The Chicago White Sox are going to be an active team at the 2022 Major League Baseball Trade Deadline. They need some pitching but could also use a big bat if one is available to them. There are a few players that are going to be available but some are more realistic than others.
The White Sox are not going to be putting together a package for Juan Soto or Shohei Ohtani any time soon but they can still look at some good players out there. One player that should really consider right now is Joc Pederson of the San Francisco Giants.
Joc is having an incredible season for the Giants. The only team that is underachieving to a similar level as the White Sox this season is the San Francisco Giants. Unfortunately for them, they don’t play in the AL Central so they have pretty much no chance of winning the division for the second year in a row.
We are still waiting to see if they become sellers before the deadline but if they are, Joc is someone that the White Sox should be looking at. He has a batting average of .242 with an OPS of .811. He has 17 home runs and 43 RBIs as well which are some very nice numbers.
The Chicago White Sox could use a guy like Joc Pederson in the lineup right now.
The 17 home runs would lead the White Sox which is something that they desperately need in their lineup right now. Luis Robert leads the team right now with 12. Injuries have played a big role in that for some of their hitters but they need another home run threat.
If they acquired Pederson, you’d think that he fits in the order surrounded by guys like Luis Robert, Jose Abreu, Tim Anderson, Yoan Moncada, and Eloy Jimenez amongst others. He would also probably play most of his games in right field which would really help him.
Pederson was also previously a teammate with a few players on the White Sox right now including Joe Kelly, Yasmani Grandal, and AJ Pollock. Pederson has also won the World Series twice in his career including with the Atlanta Braves in 2021.
He knows what it is like to be added by a middling team in the middle of the season to go win a World Series. The White Sox would love to bring that kind of magic to their team as they sit at .500 right now.
It probably wouldn’t take that much to get him and he already has experience playing in Chicago as he was with the Chicago Cubs for the first half of 2021. As mentioned before, he should be near the top of Rick Hahn’s list if the Giants decide to sell.