The Philadelphia Phillies have had an uncertain catching situation all offseason, but it was never likely that Josh Breaux was going to become part of the equation.
In the middle of the 2024 season, the Phillies signed Breaux, a longtime New York Yankees farmhand, to a minor-league contract. But he didn’t show them a ton of potential on offense over the season and a half he was in the organization, and when he elected free agency in November, it made sense that the 28-year-old would seek a change of scenery.
According to the official transactions log on his roster page, Breaux found that change of scenery last week, when he signed with the Chicago White Sox on Feb. 6. That transaction took several days to show up on the log, which isn’t all that uncommon with under-reported minor-league deals.
Breaux, who was the Yankees’ second-round pick in 2018, had occasionally strong offensive numbers with New York’s farm teams. But he’s never played more than 90 games in a season, and with the Phillies, it became clear that he was more of an organizational depth piece rather than someone the team cared about developing into a big-leaguer.
In 51 games between Triple-A Lehigh Valley and Double-A Reading, Breaux sported a .649 OPS, three home runs, and 15 RBIs. He’s put up 76 minor-league home runs in 406 career games.
The White Sox, for a rebuilding team, have a surprisingly talented catching tandem at the major league level. But if injuries strike at the wrong moment, Breaux could be a solid emergency depth option to make his big-league debut.
More MLB: Dodgers Acquire Former Top 10 Draft Pick: Report