The Chicago White Sox signed veteran catcher Eric Haase to a minor league contract as they continue searching for help behind the plate.
The Chicago White Sox need a catcher. That much we already know. What remains unclear is whether the White Sox will be able to swing a trade for a meaningful addition before the deadline, as well as what tier of catcher Chicago will target.
Reports have indicated that White Sox GM Chris Getz has been “working hard” to find a trade partner. But in the meantime, Chicago added a catcher through free agency.
On Tuesday, the White Sox agreed to terms on a minor league contract with veteran catcher Eric Haase. Haase, 33, was assigned to Triple-A Charlotte but was not in the lineup for the Knights in Nashville after officially being added to the roster.
Haase was with the San Francisco Giants earlier this season, playing in 29 games and hitting four home runs with a .599 OPS before being designated for assignment and released last week.
Haase debuted with the Cleveland Guardians back in 2018 but broke out in Major League Baseball with the 2021 Detroit Tigers, when he hit 22 home runs and posted a .745 OPS.
After a strong showing as a reserve for the 2024 Milwaukee Brewers, Haase fell off dramatically in 2025 and 2026. He did begin this season with a 1.000 OPS through his first 14 appearances, a stretch that spanned more than a month. But he finished his tenure with the Giants in a 1-for-35 slump.
Haase chases a lot, and he swings and misses a lot, though he does have a good bit of raw power when he squares up the baseball. The question White Sox fans will ask is what he can provide defensively. Haase might be right in line with what the White Sox have gotten from their other catchers offensively, but can he provide an upgrade for Chicago behind the plate?
The simple answer is yes, probably. Haase has a pop time that ranks in the 90th percentile among catchers. His pitch framing is average, and he has been relatively good with the ABS challenge system despite a limited sample size behind the plate. He is a surprisingly athletic catcher and has graded close to an average defender in each of the last few seasons.
It is still unclear whether the White Sox have any plans to give Haase a chance at the MLB level, but any White Sox fan who has watched Edgar Quero recently knows that it probably could not hurt to get a fresh face at the catcher position.
It is not the upgrade White Sox fans have been looking for, but it definitely shows the organization’s intent to change things up as the trade deadline approaches.
