Chicago White Sox to sign former top prospect of the Houston Astros

The Chicago White Sox have made it their mission this offseason to find reclamation projects and guys seeking one-year deals to use as trade bait for their rebuild.

The White Sox have made a ton of those minor moves all offseason, mixing in some big slashes here and there, like signing infielder Josh Rojas.

That trend appears to be continuing with the White Sox looking to sign another former top prospect, this time with Joe Pérez, formerly of the Houston Astros.

The once former top prospect

The now 25-year-old Pérez was drafted by the Astros in the second round of the 2017 MLB June Amateur Draft. Pérez has spent his whole career so far in the minor leagues with both the Astros and the Pittsburgh Pirates. Pérez did appear in just one game for the Astros, in which he had one plate appearance where he struck out. In August of 2023, the Astros designated Pérez for assignment and then later released him, where he then signed a minor league deal with the Pirates.

For his minor league career as a hitter, Pérez was decent, with a career slash line of .264/.336/.431 for an OPS of .767. Respectable in six seasons down on the farm, but just never good enough to stay up or get a real chance in the big leagues as a hitter.

The Chicago White Sox to sign Pérez as a pitcher

Sources: Cuban-American IF/OF Joe Pérez, a once heralded Astros prospect, is looking to return to the MLB system as a pitcher. He is expected to sign with the White Sox soon. Perez (25) was originally taken by Houston in the second round of the 2017 draft. pic.twitter.com/fke2Hy8y9s

— Javier Gonzalez (@Astros_Coverage) January 17, 2025

According to Javier Gonzalez, beat writer for the Astros and member of the BBWA, he tweeted that the White Sox were expected to sign Pérez as a pitcher instead of a hitter. Gonzalez said on X:

“Sources: Cuban-American IF/OF Joe Pérez, a once heralded Astros prospect, is looking to return to the MLB system as a pitcher. He is expected to sign with the White Sox soon. Perez (25) was originally taken by Houston in the second round of the 2017 draft.”

The White Sox currently have a ton of pretty talented pitching prospects ahead of Pérez on their depth chart, so he has his work cut out for him. We shall see what the Pembroke Pines, Florida, native can bring to the White Sox. They could look to possibly use Pérez as a two-way player, given he has decent skills at the plate still. If he can show he can throw strikes and get hitters out and possibly be a bat off the bench here and there, he could be a potential weapon for the White Sox.