The White Sox made their latest roster shuffle with a familiar name from last winter’s Garrett Crochet trade heading out the door. Right-hander Wikelman Gonzalez was designated for assignment as Chicago cleared space for pitching prospects Hagen Smith and Tanner McDougal to join the 26-man roster and created a 40-man spot for Smith’s contract to be selected.
Gonzalez arrived in Chicago as one of the four prospects the Red Sox sent over in the December 2024 deal for Crochet. Kyle Teel and Braden Montgomery got most of the attention from that return, while Chase Meidroth moved quickly into an infield role.
Gonzalez, though, put together a solid first taste of the majors in 2025, working 20 1/3 relief innings with a 2.66 ERA and a 28.7% strikeout rate. The tradeoff was a 13.8% walk rate that showed up in the margins.
That big league stint is still his only one. Gonzalez has spent all of 2026 in Triple-A Charlotte, though about two months of that time came on the injured list.
Across 30 innings at three different affiliates, he has a 6.60 ERA. Since coming back from the IL, the numbers have gotten rougher: an 11.81 ERA in 10 2/3 innings, with multiple runs allowed in each of his last four outings.
Even with the shaky results, the strikeout stuff has still been there. Gonzalez is sitting on a 30% strikeout rate this season, and his walk rate has come down to 11.4%. Still, the White Sox chose to move on now, a surprising call given his age and major league experience, even if the recent struggles made him easier to squeeze off the roster.
Because this is Gonzalez’s first DFA, he cannot turn down an outright assignment if he clears waivers. That part is still to be determined.
A 24-year-old with MLB experience and a minor league option remaining could draw interest, especially from a team with room on its 40-man roster. If someone does take the shot, it would be a chance to see whether there is a fix for the current problems, whether an injury is still in the picture, or whether the command issues can be cleaned up over time.
In Other News...
White Sox Made A Telling Cut From The Garrett Crochet Trade
The White Sox kept reshaping the edges of their pitching picture this week, sending Noah Schultz, David Sandlin and Wikelman Gonzlez to Triple-A Charlotte while promoting Hagen Smith and Tanner McDougal to the major league roster. The moves underline how aggressively Chicago is sorting through its young arms as it tries to build something sturdier on the mound, with the organization continuing to cycle prospects between levels as roles start to take shape.
Gonzlezs spot in that picture had already been shaky after arriving from Boston in the Garrett Crochet trade, a move that was supposed to help define part of the White Soxs next wave. Injuries and uneven performance have made that path harder to follow, and his latest reset suggests Chicago sees the trades return as leaning heavily toward other arms instead, even if the full answer on what the deal ultimately becomes is still unfolding. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Outfield Debate Just Got Even Harder To Ignore
The White Sox have spent much of the 2025 season sorting through their outfield in a way that has made stability feel like a moving target. Between trades, designations for assignment and a few position shifts, the group has been reshaped enough times that the lineup card itself has become part of the discussion, with several players still in the mix and platoon usage looking like a real possibility.
Brenton Doyles arrival only added another layer to the puzzle, because the club now has to decide how much playing time belongs to whom and where the clearest fit actually is. With multiple outfielders contributing and the roster continuing to evolve, the immediate question is less about whether Chicago has options and more about which combination finally gives the White Sox something closer to a settled plan. [Read more 🡒]
White Sox Prospects Are Starting To Separate Themselves Early
The early months of the minor league season have already started to reveal which White Sox prospects are making noise and which ones still have work to do. Recent game results have given Chicago a fresh look at several names in the system, while scouting notes on Roch Cholowsky and Alex Weingartner added another layer to the evaluation process. Even the weather has been part of the backdrop, with Winston-Salems game against Asheville wiped out by rain.
Weingartners profile is especially interesting because the physical tools are obvious, and so is the challenge of turning them into dependable production in center field. Cholowsky also continues to be part of the conversation as the White Sox sort through a crowded group of young players trying to separate themselves from the pack. For a farm system that needs impact talent to keep rising, these early snapshots matter because they can hint at who is starting to pull ahead and who still has to prove it. [Read more 🡒]