CHICAGO — The Chicago White Sox are signing a free agent outfielder, according to reports from multiple Major League Baseball insiders.
Reported by both the Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and New York Post’s Jon Heyman, the White Sox are nearing a deal to sign free agent outfielder Tommy Pham.
Pham slashed .256/.328/.446 with 16 home runs, 68 RBI’s and a 111 OPS+ split between the New York Mets and Arizona Diamondbacks last year.
Chicago’s bats have been anemic so far this season, ranking bottom three in home runs (30th), walks (30th), batting average (29th) and hits (29th).
Although no one in specific is to blame and the offense has been more so a team-wide struggle, those struggles are apparent in the outfield.
Despite having no health issues, starting left fielder Andrew Benintendi has struggled through his first 13 games of the season, slashing .140/.204/.160 with a OPS+ of 7, all-star centerfielder Luis Robert Jr. is on the injured list, and the only other outfielder on the roster with an above average OPS+ is Kevin Pillar with a 118 in ten games played.
Pham’s career OPS+ is 114.
The White Sox start a three game series at home Monday against the Kansas City Royals. First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m. Central Time.