The Chicago Cubs are the best trade partner for Chicago White Sox ace Garrett Crochet

Move over, Boston; there is a new team at the top of the power rankings of clubs interested in Chicago White Sox ace Garrett Crochet.

Unfortunately, it is the crosstown rivals Chicago Cubs.

However, the White Sox are so far from being competitive that it should not matter if Crochet has to go to a market rival, especially if the Cubs make the best offer.

If it was the Cleveland Guardians, the Minnesota Twins, or any other team in the AL Central and they could offer the type of prospects the Cubs can (and willing), then make the deal.

The Sox need foundational, impact bats and the Chicago Cubs have them with plenty to spare.

The Cubbies currently have eight prospects in MLB Pipeline's Top 100, with seven of them being position players.

It is unlikely the Cubs would give up Matt Shaw, their top prospect and No. 22 overall, but Owen Cassie, their second-best prospect and No. 34 overall, could be a prospect the Northsiders could part with.

The 22-year-old left-handed hitting prospect is blocked at the big leagues by Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki, Ian Happ, and Cody Bellinger. The Cubs are trying to deal Cody Bellinger and he can play the infield. Still, Cassie is good enough to be more than the fourth outfielder for the next couple of seasons.

Cassie did hit .278 with a .847 OPS and crushed 19 home runs at Triple-A. Although his drawback is he did strike out 156 times.

Still, this is a guy who can be a foundational bat in the lineup on the Southside whereas at Wrigley, he is a luxury.

James Triantos could finally be the replacement at second base the Sox have been searching for since Ray Durham left town in 2002. He hit .300 with a .773 OPS between stops at Double-A and Triple-A last season.

If the Cubs do not want to move Cassie, Kevin Alcántara would not be a bad pick-up, either. He got three games with the Cubs in 2024 and hit .278 with a .781 OPS between Double-A and Triple-A. He posted a .847 OPS at Triple-A.

Cam Smith would likely not get traded, as the Cubs just drafted him in the first round.

This a belief the Red Sox would be willing to move their recent top pick, Braden Montgomery, but this is probably because Boston has to try to leap the New York Yankees and the Baltimore Orioles while keeping the Toronto Blue Jays and Tampa Bay Rays behind them in the standings. The Cubs just need to leap the small-market Milwaukee Brewers.

Maybe the Cubs dangle 19-year-old and the 100th-best prospect Jefferson Rojas instead. Either way, the Cubs have the bats to pull off a deal for Crochet.

The Cubs have the fifth-ranked farm system according to Fangraphs, No. 8 according to MLB Pipeline, No. 4 per Bleacher Report, and No. 12 according to ESPN (a subscription is required to access content).

The problem is a deal happening at all.

If there is one owner who is not spending enough next to Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf, it is Tom Ricketts. It feels like he is still trying to make up for his biblical financial losses in 2020.

The Cubs should be dominating the NL Central since they financially compete with small-market clubs such as the Brewers, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Cincinnati Reds, and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Also, team president Jed Hoyer has resisted trading his prospects for players who can put the team over the top. Pitching is not one of the Northsiders' problems since they just signed Matt Boyd. However, having Boyd as the fifth starting pitcher is a better option than Javier Assad.

Plus, the Cubs might be motivated to feature a starting rotation of Crochet, with his projected $3 million cost in 2025, Shota Imanaga, and Justin Steele. That might be enough to overtake the Brewers.

The final hang-up of a potential deal is Reinsdorf not wanting to do business with his crosstown rival.

This inferiority complex he has with the Cubs has to stop, especially since he is the one to blame for the Cubs blowing past the Sox in popularity. Reinsdorf chose to pull the Sox off over-the-air TV in the 1980s. Reinsdorf chose not to build a neighborhood around Guaranteed Rate Field. Reinsdorf chose never to spend enough to bring in draws to consistently grab the attention of the city.

Plus, history has shown when the Cubs and Sox do business, it usually works out in the Sox's favor or it is a win-win (on in the case of the Craig Kimbrel deal, a lose-lose).