Jacob Amaya's stats represent an automatic out in the Chicago White Sox lineup. Yet somehow, he remains on the active roster for reasons that defy logic.
Thankfully, the White Sox front office has come around to realize that Bobby Dalbec is not going to regain his power stroke. The organization is also taking action on Penn Murfee's rocky start to the season. Murfee is trying reclaim a promising career that was derailed by injuries.
The Chicago White Sox made a flurry of roster moves before the series finale against the Houston Astros on Sunday that included Bobby Dalbec getting designated for assignment to make room for Josh Rojas coming off the injured list.
The team also demoted Murfee to Triple-A Charlotte and called up relief pitcher Caleb Freeman, who is set to make his major league debut this week. Finally, reliever Fraser Ellard is going back on the injured list with Tyler Gilbert returning to the bullpen.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) May 4, 2025
Keeping Jacob Amaya on the roster makes no sense
Jacob Amaya was Chicago's Opening Day shortstop thanks to the Rojas injury and Colson Montgomery's concerning start. Amaya has managed to stay on the roster through 34 games now while providing nothing at the plate with an average below .100 and wRC+ deep in the red.
You could argue he provides a great glove, but the two best numbers to rate defense are mixed with Amaya...not elite. He has -1 defensive runs saved while being one out above average. Amaya may have an above-average glove, but that doesn't justify him still being on the active roster or getting playing time.
The Sox are dumping Dalbec, a power hitter in theory, after just seven games, while Amaya continues to get to call himself a big leaguer. Dalbec probably has a better case for being on the roster than Amaya does. Given his slash line of .222/.333/.278, at least Dalbec is not an automatic out. However, Dalbec stopped hitting home runs after 2022, and a slugging percentage well below .300 is not going to cut it for a primary first baseman.
Dalbec can be organizational depth if he is not claimed off waivers and does not elect free agency. It's a good move by the White Sox to pull the plug quickly.
The production at the plate Amaya was providing was so bad that the White Sox even tried Dalbec out a shortstop for a moment. The Boston Red Sox, Dalbec's former team, quickly abandoned trying him at shortstop a few years ago. But that speaks to Amaya's incompetence at the dish.
Sending Penn Murfee down is the right call
Seeing if Penn Murfee could be a lockdown bullpen arm like he was with Seattle before Tommy John surgery was not a bad idea.
With Murfee posting a 7.82 ERA in 15 games, it has become clear that he was not going to be the reliever who had a 2.70 ERA and 105 strikeouts with the Mariners.
Sending him to Triple-A is also a sign that the White Sox front office is not going to be patient with bullpen arms like they were last season, which led to historically disastrous results. So far, the bullpen has been one of the bigger weaknesses of Chicago's roster.
Moving onto Caleb Freeman is also a good choice to see if he can get some late-inning outs. Plus, he is another pitcher the team drafted that has now gotten to the big-league level. Given that he was a 15th-round selection, that's a win any way you slice it.
Caleb Freeman is another draft W for the White Sox. Regardless of how he performs, a 15th round pick making the Majors is a win for your player development system
— Noah Phalen (@Noahp245) May 4, 2025
What is not a win, however, is Amaya still being on the roster. Rojas can be rotated around the infield and play shortstop. Amaya no longer serves any purpose, but keeps surviving when his production clearly indicates he should have been DFA'd weeks ago.