Chicago White Sox: Three players they were smart for keeping
The Chicago White Sox were smart for standing pat on some of their young players.
The Chicago White Sox didn’t make any moves of major significance on trade deadline day. They were filled with rumors all day about potential trades. They were involved in rumors for names like Mike Clevinger and Lance Lynn but nothing ever came to fruition. Nobody in the division got any better and if anything, a few of them got worse. The White Sox standing pat was the best option for 2020 and the biggest reason why is so they don’t make any trades they regret.
We all know that the White Sox made the worst trade in team history a few years ago when Fernando Tatis Jr. was sent to the San Diego Padres in exchange for James Shields. That 2016 White Sox team needed a fifth starter in a year that they were trying, keyword trying, to win. They sent away a kid who would grow into one of the best baseball players on planet earth to get him. You really don’t want anything like that to ever happen again so doing nothing was really the right move even though it was underwhelming.
There are some young players that were in the rumors and it was a bit scary as White Sox fans. We don’t want to see any of these kids traded away for them to become superstars with another organization so they can have two years of control of a veteran pitcher. If you are going to pay a big price like that, you need to be getting back someone who has the same ceiling. These are the three players that they were the smartest for not trading away:
SP. Chicago White Sox. Michael Kopech. 34. player. 128.
Michael Kopech is a premier piece to this Chicago White Sox rebuild. He was the second piece that came over in the trade that sent Chirs Sale to the Boston Red Sox. He was only the secondary piece because Yoan Moncada was the top prospect in all of baseball and would have been a headliner in most trades back then. He should be a big part of the future of this team in the coming years if he can stay healthy and they don’t trade him.
The reason that it would be a mistake to trade him is because of what he has the potential to bring to this organization. He for one brings a lot of excitement. When he made his MLB debut in 2018, it was electric at Guaranteed Rate Field. It felt like a playoff game for a team that was about to lose 100 games. He is also a supremely talented player as he can throw a fastball 101 miles per hour. He also gets great movement on it and has stuff that could be the ace of a staff.
If the White Sox were to trade him, there is a good chance that he would go somewhere else and become a star. It would be a real shame if they gave up on him just because of his injury and then opting out of 2020’s COVID-19 season for personal reasons. He will, if not traded in the offseason, come in and have a chance to really show his stuff in 2021. The White Sox showed tremendous faith in him by not trading him and he won’t let them down.
player. 128. . SP. Chicago White Sox. Andrew Vaughn. 20
One prospect who is thought of as highly as Kopech is Andrew Vaughn. The Chicago White Sox took Vaughn in the first round, third overall, in the 2019 MLB Draft. He is a big power-hitting first baseman that can also play some other positions. He will find his way onto a Major League Baseball field in the near future and possibly even in 2020 and it is because of his big bat.
The White Sox would have made a big mistake if they let him go because he is going to be one great power hitter. There is no doubt that if there was a Minor League season this year, we would have been watching him dominate whatever level he was at during any point of the season. You might remember how we have been doing that with guys like Yoan Moncada, Luis Robert, and Eloy Jimenez amongst others over the years and Vaughn would have been no different.
Don’t be surprised if Vaughn comes in to be the designated hitter sometime really soon for the White Sox. He is that good of a hitter and there is no doubt that he could be effective in the Major League lineup right now. The White Sox are going to be so happy they didn’t let him go to try and get a temporary piece.
Chicago White Sox. Nick Madrigal. 1. player. 128. . 2B
The Chicago White Sox are a team that is loaded with young talent. A lot of them have made their way to the Major League lineup and Nick Madrigal is the most recent. He is a great young second baseman that will be a part of this team for a long time. There was a little bit of fear that they would move him for a big piece but fans should be very happy that they didn’t because he is going to be a great player on this team for a long time.
Madrigal feels like the kind of kid that might be lucky if he reaches five home runs in any particular season. He isn’t much of a power guy but his ability to have great at-bats is there. He can draw walks and hit for contact as good as any young prospect in the game. There is a reason that the White Sox selected him fourth overall in the 2018 MLB Draft. He looks like he is well worth the pick the White Sox spent on him so far.
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He could end up being a very good leadoff man, ninth hitter, or even eighth hitter. There are a lot of power bats in the White Sox lineup that would be able to take advantage of Madrigal’s ability to get on base as the years go on. The good news is that he is having this great start to his career and he is only going to get better. The White Sox are lucky to have him and trading him would have been very foolish.