Would drilling a small hole through joist / sole plate cause structural problems?
You can drill through the plate anywhere you want to.

Ideally don't put any notches in the top 2" or bottom 2" of the middle third of the joist span. You can put a notch on the right or left third of the span in the top of the joist up to a sixth of the joist depth. A sixth of the depth of a 2x10 is 1-1/2", do just don't go deeper than that.