White Sox decline $25 million option on Yoán Moncada, $7.5 million option on Max Stassi

CHICAGO (AP) — The White Sox declined a $25 million option on third baseman Yoán Moncada on Friday after he missed almost the entire season because of a left adductor strain.

Chicago also turned down a $7.5 million option on catcher Max Stassi.

The 29-year-old Moncada gets a $5 million buyout, completing a $70 million, five-year contract.

He played in just 12 games this year. Moncada was hurt trying to beat out a grounder at Cleveland on April 9 and did not return until Sept. 18.

Acquired from Boston along with pitcher Michael Kopech in the deal that sent former ace Chris Sale to the Red Sox in December 2016, Moncada hit .254 with 93 homers and 338 RBIs in eight years with Chicago.

His best season was in 2019, when he set career highs with a .315 average, 25 homers and 79 RBIs. A back injury limited him to 92 games in 2023, and Moncada dealt with oblique, quadriceps, hamstring and foot injuries in 2022.

Stassi gets a $500,000 buyout as part of a $17.5 million, three-year contract he agreed to with the Los Angeles Angels.

He was acquired from Atlanta in December, began the season on the 10-day injured list with left hip inflammation. He played five games on a rehab assignment with Triple-A Charlotte and had season-ending surgery on June 7.

Chicago set the post-1900 record for losses in a season, going 41-121. They hired Will Venable as manager on Thursday after firing Pedro Grifol in August. ___

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