Better October build? Biggest concern? What we learned from Dodgers’ series sweep of Braves
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Alden Gonzalez
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Alden Gonzalez
ESPN Staff Writer
- ESPN baseball reporter. Covered the L.A. Rams for ESPN from 2016 to 2018 and the L.A. Angels for MLB.com from 2012 to 2016.
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David Schoenfield
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David Schoenfield
ESPN Senior Writer
- Covers MLB for ESPN.com
- Former deputy editor of Page 2
- Been with ESPN.com since 1995
LOS ANGELES — Late Friday night, minutes after the Atlanta Braves and Los Angeles Dodgers staged a tightly contested, 11-inning game, Dodgers outfielder Teoscar Hernández was asked if it was indicative of how closely matched these two teams remain. A smile crept in.
“We’re pretty close,” Hernández said, “but I’m always going to say we’re better.”
A mere 38 hours later, Hernández delivered the definitive blow of what seemed like a defining series — a sixth-inning two-run homer that extended a Dodgers lead, propelled Los Angeles to another victory and sealed a three-game sweep over the mighty Braves at Dodger Stadium.
The Dodgers overcame the Braves on Friday (final score: 4-3), overwhelmed them Saturday (11-2) and outlasted them Sunday (5-1). Their offense combined for eight homers — all by Shohei Ohtani, Max Muncy and Hernández — and their pitchers held the Braves to six runs and 17 hits in 29 innings.
Asked for his biggest takeaway from this series, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said: “If we pitch well, we can keep any team at bay. With our offense, every game is winnable.”
The Braves arrived in L.A. with the best record in the major leagues and left with the second-best record in the National League East, falling two games behind the Philadelphia Phillies — not to mention one game behind the Dodgers. But the season is young. Sentiments fluctuate. And you’d be hard-pressed to find a reasonable baseball observer who doesn’t still believe the Dodgers and Braves are the two best teams in the NL and perhaps, even after the Braves’ miserable weekend, the entire sport.
So what, exactly, could we glean from their first head-to-head matchup this season? Below is a look at what we learned.
What was the biggest question going into the series? Did either team answer it?
Alden Gonzalez: Heading into the series, it was shocking that the Braves held the best record in the NL even though Ronald Acuña Jr., a unanimous MVP last year, had hit just one home run and had yet to look much like his typical superstar self. Nothing drives this offense quite like Acuña from the leadoff spot. And yet the Braves began the weekend ranked second in the majors — behind only the Dodgers — in OPS, with Acuña’s mark sitting at just .689. I wondered if a series like this was the type that might spark Acuña — and it might have. Acuña homered Friday, then went 3-for-4 with a double in Saturday’s blowout loss. He began the month of May with three consecutive multihit games before an 0-for-3 showing Sunday. If he truly gets hot, this Braves offense will elevate to yet another level.
David Schoenfield: To beat the Dodgers, you have to hold the top of the order in check. The Braves did a reasonably OK job of that on Friday; the Dodgers’ top four hitters — Mookie Betts, Ohtani, Freddie Freeman and Will Smith — went 3-for-17 with three walks, including an 0-for-5 effort from Betts. After the Braves scored in the top of the 10th, Ohtani tied the game up with a base hit on a soft line drive up the middle in the bottom of the inning — some bad luck for Raisel Iglesias, who made a good pitch, but Ohtani reached out and just poked it past a diving Orlando Arcia. Andy Pages would then win the game for the Dodgers in the bottom of the 11th on a blooper to center field with a 63-mph exit velocity.
Saturday was a different story, though: The Dodgers’ top four went 8-for-18 with two walks, including a home run from Ohtani. Of course, the big story in the 11-2 blowout was Muncy, the No. 5 hitter, blasting three home runs — a reminder that the Dodgers lineup doesn’t necessarily end after Smith. Sunday was the Ohtani show: 4-for-4, 3 RBIs and two home runs, including a two-run blast in the first inning off Max Fried that set the Dodgers on their way to the sweep. So, no, it’s hard to say the Braves did enough to contain Ohtani & Co.
What surprised you the most?
Gonzalez: For as menacing as the top half of the Dodgers’ lineup has been, the bottom half has been sorely lacking — which is why the emergence of Pages has been so important. Pages, a 23-year-old outfield prospect from Cuba, had four hits in Friday’s series opener, including a walk-off single in the 11th inning. He followed that by going 2-for-5 with a home run Saturday. Pages has yet to draw his first walk this season, but he’s OPS’ing .903 in 74 plate appearances. He was looked at as a temporary replacement while Jason Heyward works through a back issue, but given the struggles of Chris Taylor, James Outman and Gavin Lux — they’ve combined for a .153/.247/.203 slash line — Pages has evolved into a crucial contributor.
Schoenfield: Matt Olson‘s struggles at the plate continue. He actually started the season off well, with three doubles on Opening Day and hitting .293 with a .973 OPS through 14 games. He looked primed for another monster season. Instead, je’s hitting a few too many grounders and too many fly balls with too high of a launch angle. After going 1-for-10 in this series, he is 6-for-59 (.102) over his past 18 games with just one double and no home runs.
The good news, though: He should be fine, as it appears he’s hitting into a lot of bad luck. A hard-hit ball is one hit at 95 mph, and Olson remains in the 98th percentile among all hitters in hard-hit rate. Entering Sunday, the MLB average on hard-hit balls was .480, but he has just three hits and a sac fly on his past 23 hard-hit balls. In the previous series against Seattle, Olson got robbed a couple of times on hard-hit balls. Still, seeing him with a sub-.200 average and just three home runs is a surprise.
What was the biggest concern for either team?
Gonzalez: My biggest concern is for opposing pitchers’ ability to tame the top half of the Dodgers’ lineup. The L.A. offense got so much hype heading into this season, and somehow the top of their lineup has exceeded expectations — with the prowess of Betts, Ohtani and Freeman in the first three spots, but also with the continued emergence of Smith and Muncy and Hernández behind him. Betts and Smith didn’t do much this series, but Ohtani homered and Hernandez homered a combined five times, Freeman doubled and tripled Saturday and Muncy registered his first career three-homer game that same night. Keeping them all in check has seemed impossible all season — as the Braves just learned. Betts, Ohtani, Freeman and Smith in particular have combined for a .337/.432/.567 slash line with 18 home runs this year — even though Freeman hasn’t necessarily felt right for most of it. Ridiculous.
Schoenfield: The continued slow starts in the power department for not just Olson but Acuña and Austin Riley, too. Last year, the three averaged a home run every 14.3 at-bats; this year, it’s one every 46.9 at-bats. As a result, the Braves are way down as a team in home runs, averaging exactly one home run per game compared to last year’s onslaught of 1.9 per game. Olson and Riley are striking out about the same rate as last season, so for them that hasn’t been the issue. Acuña, however, has seen his strikeout rate climb from 11.4% last season to 26.8% in 2024 — similar to where he was in 2021-22, when he struck out 23.6% of the time. After a stretch of 13 strikeouts in his five previous games before this series, maybe it’s a good sign that he went 2-for-5 with a home run and just one strikeout Friday and then 3-for-4 with no strikeouts Saturday. (He did, however, go hitless with one walk and one strikeout Sunday.)
Which team is better set up for October?
Gonzalez: The recipe for October success in this era is either highly complex or nonexistent. Last fall provided a glaring example, with the Braves and Dodgers each bounced in the division series by two teams that finished a combined 30 games below them in the standings. Still: If there is a list of ingredients necessary for thriving in the playoffs, it’s premier talent, pitching depth, big-game experience and health. As far as the Dodgers and Braves are concerned — check, check, check and, well, we’ll see. Nonetheless, both teams are clearly built to win a championship.
If I’m forced to pick one, I’m choosing the Braves for something Roberts alluded to this weekend — their string of effective left-handed relievers in A.J. Minter, Aaron Bummer, Dylan Lee and Tyler Matzek. They all have a history of being tough against opposing left-handed hitters, which could be a factor if you’re facing, say, Freeman, Ohtani and Muncy in the late stages of an NLCS. Will it ultimately matter? Who knows. But if there’s one staff built to handle an offense as devastating as the Dodgers’, it’s probably the Braves’.
Schoenfield: Honestly… it’s too early to tell here. I’m old school in believing that two top-flight starters will go a long way in October, and the Dodgers have that in Tyler Glasnow and Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Glasnow held the Braves to two runs with 10 strikeouts Friday, and while Yamamoto didn’t pitch in this series, he has a 1.64 ERA since that first-inning disaster against the Padres in Korea. On the other hand, despite the results of this series, the Braves could still match up with the Dodgers in October not only with all those lefty relievers, but with Max Fried and Chris Sale in the rotation. Though Fried has never had much of a platoon split in his career, Sale remains tough on lefties with that wipeout slider (.167 average this season) and that could be trouble for Ohtani, Freeman and Muncy.
What will you be watching for either team moving forward?
Gonzalez: Walker Buehler returns to the Dodgers’ rotation Monday after a 20-month-long rehabilitation from a second Tommy John surgery. Will he be the electric Buehler we remember from the early part of 2022, or some diluted version of that? Perhaps the same can be asked for Bobby Miller, who’s nursing shoulder inflammation but should soon face hitters again and begin his progression in earnest. Clayton Kershaw, who threw his first bullpen session Friday — precisely six months after offseason shoulder surgery — won’t return until sometime in the second half. Glasnow (2.70 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 50 innings this season) and Yamamoto look dominant. But the Dodgers’ success in October could hinge greatly on who follows them.
Schoenfield: The back end of the Braves’ rotation — which looks even more important now with the Phillies off to a hot start (that wasn’t the case the past two seasons, when the Braves ran away with the NL East title). Bryce Elder was an All-Star last season, but he struggled in the second half and is in the rotation only because of Spencer Strider‘s injury. The Dodgers knocked him around for seven runs and three home runs Saturday. Reynaldo Lopez has been terrific so far with a 1.50 ERA through five starts, but let’s see if he can continue to avoid the home runs that plagued him in his previous stints as a starter. Then there’s Sale. Can he make 30 starts, which he hasn’t done since 2017? The Braves might need him to do so to hold off the Phillies.
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Kiley McDaniel
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Kiley McDaniel
ESPN MLB Insider
- ESPN MLB Insider
- Kiley McDaniel covers MLB prospects, the MLB Draft and more, including trades and free agency.
- Has worked for three MLB teams.
Co-author of Author of ‘Future Value’
Major League Baseball’s trade market is ever evolving, and to keep you updated, ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and Jeff Passan have put together a list of potential trade candidates that will be updated regularly depending on their performance — and that of the teams which could be involved in potential deals leading up to the July 31 trade deadline.
Some of the players on the list are unlikely to be dealt but at least are being discussed in potential deals. Others might not be on the list now but will be added in the future should their team’s fortunes change. Either way, this will be the most up-to-date accounting of where MLB’s trade market stands.
Note: Players are ranked by value for their new team if traded, not likelihood of being dealt
Chance of trade: 10%
Bregman has been an elite big league hitter since he entered the league in 2016 but has leaned more into power this year, with his highest isolated power since 2019. Most of his underlying power indicators (barrel rate, maximum exit velo, average launch angle and hard hit rate) are at career highs. His $40 million salary — and the chance to opt into two more years at $40 million annually — significantly shortens the list of teams that would take on his deal.
Best fits: Chicago Cubs, Detroit, New York Yankees, New York Mets
Chance of trade: 25%
Duran had a huge breakout season in 2024, posting the seventh-best WAR in the majors at 6.7. He overperformed his underlying metrics, though — i.e., had some lucky outcomes — and those metrics have regressed a bit this year. Now he’s underperforming them — he has been unlucky — so his true talent is somewhere south of that star-level 6.7 figure but better than the roughly 2 WAR (commensurate with a solid regular) he’s on pace for this season.
Best fits: San Diego, Atlanta, Cleveland, Kansas City, San Francisco, Philadelphia
Chance of trade: 60%
Alcantara was arguably the best pitcher in baseball in 2022, winning the NL Cy Young unanimously. He was more solid than spectacular in 2023 and missed 2024 with Tommy John surgery. He has been tinkering this season to try to get his pitch mix and locations right in hopes of regaining his former glory. It is starting to look as though he is turning the corner to become a midrotation starter (or better?) once again as he has posted a 2.74 ERA in four June outings. The Marlins could hold on to him until the winter, when teams like Baltimore would be more inclined to acquire him and the final two years of his contract.
Best fits: Chicago Cubs, Houston, Boston, Toronto, Arizona, Los Angeles Dodgers, San Diego, Baltimore
Chance of trade: 20%
Peralta has been a steady presence for years, averaging 140 innings pitched with a 3.49 ERA over the past four seasons. He’s on track to do that again, with his heavily used fastball coming in at a career-high average velo of 94.9 mph this season. He has an ultra-cheap $8 million option for 2026.
Best fits: Boston, Houston, Toronto, St. Louis, Arizona, San Diego, Baltimore
Chance of trade: 50%
Suarez is in a contract year and, despite turning 34 years old before the trade deadline, is sitting near career highs in isolated power and wRC+ (which measures overall performance). His fielding metrics have declined in recent years, but he’s still an acceptable defender at third base. Even if the Diamondbacks don’t offload their free agents-to-be, Suarez could move because they have Jordan Lawlar raking in Triple-A and primed to take over at third.
Best fits: Detroit, Milwaukee, Chicago Cubs, New York Yankees, Kansas City, Seattle, San Francisco
Chance of trade: 40%
Lugo has posted mid-3.00s or lower ERAs for five seasons despite having below-average fastball velocity and good-not-great strikeout rates. His ability to strand runners and limit hard contact comes in part due to his nine different pitches. With a Nathan Eovaldi-type contract awaiting Lugo in free agency, Kansas City could opt to move him, especially if Cole Ragans’ injured shoulder doesn’t improve.
Best fits: Chicago Cubs, Houston, Toronto, San Diego, Los Angeles Dodgers
7. Zac Gallen, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks
Chance of trade: 30%
Gallen was excellent for the past three seasons but now, in a contract year, is posting career-worst numbers in almost every category. His stuff looks pretty similar, but he’s allowing much more damage when hitters make contact. Diamondbacks general manager Mike Hazen said the team does not plan to deal away players at the deadline, but if Arizona doesn’t make a run, it could reap a huge return with all of its impending free agents.
Best fits: Toronto, San Diego, Houston, Chicago Cubs
8. Merrill Kelly, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks
Chance of trade: 30%
Kelly doesn’t have big raw stuff, posting the second-lowest average fastball velocity among pitchers with 90 innings pitched this season. His changeup is his best pitch by a wide margin, and he gets by with location and off-speed stuff. He was a stalwart in the Diamondbacks’ run to the 2023 World Series, striking out 28 in 24 innings with a 2.25 ERA.
Best fits: Toronto, Boston, St. Louis, Houston, Chicago Cubs
9. Josh Naylor, 1B, Arizona Diamondbacks
Chance of trade: 30%
Naylor is batting over .300 this year as a lefty-hitting first baseman in a contract year on pace for about 20 homers. Naylor faces left-handed pitchers more often than the next player on the list but hasn’t been particularly good at it. His on-base skills and lack of strikeouts make him an especially attractive acquisition candidate for postseason contenders.
Best fits: Seattle, Boston, San Francisco, Texas
Chance of trade: 85%
O’Hearn is having an out-of-nowhere career year, hitting over .300 (and with the underlying metrics to support that) along with being on pace for a career high in homers. He doesn’t face lefty pitchers much at all, and his splits suggest that he shouldn’t.
Best fits: Seattle, Boston, San Francisco, Texas
Chance of trade: 25%
Ozuna is a stone-cold DH, playing two games in the field in 2023 as his last regular-season experience defensively. Ozuna is also in a contract year, but his power numbers are down a notch from his standout .302 average and 39-homer performance last season. His on-base percentage remains among the highest of potential trade candidates. If anyone is moving from Atlanta, he’s the likeliest candidate, with free agency beckoning.
Best fits: San Diego, Seattle, Detroit, Kansas City, San Francisco, Cleveland, Boston
Chance of trade: 40%
Duran is one of the best relievers in the sport, thanks to his nasty stuff headlined by a fastball that averages 100.2 mph and a splinker that sits at 97.5 mph. He has two more years of team control after this season, so he’d demand a big trade package.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Arizona, Texas
Chance of trade: 20%
Clase was nearly unhittable last season, but his numbers have regressed this season. He has issued more walks and gotten fewer ground balls while allowing more damage on his cutter that averages 99.0 mph — in part due to more center-cut locations. Under contract for less than $30 million through 2028, he would bring a big return to Cleveland.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Arizona, Texas
Chance of trade: 15%
The Mountain is back from Tommy John surgery and looking like his former self. A dominant June — 8 innings, 1 hit, 3 walks, 12 strikeouts, 0.00 ERA — has seen him induce more popups than line drives allowed. He has another two years before free agency, and with the Orioles planning on contending between now and then, landing him will take more than most teams are willing to give.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Detroit, Atlanta, Arizona, Texas
Chance of trade: 70%
Mullins is a 30-year-old center fielder in a contract year who contributes in a number of ways, but his power numbers are trending up this season and are at their best since 2021.
Best fits: Philadelphia, Cleveland, New York Mets
Chance of trade: 60%
McMahon is on pace to keep his four-year 20-homer streak alive, with above-average power, patience and third-base defense, but a more middling contact rate and baserunning value. He has two years and $32 million remaining on his contract after this season.
Best fits: New York Yankees, Detroit, Milwaukee, Minnesota, Seattle
Chance of trade: 60%
Fairbanks raised his slot a bit this year, and now his 97.1 mph fastball has more cutting action and his slurvy slider has more depth, with both pitches playing a notch better than they did last season. He has a club option for 2026 that, with escalators, should wind up in the $10 million range.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Detroit, Atlanta, Arizona, Texas
Chance of trade: 35%
You have probably heard this story before, but Chapman is left-handed and his superpower is that he throws really hard (averages just under 100 mph) and throws that heater a lot (over 75% of the time). He’s 37 years old, and he’s still dominant.
Best fits: New York Mets, Philadelphia, Detroit
Chance of trade: 90%
Robert has been extremely unlucky with ball-in-play results this season, so that could turn around at any point. He remains a strong defender and baserunner. But the .185/.267/.305 line is unsightly, and his trade value has cratered over the past two seasons. He has a pair of $20 million-a-year club options that the acquiring team will be hesitant to exercise absent a turnaround.
Best fits: San Diego, Philadelphia, Cleveland, New York Mets, San Francisco
Chance of trade: 45%
Ward comes with an additional year of team control after this season, and his underlying numbers suggest he is still largely the same hitter as last year, when he posted a .246 average and 25 homers.
Best fits: San Diego, Philadelphia, Cleveland, Seattle, San Francisco, Kansas City
Chance of trade: 30%
Arenado is around a career best in strikeout rate, and he’s still an above-average defender, but his power and patience are both trending down to around the worst of his career. He’s still a solid starter but no longer a star, and the team taking him on a deal would still have to pay him like one. Potentially complicating any deal: a full no-trade clause.
Best fits: New York Yankees, Detroit, Milwaukee, Seattle
Chance of trade: 40%
Severino tunnels his fastball/sinker/sweeper combo well to limit damage, but because he has a middling strikeout rate, his upside is limited to a No. 3/No. 4 starter. Teams are intrigued by his road numbers, which are exceptional: 0.93 ERA in 38.2 innings over six starts without a home run allowed. They are not so intrigued by his contract, which goes two more years at $47 million.
Best fits: Toronto, Chicago Cubs, Baltimore, New York Mets
23. Ryan Helsley, RP, St. Louis Cardinals
Chance of trade: 30%
Scouting report: Helsley had the fourth-best WAR among relievers last season and is in a contract year now but has been notably worse this season. His stuff and locations are pretty similar, but the main difference is his fastball is getting hit hard — with one byproduct being his spiking home run rate.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Philadelphia, Arizona, New York Yankees, Detroit
Chance of trade: 30%
Mahle was thriving after returning from his 2023 Tommy John surgery, looking like a third or fourth starter despite a 2.34 ERA fueled by a very favorable stranded runner rate and BABIP. But he’s currently on the injured list with right shoulder fatigue. Should he return healthy, he’ll jump up this list.
Best fits: Toronto, San Diego, Boston, Chicago Cubs
25. Zach Eflin, SP, Baltimore Orioles
Chance of trade: 75%
Eflin is in a contract year, and his ERA has spiked from 3.59 last year to 5.46 this season, though his underlying numbers are still pretty solid. He’s more of an innings-eating No. 4 starter type now than he was during his breakout 2023 season, but there’s still some value to a contender.
Best fits: Houston, San Diego, Chicago Cubs, Atlanta
Chance of trade: 80%
Garcia averaged 30 homers in 2021 through 2024, but he has fallen off since his 2023 career year. It’s worth noting that per xwOBA, he has been the 17th-most unlucky hitter in the big leagues this year, and he has another year of team control, so some teams could see a trade as a good value opportunity.
Best fits: Philadelphia, Seattle, Cleveland, San Diego, San Francisco
27. Reid Detmers, RP, Los Angeles Angels
Chance of trade: 15%
The No. 10 pick in 2020 transitioned to relief this season and has found some success, similar to other highly drafted college lefties including A.J. Puk, Andrew Miller and Drew Pomeranz. He comes with three more years of control after this season and his velo is up 1.5 mph in the new role, so this might be where he fits long term, and trading him away could fetch a hefty return. Some teams still see Detmers as a starter.
Best fits: New York Mets, Arizona, Baltimore, St. Louis, Minnesota, New York Yankees
Chance of trade: 35%
If the Red Sox do punt on this year, Buehler will have plenty of suitors in spite of his mediocre numbers this season. His postseason bona fides are obvious, and his sinker and slider have both played this season despite his fastball and curveball getting tagged. Starter, reliever, whatever: October is Buehler’s time.
Best fits: Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago Cubs, Houston, Toronto, San Diego
Chance of trade: 65%
Martinez took the qualifying offer of $21.05 million and might have a bigger market this winter after pitching almost exclusively as a starter, though he’ll turn 35 years old later this season and looks like a fourth starter now.
Best fits: Houston, San Diego, Los Angeles Dodgers, Toronto
30. Erick Fedde, SP, St. Louis Cardinals
Chance of trade: 50%
Fedde’s strikeout and walk numbers have regressed from his breakout 2024 season (after coming back from a stint in the KBO), but he’s allowing less damage on batted balls to keep him in the rotation.
Best fits: San Diego, Toronto, Houston
Nos. 31-50
31. Andrew Heaney, SP, Pittsburgh Pirates
32. Edward Cabrera, SP, Miami Marlins
33. Rhys Hoskins, 1B, Milwaukee Brewers
34. Zack Littell, SP, Tampa Bay Rays
35. Tyler Anderson, SP, Los Angeles Angels
36. Ramon Urias, 3B, Baltimore Orioles
37. Jesus Sanchez, RF, Miami Marlins
38. Jake Bird, RP, Colorado Rockies
39. Luis Urias, 2B, Athletics
40. Isiah Kiner-Falefa, SS, Pittsburgh Pirates
41. Kyle Finnegan, RP, Washington Nationals
42. Chris Martin, RP, Texas Rangers
43. Mike Soroka, SP, Washington Nationals
44. Tomoyuki Sugano, SP, Baltimore Orioles
45. Phil Maton, RP, St. Louis Cardinals
46. Emilio Pagan, RP, Cincinnati Reds
47. Yoan Moncada, 3B, Los Angeles Angels
48. Shelby Miller, RP, Arizona Diamondbacks
49. Dennis Santana, RP, Pittsburgh Pirates
50. Steven Matz, RP, St. Louis Cardinals
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Jesse Rogers
CHICAGO — Former All-Star pitcher Noah Syndergaard has signed a minor league deal with the Chicago White Sox, the team confirmed Tuesday.
Syndergaard, 32, hasn’t pitched in the majors since 2023 when he appeared in 18 games split between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Cleveland Guardians. He has a career 3.71 ERA over the course of eight seasons, mostly with the New York Mets where he spent the first six years in the big leagues.
The latter half of his career has been plagued by injuries including a right elbow ailment which required Tommy John surgery in 2020 as well as lat and finger issues more recently.
Syndergaard finished fourth in rookie of the year voting for the Mets in 2015, helping them reach the World Series. He followed that up with an All-Star appearance in 2016 when he compiled a 2.60 ERA.
Post Tommy John surgery he bounced around his final couple of seasons in the big leagues, playing for the Angels, Phillies, Dodgers and Guardians before missing all of last year.
Syndergaard will report to the White Sox spring facility in Glendale, Arizona, before taking next steps.
After setting the loss record last season, Chicago has the second-worst record this year. Only the Rockies are worse. The White Sox are in the midst of a major rebuild, with three of their starters 25 years old or younger.
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