The Chicago White Sox have made plenty of moves to bolster their roster this offseason. Munetaka Murakami was so far the biggest splash of the offseason for the team. However, Chicago has also signed pitchers Anthony Kay and Sean Newcomb.
They may not be done adding.
According to Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic, the White Sox have interest in right-hander Griffin Canning, among other teams. Canning suffered a ruptured left Achilles tendon last June, ending what had been a promising season for him.
What Would Canning Bring to the Chicago White Sox?
Entering his age-30 season, Canning has not brought much major league success yet. The former Los Angeles Angels and New York Mets starting pitcher carries a 4.65 career ERA in six seasons.
A second-round pick by the Angels in the 2017 MLB Draft out of UCLA, Canning has shown flashes but has struggled to stay on the mound. He has only hit the 100-inning mark twice in his career, and the 150-inning mark just once.
Early after signing a one-year deal with the Mets last offseason, Canning looked like a steal for the team. But once again, injuries got the best of Canning, with his season ending in June.
However, his 2025 season was the best of his career thus far, with a career-low 3.77 ERA in 16 starts (76.1 innings). While his stats, per Baseball Savant, were below-average for the most part, his ground-ball rate was a starling 51.6%, good for the 87th percentile.
In addition, his offspeed run value was in the 90th percentile, suggesting that his changeup was highly effective. His usage rate for that pitch in 2025 was 23.2%, yielding a .196 average against and a .239 slugging against. This led to him yielding a .700 OPS against left-handed bats in 2025.
Canning also brings good defense as a starting pitcher, winning a gold glove in 2020. While that may not matter as much to fans, the White Sox had the third-lowest fielding percentage in 2025, while also giving up the fifth-most stolen bases.
How Would Canning Fit in Chicago?
At the moment, the White Sox rotation is pretty crowded. Kay, Shane Smith, Sean Burke, Davis Martin, Drew Thorpe and others will be battling for rotation spots in 2026.
While Smith, Martin and Kay are basically guaranteed spots on that rotation, the other two spots will be fought over for opening day.
While the young prospects such as Hagen Smith, Noah Schultz and Tanner McDougal may need some more minor league seasoning before they are ready for the big leagues, they will be in the majors at some point soon.
So, does signing a relatively unproven arm to the rotation make sense at this point? That remains to be seen. However, with the White Sox still in a rebuild, what risk do they have in signing such an arm?
Adrian Houser had a somewhat similar profile before joining the Chicago Cubs last offseason. He succeeded with the White Sox thanks to manager Will Venable and pitching director Brian Bannister. At the trade deadline, Chicago traded Houser for three young players.
If Canning can build upon a good 2025, perhaps signing him can be worth it if he’s flipped for prospects at the deadline as well.
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