White Sox Rumors

White Sox Designate Micker Adolfo For Assignment, Outright Seby Zavala To Triple-A

By James Hicks and Tim Dierkes | April 7, 2022 at 11:23am CDT

The White Sox made a series of procedural moves this morning in advance of tomorrow’s opener in Detroit, including designating outfielder Micker Adolfo for assignment and outrighting catcher Seby Zavala to Charlotte. The Southsiders will open the season with Eloy Jimenez, Luis Robert, Andrew Vaughn, and the recently acquired AJ Pollock in the outfield, with Adam Engel in reserve. Reese McGuire will open the season as Yasmani Grandal’s deputy behind the plate.

The team also announced a series of other moves this morning, including placing several players on the 10-day IL: right-handers Ryan Burr, Joe Kelly, and Lance Lynn; lefty Garrett Crochet; third baseman Yoan Moncada; and DH Yermin Mercedes. Moncada, who has a grade-1 oblique strain, is expected back within a few weeks, while Crochet will undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the 2022 season, but timetables have not yet been established for others. Lynn in particular was expected to play a major role in anchoring the rotation as the Sox look to repeat in the AL Central, but he’s expected to miss at least the first month and a half of the season as he recovers from knee surgery.

Adolfo, 25, was ranked as the 18th best prospect in the White Sox organization recently, with a 45 scouting grade. It’s the eighth year BA has ranked Adolfo as a top-25 White Sox prospect; he’s been in the organization since signing for $1.6MM out of the Dominican Republic as a 16-year-old back in 2013. He still boasts plus-plus raw power, but with a hefty strikeout rate north of 30%. Adolfo has a plus-plus arm as well, even with Tommy John surgery part of his lengthy injury history. Given that Adolfo is out of minor league options, a club will have to keep him in the Majors if they want to avoid exposing him to waivers again.

Zavala, apparently, passed through waivers unclaimed and has been bumped off the 40-man roster. He caught 19% of Chicago’s innings behind the plate in 2021, but they’ve got McGuire backing up Grandal. The Sox will have to re-add Zavala to the MLB roster should the need for him arise in the Majors again. The 28-year-old Zavala hasn’t posted a wRC+ above 89 at any level since Double-A in 2018. Three years ago, Baseball America described him as “a borderline average defender who blocks well but needs to do better at smothering balls in the dirt,” describing his throwing arm as “average.”

In the case of Moncada’s oblique strain, “the White Sox say the injury is much worse than they thought,” according to Alex Shapiro of NBC Sports Chicago. It seems Moncada will be out for a few weeks rather than the expected few days, so Jake Burger snags the Opening Day start at the hot corner tomorrow at Comerica Park.

White Sox Notes: Adolfo, Banks, Crick

By Steve Adams | April 6, 2022 at 8:48am CDT

White Sox outfielder Micker Adolfo has been generating trade interest in recent days, tweets MLB.com’s Jon Morosi. The out-of-options Adolfo has, somewhat remarkably, ranked among the organization’s top 30 prospects at Baseball America for eight straight seasons. Since signing as a 16-year-old out of the Dominican Republic, Adolfo has slowly risen through the South Siders’ system, though injuries and the canceled 2020 minor league season have slowed his ultimate path to the big leagues. Adolfo has twice undergone right elbow surgery, including Tommy John surgery in 2018.

Now 25 years old, Adolfo split the 2021 season between Double-A and Triple-A, where he slashed a combined .245/.311/.520 with 25 home runs, 24 doubles and a triple. There’s little doubting Adolfo’s prodigious raw power. FanGraphs gives him 70 power on the 20-80 scale, while, MLB.com notes that even after the Sox’ signings of Oscar Colas and Yoelqui Cespedes, Adolfo might have the most raw power in the system. That said, Adolfo’s hit tool is lagging quite a bit behind his power. He’s fanned in a jarring 33.1% of his plate appearances, including a combined 34.1% in Double-A and Triple-A last year.

Chicago doesn’t have much room in its outfield mix for the 6’4″, 225-pound Adolfo, so trade speculation is only natural. Like Eloy Jimenez, Luis Robert, AJ Pollock, Adam Engel and Andrew Vaughn, Adolfo is a right-handed hitter. MLB.com touts his plus-plus (70) arm strength but notes that he doesn’t have the speed or range to handle center, likely relegating him to corner work.

There are plenty of clubs that could roll the dice on a slugging left or right fielder, and given Adolfo’s lack of options, some form of deal involving him indeed seems likely. The Sox would have to designate him for assignment and pass him and attempt to pass him through waivers before they’d be able to assign him to Triple-A Charlotte. Adolfo likely wouldn’t command a huge return for the Sox, but clubs like the Padres and Guardians, for instance, are known to be looking for some corner outfield help. It’d also make sense for rebuilding or retooling teams to take a look at Adolfo and see whether that power might outweigh the strikeouts at the MLB level. The Orioles, Pirates, Rangers and Nationals ought to at least have a bench spot available.

A move involving Adolfo seems all the more likely given that it became clear last night the Sox would need at least one additional spot on the 40-man roster. That spot will go to eight-year minor league veteran Tanner Banks, a 30-year-old left-hander whom the Sox drafted back in 2014 and has been informed he’s made his first big league roster (as first reported by USA Today’s Bob Nightengale).

Assistant general manager Chris Getz told reporters last night that Banks has seen a velocity jump this spring and is now sitting at 94 mph with his heater (Twitter link via James Fegan of The Athletic). With some extra life on his heater, a strong spring showing (two runs in 5 2/3 innings with seven strikeouts and no walks), and a newfound need for some bullpen lefties following Garrett Crochet’s looming Tommy John surgery, Banks finds himself on the cusp of making his big league debut.

The Sox can, of course, just move Crochet to the 60-day injured list to open a 40-man spot, but Banks probably isn’t the only player for whom the Sox will need to open a 40-man spot. Veteran righty Kyle Crick, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times, appears ticketed for the big league bullpen and will need to have his contract formally selected to the 40-man roster himself.

Crick, 29, had a big showing with the White Sox’ Triple-A affiliate last year — one run in 10 1/3 innings with a 15-to-3 K/BB ratio — but didn’t make the Majors. He re-upped with the ChiSox on a minor league pact this winter and has continued that impressive showing in Cactus League play, ratting off seven shutout innings with just one hit and two walks allowed against five punchouts.

Formerly the No. 49 overall pick in the 2011 draft (Giants), Crick went to the Pirates alongside Bryan Reynolds in San Francisco’s ill-fated trade for Andrew McCutchen (a Pirates heist that is often overshadowed by Pittsburgh’s own regrettable Chris Archer swap). He had four mostly solid seasons in the Pittsburgh bullpen, working to a 3.62 ERA with a 25% strikeout rate but a bloated 13% walk rate. He’ll get a chance with the Sox to show that the command gains he’s displayed in Charlotte last season and so far in Cactus League play can be sustained at the MLB level. If that’s the case, Crick has the stuff to serve as an important bullpen piece for Tony La Russa — one who can be controlled through the 2023 season as he still has only four-plus years of Major League service time and would be arbitration-eligible next winter.

Todd Frazier Retires

By Anthony Franco | April 5, 2022 at 8:40am CDT

Two-time All-Star Todd Frazier is set to announce his retirement today, he tells Greg Joyce of the New York Post. “(Baseball) has been my love my whole life,” the third baseman said. “It’s very hard to let go. Don’t get me wrong, it’s one of the toughest decisions I’ve ever made in my life. But where I’m at in my career and where I’m at in my life, I think it was the right decision. I think it’s time to be that family figure that I’ve always wanted to be.”

Frazier has appeared in the majors in each of the past 11 seasons. A supplemental first-round pick out of Rutgers by the Reds in 2007, Frazier emerged as one of the sport’s most promising prospects within his first couple pro seasons. He debuted in the big leagues in 2011 and cemented himself at the hot corner in Cincinnati not long thereafter.

In 128 games in 2012, Frazier hit a productive .273/.331/.498 en route to a third-place finish in NL Rookie of the Year balloting. After a roughly league average showing the following season, he broke through as one of the better position players in the game. Frazier combined for a .264/.322/.479 showing between 2014-15, averaging 32 home runs per season. He was selected to the Midsummer Classic in both years and won the 2015 Home Run Derby in front of a home crowd in Cincinnati.

The rebuilding Reds moved Frazier to the White Sox as part of a three-team deal with the Dodgers the following winter. He spent a season and a half in Chicago, not quite reaching his peak Cincinnati level but still offering solid production. The Sox moved him to the Yankees midseason in 2017, and he spent the following two years in Queens after signing with the Mets that offseason. Frazier continued to hit at a decent level throughout that run. His batting average and on-base percentage gradually ticked down, but he popped 39 homers during his first two seasons as a Met.

Frazier’s 499 plate appearances in 2019 proved his last extended MLB workload. He signed with the Rangers over the 2019-20 offseason, then ended up back in Flushing when the Mets acquired him at the trade deadline. Frazier struggled down the stretch, though, and New York bought him out that winter. He hooked on with the Pirates last offseason and played in 13 games before being released in March.

That marked an end to Frazier’s time in the big leagues, but it didn’t bring his playing career to a complete conclusion. He was among a handful of respected veterans to represent the U.S. as part of last summer’s Silver Medal-winning team at the Tokyo Olympics.

Frazier wraps up his career with a .241/.318/.445 slash line in a bit under 5,000 MLB plate appearances. That production was seven percentage points better than league average in aggregate, by measure of wRC+, and he had three seasons with a wRC+ north of 115. A well-regarded defender for the bulk of his career, Frazier got plus marks from both Defensive Runs Saved and Ultimate Zone Rating. He suited up for six different clubs, combining to hit 218 homers and drive in 640 runs. Each of Baseball Reference and FanGraphs valued his career at around 23-24 wins above replacement, a very fine showing that endeared him to Reds fans in particular. MLBTR congratulates Frazier on an excellent run and wishes him all the best in his post-playing days.

Image courtesy of USA Today Sports.

White Sox Sign Johnny Cueto To Minor League Deal

By Tim Dierkes | April 5, 2022 at 12:08am CDT

The White Sox have signed veteran righty Johnny Cueto, according to Mike Rodriguez of Univision. According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, Cueto signed a minor league deal and will earn a prorated $4.2MM in the Majors. According to MLB Network’s Jon Heyman, Cueto has a May 15 opt-out. Cueto is represented by Bryce Dixon.

Cueto, 36, provides rotation depth for a White Sox club that recently saw Lance Lynn go under the knife for a slightly torn right knee tendon. Lynn is expected to be out for nearly two months. The club also recently took a couple of hits in the bullpen – a voluntary one with the trade of Craig Kimbrel to the Dodgers, and an unfortunate injury with Garrett Crochet needing Tommy John surgery.

The White Sox will still slot Lucas Giolito, Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech, and Dallas Keuchel into their first four rotation spots. The newly-added Cueto will look to ramp up and join a fifth starter mix that already includes Reynaldo Lopez and Vince Velasquez. Cueto has familiarity with White Sox pitching coach Ethan Katz, who worked for the Giants from 2019-20, and he’s been training in recent offseasons with Lopez.

After Cueto posted a solid age-24 season back in 2010, then-Reds GM Walt Jocketty had the foresight to lock him up on a four-year, $27MM deal with a club option. That gave Cincinnati two extra years of control, a period during which Cueto blossomed into a Cy Young contender. When free agency did approach, Jocketty shipped Cueto the Royals for their World Series run. The righty capped his brief Royals career with a complete game victory in Game 2 of that World Series.

About a month after the parade, Cueto signed a six-year, $130MM free agent deal with the Giants under Brian Sabean’s regime. Cueto was excellent in his first season for the Giants, but the investment failed to pan out for San Francisco. Cueto’s contract included an opt-out after the second year, which he might have utilized if not for a flexor strain in ’17.

Cueto then developed an elbow sprain in May of 2018, which led to Tommy John surgery in August of that year. He returned to pitch in September of 2019, a surprisingly brief 13-month recovery. Cueto served as the Giants’ Opening Day starter in 2020, taking all of his turns in the shortened season.

In ’21, Cueto missed nearly a month with a lat strain, and then more time late in the season with flexor and elbow strains. His final appearance for the Giants was a September 30th relief outing – the first of his storied 14-year career. Given his limitations, Cueto wasn’t able to crack the Giants’ NLDS roster, and the club made the unavoidable choice to buy out his $22MM club option for $5MM. Still, Cueto tallied 114 2/3 innings for the Giants in 2021, the first time he’d exceeded 63 1/3 in a season since 2017.

Since 2020, Cueto has a 4.55 ERA, 20.1 K%, 7.3 BB%, and 39.1% groundball rate in 178 innings. Even in his heyday, Cueto wasn’t a big strikeout pitcher, and he threw harder in 2021 than he did in his last strong season, back in 2016. Though it’s surprising Cueto wasn’t able to secure a Major League contract, his salary in the bigs will be hefty compared to the typical minor league deal. A couple of other AL Central teams, the Twins and Tigers, at least considered Cueto after the lockout. There’s a good chance the control artist will find himself in Chicago before long as the team attempts to weather Lynn’s injury.

With Opening Day two days away, the free agent market for starting pitching is down to Brett Anderson, Jake Arrieta, Trevor Cahill, Mike Foltynewicz, J.A. Happ, and Matt Harvey.

Lance Lynn To Undergo Knee Surgery, Will Be Shut Down For Four Weeks

By Mark Polishuk | April 3, 2022 at 6:34pm CDT

White Sox ace Lance Lynn will undergo surgery this week to repair a small tear in his right knee tendon, Sox GM Rick Hahn told reporters (including MLB.com’s Scott Merkin). Lynn will be sidelined for approximately four weeks before he can throw off a mound again, so the right-hander might not be back until roughly late May, given the recovery period and then a ramp-up period.

The injury seemingly took place last night, when Lynn was in visible pain after throwing a pitch during his final Cactus League start. Lynn immediately left the game and was moving gingerly on his right leg.

There’s no easy way to replace a pitcher of Lynn’s caliber, though the White Sox have Reynaldo Lopez and Vince Velasquez as swingmen in their bullpen, plus Jimmy Lambert and non-roster invite Wes Benjamin in the minors. For now, it seems like Velasquez or Lopez will join Lucas Giolito, Dallas Keuchel, Dylan Cease, and Michael Kopech in Chicago’s rotation.

Given Keuchel’s struggles last season and Kopech’s lack of starting experience, there were already question marks about the amount of starting pitching depth the White Sox had on hand even prior to Lynn’s injury. The Sox focused much of their offseason shopping on upgrading the bullpen as a way of improving the pitching staff overall, yet even the relief corps has been shortened in recent days, as Craig Kimbrel was traded to the Dodgers and Garrett Crochet (also a potential candidate to move into the rotation at some point this year) was lost for the season due to Tommy John surgery. Carlos Rodon was a big part of the White Sox staff last season, of course, but the southpaw left in free agency to sign with the Giants.

With this in mind, Hahn told ESPN’s Jesse Rogers and other media that “we may need to add at some point” from outside the organization. More will be known once Lynn’s timeline becomes a bit clearer, though Hahn is optimistic that Lynn will be fully recovered when he does return to action. Hahn said that Lynn’s injury was similar to Yasmani Grandal’s tendon tear in his left knee, which cost the catcher close to two months of the 2021 season before he was able to get back into the field.

Lynn posted a 2.69 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate, and 7.0% walk rate over 157 innings last season, his first in Chicago after the White Sox acquired him in an offseason trade from the Rangers. Lynn finished third in AL Cy Young voting, marking the third consecutive year that the veteran righty has finished in the top six of Cy Young balloting.

White Sox Trade Zack Collins To Blue Jays For Reese McGuire

By Mark Polishuk | April 3, 2022 at 4:02pm CDT

The White Sox and Blue Jays have agreed to a swap of catchers, according to ESPN’s Jeff Passan (Twitter link). Zack Collins is headed to Toronto, while Reese McGuire has been dealt to the Sox.

Rumors have swirled for months that the Jays were looking to move some of their catching depth, though today’s move still gives Toronto a bit more roster flexibility behind the plate while still retaining that depth. Collins has a minor league option remaining while McGuire is out of options, so the Blue Jays can now more easily stash Collins at Triple-A.

From Chicago’s perspective, the Sox now have a more established big leaguer who can work as the backup behind Yasmani Grandal. Since Grandal will get some time at the DH spot, McGuire and Seby Zavala (who is also out of options) can each get some action behind the plate, and the expanded 28-man rosters for April will allow the White Sox the luxury of carrying three catchers.

The Pirates selected McGuire with the 14th overall pick of the 2013 draft, and he was a regular on top-100 prospect lists during his time in Pittsburgh’s farm system. However, despite some good numbers in limited action in 2018-19, McGuire’s potential has yet to really manifest itself at the big league level. The 27-year-old has hit .248/.297/.390 with nine homers over an even 400 plate appearances with the Blue Jays, with McGuire often finding himself behind Danny Jansen, Alejandro Kirk, and Luke Maile on the catching depth chart.

Collins and McGuire share rather similar resumes — both are left-handed hitting catchers, they were born less than a month apart in 1995, and both are former first-round picks. The White Sox selected Collins 10th overall in 2016, and like McGuire, Collins has also yet to offer much production in the majors. Collins has a .195/.315/.330 slash line and seven home runs in 351 career PA, and he has struck out in 113 of those plate appearances.

Defense has been a question mark for Collins dating back to his college days at the University Of Miami, whereas McGuire is regarded as a decent defender. (Statcast gave McGuire a solid +4 in framing runs during the 2021 season.) This could be seen as something of a hitting-for-defense swap, if the Jays think they’ve seen something in Collins that can allow him to unlock his power potential.

With Collins able to be optioned, Jansen and Kirk now projects as Toronto’s regular catching tandem, and Kirk is also expected to get some DH time. It isn’t out of the question that the Jays might still deal from this catching depth, as star prospect Gabriel Moreno is starting the season at Triple-A and could be making his Major League debut before 2022 is out.

Lance Lynn Leaves Game With Right Knee Discomfort

By Mark Polishuk | April 2, 2022 at 10:24pm CDT

White Sox starter Lance Lynn left his final Spring Training start with what the team announced as right knee discomfort. During the fourth inning, Lynn looked to be in obvious pain after throwing a pitch, gingerly moving with a slight limp as he walked back to the dugout.

More will be known about Lynn’s status after he receives treatment and testing, though the issue could very well be related to the right knee injury that sidelined Lynn late last season. Lynn only spent the 10-day minimum on the injured list, but White Sox GM Rick Hahn said in November that Lynn underwent 3-4 weeks of rehab on his right knee once the season was over.

At first glance, it certainly looks as though Lynn’s readiness for the Opening Day roster could be in jeopardy. Losing Lynn for any amount of time would be a notable blow to Chicago’s rotation, particularly since the pitching staff as a whole already lost Garrett Crochet (to Tommy John surgery) and Craig Kimbrel (in a trade to the Dodgers) within the last 48 hours.

Swingmen Reynaldo Lopez and Vince Velasquez were involved in the bullpen picture, though at least one of the two hurlers will likely step into the rotation if Lynn’s injury requires an IL trip. Velasquez was signed to a one-year, $3MM deal in March to provide some added pitching depth, though surely the White Sox weren’t planning on having to utilize this depth quite so soon.

Lynn has finished in the top six of AL Cy Young voting in each of the past three seasons, and his third-place finish in 2021 was his highest placement yet. The right-hander’s first year in Chicago saw him post a 2.69 ERA, 27.5% strikeout rate, and 7.0% walk rate over 157 innings. 2021 was the last season of the three-year, $30MM deal Lynn signed with the Rangers during the 2018-19 offseason, but the White Sox moved to sign Lynn to a contract extension last July. Lynn is now set to receive $38MM in guaranteed money in 2022-23, and the Sox hold an $18MM club option his services for 2024.

AL East Notes: Pearson, Borucki, Harvey, Judge, Meadows, Rays, Pollock

By Mark Polishuk | April 2, 2022 at 5:12pm CDT

The Blue Jays are dealing with some injury concerns in their bullpen, as Nate Pearson is dealing with a non-COVID illness and Ryan Borucki left yesterday’s game with discomfort in his right hamstring. Jays manager Charlie Montoyo told Sportsnet’s Ben Nicholson-Smith (Twitter link) and other reporters that Borucki will undergo an MRI. More will be known about Borucki’s situation when the MRI results are in, but for Pearson, his illness has limited him to only two appearances thus far in Grapefruit League action.

In all likelihood, Pearson’s illness will keep him from making Toronto’s Opening Day roster. While this issue seems less serious than the other injuries that have sidelined the righty over the last two years, it represents yet another setback for the former top prospect. As for Borucki, the southpaw has been a pretty solid reliever when healthy, though he missed almost all of the 2019 season due to elbow problems and over two months of last season with a forearm strain. If another IL stint is required for Borucki, Tim Mayza will be the only left-hander in the Jays’ projected bullpen, which could open the door for Anthony Kay, Tayler Saucedo, or Andrew Vasquez to break camp.

Garrett Crochet To Undergo Tommy John Surgery

By Steve Adams | April 2, 2022 at 3:40pm CDT

TODAY: Crochet has decided to get the surgery, the reliever told MLB.com’s Scott Merkin and other reporters.

APRIL 1: Just minutes after announcing the headline-grabbing trade of Craig Kimbrel to the Dodgers in exchange for outfielder AJ Pollock, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn announced that lefty Garrett Crochet is likely to require Tommy John surgery (Twitter link, with video, via Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times).

“The preliminary MRI reading is not great,” said Hahn. “There appears to be some damage to the ligament, which will very likely require Tommy John surgery.” Hahn added that Crochet will first seek a second opinion.

Crochet, 22, has all the makings of a star reliever — if not eventually a high-end member of the Chicago rotation. Drafted out of the University of Tennessee with the No. 11 overall pick in the 2020 draft, Crochet made his Major League debut just months later, joining the Sox late in the 2020 season. He spent the entire 2021 campaign in the Chicago bullpen as well.

Thus far, through 60 2/3 innings at the MLB level, Crochet boasts a 2.54 ERA with a 29% strikeout rate, a 10.7% walk rate and a 42.1% ground-ball rate. Crochet has averaged better than 97 mph on his heater that can reach triple digits and notched above-average swinging-strike rates. That said, Crochet did give the Sox an injury scare in 2020, when he saw hit the injured list with a flexor strain following a velocity dip. He returned and managed a healthy 2021 season, with the exception of a back injury that knocked him out for a few weeks, but Crochet’s arm appeared healthy until he exited yesterday’s Cactus League game with a trainer.

If Tommy John surgery is required, the Sox would be without Crochet for the entirety of the 2022 season and quite likely for the early portion of the 2023 campaign. Crochet would continue to accrue service time while rehabbing on the 60-day injured list, although given that he’s currently sitting on just 1.028 years of service, the Sox can still control him all the way through the 2026 campaign.

With Crochet out of the mix and Kimbrel traded, Chicago’s back-of-the-game options consist of closer Liam Hendriks, lefty setup man Aaron Bummer and righty setup man Kendall Graveman. Veteran Joe Kelly, who joined the Sox on a two-year deal this winter, will be an option before too long but is expected to miss the first couple weeks of the season after getting a late start in camp (due to a late 2021 biceps injury that slowed his offseason regimen and put him a bit behind schedule).

Dodgers Trade AJ Pollock To White Sox For Craig Kimbrel

By Steve Adams | April 1, 2022 at 10:59pm CDT

The Dodgers and White Sox are in agreement on a trade sending outfielder AJ Pollock to Chicago in exchange for reliever Craig Kimbrel, reports Mark Feinsand of MLB.com (Twitter link). The two teams have since announced the trade.

It’s a fairly stunning blockbuster involving two high-profile and highly paid veterans. Pollock is earning $10MM this season and is owed at least a $5MM buyout on a $10MM player option for the 2023 season. Kimbrel, meanwhile, is slated to earn $16MM this coming season after the ChiSox picked up a 2022 club option despite a poor performance following the trade that sent him from Chicago’s north side to the south side last summer.

ESPN’s Jeff Passan tweets that there is no money changing hands in the deal, which means the Dodgers are effectively adding an extra million dollars in financial commitments (assuming Pollock declines his player option at a net $5MM and tests free agency next winter). The Dodgers will also see their luxury ledger tick upward a bit as a result of the trade. Pollock’s contract was a four-year, $55MM deal but counted as five years and $60MM for luxury tax purposes, as the player option on the end of the contract was considered guaranteed money. Thus, the contract carried a $12MM luxury hit. As Matt Gelb of The Athletic recently reported, the new CBA stipulates that a traded contract’s remaining actual dollars will count toward the luxury tax. As such, Kimbrel will now represent a $16MM luxury hit for the Dodgers (rather than the $14.5MM he’d have represented under previous rules).

Setting aside the financial component of the blockbuster swap, the trade fills a need for both teams. The Dodgers’ bullpen was lacking a shutdown option late in the game, and Kimbrel restored his credibility as a dynamic ninth-inning option through the first four months of the 2021 season while closing games for the Cubs. He’ll now join Blake Treinen, Daniel Hudson and young flamethrower Brusdar Graterol at the back of the Los Angeles bullpen.

For much of the 2021 season, Kimbrel looked back to his vintage form. In 36 2/3 innings with the Cubs, the 33-year-old righty (34 in May) posted a microscopic 0.49 ERA while racking up 23 saves and 46.7% of his opponents against a 9.4% walk rate. Kimbrel deservingly made the All-Star team, and the three-year, $43MM contract he’d signed in 2019 went from albatross to trade asset in a matter of months. The White Sox, looking to push what was already a clear division winner over the hump, traded injured second baseman Nick Madrigal and right-hander Codi Heuer to the Cubs in a crosstown blockbuster.

Kimbrel pitched a shutdown inning in each of his first two appearances with the Sox, and though he was rocked for three runs in his third outing, it looked like a blip on the radar when he bounced back with three more scoreless appearances thereafter. However, the right-hander’s struggles increased in the coming weeks as reports that Kimbrel was uncomfortable pitching in a setup capacity behind Sox closer Liam Hendriks gained prominence. Ultimately, Kimbrel posted an ugly 5.09 ERA in 23 regular season frames with the Sox before being trounced for another three runs (two earned) in two ALDS innings.

Whether Kimbrel’s struggles were indeed tied to the role in which he was pitching or whether that was a more narrative-driven explanation, the Dodgers clearly feel confident that he can return to the high level of performance he displayed with the Cubs last year. If that’s indeed the case, a bullpen that recently lost Kenley Jansen to the Braves (for this same $16MM price tag) will prove one of the most formidable in the sport.

The trade of Pollock also opens up playing time in the outfield for Chris Taylor, who’d previously been deemed the team’s primary second baseman. With Pollock and left-handed-hitting Matt Beaty now gone via trade — Beaty went to the Padres earlier this week — there’s room for Taylor to take over as the primary left fielder and longtime top prospect Gavin Lux to get in everyday reps at second base. Of course, that assumes no further additions are coming for the Dodgers. It’s at least worth noting that L.A. just traded its left fielder and has a right-handed-heavy lineup at a time when former All-Star outfielder Michael Conforto and his left-handed bat are still looking for a landing spot.

Meanwhile, the White Sox have yet to address a glaring hole in right field all offseason. The closest the Sox had come to bolstering the right field position was a recent trade for the Phillies’ Adam Haseley, but the Sox announced that Haseley was optioned to Triple-A just minutes before word of today’s trade broke. Pollock will now step right into the outfield mix, giving the Sox a quality option to pair with center fielder Luis Robert and left fielder Eloy Jimenez. The Sox went much of the 2021 season with first basemen Andrew Vaughn and Gavin Sheets masquerading as corner outfielders, so bringing Pollock into the fold will give them a true outfielder — and a solid defensive one at that.

Pollock, who turned 34 this offseason, will come to the White Sox fresh off a .297/.355/.536 showing in 117 games/422 plate appearances with the Dodgers this past season. Typically a better hitter against lefties than righties — though his career marks against right-handed pitchers are still well above average — Pollock posted a more even split last season and was immensely effective at the plate regardless of opponent handedness.

That said, Pollock also spent more than a month on the injured list with a pair of hamstring strains, one in each leg. That marked the fourth time in the past five seasons — the shortened 2020 campaign the lone exception — that he’s spent at least a month on the shelf with an injury. Pollock has also missed time with a fractured elbow that cost him 150 games in 2016, a groin strain (2017), a fractured thumb (2018) and elbow surgery (2019) in recent years. Pollock played in a career-high 157 games in 2015, but he’s averaged just 88 games per 162-game season since that time. Notably, he did play in 55 of 60 possible games during the shortened 2020 campaign, which shouldn’t be completely overlooked when weighing questions about his durability.

Even if Pollock does miss time this year, the Sox have their share of fill-in options. Veteran Adam Engel gives Chicago a defensively gifted right-handed bat who can play any of the three outfield positions. Neither Vaughn nor Sheets graded out well in terms of defense last year, but they at least got their feet wet in the outfield and could handle some corner work on a short-term basis. The aforementioned Haseley is an option to be called up at any point and at least provide quality defense and a passable bat against righties. Utilityman Leury Garcia, meanwhile, is an option all over the infield or the outfield. Second baseman Josh Harrison has his share of experience in the outfield corners as well.

As for the Chicago bullpen, the team’s offseason dealings have helped to build a strong relief corps that looks formidable even sans Kimbrel. The Sox signed veteran righties Kendall Graveman (three years, $24MM) and Joe Kelly (two years, $17MM) to multi-year deals this winter. Of course, the Sox are subtracting not only Kimbrel but also free-agent righty Ryan Tepera (who went to the Angels on a two-year deal) and lefty Garrett Crochet, whom GM Rick Hahn announced is likely to undergo Tommy John surgery just minutes after announcing the Kimbrel/Pollock deal. Hendriks, Graveman, Kelly and lefty Aaron Bummer still give the Sox a strong quartet at the end of games, but they’ll need a few in-house options to step up in the middle innings — assuming no further outside additions, of course.

Ultimately, the swap serves as the rare one-for-one, pure baseball trade that sees teams exchange a pair of veterans to address a need on either side. It’s a mostly cash-neutral swap that gives the Sox a new everyday outfielder, the Dodgers their new closer and sets the stage for both veteran to play pivotal roles for their new teams — both during the regular season and quite likely in the playoffs.

Photos courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.

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