The White Sox and Tommy Pham are close to an agreement on a minor league deal, The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal reports. The non-guaranteed deal is something of a technicality, as since Pham will need some time to properly ramp up to the regular season, starting him in the minors gives the White Sox more flexibility to call him up whenever he is ready, since Pham is out of minor league options.
The Padres, Pirates, and Diamondbacks were all linked to Pham at various points during the offseason, and 10 teams reportedly checked in on the veteran outfielder early in November. The White Sox were also known to be interested in Pham’s services, as USA Today’s Bob Nightengale first noted just under a month ago. However, Opening Day came and went without Pham finding a new contract, and Rosenthal notes that Chicago might have been motivated to finally close a deal after losing Eloy Jimenez, Yoan Moncada, and Luis Robert Jr. to the injured list.
More to come…