The White Sox designate Jacob Amaya for assignment

Amaya, 26, was just released by the White Sox in August. He subsequently played 23 games for the club, slashing .179/.225/.194 in his 71 plate appearances. He exhausted his final option year in 2024, meaning he would be challenged to hold a roster spot through the season, so he was waived today. The Sox will now have a week to figure out what lies ahead with Amaya, whether it’s a trade or placing him on waivers. The waiver process takes 48 hours, so any settlements should happen in the next five days.

Amaya was once a prospect of some note with both the Dodgers and Marlins, as Baseball America ranked him among the top 30 prospects in one of those organizations every year from 2019 through 2024. He was considered a fairly good player well-rounded, with solid defense at shortstop and the ability to also play second or third base.

Offensively, he generally had good strikeout and walk rates, but struggled to cause significant damage at the upper levels. Over the past three years he has come on the field 1,219 times at the Triple-A level. His 12.4% walk rate and 21.4% strikeout rate over that span are both slightly better than average, but his line combined batting of .246/.342/.380 translates to a WRC+ of just 84. That indicates he was 16% below league average. on the whole.

The profile was enough to attract interest from around the league. He was traded from the Dodgers to the Marlins a few years ago, then bounced to the Astros and White Sox in 2024. Maybe there’s still some intrigue from clubs, but his off-option status will make it harder for any team to carry him to the roster during the season. It’s possible that some club with an open roster spot will file a grievance and attempt to pass him through waivers later, or perhaps the White Sox will be the club to pass him on and keep him as non-roster depth.