Noah Schultz Set to Rejoin White Sox Rotation

After spending more than a month on the injured list, the Chicago White Sox are preparing to get left-handed pitcher Noah Schultz back into the starting rotation.

Schultz last pitched for the White Sox on May 24 in San Francisco before landing on the injured list with right knee patellar tendinitis, an issue that has plagued him throughout his career and affects both his release point consistency and overall effectiveness on the mound.

Knee issues were identified as the root cause of Schultz's struggles in Triple-A Charlotte during the 2025 season. But after an offseason of rehab, he entered 2026 fully healthy, and he looked the part in the early stages of the year.

Schultz allowed just two earned runs over his first 14 innings this season before getting called up by the White Sox to make his MLB debut on April 14. Four starts into his big league career, he had a 2.53 ERA with 20 strikeouts over 21.1 innings, showing the potential the White Sox had seen from him for years. But as the knee issues lingered, Schultz started to struggle in the month of May, raising his season ERA all the way to 5.82 during a stretch of four starts in which he allowed 20 hits, 19 earned runs, and 10 walks over 17.1 innings pitched.

After beginning a rehab assignment on June 16, Schultz took a little while to get back up to speed, but over his last two appearances with Charlotte, he has thrown 7.1 innings, allowing two earned runs while striking out 11.

Last Friday, Schultz stretched his outing to 74 pitches and, according to the White Sox, is now ready to return.

"He’s feeling really good and it is very likely that we activate him to start on Wednesday," White Sox manager Will Venable told reporters on Monday. Schultz was in the dugout with the team for the opening game in Baltimore. 

The White Sox had previously promoted David Sandlin for a spot start against the Kansas City Royals over the weekend, but they have since optioned Sandlin back to Triple-A and recalled left-hander Tyler Schweitzer to serve as a long relief option out of the bullpen. I'd expect Schweitzer to pitch Tuesday night if the situation calls for it in Baltimore, because he'll likely be optioned as the corresponding move on Wednesday when Schultz is activated to make the start.

He'll rejoin the starting rotation, and with any luck, he'll look more like the version of Noah Schultz we saw after his MLB debut now that his knee is feeling healthier.

There should be no doubts about Schultz's potential or his ability, and the long-term outlook remains very positive for the 22-year-old left-hander, who was recently bumped up to the No. 26 prospect in all of baseball, according to MLB Pipeline.

If he can stay healthy for the rest of the season, Schultz will be another high-upside addition to Chicago's starting rotation and could help propel the White Sox through the second half of the season in what should be a tight AL Central race.