White Sox Face Major Decisions In Rotation Dilemma

The White Sox were the worst team in baseball by a wide margin this year. However, they had some intriguing performances by some of their young pitchers, giving fans hope that they can build on that in 2025.

Jonathan Cannon probably had the best season out of all the young arms, but Drew Thorpe, Sean Burke, Ky Bush, and Nick Nastrini also showed flashes in their time in the majors. Davis Martin also looked really good after returning from injury.

On top of that, Jake Eder and Jairo Iriarte came up towards the end of the year and each pitched a few innings. Both are highly touted prospects and have shown they have major league stuff.

Mason Adams had one of the most underrated seasons in the minor leagues last year but did not get a chance to come up and make his major league debut due to an injury in the last few weeks of the season.

The White Sox also added Bryse Wilson through free agency and Shane Smith in the Rule-5 draft, both of which could compete for a rotation spot as well. So, all in all, this leaves 11 guys competing for just five rotation spots.

All of these guys can't make the roster, as the most pitchers you can have on an active roster is 13, and we haven't even considered the 10+ guys competing for spots in the bullpen.

This makes for a very tricky decision for Will Venable and Chris Getz, as there is a good case for every single one to make the team and the rotation.

Based off last year's performances, the rotation will likely include Martin, Thorpe, Cannon, and Burke. That leaves one spot for the other guys, with some of them potentially moving to the bullpen or moving to AAA to get consistent innings.

I would like to see Mason Adams have a strong Spring Training, as he had a fantastic year in AA last year. Additionally, he profiles more as a starter rather than a reliever, as some of the other guys would have a smoother transition to a reliever. Adams consistently went 6+ innings last year, which is an important quality in a starter.

However, that would leave the White Sox with no lefties in their rotation, so someone like Ky Bush or Jake Eder could get an opportunity, as they are both lefties.

The starting rotation battle will be an interesting one to follow in Spring Training, as that will likely be the determinant for the last few spots. I would like to see most of the guys in Chicago for an extended look at some point, as they all have a lot of talent.

There is a chance that Getz makes a move with one or two of these guys, as this list doesn't include two of their top prospects Noah Schultz or Hagen Smith, both of which are expected to be top of the rotation arms in a year or two.

Before the season last year, Getz moved one of their top-15 prospects, Cristian Mena, for outfielder Dominic Fletcher, as the White Sox were trading from their pitching depth. Getz could make another move similar to this, as there could be a move to make with the Dodgers.