White Sox designate former top 100 prospect for assignment

The White Sox announced they have selected the contract of right-hander Josimar Cousin, with fellow righty Luis Patiño designated for assignment in a corresponding move.

Patiño, now 24, was once a top 100 prospect but hasn’t yet delivered on that hype as a major leaguer. He came up with the Padres and then went to the Rays in the December 2020 Blake Snell deal. But he struggled to establish himself in Tampa and was flipped to the White Sox just ahead of this year’s deadline.

Between those three clubs, he has 136 1/3 major league innings of experience to this point with a 5.02 earned run average. His 20.2% strikeout rate and 11.4% walk rate are both below typical league averages. He also has struggled at the Triple-A level, with a 5.12 ERA in 123 innings there in his career.

The righty exhausted his final option year in 2023, meaning he could no longer be sent to the minors without being exposed to waivers. With that diminished roster flexibility, it was going to be a challenge for him to hang onto a roster spot, given his poor results of late. The Sox will now have a week to try to work out a trade or pass him through waivers.

Cousin, 26 in February, was born in Cuba and signed a minor league deal with the Sox in May. He spent time at three different minor league levels this year, going from the Complex League to High-A and then Double-A. 

He posted a combined 5.56 ERA in 55 innings, striking out 19.6% of opponents and walking 6.3%. It’s unclear why he was added to the roster today but it’s possible there was some sort of opt-out in his deal or he was offered an opportunity overseas.