GLENDALE, Ariz. – The bond between right-hander Erick Fedde and director of pitching Brian Bannister didn’t take long to resurface as part of Fedde’s return to the White Sox.
Fedde and the team agreed to a one-year, $1.5 million contract announced on Tuesday, and he was throwing his first bullpen session on the back fields of the White Sox complex at Camelback Ranch on Wednesday morning. Bannister, who had already joined the South Siders during Fedde’s stellar 2024 campaign, immediately pointed out a few things during Fedde’s debut mound session.
“He showed me a video right away and was like, ‘Hey, do you remember doing this?’ I was like, ‘OK, yeah,’” said a smiling Fedde after the workout. “He said, ‘Let’s get back to this.’
“It was a little mechanical thing. Just a few things to work on in catch every day and try to, brick by brick, get back to being good. He really understands my stuff.”
Bannister was a big reason why Fedde chose the White Sox prior to the 2024 season after putting up dominant numbers for NC Dinos during his one year in Korea within the ‘23 campaign. Fedde featured All-Star numbers with the White Sox via a 7-4 record for a team that eventually finished at 41-121, with a 3.11 ERA and 4.6 bWAR over 21 starts.
That success – which led to Fedde moving to St. Louis and Miguel Vargas to the White Sox as part of a three-team, eight-player deal at the Deadline – influenced Fedde’s decision to return to Chicago.
“I don’t know, it just reminds me of times when things were good,” Fedde said. “In ’24, we weren’t the best team in the world but had some guys who were just breaking into the league. Seeing their excitement and seeing guys like [Jonathan] Cannon and [Korey] Lee, threw to Lee today, it was like old times.
“But it was just cool to be back and [I] love being in Arizona … It’s exciting. It’s just been lots of great memories. Just everyone has been so kind in saying hello. It’s good to see old faces.”
Over 25 games (24 starts) with the Cardinals and Braves in 2025, Fedde went 4-12 with a 5.76 ERA. The righty averaged five innings per start, had a 1.57 WHIP and batters hit .279 against him. His 13.3 percent strikeout rate was among the lowest in baseball. Though he tossed a shutout against the Nationals on May 9, those first 25 appearances were mostly a struggle.
Things changed after Fedde signed with the Brewers on Aug. 27, three days after being released by the Braves. Appearing exclusively as a reliever down the stretch, Fedde pitched to a 3.38 ERA in seven games (16 innings), which included four straight scoreless outings for the first-place Brewers.
In contrast to his earlier numbers in St. Louis and Atlanta, Fedde held opponents to a .186 average and posted a WHIP of 1.13. Although he looked good out of the bullpen, Fedde appears ticketed for the White Sox rotation.
“There is a battle,” said White Sox manager Will Venable of the rotation mix. “There's gonna be things that will come to life as we get through this Spring Training and figure things out, but he is certainly in the mix and someone we anticipate being in the rotation.”
“Competition is healthy,” Fedde said. “It’s not something I haven’t done before. But as long as it brings the best out of all of us, that’s important. We are going to put the best players out there and try to win a bunch of ballgames.”
Fedde has a four-pitch arsenal – sinker, cutter, sweeper and changeup – though only his sweeper and changeup found consistent success in 2025. Batters hit just .191 against the sweeper, which had a 26 percent whiff rate, while they hit .212 against the changeup. In parts of eight big league seasons with the Nationals, White Sox, Cardinals, Braves and Brewers, Fedde is 34-55 with a 4.94 ERA in 772 2/3 innings.
Left-hander Ky Bush, who is recovering from Tommy John surgery, was placed on the 60-day injured list in a corresponding move to clear a spot on the 40-man roster. The White Sox made the best offer for Fedde, bringing him back to a place where he feels at home.
“I knew some faces and had some success,” Fedde said. “[It] felt like a great place to start back up.”