Nationals: RHP Griff McGarry (Phillies)
  4. Twins: C Daniel Susac (Athletics) (Susac was then traded to the Giants, per Longenhagen. The Twins will get minor league catcher Miguel Caraballo in return, per Bobby Nightengale of The Minnesota Star Tribune)
  5. Pirates: RHP Carter Baumler (Orioles) (The Pirates then traded Baumler to the Rangers for RHP Jaiker Garcia. Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News previously suggested Texas would likely get Baumler)
  6. Angels: pass
  7. Orioles: pass
  8. Athletics: RHP Ryan Watson (Giants) (Will be traded to Red Sox, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive. The A’s will get Justin Riemer in return, per Cotillo.)
  9. Braves: pass
  10. Rays: pass
  11. Cardinals: RHP Matt Pushard (Marlins)
  12. Marlins: pass
  13. Diamondbacks: pass
  14. Rangers: pass
  15. Giants: pass
  16. Royals: pass
  17. Reds: pass
  18. Mets: pass
  19. Tigers: pass
  20. Astros: RHP Roddery Muñoz (Reds)
  21. Guardians: RHP Peyton Pallette (White Sox)
  22. Red Sox: pass
  23. Mariners: pass
  24. Padres: pass
  25. Cubs: pass
  26. Dodgers: pass
  27. Blue Jays: RHP Spencer Miles (Giants)
  28. Yankees: RHP Cade Winquest (Cardinals)
  29. Phillies: RHP Zach McCambley (Marlins)
  30. Brewers: pass

Second round (all others passed)


Photo courtesy of Mike Watters, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/2025-rule-5-draft-results.html
 
Red Sox Interested In Kyle Teel

Carlos Narvaez had a solid rookie season and emerged as Boston’s top option behind the plate in 2025. However, the Red Sox have been linked to J.T. Realmuto’s market, so there is some indication that the Sox aren’t entirely set at the catching position. Along those same lines, MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam reports that the club shown some interest in reuniting with ex-Boston prospect Kyle Teel, though “nothing is close now” between the Red Sox and White Sox. McAdam adds that the BoSox had talks with the ChiSox about Teel both this offseason and last summer.

It was almost exactly a year ago to the day that Boston included Teel as part of a four-prospect package in the blockbuster trade that brought Garrett Crochet to Fenway Park. A consensus top-60 prospect heading into the 2025 season, Teel made his Major League debut this year and had a strong initial showing, hitting .273/.375/.411 with eight home runs over his first 297 plate appearances in the Show.

Normally there wouldn’t be even a slight chance that the White Sox would consider flipping such a potential building block, except Edgar Quero is also on the roster as another possible “catcher of the future.” This has led to teams inquiring on both Teel and Quero’s availability, just in case the South Siders were willing to deal from this on-paper surplus, or had already decided on which of Teel or Quero was their preferred choice going forward.

McAdam writes that “the White Sox are seen as more likely to deal Quero than Teel.” This could be due to Quero’s shaky defense, as many scouts feel Quero won’t be able to stick at catcher while Teel’s glovework is seen as at least average. Of course, there is no rush for Chicago to move either Quero or Teel any time soon, with both players so early in their development as big leaguers.

Re-acquiring Teel would be a somewhat unusual move on Boston’s part, and might indicate some trader’s remorse. Obviously the Red Sox weren’t going to land Crochet without including at least one blue-chip prospect, and Teel ended up being the odd man out of the group known as Boston’s “big four” prospects at the time (Teel, Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, and Marcelo Mayer). In a sign of how quickly things can change on the catching front, at this time last year the Red Sox thought they had Connor Wong lined up as a reliable everyday catcher, yet the 2025 season saw Wong struggle badly and Narvaez step up as a starter.

The Red Sox have enough young pitching depth that they could potentially drum up an offer intriguing enough to get the White Sox to move Teel, even if that scenario is certainly on the unlikely side. Many expect Realmuto to ultimately re-sign with the Phillies, which could leave Boston looking for more catching help. Narvaez’s health is a slight question mark since he underwent a minor knee surgery following the season, but he is expected to be set for the start of Spring Training.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/red-sox-interested-in-kyle-teel.html
 
White Sox Claim Ryan Rolison

The White Sox announced that they have claimed left-hander Ryan Rolison off waivers from the Braves. Atlanta designated him for assignment this week as the corresponding move for their signing of right-hander Robert Suarez. The Sox had multiple 40-man vacancies and didn’t need to make a corresponding move.

Rolison, 28, was once a notable prospect with the Rockies. Colorado selected him 22nd overall in 2018, but then his path to the majors proved to be winding. The minor leagues were canceled by the pandemic and then Rolison was held back by injuries, most notably shoulder troubles. He didn’t pitch much from 2021 to 2023, missing the entirety of the 2022 campaign.

He finally got to the majors in 2025 but wasn’t able to put up good numbers. He tossed 42 1/3 innings for the Rockies this year but allowed 7.02 earned runs per nine. His 47.9% ground ball rate was above average but his 13% strikeout rate and 10.4% walk rate were subpar.

He had more intriguing numbers in the minors. In the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, he tossed 29 2/3 innings with a 3.34 ERA, 25.2% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate and 48.8% ground ball rate.

Despite that solid work for the Isotopes, the Rockies decided to move on. He was designated for assignment last month. Atlanta acquired him in a cash deal but he eventually got squeezed off their roster a few weeks later by further moves.

For the White Sox, it’s a sensible flier. They improved a bit in 2025 but nonetheless lost 102 games and are clearly still in rebuilding mode. That’s not ideal but the upside is that they are better positioned than other clubs to take chances on unproven guys. Rolison also still has an option year remaining, so he could be sent to Triple-A and back throughout the season. He has less than three years of service time, meaning he could be controlled through 2029 if he breaks out in Chicago.

Photo courtesy of David Frerker, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-claim-ryan-rolison.html
 
White Sox Sign Oliver Dunn, Tim Elko To Minor League Deals

The White Sox have signed infielders Oliver Dunn and Tim Elko to minor league contracts (SoxMachine’s James Fegan was among the beat writers to report the news.) Dunn’s deal contains an invitation to Chicago’s big league Spring Training camp, though Elko will presumably miss camp due to his ongoing recovery from ACL surgery in October.

Elko was a 10th-round pick for the White Sox in the 2022 draft, and he’ll continue his career with the organization after being non-tendered in November. That move cleared a space on Chicago’s 40-man roster, and it is fair to guess that the two sides probably had a handshake deal to bring Elko back in relatively short order. Elko’s surgery came with an eight-month recovery timeline, so he won’t be a factor for a potential return to the 26-man roster until at least July.

The torn right ACL was a sour end to Elko’s first big league season, as he made his debut in May. Elko hit only .134/.194/.328 in 72 plate appearances over 23 games, while also spending four weeks on the injured list due to a right knee sprain that now seems like a precursor to his ACL problems. The White Sox are expected to do something to address their first base position, but if they more or less stand pat, it could give Elko some more opportunity to see what he can do against MLB competition when he’s healthy.

Dunn’s MLB resume consists of 55 games with the Brewers over the last two seasons, and only a .206/.261/.290 slash line to show for 145 PA. A large portion of Dunn’s 2024 rookie was spent on the injured list due to a back injury, but while Dunn was still in the mix for regular infield duty with Milwaukee going into this season, his lack of offensive made him an afterthought. The Brewers designated Dunn for assignment and outrighted him off their 40-man roster in September, and Dunn elected minor league free agency at season’s end.

The 28-year-old Dunn has mostly played at second and third base during his pro career, but he has a handful of appearances as a left fielder, shortstop, and a couple of cameos at first base. The White Sox will see what Dunn can do in competing for a bench job this spring, and he could be retained as minor league depth even if he doesn’t break camp.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...iver-dunn-tim-elko-to-minor-league-deals.html
 
Giants, Gregory Santos Agree To Minor League Deal

3:30pm: Santos will make $1.3MM if he cracks the roster, per Francys Romero of BeisbolFR.

9:30am: The Giants have agreed to a minor league deal with right-handed reliever Gregory Santos, as first reported by Mike Rodriguez. He’ll be in major league camp as a non-roster invitee next spring.

The 26-year-old Santos returns to the club with which he made his major league debut back in 2021. While he originally signed with the Red Sox as a teenager back in 2016, Santos was flipped to the Giants organization a year later as part of the team’s return for infielder Eduardo Nuñez. Santos spent four-plus seasons in the Giants’ system before making brief appearances in the majors in both 2021 and 2022. He wound up pitching only 5 2/3 innings as a Giant before being traded again — this time to the White Sox in exchange for minor league righty Kade McClure.

Santos was a key late-inning arm for the Sox in 2023, totaling a career-high 66 1/3 innings with a 3.39 earned run average, five saves and six holds. He fanned a solid 22.8% of his opponents, walked just 5.9% of the batters he faced and kept a hearty 52.8% of his opponents’ batted balls on the ground — all while averaging a blazing 98.9 mph on his sinker.

Santos spent only one season with the South Siders, who sold high and flipped him to the Mariners in exchange for a pair of prospects (outfielder Zach DeLoach and righty Prelander Berroa) as well as a Competitive Balance draft pick (used to select high school lefty Blake Larson). Santos spent parts of two seasons with the Mariners but only tallied 14 1/3 innings in the majors, as injuries repeatedly shelved him for extended periods of time. A significant lat strain, biceps inflammation and knee surgery combined to just 26 2/3 innings total — majors and minors combined — during his two seasons with the M’s, who non-tendered Santos last month.

If Santos is back to full health this spring, he’s a nice flier with a bit of upside to add to the bullpen competition. He won’t turn 27 until next August and was still sitting 98 mph with his sinker this past season, even amid the ongoing injury woes. Santos doesn’t miss bats at a plus level like one might expect from someone with his huge velocity, but he’s shown the ability to limit walks and rack up grounders at a high clip. If he’s added to the big league roster at any point, Santos still has a minor league option remaining and is under club control via arbitration for at least three more seasons.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/giants-sign-gregory-santos-reliever.html
 
Rays Trade Tristan Peters To White Sox

The Rays traded outfielder Tristan Peters to the White Sox for cash or a player to be named later, according to announcements from both clubs. Tampa Bay had designated Peters for assignment on Tuesday when they finalized their two-year deal with Steven Matz. Chicago had a couple openings on the 40-man roster and didn’t need to make another move.

Peters, 26, entered the professional ranks as a seventh-round pick by Milwaukee in 2021. The lefty-hitting outfielder was traded twice as a prospect — first to the Giants for reliever Trevor Rosenthal, then to Tampa Bay for infielder Brett Wisely. Peters got his first major league call this past August. He spent a week on the active roster and got into four games, going 0-12 with seven strikeouts. He otherwise spent his second straight full season with Triple-A Durham, batting .266/.355/.429 with 15 home runs across 555 plate appearances.

That was an improvement over Peters’ first season at the top minor league level. He’d hit .238/.344/.402 and connected on 12 homers in 2024. Peters has posted subpar exit velocities but shown solid strike zone awareness while making a decent amount of contact. He’s capable of playing anywhere in the outfield and has a couple minor league options remaining. The Sox can keep him in Triple-A without exposing him to waivers so long as they continue carrying him on the 40-man roster.

Barring a surprise trade of either player, the White Sox will open 2026 with Andrew Benintendi and Luis Robert Jr. as their respective left and center fielder. The out-of-options Everson Pereira, himself an offseason trade pickup from Tampa Bay, probably enters Spring Training as the favorite in right field. Chicago has journeyman speedster Derek Hill penciled in for a bench role, while utilityman Brooks Baldwin could factor into either corner spot. It’s one of the weakest outfield groups in MLB and would be especially barren if the Sox finally line up a Robert trade by next summer’s deadline.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/rays-trade-tristan-peters-to-white-sox.html
 
White Sox Expected To Hire Carlos Rodriguez As Assistant GM

The White Sox are finalizing an agreement with Carlos Rodriguez to become an assistant general manager, reports James Fegan of Sox Machine. The team has yet to officially announce the news.

Rodriguez will join the Chicago organization after a 15-year run with the Rays. He had come up through Tampa Bay’s international scouting ranks and eventually took the reins in that department. Rodriguez earned the AGM title over the 2021-22 offseason and had taken on a broader front office role over the past few years.

He stepped down at the end of the ’25 campaign to pursue other opportunities. The Rays promoted vice president of baseball process/strategy Hamilton Marx to fill the assistant GM vacancy. Marx will assume many of the international scouting responsibilities that Rodriguez had previously handled.

Fegan writes that Rodriguez is expected to have wide-ranging responsibilities. He’ll no doubt play a role in international operations but will also factor into the team’s decision-making on the MLB side. He’ll join Josh Barfield and Jin Wong as assistant general managers under front office leader Chris Getz.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...to-hire-carlos-rodriguez-as-assistant-gm.html
 
White Sox To Sign Munetaka Murakami

The White Sox are in agreement with infielder Munetaka Murakami on a two-year deal worth $34MM, according to a report from ESPN’s Jeff Passan. Passan adds that Murakami is expected to play first base in Chicago.

Murakami, 26 in February, arrives in the majors as perhaps the most anticipated NPB hitter to move stateside since Shohei Ohtani. The slugger set an NPB record with 56 home runs in a single season at 22 years old, and he continued to make an international name for himself with Team Japan during the 2023 World Baseball Classic. A career .270/.394/.557 hitter across 892 Central League games for the Yakult Swallows, Murakami boasts true 80-grade power that could completely change an up-and-coming White Sox lineup that already includes highly regarded youngsters like Colson Montgomery and Kyle Teel.

That combination of power and unusual youth for a free agent led many to believe that Murakami would be able to secure one of the most lucrative contracts of the offseason. On MLBTR’s annual Top 50 MLB Free Agents list published at the outset of the offseason, Murakami landed as the #4 free agent available with a predicted contract of $180MM over eight years. It was easy to imagine at least one team being willing to roll the dice on Murakami’s tantalizing upside in order to lock him up for his entire prime, but teams were more hesitant to commit to Murakami than expected. Few teams were publicly connected to the slugger, and reports from all corners of the baseball world indicated that teams were feeling gun-shy about his contact rate in NPB, which would’ve been the lowest in baseball in the majors last year if carried over.

While teams weren’t willing to go to the high levels expected when Murakami was first posted, it does appear that he may have left some guaranteed money on the table in taking this deal. Passan reports that some teams did try to get involved in Murakami’s market by offering long-term deals with lower annual salaries. That sort of deal would have guaranteed Murakami a longer runway to work things out at the big league level, but would have limited the financial upside available to him. Instead, he took a short-term deal that will offer him a healthy annual guarantee that’s on par with the AAV of the five-year deal Murakami’s countryman Seiya Suzuki signed with the Cubs across town five years ago.

That comes with just two guaranteed years in the majors, but if Murakami is able to establish himself he’ll head into free agency ahead of his age-28 season. That should leave him in line for a far more substantial payday during the 2027-28 offseason, should he prove himself capable as the sort of middle-of-the-order power bat he has the potential to be. For a player looking to adjust to the majors, it’s hard to imagine a more forgiving environment than the south side of Chicago. The White Sox have average 108 losses per season over the last three years and posted arguably the worst season in MLB history back in 2024. While young players like Montgomery and Teel have begun to impact the major league roster, expectations for the club could hardly be lower at this point.

While any dreams Murakami may have had of hoisting a World Series trophy in his rookie season as a big leaguer are likely to be dashed by his decision to sign with the White Sox, playing on a team with low expectations for this year should allow him a low-pressure environment to make any adjustments to his game that might be necessary in order to maximize his success without the risk of losing his spot in the lineup to another player in the midst of a pennant race. The White Sox seem to want Murakami to be able to focus on maximizing his offense as much as possible, as the longtime NPB third baseman will be moving to first base in Chicago. Scouts nearly universally expressed skepticism about is ability to handle the hot corner at the big league level, so a move to first base should put less pressure on Murakami to prove himself as a defender and allow him to focus more fully on his work at the plate.

Should Murakami successfully prove himself in the majors, he would help anchor a budding core of young hitters for the White Sox. Montgomery and Teel both enjoyed excited seasons at up-the-middle positions last year, and they’ll be joined in the lineup by players like third baseman Miguel Vargas, second baseman Chase Meidroth, and catcher/DH Edgar Quero who enjoyed seasons last year that made them look like solid complementary pieces for the future. Luis Robert Jr. also figures to offer the Sox some star power alongside Murakami if he’s healthy enough to handle something close to a full slate of games in center field and remains on the team amid persistent trade rumors.

Taken together, it’s easy to see Murakami as the centerpiece of an offseason that has seen the White Sox take small steps towards a return to competitiveness at the big league level. The NPB star isn’t the only player the White Sox have deigned to add to the roster this winter; lefty Anthony Kay signed a two-year deal worth $12MM after his own successful stint in Japan, and the club is reportedly among the teams interested in former Rays closer Pete Fairbanks, as well. Those moves are unlikely to vault Chicago into a playoff spot by themselves, especially in a competitive AL Central where the Tigers and Guardians made it to October with Kansas City putting together a very aggressive offseason in their own right.

Immediate playoff contention, however, isn’t likely to be the expectation; it’s not often that a team qualifies for the playoffs the year after losing 100 games, much less two years after losing 120. Instead, these additions should allow the White Sox to foster a more competitive environment for their young core as they reach the majors and, if things go ell, build towards playoff contention in 2027 and beyond while reinvigorating fans who have been left wanting by the team’s latest rebuild, which saw the club part with beloved players like Lucas Giolito and Garrett Crochet.

These steps forward also allow the White Sox to pull their payroll out of the league’s basement. Following the Murakami signing, RosterResource projects the club for an $84MM payroll in 2026, a figure that jumps up to nearly $102MM for luxury tax purposes. That’s more or less in line with last year’s $85MM payroll and pulls the White Sox just out of the bottom five in the majors at this point. Of course, that figure is still extremely modest and leaves plenty of room for a team in a large market like Chicago to add additional salary, whether that’s a late-inning arm like Fairbanks or perhaps a veteran starting pitcher who can help anchor the club’s rotation. It should also be noted that the White Sox will pay a posting fee to the Swallows as a result of signing Murakami. That posting fee figures to land at approximately $6.6MM, given the relatively modest total guarantee Murakami landed.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-to-sign-munetaka-murakami.html
 
White Sox, Red Sox Among Teams With Interest In Munetaka Murakami

NPB slugger Munetaka Murakami’s posting window closes at 4pm CT time on December 22. With just over a day left for Murakami to sign with an MLB club, Mark Feinsand of MLB.com reports that the White Sox are among the teams that are presently engaged in talks with the slugger’s camp. Chris Cotillo of MassLive adds that the Red Sox have “kicked the tires” on Murakami, as well as fellow NPB infielder Kazuma Okamoto. Okamoto’s posting window closes on January 4.

Murakami’s time on the market has been unusually quiet for a player of his status. These reports of interest on the part of Chicago and Boston are the first significant reports tying Murakami to any of MLB’s 30 teams, as his representation has seemingly played things very close to the vest regarding his market. The 25-year-old has surely received interest from other clubs as well that has simply gone unreported, of course, but Murakami’s market doesn’t seem to be quite as strong as expected even when factoring in that reality.

Geoff Pontes of Baseball America suggested in an appearance on Foul Territory this past week that the slugger’s market has been “softer” than he and his representation were expecting entering the offseason. MLBTR ranked Murakami as the #4 free agent on the market this winter, predicting an eight-year, $180MM contract for the young slugger as part of our Top 50 MLB Free Agents list. That ranking accounts for Murakami’s top-of-the-scale power and extreme youth heading into free agency; Yoshinobu Yamamoto was just six months younger than Murakami when he landed a $325MM contract from the Dodgers, while the fact that Juan Soto was headed into his age-26 season was a key factor in him landing a record-shattering $765MM deal last winter.

With that said, Murakami’s low contact rates have raised some eyebrows around the baseball world since his posting, and it’s not hard to see why. The Athletic’s Eno Sarris illustrated the concerns with Murakami’s lack of contact in NPB by sharing a list of players with comparable contact rates and exit velocities in the majors in recent years. The resulting group includes some stars like Nick Kurtz (and Shohei Ohtani if the parameters adjusted to be somewhat more favorable to Murakami), but it includes a far larger group of middling players, ranging from decent regulars like Matt Wallner to early-career flame-outs like Aristides Aquino. There’s certainly reasons to believe Murakami will be a great deal better than those players, of course; his raw production in NPB is nothing short of otherworldly. Even so, the risk in the young slugger’s profile is real, and it’s not necessarily a shock that teams might shy away from giving him a massive contract until and unless he can prove his style of play works at the big league level.

Turning to the clubs with reported interest in Murakami, the White Sox are a very interesting fit. The slugger is certainly young enough to be part of the next competitive team on the south side; he’s just two years older than star rookies Colson Montgomery and Kyle Teel. That makes him an intriguing fit for the Sox, especially if he signs with the club on a long-term deal. Miguel Vargas and Lenyn Sosa are the club’s projected starters at the infield corners at the moment, but neither player is locked in strongly enough to prevent the addition of Murakami.

A short-term deal could also be possible, as well; the White Sox signed Erick Fedde to a two-year deal two winters ago and rode a strong first half to secure a three-way trade involving Fedde that brought back Vargas. A similar approach could be employed here as well, at least in theory. Chicago might be a particularly appealing destination for the young slugger given their lack of competitive expectations this year; it could allow him the opportunity to make necessary adjustments at the big league level without the pressure of a pennant race, and perhaps the White Sox would be more comfortable than most clubs trying Murakami at third base despite widespread concerns about his ability at the position.

As for the Red Sox, Murakami could provide the sort of elite slugger than the Red Sox lost when they traded away Rafael Devers over the summer. That makes the fit between the sides plausible, but there are certainly questions and obstacles as well. For one, the Red Sox are entering a clear win-now window after making the playoffs last year, and might not be willing to play Murakami through any struggles that could come with his adjustment to the majors. For another, the Red Sox are already extremely left-handed and have Triston Casas in-house as a first base/DH option with plenty of upside in his own right. Boston would need to be confident that Murakami would be a substantial upgrade over Casas in order to commit significant dollars to him for the same role.

While a pursuit of Murakami from Boston can’t be ruled out, the quote from Cotillo about Boston “kicking the tires” on the slugger suggests more of a reserved approach to his market. That’s an understandable path to take, particularly given that Okamoto could be a better fit. Okamoto is older than Murakami and lacks his countryman’s elite power, but he’s enjoyed a much more steady career in NPB without contact rate concerns, offers more playable defensive skills at third base, and is a right-handed hitter who more effectively complements the Red Sox lineup. That solid fit is part of why the Red Sox have been linked to Okamoto on occasion throughout the winter, even as they pursue a reunion with third baseman Alex Bregman.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...teams-with-interest-in-munetaka-murakami.html
 
White Sox, Dustin Harris Agree To Minor League Contract

The White Sox are signing outfielder Dustin Harris to a minor league deal, reports James Fegan of Sox Machine. The lefty hitter will be in camp as a non-roster invitee.

Harris, 26, is a former A’s draftee who was traded to Texas early in his career. He showed a decent power-speed combination in the minors and ranked among Baseball America’s top 10 prospects in the Rangers system each year from 2022-24. The Rangers carried him on their 40-man roster for a couple years. Harris received a brief look as a September call-up at the end of the ’24 season. His prospect stock had already begun to dim by that point, as his .272/.358/.391 showing in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League was a little worse than average given the hitter-friendly setting.

The Rangers bounced Harris on and off the active roster for the first few months of this past season. They designated him for assignment at the trade deadline and successfully ran him through waivers. He came back up in September while Adolis García was on the injured list but was outrighted again at the beginning of the offseason. Harris elected free agency the second time around.

His big league résumé consists of 21 games, in which he has hit .217 with a .280 on-base percentage. Harris has posted solid but not exceptional numbers over two and a half seasons in Triple-A. He’s a .276/.367/.420 hitter in nearly 1300 plate appearances. Harris has posted strong strikeout and walk rates, but his exit velocities at the Triple-A level are near the bottom of the scale. He can play all three outfield positions and probably fits best in left field.

The White Sox have Andrew Benintendi in left field and Luis Robert Jr. (barring a trade) to play center. Out-of-options Everson Pereira is probably lined up for right field work. Pereira has a .146/.227/.215 line in 50 major league games. Fourth outfielder Derek Hill and depth types Brooks Baldwin and Tristan Peters are on the 40-man roster. They’ll enter Spring Training ahead of Harris on the depth chart, but it’s a good spot for a non-roster invitee to carve out a role with an impressive camp.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-dustin-harris-agree-to-minor-league-contract.html
 
White Sox Sign Sean Newcomb

The White Sox announced this morning that they’re in agreement with left-hander Sean Newcomb on a one-year deal that guarantees the southpaw $4.5MM this morning. Will Sammon of The Athletic reports that Newcomb “will at least get the chance to start” for Chicago. Lefty Ryan Rolison was designated for assignment to make room for Newcomb on the 40-man roster. Newcomb is a client of Tidal Sports Group.

Newcomb, 32, was a first-round pick by the Angels back in 2012 and spent years as a consensus top-100 prospect in the minors. The lefty made his big league debut with Atlanta back in 2017 after previously coming over as part of the Andrelton Simmons trade. He spent the first two seasons of his career as a rotation piece, with a 4.06 ERA (103 ERA+) and a 4.16 FIP that gave him the look of a decent back-end starter. Unfortunately, in 2019 early season struggles led to him being demoted to Triple-A and moved into a bullpen role upon his return. He started four games for the Braves in 2020 but struggled badly across those starts as well, and ultimately did not start another game for the team before being designated for assignment by the club.

The lefty was traded to the Cubs shortly after his DFA and moved to the bullpen for the club, but struggled to put things together over the next few seasons. He pitched to an atrocious 6.61 ERA in 47 2/3 innings of work at the major league level between the Cubs and A’s over the next three seasons, held back primarily by a whopping 15.0% walk rate. Back in January, Newcomb latched on with the Red Sox on a minor league deal and found a path back to a big league rotation job between a strong performance in Spring Training coupled with injuries to rotation pieces like Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello that kept them off the Opening Day roster.

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Newcomb’s performance once added to the rotation as a mixed bag. He made five starts for the Red Sox and posted a lackluster 4.43 ERA, but did so with strong peripherals. He struck out 25.7% of his opponents while walking 10.5%. After moving to the bullpen, he posted a much stronger 3.38 ERA in seven relief outings for Boston, though his strikeout rate cratered during those outings. That led the Red Sox to designate him for assignment in late May, and he found himself traded back to the A’s shortly thereafter.

The lefty remained with the Athletics for the remainder of the 2025 season and did extremely well for himself with the club. In a full-time relief role for the A’s, Newcomb pitched to a dazzling 1.75 ERA with a 2.69 FIP in 51 1/3 innings of work. That excellent performance was backed up by strong peripherals, as he struck out 24.9% of his opponents, walked just 7.0%, and posted a strong 48.9% ground ball rate. His 3.22 SIERA in West Sacramento would be good for 44th among relievers with at least 50 innings of work last year if separated from his time in Boston. He’d also rank fifth by ERA and 18th by FIP.

That performance is more than strong enough to justify offering Newcomb a solid one-year guarantee to be a lefty bullpen arm, and the 32-year-old likely could have landed a similar dollar amount from a more competitive team for 2026 based on contracts offered to comparable lefties this offseason like Caleb Thielbar, who re-upped with the Cubs on a $5MM guarantee earlier this month. With that said, those contenders would have presumably wanted to keep Newcomb in a full-time bullpen role. The White Sox, by contrast, don’t have expectations of contention headed into 2026 and therefore can afford to offer Newcomb the opportunity to earn a rotation spot this spring.

Fellow offseason signing Anthony Kay figures to join Shane Smith and Davis Martin in the front three rotation spots for the White Sox this year. That leaves Newcomb to compete with players like Sean Burke, Jonathan Cannon, and Chris Murphy for the last two spots in the club’s rotation. It wouldn’t be a shock to see Newcomb land that role, though it’s certainly possible that he could also be used in a late-inning role given that the Sox bullpen has only Mike Vasil and Jordan Leasure as leverage options at the moment, with Tyler Gilbert as the top lefty option.

As for Rolison, the southpaw was claimed off waivers from Atlanta earlier this month. Rolison made his MLB debut as a member of the Rockies this past year, but struggled badly to the tune of a 7.02 ERA in 42 1/3 innings of work at the big league level for Colorado this year. The lefty will now be put through the waiver wire again, unless the Sox work out a deal involving Rolison before then. Should he pass through waivers unclaimed, Rolison figures to be outrighted to Triple-A as non-roster depth for Chicago headed into the 2026 season.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-sign-sean-newcomb.html
 
Reds Among Teams Showing Interest In Luis Robert Jr.

Last offseason, the Reds were among the teams linked to Luis Robert Jr. in trade conversations. The White Sox surprisingly held onto their center fielder both last winter and beyond the trade deadline. They’ve been content to keep him into 2026 but aren’t closed off to talks.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today and Gordon Wittenmyer of The Cincinnati Enquirer each report that the Reds have resumed discussions with the Sox. Nightengale also lists the Mets as a possibility. Robert has been more loosely tied to Pittsburgh, San Diego and Philadelphia at points throughout the offseason.

The Reds have yet to upgrade a lineup that ranked 14th in scoring despite playing half its games at Great American Ball Park. Their park-adjusted offense was eight percentage points below league average. That tied them with the Angels and Rangers for fifth-worst in MLB. Cincinnati made a run at Kyle Schwarber but reportedly viewed the Ohio native as a unique free agent. There’s no indication they’re going to reallocate the $25MM annual salary that they offered Schwarber elsewhere on the free agent market.

Robert will make $20MM next season. Wittenmyer writes that the White Sox may be willing to eat roughly half that salary to facilitate a trade. There’s a matching club option for the 2027 campaign. Chicago’s seeming willingness to pay down part of the contract would be conditional on getting a package of controllable talent that they like. Robert isn’t a pure salary dump. If the Sox had viewed him as a negative value asset, they would have bought him out for $2MM at the beginning of the winter.

Cincinnati has a quality center fielder in TJ Friedl. They don’t have an everyday option in left, where Friedl’s below-average arm strength would be less of a concern. Robert would certainly upgrade the outfield defense, though it’s less clear whether he’s a consistent enough hitter to be Cincinnati’s marquee offseason pickup. He has been a well below-average hitter since his 38-homer campaign two years ago. Robert owns a .223/.288/.372 batting line with a near-30% strikeout rate in 856 plate appearances since the start of 2024. He looked like he was turning a corner in the second half of ’25 but suffered a season-ending hamstring strain in August.

The Mets have a clearer need in center field. Tyrone Taylor projects as the starter despite hitting .223/.279/.319 across 341 plate appearances this past season. Top prospect Carson Benge is looming but struggled in his first 24 Triple-A contests after raking up through Double-A. He’s likely to begin the year in the minors. Left field is wide open following the Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil trades.

New York is virtually certain to add an outfielder. Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic write that they’re looking to add a right-handed bat somewhere in the lineup. Robert qualifies and is coming off a strong season against left-handed pitching. He was terrible against southpaws in 2024 but raked against them in every other season and has a lifetime .293/.367/.505 slash with the platoon advantage.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/reds-among-teams-showing-interest-in-luis-robert-jr.html
 
MLBTR Podcast: Three-Way Trade, Murakami’s Short-Term Deal, And Willson Contreras To Boston

The latest episode of the MLB Trade Rumors Podcast is now live on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you subscribe as well! You can also use the player at this link to listen, if you don’t use Spotify or Apple for podcasts.

This week, host Darragh McDonald is joined by Anthony Franco of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…


Check out our past episodes!

  • The Mets Sign Jorge Polanco, And The Braves, Blue Jays And Royals Make Moves – listen here
  • Winter Meetings Recap – listen here
  • An Agent’s Perspective with B.B. Abbott – Also, Cease, Williams, Helsley, And Gray – listen here

The podcast intro and outro song “So Long” is provided courtesy of the band Showoff. Check out their Facebook page here!

Photo courtesy of Wendell Cruz, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025...erm-deal-and-willson-contreras-to-boston.html
 
Players In DFA Limbo

When a team designates a player for assignment, he is removed from that club’s 40-man roster. The team then has a period of time with some ability to impact what is next for that player. This is colloquially referred to as “DFA limbo”.

The team can trade the player to another club, unless the trade deadline has passed and the new offseason has not yet begun. The team can also place the player on outright or release waivers. This limbo period can last as long as seven days. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so the team has a maximum of five days to work out a trade.

Or at least that’s the case for most of the year. It’s different around the holidays, with several instances in recent years of players being in DFA limbo for longer than two weeks. For instance, catcher Sam Huff was designated for assignment by the Rangers on December 23rd of 2024. He stayed in DFA limbo until he was claimed off waivers by the Giants on January 8th of 2025, 16 days later.

There has never been an official announcement made about what the rules are but it’s clear there’s some sort of freeze on the DFA clock around the holidays in late December and early January.

In this morning’s edition of The Opener, MLBTR mentioned two players who had been designated for assignment on December 17th, expecting those situations to be resolved today. There have been no updates as of the publication of this post. It’s possible the situations have been resolved but just haven’t been reported publicly because of media/communications people taking time off for the holidays. It’s also possible that those players have had their DFA clocks frozen and will remain in limbo into January.

Below is a list of players who have been designated for assignment in the past week without resolution, listed chronologically.

December 17th


December 19th


December 20th


December 22nd


December 23rd


Photo courtesy of Ken Blaze, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/players-in-dfa-limbo.html
 
Several Teams Interested In Yoán Moncada

Infielder Yoán Moncada is currently a free agent after playing out a one year, $5MM deal with the Angels. He was an above-average hitter in 84 games in 2025 but missed time due to right thumb and right knee injuries. According to Francys Romero of Beisbol FR, several teams have expressed early interest in signing Moncada, including the Angels, Pirates, White Sox, and Blue Jays.

The 30-year-old originally signed with the Red Sox out of Cuba for a $31.5MM bonus in February 2015. He made his debut late in 2016 before being traded to the White Sox as their key return for Chris Sale. Moncada had a 105 wRC+ in 231 plate appearances in 2017 but fell below average in his first full season in 2018. He broke out in 2019 with a .315/.367/.548 batting line in 559 PA, along with 25 home runs. Granted, the ball was juiced that year, but Moncada’s output was still 39% better than average by wRC+. The White Sox were confident enough to give him a five-year, $70MM extension in March 2020, which covered the 2020-24 seasons and contained a club option for 2025.

Moncada slumped during the COVID-shortened 2020 season, posting a 94 wRC+ while seeing a drop in power and spending two weeks on the injured list. He rebounded in 2021 with a line of .263/.375/.412 and a 120 wRC+. The power wasn’t quite back to his 2019 levels, though he looked like a more mature hitter overall, dropping his strikeout rate to 25.5% while posting a career-best 13.6% walk rate.

Unfortunately, Moncada has struggled with injuries and inconsistency ever since. From 2022-24, he batted .236/.291/.387 with an 88 wRC+ while playing in just 206 out of 486 possible games. In 2024, he spent most of the season on the 60-day IL with a left abductor strain, making just 45 plate appearances with a 118 wRC+. After the season, the club declined their $25MM club option on Moncada in lieu of a $5MM buyout, making him a free agent.

This year with the Angels, he had a 117 wRC+ in 289 PA over 84 games. His strikeout rate of 26.0% was high, while his 11.1% walk rate was better than average. His .214 ISO was his highest since his 2019 breakout season, as was his .448 slugging percentage. Although he is nominally a switch-hitter, most of his damage came as a lefty facing right-handed pitching. He posted 125 wRC+ in 262 PA against righties, but just a 37 wRC+ in 27 PA against southpaws. Meanwhile, both Defensive Runs Saved and Outs Above Average saw Moncada as a liability at third base. His -13 OAA was worst in the league among third baseman with at least 300 defensive innings.

Altogether, Moncada showed above average offense but was weighed down by injuries and newfound defensive struggles. As a free agent, he is more or less in the same position as last offseason, with a one-year deal being his most likely outcome. The current market has Alex Bregman and Eugenio Suarez as the top options at third base. Kazuma Okamoto is still available, with his posting window closing on January 4. The next-best options after that are utility players, so teams needing an everyday third baseman could look to Moncada as a low-cost flier.

Among the clubs with reported interest, the Angels might be the best fit. Anthony Rendon is expected to retire after an injury-riddled tenure in Los Angeles. After Moncada, Luis Rengifo got the most time at the hot corner in 2025, though he is a now a free agent. The club acquired infielder Vaughn Grissom from the Red Sox earlier this month, and he has not played third base in his big-league career. Another one-year deal with Moncada would fill the third-base vacancy and set Grissom up to compete for second base time, where the incumbent Christian Moore was unimpressive offensively in 2025.

Looking at the Pirates, the team traded Ke’Bryan Hayes to the Reds in July and saw Isiah Kiner-Falefa claimed by the Blue Jays in August. Jared Triolo played 260 1/3 innings at the hot corner, but he is more of a multi-positional player and did not hit as well as Moncada. The club is interested in signing Okamoto, but Moncada could be a fallback option for them.

The White Sox recently signed Munetaka Murakami to play first base and have Miguel Vargas as the projected starter at third. Moncada would be an offensive upgrade over Vargas if the club limits his exposure to left-handed pitching. Meanwhile, the Blue Jays are known to be interested in signing Bregman. Ernie Clement and Addison Barger are already on the roster if he signs elsewhere. Both are average hitters, while Clement is an excellent defender at third (11 DRS in 2025), so they are a more curious fit for Moncada.

Photo courtesy of Steven Bisig, Imagn Images
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/several-teams-interested-in-yoan-moncada.html
 
Joe Kelly Announces End Of His Playing Career

After 13 Major League seasons, reliever Joe Kelly has decided to call a career, as the right-hander told WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford on a recent edition (audio link) of the Baseball Isn’t Boring podcast. In his usual irreverent fashion, the 37-year-old Kelly declined to say he was officially retiring, taking issue with the term itself.

“Retiring is like, something that my grandmother did….I’m sorry all you people out there watching this that work a real job. You guys deserve to retire, athletes don’t,” Kelly said. “We just stop [expletive] playing, okay? Let’s cancel the word ’retirement.’ It’s used for people who [expletive] served in the military, used for people who worked until 65…When athletes are done playing, just say ’congratulations, they’re no longer playing.’ ”

Kelly last played during the 2024 season, tossing 32 regular-season innings for the Dodgers. He didn’t sign a contract last winter, and stated last July that he was planning to showcase himself in a throwing session for the Dodgers alone, saying that he only wanted to pitch for Los Angeles if he returned at all. That session came and went without any fanfare, and Kelly told Bradford that continued injury problems convinced him to hang up the glove. “I can throw 98 [mph] like nothing…[but] I threw a pitch and like strained again, so like ’nah, I’m done,’ ” Kelly said.

High velocity has been a bedrock of Kelly’s career, as he averaged 95mph on his fastball in his MLB debut season with the Cardinals in 2012. A move to the bullpen added even more heat, as Kelly had an average velo of 98.2mph over the final eight seasons of his career, and he topped the 102mph mark at his peak. While Kelly’s fastball drew the most attention, however, his sinker (which also regularly sat in the upper 90’s) and curveball were his most effective pitches at finishing off batters after Kelly set them up with his standard fastball.

A third-round pick for the Cardinals in the 2009 draft, Kelly made his MLB debut with St. Louis in 2012 and he tossed his first 266 big league innings in a Cards uniform. A notable swap at the 2014 trade deadline saw Kelly and Allen Craig sent to the Red Sox in exchange for John Lackey, and while the trade was panned by Boston fans at the time, Kelly’s development into a valued member of the Red Sox pen has made the deal a little more palatable for Red Sox Nation in hindsight.

Kelly struggled with injuries and consistency over his first two full seasons as a starter with the Sox, and a move to relief pitching in 2016 helped him at least spend less time on the injured list. Kelly had a 4.33 ERA over his entire 359 1/3 inning tenure with the Red Sox, but he shone brightest when posting a 0.79 ERA over 11 1/3 frames during the 2018 postseason, playing a big role in Boston’s World Series championship victory.

After helping beat the Dodgers in that Fall Classic, Kelly then went to L.A. on a three-year, $25MM free agent deal. Some early struggles made that signing look like a potential bust, but Kelly righted the ship and finished with a 3.59 ERA, 26.9% strikeout rate, 59.9% grounder rate, and 9.8% walk rate over 105 1/3 innings in that three-season span. The highlight was another postseason success and a ring in 2020, with Kelly allowing one earned run over 4 2/3 innings during the Dodgers’ title run.

A two-year, $17MM contract with the White Sox followed for Kelly in advance of the 2022 season, but the injuries started to really pile up, leading to a only a 5.59 ERA over 66 innings in a Chicago uniform. Acquired again by the Dodgers at the 2023 trade deadline, Kelly suddenly regained some of his old form in posting a 1.74 ERA the rest of the way. Los Angeles brought him back for a one-year, $8MM contract for the 2024 season, but Kelly’s health problems continued and he managed just a 4.78 ERA in his final 32 innings in the Show. While he wasn’t part of the Dodgers’ playoff roster, Los Angeles’ World Series victory meant that Kelly earned his third ring in what ended up as his farewell season.

Over 485 games and 839 career innings in the majors, Kelly had a 3.98 ERA, 51.8% grounder rate, 21.1% strikeout rate, and a 9.8% walk rate. His postseason resume consists of a 3.45 ERA over 60 innings, and a particularly impressive 2.03 ERA across 13 1/3 innings in the World Series.

Along the way, Kelly created quite a reputation for himself as a character. Kelly’s competitiveness sometimes led to a pair of high-profile suspensions, but his willingness to defend teammates only added to the fuel of the rivalries between the Red Sox and Yankees, and the sign-stealing scandal inspired feud between the Dodgers and Astros. Between his big fastball, erratic control, and eccentric personality, Kelly welcomed all comparisons to “Wild Thing” Rick Vaughn, to the point of wearing #99 with the Dodgers after giving his #17 jersey to the incoming Shohei Ohtani. (This gesture resulted in Ohtani gifting a Porsche to Kelly’s wife Ashley..

We at MLBTR congratulate Kelly on a fine career, and we wish him all the best in retir….er, his post-playing endeavors.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/joe-kelly-announces-end-of-his-playing-career.html
 
White Sox, Jarred Kelenic Agree To Minor League Deal

The White Sox are signing outfielder Jarred Kelenic to a minor league deal, according to a report from Jesse Rogers of ESPN. Kelenic’s deal includes a non-roster invitation to big league Spring Training in February.

Kelenic, 26, was drafted sixth-overall by the Mets back in 2018 and exploded to become a top-five prospect in the entire sport early in his pro career. Kelenic’s prospect status saw him shipped to the Mariners as part of the deal that brought Edwin Diaz to Queens, and at the time the deal was viewed as a coup for Seattle thanks to Kelenic’s star power. Unfortunately, the outfielder is now five years into his MLB career and has yet to put it all together at the major league level.

After hitting at a well below average level in 147 games across the 2021 and ’22 seasons, Kelenic finally seemed to be steadying himself in 2023. That year, he slashed a respectable .253/.327/.419 with a 110 wRC+ in 105 games. He swatted 11 homers with 25 doubles and swiped 13 bags in 18 attempts. While that combination of decent power and speed with a respectable 9.9% walk rate was encouraging, Kelenic was held back in a big way by strikeouts. His 31.7% strikeout rate would’ve been the fourth-highest in the majors that year if he had enough plate appearances to qualify, just ahead of Teoscar Hernandez and Eugenio Suarez for the team lead. That led the Mariners to try and retool their lineup with a larger focus on contact during the 2023-24 offseason, and part of that effort was a deal that shipped Kelenic to Atlanta that winter.

Joining the Braves offered Kelenic an opportunity for a fresh start, but he didn’t make much of an impact even in spite of receiving the lion’s share of playing time in left field. With Atlanta, Kelenic reached a career high in games played (131) and plate appearances (449) but managed a wRC+ of just 87 as his walk rate and BABIP both declined significantly while his strikeout rate remained at a much too high 29.6%. A .286 on-base percentage is hard to justify for a regular no matter how much power they provide, but Kelenic’s 15 homers and 35 total extra-base hits in 2024 certainly wasn’t going to cut it.

That led Atlanta to pivot away from using Kelenic in a starting role this past year, instead signing players like Jurickson Profar and Alex Verdugo to try and fill the hole in left field. A PED suspension for Profar and deep struggles from Verdugo were enough to get Kelenic another shot in the majors, but he struggled with that opportunity and hit just .167/.231/.300 in 24 games with a 47 wRC+ and a 35.7% strikeout rate. Those numbers were essentially unplayable at the major league level and left Kelenic to spend most of his time in the minors last year. Unfortunately, he also struggled for the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Gwinnett. For the Stripers, Kelenic hit just .213/.286/.309 in 95 games. While Kelenic’s strikeout and on-base woes persisted last year, his power completely evaporated.

All of those struggles led the Braves to designate Kelenic for assignment earlier this year, and he elected minor league free agency back in October. The outfielder is more of a project than a surefire piece at this point in his career, but given that he’s still just 26 years old, it’s understandable for the rebuilding White Sox to take a gamble on a talent once so well-regarded. If Kelenic shows he has more in the tank, he’d likely compete for a job in right field with Brooks Baldwin as Luis Robert Jr. and Andrew Benintendi cover center field and left field respectively. A trade of Robert or even Benintendi can’t be ruled out given Chicago’s status as one of the league’s few rebuilding clubs, and a deal sending either of those two out of town would create a more substantial opportunity for Kelenic to get work in on the grass in the majors.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/12/white-sox-jarred-kelenic-agree-to-minor-league-deal.html
 
Man the White Sox are really going all in on the reclamation project strategy this offseason huh? Can't say I blame em though - when you're rebuilding like they are, might as well take some swings on guys who used to be top prospects.

Kelenic is an interesting case. Dude was absolutely ELECTRIC as a prospect - like legit top 5 in all of baseball at one point. The Mets catching all that heat for trading him away for Diaz and now look where we are. Baseball is wild sometimes.

That strikeout rate is absolutely brutal though. You can't be whiffing 30%+ of the time and expect to stick in the majors unless you're hitting bombs like Joey Gallo used to. And Kelenic ain't doing that. 15 homers with those K numbers? That math don't work chief.

But hey, it's a minor league deal with a spring training invite. Zero risk for Chicago. If he figures something out, great - you got a 26 year old outfielder on the cheap. If he doesn't, you cut bait and move on. This is exactly what rebuilding teams SHOULD be doing.

The Moncada rumors are more interesting to me honestly. Bringing back the prodigal son? That'd be something. Though I gotta say, watching him bounce around after that $70M extension didn't work out has been rough. Injuries absolutely destroyed what could've been a great career.

What do you Sox fans think - any chance Kelenic actually cracks the Opening Day roster or is this just organizational depth?
 
Cubs Claim Ryan Rolison

The Cubs have claimed left-hander Ryan Rolison off waivers from the White Sox, per ESPN’s Jesse Rogers. The Sox designated Rolison for assignment when they needed to open a 40-man roster spot for free agent signee Sean Newcomb. The Cubs currently have four vacancies on their 40-man, so a corresponding move isn’t needed.

A first-round pick by the Rockies back in 2018, Rolison didn’t make his major league debut until the 2025 season, as injuries significantly derailed his trajectory to the majors. He wound up tossing 42 1/3 frames for Colorado — 31 relief appearances, one start — and being tagged for a grim 7.02 earned run average in that time. He pitched well out of the bullpen in Triple-A, however, notching a 3.34 ERA with a 25.2% strikeout rate, 7.1% walk rate and 48.8% ground-ball rate.

Rolison previously sat in the upper 80s and low 90s with his four-seamer while working as a starter, but his average fastball jumped to 93 mph this season while working in short relief. Home runs were a major issue for him in his debut campaign (2.34 HR/9), but despite that penchant for serving up the long ball, he actually induced a large amount of weak contact. When opponents did manage to barrel Rolison, those balls left the yard too often, but hitters still averaged a measly 87.5 mph off the bat against him.

It’s been some time since the former Ole Miss standout was a prospect of real note, but big league clubs clearly still see something in Rolison now that he’s healthy. He’s bounced from the Rockies, to the Braves, to the White Sox, to the Cubs now since his original DFA in Colorado. Following his DFAs with the Rockies and Braves, he didn’t even make it to waivers. The Braves and Cubs acquired him via small trades. And even in spite of those rough-looking numbers in his debut, he still wasn’t able to be passed through waivers by the South Siders.

Rolison has a minor league option remaining, so the Cubs don’t necessarily need to carry him on the Opening Day roster. He’s been used more in relief than as a starter in recent seasons, which isn’t a huge surprise for a former starter who lost about two years of his still-young career to a torn labrum in his left shoulder, which required surgery. The Cubs are quite deep in rotation options — particularly with a trade for Marlins righty Edward Cabrera reportedly in its final stages — and have deepened their bullpen this winter with signings of Phil Maton, Hunter Harvey, Jacob Webb, Hoby Milner and Caleb Thielbar. Rolison joins lefties Luke Little and Riley Martin as southpaw bullpen options who seem likely to begin the year in Triple-A Iowa.
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Source: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2026/01/cubs-claim-ryan-rolison-waivers-white-sox.html
 
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