It’s weird that not many people are talking about Zach Eflin right now, with MLB free agency just around the corner. For the Chicago White Sox, given their situation right now, it would make perfect sense for them to take a shot on Eflin.
Paul Folkemer of Camden Chat broke down what went wrong with Eflinin in one of his previous articles. Folkemer explained that, “perhaps Eflin was never fully healthy this year, as his three stints on the IL can attest. But when he was on the mound, he simply wasn’t fooling hitters”
With how good Eflinin was in 2024 and even before that, he should land another opportunity in the MLB. The question is, which MLB team is going to trust Eflinin in their rotation?
Not only is Eflinin not going to be an ace, but teams that are going to contend in 2025 might be extremely hesitant to sign him. For that reason, the White Sox could be in a spot to sign Eflin.
This is a PREDICTION, not a REPORT.
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Zach Eflin Joining Chicago White Sox in MLB Free Agency
The past two years have been dramatically different for Eflin. Since the most recent year is what matters most, we’ll dive into that first.
In 2025, Eflin pitched in 14 games, where he had a -0.3 WAR, a 6-5 record, and a 5.93 ERA. Since sometimes these basic numbers can lie, it’s only fair to look into his Baseball Savant numbers as well.
Those numbers should tell you the basic stats were telling the truth. Eflin was in the 6th percentile for his Pitching Run Value, 16th for his Fastball Run Value, first for his Breaking Run Value, and 85th for his Offspeed Run Value.
While there’s not a ton of optimism, the Offspeed Run Value mark is encouraging. Not only that, but Eflin was in the 87th percentile for his Chase % and also the 99th for his BB %.
To be fair to Eflin, we need to look at some of his 2024 numbers to understand the upside he possesses. In 2024, Eflin was lights out after being traded from the Tampa Bay Rays to the Baltimore Orioles.
With the Orioles, Eflin pitched in nine games where he had a 1.8 WAR, 2.60 ERA, and a 5-2 record.
How Zach Eflin Fits with the Chicago White Sox
To keep this simple, the reason the White Sox would want Eflin is that they have little to lose. Coming off a year where the White Sox won just 60 games, they can afford to take on more risk than a contender because expectations aren’t nearly as high.
If Eflin is great, then this signing looks awesome for the White Sox, and at 31 years old, he could be part of helping this organization turn things around. Now, if Eflin struggles, it’s not as if the White Sox have any other pitchers in the back end of their rotation that would have been significantly better.
To back up that statement, the White Sox starters had an ERA of 4.39, which was the 10th-worst mark in the MLB.
Zach Eflin Stats
Above, we touched on some of Eflin’s better stats from 2025, but some of these numbers are also worth mentioning. Eflin had a xERA of 4.42, which, per Baseball Savant, was in the 29th percentile.
Eflin also had an xBA mark of 0.267, which was in the 15th percentile. Would it be shocking if a contender wanted to make Eflin their 5th starter? No.
It also wouldn’t be shocking if Eflin’s poor play in 2025 significantly limited his opportunities. If that’s the case, the Chicago White Sox should take a shot on Zach Eflin strictly for his upside.