As the offseason gets rolling, speculation around the White Sox answer at a key position is starting to swirl. 670 The Score’s Bruce Levine was in Las Vegas for the GM meetings this week, and he may have shed some light on a potential White Sox target:
Last report from Vegas @mullyhaugh 9:25AM. Cubs looking at pitching and another OF. Sources confirm Wh Sox have had talks with numerous teams on Robert. Free agent interest in IB / DH /OF Ryan O’Hearn. Tune in @670TheScore
— Bruce Levine (@MLBBruceLevine) November 13, 2025
O’Hearn, 32, was originally an eighth round pick by the Kansas City Royals in 2014 out of Sam Houston State. O’Hearn made his big league debut for Kansas City in 2018 in impressive fashion, with 12 home runs and a .950 OPS in 44 games. An increase in at bats in 2019 saw a dip in production for O'Hearn, whose OPS was below .700 for the remainder of his time in Kansas City. Things didn’t get better for O’Hearn until 2023 after the Royals shipped him to Baltimore before the season. In 112 games for the Orioles in 2023, O’Hearn posted a .289/.322/.480 slash line with an .802 OPS. He followed it up with a .761 OPS in 2024 as a full-time player, and was off to a great start in 2025 before a deadline trade to the San Diego Padres. His production dipped a bit in the pitching-friendly environment in San Diego, but it was an overall solid season at the dish for O’Hearn. Defensively, he primarily plays first base, but he played 23 games in the outfield in 2025, so there is a bit of versatility there. He hits from the left side of the plate, but had a surprisingly productive .832 OPS against left-handed pitching in 2025, making him more than just a platoon option.
Ryan O'Hearn and the "O" stands for Obliterates Baseballs. pic.twitter.com/BCw560USaR
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) August 21, 2025
O'Hearn's connection to the White Sox front office could be a factor
O’Hearn’s career resurgence in Baltimore is notable for the White Sox more than other teams. White Sox hitting director Ryan Fuller was with the Orioles from 2019-2024, and the team’s targeting of a former Oriole is no coincidence. O’Hearn had the best seasons of his career under Fuller’s guidance, and he could opt to follow Fuller to Chicago to try to keep it going. The White Sox also recently hired Sherman Johnson Jr. as their minor league hitting coordinator, who overlapped with O’Hearn in Baltimore in 2023 and 2024. Given O’Hearn’s ties to the White Sox front office and the team’s need for a left-handed bat who can play first base, the fit makes a ton of sense.
O’Hearn would immediately add a solid run-producer to a young lineup. His solid 10% walk rate in 2025 would be an improvement over the incumbent first base options, and his 3.0 fWAR would’ve led the White Sox, so he’d be an important upgrade for a team looking to move toward contention. Financially, it shouldn’t require too large of a commitment. A two or three-year deal for $10-15 million a year could get it done, and the White Sox certainly have the payroll space to accommodate such a deal, despite Chris Getz's initial hesitancy about multi-year deals.
The free agent class is loaded with options at the first base position this year, but O’Hearn may be the most natural fit. The ball is in Chris Getz’s court to capitalize on a saturated market and make a move to improve the team.