Two Top Pitching Prospects Included in White Sox' Long List of Roster Cuts

With Opening Day a little over two weeks away, the Chicago White Sox have started to make the tough decisions.

The organization announced its first wave of spring training roster cuts shortly after its 6-0 victory over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday. To very little surprise, they started heavy with the pitching staff, moving a handful of arms to minor league camps.

This long list included Mason Adams, Adisyn Coffey, Tyler Davis, Zach Franklin, Jairo Iriarte, and Shane Murphy. Joining them among the position players were infielders Tim Elko and Jacob Gonzalez, as well as catcher Michael Turner. Additionally, Duncan Davitt was assigned to Triple-A Charlotte.

None of those initial moves should catch anyone off guard. The 27-year-old Elko did appear in 23 games for Chicago last season, but he didn't give manager Will Venable much reason to believe he would push for a roster spot this season. As for guys like Murphy and Gonzalez, they do rank inside MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Sox prospects; however, neither is positioned for a big league call-up this season.

Of those involved in the first wave, the main player to keep an eye on for a potential trip to the bigs would probably be Zach Franklin. He finished last year in Charlotte and pitched decently well over his 13 appearances. Overall, the righty had a 2.40 ERA between both Double-A and Triple-A, and he has the potential to be a solid late reliever or closer at the next level.

Two Big-Name Prospects Part of White Sox Cuts

Feb 26, 2025; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Chicago White Sox pitcher Noah Schultz (76) throws the first pitches of his major league career during the fifth inning of a spring training game against the San Diego Padres at Camelback Ranch. Mandatory Credit: Allan Henry-Imagn Images | Allan Henry-Imagn Images

Fast forward to Saturday afternoon, and the White Sox made two more cuts that featured far more prominent names. Tanner McDougal was immediately sent to Triple-A, while Noah Schultz was re-assigned to minor league camp. Both pitchers are currently Top 6 in the franchise's system, and the expectation is that each could earn a spot at The Rate sooner rather than later.

To be clear, both came into camp knowing that a trip back down was likely in their future. The Sox have continued to take things slow with both, especially after some 2025 struggles. Nevertheless, aside from Hagen Smith, there are arguably no two pitching prospects for fans to be more excited about. Both have top-of-the-rotation upside with a fastball that creeps close to triple-digits.

McDougal is the slightly more polished thrower, as he pairs his wicked fastball with an absolutely nasty curve. He will have to limit his walks in the minors before finally hearing his name called, but the potential for tons of swings and misses is easy to see. Venable got him plenty of work in Arizona, and the results were pretty solid. While he may have let up 7 hits in his eight innings of action, he also struck out seven batters and only let up 2 runs. A good couple of weeks in the East Coast should be all he needs to lock in his MLB debut.

Schultz will likely need a little more time, but his upside remains the highest. The six-foot-ten athletic southpaw can be ridiculously deceptive with both his heater and highly-graded slider. Staying healthy has been his biggest problem, and this seemingly played a role in a career-high walk rate during his 2025 campaign.

The Sox also chose to take things slow with Schultz this spring, only having him throw for 4.1 innings in recent days. During that time, however, he looked pretty good with five strikeouts. It's only a matter of time before he is also moving up to the bigs, though the Sox will likely want to see a little more consistency in Charlotte before pulling the trigger.

Overall, the White Sox now sit at 55 players on the active spring training roster. Get ready for many more cuts!