First reported by ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Chicago White Sox have traded outfielder Derek Hill to the Philadelphia Phillies for prospects Dylan Campbell and Jose Colmenares.
Adding to the deal, the White Sox are sending $250,000 in international bonus money to Philadelphia. Returning to the White Sox to take Hill’s roster spot, is outfielder Everson Pereira coming off the injured list. The White Sox 40-man roster is now at 39 players.
Hill appeared in 50 games for the White Sox but only amassed 90 plate appearances. He hit .213/.284/.375 with four home runs, but was mostly used as a defensive specialist and pinch runner, often playing against left-handed starting pitchers. Even though Hill was a bench player, he would occasionally make big impacts on games, such as his pinch-hit home run in San Diego and his heroics against Kansas City on May 12. Hill replaced Tristan Peters in the eighth inning that night and proceeded to hit the go-ahead home run, and make two sensational defensive plays in the ninth to seal the victory.
"I have thanked him and want to thank him publicly for his contributions here because he was such a great player for us, such a great person in the clubhouse, and obviously made an impact on the field," said Will Venable. "We're in a little bit of a roster crunch. It speaks to D-Hill and his performance and who he is that there was a lot of interest in him, and it also speaks to where our club is at that we really needed to push a really good player off our roster."
Making this trade opens up a spot for Pereira. His last game played with the Sox was on April 28 against the Angels. For the season, Pereira is batting .250/.310/.453 with three home runs in 18 games, and played four rehab games with Triple-A Charlotte to get up to speed after his right pectoral strain.
"It took a little more time than I was expecting to, but I feel very good right now," Pereira said via interpreter. "I don't think I have to be concerned about it throughout the season."
Coming to Chicago are infielder Dylan Campbell and outfielder Jose Colmenares. A fourth-round pick in 2023 by the Los Angeles Dodgers, Campbell was at Double-A Reading Fightin Phils and is batting .216/.281/.412 in 55 games with seven home runs. Campbell is Rule 5 Draft eligible after this season.
A 2018 international signee of the New York Yankees, Colmenares was with the Jersey Shore BlueClaws, the Phillies High-A affiliate. Currently on the 7-day IL, Colmenares, in 36 games, is hitting .278/.403/.413 with three home runs. Neither Campbell nor Colmenares was on Philadelphia’s MLB Pipeline Top 30 prospect list.
