The White Sox got a little bit of everything on Thursday: a modest MVP finish for Miguel Vargas, a fresh batch of pitching chatter, and a reminder that this time of year always seems to drag the strangest baseball memories back into view.
Vargas landed sixth in MVP voting, finishing behind unanimous winner Yordan Alvarez and five others. He appeared on 29 of 30 ballots and picked up four third-place votes, the highest total behind actual third-place finisher Bobby Witt Jr. and fourth-place Cam Schlittler, who was the unanimous AL Cy Young pick.
Pete Alonso checked in fifth thanks to his league-leading home run and RBI numbers, but Vargas edged him in WAR by the same margin in both systems, 5.3 to 5.0. Even so, the gap is small enough to shrug at, especially with the position adjustment in play for a first baseman who put together a 5-WAR season.
For the White Sox, the bigger takeaway is where Vargas finished in the franchise’s recent MVP history. It’s the club’s best showing since José Abreu won the award in 2020, and it easily tops Luis Robert Jr.’s 12th-place finish from 2023.
That finish came without any White Sox-heavy push, either. James Fegan and LaMond Pope both had Vargas seventh, while the third-place support came from national writers and AL Central beat reporters.
One of those voters, Paul Hoynes of Cleveland’s Plain Dealer, also cast a sixth-place vote for Munetaka Murakami.
The real noise around the White Sox, though, is on the pitching side, where the market is still warming up and Chicago keeps showing up in the mix. Evan Phillips was the first player to land a multi-year deal, agreeing with the Atlanta Braves on a three-year, $35 million contract, but most of the market remains in wait-and-see mode.
That hasn’t stopped the White Sox from being linked to arms, and Chris Getz has left the door open to a meaningful move.
“The greatest need in our game, but there’s opportunities out there, there’s opportunities in this free agent class, there’s going to be opportunities in trades,” Getz said. “There definitely could be opportunities that we go for a lengthier contract for a pitcher.
It hasn’t made sense for us to do that. Is now the time?
Perhaps.”
Starting pitching is the obvious target. It’s the roster’s weakest spot, and it’s also the deepest part of the free-agent pool, which makes it the most practical place for the White Sox to spend what they have available, even if that budget still trails what the bigger-market clubs can throw around.
Bruce Levine has Chicago in on Japanese pitcher Kaima Taira, who ranked 14th on FanGraphs’ top 50 free-agent list with a crowdsourced projection of three years and $48 million. Taira’s value is a little tricky to pin down from the outside because he has worked both as a starter and a reliever, and he’s listed at 5-foot-8 and 209 pounds. He has to sign by Dec. 1, or his posting window expires.
Jon Morosi also reported the White Sox among the teams asking about Dustin May, which would at least give them another possible rotation option. And in a more speculative vein, Jesse Rogers told Chuck Garfien that Chicago is talking to Nick Pivetta, though he sees Michael King as the best fit. Rogers pointed to King’s agency ties as part of that logic, since the same agency represents several White Sox players, including Murakami, Andrew Benintendi, Chase Meidroth, Kyle Teel, Mike Vasil, and Joey Bart.
Jeff Passan floated a different set of names, and then one pitcher in particular. In his view, the White Sox won’t be in on Skubal, but the market still offers plenty of choices, including King, Gray, Martinez, Pivetta, Mahle, Kaima Taira, Trevor Rogers, Clay Holmes, Kevin Gausman and Nick Pivetta. The one he singled out was Freddy Peralta, whom he described as a hard thrower who would fit a team that needs more fastball velocity.
And then there was the odd little detour that only baseball can provide. In the latest Pebble Hunting newsletter, Sam Miller revisited a play from the regular season in which Henry Davis tried to cut down a runner at second and punched Cooper Pratt in the groin on the follow-through. Miller argued that the incident might qualify as catcher’s interference, not just on that pitch but on every pitch Davis catches for the rest of his career.
That prompted a familiar White Sox memory for anyone who’s been around long enough. The answer, as the piece noted, is no - and the reason is a White Sox-specific one. Gordon Beckham getting clipped by a John Buck follow-through happened in a meaningless September 2009 game against the Royals, and the old YouTube clip still lives on because of the way Hawk Harrelson reacts as the pain unfolds.
In Other News...
Chase Meidroth Just Gave The White Sox A New Infield Debate
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What makes the debate interesting for Chicago is how much Meidroth did beyond the usual box-score impact. He turned in strong postseason numbers in the Wild Card series, set franchise marks for his work leading off games and against left-handed pitching, and led American League second basemen in several offensive categories during the 2026 season. For a club still sorting out its long-term infield picture, that kind of production only sharpens the question of where he fits best going forward. [Read more 🡒]
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Now, after his time with the Dodgers included a World Series title and more injury frustration followed, Kopech is preparing to throw for teams soon as he tries to get back into the game. The shape of that comeback is part of the intrigue, because the expectation is that he would fit best in a late-inning relief role rather than the starters job White Sox fans once hoped he could own. [Read more 🡒]
Miguel Vargas Just Put A New White Sox Offseason Question In Play
A photo of Miguel Vargas alongside free agent pitcher Freddy Peralta was enough to get White Sox fans talking, and for good reason. Chicagos recent postseason appearance has changed the way the club is viewed around the league, and that matters when a team starts thinking about how to take the next step. Even without any direct link in the rumor mill, Peralta fits the kind of arm that would instantly raise the ceiling of a rotation.
The larger question is whether the White Sox are ready to act like a team that can chase that level of pitching. Analysts have already pointed out that Chicagos improved standing as a free agent destination could open doors this winter, and a pitcher of Peraltas caliber would be the kind of swing that signals real ambition. For now, the photo is only a spark, but it has already put a new offseason possibility on the table. [Read more 🡒]