Eli White Undergoes Foot Surgery

The Red Sox announced that outfielder Eli White recently underwent a Lisfranc repair surgery. He landed on the 10-day injured list earlier this month with a right foot ligament injury. The Sox did not provide an expected recovery timeline but Christopher Smith of MassLive says the procedure will end White’s season.

White was acquired from Atlanta at the deadline, with the Sox sending right-hander Tyler Uberstine the other way. White isn’t much of a hitter, with a career line of .216/.272/.355, but is a big speed-and-defense guy. Though he is in his age-32 season, Statcast ranks his sprint speed at 30.3 feet per second. That’s third among MLB players this year, behind only Henry Bolte of the Athletics and Cam Cauley of the Rangers.

Despite those big wheels, he doesn’t steal a lot of bases. In 372 career games, he has swiped just 35 bags, but he has received strong grades as a defender. In over 2,000 innings on the grass over seven seasons, he has been credited with 28 Defensive Runs Saved and 20 Outs Above Average.

The Sox added him at the deadline in the hopes that he could be a valuable complementary player for the stretch run and postseason as a late-game substitute for pinch-running or defensive purposes. Unfortunately, White got into just 27 games before hitting the IL. He told reporters last week, including Rob Bradford of WEEI, that he had a tear in a ligament in his foot and might require surgery.

That has now come to pass and he will apparently miss the rest of the campaign. That could lead to more playoff opportunities for complementary outfielders like Nate Eaton or Jahmai Jones. They’re also reportedly mulling a promotion for minor league speedster Braiden Ward as a designated pinch-runner. White came into this year with three years and 140 days of service time, or 3.140, so he’ll finish this year at 4.140. He is making $900K. The Sox could retain him for 2027 via arbitration but he would be due a modest raise and is out of options, so he can’t be easily sent to the minors.