White Sox Rumors: Dylan Cease goes to Astros in these 3 trade packages
There has been a lot of dialogue about Chicago White Sox starting pitching being traded. Of course, Lucas Giolito leads that conversation followed by Lance Lynn.
One player that is not getting all that much attention on the trade market in terms of rumors is Dylan Cease.
Of course, Cease has the brightest future of any pitcher in the White Sox organization for a variety of reasons so he is the least tradable right now.
However, there are rumors out there of a certain team is very much interested in getting him right now. That team is the Houston Astros. They see Cease as a dream acquisition.
It doesn't feel likely that the White Sox would move Cease right now but if they did, the trade package might look like one of these three:
1. Trade One
The Chicago White Sox and Houston Astros have options here.
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Dylan Cease is one of the best pitchers in the American League. He has come back down from his Cy Young runner-up season that he had in 2022 but he is still a very good pitcher.
He has also gotten better over the last few weeks from the start of the season which is what a team like the Astros is looking at.
If they wanted him, however, they'd have to pay. In this package, there are three of the Astros' top-ten prospects and every trade here is going to be like that.
The White Sox aren't just going to trade Cease for no reason. They better be getting a big return. Drew Gilbert is their number one prospect and he is an outfielder. He is number 71 in the entire league so getting one top-100 guy is a good thing.
Pedro Leon and Colton Gordon are number six and number eight respectively. They are good players at their position but it would take some more development for a trade like this to be worth it for the White Sox.
This is a heavy return for the Astros for Cease and it still might not be enough for the White Sox to give up Cease.
Trade Two
The Chicago White Sox might need the Houston Astros to kick in more.
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The Chicago White Sox may go for more of a volume approach when trading someone like Dylan Cease. It is hard for them to win this trade so it is a risk either way.
Jacob Melton (2), Colin Barber (3), and Korey Lee (5) are all top five Houston Astros prospects. The former two are outfielders and the latter is a catcher.
As for Spencer Arrighetti, he is a right handed pitcher that is ranked ninth in their system. If the White Sox wanted to make a huge move like this including Cease, getting four top prospects like this is something to think about.
Again, like the first trade, this one includes some of Houston's best minor league talent and it still isn't likely good enough for the White Sox.
It is becoming more and more clear that trading Cease there is a bad idea. They won't win a deal like this in any way.
Trade Three
The Chicago White Sox can make this a blockbuster deal with Houston.
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The Chicago White Sox could turn this thing into a blockbuster tyle of trade with the Houston Astros. That might be what is needed to move someone like Dylan Cease.
For one, they can include Lance Lynn. He is pitching much better lately which is why a contending team like Houston may want him. Adding both Cease and Lynn to the rotation in place of Cristian Javier would be something to consider for Houston.
In addition to Javier, Kyle Tucker is someone the White Sox should target as well. He is a power hitter that has developed the way that the White Sox wanted all their guys to develop. Getting Major League talent might be the play if they were to make a deal like this involving Cease.
Then, you throw in Drew Gilbert (OF) and Jacob Melton (OF) as the two prospects in the deal. As we talked about earlier, they are the top two prospects in the Houston system. Gilbert is their only top-100 guy (71).
A trade like this would send shockwaves around the league as you'd expect but it still might not be worth it for Cease who could be one of the best pitchers in the league during any given year. Hopefully, whatever happens, the White Sox are better for it.
Next. The 15 worst contracts in Chicago White Sox history. dark