The White Sox announced this morning that they’ve released infielder Brandon Drury. As an article XX(B) free agent, Drury had the opportunity to opt out and test free agency this weekend if he was not added to Chicago’s 40-man roster. Notably, Scott Merkin of MLB.com was among those to note yesterday that the infielder recently suffered a thumb fracture, which left him poised to miss the beginning of the season.
Drury, 32, suffered through a brutal season with the Angels last year where he hit just .169/.242/.228 in 97 games, which led him to sign a minor league deal with the White Sox last month. Drury’s time in camp with Chicago could hardly have gone better, however, and his incredible .410/.439/.821 slash line in 41 trips to the plate this spring seemingly made him a lock for the club’s Opening Day roster until his aforementioned fractured thumb threw those plans off course. It’s surely a frustrating situation for both Drury himself and the White Sox, with Chicago now poised to rely on some combination of Lenyn Sosa, Josh Rojas, Nick Maton, and Jacob Amaya up the middle with Drury no longer in the fold, though top prospect Colson Montgomery could force himself into the lineup at some point this year.
As for Drury, he’ll return to free agency coming off that phenomenal spring performance in hopes of catching on with another club with whom he can rehab his thumb injury and eventually return to lineup. Prior to his disastrous 2024 season, Drury enjoyed a solid stretch of three seasons with the Mets, Reds, Padres, and Angels where he slashed .263/.313/.493 with a wRC+ of 118 in 314 games, showing he can provide above average offensive production while handling either second or third base when he’s on. Whether or not he’ll be able to return to that quality production in 2025 once his thumb has healed remains to be seen, but it would hardly be a shock to see a club in need of infield depth offer him an opportunity in the coming days.
The Brewers are one example of a club that’s thin at third base, while the Astros could theoretically use some extra depth at the keystone after moving Jose Altuve to left field. The Yankees are also known to be in the market to upgrade their infield mix, while teams like the Mets and Twins have suffered injuries to key infield pieces this spring. Any of those clubs could be at least speculative fits for Drury’s services, though assuming he’s willing to take another non-roster deal it’s not hard to imagine a number of clubs being able to find playing time for him at Triple-A as a versatile depth option.