White Sox Acquire Trevor Richards
The White Sox have acquired right-hander Trevor Richards from the Phillies in alternate for money concerns, in response to bulletins from each golf equipment. Chicago has transferred right-hander Drew Thorpe to the 60-day injured listing to open a 40-man spot. A corresponding lively roster transfer shall be required as soon as Richards reviews to the Sox.
The Phillies have had numerous bullpen accidents up to now few weeks. Closer Jhoan Duran hit the injured listing with an indirect pressure, whereas Zach Pop and Kyle Backhus additionally landed on the shelf. Duran was set to be reinstated tonight and Matt Gelb of The Athletic reported that Richards can be got rid of the roster for the nearer. He is a veteran with not less than 5 years of service time and due to this fact can’t be optioned to the minors with out his consent. But as an alternative of designating Richards for task, the Phils have discovered a commerce accomplice and flipped Richards to Chicago.
Presumably, the Sox have an interest within the latest type Richards flashed within the minors. The Phils signed him to a minor league deal within the offseason and began him at Triple-A this 12 months. He bought out to an incredible begin. He confronted 50 batters and struck out 26 of them, at an enormous 52% fee. He solely issued three walks, at 6% clip. All that resulted in a 1.93 earned run common in 14 innings.
The Phils referred to as Richards as much as the massive leagues every week in the past when Backhus hit the IL. Between that promotion and at this time’s commerce, he made two appearances for the Phils. He allowed one earned run over 4 1/3 innings, putting out 5 whereas issuing three walks.
Richards has proven flashes of potential within the massive leagues earlier than, as he is been in a position to strike guys out however has additionally struggled with command. From 2021 to 2023, largely with the Blue Jays, I’ve logged 201 innings. His 31.3% strikeout fee was significantly better than league common, which is normally round 22 to 23%. But he additionally gave out walks at a ten.9% clip, about two ticks north of par. The finish outcome was a 4.61 ERA for that span.
The management issues bought even worse for him late in 2024. The Jays flipped him to the Twins on the deadline that 12 months however Minnesota launched him earlier than the month of August was performed. He confronted 59 batters as a Twin and gave out 11 walks, an 18.6% clip. He additionally hit two batters and threw seven wild pitches.
Since then, he has solely been briefly within the majors. He made 5 appearances final 12 months, three for the Royals and two for the Diamondbacks. As talked about, he needed to accept a minor league cope with the Phils coming into 2026. The White Sox will see if Richards can maintain any of the thrilling numbers he confirmed in Triple-A to begin this 12 months.
As for Thorpe, he had Tommy John surgical procedure in March of 2025. His 60-day depend is retroactive to the start of the season, so he’ll be eligible for reinstatement in just a few weeks. His present timeline is unclear however he hasn’t but begun a rehab task, so it would not seem as these he is near a return.
Photo courtesy of Morgan Tencza, Imagn Images
