The Silver Lining of the Latest White Sox Free Agency Failure

5 days ago 2

Chicago White Sox fans never expected the team to land Japanese right-handed pitcher Tatsuya Imai — at least not at first.

Imai was viewed as one of the marquee starting pitchers on the free-agent market. A right-hander with legitimate ace upside, entering the prime of his career at just 27 years old.

That simply didn’t feel like the tier the White Sox were shopping in. Despite reports of an aggressive approach toward adding a mid-tier starting pitcher, Imai was firmly in the upper echelon of available arms.

Then a report broke suggesting the White Sox were emerging as a real contender for Imai, and suddenly the mood on the South Side shifted. Hopes went up. Expectations followed.

It started to feel plausible — familiar, even. Wait for the market to soften. Let the player settle for a shorter-term deal. Then strike, just as the White Sox had done earlier this offseason with Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami.

And for a moment, all of that seemed to be happening again.

The White Sox had a legitimate shot. But in the end, it was the Houston Astros who closed the deal, signing Imai to a three-year contract with opt-outs after every season.

The deal can max out at $63 million if Imai hits all of his incentives, though it’s hard to imagine him reaching those marks without opting out early and testing free agency again.

White Sox fans have every right to feel disappointed. That price tag shouldn’t have been prohibitive. And while it would take a lot for this roster to become a playoff team — or even a .500 club — in 2026, adding players with upside makes the product far more watchable and exciting.

We saw that firsthand after the Murakami signing. The energy, the positivity, the buzz. Now imagine pairing that with 32 starts from Tatsuya Imai anchoring the rotation.

Still, if there’s a silver lining to coming up short in the Imai sweepstakes, it’s that the White Sox felt convicted enough about their need to act.

They didn’t land him. But their pursuit alone signals that the front office isn’t done addressing the rotation before spring training.

And there are still plenty of options.

Lucas Giolito, Zack Littell, and Chris Bassitt are three examples of right-handed pitchers who could command contracts similar in structure to Imai’s — somewhere in the $15–20 million range per season, on deals spanning one to three years, likely with opt-outs or mutual options.

Any of the three would immediately provide innings, protect Chicago’s young arms, and stabilize a rotation that must take a step forward if the White Sox hope to make another double-digit win improvement in 2026.

So yes, being teased with the idea of Tatsuya Imai on the South Side stings. But the White Sox are clearly going to find a starting pitcher worth watching before free agency runs dry.

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