Chicago White Sox Reportedly Decline Club Option on Third Baseman Yoan Moncada

Yoan Moncada, who spent most of the 2024 season on the injured list, will become a free agent after failing to live up to his massive contract with the Chiacgo White Sox.

Mar 30, 2024; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago White Sox third baseman Yoan Moncada (10) singles against the Detroit Tigers during the first inning at Guaranteed Rate Field. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

As a new era of Chicago White Sox baseball gets underway, the front office has opted to leave one of their faces of the franchise in the rear-view mirror.

The White Sox did not exercises their $25 million club option on third baseman Yoan Moncada, Francys Romero reported Thursday afternoon. Moncada, who is now due a $5 million buyout, will now become a free agent and can sign with another team as soon as Nov. 4.

Moncada inked a five-year, $70 million contract extension with the White Sox following the 2019 season. 

In an expected move, the White Sox did not exercise Yoan Moncada's $25M option, per sources.

Moncada will receive a $5M buyout and become a free agent.

— Francys Romero (@francysromeroFR) October 31, 2024

The 29-year-old infielder was once considered to be a keystone member of the White Sox’s core, considering he was the headling piece they got back when they traded ace Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox in 2016. Moncada soon became a consensus top-five prospect in baseball.

Moncada hit .315 with 25 home runs, 79 RBI, a .915 OPS and a 5.2 WAR in 2019, finishing 21st AL MVP voting. But instead of continuing to live up to the hype, that’s where Moncada peaked.

Since signing his extension, Moncada has averaged 17 home runs, 71 RBI and a 2.6 WAR, all whiel batting .244 with a .721 OPS.

That decline also lined up with Moncada’s inability to stay on the field. After playing in 86.1% of the White Sox's games from 2017 to 2021, he has appeared in just 42.8% of their games since.

This past season, Moncada was limited to 12 games due to a left adductor strain. He was healthy enough to return for one big league at-bat in September, but that was all he could contribute down the stretch.

It’s not as if the White Sox would have been much better with Moncada, considering they posted a historically poor 41-121 record. They fired manager Pedro Grifol in August, and have since replaced him with Texas Rangers associate manager Will Venable.

Moncada is not going to be a part of Venable’s lineup come 2025, unless Chicago decides to welcome him back on a more team-friendly, prove-it deal.

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