The Chicago White Sox made a big signing this week. It came out on Sunday that they were signing Elvis Andrus to a one-year contract worth three million dollars. Of course, fans were very happy about that as they are getting ready for a big bounce-back season.
Andrus is going to be the second baseman for this team as they now have a bit more depth and stability among their position players. It is a smart move for them to make as he was very good for them when they landed him late last season.
One thing that went a bit under the radar with this signing was who's 40-man spot he took. When the White Sox made this signing official on Monday, they designated Bennett Sousa for assignment which meant that he was probably done with the team for good.
A few days later, Wednesday, Sousa was claimed off waivers by the Cincinnati Reds. Of course, they are just trying to bring in another reliever that they can use as a stop-gap until they are ready to try competing again. This isn't all that big of an issue for the White Sox.
The White Sox relaced Bennett Sousa on the 40-man with Elvis Andrus.
Sousa, a left-handed reliever, was claimed by the Reds so that he can take the roster spot of Vladimir Gutierrez who is hitting the 60-Day DL recovering from Tommy John. This is a very interesting move for a Reds team that is clearly not trying to win in 2023.
In 2022, Sousa appeared in 25 games for the Chicago White Sox. He had a 3-0 record but an 8.41 ERA. With AAA Charlotte, he had a 2-1 record and a 3.94 ERA.
Clearly, he is much more suited for AAA so the White Sox aren't really losing much on this one. We wish Sousa well but this was a much-needed move as Andrus comes to the team.