As the offseason moves along, a pair of important deadlines are fast approaching. Tuesday, November 18th is the deadline for teams to add eligible prospects to the 40-man roster to protect them from December’s Rule 5 draft. If left unprotected, a player can be taken by another team and must be added to the Major League roster. The White Sox 40-man roster currently sits at 35 and the team has a handful of players who need to be protected. Unless they can find a way to clear a couple more 40-man spots, it seems likely that the White Sox will need to leave someone unprotected. Here are the three players they can’t afford to lose:
RHP Tanner McDougal
One of the biggest prospect breakout stories in 2025, McDougal will be Rule 5 eligible this offseason, and the White Sox cannot afford to leave him unprotected. A 5th round pick by the team in 2021, McDougal’s road to the big leagues has been winding. He lost the entire 2022 season to Tommy John surgery and showed flashes despite control issues in Low-A Kannapolis in 2023. The White Sox expected a big step forward in 2024, but McDougal was an abysmal 0-11 with a 6.04 ERA between Low-A and High-A. 2025 felt like a pivotal season, and McDougal bounced back in a big way, finishing with a 3.26 ERA and 136 strikeouts across a career-high 113.1 innings. He reached Double-A at age 22 and could be in line for a big league call-up with further progress in 2026. Another team could certainly see the value in McDougal and take him, so the White Sox can’t take that chance.
#WhiteSox No. 18 prospect Tanner McDougal matched a career high with nine strikeouts in his latest start.@USAFRecruiting #AimHigh pic.twitter.com/j7hwLMXkVg
— Winston-Salem Dash (@WSDashBaseball) June 11, 2024
LHP Shane Murphy
A former 14th round pick out of Junior College, Murphy could be the most likely White Sox player to be taken if left unprotected due to an incredible 2025 season. The 24 year-old posted an eye-popping 1.66 ERA in 135.1 innings across three levels, including a 2.45 ERA in a brief stint in Triple-A to end the season. Murphy’s stuff isn’t overwhelming, and he only struck out 104 hitters in those innings, but he only walked 25 hitters all season, and his pristine control helps him induce a ton of soft contact. The results are there, and the White Sox have had success with soft-tossing left-handers before, so Murphy is worth a look in Chicago. The White Sox currently don’t have a lefty in their big league rotation, and Murphy will be 25 by Opening Day, so he could certainly be competing for a big league rotation spot to start the season. Leaving a potential big league rotation piece off the roster for another team to take would be downright silly.
RHP Mason Adams
Another late draft pick with excellent minor league numbers, Mason Adams seemed to be in line for his big league debut in 2025 before Tommy John surgery derailed his season. When last healthy, Adams posted a 2.92 ERA in 120.1 innings between Birmingham and Charlotte, quickly rising his way through the farm system. Due to the timing of his injury, he likely won’t be ready to return until midseason, which could deter some teams from taking him. But Adams will be 26 on Opening Day and is almost certainly going to pitch in the big leagues upon his return. The White Sox need to stockpile as many young arms as they can, and can’t risk another team claiming Adams and placing him on their IL.
In addition to these players, Peyton Pallette, Duncan Davitt, Aldrin Batista, Eric Adams, and Tyler Schweitzer are on the list of Rule 5 eligible players. The White Sox could elect to protect some of these players as well, so they’ll have a tough decision to make. Milwaukee is certainly regretting its decision to leave Shane Smith unprotected last season. Let the Brewers serve as an example of why the implications of this decision could be large for Chris Getz and the White Sox. White Sox fans should continue to approach this deadline the way we’ve grown accustomed to approaching everything the team does: hoping for the best but expecting the worst.