White Sox: Three reasons to trade for Mookie Betts and David Price
The Chicago White Sox need help in right field and starting pitching, they can get both done in a trade with the Boston Red Sox.
The Chicago White Sox need help in a lot of areas on the baseball diamond. They are developing a really nice core of players. With guys like Yoan Moncada, Tim Anderson, and Eloy Jimenez there to lead the way for a long time they just need a few more pieces. If they can get just a bit more help this offseason they should be off to the races in the 2020 AL Central Division race.
The Boston Red Sox have made it publicly known that they are trying to shed payroll. Mookie Betts and David Price might be two guys who are casualties of that fact. It appears that Mookie Betts is going to test free agency after the 2020 season unless a team blows him away with an offer now. David Price has a big contract that you can debate whether or not he has fully lived up to or not but it is there.
Both of these players had a significant impact on the Red Sox being one of the greatest teams in the history of the MLB in 2018. They quite literally dominated in spring training, the regular season, and the postseason to win the World Series. Mookie Betts was the MVP that season and is sometimes considered the second-best baseball player in the world behind Mike Trout. Price had an argument for the World Series MVP but he didn’t get it in the end. Either way, a team like the Chicago White Sox would be very wise to bring in these two players for these three reasons:
Addressing both problems with one trade
It is very well known that the White Sox need some extra help in right field and they need one more starter. Both guys that the Red Sox could move play the two positions that the White Sox could really use. If these two were added to the team it would fill those two holes about as best as you can at this point. An MVP caliber player would be added to the right-field spot and a former Cy Young award winner would be coming into the starting rotation.
Mookie Betts is one of the best outfielders in the world. He has won four straight gold gloves for his work. He is also a four-time all-star to go along with his MVP award and World Series title. He has been the recipient of the Wilson Overall Defensive Player of the Year Award as well. There is no doubt that this guy is an incredible right fielder. He would instantly come in and be one of the best the White Sox have ever had out there.
He is also amazing at the plate. He won the MVP on the back of a phenomenal season with his bat. He was the Batting Champion that year as well. Even in his “down years” you would consider him an elite hitter. He would be a perfect addition to the top of the White Sox starting lineup. There are some great hitters already on this team and Mookie is used to being great with great players around him.
David Price has been a very good MLB pitcher. He hasn’t been as good as his contract suggests he should be but he was paid for how good he was opposed to how good he was going to be. He does have that Cy Young award and five All-Star appearances. He also won the ERA title twice in his career. He would certainly come in and be a big help to this rotation.
2020 could be the year
The Chicago White Sox believe that they are a few pieces away form 2020 showing to be the year they start to turn the corner. They have a lot of great young pieces in play that they are relying on to remain great. Many players took steps in becoming elite MLB players in 2019 so 2020 could be the year that they finally do that. They already have an RBI title winner, a batting title winner, and one of the best all-around players in the world all in the same lineup. This is a good team that is almost there.
If you add David Price to the rotation and Mookie Betts to this outfield then you would have the new favorite to win the AL Central. They might even do it as is in 2020 but if you added these two that would really go a long way. They would certainly be much better than they were over the past three seasons, that much is for sure.
Price would fit into the rotation with some other really good pitchers and Betts would solidify a very good young outfield. The other two outfield positions might not be as solid defensively but they can all hit very well, assuming Luis Robert steps in as a rookie and plays well. A trade like this would really make 2020 even more exciting than it already looks to be.
Experience
The White Sox don’t have much experience. They really don’t have anyone that has been a part of some deep playoff runs. All of their best players have only been in the league for a few years and the White Sox weren’t very good during those years. Now that the team is looking to take that next step, these young players are going to have to learn how to win and handle the pressure. David Price and Mookie Betts know a thing or two about performing in high-pressure situations.
Mookie Betts was an MVP of the league for a reason. He knows how to be the go-to guy in all situations. It takes a lot of pressure and performance under said pressure in order to be able to do that. He has shown the ability and would be a great mentor for the young hitters on the team because of it. He can show a guy like Yoan Moncada how to take that next step to become an MVP caliber player. He would go a long way in helping the young guys become great.
David Price would be more of the same for the young pitchers. Lucas Giolito has been amazing since the start of the 2019 season but there have been times where pressure seems to get at him. A guy like Price knows how to deal with pressure so he would be great for Giolito. There is also some mentoring he could do for Michael Kopech, Reynaldo Lopez, and Dylan Cease along the way too. If some of these guys get the ball in a big playoff game, having a veteran like Price mentoring them would go a long way.
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Obviously a trade like this would take a miracle to pull off, but if the White Sox were able to get it done it would really help their chances at winning enough games to get into the playoffs. It would be great for the organization and the rest of the MLB would take notice of the fact that they are coming to win.