Chicago White Sox: 3 players to pair with Craig Kimbrel in a trade
The Chicago White Sox don’t have much time to make moves before the lockout is official. They have only added Kendall Graveman and resigned Leury Garcia so more moves are needed. Those two moves will certainly have their benefits in 2022 and beyond but the bar is set higher than a division title going forward. This is an organization that wants to win a World Series.
One thing that might need to happen is for the Sox to trade Craig Kimbrel. They acquired the superstar closer from the Chicago Cubs in exchange for Nick Madrigal and Codi Heuer at the 2021 MLB trade deadline.
Unfortunately, the trade didn’t work out as well for the White Sox. We don’t know what Madrigal or Heuer will ultimately become but they will likely be serviceable MLB players at minimum. Kimbrel wasn’t very good with the White Sox which makes this trade favor the cubs just a bit more as of right now.
The White Sox did not use Kimbrel the way that he should be used. For whatever reason, they didn’t want to use both Liam Hendriks and Kimbrel as a duel closer duo. Instead, they mostly used Kimbrel as a setup man for Hendriks and that is probably why he struggled. Craig is meant to be used in save situations and nothing else.
The Chicago White Sox might have to trade Craig Kimbrel this offseason.
There have been a few teams in rumors to acquire Craig Kimbrel since it became known that the White Sox wanted to move on. There are a lot of different teams that could use a closer. If the Sox do actually move on from him, they might be able to get something nice in return if they give up something else as well. These are three players to package in a Kimbrel trade:
Jared Kelley
The Chicago White Sox could trade Jared Kelley before he reaches MLB.
The Chicago White Sox has a lot of great pitching at the MLB level. They also have some really good pitching at the AAA level but most of their top pitching prospects are lower than AAA right now. One of those players is Jared Kelley. He was the team’s second-round pick in 2020.
There were people that believed that Kelley would be a first-round pick over Garrett Crochet if the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t ruin his high school season. Regardless of what happened, nobody can change it now and Kelley is where he is. He throws extremely hard and could be developed into a very good baseball player.
Based on his talent and draft status, he is probably someone who would be attractive as a trade chip. It might be hard for the White Sox to trade this kid right now as he could turn into something great but winning now is their number one priority. Kelley won’t be helping the 2022 or 2023 White Sox win games.
Moving him with Kimbrel could be worth it, depending on the return. A team that needs Kimbrel would also be adding a young piece to the farm system. For the White Sox, getting a good MLB piece that fills a hole might be worth sending Kelley with Kimbrel.
Adam Engel
The Chicago White Sox loves Adam Engel but getting help in areas of need is important.
When Adam Engel first came up with the White Sox, he was one of the worst hitters that the team has ever seen. He was an elite defensive outfielder which made him somewhat worthy but the bat was absolutely terrible. Luckily, since then, he has not only become a serviceable hitter but an above-average one. The turnaround in his career at the plate so far has been remarkable.
He was injured for most of the 2021 season which was a major problem. While he was in the lineup, however, he was very good. In 39 games for the White Sox in 2021, he slashed .252/.336/.496 for an OPS of .832. He also smashed 7 home runs with 18 RBIs and 21 runs scored. All of this and his defense accumulated a WAR of 1.6 which is very good for the short sample size.
If someone wanted to add Engel as a fourth outfielder, the White Sox might be smart to use it as a way to get rid of Kimbrel’s contract. We don’t know for sure if they will actually end up trading Craig but if they used someone like Engel as a pair with him, they could get back something of somewhat significant value.
Zack Collins
The Chicago White Sox might be smart to give Zack Collins a change of scenery.
The Chicago White Sox would be smart if they added someone to be Yasmani Grandal’s backup for 2022 and potentially beyond. Unfortunately, it is clear that neither Zack Collins nor Seby Zavala are the guy in the long term. Each of them has moments where they are brilliant but are clearly not the best options going forward over a long period of time.
In the case of Zack Collins, he might still have some value on the trade market. He was a former first-round pick that once had extremely high potential. Unfortunately, he never really managed to break out in Major League Baseball. He just might simply need a change of scenery.
The White Sox might be smart to try and tie him to a Craig Kimbrel trade. That might not make the return more valuable than some of the other options but it would be better than nothing. It would also do Collins a favor as he might get more opportunities with another organization. Yasmani Grandal is the catcher of the present for the White Sox and they need a more consistent backup while their championship window is open.
The White Sox may or may not trade Craig Kimbrel but it sounds more like they will. If it happens before tonight’s pending lockout, you can only hope that they get a good return because of the time crunch. If it comes after, which could take a really long time, then it is a lot harder to predict. Hopefully, regardless of what happens, the decision helps the White Sox.
Related Story. Leury Garcia is back with the White Sox. light