Luis Robert Jr.’s name has been steadily featured in trade rumors in recent years. Late Tuesday evening, the White Sox officially parted ways with their All-Star center fielder, while adding a promising up-and-comer to a roster budding with young talent.
The White Sox traded Robert to the Mets, the club announced on Tuesday. In return, Chicago received second baseman Luisangel Acuña and right-hander Truman Pauley.
TRADE DETAILS
White Sox receive: 2B Luisangel Acuña, RHP Truman Pauley
Mets receive: CF Luis Robert Jr.
The White Sox picked up Robert’s $20 million option for 2026 in November, and his contract also includes a $20 million club option for ‘27. He was the final player remaining from Chicago’s previous rebuild iteration, and his name appeared on the rumor mill going back to at least the ‘24 Trade Deadline.
With the White Sox rebuilding once more, the 28-year-old Robert represented a valuable trade chip to help improve the club’s future outlook. Acuña (who’s under club control through 2031) will have an opportunity to immediately contribute.
“To get a chance at bringing in a player like [Acuña] and gain some more [financial] flexibility with moving Luis seemed like something that we needed to strike on,” general manager Chris Getz said on Wednesday.
Pauley, meanwhile, was New York’s 12th-round pick in the 2025 MLB Draft out of Harvard. The 22-year-old recorded a 2.08 ERA in 4 1/3 innings over three starts in Single-A this past summer.
Acuña, who will turn 24 on March 12, was ranked as New York’s No. 3 prospect by MLB Pipeline in 2024. He made his MLB debut on Sept. 14 that season, when he hit .308 with three homers over 14 games.
Acuña (who’s the younger brother of Braves star Ronald Acuña Jr.) made New York’s Opening Day roster this past season, in which he largely served in a reserve role and was also optioned to Triple-A three times. He slashed .234/.293/.274 over 95 games in the Majors.
Acuña, however, has a career .282/.351/.400 slash line over parts of six seasons in the Minors. He will get runway in Chicago to realize his promising potential.
“We have opportunity here, and we can provide that runway to show off his talent and his ability and his ceiling,” Getz said. “The industry has been very high on this player for a long time. We've been tracking him for a long time.”
Acuña fits the mold of other White Sox players with his defensive versatility. He’s seen his most time at second base in the Majors (82 games) and has spent extended time there in the Minors (131). He’s also made 37 starts in center field in Triple-A over the past two seasons, and he has made 17 appearances there this winter with the Cardenales de Lara in the Venezuelan Winter League (and another 23 at shortstop).
The White Sox have Colson Montgomery at shortstop, and the second-base picture includes Chase Meidroth. Center field involves Everson Pereira -- whom Chicago acquired from Tampa Bay on Nov. 18.
Acuña said he feels comfortable at any of the three positions, and his versatility figures to be an asset for manager Will Venable.
“The thing that excites me the most is I will have the opportunity to keep growing and developing as a baseball player,” Acuña said through team interpreter Billy Russo. “But beside that, the most important thing for me is just to help the team in whatever capacity they need me to, and I’m open to whatever they ask me.”
With Robert’s salary off the books for 2026, Getz noted the White Sox plan to be “very active” adding to the roster and will consider “all areas.”
“It’s increasing talent on the team to help us win ballgames,” Getz said. “We are very open-minded and excited to get to work in being creative and bringing in that talent.”
The White Sox initially signed Robert as an international free agent out of Cuba in May 2017. In six seasons, he slashed .259/.313/.455 over 577 games while missing time due to injuries. He had his best season in '23, when he hit 36 doubles and 38 homers with an .857 OPS over a career-high 145 games, and he earned his first All-Star nod and won his first Silver Slugger Award.
“You can rewind the clock and look at his ’23 and prior seasons,” Getz said. “They were really impactful for this organization, and he deserves a lot of credit for doing that. The last couple of years, it just hasn’t been there.
“We felt like it was time to make this move, turn the page and continue this build forward.”