The Chicago White Sox acquired Nomar Mazara on Tuesday night from the Texas Rangers in exchange for prospect Steele Walker as reported by Evan Grant of the Dallas Morning News and TR Sullivan of MLB.com.
Mazara, 24, is coming off a season in which he hit .268/.318/.469 with 19 homers and 66 RBI to give himself a 94 wRC+ and 0.5 fWAR.
His defense in right field is slightly below average as he had -4 DRS and a -2.7 UZR in 878 1/3 innings in 2019 as detailed by FanGraphs. He has -15 DRS and a 0.0 UZR for his career there.
Meanwhile, Steele Walker is a Texas native and center fielder who has topped out at High-A Winston-Salem so far. In 2019, Walker hit .284/.361/.451 with 10 homers and 62 RBI over 120 games.
According to MLB Pipeline, he was the team’s sixth-best prospect, ranking right behind Dane Dunning.
Mazara fills two needs for the White Sox, though, as he represents their starting right fielder for the 2020 season and he also provides a much-needed left-handed bat for the lineup.
Before acquiring him, the White Sox were only projected to carry two left-handed-hitting options in their lineup in Yasmani Grandal and Yoan Moncada, both of which are switch hitters.
The team will have Mazara under control for two years, both of which he will be headed for arbitration (Spotrac).
According to Tim Dierkes of MLB Trade Rumors, Mazara is projected to receive $5.7 million this offseason.
While this deal probably isn’t the most enticing deal out there, especially since it came at the same time the Gerrit Cole news was lighting up Twitter, Mazara could prove to be a strong addition for the White Sox.
The 6’4” outfielder has never quite lived up to the potential he was once deemed to have as a prospect, but at 24-years-old, it’s certainly possible he might still be bound to break out.
A change of scenery could possibly do him some good and if Nomar Mazara can tap into some of the potential he was once deemed to have, this deal could end up being a steal for the White Sox.