White Sox Showing Interest In Clay Holmes
The White Sox have maintained a one-game lead over the Guardians for first place in the AL Central, and it looking increasingly likely that the Sox will look to build on their success by adding some help at the deadline. To this end, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale writes that Mets starter Clay Holmes is on Chicago’s radar, as White Sox special assistant Nick Hostetler will “keep tabs” on Holmes during his minor league rehab assignment.
That rehab assignment has officially yet to get underway, as Holmes’ planned outing with high-A Brooklyn was canceled due to poor weather. According to MLB.com’s Anthony DiComo, multiple scouts and evaluators from rival teams in attendance to see Holmes pitch, but Holmes instead threw around 45 pitches during a live bullpen session that was naturally limited to just Mets personnel.
Holmes’ fibula was fractured back on May 15 when the Yankees’ Spencer Jones drilled a line drive off Holmes’ right leg. The right-hander was able to avoid surgery, and is on track to meet the initial timeline of a return at some point in August, though when exactly Holmes will be ready is a major question looming over the Mets’ trade deadline plans. Saturday’s canceled game throws another delay into the works, and it decreases the chance that Holmes will be activated from the 60-day IL before the August 3 deadline.
This wouldn’t necessarily prevent a trade, of course, as teams may feel okay with taking the plunge on an injured Holmes if they like what they see in his rehab outings. DiComo cited the example of last summer’s trade that sent Shane Bieber from the Guardians to the Blue Jays, as Cleveland was able to land a notable pitching prospect (Khal Stephen) even though Bieber hadn’t pitched since April 2024 due to a Tommy John surgery.
The Mets should therefore be able to acquire some kind of interesting trade return, if they choose to move Holmes at all. The righty is in the second season of his three-year, $38MM contract, but he is expected to opt out of the final year of that deal and test free agency even though he has spent over two months on the IL. This effectively makes Holmes a rental player, which will limit what other teams will offer New York in trade talks. However, Holmes has said that he likes playing in Queens and is interested in discussing an extension, so the Mets are expected to explore that possibility while also fielding trade offers.
Eyebrows were raised when the Mets signed Holmes with the plan of converting him to starting pitching, but the experiment ended up being a success. Holmes posted a 3.53 ERA over 165 2/3 innings in 2025 and then a 2.39 ERA in his first 52 2/3 innings of 2026 before Jones’ fateful comebacker. Holmes’ strikeout numbers have sharply dropped as a starter, but he has continued to keep the ball on the ground (55.8% grounder rate in 2025-26) and he has allowed just 17 home runs in his time in New York.
A healthy Holmes would boost the rotation of any contender, including the upstart White Sox. Davis Martin and Sean Burke have both pitched well at the front of the rotation, while the results have been a little more mixed for Anthony Kay, Erick Fedde, and rookie Noah Schultz. The Sox are thin on experience and depth when it comes to their starting options, so the rotation and bullpen figure to be Chicago’s top target areas as the deadline approaches.
Chicago GM Chris Getz said back in early June that the team’s focus remains on the big picture in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year, but “we know where we are in the standings, both within the division and Wild Card, and we’re monitoring it….if there’s chances to really add to this group, we’re going to do that.” Since the Sox have kept on winning since Getz made those statements over six weeks ago, it would seem like the front office will indeed look to make some upgrades, even if a deadline buying splurge isn’t happening.
The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal recently wrote that the White Sox “are willing to be relatively aggressive on players under club control, but are not inclined to overpay for rentals, according to a person briefed on their plans.” Holmes doesn’t technically fit this model given the likelihood that he’ll trigger his opt-out clause, which could limit Chicago’s ability or desire to meet the Mets’ asking price. With many teams involved and the continued uncertainty over his health situation, other pitchers may be likelier trade targets for Chicago than Holmes, but that shouldn’t stop the Sox from doing their due diligence.
MLBTR Podcast: JJ Wetherholt’s Extension, The Pirates Without Griffin, And Exciting Times For The White Sox And Marlins
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 Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Cardinals signing JJ Wetherholt to an eight-year extension (2:50)
- The Pirates losing Konnor Griffin for several weeks and then trading for Jacob Gonzalez and Brandon Eisert (11:00)
- The White Sox acquiring prospect Jaden Woods and the 34th pick in the draft in that trade, then selecting Landon Thome with that pick after taking Roch Cholowsky first overall (29:40)
- The Marlins reportedly planning to buy at the deadline and keep Sandy Alcantara (39:35)
- The Athletics losing Nick Kurtz and Zack Gelof to the injured list as they fall in the standings (51:00)
Check out our past episodes!
- Trade Deadline Questions About The Royals, Reds, Cardinals, Padres And More! – listen here
- The Mets In Flux, The Angels Fire Their GM, And Guardians’ Catchers – listen here
- The D-Backs Battle Injuries, Boston’s Trade Chips, And More! – 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 Jeff Curry, Imagn Images
White Sox, Roch Cholowsky Agree To Record Draft Bonus
July 13: Cholowsky will sign for a record $10.35MM bonus, reports Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline.
July 11: The White Sox have taken UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky with the first overall pick of the 2026 draft. MLB Pipeline’s Jim Callis reported the news about 20 minutes before the pick was officially announced, and The Athletic’s Keith Law wrote earlier today that the Sox seemed to be leaning towards Cholowsky.
This is the third time the White Sox have ever held the first overall pick, following their selections of Harold Baines in 1977 and Danny Goodwin in 1971. Cholowsky is also the second UCLA product to go first overall, following Gerrit Cole to the Pirates in the 2011 draft.
Cholowsky has been considered the favorite to go 1-1 for quite some time, though there was some late speculation that the White Sox could pivot to another top prospect like high school shortstop Grady Emerson (who the Rays took second overall) or Georgia Tech catcher Vahn Lackey (who went third to the Twins). The Sox ended up making the chalk pick, though USA Today’s Bob Nightengale writes that Cholowsky has agreed to sign for less than the $11,350,600 slot price attached to the first overall selection. These savings could free up more money within Chicago’s $20,489,500 draft pool, and allow the White Sox to pursue some players who are seeking above-slot money to forego college commitments.
Despite finishing the 2024 season with a modern-record 121 losses, Chicago selected only tenth overall in 2025 — the rules prohibit all teams from getting a lottery pick in three straight seasons, plus the White Sox and other teams don’t receive revenue-sharing funds cannot receive a lottery pick in consecutive seasons. These same rules kept the 119-loss Rockies out of last December’s process, leaving the White Sox (who lost 102 in 2025) with the best odds of winning the draft lottery, at 27.73%.
The ping pong balls fell in the Southsiders’ favor, so the White Sox can now add Cholowsky to the core of young talent they’ve already accumulated via draft picks, international signings, and trades. What was expected to be a lengthy rebuild has surprisingly already started to show results, as Chicago sits atop the AL Central with a 48-45 record. Cholowsky already has three years of college ball under his belt and may not need too much time in the minors, so when he does arrive (perhaps as early as 2027), he could be joining a White Sox club that may be a full-fledged contender.
It should be noted that Chicago’s farm system already includes a pretty deep crop of infield prospects, plus Colson Montgomery (a first-rounder himself in 2021) has established himself as a solid regular over parts of two big league seasons. Teams virtually always draft the best player available rather than focusing on a specific positional need, plus shortstops can and usually are moved around the diamond since they’re athletic enough to handle multiple positions. The Sox can take their time in sifting through their minor league options, but with Montgomery in the majors and Cholowsky on the horizon, it could make the White Sox slightly more open to trading a lesser infield prospect for some win-now help…perhaps as early as the August 3 trade deadline.
Baseball America, ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, and The Athletic’s Keith Law all ranked Cholowsky as the top prospect of the 2026 draft class, with MLB Pipeline placing him second (behind Emerson) and Fangraphs placing him third (behind Lackey and Emerson). The pundits all agree that Cholowsky has the glovework to easily stick and thrive at shortstop, with his strong throwing arm drawing particular praise amongst his defensive tools. At the plate, Cholowsky makes strong contact and a lot of it, and 20-homer production may be his floor depending on how well his raw power translates and develops against big league pitching.
White Sox Trade Jacob Gonzalez, Brandon Eisert To Pirates
The White Sox are sending infielder Jacob Gonzalez and reliever Brandon Eisert to the Pirates for lefty Jaden Woods and the No. 34 pick in the draft, reports Jeff Passan of ESPN. Pittsburgh will part with a minor league arm and its Competitive Balance Round pick to land big-league reinforcements. Both teams have announced the trade.
There was a report in late June that the Pirates were open to moving their CBR-A selection as well as players in their minor league system. They’ve now done both in one deal. Gonzalez debuted this season with the White Sox. He provided near league-average production while playing mostly first base, but was bumped off the roster when Munetaka Murakami returned Friday. Eisert has been a regular in Chicago’s bullpen since last season. He’s scuffled to a 5.93 ERA in 2026.
The trade addresses two of Pittsburgh’s clearest needs. The club lost starting shortstop Konnor Griffin for a couple of months due to a finger injury. The absence of Griffin has pressed utilityman Jared Triolo into a full-time role. Gonzalez isn’t a sure thing, but he possesses much more offensive upside than the glove-first Triolo. He played mostly shortstop at Triple-A this year. The Pirates’ bullpen has the fifth-worst ERA since the start of June. Eisert has missed bats at a career-best 27.4% clip while trimming his walk rate to 6.8%.
“We believe in this team, and we discussed multiple ways to use the compensation pick to strengthen it,” Pirates general manager Ben Cherington said in a press release. “Jacob Gonzalez can complement Nick Gonzales and Jared Triolo on the left side of the infield in Konnor Griffin’s absence. He’s also a versatile, left-handed hitter who has taken significant steps this season, and who we believe in long-term.”
Chicago took Gonzalez with the 15th overall pick in the 2023 draft. He had generally underperformed in the minors until breaking out this season. The 24-year-old posted a massive 166 wRC+ in 52 games at Triple-A. Gonzalez slugged 19 home runs and stole eight bases before his call-up. He came into the year with 17 home runs across three pro seasons.
Murakami’s hamstring injury gave Gonzalez a chance to get regular reps at first base with the White Sox. He slashed .244/.323/.360 over 97 plate appearances. Gonzalez recorded 2 Defensive Runs Saved in 29 games at first base. He played one inning at third base and didn’t see any playing time up the middle.
Eisert sits below 90 mph with the four-seamer, but he has a four-pitch mix and gets plenty of extension (95th percentile). His slider and changeup both have whiff rates above 32% this season. Eisert is unlikely to usurp high-leverage southpaws Gregory Soto and Mason Montgomery, but he gives manager Don Kelly another option from the left side.
The White Sox have the first pick in Saturday’s draft. They now have another selection at the end of the first round. The Competitive Balance picks are the only ones that can be traded. The league awards them to 15 teams using a formula that considers revenue, record, and market size. Trading for the 34th pick increases Chicago’s draft bonus pool to around $20.5MM, per Passan.
Woods was taken in the seventh round of the 2023 draft. He’s operated almost exclusively as a reliever during his minor league career. The 24-year-old has had some big strikeout seasons, but control has been a problem at times. Woods reached Triple-A for the first time this year. He’s struggled to a 9.31 ERA over 10 appearances, though it’s come with a solid 28.3% strikeout rate.
Photo courtesy of Lexi Thompson and Scott Galvin, Imagn Images
White Sox To Activate Munetaka Murakami
July 10: The Sox have officially announced Murakami’s reinstatement. Gonzalez has been optioned as the corresponding move.
July 9: The White Sox’ lineup will get a major boost tomorrow. Manager Will Venable told reporters (including Scott Merkin of MLB.com) that Munetaka Murakami will be activated from the 10-day injured list. He’ll make his return to the lineup for a home series against the Athletics to close the season’s first half.
It’ll come at a welcome time, as the White Sox were swept by Boston this week. The Red Sox’ pitching staff held Chicago to a total of two runs over that three-game stretch. Chicago has remarkably yet to lose more than three games in a row all season, a streak they’ll hope to maintain by taking tomorrow’s opener.
Murakami missed six weeks after suffering a Grade 2 strain of his right hamstring attempting to beat out an infield hit at the end of May. He was tied for second in the majors with 20 homers at the time. He’s still in the top 15 despite the extended absence. Murakami had started his MLB career with a fantastic .240/.378/.560 line through 246 plate appearances — more than hitting for sufficient power and drawing enough walks to overcome the questions about his contact skills.
The White Sox have had one of the least productive first base groups in the majors since Murakami went down. They’ve gotten a .227/.312/.355 slash line from the position dating back to June 1, putting them in the bottom five of the league in OPS. That’s in part because Miguel Vargas hasn’t hit in 39 plate appearances as a first baseman while maintaining his breakout offensive pace when he’s starting at third base. That’s nothing more than a statistical oddity, but Murakami should provide a boost over the roughly average offense they’ve gotten from rookie Jacob Gonzalez. The former first-round pick has a .244/.323/.360 slash with a couple home runs in his first 30 MLB games.
Gonzalez can move around the infield but won’t have a path to regular playing time behind Murakami, Vargas, Chase Meidroth and Colson Montgomery. If the Sox want to keep him around as a left-handed bat off the bench, fifth outfielder Junior Perez would be the other logical candidate to option to Triple-A. There’s no need for a 40-man roster transaction.
Despite the sweep, the White Sox are percentage points ahead of the Guardians for the lead in the AL Central. Minnesota sits two games back and the streaking Tigers have pulled within five games.
Dustin Harris Opts Out Of White Sox Deal
Dustin Harris opted out of a minor league deal with the White Sox, reports Robert Murray of FanSided. He’s a free agent because Chicago granted him his release in lieu of adding him to the MLB roster.
Harris has spent the past couple months at Triple-A Charlotte after signing a minor league deal in May. It was his second stint in the Chicago organization. Harris signed an offseason non-roster contract with the Sox and was called up in early April. They lost him on waivers to the Astros but brought him back when Houston dropped him a few weeks later.
The lefty-hitting outfielder has had a strong year in Triple-A, batting .312/.396/.490 with six homers across 183 plate appearances. Harris has an impressive .281/.370/.429 showing in nearly 1500 trips to the dish over four seasons at the top minor league level. He has only gotten sporadic looks against MLB pitching, hitting .225 with a couple home runs in 38 games. Harris had spent the first couple seasons with the Rangers before logging a combined 17 games between Chicago and Houston this year.
Harris is out of minor league options, a big reason he was pushed off the 40-man roster in both Chicago and Houston. The 26-year-old (27 next week) has always had a solid reputation for his pure hitting ability, but he’s stretched in center field and doesn’t have the plus power typically associated with a corner. He should quickly find another minor league opportunity given his Triple-A numbers.
White Sox, Rangers Agree To Minor League Trade
The White Sox and Rangers agreed to a one-for-one trade of minor leaguers, as first reported by Brooke Fletcher of Chicago Sports Network. Chicago sends Triple-A reliever Ben Peoples to Texas in exchange for High-A catcher Ben Hartl. Neither player has appeared in MLB, nor do they occupy spots on the 40-man roster.
Peoples, 25, was one of three players whom the Sox acquired from the Rays last summer in the Adrian Houser trade. Infielder Curtis Mead headlined that deal, but the former top prospect continued to struggle late last season. The Sox pushed Mead off the roster out of camp and traded him to the Nationals, where he has hit his way to the starting third base job.
A 6’1″ righty, Peoples was a 22nd-round pick out of high school in 2019. He spent a few seasons as a starter but has worked fully in relief over the past two years. Peoples has a 2.92 earned run average across parts of two seasons in Triple-A. That includes a 2.39 mark with an excellent 30% strikeout rate this season, but Peoples has walked 14% of opponents. He has a standard fastball-slider middle relief profile, sitting 96 mph with the heater.
The lackluster command has been an issue throughout his career. James Fegan of FanGraphs slotted Peoples 33rd in the Sox farm system over the offseason, though he went unselected in last winter’s Rule 5 draft. Peoples will qualify for minor league free agency this offseason if Texas doesn’t add him to the 40-man roster. He has reeled off 11 1/3 frames of three-run ball with 13 strikeouts in Triple-A this month and could get a look for a Texas bullpen that has a 4.64 ERA in June.
Hartl, an Illinois native, is a 23-year-old whom Texas drafted in the 14th round in 2024. A University of Kansas product, he’s a right-handed hitter and has a .218/.369/.317 line with three home runs across 130 plate appearances. He has thrown out 12 of 38 attempted basestealers. Hartl has never appeared among Baseball America’s or FanGraphs’ writeup of the Texas farm system. Fletcher notes that he overlapped with Sox rookie left fielder Sam Antonacci at Heartland Community College in 2023 before playing his final collegiate season with the Jayhawks.
MLBTR Podcast: The D-Backs Battle Injuries, Boston’s Trade Chips, And More!
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 Steve Adams of MLB Trade Rumors to discuss…
- The Diamondbacks battling recent injuries to Ryne Nelson, Michael Soroka, Jordan Lawlar and A.J. Puk (1:45)
- The Red Sox being near the bottom of the American League with Sonny Gray open to discussing his no-trade clause (12:55)
Plus, we answer your questions, including…
- Should the Braves go after Sonny Gray of the Red Sox and what would a trade look like? (28:55)
- Is Aroldis Chapman of the Red Sox a realistic target for the Guardians? (34:25)
- Why should the Braves give up good prospects to get Tarik Skubal from the Tigers when he’s just going to sign elsewhere? (39:55)
- Would the Marlins entertain offers on Max Meyer and what would it take to get him? Could the White Sox get him with a package headlined by Caleb Bonemer? (49:40)
- How do we get MLB and the MLBPA to consider expansion? (56:45)
Check out our past episodes!
- The Giants Prepare To Sell, Milwaukee’s Extension Strategy, And The Busy AL Central – listen here
- A Free Agent Power Rankings Update And The Yankees Without Aaron Judge – listen here
- The CBA Standoff Begins – 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 Mark J. Rebilas, Imagn Images
White Sox Activate Kyle Teel From 60-Day IL
After an absence of nearly three months, the White Sox have their starting catcher back in the mix. Chicago announced Monday that Kyle Teel has been reinstated from the 60-day injured list. He’ll fill the vacant spot on the South Siders’ 40-man roster. Fellow catcher and former top prospect Edgar Quero has been optioned to Triple-A Charlotte to open a spot on the active roster.
Teel has been out since suffering a Grade 2 hamstring strain during the World Baseball Classic. He was originally slated to miss four to six weeks with that injury, but during a rehab game in mid-May, the 24-year-old suffered a sprained LCL in his right knee, shutting him down for another three to six weeks. He’s managed to return on the shorter end of that timeline and is now in line to finally make his season debut tonight.
The White Sox added Teel as one of the headliners in the 2024-25 offseason trade sending Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox. Assuming gets the start tonight, one-third of the ChiSox’ lineup will have been acquired via that trade. Second baseman Chase Meidroth and outfielder Braden Montgomery both came to Chicago from Boston as part of that Crochet blockbuster. The former has seized they everyday job at second base, while Montgomery is still just getting his feet wet in the majors and hoping to cement his place in the everyday lineup as well.
Teel and the now-optioned Quero were both touted as top-100 prospects prior to their respective big league debuts, but Teel made a stronger impression last year, hitting .273/.375/.411 with eight homers in 297 plate appearances as a rookie. He hit .387/.441/.613 in eight Triple-A rehab games and looks plenty ready to pick up where he left off.
Meanwhile, Quero has seen his stock continue to dip. Last year’s .268/.333/.365 slash was better than that of the average catcher, but Quero paired it with some of the game’s worst defensive grades at his position. His defense this year still grades out as below-average (albeit not quite to last year’s extent), and Quero has now seen his offensive production crater. In 172 plate appearances, he posted a miserable .187/.253/.233 slash with only three extra-base hits (two homers, one double). He’s since lost time to DFA pickup Drew Romo, who isn’t hitting either but is at least playing sound defense.
White Sox catchers have been far and away the least-productive in Major League Baseball this season. Quero, Romo and Reese McGuire have taken the entirety of the team’s playing time behind the dish and combined to bat .167/.242/.268. That batting average and on-base percentage rank last in the majors. White Sox catchers lead Yankees catchers by the literal narrowest of margins (.268 to .267), sparing them from ranking dead last in all three slash stats. Unsurprisingly, the White Sox’ collective 42 wRC+ from their backstops is the worst in baseball.
Teel will return to help the Sox fill perhaps their greatest need at the moment, and he’ll return to a South Side club that’s right the thick of the playoff hunt in the American League. The Sox just dropped three straight to a reeling Tigers team that’s trying to recover from a historically bad performance in May, but Chicago is still two games over .500 at 39-37, placing them second place in the American League Central and giving them possession of the second Wild Card spot in the Junior Circuit. Teel’s return is particularly well-timed in that it comes just as the Sox prepare to host the division-leading Guardians for a three-game set.
White Sox Place Everson Pereira On Injured List, Recall Junior Perez For MLB Debut
The White Sox on Thursday placed outfielder Everson Pereira on the 7-day injured list due to concussion symptoms. Fellow outfielder Junior Perez has been recalled from Triple-A Charlotte in his place. Perez will be making his MLB debut the first time he steps onto the field.
Pereira, 25, only just returned from a six-week absence due to a pectoral strain. He took six hitless plate appearances between IL stints, dropping his season line to .232/.299/.420 in 77 trips to the plate. Pereira suffered his injury when he crashed into the center field wall while making an outstanding catch against Yankees slugger Ben Rice (video link). He’ll be sidelined for at least the next week.
The 24-year-old Perez was only acquired from the A’s back in mid-May. Chicago sent minor league lefty Jackson Nove back to the Athletics to acquire Perez, who’d previously been designated for assignment. Perez has hit .230/.326/.432 in 80 Triple-A plate appearances since landing in the ChiSox organization. He’s popped a pair of homers and swiped five bags while fanning at an alarming 37.9% clip.
Perez was only selected to the 40-man roster back in November. The A’s were understandably unwilling to risk letting him go unprotected ahead of the Rule 5 Draft after he’d slashed .231/.348/.478 with 26 homers, 27 steals and a 14.8% walk rate between Double-A and Triple-A in 2025. His production this season hasn’t kept up; between the two organizations, he’s hitting .217/.292/.401 with a 35% strikeout rate.
Perez is a right-handed hitter with plus speed and above-average power. He’s capable of playing all three outfield spots and has spent the bulk of his minor league tenure in center field, where scouting reports peg him as serviceable. There are clear hit tool concerns with him — he also fanned at a 28% clip in 2025 — but the power/speed/defense combination and a full slate of minor league options held appeal for the White Sox. The South Siders now have Pereira, Austin Hays, Brooks Baldwin and Tanner Murray on the injured list, which has helped to open a path for Perez to get his first major league look.