PREAMBLE
I haven't done an OPP since before the 2023 season when there was a glimmer of hope still. Finally now, after three consecutive hundred loss seasons, I feel that hope again and the excitement it brings. As far as my mindset/philosophy/strategy goes, I have a couple goals. The first is giving the young guys room to continue improving and the second is finding undervalued players on the market and seeing if that potential can be tapped.
COACHING STAFF
- Hitting coach: [Left blank]
- Pitching coach: [Left blank]
I didn't name anybody because it's so hard to pinpoint which coach on staff contributed what or helped a given player improve. I'll trust in the FO and Will Venable to choose.
ARBITRATION-ELIGIBLE PLAYERS
- Mike Tauchman: Tender
- Steven Wilson: Tender
- Derek Hill: Non-tender
Tauchman is an easy tender since he's pretty cheap and provides solid value in right field. Wilson might be controversial because he had a bad second half, but he's shown that he can get through a full season and provide innings for a bullpen when needed, while occasionally going on a hot stretch. It also helps that he has three options remaining.
I'm choosing to non-tender Derek Hill simply because it will be a crowded outfield and I want to prioritize other players with more potential than the light hitting Hill.
CLUB OPTIONS
- Luis Robert Jr.: Exercise $20 million option
- Martín Perez: Buy out for $1.5 million
With all the lip service paid to Robert, it's practically a done deal that he'll be re-upped for 2026. While I liked Martin Perez when he pitched, he didn't pitch nearly enough. He injured his elbow in April and his shoulder in September. They need a new veteran innings eater in 2026, but I don't have faith in Perez's health to bring him back.
FREE AGENTS
No. 1: Chris Paddack (1 year, $11 million).
*I need to say that I locked this in before James Fegan put this in his article.*
As I mentioned before when I declined Martin Perez's option, we need an innings eater. Paddack pitched 158 innings in 2025. To put that in perspective, Shane Smith led the Sox with 146.1 IP. You might look him up now and yell at me that he had a 5.35 ERA, but that doesn't really bother me for a few reasons. First, he still provided innings, something this young staff needs. Second, his expected stats showed a slightly better player than his ERA suggests: his FIP was 5.03 and his xFIP was a more respectable 4.69. Across 30 starts using his xFIP, that is almost 6 innings an appearance with slightly more than three earned runs given up. Now, to the contract. Spotrac puts his value at $10.5 million a year, but somehow says he deserves a four year deal. His three best comps are Matt Boyd, Tyler Mahle, and Zach Eflin. The comparisons don't exactly hold water though; their average ERA in the two years preceding free agency was under 4, while Paddack's is 5.13. Additionally, only Boyd has performed well on his new contract. Mahle pitched less than a hundred innings on his two year deal and Eflin was limited to 71 IP this year with an ERA almost at six. All in all, I don't see the market giving him multiple years in this climate, especially since he logged 22.1, 5, and 88.1 IP in the three years before 2025. With a guarantee of $11 million and a spot in the rotation, Paddack will sign up with Chicago to be our new veteran anchor.
No. 2: Andrew Kittredge (1 year, $10 million with a club option for $10 million and a $1 million buy-out).
First, let's get the obvious out of the way: the Cubs need to decline his $9 million option. I think they will since relievers Brad Keller, Caleb Thielbar, and Drew Pomeranz are also free agents of theirs and all performed better. If the Cubs hand out big money to any of them, my bet is on Keller, who is the youngest of the bunch. Also, Kittredge was a deadline acquisition, so it's not originally their club option in play, leading me to believe he's not part of their long term plans. Why would I sign Kittredge if the Cubs pass up on him? Glad you asked! He had a very respectable 3.40 ERA with 64 strikeouts in 53 innings, but that's just the tip of the iceberg. If we check out his expected stats, he was even better. His xERA was 2.76 while his FIP and xFIP were 3.06 and 2.62, respectively. Factoring those in, getting him at the price point outlined above is a steal. The Sox need a dependable high leverage reliever with strike out capabilities, and here he is.
No. 3: Hoby Milner (1 year, $4.5 million).
The Sox need a solid lefty in the bullpen, so I present Hoby Milner. He pitched 70.1 innings in 2025 to the tune of a fine 3.84 ERA. His strikeout numbers weren't great, but he was reliable throughout most of the year. This signing follows the pattern Chris Getz has set by acquiring pitchers that are cheaper because they don't have great strikeout stuff. The Sox 2025 bullpen cycled through lefties all season but couldn't settle on a single guy to consistently get outs. Milner will be able to do just that and comes in at an affordable rate.
TRADES
No. 1: Trade Shane Murphy to the Orioles for Heston Kjerstad.
This trade works for a number of reasons. First, lets look at the Orioles. They desperately need starting pitching to match the young crop of hitters they have, and Heston Kjerstad's star has faded while other players have essentially blocked him out of future plans. Enter the White Sox. They have numerous young pitchers that are near MLB ready that need 40-man protection. Sadly, they can't all be protected, so in this scenario, the Sox trade the most MLB ready Rule-5 eligible pitcher they have to Baltimore for a post-hype outfield prospect.
Shane Murphy pitched 135.1 innings in 2025, with 110.2 IP at AA for a 1.38 ERA and the final 14.2 at AAA for a 2.45 ERA. He is as ready as a prospect can be for a shot in the majors, and the Orioles need quality innings badly if they want to bounce back in 2026. If the return is light, I'm fine swapping in Tanner McDougal here or throwing in a second piece like George Wolkow or William Bergolla. Ultimately though, I think they'd prefer Murphy over McDougal because he has a higher innings base and reached AAA in 2025.
The White Sox have made it clear they see value in rehabbing post-hype prospects. Heston Kjerstad was the #2 overall pick in 2020 and was highly anticipated. He debuted in 2023 and played 13 games to a decent 103 wRC+. In 2024, he improved his wRC+ to 115 in 39 games. However, in 54 games in 2025, he cratered to a 57 wRC+. Additionally, his corner outfield defense fell from serviceable in '24 to bad in '25. At this point, he's blocked by the likes of Colton Cowser, Tyler O'Neill, and Dylan Beavers in the majors and Enrique Bradfield is right on his tail in the minors. It's fair to assume the Orioles are not banking on him to help them much in 2026. But should the White Sox?
The first reason for hope is that in Kjerstad's promising 2024 run, the Orioles had Ryan Fuller on staff. It's possible that Fuller, now heading the White Sox hitting lab, knows how to uplift Kjerstad from his 2025 funk. Further, there's clearly room to improve considering his expected stats. His batting average was .192, but xBA was .242. Slugging was .327 but xSLG was .414. Lastly, his wOBA was .248 but his xwOBA was .303. Kjerstad can be like Miguel Vargas in 2025; just a regression to the mean will spell huge improvement year over year. Lastly, Kjerstad still has an option available, so he can start off slowly if swing or approach changes are needed. The Sox have already picked up two post-hype prospects for the infield in Vargas and Curtis Mead. Now, it's time they try their hand at reviving an outfielder.
SUMMARY
Ultimately, the majority of this team will be holdovers from 2025. They have tons of ascending young players who need time to mature and develop at the major league level. I'll discuss some of the roster plans I have below.
Lenyn Sosa will stay at first base. I explored the trade market and free agency, but was unimpressed. It seems Bryce Harper will stay in Philly, much to my chagrin. The free agents are either far out of the Sox price range or not an upgrade over Lenyn. Plus, I see room for improvement from Sosa. He only had one month with a negative Fielding Run Value at 1B according to Statcast. In every month but June, he was a net neutral at first. Additionally, he really turned it up in the second half of the season, hitting 16 of his 22 home runs after July 1st. Lastly, his slugging was only .434, but his xSLG was .484, a whopping 50 point improvement! All said, I think he'll continue to grow in 2026 as a fielder and hitter.
Next, I'm keeping Meidroth at second base. He had a pedestrian year at the plate, but he was solid in the field. I think he needs more time to mature as a hitter and won't give up on him as a starter yet, even if he profiles more as a bench player long term.
Miguel Vargas starts at third base for me. His defense was less than stellar, but he improved throughout the season. By far his worse month was May, but he was almost league average outside of that month according to Statcast Fielding Run Values. He also had a 114 wRC+ once he changed his swing on April 22. I think his defense will improve and he can gain more consistency as a hitter to bring some thunder from the hot corner.
Bryan Ramos, who is out of options, will get a shot to make the team out of spring training as a corner outfielder - a position he began practicing last season. He could only hit lefties in 2025, but lucky for him, the Sox need a weak side platoon corner outfielder to fill the Austin Slater role.
I have a lot of faith in Brooks Baldwin. Some of his worst defense came when he first starting playing outfield, but it smoothed out with time. He also had a 119 wRC+ in his last extended stint with the major league club, including a 129 wRC+ vs righties! He can play all over the diamond, but I see him primarily as the fourth outfielder.
Andrew Benintendi will subsist on the bench because he stinks, but also I expect him to be on the IL for at least a third of the season.
In the rotation, Burke and Cannon get to keep their jobs but only until the wave of Tommy John rehabbers and guys like McDougal and Palisch are ready to go.
The bullpen is pretty clear cut with the signings I made. Grant Taylor will not revert to a starter since Brian Bannister said he body reacts much better to relief pitching than starting, where he had a couple bad injuries in recent years. The only fight is for the last roster spot. They need a second lefty, and I decided Brandon Eisert, Cam Booser, and Fraser Ellard can fight it out in a steel cage for that spot.
My completed roster comes in at about an $86 million payroll. The initial $60 million outlined, plus $11 million to Paddack, $10 million to Kittredge, and $4.5 million to Milner. It leaves some wiggle room for negotiations and minor depth signings as well, like giving Erick Fedde a minor league deal, for example.
The team outlined below won't win 90 games or even 82, but they can take the next step and go from 60 wins to maybe 75. It will be exciting to see the young hitters develop more and watch some young pitchers cement themselves into the rotation for years to come. It was a rough three year stretch, but I'm already itching with excitement for the 2026 season.
26 Man Roster:
C: Teel
1B: Sosa
2B: Meidroth
3B: Vargas
SS: Montgomery
LF: Kjerstad
CF: Robert Jr.
RF: Tauchman
DH: Quero
Bench: Ramos
Bench: Baldwin
Bench: Benintendi
Bench: Mead
SP1: Smith
SP2: Martin
SP3: Paddack
SP4: Burke
SP5: Cannon
RP: Taylor
RP: Kittredge
RP: Leasure
RP: Milner
RP: Vasil
RP: W. Gonzalez
RP: Wilson
RP: Eisert/Booser/Ellard
