The White Sox offseason is in full swing, and the first of a few big deadlines is rapidly approaching. MLB players and teams have until Thursday, November 6th to decide whether or not to exercise team and player options in their contracts. The White Sox only had a pair of players who fell into this category, and the decisions have already been made on both players. The White Sox made the expected decision and exercised Luis Robert’s $20 million team option. LHP Martin Perez chose to decline his end of a $10 million mutual option, and the White Sox will instead pay him a $1.5 million buyout.
It’s not a surprise to see Perez hit free agency. Mutual options are rarely exercised by both sides. If a player has a good season, he’s likely to opt to hit free agency to maximize his earnings, and if he struggles, it’s unlikely that his team will want to pay him at the designated rate for another year. The fact that Perez will be a free agent was expected, but it seemed like the White Sox would be the side to decline the option, so the opt out coming from Perez’s side is a bit strange.
Perez will turn 35 in April and his 2025 season was marred by multiple injuries that limited him to just ten starts and eleven games. Perez was effective when he was on the field, posting a 3.54 ERA in 56 innings, though some of the underlying numbers suggest some good luck was involved. Perez’s expected ERA was 5.32, and his 15% barrel rate was near the bottom of the league. With below average strikeout and ground ball rates, Perez relied heavily on fly balls, so his 2.35 ERA in six home games is even more remarkable given the reputation of Rate Field for being hitter-friendly. Despite underwhelming peripherals and a fastball averaging just 89.6 miles per hour, Perez found a way to get hitters out as he’s done for most of his career. It’s hard to see a team looking past these red flags and giving Perez more than the $10 million he would’ve made had he opted in. Even factoring in the $1.5 million buyout, an AAV of $8.5 million or higher for an aging veteran with several question marks seems unrealistic. It’s possible, even likely, that the White Sox would’ve declined their end of the option anyway, so Perez may have still ended up on the market.
Very surprised Martín Pérez declined his end of the mutual option with #WhiteSox.
— Sam Phalen (@Sam_Phalen) November 4, 2025
He'll have a hard time getting $10 million as a FA. Soon-to-be 35-year old coming off an injury with underwhelming peripherals.
xERA of 5.32 in 2025, and a 15% barrel rate was the worst in MLB.
The White Sox could still choose to bring back Perez
Perez hitting free agency doesn’t necessarily mean he won’t be back on the South Side in 2026. He has been outspoken about how much he enjoyed his time in Chicago, and many of the young pitchers talked about the impact he had in the clubhouse and as a mentor. The team will certainly be looking for some veteran arms in the rotation to help out the young starters. Many of the current rotation options, including Shane Smith, Sean Burke, Davis Martin, and Yoendrys Gomez, are right-handed, so adding a veteran lefty into the mix is very plausible. Both sides will likely explore their options before making a decision, and may ultimately come back together.
It remains to be seen whether or not Perez will be back in Chicago in 2026, but if he is, it will undoubtedly be for less than the $10 million he would’ve made on his option. Chris Getz and the White Sox will once again search the bargain bin for a veteran starter, and the search may end with a familiar face.