When the White Sox hired Will Venable last season, he absorbed a good amount of the staff from the year prior. This included former interim manager Grady Sizemore, the hitting coach Marcus Thames, and the pitching coach Ethan Katz. It is unclear why Venable didn't bring all of his own guys in right away, but after one season, there were plenty of shakeups. The White Sox fired both Thames and Katz, while Sizemore took another job in the major leagues.
This was a bit of a surprise, as there were improvements across the board in both hitting and pitching for the White Sox. However, it is very likely that Venable wanted his own staff, and after proving he is a capable major league manager, it appears he has earned the right to fill out the rest of his staff.
The White Sox have filled both the hitting coach and pitching coach vacancies, as they hired Zach Bove to replace Ethan Katz and Derek Shomon to replace Marcus Thames. Both seem like very solid hires, as the White Sox look to catch up to the rest of the league in up to date analytics and philosophies.
The White Sox were able to fill those vacancies pretty quickly, as it is important to get the new coaches to work with the current players on the roster. This can allow time to have the players make any adjustments the coaches had in mind.
Ethan Katz also didn't have to wait too long to find another job, as according to Chandler Rome, the Houston Astros have hired Katz as a pitching coach on their major league roster.
The Astros made this official, along with the rest of Joe Espada’s coaching staff https://t.co/I0r3atddTM pic.twitter.com/1Hle3nqIu3
— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) November 26, 2025
This is a good hire for the Astros, as Katz was a very solid coach for the White Sox in his 5+ years with the team. The Astros will likely be more competitive than the White Sox this season, so Katz will have the chance to make it deep into the playoffs with his new team.
Overall, Katz had a very solid tenure with the White Sox. He played a big part in Lucas Giolito's resurgence with the team and helped plenty of other pitchers get back on track with the White Sox. There is certainly a reason why he was able to find a job so quickly. We wish Ethan the best of luck in his tenure with the Astros and his future endeavors.
