White Sox ace continues to be trade target of interested teams before start of upcoming season. Will the South Siders trade their most valuable asset soon?
The Chicago White Sox could still trade its best pitcher in Jose Quintana before the 2017 season begins. According to Jeff Passan at Yahoo Sports, the Sox could move Quintana at any time. The Sox have been rumored to discussing trades with multiple teams over Quintana throughout the offseason.
"“Over the last few days, the buzz around camps in Florida and Arizona converged on the same player: Jose Quintana. Scouts ran their information up the chain – Chicago White Sox scouts are everywhere – and the game of telephone ended with general managers across the game wondering: Are they finally going to deal Quintana? The answer, major league sources familiar with the talks told Yahoo Sports, is the same it’s been since the White Sox committed to rebuild and started the dismantling of their core: Yes … but only for the right price. And even as the White Sox have dispatched more scouts than usual to those back fields, sources said, no deal has materialized.” Jeff Passan"
With the start of the regular season quickly approaching, there’s still time for the Sox to trade Quintana for the right price. According to Jim Bowden at ESPN, the Sox continue to work hard on a trade involving Quintana. Bowden tweeted a trade could happen involving Quintana before Opening Day, and the Astros and Braves appear to be the best possibilities.
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Although Quintana has been mentioned in many rumors during the past offseason, the Sox haven’t traded its All-Star pitcher. While the Sox could hold onto to Quintana until the trading deadline, his stock is still high especially coming off an impressive performance during the World Baseball Classic.
Quintana pitched five stellar innings for his native Colombia against a vaunted USA lineup in Miami on March 10. That start solidified Quintana could still dominate a potent lineup, even on a big stage. The Sox will most likely want a high return for Quintana and they should certainly seek that. According to Bowden, a trade of Quintana to the Astros would center around Houston’s top prospects in Francis Martes and Kyle Tucker.
#WhiteSox continue to work hard on Jose Quintana trade that could happen before opening day with Astros & Braves appear best possibilities
— Jim Bowden⚾️ (@JimBowdenGM) March 22, 2017
A potential #WhiteSox #Astros deal would be centered around a package of both Frances Martes and Kyle Tucker. However, nothing close.
— Jim Bowden⚾️ (@JimBowdenGM) March 22, 2017
While there are rumors of Quintana being traded still floating around, the Sox haven’t done much to stop those rumors. On Wednesday, Dan Hayes of csnchicago.com tweeted on Wednesday the Sox haven’t determined an Opening Day starter yet. Hayes mentioned Sox manager Rick Renteria needs a few more days to confirm who will start on April 3 against the Detroit Tigers. This could be nothing, but if they haven’t announced Quintana as the starter on Opening Day by now, could they still be looking to trade him before the start of the season?
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The Sox are in a good position in regards to trading Quintana, as they can still hold out until they receive an offer they feel is acceptable. Quintana will be a hot commodity until he’s traded, but it would be nice if he’s able to start on Opening Day for the Sox.