Sep 28, 2014; Chicago, IL, USA; Chicago White Sox center fielder Adam Eaton lays down a bunt single against the Kansas City Royals during the fourth inning at U.S Cellular Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerry Lai-USA TODAY Sports
After the Chicago White Sox added big names like Jeff Samardzija, Melky Cabrera, and David Robertson, it’s easy to overlook what was already in place. A great deal has been written this offseason about the White Sox wanting to capitalize on the primes of Chris Sale and Jose Abreu, but there’s another core piece that deserves just as much attention.
That would be scrappy center fielder Adam Eaton.
When General Manager Rick Hahn acquired him in December 2013 in a trade with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Eaton was coming off an injury riddled season in which he had failed to illustrate his true potential.
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Maybe the time off made then Diamonbacks GM Kevin Towers forget why some had even pegged Eaton as a rookie of the year candidate prior to ’13.
The Diamondbacks felt they had a player even better than Eaton in A.J. Pollock and pulled the trigger on a three-way deal that netted the Diamondbacks Mark Trumbo and sent Eaton to the South Side. Considering the White Sox surrendered Hector Santiago and lottery ticket prospect Brandon Jacobs in the trade, the deal now looks like a steal.
Shortly after the trade, Hahn said that Eaton had been a top target for quite some time. The target list that Hahn scribed sometime during the dismal ’13 campaign has become something of White Sox legend at this point.
If there is in fact a crumpled piece of paper lying in the front offices of 35th-and-Shields, not only will it be a potential auction item if the White Sox win a championship, but per Hahn some players were written with a bolder pen than others.
"“But what I will say is that both Jose Abreu and Adam Eaton were very high on that list.”"
Next: Eaton an integral piece of reshaping process