Should White Sox Sign Marquee Free Agent This Offseason?
By Labeeb Ekram
Even in a rebuild, the White Sox should sign a marquee free agent because it’ll add depth and give insurance.
While the Chicago White Sox have done well in their rebuild so far, a prospect isn’t a sure thing. While quality prospects are great, the White Sox also need a high quantity of prospects to ensure success down the road.
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During this past seasons non-waiver trade deadline, we saw the Cubs trade three prospects, headed by top-20 talent Gleyber Torres, along with Adam Warren to the Yankees for Aroldis Chapman. Chapman was in the final year of his contract. To the Cubs, Chapman’s contract didn’t matter, or the public opinion of Chapman. The Cubs knew Chapman would help, and that’s all that mattered.
The White Sox should take advantage of teams a piece or two away from contending. At the deadline, teams are desperate to get a player, because it may be their last chance. If the White Sox have a player with tremendous value at the deadline, nothing will matter besides the fact that the player can help the team. Through the trades of Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, the White Sox got roughly $16 million off the books for next year.
With that being said, the White Sox should sign a big name free agent. Sure the team has Jose Quintana, David Robertson, Todd Frazier, Jose Abreu, and Nate Jones who most likely will be asked for at the deadline. But if the White Sox can add a player to the list, why shouldn’t they? The only way the White Sox can get their biggest need right now, prospects, is through trading their current players. So the White Sox should sign a high impact player to trade at the deadline in order to advance the rebuild.
The highest impact free agent appears to be Mark Trumbo. He led all of the MLB with 47 homers this season. There’s also Jose Bautista, Pedro Alvarez, Luis Valbuena, and a plethora of big power hitters. There are not many pitchers who can bring in top prospects, but players like Tyson Ross or Joe Blanton may garner interest. The White Sox have options, and just as important, time.
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With waiting until the deadline, the White Sox run the risk of injuries. With a designated hitter though, the White Sox can limit the chance of injury. While there are still risks, there are still high rewards. Seeing the return of the Eaton trade, the White Sox can net multiple top prospects for players they don’t need, and prepare for long term success.