Chicago White Sox Reach Deal with Former Top 100 Prospect Justin Dunn

The right-hander was once a major piece of the Robinson Cano trade to the Mets, but injuries have impacted him over the last few years.

Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Justin Dunn (35) signals to the catcher during the fourth inning against the Texas Rangers at T-Mobile Park in 2021. / Joe Nicholson-Imagn Images

The Chicago White Sox reached a minor league deal with free agent pitcher Justin Dunn on Friday.

James Fegan, who covers the Sox, had the news on social media:

White Sox say they’ve signed former Mets first round pick, RHP Justin Dunn to a minor league deal. He’ll be an NRI at big league camp in spring

White Sox say they’ve signed former Mets first round pick, RHP Justin Dunn to a minor league deal. He’ll be an NRI at big league camp in spring.

— James Fegan (@JRFegan) November 8, 2024

Dunn is an interesting name for the Sox who does that have that first-round pedigree.

Dunn was drafted by the New York Mets in the first round of the 2016 draft out of Boston College. He was involved in a blockbuster trade before the 2019 season when he was dealt along with Jarred Kelenic from the Mets to the Seattle Mariners for Edwin Diaz and Robinson Cano.

He was then dealt again before the 2022 season from the Mariners to the Cincinnati Reds in the deal that sent Eugenio Suarez and Jesse Winker to Seattle. The New York native was supposed to be an integral part of Seattle's future but has battled ineffectiveness and injury over his career.

He made four starts for the Mariners in the 2019 season, then went 4-1 in the COVID 2020 season over 10 starts. He went 1-3 in 11 starts for the 2021 Mariners and then only made seven starts for the Reds in 2022. He did not pitch in the majors in 2023 and only made three appearances in the minors.

Lifetime, he's 6-7 in his MLB career with a 4.44 ERA.

He was ranked the No. 91 prospect in baseball by MLB.com back in 2019. The White Sox are obviously coming off the worst season in modern history, going 41-121. There is ample opportunity on the pitching staff for guys to resurrect their careers, so we'll see if Dunn can earn a spot and run with it.

Chicago has Chris Flexen and Mike Soroka as free agents this offseason. They are also expected to trade away Garrett Crochet, leaving even more holes in the rotation for Dunn to potentially fill.

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