Jarred Kelenic surprisingly misses the Opening Day roster, clearing the path for Derek Hill and Everson Pereira as backup outfielders.
One of the biggest question marks heading into the regular season was which Chicago White Sox outfielders would make the Opening Day roster.
Well, things just got a whole lot clearer.
The White Sox officially informed outfielder Jarred Kelenic that he would not make the Opening Day roster on Friday. Kelenic signed with the South Siders in mid-January with a non-roster invite to Spring Training.
However, there were plenty of ups and downs with Kelenic this spring. He only hit .179 with a .632 OPS, two home runs, five RBI, and two stolen bases across his first 14 Spring Training games. Those numbers simply didn’t cut it for the White Sox.
While Kelenic did have a solid 15.4% barrel rate and a 57.7% hard-hit rate, he didn’t show enough offense at the plate in his 36 at-bats. There were some major question marks about both his plate discipline and overall bat.
The former top prospect started the spring with a 34.9% chase rate, a 29.3% strikeout rate, a 28.7% whiff rate, a 78% zone-contact rate, and only a 2.5% pull air rate. At the end of the day, those metrics are too hard to ignore.
With Kelenic not making the White Sox’s Opening Day roster, the backup outfield battle is basically decided. It appears that both Derek Hill and Everson Pereira will make the roster out of camp.
Both Hill and Pereira were fighting with Kelenic for one of the final two bench spots. While the White Sox have not confirmed whether Hill or Pereira has made the team, all signs are pointing to that happening.
Hill and Pereira would be the fourth and fifth outfielders on the Opening Day roster, joining Andrew Benintendi, Luisangel Acuña, and Austin Hays. Those two are expected to start the season in more of a bench role.
Hill has definitely done enough good things this spring to make the Opening Day roster. He is batting .295 with a .925 OPS, one home run, three RBI, and one stolen base across 16 games. The 30-year-old also has a 12.8% walk rate and an 11.4% swinging-strike rate so far.
On the other hand, Pereira hasn’t had the best spring. He is batting .222 with a .777 OPS, one home run, one RBI, and one stolen base across 18 plate appearances. But it’s almost a lock that he will make the White Sox’s Opening Day roster.
Pereira is already on the 40-man roster and does not have any Minor League options remaining. So, if the 24-year-old does not make the Opening Day roster, the White Sox would have to designate him for assignment.
Chicago can’t afford to lose a player with his offensive upside and youth. It’s unlikely that Pereira would clear waivers in the event that the White Sox decide to designate him for assignment.
That’s why it’s almost settled that Hill and Pereira will be the backfield outfielders for the White Sox to start the 2026 season.