White Sox decline $10M option on veteran shortstop Alexei Ramirez

CHICAGO -- The Chicago White Sox have declined their $10 million option on shortstop Alexei Ramirez's contract, making the eight-year Chicago veteran a free agent.

Ramirez, 34, received a $1 million buyout. The White Sox have been his only team since coming to the majors from Cuba as a free agent in 2007.He never played in the minor leagues, making the White Sox's roster after his first spring training with the club. He was primarily a second baseman in his first season, moving to shortstop full-time in 2009.

This season Ramirez batted .249 with a .285 on-base percentage, numbers well below his career averages. He was a finalist for an AL Gold Glove Award in 2014, but he was not included in the final three this past season.

The top in-house candidate to take over at shortstop for the White Sox is Tyler Saladino, who made his major league debut this season and proved to be an above-average defender. He batted just .225 in 68 games, though, with a .267 OBP.

The White Sox have highly regarded prospect Tim Anderson in their system, but the 22-year-old has never played above Double A. He batted .312 at Birmingham this season with a .350 OBP and was named a Southern League midseason and postseason All-Star. He also was MVP of the Southern League's midseason All-Star Game.