CHICAGO -- The White Sox added to their left-handed bullpen mix by acquiring reliever Cam Booser from the Boston Red Sox on Dec. 21. Minor League right-hander Yhoiker Fajardo was sent to Boston in exchange for Booser, and to make room on the 40-man roster, the White Sox designated outfielder Corey Julks for assignment.

"To be honest, no. I hadn't really even considered it," Booser said of the trade via Zoom on Friday. "It all happened pretty quick, and then after it happened, it was just a little bit of an initial shock. Now that I've had a couple days, I'm just excited for the new opportunity.

¡°Any time that I have a uniform, I'm excited to play. The fact that somebody wanted me is exciting. The fact that Chicago made the trade for me is exciting."

TRADE DETAILS
White Sox acquire: LHP Cam Booser
Red Sox acquire: RHP Yhoiker Fajardo

Booser, 32, joins Jared Shuster and Fraser Ellard as southpaw relief options for the 2025 White Sox. Elllard, 27, posted a 3.75 ERA over 25 games last season with 26 strikeouts and 12 walks in 24 innings. Shuster, 26, had a 4.30 ERA over 39 games, but had a 4.22 ERA as a reliever. There has been previous talk of looking at Shuster as a starter.

In 43 appearances for the Red Sox last season, Booser finished 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA, one save, six holds and 43 strikeouts in 42 2/3 innings. He made his Major League debut on April 19 at Pittsburgh at age 31 years and 351 days, becoming the oldest Red Sox player to debut since Tommy Fine in 1947 (excluding those who had previously competed in Japan). Booser was recognized as the organization¡¯s Lou Gorman Award winner in September, given annually to a Red Sox Minor League player who has demonstrated dedication and perseverance in overcoming obstacles while working his way to the Major League team.

MLB.com¡¯s Ian Browne detailed the career and life path for Booser this past spring. At 6-foot-3 and 225 pounds, Booser pitched over seven Minor League seasons in the Minnesota (2013-2017), Arizona (2022) and Boston (2023-24) organizations. He also pitched for the Chicago Dogs of the independent American Association in 2021, with that team located in Rosemont, Ill.

¡°I had a wonderful time out there playing for Butch Hobson. It was a lot of fun,¡± said Booser of his return to baseball via the Dogs. ¡°I didn't realize how windy it was. I had never really played in Chicago until that summer, but I loved it. I never really ventured into the city too much: Kind of stayed in the village of Rosemont, but I had a lot of fun out there.

"That was the first team I had played for coming out of retirement, so I was just happy to have a uniform and get to play. It was a lot of fun. I really enjoyed that summer."

As Browne detailed concerning Booser, on Nov. 17, 2017, after several years of dealing with a variety of obstacles (Tommy John surgery, labrum surgery, a broken back following a bike accident, a 50-game suspension for testing positive for marijuana and self-admitted attitude problems), Booser retired from baseball. He even joined the local carpenter¡¯s union in Seattle before finding his way back to baseball with the Dogs.

Booser has a four-seamer, cutter and sweeper mix, with the four-seam averaging 95.3 mph per Statcast. He's already talked with White Sox assistant general manager Josh Barfield and pitching coach Ethan Katz and connected with general manager Chris Getz.

¡°I'm excited,¡± Booser said. ¡°I'm ready to go into camp and do anything I can to try to earn a big league spot."

Fajardo, 18, originally was signed by the White Sox as an international free agent on February 20. He went 1-4 with a 3.91 ERA and 64 strikeouts over 50 2/3 innings in 13 starts with the Dominican Summer League White Sox last season. Julks, 28, batted .214 with seven doubles, three home runs and 14 RBIs over 66 games with the White Sox in 2024 after being acquired from Houston on May 15 in exchange for Minor League pitcher Luis Rodr¨ªguez.

The White Sox 40-man roster remains at 40.