The White Sox finalized their two-year, $20MM free agent contract with Seranthony Domínguez this afternoon. The hard-throwing righty is expected to step into the ninth inning for skipper Will Venable. That deal came on the heels of the Sox trading Luis Robert Jr. to the Mets, a move which dropped the center fielder’s $20MM salary from the books.
General manager Chris Getz said after the Robert trade that the Sox would be “very active” in using that payroll space. Domínguez will make $8MM in the first season of his slightly backloaded deal. Even if the White Sox don’t intend to reallocate all $20MM into this year’s roster, there should be room in the budget for another addition.
Getz acknowledged as much, saying on Thursday that the front office remains involved on both free agent and trade targets. “We’re still fairly active in free agency and also talking to other clubs,” Getz said in a TV appearance (video via CHSN). He made similar comments in a fan event before this weekend’s SoxFest Live event. “I believe that there are going to be more adds. To what level, (I’m) unsure,” the GM said (link via Scott Merkin of MLB.com). “What we can provide is opportunity and a runway, and some of these players we’ve acquired just haven’t gotten that runway in other places for various reasons.”
This remains a rebuild even if the White Sox have had a bigger offseason than anticipated. Domínguez is an established reliever, but the rest of Chicago’s pickups have been upside shots on young players or those whose roles might change. They jumped on the opportunity to add Munetaka Murakami on a two-year, $34MM contract when the Japanese slugger’s market didn’t develop. The Sox signed NPB returnee Anthony Kay to a two-year deal that likely includes a rotation spot. Sean Newcomb worked mostly out of the bullpen last year but could battle for a starting job in camp. On the position player side, they’ve taken fliers on former highly-regarded prospects Luisangel Acuña and Everson Pereira in trades.
Acuña came over from the Mets in the Robert deal. He’s a .248/.299/.341 hitter in 233 MLB plate appearances but never had consistent playing time in New York. Acuña has primarily been a middle infielder in his career, but he’s also playing a good amount of center field in the Venezuelan Winter League. He has plus-plus speed that could be an asset in the outfield. Jon Heyman of The New York Post writes that Acuña is likely to get an opportunity to step directly into Robert’s role as Chicago’s primary center fielder.
The versatility means Acuña will probably still see some infield work. Chicago’s middle infield tandem of Colson Montgomery and Chase Meidroth is more exciting than their post-Robert outfield, which may be the worst in MLB. Andrew Benintendi is back in left field. Pereira, Brooks Baldwin, Derek Hill and Tristan Peters — along with minor league signees Jarred Kelenic and Dustin Harris — make for an unimposing right field mix. There’s a decent chance they’ll make another outfield move or two before Opening Day. There’s also ample opportunity in a rotation that is led by Shane Smith, Sean Burke, Davis Martin and the free agent signees Kay and Newcomb.
While there are a lot of moving pieces, Murakami should be a staple as the everyday first baseman. Major league clubs clearly had big reservations about the rate at which he swung and missed in Japan. Murakami may have as much raw power as any hitter on the planet, though, and the Sox will no doubt have a long leash as he tries to acclimate to MLB pitching. It’s the kind of upside play that virtually no one saw coming at the beginning of the offseason, when Murakami was widely expected to command a nine-figure deal.
That skepticism extended to the White Sox themselves. Getz spoke with Scott Merkin of MLB.com about the signing and acknowledged that the NPB superstar was not a player they expected to add. “Candidly, I didn’t think it was going to be a realistic target for us. I didn’t. The speculation was big, whether it be years, and dollars. … We did our due diligence. But I still didn’t feel like it was going to be realistic, even into when free agency opened up.”
It carried well into the offseason, as Getz said he still didn’t view Murakami as a viable addition into the Winter Meetings in early December. Talks didn’t accelerate until a few days before the close of the player’s 45-day posting window, which expired on December 22. Once it became apparent that Murakami wasn’t going to find a long-term deal he desired, the Sox made their move.
“We just view this as truly upside,” Getz said of adding a marquee player from Japan. “The baseball side, the business side. There’s a big impact and it’s leading to things that perhaps we didn’t even anticipate, quite honestly.” Sox fans will want to read Merkin’s full column, which includes more specifics from Getz and Venable on the process leading up to the agreement.
I don’t understand how anyone can think the WhiteSox will finish with over 70 wins. They signed Seranthony Dominguez to be their closer, will on most good teams hes a 6th inning guy. They lost Robert who was probably their 2nd most productive player even in a down year. Acuna can’t hit at all. Anthony Kay and Sean Newcomb are essentially lottery tickets. How Murakami will adapr to the MLB remains to be seen. Honestly I think that they are a worse team then last year at this rate. They won’t have the luck that Adrian Houser gave them, and there is no way Mike Vasil replicates what he did this season based off of his advanced stats. They will finish with less wins this year
Because Mike Vasil was so instrumental to the team last season?
That’s not the point. They now have some young, exciting players that will be fun to watch grow and develop. Plus, maybe they get hot and go on a streak, you never know with baseball, but there’s a lot more to be optimistic about than the recent past.
Oh no how we gonna replace Adrian Houser said no man woman or child ever
Young players are only fun to watch when they are performing well and the White Sox have a horrible history of developing young talent. Another 100 loss season coming.
The bullpen could be real good.
Dominguez, Leasure and Taylor is a nice 7/8/C — I like Eisert, Gilbert, Kay or Newcomb for LHRP – one of those two should hit the bullpen and Paez should be in the rotation.
RH depth with Vasil, Wilkeman Gonzalez and Alberto has a big arm, he could surprise. Murphy could get a look in the bullpen too.
The pitching wins them 70+ games this season.
I think Acuna is the best player on the team, and dont sleep on Baldwin.
Baldwin hit a little last season in MLB, posted a .697 OPS as a rookie. He was sent down mid season and in 132 PAs in AAA, he hit .368/.427/.762 – he has some pop in his bat.
Paez is definitely not ready for the rotation he’ll be in the bullpen. If Acuna is your best player there is a problem. This team isn’t close to 70 wins. I could be wrong, maybe things go really well for them and end up with 74 wins, but no way they get to .500. They are really bad on paper and will perform worse IRL.
Kenny Williams, is that you?
I think the White Sox need more a quality starter than an OF to be borderline competitive.
If they are able to sign say, Gallen or Giolito or maybe even Quintana; a lineup featuring Meidroth-Teel-Montgomery-Mune-Vargas should be enough to give you 75 wins. If not, then 65-70 wins sound about right.
Habeto
“lineup featuring Meidroth-Teel-Montgomery-Mune-Vargas should be enough to give you 75 wins. If not, then 65-70 wins sound about right.”
But definitely not 71 to 74 wins
Hello Fox News,
Over 75 wins if they get a SP. Below 70 if they don’t. 71-74 wins if you get a bit lucky or unlucky, depending on the first two scenarios.
What do we think will happen with Ky Bush and Drew Thorpe? Won’t they both be back at some point this season?
A lot of the guys last year coming back with more experience should lead to some positive steps forward. Miguel Vargas & Lenyn Sosa took massive steps forward between 2024 & ‘25. Will they take more steps forward? What will full seasons of Montgomery & Teel look like after great mid-season call-ups?
It’s true there are a lot of unknowns or lottery tickets in this team, but there’s also a decent floor here, not to mention other possible call-ups (yes, they’re unproven too).
Point is, it’ll be an exciting team to watch and I do think their talent base is higher this year than last, even while losing LR.
I’ll be rooting for him in Queens though!
Houser had a decent season but I’m not sure how much luck he brought to the team.
@IronBallsMcGinty 6-2 with a 2.10 ERA with the White Sox last year before being traded at the deadline. There is no one on their staff that will replicate that for the current season. This is coming from someone who thinks Houser is awful but he struck lightening in a bottle for the first half of last season
The White Sox got similar production from Korean free agent returnee Erik Fedde in 2024 before flipping him to the Cardinals by that summer’s trade deadline. Adrian Houser was last year’s “lotto ticket” winner for the ChiSox rotation. They also came up big with a couple of December 2024 Rule 5 gamble’s in Shane Smith and Mike Vasil.
Who’s to say that the White Sox “luck” won’t continue with NPB FA returnee Anthony Kay this year? Perhaps it’s less luck and more solid input from their scouts and coaching staff with all these recent “lotto pick” successes.
Fact is, the White Sox are on a roll with good fortune which also will enable them to secure generational SS Roch Cholowsky with their winning #1 lotto pick in this summer’s Rule 4 Amateur Draft.
I will not be betting against them anytime soon. 🙂
Oops: didn’t read Aaron the demon’s fine post before posting something similar. Add that aside from the hire of the highly anticipated Cholow, the Sox already have Colson at ss, followed by Billy Carlson, rated a 70 for both arm strength and defense, with scouts raving that he had the best defensive instincts of any high schooler in recent memory. An abundance at SS and C: good thing to have.
Ill be betting against Newcomb and Kay.
I like Smith, Burke and Davis Martin and Im still a believer in Jonathan Cannon. Im also looking forward to Paez getting some starts. I think he could surprise like Smith did last season.
Going to see a lot of K’s from Teel, Montgomery and Murakami.
Speaking of K’s, I like Boleman for 1.1 — I like what I see in Chowolsky, especially with the glove, he looks like a gold glove SS, but Boleman is the outlier.
Boleman posted 135K’s in 55.2 IP last season as a prep, he only allowed 7H, 8BB and 0ER.
Not to diminish Adrian’s work. Thank you for your services good sir. But never intended to follow his successful stint w a $20 mil commitment. A throughline from Fedde to Houser to the 3.0 vs: Kay or Newcomb or pitcher x. Seems Bannister and crew have a mechanism in place to redevelop refurbish fallen prospects. In some respects one could lump Ethan Katz’ work with Giolito and Coop w the likes of Q and Phil Humber into that category. In the meantime, buying time yo when the 3 headed hydra of Schulz-Smith-Thorpe might be ready. Exciting times if youre a fan of young pitching!
You’re absolutely right but your expectations are too high for the White Sox. Ownership will be fine if this team wins 65-70 games. That’s all they are expecting.
They are just trying to tread water until Ishbia takes over.
Whether wins improve or not, I’m sorry, but you cannot say this isn’t a more exciting team to watch. They’ve freed themselves of Robert who made them cringe to watch. Now there’s some young players who are taking a step forward and others that are interesting. I’m excited to see how Murakami plays and who’ll be biting on him come the deadline. Seranthony is also a very good pitcher who can close on a lot of teams, you’re analysis is dead wrong there.
ZIPS projects them for 69 wins. Last year in March it projected them for 52 wins. It’s possible that they could have fewer wins than last year. Also totally possible that they could have 74. blogs.fangraphs.com/the-late-january-zips-projecte…
Interested to see how this team performs with C. Montgomery, Teel, Quero, and Murakami in the lineup full time. They could be an interesting watch, especially once B. Montgomery, Shultz and Hagen Smith get called up.
They’re not going to win the division but teams filled with prospects trying to earn a job I find are almost always fun to watch.
I agree. Luisangel Acuña is going to thrive if he gets a chance to play full time. Wouldn’t surprise me if he played some OF at some point. I think if they bring in Bassitt or reunion with Giolito on a 1 yr, that would put a bow on a really nice off-season for Chicago
It’d be great if they could find a way to trade Benintendi.
Would you trade Benintendi to Boston for Yoshida plus the cash difference in their salaries? Would both the Red Sox and White Sox?
Benintendi returns to Boston. Yoshida joins Murrakami in Chicago. Each gets a much needed change of scenery.
Sure, why not? Benny hasn’t been all bad per se: solid numbers when healthy but declining defensive output which has taken the shine off his #1 pedigree. Good guy in the clubhouse who shows up everyday w that jubilant smile on his face, let him have a final opportunity to play for a playoff contender as a reward for his service since he wont be part of the next contender in Chicago, which he’ll unfortunately miss by about 1-2 years. White Sox wouldn’t need Yoshida back: maybe a fallen prospect like a Raffaela or a Vasil type. Oddly, the White Sox are building quite the stockpile of Massachusetts natives: Shane Smith (Danvers), Mike Vasil (Dorchester), Sean Burke (Shrewsbury). Sure they appreciate the relative ease with which one can pahk the cah in Bridgeport. Wicked pissah
In what world is Rafeala a “fallen prospect”?
Red Sox don’t need another lefty hitting outfielder.
I don’t think Boston does that. I’m assuming at some point, either this season or next, the White Sox will cut him or trade him somewhere and keep paying the vast majority of his salary.
No mainly due to not enough at bats with Murakami filling that role at 1B/DH and don’t view Yoshida as having value as an OF at this stage of career. Teel and Quero (S) both hit from the left side as well and should be playing close to everyday vs. righties, which likely means one is hitting DH unless Murakami is resting. Sosa’s bat needs to be in the lineup everyday until further notice (why fangrpahs doesn’t show him as a starter is beyond me). If anything Miguel Vargas should be on short side of a platoon mixing between OF, 3B, 1B and DH based on splits. If Kelenic and/or Harris (both lefties) earn a spot and run with it, I’m all for moving Benintendi if possible. Would like to see it first – Kelenic is a why not dice roll and Harris could foreseeably be a diamond in the rough. Excited to watch those two in spring training.
Yes because Boston needs another LH hitting outfielder.
All good opinions. Thanks, everyone!!
Are the Diamondbacks strapped for cash?
Trading Benintendi for Eduardo Rodriguez would save the Diamondbacks $4 million in salary this year, $4 million in salary in 2027, and $6 million on an option buyout in 2028. Would $14 million be enough for Arizona to sell off a nice prospect like 2B Tommy Troy?
I was thinking something like Andrew Benintendi and Davis Martin for Eduardo Rodriguez and Tommy Troy.
The Diamondbacks save $14 million and get 2 pre-arb years on a 5 starter in Martin who is putting up the same FIP over the same amount of innings as Rodriguez. The White Sox get a highly-regarded 2B prospect who should be ready for the majors sometime in 2027, if not a brief callup in 2026.
If any of these free agent players succeed white Sox will trade them for prospects during the year
Right. Because they need more mediocre prospects. The law of baseball is that if you collect 100 once heralded but failed prospects at least 1 will become a useful player. Way to play the odds, White Sox.
Remember that time they hired Tony LaRussa out of nowhere, that was wild. Anyway time for six McGriddles
Hmmmmm, McGriddles!
I can totally picture a bag of cold McGriddles on the passenger seat beside LaRussa the night he parked and passed out behind the wheel in Arizona.
This team is going to be better than people think. I’ve watched good and bad Sox teams. The 2026 Sox are going to wear down opposing pitchers.
Finish above .500
Sean Newcomb hasn’t pitched over 100+ innings since 2018 and his far better as a high leverage reliever than a SP.
Are we still talking about Tony LaRussa?