The White Sox are promoting 25-year-old Japanese-born utility man Rikuu Nishida to make his MLB debut after a dominant stretch in Triple-A Charlotte and a surprising roster move involving Jarred Kelenic.
After an ugly West Coast road trip, the Chicago White Sox need to make some roster changes. And on Monday, they'll turn to 25-year-old Rikuu Nishida to help the position player depth.
Nishida is a Japanese-born utility man who came over to the United States and played college baseball at the University of Oregon before being drafted by the White Sox in the 11th round of the 2023 MLB Draft.
He's now been in the organization for four seasons, and while he doesn't bring much power to the table, his ability to get on base is the calling card of his game.
Nishida opened the 2026 season in Double-A Birmingham before earning a promotion to Triple-A Charlotte at the end of April. In 33 games with Charlotte this season, he's batting .347 with a .849 OPS and a .454 on-base percentage.
Since the start of 2024, Nishida has had an on-base percentage above .400 at every level in every partial season he's played.
Nishida is also a threat on the bases, with 49 stolen bases in 2024, 40 stolen bases in 2025, and 15 so far in 2026 in only 44 games played.
Defensively, he's spent the majority of his innings this season at second base, but he's also played a good amount of right field and was primarily used as an outfielder in Birmingham during the 2025 season.
I'd imagine whatever at-bats Nishida gets with the White Sox will come as an outfielder against right-handed pitching. He's batting .352 with a .907 OPS against righties this season and has traditionally been used as a platoon bat, even in the minor leagues. Not to mention the corresponding move the White Sox made.
Chicago decided to designate outfielder Jarred Kelenic for assignment while bringing up Nishida. It's a bit of a surprising move, mostly because Nishida felt like a one-for-one swap for Luisangel Acuña given the similarities in their roles.
Kelenic simply found himself on the outside looking in after producing middling offensive results. I still think Acuña will be the corresponding move once Austin Hays returns from the injured list, which should happen within the next few days.
Nishida will make his MLB debut in right field for Chicago on Monday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m., with Nishida batting ninth for the White Sox against the Minnesota Twins.
If Nishida is able to get on base and turn the lineup over with regularity, he should do a good job being a second table setter in front of Sam Antonacci with the big power trio of Munetaka Murakami, Miguel Vargas, and Colson Montgomery following them in the order.
