The Chicago White Sox have agreed to a trade with the New York Yankees for veteran outfielder Austin Slater.
The New York Yankees have acquired outfielder Austin Slater in a trade with the Chicago White Sox, sources tell ESPN.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) July 30, 2025
The Yankees, who have been chasing a right-handed hitting outfielder, land a player in Slater who absolutely crushes left-handed pitching. Slater has an .859 OPS against lefties this season.
The White Sox are trading from a surplus, with at least five outfielders in contention to be moved at the trade deadline, the most notable of which is Luis Robert Jr.
In exchange for Slater, the White Sox received right-handed pitching prospect Gage Ziehl.
New White Sox pitching prospect Gage Ziehl
Gage Ziehl, 22, was the No. 18 ranked prospect in the Yankees farm system prior to the trade.
Drafted in the fourth round of the 2024 MLB Draft, Ziehl has already pitched across three levels in his first professional season. He's currently in High-A with the Hudson Valley Renegades, but has made an appearance at the Double-A level this season.
In 15 starts and 82.1 innings, Ziehl has a 4.15 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. He is known for his control and sweeping mid-80s slider, which is his highest-graded pitch. His fastball can touch 96 mph, as well.
GAGE. ZIEHL. HORSE. 🔥🔥
— 11Point7 College Baseball (@11point7) March 29, 2024
Complete game 15Ks. Miami trails Clemson heading bottom 9 pic.twitter.com/qGD6x20q3o
At 22 years old, there's a chance the White Sox move Ziehl to Double-A Birmingham by the end of the 2025 season and see what he's got at a more advanced level of minor league baseball.
Overall, it's a pretty solid return for Austin Slater, who was signed on a one-year, $1.75 million contract in the offseason. I'm not sure many White Sox fans expected them to land a Top 20 prospect from a team's farm system for Slater.
It just goes to show you that any rumors of the White Sox only getting a "mid-level" prospect for Luis Robert Jr. likely aren't accurate. The market is telling us a different story.
Ziehl will firmly slot into Chicago's new Top 30 prospects. Pitching is a strength of the White Sox farm system at the moment, but another future starter will only help the organizational depth.
That being said, the headliners in a bigger trade for Luis Robert Jr. or Adrian Houser probably need to be bats.
It will be interesting to see what adjustments Brian Bannister and the White Sox make with Ziehl to maximize his pitch arsenal. A player with the ability to command three pitches could move quickly through the minor leagues.