Kelenic, 26, was drafted sixth overall by the Mets in 2018 and emerged as a top-five player in the entire sport early in his pro career. Kelenic’s prospect status got him shipped to the Mariners as part of the deal that resulted Edwin Diaz to Queens, and at the time the deal was seen as a coup for Seattle thanks to Kelenic’s star power. Unfortunately, the outfielder is now five years into his MLB career and has yet to put it all together at the Major League level.
After playing at a well-below-average level in 147 games during the 2021 and ’22 seasons, Kelenic seemed to finally stabilize himself in 2023. That year he hit a respectable .253/.327/.419 with a 110 wRC+ in 105 games. He hit 11 home runs with 25 doubles and swiped 13 bags in 18 attempts. While that combination of decent power and speed with a respectable 9.9% walk rate was encouraging, Kelenic was held back considerably by strikeouts. His 31.7% strikeout rate would have been fourth highest in the Majors that year if he had had enough at-bats to qualify, just ahead of Teoscar Hernández And Eugene Suarez for the team leader. That led the Mariners to retool their lineup with a greater focus on contact during the 2023-24 offseason, and part of that effort was a deal that shipped Kelenic to Atlanta that winter.
Joining the Braves gave Kelenic a chance for a fresh start, but he didn’t make much of an impact despite getting the lion’s share of playing time in left field. With Atlanta, Kelenic reached career highs in games played (131) and plate appearances (449), but posted a wRC+ of just 87 as his walk rate and BABIP both dropped significantly, while his strikeout rate remained at a far-inflated 29.6%. An on-base percentage of .286 is hard to justify for a regular no matter how much power they produce, but Kelenic’s 15 home runs and 35 total extra-base hits in 2024 certainly wouldn’t cut it.
That led Atlanta to forego using Kelenic in a starting role this past year, instead signing players like Jurickson Professor And Alex Verdugo to try to fill the gap in left field. A PED suspension for Profar and deep trouble for Verdugo were enough to give Kelenic another chance in the Majors, but he struggled with that opportunity, hitting just .167/.231/.300 in 24 games with a 47 wRC+ and a 35.7% strikeout rate. Those numbers were essentially unplayable at the Major League level and caused Kelenic to spend most of his time in the minors last year. Unfortunately, he also wrestled for the club’s Triple-A affiliate in Gwinnett. For the Stripers, Kelenic hit just .213/.286/.309 in 95 games. As Kelenic’s strikeout and on-base woes continued last year, his power evaporated completely.
All this struggle led the Braves to designate Kelenic for assignment earlier this year, and he elected minor league free agency in October. The outfielder is more of a project than a surefire piece at this point in his career, but considering he’s still just 26 years old, it’s understandable that the rebuilding White Sox would take a chance on a once-well-regarded talent. If Kelenic shows he has more to offer, he would likely compete for a job in the right field Brooks Baldwin as Luis Robert Jr. And Andreas Benintendi cover center field and left field respectively. A trade for Robert or even Benintendi can’t be ruled out given Chicago’s status as one of the few rebuilding clubs in the league, and a deal that would send either of those two out of town would create a more substantial opportunity for Kelenic to get work on the grass in the majors.
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