The White Sox have acquired left-hander Tyler Gilbert from the Phillies, per an announcement from Philadelphia. Chicago despatched right-hander Aaron Combs again to the Phillies in alternate for Gilbert’s companies. Gilbert had been designated for project by the Phillies previous to the vacations. The White Sox designated infielder Braden Shewmake for project to make room for Gilbert on their 40-man roster.
Gilbert, 31, pitched simply 8 1/3 innings for the Phillies this 12 months after signing a minor league cope with the Reds final winter and being traded to Philadelphia again in Might. A sixth-round decide by the Phillies again in 2015, he was surrendered to Arizona within the minor league part of the Rule 5 draft and made his huge league debut as a Diamondback throughout the 2021 season. The lefty had a reasonably spectacular rookie season, as he posted a 3.15 ERA (135 ERA+) with a 4.27 FIP in 40 innings of labor for the Snakes unfold between six begins and three aid appearances. The spotlight of his rookie marketing campaign (and of his profession so far) was a no-hitter in his first profession MLB begin, the place he struck out 5 Padres whereas strolling three over his 9 hitless innings of labor.
Sadly, Gilbert’s subsequent two seasons within the desert didn’t go fairly as nicely. He struggled to a 5.23 ERA with a 5.10 FIP in 51 2/3 innings of labor between 2022 and ’23, with a paltry 17.9% strikeout fee and a penchant for permitting residence runs being the principle culprits of the lefty’s difficulties. These difficulties led to Gilbert being outrighted off the membership’s roster following the 2023 season, which led to him electing free company and signing that aforementioned minor league deal in Cincinnati. After rejoining the Phillies, Gilbert posted a stable sufficient 3.24 ERA in 8 1/3 innings of labor on the huge league stage and paired that with a wonderful run of outings at Triple-A, the place he pitched to a 2.25 ERA in 40 frames throughout 31 appearances for the membership’s LeHigh Valley affiliate. Spectacular as these minor league numbers had been, nevertheless, Gilbert discovered himself squeezed off the membership’s 40-man roster simply earlier than the vacations as a result of Jesús Luzardo commerce.
Now that he’s in Chicago, Gilbert may discover himself within the combine for begins on the huge league stage in what figures to be a reasonably wide-open competitors for begins on the south facet. Jonathan Cannon, Bryse Wilson, and Drew Thorpe all appear prone to be a part of the membership’s Opening Day rotation if wholesome, however past that trio quite a lot of doable choices exist together with Davis Martin, Sean Burke, Jake Eder, Ky Bush, and Nick Nastrini. If Gilbert doesn’t make the membership’s rotation, it’s to think about him offering left-handed aid depth alongside Jared Shuster and Cam Booser for the membership this 12 months.
In return for Gilbert’s companies, the Phillies add a right-handed minor leaguer in Combs. The White Sox’ eighth rounder within the 2024 draft, Combs has simply 7 2/3 innings of labor on the minor league stage below his belt however struck out a formidable 39.4% of opponents on the Single-A stage in his professional debut down the stretch final 12 months. Previous to being drafted, Combs posted a 3.24 ERA in 66 2/3 innings of labor pitching within the SEC. The teenager simply turned 23 final week and is hardly a positive guess to affect the membership in 2025, however the spectacular stuff he flashed final season may carry him by means of the minors pretty shortly.
In an effort to match Gilbert on their roster, the White Sox half methods with Shewmake. The 27-year-old was a first-round decide by the Braves in 2019 and ultimately made his huge league debut with the membership in 2023, although that cup of espresso lasted simply two video games and ended earlier than Shewmake recorded his first huge league hit. He was shipped to Chicago final winter as a part of the commerce that introduced Aaron Bummer to Atlanta, however handled accidents throughout his first 12 months in Chicago and was restricted to simply 39 video games between Triple-A and the majors. These video games didn’t go particularly nicely, as he posted a .152/.152/.182 slash line in ten minor league video games. That’s roughly in keeping with what he did within the majors, as nicely: in 67 journeys to the plate, Shewmake hit simply .125/.134/.203 (-15 wRC+). The White Sox can have one week to waive or commerce Shewmake, and if he clears waivers efficiently they’ll have the chance to outright him to the minors as non-roster depth for the approaching season.
