The Luis Robert Jr. saga has finally come to an end. According to multiple reports, the White Sox have agreed to a deal that’ll send Luis Robert Jr. to the New York Mets in exchange for infielder Luisangel Acuna and RHP Truman Pauley.
Robert, 28, has spent the first six seasons of his career with the White Sox after signing as an amateur free agent out of Cuba. Once considered a five-tool talent, Robert’s best season came in 2023 when he hit 38 home runs and posted an .857 OPS en route to an all-star nod. The White Sox hoped it was the beginning of a breakout for Robert, but the past two seasons have been littered with injuries and underperformance. The White Sox elected to pick up Robert’s $20 million option at the start of the offseason, but decided to move him despite Chris Getz’s repeated comments about the team’s intent to keep him.
In Acuna, the White Sox acquire a soon-to-be 24 year-old who is perhaps most known for being the brother of Braves superstar Ronald Acuna Jr. Luisangel was originally signed by the Texas Rangers out of Venezuela and was traded to the Mets at the trade deadline in 2023 in the deal that sent Max Scherzer to Texas. Acuna made his big league debut for the Mets in 2024 and showed promise during a 14-game sample where he posted a .966 OPS. Unfortunately, a larger stint in the big leagues in 2025 didn’t help Acuna, and his OPS dropped to .567. He didn’t hit a single home run in 175 at bats in 2025.
RHP Truman Pauley was the Mets 12th-round pick in the 2025 draft out of Harvard. He was assigned to the St. Lucie Mets, the Low-A affiliate of New York, where he pitched 4.1 innings of one-run ball. The 22 year-old features a mid-90s fastball and a low-80s slider. He struggles with command and may be better suited for a bullpen role, but he has stuff that could play at the big league level.
The White Sox return for Robert is underwhelming at best
It’s an underwhelming return for Robert, which can be partially explained by the Mets picking up the entirety of his $20 million contract for 2026. Acuna is a former Top 100 prospect but struggled mightily at the big league level after posting modest offensive numbers in the upper minors. He’s primarily an infielder, but a crowded White Sox infield may push him into the outfield, and he does have some previous experience in center. He’ll be 24 on Opening Day and I’d expect him to make the White Sox roster barring an injury.
Luisangel Acuña became the first player to hit four home runs in a Venezuelan winter league game pic.twitter.com/j63tYPL7rS
— Jomboy (@Jomboy_) January 21, 2026
For a team looking to take a step forward in 2026, this certainly feels like a step back. Robert was easily the highest upside player on the team and losing him significantly lowers the team’s offensive ceiling. There’s no doubt that he hasn’t played to his ability the past couple seasons, but the team doesn’t exactly have a replacement lined up, and adding bats like Colson Montgomery and Munetaka Murakami around him would’ve helped put him in a better position to succeed. In addition, the return for Robert was light at best. Acuna may excel defensively, but he’s another infielder in an already-crowded White Sox infield and he doesn’t have a track record of being an above average offensive player anywhere. At best, he feels like a utilityman, which the White Sox already have in Brooks Baldwin.
If the White Sox were going to use the $20 million they saved to go add more quality bats in free agency, it would be easier to feel good about this move, but I have no faith in Reinsdorf to make it happen. I’ve always believed that trading Luis Robert Jr. now made very little sense for the White Sox, but evidently Chris Getz and the front office did not feel the same way.
Some White Sox fans may be excited to finally be rid of the final reminder of the failed rebuild, but I enjoy watching competitive baseball, and I believe the Chicago White Sox got worse today.
It’s a sad reality of being a White Sox fan, but the team has a long way to go to get back to relevancy, and the road didn’t get any easier today.