While the vast majority of the White Sox team that reached the Postseason in 2026 is set to return next year, the team does have a couple vacancies to fill. One of which belonged to lefty Sean Newcomb, who excelled in a swingman role after signing a one-year deal with Chicago last offseason. Newcomb will hit the free agent market for the second year in a row, and the White Sox could be interested in a reunion in some form. It’s early, but one suitor has already started to emerge for Newcomb, and it’s a rather surprising one.
In his GM Meetings primer this week, Kevin Barral from Fish on First reported that the Miami Marlins have interest in Sean Newcomb, among a handful of other left-handed pitchers. Newcomb, 33, split the 2025 season between the Red Sox and Athletics, excelling in a relief role for the A’s down the stretch. His strong second half earned him a deal with the White Sox, where he was given a chance to compete for a rotation spot. The White Sox moved Newcomb to the bullpen at the outset of the season, and he became a bit of a Swiss Army Knife for the team, having success in multiple roles.
6 Ks for Sean Newcomb today 👏 pic.twitter.com/0hveyiBJma
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) March 13, 2026
Overall, Newcomb finished with a 3.09 ERA over 90.1 innings in the regular season and allowed two earned runs in seven playoff innings. Newcomb will turn 34 in June, so he’s not likely to receive a significant long-term contract, but could cash in on back-to-back strong seasons with a two or three year deal. I expect the White Sox to remain in contact regarding Newcomb, but they have other needs to fill, so I’m not sure they’ll meet his asking price.
Marlins join the White Sox in the market for a left-handed reliever
Based on the article from Barral, Miami seems clearly in the market for a left-handed reliever this offseason. Padres lefty Adrian Morejon is the top reliever on the board, and Barral indicated Miami has interest, and Dodgers lefty Alex Vesia could be another target for teams looking for a southpaw in the pen. Vesia is a name I’ve highlighted for the White Sox in recent weeks, and a pursuit of Morejon by Chicago is possible but probably unlikely. With both Newcomb and Morejon, some have speculated that interested teams might want them in a starting role for 2027. If that’s the case, I don’t expect the White Sox to be in serious pursuit of either player, as they need more proven starters in their rotation.
Sean Newcomb was a very valuable player for the White Sox bullpen in 2026, and they’ll need to make sure they replace him appropriately if he does depart in free agency. The bullpen market features several prominent left-handed options, and the full slate of suitors has not yet been revealed. It sounds like the Miami Marlins, who are not known to be big spenders, are one of them, however. As the free agent market evolves over the next few weeks before the lockout, the Marlins will be a team to watch as a primary competitor to the White Sox on the bullpen market. It shouldn’t be long before the dominoes start falling.
Add us as a preferred source on Google