White Sox agree to terms on one-year contract with Vince Velasquez

GLENDALE, Ariz. – The Chicago White Sox have agreed to terms on a one-year, $3-million contract with right-handed pitcher Vince Velasquez.

Velasquez, 29, split the 2021 season between Philadelphia and San Diego, combining to go 3-9 with a 6.30 ERA (66 ER/94.1 IP) and 101 strikeouts (9.64 per 9.0 IP) over 25 games (21 starts).

Velasquez, 6-foot-3 and 215 pounds, began last season with the Phillies before being released on September 14. He signed a minor-league deal with the Padres on 9/15, and his contract was selected from Class AAA El Paso on September 17.

Velasquez has gone 31-44 with a 4.95 ERA (358 ER/651.0 IP) and 716 strikeouts in 156 games (127 starts) over seven major-league seasons with Houston (2015), the Phillies (2016-21) and Padres (2021). He has averaged 9.90 strikeouts per 9.0 IP.

Velasquez originally was selected by Houston in the second round of the 2010 draft out of Garey High School in Pomona, Calif. He was traded by the Astros to Philadelphia on December 12, 2015 with pitchers Mark Appel, Harold Arauz, Thomas Eshelman and Brett Oberholtzer in exchange for pitcher Ken Giles and infielder Jonathan Arauz.

With the move, the White Sox 40-man roster increases to 39.