Right-hander John Brebbia has officially joined the White Sox, as per today’s announcement. This was previously reported. A corresponding action designated Romy González, an infielder/outfielder, for assignment.
González, who is currently 27 years old, made a big splash in the major leagues in 2021. He participated in 87 Double-A and Triple-A games before the end of August. In that span, he swatted 23 home runs and drew walks in 10.6% of his plate appearances. Although his strikeout percentage of 27.8% was a bit high, he stole 22 bases and slashed.275/.357/.525 for a 141 wRC+.
As a September call-up, he was added to the 40-man roster and has since been used as an optionable depth player. Tragically, he hasn’t gotten much playing time due to injuries. Just 32 major league games and 35 minor league games were played by him in 2022. He was put on IL in early May of last year because of shoulder irritation. He came back a little more than a week later, but the same illness sent him back to the IL in mid-June, necessitating labrum surgery in August.
González’s mediocre batting line of.222/.239/361 through 86 major league games thus far. However, it’s difficult to extrapolate too much from that given his medical conditions, and the sample size is still somewhat tiny. The Sox had stated that they anticipated him to be ready for Spring Training at the time of his surgery. In addition to playing all three outfield positions and the three infield slots to the left of first base, he has also appeared on the mound.
The Sox now possess a week to either move him or let him clear waivers. He hasn’t done much in the majors so far, but when he was last healthy for a lengthy period of time, he was tearing up the minors. Maybe that, along with his defensive flexibility, might catch the attention of another team in the league. He hasn’t gone to arbitration yet and still has a few option years left.