McDougal’s Debut Sparks Buzz: Is Relief Role Fast Track To The Majors?
White Sox right-hander Tanner McDougal made his first MLB Spring Training appearance over the weekend, and the 22-year-old did not disappoint.
McDougal took the mound in the eighth inning of Sunday’s game against the Brewers at Camelback Ranch, tasked with protecting a two-run lead. He proceeded to fire two dominant, scoreless innings, allowing just one hit while striking out two en route to recording a save.
What stood out most was his fastball, which touched triple digits multiple times. His 15 heaters averaged 99.5 mph, an eye-opening early statement. After some lingering concerns about his command, McDougal came out and attacked hitters aggressively, throwing 17 of his 28 pitches for strikes, primarily with challenging hitters with fastballs and sweepers.
While he turned to his curveball and slider four times, he made it count. One of the three curveballs he mixed in was particularly filthy, freezing the hitter for a backwards K to record the second out of the ninth inning.
It’s still early in Spring Training, but Tanner McDougal already looks like a pitcher who could make an immediate impact in the White Sox bullpen.
Many evaluators see him as a future mid-rotation starter, and that long-term role remains very much in play. White Sox manager Will Venable has called the idea of the 6-foot-5 McDougal in the rotation “really attractive.” In the short term, though, a relief role might be the smarter path to the majors.
Lighting up the radar gun in your first bullpen appearance in February is one thing. Sustaining that over a 162-game season is another. McDougal has spent most of his minor-league career as a starter, but breaking into the big leagues as a reliever could ease the transition, giving him the freedom to unleash his high-octane fastball without worrying about pitch counts or deep outings.
To stick as a starter, McDougal will need to prove he can consistently throw strikes. He made real progress in that area last season. After averaging more than five walks per nine innings in 2024, he cut that rate to 3.89 in 2025.
There’s no doubt his stuff is major-league caliber. In High-A last year, McDougal posted a 3.28 ERA over 57⅔ innings with 73 strikeouts. After his promotion to Double-A, he was even sharper, logging 55⅔ innings across 15 starts with a 3.23 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, and 63 strikeouts.
Chris Getz has loaded up the bullpen with plenty of relief options, so cracking the Opening Day roster won’t be easy for the Las Vegas native. Even if he doesn’t break camp with the big-league club, a strong case can be made for starting him in Triple-A. A few starts there would build arm strength and give him valuable innings before a midseason call-up, where he could ease into big-league hitters out of the bullpen in the second half.
The White Sox have successfully transitioned relievers into starters in the past, the most recent example being Garrett Crochet. McDougal’s raw tools and improving command make him a candidate for a similar path if the organization decides to go that route down the line.