Can Sean Burke Become a Key Piece of the White Sox’s Future?

While the negativity surrounding the Chicago White Sox is more than justified following the worst season of all time, that does not mean there aren’t aspects of the team to watch closely this year. The 2025 season is an opportunity for the White Sox to find pieces that can be part of their club for years to come.

The team will be nowhere near good, but they will (hopefully…) prioritize their young talent in an effort to build towards the future. With that will come plenty of learning curves for players up and down the roster.

The White Sox have quietly built one of the better pitching systems in baseball over the past couple years, with top prospects Noah Schultz and Hagen Smith headlining a deep core of arms. None of the top guys like those two have debuted yet, but a bunch of arms did get their first taste of big league ball in 2024.

Most struggled in all honesty to find their footing at the highest level, but some displayed flashes of being big league arms for years to come. One name that some will not know shined in his very brief cameo with the big league club.

Sean Burke, a former top prospect within the White Sox system, flashed the stuff of a legit big league arm in his first four MLB appearances this past September.

Burke’s first full professional season in 2023 culminated in 137 strikeouts across 108 innings pitched despite some ups and downs as he made it all the way to Triple-A to finish the year.

Entering 2023, many expected Burke to be one of the first call-ups to the big league rotation during the season. However, a shoulder injury, which he explained really stopped him from pitching at his usual level, led to him being shut down and eventually undergoing surgery.

As he slowly built his arm back up last year, it became clear in August that his stuff had ticked up to where it was at in 2022 – and possibly even better. Upon being called up in early September, Burke made his debut out of the bullpen on September 10th.

Not only did he turn in a strong three frames of work, but he earned himself three turns in the rotation as a starter to finish out the tough year in Chicago.

After his initial game in relief and three starts, Burke had tossed a total of 19 innings and allowed just 12 hits and three earned runs while striking out 22 batters. Simply put, he was one of the more impressive pitchers to throw for the White Sox in 2024, even with such limited work.

Burke’s stuff has never been much of the question. Rather, it’s his command that has limited his output to this point in his career.

Through that limited sample of big league time, he struck out batters at a 28.9% clip while registering a 28.8% whiff rate. In addition to maintaining solid command, his walk rate was an acceptable 9.2% at the MLB level.

His final two starts, both against playoff teams, were especially strong, as he allowed just four hits and struck out 14 in 11 innings of work. While it may be hard to carry over that level of success, he showed reason to believe moving forward.

It took time for Burke to build it back up in 2024, but his fastball has shown signs of being a true plus heater. With nearly 19 inches of induced vertical break and topping out at 98 MPH, he works it effectively in the top of the zone. When he can spot the pitch, it leads the way for the rest of his arsenal.

He’s able to throw the fastball at around a 40% clip because of the pair of distinct breaking balls that he uses more than 50% of the time combined. He has always been touted for his curveball, which has a ton of depth to it and can be a very effective strikeout pitch when he keeps it below the zone.

Hitters went 1-for-14 in at-bats against the curveball during his September big league stint. While less impressive, his slider is still a quality offering that he utilizes in many different counts. Compared to how most pitchers use a slider, Burke varies his more frequently while still generating whiffs in and out of the zone with it.

Burke’s changeup may be the key to him sticking as a starter long-term. It has flashed upside at times, but he hasn’t thrown it consistently with confidence yet. On numerous occasions, he has mentioned to me that landing that offering elevates everything else in his bag.

While far from a finished product, Burke showed the ability to get big league hitters to miss his stuff in 2024.

The White Sox have a ton of big-name young arms working to earn spots on the roster for 2025 and beyond. Burke may not have the highest pedigree or be the most impressive one, but he deserves some attention and might properly put himself on some radars of those not just in Chicago this season.