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Sean Burke

White Sox Option Sean Burke

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The White Sox announced today that right-hander Sean Burke has been optioned to Triple-A Charlotte. Fellow righty Owen White has been recalled in a corresponding move. Per Scott Merkin of MLB.com, left-hander Martín Pérez will start Wednesday’s game.

Burke came into this season with just 19 big league innings under his belt. He broke camp with a job in the season-opening rotation and has held it until today. His results have generally been decent. He has made 24 appearances. Only 20 of those were technically starts, as he pitched behind an opener four times. He has logged 117 2/3 innings with a 4.28 earned run average. His 21.1% strikeout rate is just barely below league average for a starter this year. His 10.3% walk rate is more than two ticks worse than par.

Despite his generally cromulent performance, there are a few reasons the Sox are probably sending him down. Monitoring his workload is likely one of them. His highest innings total as a minor leaguer was 108, back in 2022. Shoulder troubles limited him to just 36 2/3 innings in 2023. Last year, between the majors and minors, he got to 90 2/3.

Here in 2025, he’s already shot past his personal high. It’s possible the Sox have already been dialing things back for him, as they haven’t let him go longer than five innings since July 2nd. He didn’t get through four innings in his most recent two outings. Optioning him down to the minors makes it easier to continue down that path.

On top of that, the Sox also recently welcomed Pérez back from the injured list. They also selected Yoendrys Gómez to the roster after getting him stretched out in the minors. Giving rotation spots to those two led to Jonathan Cannon and now Burke getting optioned out.

It also might not be a total coincidence that Burke is just shy of getting to one year of service time. He came into this season with 20 service days. By my count, he has added 144 days to that so far in 2025, bringing him to 164. A year rolls over at 172, so Burke is eight days away from that line.

It’s possible he could come back up as a September call-up and get over the one-year marker. If he does, then he would have a path to reaching six years of service and free agency after 2030. If not, the Sox will add an extra year of club control for themselves, as he wouldn’t be able to reach free agency until after 2031.

Photo courtesy of Denny Medley, Imagn Images

Sean Burke To Open Season In White Sox’s Rotation

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White Sox manager Will Venable informed the beat this afternoon that rookie righty Sean Burke will be in the season-opening rotation (relayed by Scott Merkin of MLB.com). The former third-round pick joins Martín Pérez, Davis Martin and Jonathan Cannon as locks for the Opening Day starting staff.

Chicago optioned lefty Jared Shuster, who had entered camp as a candidate for a rotation spot. The former first-round pick worked mostly in long relief last season but was building back up as a starter this spring. Venable suggested Shuster may move back to the bullpen in Triple-A (link via Daryl Van Schouwen of The Chicago Sun-Times). The Wake Forest product allowed nine runs in seven innings.

Pérez, who signed a $5MM free agent deal, has by far the most experience of anyone in Chicago’s rotation. Cannon, who worked to a 4.49 ERA over 124 1/3 frames, is the only returning pitcher who reached even 75 MLB innings last season. Martin returned from Tommy John surgery in the second half. He allowed 4.32 earned runs per nine over 50 innings down the stretch.

That trio entered camp with rotation spots solidified. It was more in question whether Burke would break camp. The Sox called him up midway through September. He impressed over four appearances, working to a 1.42 ERA with 22 strikeouts in 19 innings. The Maryland product has tossed five innings of three-run ball with three strikeouts and walks apiece this spring. Burke fanned 31% of batters faced over 16 Triple-A starts last season. He also walked 13% of opponents, raising questions about whether he’ll have the necessary command to stick as a starter, but the Sox will see how his stuff plays against MLB hitters.

Venable hasn’t committed to a fifth starter. With Shuster out of consideration, that job will probably fall to one of Bryse Wilson or Shane Smith. Wilson is out of options and has plenty of experience working in long relief. He turned in a 4.04 ERA over 103 2/3 frames for Milwaukee last season; Chicago signed him to a $1.05MM deal after the Brewers non-tendered him. Smith is a Rule 5 pick out of the Milwaukee system. The 6’4″ righty started 16 of 27 Double-A appearances. He allowed 3.08 earned runs per nine with a near-30% strikeout rate over 87 2/3 innings.

Smith has had a decent start to camp. He has fanned nine hitters over 6 2/3 frames, allowing four runs. Chicago shouldn’t have an issue keeping him on the MLB roster to gain his long-term contractual rights. Most Rule 5 pitchers work in low-leverage relief, at least to begin the season. An Opening Day rotation assignment would be rare, but that’s a reflection of the Sox’s lack of starting pitching depth. Non-roster invitee Justin Dunn could also be an option. He has managed eight innings of one-run ball this spring, but he only has two strikeouts against four walks.

White Sox Select Sean Burke

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The White Sox announced Tuesday that they’ve selected the contract of righty Sean Burke from Triple-A Charlotte. Fellow right-hander Nick Nastrini was optioned to Charlotte in a corresponding move. The Sox already had multiple vacancies on the 40-man roster to accommodate Burke’s promotion.

Burke, 24, was Chicago’s third-round pick back in 2021 and has spent the season in the Charlotte rotation, making 16 starts and pitching to a 4.62 ERA with a weighty 31% strikeout rate but an ugly 13% walk rate. The 6’6″ righty was a two-sport star in high school, also shining as a basketball player, and has drawn praise for both his athleticism and a lively heater that sits mid-90s and reaches 97 mph. He complements the offering with a curveball, slider and changeup.

Baseball America ranked Burke 14th among Sox prospects entering the season but has since dropped him off their list. He’s currently their No. 29 prospect at MLB.com and No. 23 at FanGraphs. Each of Burke’s secondary offerings has drawn average or better ratings, but his entire arsenal is undercut by a lack of command.

Splitting time between two sports in high school, missing a year of his NCAA career at Maryland due to Tommy John surgery, and missing much of the 2023 campaign due to shoulder troubles have all cut into some potential development time for Burke. Optimists might argue his command could yet realistically be expected to improve as a result of this, but the pair of arm injuries is also a clear concern.

To his credit, Burke has indeed cut back on his walk rate, going from 16.3% in Triple-A last year to 13% this year. He’s improved particularly as of late, logging a 3.66 ERA, 37.4% strikeout rate and 8.3% walk rate across his past seven starts. It’s clear there’s still work to be done on his command, but he’s trending in the right direction the further he distances himself from last year’s shoulder woes.

Now, Burke will be the next man up for what could be a historically poor White Sox season. There’s no immediate spot in the rotation, with Jonathan Cannon slated to start tonight and Davis Martin going tomorrow, followed by a Thursday off-day. However, the Sox used four relievers to cover 6 1/3 innings yesterday, including 3 1/3 from Nastrini. He wouldn’t have been available to pitch after that lengthy relief appearance, so he’ll head to Triple-A while the South Siders summon a fresh arm to potentially provide length out of the ’pen. It’s conceivable that Burke could get a start or two down the stretch, particularly if he doesn’t pitch today or tomorrow.

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