White Sox become latest team to learn difficult Jarred Kelenic lesson

When the White Sox brought in outfielder Jarred Kelenic on a minor league deal this offseason, the team was excited to try to tap into his potential. A former top ten draft pick and top prospect, Kelenic put up excellent numbers throughout the minor leagues but failed to put things together consistently at the big league level. After failed stints in Seattle and Atlanta, Kelenic landed a minor league deal with the White Sox and immediately began working to get back to the big leagues. Unfortunately, his big league return lasted only a few weeks before the White Sox became the latest team to make a difficult decision about his future. 

Kelenic, 26, received the big league call when the White Sox played outfield Everson Pereira on the injured list a few weeks ago. He’s gotten the primary reps in right field over that span. In 19 games, Kelenic slashed .226/.305/.321 with a .626 OPS. He hit one home run and struck out 20 times in that span. Underlying metrics suggest some bad luck was involved in Kelenic’s performance, however. His expected batting average is .257 and he ranks among the top hitters in baseball in barrel percentage, average exit velocity, and hard-hit percentage. Despite this, the White Sox felt it was time to move on. 

Kelenic’s primary problem has always been strikeouts. He struck out 133 times in 131 games with the Braves in 2024 and 132 times in 105 games with the Mariners in 2023. The hope was that Kelenic would balance out his propensity to strike out with power, but he’s never been able to hit more than 15 home runs in a season. 

Kelenic's DFA helps solve White Sox interesting roster crunch

For the White Sox, it seems to just be a matter of roster spots. Austin Hays is expected to return from the IL this week, and Everson Pereira shouldn’t be too far behind. Free-agent signing Randal Grichuk has played well against lefties and Tristan Peters has been among the best defensive center fielders in baseball this season. The White Sox will be able to field an outfield of Antonacci, Peters, and Hays or Rikuu Nishida against right-handers, with Grichuk, Hill, and Hays out there against lefties. 

For Kelenic, it’s yet another setback in a career that’s been full of them. He’ll now be available on waivers for any team to claim, and I’m guessing someone will take a chance on his impressive underlying metrics. The White Sox were hoping that some offseason work with Ryan Fuller would turn things around and make Kelenic a mainstay in the outfield, but things didn’t work out that way. 

At 26 years old with the power potential he has, Kelenic could still make himself into something. But if he’s going to turn his career around, it won’t be with the White Sox, and they become the latest team to learn that potential doesn’t always equal results.

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