The Chicago White Sox are sellers who have yet to sell any of their best assets.
The Sox have players who can help contenders. The biggest name is outfielder Luis Robert Jr., who is a big part of why things are likely moving so slowly for the White Sox. The front office is trying to trade Robert for his 2023 (when he was an All-Star) value, but contenders are only willing to give back a mid-level prospect.
While Robert's market is slowing things down, time will eventually run out on the White Sox, and they'll need to make some tough decisions.
One of the thing I'm hoping to see the White Sox do is trade some of their veteran relief pitchers. There are a handful of relievers on the White Sox roster that could fetch a solid prospect at the trade deadline.m
If Tanner Banks, who had a 4.13 ERA at the 2024 trade deadline, can get the White Sox William Bergolla (No. 13 prospect), hopefully, Steven Wilson, with his 2.91 ERA and multiple years of control, can bring back something a bit better.
Wilson, Tyler Gilbert, and Dan Altavilla all need to be traded at the deadline. It's an opportunity for the White Sox to add young talent to the farm system, as well as open up some roster spots for younger arms.
The White Sox need bullpen spots for young arms to audition for 2026
After the trade deadline passes, the remainder of the 2025 schedule will be about developing young talent and evaluating who can help the team in the future.
While Wilson and Gilbert still have club control beyond 2025, they are both in their 30s. We've seen the best of what they have to offer the Chicago White Sox.
It's better for the White Sox to go with younger arms to close out the 2025 season. They are still in their peak performance years, and if 2027 is the target year to start being competitive, now is the time to get innings for those young players to prove themselves.
Moving Wilson, Gilbert, and Altavilla means spots are opened up for Jairo Iriarte, Peyton Pallette, and Tanner McDougal in the Major Leagues.
While I would love to see McDougal developed into a starter long-term, he is already near his career-high in innings pitched. If the club does call him up to get a taste of the big leagues, it makes sense to have him come out of the bullpen.
Iriarte got some innings last season, but he need another opportunity to see if he can reach his potential as an effective late-inning reliever.
Peyton Pallette, Adisyn Coffey, and Chase Plymell are all young relievers in Triple-A that are yet to make their Major League debuts. All of them would be deserving of a shot down the home stretch of 2025.
Wikelman González is another guy that needs to get more innings with the big league club. González has looked the part of a high-leverage reliever in five MLB innings, but it's such a small sample size.
Shane Murphy and Riley Gowens also deserve a look. Those two could be used in the starting rotation in September as pitchers like Sean Burke possibly tire out.
Auditions for 2026 must be held now, but it cannot happen until these veteran arms are dealt. Chris Getz and the White Sox need to clean things up at the trade deadline.