White Sox Avoid Arbitration With Six Players Headlined By Dylan Cease

The White Sox avoided arbitration with six players on Thursday. The biggest name of the bunch is Dylan Cease, whose name continues to circulate in trade rumors. 

Nicky Lopez, Andrew Vaughn, Michael Kopech, Michael Soroka, Touki Toussaint and Garrett Crochet also set their 2024 salaries. All six players closed their deal without having to exchange figures or go into a hearing. The salaries are as follows: 

• Dylan Cease: $8 million
• Nicky Lopez: $4.3 million
• Andrew Vaughn: $3.25 million
• Michael Kopech: $3 million
• Micheal Soroka: $3 million
• Touki Toussaint: $1.3 million
• Garrett Crochet: $800,000

Teams interested in Cease now know how much the 28-year-old will be making in 2024. At just $8 million his trade value remains high. Opposing general managers will be hard-pressed to find a pitcher of Cease’s caliber for that price. 

MLB Trade Rumors had Cease’s projected salary at $8.8 million, which makes this a team-friendly deal for the White Sox. It is also still a healthy raise for Cease who made $5.7 million last season. The right-hander posted a 4.58 ERA in 33 starts and racked up 214 strikeouts in 177 innings. His 10.881 strikeouts per nine innings ranked second in the American League. Cease also ranks 10th amongst all MLB pitchers in Wins Above Replacement from 2021-2023 with a 12.2 WAR in 97 starts. 

Nicky Lopez and Michael Soroka were recently acquired in the Aaron Bummer trade. 

Lopez was tied for 10th in the MLB with 31 Outs Above Average since 2020. He was also in baseball’s 88th percentile with a  Fielding Run Value of 8.  In 2021 Lopez ranked third in the AL in double play and assists at shortstop. 

However, the offensive numbers leave a lot to be desired. Lopez doesn’t make much hard contact. He has ranked in the MLB’s bottom four percent in exit velocity in three of the last five seasons. Last season he hit .231 with a .632 OPS and hit one home run and 25 RBIs. For his career, he owns a .249/.312/.319 slash line. 

Soroka has a career 3.32 ERA and a 17-8 record in 44 career games. There are some significant injury concerns surrounding Soroka. In 2020 he tore his Achilles tendon and hasn’t looked the same since. 

Before the injury, he looked like a bonafide ace. During his rookie season, he posted a 3.51 ERA in five starts. He followed that up with a 2.68 ERA in 25 starts in 2019. Soroka was named an All-Star that season and finished sixth in the NL Cy Young voting. 

After missing two seasons due to injury Soroka had a 6.40 ERA with 29 strikeouts in 32 ⅓ innings in his first seven games back in 2023. His average fastball velocity dropped to just under 93 mph and he struggled to generate swings and misses. But at just 26 years old the White Sox are hoping he can return to his pre-injury form. 

Andrew Vaughn was arbitration-eligible for the first time in his career. Last season he ranked second on the team with 21 home runs and was tied for first with 80 RBIs. He hit .258 with an OPS + of 101. Kopech is in his second year of eligibility and saw a $95,000 raise from his 2023 salary. The 27-year-old struggled in the White Sox rotation to the tune of a 5.43 ERA and 1.593 WHIP. 

Toussaint and Crochet were each in their first year of eligibility. Crochet was limited to just 13 games last season due to injury while Toussaint appeared in 19 games last season and started 15 games after being acquired midway through the year. He posted a 4.97 ERA and 4-6 record with the White Sox.