Fastball

Chicago White Sox' Starter on Track to Make Unfortunate Baseball History in 2024

After getting traded to the Chicago White Sox this offseason, Mike Soroka was supposed to jumpstart his career again. Thus far, it hasn't gotten the way he wanted, and he's on track to make some unfortunate baseball history.

Brady Farkas

Apr 25, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Michael Soroka (40)
Apr 25, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Michael Soroka (40) / Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports
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When Michael Soroka was traded from the Atlanta Braves to the Chicago White Sox this offseason, it was supposed to be a career re-start for him.

Instead, it's turned into a nightmare, as the righty is 0-3 with a 6.48 ERA on the South Side. He's also currently on pace to make some unfortunate baseball history.

Per @JayHayKid of the 'Baseball is Dead' podcast:

Michael Soroka's current K-BB% of -2.0% (a 10.6% K rate and a 12.6% BB rate) would be the worst by a qualified SP in a single season since Mike Hampton in 2002 (-2.0%).

Soroka is still only 26-years-old, so there is time to rectify things but this season has been the continuation of a rough stretch for the Canadian.

Soroka made his debut in 2018 with the Braves and then promptly went 13-4 and made the All-Star team for Atlanta at the age of 21. However, multiple injuries to his Achilles' knocked him out of action for all but three starts in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, and caused him to miss all of 2021 and 2022.

Soroka is a free agent after the season, so the White Sox have a few different options on the table. They can eventually remove him from the rotation because they aren't committed to him long-term, they could elect to let him keep starting in the hopes he figures it out and becomes a trade piece, or they could see if he figures it out so they can potentially bring him back next year.

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Brady Farkas

BRADY FARKAS

Brady Farkas is a baseball writer for Fastball on Sports Illustrated/FanNation and the host of 'The Payoff Pitch' podcast which can be found on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. Videos on baseball also posted to YouTube. Brady has spent nearly a decade in sports talk radio and is a graduate of Oswego State University. You can follow him on Twitter @WDEVRadioBrady.