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Brad Keller

Red Sox Designate Joely Rodriguez For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced Monday that they’ve designated left-handed reliever Joely Rodriguez for assignment and selected the contract of righty Brad Keller from Triple-A Worcester in his place.

Rodriguez was selected to the 40-man roster himself on Friday, and the Sox used him heavily over the weekend. The 32-year-old southpaw pitched in three straight games from Friday through Sunday, logging 2 2/3 innings and allowing a run on four hits and no walks with one strikeout. Rodriguez was surely unavailable today for what’s effectively a doubleheader — the Sox will finish their suspended game against the Blue Jays and then play a second game versus the Jays this evening — and will be jettisoned from the roster for a fresh arm in Keller.

This weekend’s stretch of three solid appearances from Rodriguez helped to pare down a rough earned run average that now sits at a still-unsightly 5.93 on the season — albeit in just 13 2/3 innings. Rodriguez’s under-the-hood numbers are far, far better. He’s fanned a below-average 18.8% of his opponents but also sports a pristine 3.1% walk rate and a massive 59.2% ground-ball rate in this season’s 14 appearances. Metrics like xFIP (3.07) and SIERA (2.87) are much more bullish on his performance than his ERA.

That’s nothing new for Rodriguez, who sports a roughly average 22.5% strikeout rate in his career, a higher-than-average 10% walk rate and a terrific 56% ground-ball rate. In 170 2/3 innings, he’s posted a 4.80 ERA, but his respectable ability to miss bats and huge ground-ball tendencies have long led ERA alternatives to forecast better bottom-line results. Rodriguez has at times had success in the majors, but his whiffs and grounders have been undercut by persistent struggles with men on base; his career 64% strand rate is about eight percentage points worse than average.

Now that Rodriguez has been designated for assignment, he’ll be placed on waivers and made available to the other 29 clubs. A new team would owe him a prorated $2MM base salary for any time spent on the big league roster or injured list (about $344K for the remainder of the season). If he goes unclaimed, he can reject his outright assignment, become a free agent, and hope to latch on with a new club as a depth option prior to the Aug. 31 postseason eligibility deadline.

Today’s move is a swap of one veteran for another. Keller will rejoin the team after being previously designated for assignment himself, electing free agency, and returning on a minor league deal. He’s appeared in 15 games for Boston this season and pitched 37 2/3 innings of 5.30 ERA ball with a 17.8% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 49.3% ground-ball rate. He’s been working primarily as a starter in Worcester and is stretched out for long relief if needed. In 30 innings with the WooSox this season, Keller has a 3.00 ERA.

Keller is in his first season with the Red Sox organization but spent six years as a fixture on the Royals’ pitching staff. From 2018-20, he was a regular in the rotation and a steady source of quality innings. His results dipped in 2021, and by 2023 his command had deteriorated to the point where he walked a stunning 45 batters in 45 1/3 innings. Keller eventually hit the injured list and was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome, which required season-ending surgery. He’s yet to rediscover his 2018-20 form (360 1/3 innings, 3.50 ERA, 16.8% strikeout rate, 9.1% walk rate, 52.1% grounder rate), but he’s still relatively young at 29 and has been outstanding in the minors recently. Over his past 22 innings in Triple-A, Keller sports a 0.82 ERA and 15-to-1 K/BB ratio.

Red Sox Re-Sign Brad Keller To Minor League Deal

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The Red Sox have re-signed right-hander Brad Keller to a minor league deal, per Chris Hatfield of SoxProspects.com on X. The veteran elected free agency earlier today but has quickly returned to Boston on a non-roster pact.

Keller, 29, is a veteran with more than five years of service time. That gives him the right to reject optional assignments to the minor leagues. Earlier in the year, he did consent to be optioned by Boston, getting recalled a few days ago. The Sox optioned him a second time but he decided to exercise his right to explore the open market. It seems he didn’t find much to his liking and quickly reunited with the Sox on this minor league deal.

The righty had a nice run with the Royals earlier in his career but he has hit a few bumps in more recent seasons. In the 2018-2020 seasons, Keller logged 360 1/3 innings with Kansas City, allowing 3.50 earned runs per nine in that stretch. His 16.8% strikeout rate was below par but his 9.1% walk rate was around average and his 52.1% ground ball rate was quite strong.

But his ERA crept north of 5.00 in both 2021 and 2022. Last year, he was only able to make 11 appearances before requiring surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome. This year, he has split his time between the White Sox and the Red Sox, tossing 37 1/3 innings with a 5.30 ERA, 17.8% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 49.6% ground ball rate.

The Sox bolstered their rotation prior to the deadline by acquiring James Paxton from the Dodgers but he recently suffered a torn calf after just three appearances with Boston. Cooper Criswell is currently on the injured list with COVID but the club is planning on slotting him into the rotation when he’s healthy. Whenever that happens, he’ll join Tanner Houck, Brayan Bello, Nick Pivetta and Kutter Crawford.

The club has Quinn Priester on the 40-man roster as depth but he has allowed 11 earned runs in 6 1/3 Triple-A innings since being acquired from the Pirates. Wikelman Gonzalez is also on the 40-man but he has a 5.93 ERA at Double-A this year and would have to skip Triple-A completely to help the big league club at this point. The club has Naoyuki Uwasawa and Jason Alexander on hand as non-roster depth but Keller has far more major league experience than those two and could be ahead of them in line to get the call whenever a fresh arm is needed next.

Brad Keller Elects Free Agency

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Red Sox right-hander Brad Keller has elected to become a free agent, reports Alex Speier of the Boston Globe. As a player with five-plus years of big league service, Keller must consent to being optioned to the minors. He agreed to be optioned once earlier this season, but when the Red Sox sought to option him earlier this week, he instead exercised his right to become a free agent and seek a new opportunity.

Keller, 29, was a fixture in the Royals’ rotation from 2018-23. One of the more successful Rule 5 picks in recent memory — Kansas City plucked him out of the D-backs’ organization in the 2017 Rule 5 Draft — he enjoyed three sharp seasons as a starter for the Royals before struggling repeatedly from 2021-23, often due to injuries. After logging a 3.50 ERA in 360 1/3 innings for K.C. from 2018-20, Keller was roughed up for a 5.14 mark in the three subsequent seasons. Things went way off the rails in 2023, when he walked 45 hitters in 45 1/3 innings before going on the injured list and eventually undergoing thoracic outlet surgery.

The White Sox signed Keller to a minor league deal over the winter, and he had a brief run with Chicago before being designated for assignment and electing free agency. The Red Sox scooped him up in late May. After a tough debut in Baltimore, he settled in to pitch well over a string of eight long-relief appearances, but Boston sent him to the minors in late June (a move he approved at the time). He was recalled on Friday, surrendered three runs in four innings against the Astros on Saturday, and was optioned back to Triple-A Worcester on Monday — this time exercising his right to become a free agent.

Overall, Keller has pitched 37 1/3 innings between the ChiSox and BoSox this season. He’s logged a discouraging 5.30 ERA in that time, but his season isn’t without its silver linings. First and foremost, the disastrous command issues he displayed last season have come back down to Earth. In fact, Keller has not only put last year’s ghastly 21.3% walk rate behind him — he’s sporting a career-low 7.7% walk rate in his 37 1/3 frames. His 17.8% strikeout rate is below the league average but is right in line with the 17.4% mark he posted prior to his TOS-ruined 2023 season. Keller has seen the velocity on his four-seamer and sinker tick up slightly (though he’s also primarily been working in relief, so that’s not necessarily due to better health), and this year’s 9.1% swinging-strike rate is the second-best mark of his career (but still worse than league-average).

Down in Triple-A, things have gone better. He’s pitched a nearly identical slate of 38 innings there and has similar walk and strikeout rates to the ones he’s posted in the majors. However, he’s sporting a 4.26 ERA that’s more than a full run lower than his MLB ERA, due largely to the fact that he’s been able to avoid the long ball in a way he hasn’t at the MLB level (0.24 HR/9 in Triple-A, 1.93 HR/9 in MLB). In all likelihood, his home run rate in the majors is due for some positive regression, while his home run rate in the minors is likely due to swing the other direction.

For a team needing some late-season rotation depth or length in the bullpen, the veteran Keller could be a worthy flier. The Twins, Astros, Guardians, Mets, Braves and Padres are among the postseason hopefuls who have incurred injuries or are experiencing notable workload concerns among their current crop of starting pitchers.

Red Sox Select Chase Shugart, Mickey Gasper; Designate Jamie Westbrook For Assignment

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The Red Sox announced a series of roster moves today. Righty Brayan Bello has been reinstated from the paternity list and left-hander Bailey Horn has been recalled, while the club selected the contracts of right-hander Chase Shugart and catcher/infielder Mickey Gasper. It was reported last night that left-hander James Paxton suffered a right calf strain and he now lands on the 15-day injured list. Lefty Brennan Bernardino has been optioned to Triple-A Worcester, as has righty Brad Keller. A fourth active roster spot was opened with the Jarren Duran suspension, reported earlier today. To open a 40-man roster spot, infielder/outfielder Jamie Westbrook has been designated for assignment. Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported Shugart’s promotion on X prior to the official announcement.

Shugart, 27, gets the call to the big leagues for the first time. A 12th-round pick of the Sox in 2018, he has been working his way up the minor league ladder since then. He worked exclusively as a starter through 2021 but has primarily been working out of the bullpen since then.

His initial forays into Triple-A ball didn’t go well, as he posted a 6.82 earned run average at that level in 2022 and then an 8.22 ERA there last year. He’s had more success here in 2024, with a 4.98 ERA in 59 2/3 innings. That’s largely come in a multi-inning capacity, as he’s logged those frames over 28 appearances, including five starts. His 10.9% walk rate is a bit on the high side but he has punched out 26.6% of opponents this year and gotten grounders on 46.8% of balls in play.

Baseball America had Shugart on the back end of their organizational top 30 list back in 2019 and 2020 but not in recent years. The Sox are likely going to be leaning on him for a long man role in the coming days. Paxton suffered his injury after recording just two outs, forcing the bullpen to do yeoman’s work. Bernardino tossed an inning a third while each of Lucas Sims, Luis García and Cam Booser tossed two innings. First baseman Dominic Smith pitched a scoreless ninth with the Sox down 10-2 to the Astros. The Sox also did a bullpen game the day before, with Josh Winckowski covering three innings, Brad Keller eating up four, while Zack Kelly and Chris Martin picked up one each.

All told, the pitching staff is fairly taxed and the Sox don’t have another off-day until August 22, over a week from now. Righty Cooper Criswell went on the COVID IL recently and has an unknown timeline. With Paxton now out as well, the rotation is down to Bello, Kutter Crawford, Tanner Houck and Nick Pivetta. Perhaps Winckowski will get another shot after throwing three innings on the weekend, or perhaps Criswell can make a quick return. The club also has Quinn Priester on optional assignment and could recall him at some point. But in the meantime, Shugart can sop up some innings, if needed.

Gasper, 28, was also selected in the 2018 draft, but by the Yankees. He came to the Red Sox via the minor league phase of the 2023 Rule 5 draft. He has generally put up positive numbers in a hit-over-power fashion, though he’s always been old for whatever level he’s been playing at. He didn’t reach Triple-A until last year, his age-27 season, and hit .191/.295/.265 in his first 22 games at that level.

This year has gone much better. He’s played 44 Double-A games and 40 at Triple-A. Between those two clubs, he has a 15.9% walk rate, 11% strikeout rate and .341/.458/.559 batting line that translates to a wRC+ of 175.

Despite the massive batting line, Gasper’s not really considered a top prospect, though it would make for a great story if he could engineer a late-bloomer breakout. He has played catcher, first base and second base this year, in addition to a bit of third base time in previous seasons. He figures to slot into the club’s bench mix, giving them depth at various spots.

Westbrook, 29, signed a minor league deal with Boston in the offseason. They selected his contract in June, his first time cracking a major league roster. He has received 48 big league plate appearances so far, hitting just .150/.234/.350 in that small sample. He has always hit well in the minors and that’s still true this year. He has a line of .291/.381/.475 in 71 Triple-A games, drawing walks at a strong 12% clip and limiting his strikeouts to a 17.2% clip.

Defensively, he has played the three non-shortstop infield positions as well as right field this year. Since the trade deadline has passed, the Sox will have no choice but to put him on waivers in the coming days. If any team puts in a claim, Westbrook still has a full slate of options and just a few days of service time.

Red Sox Sign Brad Keller

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11:50AM: The Red Sox have officially announced Keller’s signing and optioned Kelly in the corresponding move.

10:12AM: The Red Sox are nearing a deal with right-hander Brad Keller, according to MassLive’s Chris Cotillo. The deal is pending a physical and the club hopes to make it official before today’s game against the Brewers, which is scheduled to begin at 1:35pm local time. Cotillo adds that right-hander Zack Kelly has been optioned to the minors to make room for Keller on the active roster. Boston’s 40-man roster currently stands at 39, so no corresponding 40-man move will be necessary to add Keller.

Keller, 28, signed with the White Sox on a minor league deal back in March and made five appearances with the club, including two starts, before being designated for assignment last week. Keller subsequently elected free agency and returned to the open market with a 4.86 ERA in 16 2/3 innings of work with Chicago under his belt. That performance may be better than what Keller earned, as he struck out just 17.1% of batters faced while walking 7.9% and allowing a whopping 29.4% of his fly balls to leave the yard for home runs. Those iffy peripherals left him with a 6.55 FIP and a 5.16 xERA, although a 4.02 SIERA and 4.09 xFIP both suggest Keller’s ERA was actually higher than what should have been expected based on his underlying performance.

Regardless of the results from Keller’s time with the White Sox, he’ll now get another opportunity to re-establish himself at the big league level in Boston. Keller was once a promising mid-rotation arm with the Royals, as he posted a 3.50 ERA and 3.90 FIP across his first 360 1/3 innings of work in the majors between 2018 and 2020. Since then, however, his results have declined drastically. His final three seasons in Kansas City saw him post a 5.14 ERA with a 4.79 FIP before he was ultimately sidelined partway through the 2023 campaign by a shoulder issue before undergoing surgery to correct Thoracic Outlet Syndrome back in October. TOS is a particularly difficult injury for players to come back from, and players such as Stephen Strasburg and Chris Archer have seen their careers negatively impacted by the issue in recent years.

Keller will hope to buck that trend with the Red Sox, joining a pitching staff that appears poised to lose right-hander Garrett Whitlock to elbow surgery after already losing righty Lucas Giolito to that same procedure earlier in the year. The club is currently relying on a starting rotation of Brayan Bello, Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Cooper Criswell, and Nick Pivetta. While it’s possible that Keller could slot somewhere into that mix, a more likely scenario would be Keller joining veteran righty Chase Anderson as a potential multi-inning relief and spot starter option in the club’s bullpen mix.

Making way for Keller on the club’s active roster is Kelly, who is in his third season as an up-and-down reliever for the Red Sox. The right-hander has generally pitched to solid results when in the majors for the club, with a career 3.18 ERA across 39 2/3 innings of work. Kelly has been particularly effective this season, with a strong 2.16 ERA in 16 2/3 frames despite a 19.4% strikeout rate and a massive 13.9% walk rate that have left him with a lackluster 4.99 FIP. Now back in the minors, Kelly figures to act as optionable depth for the club going forward alongside Josh Winckowski and Naoyuki Uwasawa.

Brad Keller Elects Free Agency

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Right-hander Brad Keller has elected free agency after going unclaimed on outright waivers, tweets Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. The White Sox had designated him for assignment on Sunday.

Keller signed a minor league pact with Chicago about halfway into Spring Training. He made three starts for their Triple-A team before being called up in late April. He started two of five appearances at the major league level, pitching to a 4.86 ERA through 16 2/3 innings. Three of Keller’s first four outings were solid, but he gave up four homers in as many innings against the Yankees on Saturday. The Sox decided to go in a different direction, eventually recalling rookie right-hander Nick Nastrini to take the rotation spot.

The 28-year-old Keller has pitched in parts of seven major league seasons. All of that time has been spent in the AL Central. The Royals plucked him out of the Arizona farm system as a Rule 5 pick back in 2017. Keller turned out to be one of the better Rule 5 selections in recent history. He posted a 3.08 ERA as a rookie and turned in 28 starts of 4.19 ERA ball during his second season. His results have fallen off following a strong showing in the abbreviated 2020 season.

Keller allowed more than five earned runs per nine in both 2021 and ’22. He was carrying a 4.57 mark with 14 more walks than strikeouts through 45 1/3 innings last year when he was diagnosed with thoracic outlet syndrome. Kansas City let him walk in free agency last winter.

Teams seeking rotation depth could offer Keller a minor league deal. While his recent production hasn’t been great, he’s still adept at keeping the ball on the ground. He racked up grounders at a 56.1% clip during his brief run with the Sox. He has only had one season where opponents got the ball in the air more than half the time they put it in play against him.

White Sox Designate Brad Keller For Assignment

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May 20: The team has now formally announced both moves. Keller’s weeklong DFA window will begin today.

May 19: The White Sox are designating right-hander Brad Keller for assignment, James Fegan of Sox Machine reports (links to X).  Dominic Leone is being activated from the 15-day injured list to take Keller’s spot on the active roster.

After three increasingly rough seasons with the Royals, Keller caught on with Chicago on a minor league deal over the offseason and that contract was selected to the big league roster at the end of April.  Keller’s five games in a Sox uniform have consisted of two starts and three relief appearances, and his most recent outing saw him allow five earned runs to the Yankees over four innings of work in yesterday’s 6-1 Chicago loss.

That boosted Keller’s ERA to 4.86 over 16 2/3 total frames, with an underwhelming 17.7% strikeout rate and an okay 7.9% walk rate.  Keller’s 56.1% grounder rate is impressive but he has also benefited from a .231 BABIP and been hit hard when he hasn’t been able to keep the ball on the ground.  Over his small sample size of work, Keller has allowed five home runs, including four from the Yankees yesterday.

To be fair, Keller had a 2.84 ERA in his 12 2/3 innings before facing New York, and he is hardly the first pitcher to have problems with the dangerous Yankees lineup.  While this move might seem like something of a quick trigger from the White Sox, it could be that the team is looking to open a rotation spot for Jared Shuster, who has looked very sharp in multi-inning relief outings this season.  Since the Sox are obviously looking ahead to 2025 and beyond, they could simply see more value in letting Shuster pitch more meaningful innings now, and parting ways with a veteran like Keller who isn’t in their long-term plans.

It should be noted that Keller’s 2023 season was cut short by thoracic outlet syndrome, and he underwent TOS surgery last October.  While the procedure has led to diminished results for many pitchers in their returns to the mound, Keller’s work to date has been somewhat promising, and his numbers could improve once he gets more fully comfortable in the aftermath of such a notable surgery.

This means that Keller could certainly draw some attention on the waiver wire from any team looking for a quick influx of innings in the rotation or the bullpen.  The White Sox could work out a trade or might let Keller go on waivers entirely without any return.  If he clears waivers, Keller has enough MLB service time to reject an outright assignment and elect free agency.

Leone will return after just the minimum 15 days after dealing with some back tightness.  The veteran right-hander has struggled to a 6.75 ERA in 14 2/3 innings out of Chicago’s bullpen this season, and has already allowed 11 walks and four home runs.

White Sox Move Michael Soroka To Bullpen

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White Sox manager Pedro Grifol told members of the club’s beat today that right-handers Michael Soroka and Brad Keller will be swapping places, with Soroka moving to the bullpen and Keller taking over his rotation spot. Soroka will stay stretched out and work multiple innings. James Fegan of Sox Machine was among those to pass along the information on X.

Soroka, 26, was one of five players that the Sox acquired from Atlanta in the November trade that sent Aaron Bummer the other way. Chicago gave Soroka a rotation spot but the results have been quite poor so far. Through nine starts and 43 2/3 innings, he has a 6.39 earned run average, which is the worst mark among qualified pitchers in the majors this year.

That performance is backed up by uninspiring peripherals. His 46.9% ground ball is good but he has equal strikeout and walk totals of 24. That means he has a 12.4% rate of both punchouts and free passes, both of which are well worse than league average.

It was understandable why the Sox were willing to give Soroka a shot. They started gutting their rotation at last year’s deadline by trading away Lucas Giolito and Lance Lynn. They didn’t flip Dylan Cease until March but it was clear that he was going to be out the door at some point as well. In March, it was reported that Michael Kopech was moving to the bullpen, though private discussions about that decision must have taken place prior to that.

There were plenty of holes to fill in the rotation and Soroka had been a dominant starter in the past. With Atlanta in 2019, he made 29 starts with a 2.68 ERA, 20.3% strikeout rate, 5.8% walk rate and 51.2% ground ball rate. But he then tore his achilles tendon twice in nine months and hasn’t seemed like the same pitcher since. He didn’t pitch in the majors in 2021 or 2022 and then had a 6.40 ERA with Atlanta last year.

The Sox were undoubtedly hoping for a bounceback with a bit more remove from his injury absence. Soroka is an impending free agent, so any kind of step forward could have turned him into an interesting trade candidate this summer. But as mentioned, it hasn’t played out that way so far.

His continued struggles will get him pushed to the bullpen, though there’s a path to returning to the rotation, like Chris Flexen.. “He’s got some adjustments to make that we feel can really help him,” Grifol said, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. “We did the same thing with Flexen. He pitched out of the bullpen, he threw a couple times, threw the ball great. Now he’s in the rotation.”

Flexen allowed 13 earned runs over his first three starts this year but then got bumped to the ’pen. He then threw four scoreless innings in his first relief outing and allowed just one run over 2 1/3. Since then, he has made three starts with just three earned run allowed in 16 innings.

Soroka could follow a similar path by improving his results, though another opportunity could also arise due to factors outside of his control. Pitchers injuries are common and the Sox could need Soroka in the rotation again if one is suffered by one of their starters.

It’s also possible that midseason trades will open spots in the months to come. Keller, Flexen and Clevinger are impending free agents and should be available. Erick Fedde is a possibility to go as well, given that he is on a two-year deal and putting up good numbers. Garrett Crochet is controllable through 2026, which makes him less obvious as a trade possibility, but it’s not impossible to imagine the Sox selling high on a guy who has missed a lot of time. Even if Crochet isn’t traded, he could hit a workload limit at some point since he’s thrown so little in the past.

For now, Clevinger, Fedde, Crochet and Flexen will be joined by Keller. He’s made four appearances for the Sox this year, including one start, with a 2.84 ERA. His 16.4% strikeout rate in that small sample isn’t very strong but he’s getting grounders at a 56.1% rate.

He’s had some previous success with that kind of shape. With the Royals from 2018 to 2020, he tossed 360 1/3 innings with a 3.50 ERA, 16.8% strikeout rate and 52.1% ground ball rate. But over the next three years, his ERA was at 5.14. His strikeout and ground ball rates held fairly steady over those spans, but his walk rate jump from 9.1% in the first one to 11.5% in the second.

He underwent surgery to address thoracic outlet syndrome late last year but seems to be back to his old self so far, at least in terms of making hitters pound the ball into the ground. The Sox will roll with him for a while Soroka tries to get his house in order and retake a rotation spot down the line.

White Sox Making Changes In Rotation

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The 6-25 White Sox are shuffling up their rotation mix a bit. Manager Pedro Grifol told the Sox beat yesterday that right-hander Brad Keller would likely move into the rotation in the near future (X link via Scott Merkin of MLB.com), and he’s now listed as the probable starter Friday. Meanwhile, right-hander Mike Clevinger has made a pair of starts in Triple-A Charlotte since returning on a one-year deal and is likely to join the rotation next week, tweets Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times.

Right-hander Erick Fedde has been Chicago’s only above-average starter this season. Lefty Garrett Crochet started brilliantly but has been hit hard of late, ballooning his ERA to just under 6.00. Michael Soroka, Jonathan Cannon, Chris Flexen and Nick Nastrini have all made multiple starts but all came into today with an ERA north of 6.00. Flexen allowed just two earned runs over five innings today, lowering his ERA to 4.85. The Sox have combined for a 5.52 ERA out of the rotation, ranking 29th in the big leagues — ahead of only the Rockies. White Sox starters have averaged an MLB-worst 1.61 homers per nine frames.

Keller, 28, is a longtime division foe for the Sox, having spent his entire big league career prior to this season with the Royals. From 2018-20, Keller emerged as a steadying presence for Kansas City, going from a Rule 5 long reliever to a core member of the rotation. He pitched 360 1/3 frames of 3.50 ERA ball during that stretch, but his career went the opposite direction in three subsequent seasons.

From 2021-23, Keller was tagged for a 5.14 ERA as his command took a noticeable turn for the worse. He was limited to just 45 1/3 innings in 2023, logging a 4.57 ERA but issuing an alarming 45 walks along the way. Keller’s season ended early due to thoracic outlet symptoms. He inked a minor league deal with the ChiSox during the offseason and has made one scoreless relief appearance (1 2/3 innings) in addition to three starts at the Triple-A level, where he turned in a 4.50 ERA in 16 innings and piled up grounders at a huge 62.5% clip.

Clevinger will be entering his second season with the Sox. He started 24 games for the South Siders last year and notched a 3.77 ERA with a 20% strikeout rate, 7.3% walk rate and 30.9% ground-ball rate. Despite a solid season on the mound, Clevinger lingered in free agency and ultimately settled on a one-year, $3MM deal to return to the White Sox. He signed late enough that he required the current Triple-A tune-up before joining the big league rotation.

It’s not immediately clear who’ll lose their spot. Nastrini and Cannon have both already been optioned to Triple-A. Soroka and Flexen are veteran stopgaps who are only signed for the current season. Flexen has struggled mightily in the rotation and fared better in a pair of bullpen appearances, but as mentioned, he had a nice performance in today’s series finale against the Twins. Soroka has completed five innings in just three of his seven starts. Crochet’s workload figures to be monitored after he pitched just 24 1/3 frames last year in his return from 2022 Tommy John surgery. He’s never topped 54 1/3 innings in a professional season since being selected in the first round of the 2020 draft.

White Sox Select Brad Keller, Designate Deivi Garcia For Assignment

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The White Sox announced a series of roster moves this morning, highlighted by the club selecting the contract of veteran right-hander Brad Keller. Right-hander Deivi Garcia was designated for assignment to make room for Keller on the 40-man and active rosters. Additionally, Chicago announced that right-hander Jonathan Cannon had been optioned to Triple-A Charlotte. Right-hander Prelander Berroa was recalled to take Cannon’s place on the active roster.

The news leaves Keller poised to make his White Sox debut in the coming days as he likely steps into the rotation in Cannon’s stead. The 28-year-old signed a minor league deal with Chicago in early March after lingering on the free agent market throughout the offseason following a difficult 2023 campaign. Keller was limited to just 45 1/3 innings of 4.57 ERA baseball last year due to shoulder surgery and a thoracic outlet syndrome diagnosis, which MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand noted last month necessitated its own surgery back in October.

Surgery to correct TOS has rarely seen players return to the majors and enjoy success, with Stephen Strasburg and Chris Archer among the arms who have seen their careers impacted by the procedure in recent years. One example of a player who has returned effectively is Arizona right-hander Merrill Kelly, who stands as a prime example of the fact that not all types of TOS have the same long-term outlook. It’s not clear which type of TOS Keller went under the knife due to, though his decent 4.50 ERA in 16 innings of work at the Triple-A level across three starts this season gives reason for optimism that he could return to form as a viable back-of-the-rotation option in the majors.

Making room for Keller on the 40-man roster is Garcia, who will celebrate his 25th birthday next month. The right-hander was once a top prospect in the Yankees’ farm system and made his big league debut at just 21 years old during the shortened 2020 season, which saw him post a 4.98 ERA and 4.15 FIP across six starts in New York. Unfortunately, Garcia then struggled badly in the minor leagues over the next two seasons, with ERAs north of 6.80 in both campaigns. Garcia’s time with the Yankees came to a close in 2023, when he was designated for assignment after struggling through two relief appearances in the majors.

The White Sox took a chance on Garcia and claimed him off waivers from New York before installing him in the club’s bullpen. While he posted a strong 2.04 ERA in six appearances with the club down the stretch last year, Garcia walked more batters than he struck out and posted an ugly 6.04 FIP during that same timeframe. While Chicago retained Garcia on its roster through the offseason, the results began to match the peripherals in 2024 as the right-hander surrendered 16 runs (11 earned) in just 14 innings while walking 16.2% of batters faced.

Those major struggles were evidently enough for the White Sox to pull the plug on Garcia, who they’ll now have one week to either work out a trade for or attempt to pass through waivers. If they’re successful in the latter, they’ll have the opportunity to outright the youngster to the minor leagues where he can serve as non-roster depth going forward.

Also departing the club’s active roster is Cannon, a 23-year-old rookie who has made three starts in the majors for the White Sox so far this year. That first taste of big league action hasn’t gone particularly well for the youngster, as he’s posted a brutal 7.24 ERA in 13 2/3 innings of work despite a solid 4.04 FIP. Cannon figures to return to the Triple-A rotation and wait for his next opportunity in the majors.

In the meantime, his roster spot will go to Berroa, who figures to replace Garcia in the club’s bullpen. The 24-year-old right-hander was acquired from the Mariners in the deal that sent Gregory Santos to Seattle back in February and has just 1 2/3 big league innings under his belt to this point in his career. He’s struggled mightily to this point at the Triple-A level this season, with an 8.74 ERA across 11 appearances. Nonetheless, he’ll look to contribute to the White Sox bullpen during the middle innings alongside the likes of Jordan Leasure and Dominic Leone.

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