The White Sox improved by 19 wins from the 2024 to the 2025 season, marking significant improvement. Additionally, the White Sox played much better than a 60-102 team for most of the second half, as they had some important contributions from the rookies on the roster.
As we dissect the 2025 season, we will take a look at how each player performed, as well as their outlook for 2026 and beyond. The next player we will take a look at will be rookie relief pitcher, Mike Vasil.
Vasil was acquired by the White Sox via waivers from the Tampa Bay Rays before the season started, as he joined the team about a week before the first game.
This proved to be a savvy move by GM Chris Getz, as Vasil was the White Sox most valuable pitcher out of the bullpen in 2025. Vasil made his MLB debut for the White Sox on March 31st, throwing two scoreless innings against the Minnesota Twins.
Vasil would continue this trend, as he started his MLB career with 12 straight scoreless innings. He would finally give up his first run on April 17th in a game against the Boston Red Sox.
From this point, Vasil became the Swiss Army Knife in the bullpen, as he bounced around from starter, to long relief, to closer. In total, Vasil had three starts and four saves over his 101 innings pitched. He struck out 82 batters and had a solid 1.25 WHIP. He finished the season with a 5-3 record.
Mike Vasil putting in work tonight. Phenomenal job. pic.twitter.com/NyDdUXkli0
— FutureSox (@FutureSox) July 12, 2025
This was an amazing season for Vasil, and even more impressive when you consider the fact he was a wavier pickup just a week before the season started. According to Baseball Reference, he had 2.9 WAR, which is very impressive for a rookie pitcher.
The advanced stats were just as good, as he earned high marks according to Baseball Savant. Vasil was in the 85th percentile in pitching run value, while his fastball and off-speed run value were in the 88th and 87th percentile in the league, placing him among the league's best.
Vasil could improve his control, as he walked a decent amount of batters. However, he managed to find his way out of plenty of difficult jams. Additionally, if Vasil wants to find himself in the back end of the bullpen, he will have to strike more batters out as well, but for a his first season, you can't ask for much more. He is still only 25 so he has plenty of time to improve.
I would grade out Vasil's season as an A+ as he had no expectations leading up to the season and he ended up as the team's best reliever. Next season Vasil will likely slot in as a high end long relief pitcher, but he could find himself as a high leverage guy as well. Vasil figures to be a big part of the White Sox pitching staff in 2026 and beyond.
