The Chicago White Sox are better than expected in 2025. The club has a legitimate shot at avoiding 100 losses, which would be an improvement of over 20 games form where they were at in 2024.
Given the recent promise shown from young White Sox hitters and an over .500 record since the All-Star break, GM Chris Getz has gone on record to say that Chicago is open to spending and adding in free agency this winter.
“We'll continue to have the conversations in regards to future payroll. Obviously Jerry [Reinsdorf] and I will continue to dive into that further,” Getz said to the media following the trade deadline. “We're open to adding to this team this offseason. I expect to do that."
That's a far cry from where Getz was in 2024, saying during a September TV broadcast that the White Sox "were not going to be working heavy in free agency."
The White Sox front office is also expected to pick up Luis Robert Jr.'s $20 million club option for the 2026 season and look for other ways to improve a promising, young roster.
It's quite the offseason dilemma, especially when you consider that most of the players having success in 2025 are under club control for next year. "Too much talent" is a good problem to have, but it puts a lot of pressure on Chris Getz to get it right during this next phase of the rebuild.
The White Sox lineup doesn't have much space
Kyle Teel and Edgar Quero are a shoe-in to be the catching tandem in 2026. It's also safe to assume that Colson Montgomery, Miguel Vargas, and Chase Meidroth will be regulars on the infield.
Outfielders Andrew Benintendi, Luis Robert Jr. (assuming his option is picked up), and Mike Tauchman are all under contract for the 2026 season, as well. That doesn't leave many at-bats unaccounted for.
The White Sox need a designated hitter and another option at first base (Josh Naylor?). More likely than not, that will be found in the same player. Lenyn Sosa and Curtis Mead are also in the mix for infield playing time, but it's hard to say now where exactly they'd fit.
Chicago could also add another Austin Slater-type of outfielder that platoons with Tauchman in right field, but I seriously doubt the sox would cut into Benintendi or Robert Jr.'s at-bats with their given salaries.
If Chris Getz is committed to adding like he says and the White Sox are going to be bigger free agency players than they were last offseason, the moves are going to come with some difficult decisions and young hitters stuck on the outside looking in. The Sox can't afford to get those decisions wrong.
The 2026 pitching staff is only getting more crowded
The White Sox pitching staff is going to be even more difficult to figure out than the lineup.
While it makes sense for Chicago to add some established starting pitching, Shane Smith, Davis Martin, Sean Burke, and Jonathan Cannon will all remain under contract for the foreseeable future. Martín Pérez also has a $10 million mutual option on his deal.
Drew Thorpe and Ky Bush both showed MLB promise in 2024 before missing the entire 2025 season with Tommy John surgery. Presumably, they will both be back at the beginning of next season and in the mix for a big league rotation spot. The same thing goes for Mason Adams (White Sox No. 11 prospect).
Top prospects Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith aren't far away either. Then there's Tanner McDougal, Shane Murphy, and Riley Gowens, all of whom could get MLB debuts in September of this year and have looked really sharp in the minor leagues.
There aren't enough innings or rotation sports to go around as is. Cannon's struggles already landed him in Triple-A, and could remove from Chicago's future plans. That's the nature of the beast when there are so many promising arms in the organization.
I would love to see the White Sox add an established arm to the front of their rotation, especially considering this year's staff is inexperienced and wearing down due to an innings limit. But adding 1-2 veteran starters means 1-2 younger guys don't get MLB opportunities next year.
Depth is a good thing, but I'm not sure that's what the White Sox front office wants to be doing at this stage in the rebuild.
That, however, was a big mistake Rick Hahn and the previous regime made. They acquired talent at every position on the diamond, but refused to add depth because they didn't want to block the young core from getting opportunities.
But as players like Yoán Moncada, Eloy Jiménez, and Luis Robert Jr. got injured, and as pitchers like Lucas Giolito, Michael Kopech, and Dylan Cease had down years, the roster didn't have the depth to stay afloat.
For Chris Getz, the pressure is on. It's time to do things differently and it all starts this offseason.