White Sox Should Stay Away From One of MLB's Top Free Agents

One of the more recent free agency updates has made one of the top pitchers on the market an even less sensible target for the Chicago White Sox.

Left-handed pitcher Adrian Morejon, previously of the San Diego Padres, will be one of the more intriguing names to watch this winter.

Morejon is 27 years old and has made a name for himself in Major League Baseball as a lights-out setup man for the Padres over the last three seasons. Since the start of 2024, he's 25-11 with a 2.58 ERA over 211 appearances. In 2026, he was among the best pitchers in baseball in nearly every advanced metric, setting up Mason Miller and creating a shutdown back end of the bullpen for the Padres.

Morejon is left-handed, he's as reliable as it gets out of the bullpen, and he's capable of pitching multiple innings when necessary. That could fit a White Sox roster need now that left-handed pitcher Sean Newcomb is hitting free agency, leaving that role vacant in Chicago's bullpen. Should the White Sox consider moving closer Grant Taylor into the starting rotation, something that's been discussed for years now, it could leave an opening for Chicago to invest in a high-leverage relief pitcher who's left-handed and versatile.

But the more information we get about Morejon and his free agency, the clearer it becomes that the White Sox won't be involved here.

For starters, there's the $23.15 million qualifying offer issued to Morejon by the Padres. That's a one-year deal to return for 2027 should his market not be filled with long-term contract offers. It also means any team signing Morejon would face a penalty. In the White Sox case, they'd give up their second-highest selection in the 2027 MLB Draft. It also raises the market price for Morejon's services to a level I don't believe the White Sox will be comfortable with.

In order for him to pass up a chance at $23.15 million, he'd likely need to receive a multi-year deal with an annual salary in that same ballpark.

As if that weren't enough, Morejon may also be making a transition to the starting rotation.

There's been a lot of talk about his desire to become a starting pitcher and get paid like a starting pitcher. And according to Mike Axisa of CBS Sports, there are multiple teams that would be willing to give him that opportunity in 2027.

Now I know what you're thinking. If Morejon is moving to a starting role, doesn't that make the White Sox a better landing spot for him? Chicago needs starting pitching.

Yes and no. While the White Sox need starting pitching and would likely be more interested in entertaining a lucrative deal for Adrian Morejon with the idea that he'd be in their starting rotation, I think it's the opposite of what they need from a rotation standpoint.

The White Sox don't need to sign starting pitchers because they lack young pitching with upside. If the organization wanted to gamble in the rotation, they'd just stick with talented young arms like David Sandlin, Noah Schultz, and Hagen Smith. They'd move Grant Taylor to the rotation to see if he can make the transition. The White Sox need starting rotation help because they need pitchers they can reliably trust to handle the workload of a full season and anchor their rotation in a playoff series.

Sean Burke had nobody to help him in the 2026 ALDS, and that needs to change.

While Morejon is a very talented pitcher and could very well become a dominant frontline starting pitcher with his new team once he signs in free agency, his career high in innings pitched is 86, which came last year. If he's a member of someone's starting rotation in 2027, there's a significant risk that he'll experience fatigue or be unavailable toward the end of the regular season as he builds up his arm.

Add in the lack of security that comes with any pitcher making such a sharp transition, and Morejon just isn't the reliable rotation arm the White Sox need him to be.

While he's one of the most talented pitchers on the free agent market, I don't see the White Sox being a contender to sign him at all.