Ahead of their game against the St. Louis Cardinals, the Chicago White Sox announced that scouting director Mike Shirley is no longer with the organization. Shirley resigned from the position he had held for the past seven seasons on Saturday. However, the resignation comes amid reports of alleged verbal harassment claims against him. The White Sox are currently running an internal investigation into the allegations.
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“We cannot comment on personnel matters,” the White Sox said in a statement about his resignation, per The Chicago Tribune.
The Athletic reported that the White Sox received an anonymous tip, raising questions about Shirley’s conduct during the Area Code Games in Long Beach, California. The games are an annual event in early August where area scouts lead eight teams of approximately 200 high school players. Shirley was one of the scouting directors who watched the games.
Sources also told the outlet that Shirley has allegedly made inappropriate, racist, and sexist comments about and in front of coworkers. He reportedly made “vulgar” remarks about females.
“Shortly after receiving the complaint, the White Sox human resources department launched an investigation into Shirley’s alleged behavior,” reported The Athletic.
Anonymous sources told The Athletic that the White Sox HR department has interviewed multiple members of the amateur scouting division as part of the investigation into Shirley.
As part of the procedure, the White Sox placed Shirley on administrative leave. But Shirley opted to resign on Saturday amid the controversy.
The White Sox have even previously received complaints against Shirley.
In 2022, a former White Sox employee anonymously tipped the major league about Shirley’s behaviour towards scouts from underrepresented groups. The investigation reportedly had no concrete proof against Shirley’s hiring practices and his behaviour.
As a result, the White Sox did not take any disciplinary action against him.
However, The Athletic found that the White Sox also investigated the former scouting executive in 2021.
The organization ran an anonymous department survey among the employees. They also alleged that Shirley has not treated underrepresented scouts impartially.
“Multiple employees at the time said they felt scouts from underrepresented groups were not treated equally and not given the same opportunities to advance as their counterparts under Shirley,” wrote The Athletic.
The team has not publicly disclosed the results of the latest investigation against Shirley.
Now, as the 56-year-old top scouting executive resigned, here are the players he signed during his tenure.
Mike Shirley and the players he helped White Sox draft
Mike Shirley has been serving as the Chicago White Sox‘s amateur scouting director for the past seven seasons. The White Sox promoted him to the role in September 2019. Since then, he has been at the center of drafting top prospects for the organization.
Ahead of the 2000 season, Shirley joined the organization as a part-time area scout.
From 2004 to 2009, he worked full-time as an area scout in the Midwest. Shirley handled a cross-checker role from 2010 to 2018 before the franchise promoted him to assistant scouting director in November.
Garrett Crochet was the first prospect Shirley helped draft for the franchise.
In 2020, Crochet was the Overall No. 11 pick in the first round of the MLB draft. Chicago traded Crochet to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Kyle Teel, Chase Meidroth, Wikelman Gonzalez, and Braden Montgomery. All three players regularly play for the White Sox.
Crochet has since established himself as a dominant starter in the Red Sox organization. Across 142 games in his career, Crochet has logged a 3.17 ERA with a 1.12 WHIP and a 30-27 record.
Shirley also drafted Colson Montgomery in 2021 and Hagen Smith in 2024. He even picked the organization’s current top prospect, Caleb Bonemar.
Shortstop Roch Cholowsky was named the top pick overall in 2026, and the Chicago White Sox drafted him. It marked the third time the White Sox held the top pick overall in franchise history, per MLB.com.
It was an expected move on the White Sox’s part, as the franchise won the Draft Lottery at the Winter Meetings last year. The organization also had a record draft pool worth $20,489,000 this year.
After Mike Shirley’s exit, Chicago has not announced his replacement yet. Teams have already started working on the 2027 Draft, and the team will need to find their new executive soon. Or will they also rely more on technology?