Jesse Scholtens’ Injury Could Open Roster Spot for White Sox

The White Sox 40-man roster is currently full, so tough roster decisions will have to be made if they want to make any more additions before Spring Training. However, the team could be granted some added flexibility in the coming days.

The 60-day injured list is removed five days after the World Series but returns when pitchers and catchers report for spring training. White Sox pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to Spring Training on February 12 and when they do Jesse Scholtens is expected to be transferred to the 60-day IL. The 30-year-old right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery on March 1st, forcing him to miss the entire 2024 season. The recovery time for Tommy John surgery varies by pitcher, but it typically lasts 12 to 18 months.

The White Sox will need to see how Scholtens has progressed before placing him on the 60-day IL. However, considering he has a career 5.29 ERA and isn’t expected to be a part of the starting rotation, there is no reason to rush him back. Scholtens’s role on the team is going to be as an innings-eater, meaning the White Sox are going to need him at full strength. In the minor leagues, he strung together four consecutive seasons of making 20-plus starts.

During his debut season, he made 26 appearances for the South Siders. Then manager Pedro Grifol gave him the ball 11 times as a starter. He went 0-6 with a 5.87 ER and 38 strikeouts as a starter and 1-3 with a 4.31 ERA, 20 strikeouts, and a save as a reliever. 

The White Sox have plenty of players who could fill the inning eater’s role this season such as Bryse Wilson, Tyler Gilbert, or Jared Shuster, so even if the White Sox did not want to place Scholten on the 60-day IL and needed the roster space they could just DFA him.

However, Scholtens hasn’t had much of a sample size in the MLB with just 85 career innings under his belt. The right-hander has certainly shown flashes of potential. In 2021, he became the first right-hander in El Paso Chihuahuas history—the Padres’ Triple-A affiliate—to record over 100 strikeouts while maintaining a strikeout rate above 9.0 per nine innings. The White Sox can give him a fair shake by placing him on the 60-day IL while also giving them another opportunity to add to their 40-man roster.