Major League Baseball wrapped up an exciting Wild Card round on Thursday, featuring three win-or-go-home games on the same day for just the second time in baseball history. The White Sox, with another last place finish, were not participating in the playoffs this season, but were well-represented by former players, especially on the pitching side. Three former White Sox starters started playoff games this week, giving White Sox fans a glimpse of what could’ve been.
Tuesday’s Game 1 between the Red Sox and Yankees featured the most recent ace to depart Chicago in a trade. Garrett Crochet shined for the Red Sox over 7.2 innings, notably throwing 100 mph on his career-high 117th pitch of the night. Crochet has been one of the best pitchers in the American League this season and will likely be a finalist for the AL Cy Young award in his first season with Boston. One of the lone bright spots of a disastrous 2024 campaign for Chicago, the White Sox elected to cash in on his value and netted a hefty prospect return from the Red Sox. It’s early, but the trade seems to have worked out well for both sides, even though watching Crochet dominate in the playoffs is certain to make White Sox fans a bit sad.
White Sox fans can't ignore former aces performing well in Wild Card round
Dylan Cease took the ball in a must-win game 2 for the Padres on Wednesday afternoon. 2025 has been a struggle overall for Cease, who the White Sox traded away prior to the 2024 season, but he shined when it mattered most.
Manager Mike Schildt had a quick hook with Cease, who left the game in the fourth inning, but he didn’t allow a run and struck out five over 3.2 innings in his Wild Card outing, and the Padres bullpen was able to finish what Cease started and force a deciding Game 3 Thursday. The Dylan Cease trade hasn’t worked out quite as well for the White Sox so far as the Crochet trade. The big prize of the trade, right-hander Drew Thorpe, had Tommy John surgery and didn’t pitch in 2025, and the other two prospects involved have struggled in the minor leagues. Thorpe is expected back in 2026 though, and there’s still time for Samuel Zavala and Jairo Iriarte to develop.
Wednesday’s Game 2 action also featured former White Sox lefty Carlos Rodón taking the hill for the Yankees. Rodón has had mixed results since leaving the White Sox in free agency, but 2025 was a strong year for him, and his performance Wednesday was enough to keep the Yankees in the game. White Sox fans have had the privilege of watching Rodón start a playoff game on the South Side, and he was a big part of the 2021 AL Central-winning team. Making the decision to move on from Rodón was controversial at the time, and it’s fair to wonder if the following years would’ve gone better if they’d chosen to bring him back instead.
The White Sox have accumulated a lot of young talent over the past few seasons, and the organization is in a much different place than when Rodón, Cease, and Crochet were on the team. The Cease and Crochet trades were large contributors to the new crop of talent and the organizational changes, so it’s obviously very difficult to know what would’ve happened if the White Sox had held on to their elite pitching talent.
The team would’ve needed to find a way to bring bats into the organization, and Jerry Reinsdorf’s spending habits make that a more difficult task than it sounds. But it’s reasonable to wonder if the White Sox would be playing this October if they’d chosen a different path. Regardless, the past is the past and it can’t be undone. Dylan Cease, Garrett Crochet, and Carlos Rodón brought me many good memories as a White Sox fan, and I’ll always root for their success.