In Retrospect: Grading The 2017 White Sox Trades

White Sox accelerated rebuild last offseason with a flurry of trades that continued through August. How would each trade be graded?

The White Sox have seen a lot of players come and go this season. Many that most people won’t even remember but a few that have put the Sox in the position they are in today. Players that were cornerstones of the franchise and are now cornerstones of other organizations. A few players we dumped and others that are sorely missed.

We’ll take a brief look at the notable trades throughout the season and look at the returns and how they fared with their new teams.

Aug. 31 – Traded RHP Miguel Gonzalez to Texas Rangers for INF Ti-Quan Forbes

Gonzalez had a nice resurgence with the White Sox. He did not have any plans with the team for the future, but he was very solid at the times for the club. In Texas, he’s given up 13 runs and five home runs in three starts (16.1 innings pitched). He has a 1-2 record with Texas, and is 8-12 overall on the year.

Grade: C / Gonzalez was not very highly valued but any return for a 33-year old pitcher who was probably not apart of the future plans is a good return.

Aug. 14 – Traded RHP Tyler Clippard to Houston Astros for player to be named later/cash (TBA)

We received Clippard through another trade a mere month before this trade. Clippard has actually pitched in more games for the Astros than he did for the Sox. It’s quite amazing that the Sox actually flipped him so quickly for anything at all. He had a 1.80 ERA in 10 IP with the Sox. In Houston, he has a 9.00 ERA in 10 IP and has given up 10 runs on three home runs.

Grade: B- / We acquired Clippard  as a “throw in” piece. He was the only player that we could play after letting go of three of our every day players. The fact we flipped him at all, in only a month of service time deserves some recognition.