Brad Keller's run in the White Sox rotation was short and ended gruesomely in The Bronx.
Right after taking Michael Soroka's spot in the rotation earlier this week, multiple sources say Keller was designated for assignment Sunday after the Sox were swept by the Yankees this weekend.
Reliever Dominic Leone, first eligible to come off the injured list on Monday, is confirmed to be the corresponding move. Because the Sox will not need to fill Keller's vacated rotation spot until they return home for a four-game set against the Orioles, they have yet to announce a replacement.
It's a quick hook for Keller, after he was roughed up for four home runs in as many innings on Saturday in New York, spiking his ERA to 4.86 in 16 2/3 frames. His best years overlapped with Pedro Grifol in Kansas City, who spoke highly of his progression throughout in spring training. For a team expected to sell at the deadline, Keller initially appeared as usable and versatile depth who could move back and forth between the back of the rotation and the bullpen. His initial peripherals and over 50 percent ground ball rate in returning from offseason surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome don't seem out of the realm of expectations for Keller, nor does having a bad outing against a hot offense in The Bronx.
Nevertheless, Keller was also not a fulcrum of the Sox vision for the season, and it appears there are more wheels in motion organizationally than just him and Michael Soroka, who struck out seven (but walked four) in four innings of relief on Saturday and tickled 97 mph on his fastball for the first time in his career.
Soroka would be an easy and ready candidate to take Keller's place. But notably, multiple sources confirmed that top pitching prospect Noah Schultz is getting promoted to Double-A Birmingham. At 20, Schultz's elevated 3.95 ERA at High-A Winston-Salem belies peripheral numbers (38.2 percent strikeout rate, one home run allowed to 110 batters faced) that are slightly even more dominant than he was last season in Low-A Kannapolis.
Schultz has already exceed his innings total from last year by a single out (27 1/3), and with a rough 75-80 inning workload plan for his season, this move allows for the Sox to see of meaningful sample of how his stuff plays and what adjustments he'll need against Double-A hitters. Schultz is also expected to be joined by fellow first round pick Jacob Gonzalez, who is hitting .273/.364/.399 in High-A with more walks than strikeouts, but has looked especially improved in the last month as he's acclimated to offseason swing changes.
While Schultz has only been pitching once per week this season, his arrival in Birmingham could serve as the catalyst for Drew Thorpe getting promoted to Triple-A Charlotte. Already lauded for his polish upon arrival in the Dylan Cease trade, Thorpe has looked overqualified at Double-A outside of a single random clunker last Sunday. A rebound effort his last time out put Thorpe at a 1.50 ERA in 40 innings, with opposing hitters managing a .179/.247/.214 line against him. If Thorpe moves to Charlotte, it would backfill their rotation if the Sox call upon either Nick Nastrini or Jonathan Cannon in the immediate or near future.
That's a lot of speculation by the end, but Keller looks like the victim of a roster crunch (and literally is, given Leone) more than someone that the Sox ran out until his results provided no vision for better future. Ultimately most of the current major league roster is subject to getting shuffled out in service of a better Sox future, so rotation turnover will be norm for the next few months.
