White Sox Rumors: Jose Quintana would help rotation depth

The Chicago White Sox adding Jose Quintana would really help their rotation depth.

Heading into the 2021 MLB offseason Jose Quintana is an unrestricted free agent for the first time in his career. Quintana has been a member of the Chicago Cubs since being traded to the team during the 2017 season by the Chicago White Sox.

Of course, this was the very same trade that landed the White Sox Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease. It was thought of at the time as being a pretty fair trade for both parties. The Sox were very deep into a full-blown rebuild, while Quintana was a pitcher on the rise on a very team-friendly deal.

It’s safe to say Quintana underwhelmed on the north side for the majority of his stay. After struggling for the Sox in 2017, he actually finished strong for the Cubs. His ERA was lower while getting almost as many strikeouts and played in four fewer games.

Unfortunately, the same can’t be said about the rest of his time with the team. In 2018 and 2019, Quintana was cursed with inconsistent pitching. His ERA was above four in both years, while also giving up career highs in home runs, earned runs, and total runs across both years.

He also posted career lows in strikeouts in his two years with the Cubs. For whatever reason, Quintana was just never able to put it all together when playing up north. So should the White Sox bring him back?

Honestly, for the right price, they absolutely should look to bring Jose back. Quintana was extremely consistent during his time with the White Sox. His stint with the Sox was plagued with solid pitching with zero run support. Hitting is something the Sox really don’t have to worry about these days. A big reason for that was the emergence of stud player Eloy Jimenez who was the prize of the Quintana trade.

The Sox have a great one-two punch in the starting rotation with  Giolito and Keuchel. After that, there is a bit of a dropoff. Dylan Cease is just a little too inconsistent to be relied upon in big games. Unfortunately, Reynaldo Lopez doesn’t look to have what it takes. Tie that in with the unknown that is Michael Kopech and it makes it seem like Quintana would be a great option.

So is a reunion between these two parties on the horizon? Only time will tell but if they can come to a fair agreement between them it would be great to have Quintana back on the southside where he originally flourished.