Chicago White Sox Top Pitching Prospect Returns From Injury

Chicago White Sox No. 1 pitching prospect Noah Schultz returned to game action Sunday with the Triple-A Charlotte Knights.

Due to a knee injury, he hadn't pitched since July 12 in the MLB Futures Game, when he allowed four earned runs in 0.2 innings. His last start in the Minor Leagues came on July 3 with the Knights, a four-inning outing with four earned runs.

Schultz, 22, was expected to pitch about two innings on Sunday, and that turned out to be the case. Throwing 37 pitches, he allowed two hits, one unearned run and zero earned runs while striking out four batters and walking none.

The 6-foot-10 left-hander struck out the first batter he faced on a 3-2 slider, and the next batter lined out sharply to left field with a 100.4 mph exit velocity off Schultz's slider. Schultz left a slider over the plate in the third at-bat, and it was hit up the middle for a single. But he located a fastball on the inner half to strike out the batter looking and end the first inning.

The second inning began with a fielding error by Schultz, who gave up a single in the next at-bat. Schultz's changeup got past the catcher for a wild pitch, putting runners on second and third base. A fly ball in the following at-bat was enough to bring home a run on a sacrifice fly, giving the Norfolk Tides a 1-0 lead.

Schultz fanned the next batter with a slider to get out of the second inning and end his outing on a high note. His fastball topped out at 96.8 mph, while also throwing a sinker, slider and changeup.

Schultz's 2025 season has come with some ups and downs. He started strong with the Double-A Birmingham Barons, registering a 3.34 ERA across 12 starts and 56.2 innings. But after making the jump to Triple-A, he allowed 15 earned runs in 11.1 innings in three starts.

He then missed about six weeks with a knee injury. Schultz also talked in July about how he's made several adjustment this year with pitch grips, usage and mechanics.

As the White Sox continue to rebuild, they hope Schultz –– ranked No. 38 overall in the MLB Pipeline rankings and No. 2 among White Sox prospects –– can be a key part of the future.