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White Sox sign right-hander Keenan Middleton to a minor league deal, according to his transaction tracker for MLB.com. He will probably receive an invitation to major league spring training.
Middleton, 29, was drafted by the Angels and spent the first few seasons of his career there. He seems to have established himself as a quality reliever option in his 2017 and his 2018, and in this 2 of his seasons he appeared in 80 games and his earned run average was was 3.43. Unfortunately, he required Tommy John surgery midway through the latter campaign and was out of action for over a year.
The right-hander returned to the mound in late 2019, but has struggled in recent years. He appeared in 13 games in his shortened 2020 season, but his ERA was 5.25. The Angels didn’t bid on him after that, but he got his 2021 major league contract from the Mariners. The change in circumstances didn’t help much, and the right-hander appeared in 32 games that season, posting a 4.94 ERA.
After several rough seasons, Middleton had to settle a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks for 2022. He pitched enough minors in his league to return to his league in the majors, but in Arizona he appeared in 18 games and had an ERA of 5.29. He reduced his walk rate to 4.3% after being much higher in the previous campaign, but his strikeout and ground ball rates were both subpar. He also allowed five home runs in that short amount of time, matching his previous four seasons combined total. He was cut from the roster in November and became a free agent again.
Middleton is about to get back on track after a rough few years. Despite some poor results, he averaged over 95 mph on his fastball, placing him in his 74th percentile of eligible pitchers, according to Statcast. If he can figure out how to get back on the club’s roster, he can’t be selected as a minor without his consent.
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