Chicago White Sox: Five players to trade in 2020 offseason
The Chicago White Sox are a team that is always looking to improve. They could look to add by moving some of these players.
The Chicago White Sox hope to be a very good team in 2020. The COVID-19 shortened season is certainly going to be a fun (we hope healthy) sprint to the playoffs after just a 60 game schedule. The White Sox might be a team that comes out and surprises everyone. They were supposed to turn the corner if it was going to be a normal 162 game slate but that is not going to happen this year. Instead, we just have to deal with the short schedule.
It is hard to predict how a young talented team that hasn’t proven anything yet will do in a season like this. If it was a full season, it would be easy to predict a rough start followed by them figuring it out but anyone who gets off to a slow start this year won’t have time to recover. Either way, we are going to learn a lot about some players this year when baseball finally gets underway.
After this year, Rick Hahn is probably going to make some moves once again to even further improve his team. Ever since 2016 ended, Rick Hahn has pretty much-done everything right. There is a decent chance that more moves are made each year until he finally gets this core over the hump. Making some big trades is important to this team’s recent history so you never know if they go to that route again. A lot will be learned this season about who should stay and who should go. These are five players that could get dealt during the 2020 offseason:
player. 128. . 1B. Chicago White Sox. Jose Abreu. 79
Jose Abreu is probably the Sox best player in the 2010s decade. He has consistently been their top offensive player which has helped them be a little bit more watchable during the tough years. Abreu came in to do a tough job back in 2014 which replaced the great Paul Konerko as the White Sox were truly done with the era of the team that won the World Series in 2005. Abreu was a sign that the team was moving on.
He was the rookie of the year in the American League that team but now he is one of the elder players on the team. At 33 years old, he still has plenty of great baseball-years left in the tank. He showed that last season when he led the American League with 123 RBIs. He slashed .284/.330/.503 with those 123 RBIs and 33 home runs on 180 hits. It was a great year for the White Sox first baseman.
Well, Abreu is signed to a big contract now but the White Sox could still inevitably trade him. They could keep him around to mentor some younger players but moving him for a large prospect return might be the way to go. They have Andrew Vaughn waiting in the wings to take over at first base but Abreu could also be a designated hitter down the line. That would be the best reason to keep him but you never know what the White Sox decide to do.
. C. Chicago White Sox. James McCann. 33. player. 128
The Chicago White Sox are pretty loaded at catcher. James McCann is with the White Sox after being an all-star in 2019 and he is looking to repeat that performance this year. That is going to be really difficult, however, because the White Sox signed Yasmani Grandal to a four-year deal. Grandal is one of the best catchers in Major League Baseball so McCann is in a tough spot. He isn’t going to get the starts that he would have had in 2019 so repeating a season like that is going to be tough.
Zack Collins and Yermin Mercedes are there as well. If McCann is traded during the season or to another team early in the offseason so another team can try and sign him, the White Sox might be willing to do that. Grandal is going to be their guy so if they can get anything for him they should try. McCann’s contract is up after this season so he very well could walk without being traded so there is a specific timeline on when or how the White Sox can trade him.
Most of the players on this list would likely be traded during the offseason if the White Sox wanted to move them but McCann might be a different story. They might also look to move one of the other catchers not named Grandal instead just so they keep McCann there to form a really solid duo. With that said, if a desperate team offers something nice for him, the White Sox shouldn’t think twice.
Chicago White Sox. Leury Garcia. 27. player. 128. . 2B
Leury Garcia is a really nice player. He isn’t a superstar or anything but the White Sox will surely benefit from having him as a depth player on this team. His contract, however, is up after the 2021 season so the White Sox might be inclined to trade him. They also really don’t have a spot for him long term in the starting lineup. He would be even nicer as a guy coming off the bench but if a team wanted him and made a nice offer for him, it is a no brainer.
The reason he is probably a bench player in the long term of this team is Nick Madrigal. The White Sox drafted him with the fourth overall pick in the 2018 MLB Prospect Draft. He is the second baseman of the future so they might try to pass it along to him as soon as possible.
Garcia is also very capable of playing the outfield. With Eloy Jimenez in leftfield, Luis Robert in centerfield, the only outfield spot that was up for grabs is rightfield. Well, they made a trade to acquire Nomar Mazara from the Texas Rangers so he is likely going to be the guy there. That makes Garcia expendable sometime soon so you never know if they decide to go that route.
. SP. Chicago White Sox. Reynaldo Lopez. 40. player. 128
The Chicago White Sox have a lot of promising young pitchers. Reynaldo Lopez is one of those guys. He showed tremendous promise in 2018 but took a major step back in 2019 which is the exact opposite trend from a lot of his teammates. Well, now the White Sox have a lot of options for the five starting pitchers in their rotation and Lopez could become trade bait.
The White Sox acquired Lopez along with Lucas Giolito in the Adam Eaton trade back in 2016. It was a tremendous deal for them but moving Lopez for some sort of prospect return might be a good idea if something is offered. Lopez could also end up being a really nice bullpen piece for them down the line if they do end up keeping him.
There is no telling who the five men will be in the starting rotation when this team is eventually World Series good. Lopez may prove to be too good to move but if the right package is presented to Rick Hahn with Lopez going the other way, don’t be surprised if he pulls the trigger. We are all rooting for him to make it for the White Sox but there is a lot of competition and it is only going to get more competitive.
Chicago White Sox. Carlos Rodon. 55. player. 128. . SP
As mentioned before with Reynaldo Lopez, there is a lot of competition for spots in the White Sox starting rotation in the long term. Lucas Giolito figures to be there in the long term, Michael Kopech and Dylan Cease are going to be given every opportunity to reach that level of importance, and Dallas Keuchel will play out the duration of his contract. That could make Carlos Rodon expendable at this point in his career.
Rodon and the White Sox might both benefit from a change of scenery. He has been hit hard by the injury bug over his career. He was the White Sox third overall pick in 2014 so the potential is there but he hasn’t been able to stay on the field. His latest injury-hit was Tommy John surgery early on in the 2019 season. That canceled him for the rest of that season and if this was a normal 2020 season he would be just getting back around this time.
light. Hot. The Chicago White Sox will save baseball
There might be a team that sees his potential and gives him a chance to stay healthy. It would probably be a good team that has a spot open for another starting pitcher in their rotation. The White Sox needs the starting pitching to come through as well but there are so many options on the way. We haven’t even mentioned this year’s draft, where they selected five pitchers in the five rounds. Moving Rodon for some younger future assets might really help them out if the opportunity presented itself.