A Closer Look At The White Sox Return For Luis Robert Jr.
Last night the White Sox finally pulled the trigger on a Luis Robert Jr. trade, as they shipped him to the New York Mets in exchange for two players. While there have been rumors of a trade for quite some time, there was no indication that a trade yesterday was imminent, so the trade sort of feels like it came out of nowhere.
Now, the White Sox are looking to start a new era of baseball, one that aligns more with what Chris Getz has in mind, not Rick Hahn. The two players that were acquired yesterday will be part of that new era, so let’s take a deeper dive into who the White Sox acquired in exchange for Luis Robert Jr.
Luisangel Acuña
Acuña is the headliner in this deal, as he was a former top-75 prospect in baseball and has just 214 major league at-bats under his belt. While he doesn’t provide as much power as Robert Jr., he makes up for it with his legs.
Acuña made his major league debut in 2024, where he appeared in 14 games with the Mets. In those games, he hit .308 with a .325 OBP, adding two doubles, a triple, and three homeruns, while adding six RBIs. For his first 40 major league games, that was a pretty good start.
#WhiteSox trade acquisition: UTL Luisangel Acuña
2025:
.234/.293/.274 | 65 wRC+ | 0.4 WAR23-year-old, + speed & defensive versatility across SS, 2B, & CF. Impact runner w/ range & arm strength. Bat remains the question, but athleticism and glove give him a clear utility floor. pic.twitter.com/fpRNSiccye
— Adrian White (@AdrianWhiteSox) January 21, 2026
In 2025, Acuña got more playing time with the big league club, as he appeared in 95 games, getting 175 at-bats. In total, he slashed .234/.293/.274, adding seven doubles, eight RBIs, and 16 stolen bases. He also walked 16 times compared to 37 strikeouts. While this wasn’t as good as his 2024 season, he was just 23 years old. Moving forward, he has plenty of time to continue to grow, and he will do just that with more consistent playing time.
Outside of his limited MLB playing time, Acuña has been a productive minor league baseball player, as in his minor league career, he has slashed .282/.351/.400 over 533 games, adding 41 homeruns, 273 RBIs, and 206 stolen bases.
Acuña will likely get everyday reps in centerfield this year for the White Sox and should be closer to his 2024 performance than 2025. Now in a position to get consistent playing time, he should be able to build on his top prospect pedigree, hopefully hitting around .285 and stealing 35+ bases. Any power he adds will be icing on the cake, but Acuña will likely be in line to produce right away for the White Sox. I am a big fan of Acuña and I believe he will be a very good player for the White Sox.
Truman Pauley
The other player in the deal is Truman Pauley, a 12th round pick in last year’s draft from Harvard. Pauley could be someone who flies through the farm system, as if he converts to a reliever, he could find his way to Chicago in a year or two.
I love the look @HarvardBaseball product Truman Pauley's stuff. A fastball that touches 96 mph, paired with a low-80s slider makes for an incredibly tough AB.
Pauley posted a 28.9% K% while holding hitters to a .167 BAA. 12th round pick that should excel with the Mets org. pic.twitter.com/WH1kdT8RhF
— Tobey Schulman (@tschulmanreport) December 30, 2025
While Pauley’s ERA at Harvard was a bit elevated, as he had a 5.20 ERA over 114 innings, he had some fantastic strikeout numbers, as he struck out 10.4 batters per nine innings. Pauley also had a very nice summer league showing in 2024, as he had a 2.08 over 26 innings, striking out an elite 16 batters per nine innings.
There are some concerns about his ability to command his pitches, but a shift to the bullpen could help fix that, as Brian Bannister and the White Sox organization will likely have some things they want him to tweak.
With Pauley’s fastball and slider combo, he could be a very valuable late inning reliever for the White Sox, something that doesn’t grow on trees. Time will tell with Pauley, but the White Sox clearly zeroed in on him in this trade, so there must be a lot they like with him.
While the overall haul feels light, Robert Jr. wasn’t going to fetch anything insane with his current value. However, Acuña will make an immediate impact this season and Pauley could be a valuable player for the White Sox in just a few years. Time will tell, but I am a fan of both of these players and they will likely be contributors for the next good White Sox team.