CHICAGO – The Chicago White Sox acquired right-handed pitcher Michael Soroka, left-hander Jared Shuster, infielders Nicky Lopez and Braden Shewmake and right-hander Riley Gowens from the Atlanta Braves in exchange for left-hander Aaron Bummer. Soroka, Shuster and Shewmake were all former first round picks of the Braves.
Soroka, 26, spent most of the 2023 season with Gwinnett, going 4-4 with a 3.41 ERA (33 ER/67.0 IP), 92 strikeouts and a .205 average opponents in 17 starts. He also went 2-2 with a 6.40 ERA (23 ER/32.1 IP) and 29 strikeouts in seven games (six starts) with the Braves.
Soroka, 6-foot-5, 225 pounds, is 17-8 with a 3.32 ERA (91 ER/246.1 IP) and 200 strikeouts in 44 games (43 games) over four seasons major league with the Braves. He suffered a torn right Achilles tendon on August 3, 2020 and missed most of the next two seasons due to the injury.
Soroka finished second in National League Rookie of the Year voting in 2019 after going 13-4 with a 2.68 ERA (52 ER/174.2 IP) and 142 of 29 starts departures. He was originally selected by the Braves in the first round (28th overall) of the 2015 draft out of Bishop Carroll High School in Calgary, Alberta.
Shuster, 25, split the 2023 season between Atlanta and Gwinnett, going 4-3 with a 5.81 ERA (34 ER/52.2 IP) and 30 strikeouts in 11 starts with the Braves and 5-6 with a 5.58 ERA (44 ER/79.0). IP) and 45 strikeouts in 16 starts with the Stripers. He made his MLB debut on April 2 at Washington and earned his first win on May 21 against Seattle, allowing one run on one hit over 6.0 IP.
Shuster, 6-foot-3, 210 pounds, is 14-16 with a 4.05 ERA (131 ER/291.1 IP) and 299 strikeouts in three minor league seasons after being drafted by the Braves in the first round (25th overall) of the 2020 draft from Wake Forest.
Lopez, 29, combined to hit .231/.326/.307 (52-225) with eight doubles, three triples, one home run, 25 RBIs, 26 walks and 32 runs scored in 94 games between Atlanta and Kansas City in 2023. He opened the season with the Royals before being traded to the Braves for left-handed pitcher Taylor Hearn on July 30. Lopez made just two errors in 277 chances between the two clubs. He was on the Braves National League Division Series roster and appeared in a game against Philadelphia.
A native of Naperville, Illinois and graduate of Naperville North High School, Lopez is a career .249/.312/.319 (425-1,706) hitter with 71 doubles, six home runs, 131 RBIs, 220 runs scored and 42 steals . goals in 546 games over five major league seasons with Kansas City (2019-23) and Atlanta (2023). He finished fifth in the race for the 2021 American League batting title (.300) and is tied for 10th in baseball with 31 strikeouts above average since the start of 2020 (Fangraphs). Lopez was originally selected by the Royals in the fifth round of the 2016 draft out of Creighton University.
Shewmake, 26, spent most of the 2023 season with Class AAA Gwinnett, hitting .234 (111-474) with 28 doubles, 16 home runs, 69 RBIs and 79 runs scored. He also appeared in two games for the Braves, including his major league debut on May 5 against Baltimore. The 6-foot-4, 190-pound Shewmake is a career .250/.309/.407 (331-1,323) hitter with 38 home runs, 174 RBIs and 200 runs scored in 346 minor leagues in the Atlanta system . He was originally selected by the Braves in the first round (No. 21 overall) in the 2019 draft out of Texas A&M University.
Gowens, 24, made his professional debut in the Braves’ system in 2023, going 1-1 with a 1.15 ERA (2 ER/15.2 IP) and nine strikeouts in five games ( three starts) between the Rookie League Braves and Class A Augusta. Gowens, 6-foot-4, 225 pounds, was selected by Atlanta in the ninth round of the 2023 draft out of the University of Illinois and is a Libertyville (Ill.) graduate. High school.
Bummer, 30, went 5-5 with a 6.79 ERA (44 ER/58.1 IP), 79 strikeouts and 15 strikeouts in 61 appearances last season, his seventh with the White Sox. Bummer was originally selected by the Sox in the 19th round of the 2014 draft.
White Sox 40-man roster expands to 40.
