The White Sox will enter the 2025 offseason with one of the lowest payrolls in the league. This will hopefully allow them to spend some money, as they have plenty of holes to fill on the roster. If they spend their money wisely, they could be a sneaky playoff competitor, especially if the young guys take another step forward.
The area the White Sox will need to improve the most is the bullpen, as they were very weak in one score games last season. The White Sox got some solid contributions out of Jordan Leasure, Grant Taylor, and Mike Vasil, but they need a few more established ‘pen arms if they want to compete.
Luckily for the White Sox, most relievers won’t break the bank with long term contracts, as this could entice the White Sox to spend on established ‘pen arms. Over the last 24 hours, the market for relievers got even better, as some very good relievers opted out of their deals, allowing them to hit the open market.
First, according to Ken Rosenthal, Mets closer Edwin Diaz, has opted out of his deal.
This should be intriguing to the White Sox, as Diaz has been an elite closer for most of his major league career. This past season, Diaz threw 66 innings of 1.63 ERA baseball for the Mets, striking out 98 batters and saving 28 games.
Adding Diaz to the back end of the bullpen could be a game changer for the White Sox, as he would add an elite closer to the roster, something the White Sox currently lack. While it is unclear if Diaz is open to leaving the Mets, he left a solid amount of money on the table, which means he could be looking for a new contract elsewhere.
Diaz isn’t the only closer who opted out of his deal today, as according to Jon Heyman, all-star closer Robert Suarez is also going to hit the open market.
As Heyman reports, Suarez had 16 million left over two years with the Padres. Coming off 40 saves, Suarez is likely looking to get compensated closer to his value. With very little payroll and a desperate need for a closer, the White Sox could be a sneaky landing spot for Suarez.
This past season, Suarez had a 2.97 ERA over 69 innings, striking out 75 batters. He added a .904 WHIP to go along with his 40 saves. This would be a very nice addition for the White Sox, as the White Sox have less than 40 career saves combined between all the pitchers on the active roster.
Adding Diaz or Suarez could make a huge difference for the White Sox, as they could contribute to a 10 game swing from to last year, as there were plenty of games that were blown by a poor bullpen performance. A bullpen is more than just one guy, but with Taylor, Vasil, Leasure and another free agent or two, you could see the White Sox have a significantly better bullpen in just one offseason, especially now that more quality closers are hitting the open market.
The White Sox drastically improved their bullpen play from 2024 to 2025 without any major additions in the offseason. Now with plenty of good arms available, adding one or two established veterans could give them another significant boost.
While the White Sox historically do not spend much money, don’t be surprised if they give out some short term, high value contracts to relievers to shore up the biggest weakness of the team.
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