Jeff Samardzija had a miserable walk year, posting a 4.96 ERA in 214 innings while allowing the most hits, home runs, and earned runs in the American League, but it didn’t stop the White Sox from giving him the $15.8 million Qualifying Offer.
Advertisement
The New York Yankees, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers and Cubs are believed to be among a number of parties interested in Samardzija, who was acquired by the White Sox from the Oakland A’s last December in exchange for four players.
The Chicago White Sox never did find a trade partner for Jeff Samardzija by the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline, but they don’t figure to go away empty handed. Detroit is looking for a few second-tier free agent pitchers, which Samardzija would fall under the category. He has an overall record of 47-61 record over parts of eight seasons. A northwest Indiana native and former Notre Dame football star, Samardzija has a 4.09 ERA for his career.
Sox general manager Rick Hahn said late in the year that he expected Samardzija to explore the free-agent market.
As for the compensation picks, the team’s success has been pretty limited in the recent past.
Advertisement
Free agency starts at 11:01 p.m. Connecticut Friday.
