The Chicago White Sox’s experiment with right-hander Jedixson Paez has come to an end. According to MLB.com’s Scott Merkin, Paez has cleared waivers and was returned to the Boston Red Sox organization.

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The White Sox selected Paez in the Rule 5 Draft after finding success with right-hander Shane Smith. Smith was the White Sox’s lone All-Star in 2025, with a 7-8 record and a 3.81 ERA in 29 starts.

Jedixson Paez struggled in his three appearances with the Chicago White Sox

Paez, 22, didn’t have a good spring with the White Sox, having a 6.35 ERA in seven games (two starts). He also hadn’t pitched above High-A in his professional career before getting added to the White Sox Opening Day roster.

Paez posted a 5-4 record with a 3.17 ERA and striking out 113 in 96.2 innings last season. A right calf strain sidelined Páez for four months last season.

Making the jump from the lower levels of the minor leagues to the big leagues proved to be too much for Paez. In three innings of work against the Milwaukee Brewers, Paez allowed six earned runs, two home runs, and walked three.

Two of Paez’s walks and three of his earned runs came in his failed mop-up role in the White Sox’s 14-2 loss on March 26. Back with the Red Sox, Paez will have time to develop, but since he’s appeared in the big leagues, his service time has started.

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The Chicago Cubs made an uncharacteristically aggressive and bold move this offseason by signing free agent third baseman Alex Bregman to a lucrative 5-year, $175 million contract. It was an especially bold move considering the Cubs already had a viable third baseman.

More News: Chicago Cubs have an overlooked edge in Zac Gallen pursuit

Matt Shaw was given the third base gig last season after Chicago whiffed on their first effort to sign Bregman. And despite some struggles at the plate, especially early on in the season, the rookie former no. 1 draft pick did well enough to earn top consideration for that starting spot as the team headed into 2026.

With Bregman in town, however, the Cubs made the move to pull the 24-year-old Shaw from the hot corner and plug him into the role of super utility, with possible playing time at third, second, and at the corner outfield spots. He would also serve as insurance for the possible departure of second baseman Nico Hoerner, who is set to become a free agent at the end of the 2026 season.

That was the plan– unless the Cubs chose to trade him (or Hoerner) during the offseason.

Rumors were rampant that Chicago was talking to various teams about Shaw and Hoerner and that they were open to hearing offers. The infield-needy Boston Red Sox, who lost Bregman to the Cubs, were especially tied to the Shaw/Hoerner talk.

The Red Sox and Brewers make a deal

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Well, the Red Sox DID make that big trade for a young infielder after all, it just wasn’t with the Cubs.

On Monday morning, it was reported that Boston had made a deal with the Milwaukee Brewers to acquire third baseman Caleb Durbin, utility infielder Andruw Monasterio, third baseman Anthony Seigler, and a Comp B pick. In return, the Red Sox sent pitcher Kyle Harrison, middle infielder David Hamilton, and pitching prospect Shane Drohan to Milwaukee.

Durbin finished third in last year’s NL Rookie of the Year voting, behind the Braves’ Drake Baldwin and the Cubs’ Cade Horton. He ended his debut season slashing .256/.334/.387 with 11 home runs and 53 RBIs.

The Brewers, meanwhile, picked up a high-upside pitcher in the 24-year-old Harrison, who was the chief component in Boston’s Rafael Devers trade last season. It’s worth noting that Durbin is the second high-profile rookie traded away by Milwaukee this offseason, following their December deal with the Kansas City Royals for outfielder Isaac Collins, who finished fourth in the NL Rookie of the Year voting last year.

What this means for the Cubs (and Matt Shaw, Nico Hoerner)

What all this means for the Cubs is that both Shaw and Hoerner are staying put in Chicago, at least for the time being.

For Shaw, specifically, it means that he’ll be following the team’s plan A for him and working from the bench as a fill-in and emergency sub this coming season. Last year, the Cubs were sorely lacking in the area of bench depth and the hope is that a more hitting-mature Shaw, who played every position but pitcher, catcher, and first base in the Cubs organization, will take some of the strain from the team’s starting position players.

Shaw embracing his new role

“Of course, you’re kind of looking at it like, ‘Oh, man, where am I going to play?’” Shaw told media back in January, referring to the moment he heard that Chicago had signed Bregman. “And you get a little anxious about those things, because the team knows me good enough at this point to know I just want to be prepared when the season comes around.

“So, of course, I immediately have questions like, ‘Am I going to go here? Am I going to go there?’ And they’ve been transparent with me, just kind of helping me to understand the role of moving to different positions, giving guys an off-day here and there. I’m pretty excited about it.”

All things considered, Shaw (and Hoerner) staying in Chicago has to be viewed as a positive, although the stockpiling of quality young talent by the Brewers this offseason (as well as by the St. Louis Cardinals) is concerning for the Cubs’ future standing in the NL Central Division.

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The Chicago Cubs have made plenty of noise this offseason in an attempt to solidify their standing in the NL. The loss of Kyle Tucker has been particularly troubling. However, the additions made should be more than enough to offset what he would have contributed offensively. One of those additions – star third baseman Alex Bregman, who was signed in January to a five-year deal – had plenty to say about the Cubs ahead of the 2026 season.

Alex Bregman Welcomes the Competition

Alex Bregman brings plenty of postseason experience to the Chicago Cubs. In fact, he’s only spent the entirety of October at home during the 2016 season – his first one.

Wally head, meet Alex Bregman! pic.twitter.com/tm8JRi4SpZ

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 7, 2025

This makes it no surprise that Bregman has the competitiveness to lay down his thoughts about the 2026 season in an interview with RG’s Kyle Odegard. Alex Bregman believes the Cubs have enough to be competitive in a crowded National League, including being right there in October with the Dodgers:

“One of the things that is so fun is playing October baseball. I feel like that’s why we play the game. I want to play October baseball at Wrigley.”

When he was asked about being ready to take on the Dodgers? He said 100%.

After spending his entire career with the American League, Bregman joins the Cubs at a time when the Los Angeles Dodgers are the team to beat. When he’s at his best, he should be able to help lead this Cubs team on a postseason run.

The Fit for Alex Bregman in Chicago

One concern for Bregman over the past few seasons has been his offensive decline. While he didn’t wipe away the concerns entirely in 2025 due to an injury while playing for the Boston Red Sox, he feels he’ll fit right in at Wrigley:

“I feel like I hit the ball to the left-center field gap. I drive the ball to the pull side in the air. And I’ll try to hit doubles line to line.”

While not a true power hitter, Alex Bregman brings a lot to the offense. This includes a knack for hitting doubles and being a stalwart defender. Even with his quad injury last season, he hit 28 doubles and slashed .273/.360/.462.

One thing is for certain: if the Cubs plan on making a deep October run, they’ll need Alex Bregman at his best. By all accounts, Bregman seems ready to give just that.

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The Chicago Cubs have a problem as they head into the 2026 season, but it’s definitely a good problem to have. They need to find every day playing time for five quality infielders when there’s only space for four.

More News: Chicago Cubs get “A” grade for offseason moves amid glaring questions

The signing of free agent third baseman Alex Bregman pushed the still-developing Matt Shaw from his hot corner spot and forced some shuffling of plans. As of right now, the Cubs will be using the 24-year-old Shaw in a super utility role, as a backup at second base, third base, and corner outfield.

But those plans could change.

A desperate Boston Red Sox trade partner

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The Boston Red Sox, since unexpectedly losing Bregman to the Cubs, appears to be a team burning to save face. Despite signing free agent pitcher Ranger Suarez to a 5-year contract days after the Cubs-Bregman deal was announced, they have looked to be flailing in attempts to fortify their roster, especially with a thinned-out infield that has holes at both third base and second base.

Third baseman Eugenio Suarez and second baseman Brendan Donovan, both reported targets of the Red Sox, have come off the market in recent days. Suarez signed a one-year, $15 million deal with the Cincinnati Reds and Donovan was traded from the St. Louis Cardinals to the Seattle Mariners. Meanwhile, free agent Luis Arraez, a former second baseman converted to a first baseman, was signed to a one-year, $12 million deal by the San Francisco Giants and given the team’s full-time second base gig. Even supposed talks with the Arizona Diamondbacks and Houston Astros for second baseman Ketel Marte and third baseman Isaac Paredes, respectively, have reportedly hit a dead end.

Amid talks of converting outfielders to infielders, Boston is still looking for every day infield help. They’ve run out of quality free agent targets. And they appear to be down to one last possible trade partner– the Cubs.

By all accounts, Chicago has been willing to listen to offers for second baseman Nico Hoerner and Shaw, but is not all that motivated to trade either. Hoerner will become a free agent at the end of the 2026 season, but he’s become a team leader and figures to play an important role in the 2026 squad’s postseason push. Shaw, meanwhile, showed enough promise in his rookie 2025 campaign that the team sees him as not only insurance against a starter’s injury in the coming season, but also as insurance at second base in case they can’t re-sign Hoerner.

Matt Shaw would be the most likely target

Of the two tradeable assets, though, Shaw is probably much more likely to be dealt.

Per ESPN’s Jeff Passan:

“I’d be surprised to see Nico Hoerner move at this point. Dealing Matt Shaw is complicated because the Cubs believe there’s more than he showed last season, but teams are valuing him closer to the guy he was than the guy he might be. As of right now, both stay put, but we can’t discount that other moves made by other teams compel potential trade partners to re-engage and up their offers.”

But what if Boston really, really wants the Massachusetts native Shaw?

What the Red Sox have to offer

They have some very attractive young pitching in their organization. Especially, lefties Payton Tolle and Connelly Early, ranked no. 17 and no. 52, respectively, in Baseball America’s list of top 100 prospects. Both 23-year-olds are said to be major league-ready right now.

The Red Sox would surely prefer not to trade either, but desperate times could make for desperate measures. And with two team-controlled years of offseason trade acquisition Sonny Gray and five years of Ranger Suarez ahead of them, the starting rotation might not be of immediate pressing concern.

The Cubs might be moved from their trade indifference if such a top pitching prospect were dangled in front of them. Matthew Boyd, Jameson Taillon, and Shota Imanaga could all possibly be leaving via free agency at the end of next season, so the need for arms will be there. And if the arms can be affordable and team-controlled for the next 5-6 years, all the better.

Realistically, the big haul would probably come for Shaw rather than for just one year of Hoerner. But, again, Chicago does seem to have a concrete plan for the future of their former no. 1 draft pick.

However, the Red Sox may be motivated to sacrifice a lot for what they need in the here and now. A recent Sports Illustrated trade proposal has Shaw going for Early and RHP prospect Juan Valera (no. 11 in the organization). If that deal is put out there, it’s hard to see the Cubs turning it down.

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The Chicago White Sox and general manager Chris Getz have had a great offseason, which culminated in the team signing Japanese slugger Munetaka Murakami to a two-year ($34 million) deal.

More News: Chicago White Sox sign veteran $6 million All-Star outfielder

Also adding reliever Seranthony Dominguez (two years, $20 million) to be their closer, the White Sox still needed to add more depth to their starting rotation after ranking dead last in innings pitched by their starters (758.2). With there being a need for another starter, Getz decided to go out and make a trade with ESPN’s Jeff Passan reporting the White Sox are acquiring right-hander Jordan Hicks and right-handed pitching prospect David Sandlin from the Boston Red Sox.

Trade news: The Chicago White Sox are acquiring veteran right-hander Jordan Hicks and right-handed pitching prospect David Sandlin in a trade with the Boston Red Sox, sources tell ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) February 1, 2026

According to Red Sox beat writer Chris Cotillo, the White Sox are sending their No. 21 prospect, right-hander Gage Ziehl, to the Red Sox. Along with Hicks and Sandlin, the Red Sox are sending $8 million to the White Sox to help pay for Hicks’ $24 million remaining salary, according to The Athletic’s Will Sammon.

Sandlin, 24, had a 9-6 record with a 4.50 ERA in 32 games (14 starts) last season between Double and Triple-A.

The Red Sox are sending $8 million (of Hicks’ $24 million) to Chicago as part of this trade, league sources said. https://t.co/Gd5ukaKToS

— Will Sammon (@WillSammon) February 1, 2026

Jordan Hicks offers more depth for the Chicago White Sox in their starting rotation

Hicks struggled to put together another quality season as a starter, posting a career-worst 2-7 record with a 6.95 ERA in 34 games (nine starts) between the Red Sox and San Francisco Giants. Joining a rotation that saw rookie right-hander Shane Smith be the team’s lone All-Star, a change of scenery, and lower expectations could help Hicks revamp his career.

Having as much depth as the White Sox do, Hicks could wind up being a valuable weapon for manager Will Venable out of the bullpen, if Dominguez can’t get the job done as the team’s closer. Hicks has 35 career saves under his belt.

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The Chicago Cubs have certainly been one of the biggest winners of the MLB offseason, as they swung a trade to land pitcher Edward Cabrera from the Miami Marlins and also signed third baseman Alex Bregman in free agency.

Yes, they did just watch as Kyle Tucker signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, but it didn’t look like they ever had a real chance of re-signing Tucker anyway.

But are the Cubs done making moves?

Some feel that another big trade could be coming for Chicago, especially with its infield now a bit crowded after the Bregman acquisition. And with second baseman Nico Hoerner preparing to enter the final year of his contract, he has been deemed a prime trade candidate.

Mark Powell of FanSided has proposed a trade in which the Cubs would send Hoerner to the Boston Red Sox and reap quite the talented strikeout artist in return.

Chicago Cubs could land a dynamic pitcher from the Boston Red Sox

Powell has Chicago sending Hoerner to the Red Sox in exchange for three prospects: pitchers Payton Tolle and Sadbiel Delzine as well as second baseman Henry Godbout.

While Godbout is an impressive talent in his own right and Delzine is an intriguing 18-year-old out of Venezuela, none of the prospects are quite as enticing as Tolle, who even made his big-league debut in Boston last season.

Tolle made seven appearances and three starts with the Red Sox in 2025, logging a 6.61 ERA while allowing 18 hits and totaling 19 strikeouts over 16.1 innings. That’s a small sample size, so we can’t judge Tolle based off of that.

He did, however, rack up 133 punchouts across 91.2 frames on the minor-league level in 2025, good for an average of 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings. Considering that the Cubs have very limited pitching depth in their organization, it’s hard not to be tantalized by those numbers.

The question is, would Chicago actually want to move Hoerner?

Should the Chicago Cubs actually trade Nico Hoerner?

Hoerner was one of the Cubs’ best players in 2025, slashing .297/.345/.394 with seven home runs and 61 RBI over 649 plate appearances while playing tremendous defense. In fact, his 4.8 WAR led all second basemen.

He has been very consistent since entering the majors in 2019, owning a lifetime .723 OPS while bagging a couple of Gold Gloves. The problem is whether or not Chicago will pay him past 2026, especially after signing Bregman to a five-year, $175 million contract.

We know that owner Tom Ricketts is rather stingy as it is, so it stands to reason that next season could be Hoerner’s last in the Windy City.

That being said, by going out and landing Cabrera and Bregman, the Cubs signaled that they are trying to win now, so why would they move Hoerner at this point? They would be better off keeping Hoerner, moving Matt Shaw into a super utility role and then re-evaluating at the trade deadline.

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The Chicago Cubs have not done anything of real significance this offseason, and they just missed out on Tatsuya Imai. However, with the free-agent market potentially starting to move, the Cubs might get active here in the coming days.

We have heard the Cubs connected to shortstop Bo Bichette in free agency, but in order for them to add him, they would probably have to trade second baseman Nico Hoerner. They could then slide Bichette over to second base and keep Dansby Swanson at shortstop.

Whether or not that would actually represent an upgrade for Chicago is debatable. Hoerner is far superior to Bichette defensively, and while Bichette definitely possesses the better bat, it’s not like Hoerner is a complete slouch at the plate.

But in the midst of the Bichette rumors, Hoerner trade speculation has grown, and Jackson Roberts of On SI has pitched an idea in which the Cubs would send Hoerner to the Boston Red Sox.

Could the Chicago Cubs and Boston Red Sox strike a deal?

If the Cubs do decide to move Hoerner, there would certainly be no shortage of potential suitors for the 28-year-old, but would the Red Sox make sense?

Roberts thinks so.

“Another team that hasn’t had a good second baseman in far too long, dating back to the pre-injury days of Dustin Pedroia,” Roberts wrote. “Boston is the other main team that has been active in the markets for [Brendan] Donovan and [Ketel] Marte, so it wouldn’t shock anyone if they were in on Hoerner.”

The Red Sox used Romy Gonzalez and former top prospect Kristian Campbell at second base in 2025, but based on their decision to pursue both Donovan and Marte, it appears that they are seeking more stability at the position.

Hoerner slashed .297/.345/.394 with seven home runs, 29 doubles and 61 RBI over 649 plate appearances this past season. He also stole 29 bases.

You would figure that Hoerner would largely benefit from the Green Monster in left field at Fenway Park, so he could become a doubles machine in Boston.

Of course, whether or not Chicago would actually move Hoerner is another story entirely. He has just one year of club control remaining, but he has been a lynchpin for the Cubs for years running. Trading him at this point would probably be a mistake unless the Cubbies can reap a massive haul in return.

The post Cubs linked to major trade with Red Sox amid Bo Bichette rumors appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox are in a position where they can surprise people this season with their young core gaining more experience. With the trades they have made, the front office has targeted the next few years as a chance to get games under their belt and begin improving. After a 60-102 record last season, the team is looking to improve. Let’s take a look at how one player is drawing a lot of interest from another American League franchise, but the White Sox aren’t interested.

The Chicago White Sox are not interested in trading back Kyle Teel to Boston

While making an appearance on Monday’s episode of The Mully and Haugh Show on 670 The Score, White Sox general manager Chris Getz explained how he has no interest in trading catcher Kyle Teel back to the Boston Red Sox.

“Yeah, it’s an emoji return. What are we doing here? Yeah, teams can ask for anyone, right. I mean, sure, go at it. It’s just a matter of how much attention you’re gonna give it on the reply. So yeah, that one, I think it’s interesting, it’s wild that you can trade someone and you want him back that quickly. However, [Teel] is a left-handed catcher who can hit. He’s got zone control. He’s got some pop. He’s athletic as hell. He’s got a good arm, and he can run. It’s a unique skill set for that position. So it’s unique, it’s gold. So yeah, certainly didn’t take it very seriously when they reached out.”

The Red Sox originally had Teel, but he was one of the four players traded to the White Sox in the Garrett Crochet trade last December. Teel played in 78 games at the big-league level last season as a rookie and slashed .273/.375/.411 with eight homers, 35 RBI, 38 runs scored, and three steals on four attempts. He also threw out 17.9 percent of runners attempting to steal (10-56). There were reports of this trade request last week, but this is the first time Getz discussed it publicly.

What should we expect out of Kyle Teel in the 2026 season?

Teel has showcased his ability to do well in the majors and should have no issues as the top of the lineup for the White Sox. He has proven to be one of the best players on the team and should continue to develop. With the left-handed bat, he adds lineup versatility to Chicago and should be a fixture at the top of the lineup on a daily basis. He should continue to improve on the power numbers as well with more experience.

Teel is a valuable asset with barely any service time accrued, so he is a building block for the next iteration of White Sox baseball.

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Last year, the Chicago White Sox traded star pitcher Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox and reaped quite a return, and one of the gems of the haul was catcher Kyle Teel.

A former top prospect in Boston, Teel went on to make his big-league debut for the White Sox in 2025, bursting on to the scene in June and slashing .273/.375/.411 with eight home runs and 35 RBI over 297 plate appearances.

Known more for his offense, Teel also flashed some pretty impressive defensive chops at times, particularly with his pitch framing.

Given that Chicago is in rebuilding mode, you would think Teel would be an integral part of the team moving forward, and yet, there have been reports that the Red Sox approached the White Sox about potentially re-acquiring Teel.

But fret not, fans of the Pale Hose; it doesn’t look like Teel is going anywhere.

The White Sox have shut down the Red Sox in Kyle Teel trade discussions

Just because the Red Sox have expressed interest in trading for Teel does not mean the White Sox are going to oblige.

Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic have revealed that Chicago has absolutely “no interest” in trading Teel and have “shut down every inquiry” for the 23-year-old backstop.

Wise decision by the White Sox.

Teel was the 32nd-ranked prospect in baseball by MLB.com entering 2025 and slashed .295/.394/.492 in 50 games at Triple-A Charlotte before being promoted to the show this past season.

The Ridgewood, N.J. native was originally select by Boston with the 14th overall pick of the 2023 MLB Draft and slashed .300/.401/.456 with 23 homers and 130 RBI throughout 188 games in the minor leagues between the Red Sox and the White Sox.

Teel is expected to be a critical part of Chicago’s roster next season and is under team control through 2031. The mere idea of trading him is silly.

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Last December, the Chicago White Sox traded star pitcher Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox in a deal that netted the White Sox four top prospects, including catcher Kyle Teel.

Teel made his big-league debut for Chicago this past June and was very impressive, slashing .273/.375/.411 with eight home runs and 35 RBI over 297 plate appearances. His defense could definitely stand to improve, but he has shown flashes of potentially being a strong defensive backstop.

Well, apparently, the Red Sox are attempting to re-acquire Teel.

Sean McAdam of MassLive.com has reported that Boston has expressed interest in the former first-round pick but that “nothing is close now” in terms of trade discussions with Chicago.

The question is, why would the White Sox move Teel at this point?

The Chicago White Sox should build with Kyle Teel moving forward

Teel is just 23 years old and displayed considerable potential in 2025. He also owns a lifetime .300/.401/.456 slash line on the minor-league level, and his plate discipline was evident in the 78 games he spent with Chicago’s big-league club this past year.

The White Sox demanded Teel be involved in the Crochet trade for a reason. Unless they can flip him for a much greater return, it wouldn’t make a ton of sense to move him, especially considering that Chicago is in rebuilding mode.

Plus, the Red Sox’s evident interest in Teel is rather strange given that they have Carlos Narvaez behind the plate. Narvaez struggled down the stretch in 2025, but he still posted solid numbers overall and was a Gold Glove finalist for Boston.

Of course, Narvaez is not quite on Teel’s level and is four years older than the White Sox catcher, so perhaps the Red Sox feel that Teel would be a strong enough upgrade to part with substantial capital for him in a trade.

Chances are, Chicago will end up holding on to Teel unless a wild offer comes through.

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The Chicago White Sox enter the offseason needing to add veteran players to their major league roster to help their young core grow.

More News: Chicago White Sox GM Chris Getz relays what Grant Taylor’s role will be in 2026

After general manager Chris Getz flipped-flopped on whether the White Sox would sign free agents past the 2026 season, the White Sox have kicked off their offseason by making a couple of trades with the Boston Red Sox and Tampa Bay Rays.

The Chicago White Sox add pitching depth, acquiring left-hander Chris Murphy from the Red Sox

Though the jury is still out on what Getz will do in free agency, he has shown his willingness to acquire under-the-radar talent through the trade market. Getz on Tuesday made a shrewd trade with the Red Sox to acquire left-hander Chris Murphy in exchange for minor league catcher Ronny Hernandez.

The Chicago White Sox have acquired left-handed pitcher Chris Murphy from the Boston Red Sox in exchange for minor-league catcher Ronny Hernández. pic.twitter.com/GVyxcDgLUG

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) November 18, 2025

A former sixth-round pick of the Red Sox in the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of San Diego, Murphy will add to the White Sox bullpen, which was a thorn in their side in 2025. In 23 games with the Red Sox, Murphy had a 3-0 record with a 3.12 ERA and struck out 30 batters in 34.2 innings.

However, Murphy’s one flaw has been his lack of command, having 20 walks (one intentional walk) for a 5.2 walks per nine.

Chris Getz didn’t forget to add some position player talent in the White Sox trade with the Rays

Swapping pitching for hitting, Getz acquired two interesting position players from the Rays, sending right-handers Yoendrys Gomez and Steven Wilson to them in exchange for outfielder Everson Pereira and infielder Tanner Murray.

pic.twitter.com/GUaJRCm1dD

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) November 19, 2025

Murray and Pereira should be in the mix to make the White Sox Opening Day roster, given their need for outfield and infield depth.

Pereira has seen parts of two seasons in the big leagues, appearing in 50 games between the Rays and the New York Yankees and slashing .146/.227/.215 for an OPS of .465. In 78 games in Triple-A, the 24-year-old slashed .256/.359/.508 for an OPS of .868.

Murray has spent his entire professional career in the minor leagues (five seasons) and performed well in 137 games at Triple-A last year. Slashing .241/.299/.400 for an OPS of .700, Murray hit a career high 18 home runs, which could help the 26-year-old to win a job next season.

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The Chicago Cubs currently sit atop the NL Central Division, hoping to extend a stellar start of the season right through the dog days of summer and into the postseason.

Although way too early for such discussions, World Series talk has begun to spring up. The team appears to be THAT special.

And with that special vibe comes the pressure to strike while the iron appears to be hot.

That’s why it’s believed that the Cubs front office will be aggressive in pursuing assets before the coming July 31 trade deadline.

Chicago Cubs to be aggressive in trade market

The prevailing thought is that Chicago will pursue starting pitching, primarily.

They lost ace Justin Steele for the year due to elbow surgery and then lost co-ace Shota Imanaga for a good chunk of time after a hamstring injury. Projected fifth starter Javier Assad has also yet to pitch a competitive inning this season while nursing an oblique injury.

So, it would only stand to reason that the Cubs would go after a high-end starter to fill out the rotation for their playoff push.

And they probably WILL move to make such a trade.

But, apparently, they were also potentially in on a huge blockbuster involving one of the best offensive players in the game.

The Cubs were in on Red Sox slugger Rafael Devers

According to Peter Abraham of the Boston Globe, the Boston Red Sox had talks with the Cubs, San Diego Padres, Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, and Atlanta Braves before signing off on a deal this past Sunday to trade Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants.

In the deal, the Red Sox acquired Jordan Hicks, Kyle Harrison, Jose Bello and 2024 first round draft pick James Tibbs III for the disgruntled third baseman/DH. Boston also disposed of $270 million on the remainder of an 11-year contract that runs through 2033.

A surprising turn of events?

The news that the Cubs were in on acquiring Devers comes as a pretty big surprise.

First, there’s that huge contract running through 2033, especially with Kyle Tucker headed into free agency.

Second, Devers doesn’t really profile as a Cubs-type under the vision of president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer. Defensively, he has always been a bottom-tier third baseman, with a career -62 score in Defensive Runs Saved (DRS) metrics. Plus, there’s been all that clubhouse drama with Devers pushing back against the entire Red Sox organization over being moved from third base to make way for Alex Bregman.

But the 28-year-old DOES have an elite bat and it’s not every day when a player at Devers’ level becomes available in what appears to be a just-get-him-away-from-here trade, more than a month before the trade deadline.

“Probably a one-off deal,” Hoyer recently said of the Devers trade, during an interview with 670 The Score’s “Spiegel and Holmes” show. “I don’t think it jump-starts the market. But as you start to get into this time of year, there’s more conversations that happen. It just keeps ramping up and ramping up.”

The next question coming to mind is what the Cubs were willing to offer the Red Sox for Devers.

Matt Shaw would seem to be expendable if they made Devers their third baseman, but Boston has Alex Bregman at third for at least two more years after this season. The Red Sox organization is also full of young outfield talent, so top Cubs outfield prospects Owen Caissie and Kevin Alcantara may not have been on the table. The offensively adept Moises Ballesteros, on the other hand, would be an attractive DH pickup for Fenway Park.

Whatever the case, this report seems to affirm the belief that the Cubs are “all in” when it comes to adding postseason impact players and will, indeed, be aggressive in pursuing trades.

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The Chicago Cubs’ biggest business drama coming into the 2025 season keeps circling its way back into the team’s front and center.

Multi-tool, all-star right fielder Kyle Tucker brought his steady greatness to the team when he came over via trade from the Houston Astros in a 3-for-1 offseason deal. He also brought the harsh reality that he was in the last year of his contract and was due to become the most sought-after free agent position player of the 2026 class.

Since coming aboard, he’s become a linchpin piece of a Cubs team with actual World Series possibilities.

All of this means that, as valuable as he is to the North Siders, he stands to be just as desirable to several other teams outside of Chicago– teams who, historically, are bigger and bolder spenders than the usually frugal Cubs.

Already mentioned as possible suitors for Tucker are the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Philadelphia Phillies.

After this week, count the Boston Red Sox among those teams possibly in on the Tucker bidding war.

The Boston Red Sox as possible Kyle Tucker’s suitors?

Earlier this week, the Red Sox traded the perpetually disgruntled Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants. In the deal, Boston also ditched $270 million on an 11-year, $331 million Devers contract, which ran through 2033.

The money wiped off the books– along with the backlash from fans criticizing ownership for trading away yet another generational talent– could very well make the Red Sox serious suitors for an immediate impact player like Tucker.

Tucker is every bit as good as advertised

Despite having an abundance of outfield talent, including Roman Anthony, the top prospect in all of baseball, room could definitely be made for someone like Tucker who, as the Cubs are finding out, is every bit as good as advertised.

Per Brandon Glick of Cubbies Crib:

“His first few months with the Cubs has only further proven that fact. In March/April, he posted a 158 wRC+ and .935 OPS. In May, he was at a 146 wRC+ and .882 OPS, and June has been more of the same, with Tucker logging a 153 wRC+ and .896 OPS…

So, just for reference, Tucker’s worst month of the season would still be the 18th-best hitter in baseball this year.

That’s absurd, and given how beloved he’s quickly become with fans and the clubhouse, letting Tucker walk feels like a simply untenable resolution at this point…

Tucker is going to be really expensive anyway you slice it. But, he’s also probably going to be worth it, at least for a good while into his next contract.”

For what it’s worth, Tucker seems to be enjoying his time in Chicago and as part of this Cubs team. His recent “feels good to be a Cub” Instagram share got lots of Cubs people excited and made the way for yet another round of “extend Tucker” talk.

Tucker, a happy member of the Chicago Cubs?

Kyle, himself, remains focused on playing baseball and has nudged away any talk of contracts as he pursues his goal– a World Series ring in Chicago.

“The ceiling is winning the World Series,” Tucker recently said on the Marquee Sports Network’s Cubs Live! “That was our goal, coming into the season, going into spring training. I think we still have a really good shot at that. We have a really good team. Hopefully, we can all come together as a group at the end of the year healthy and playing well, and you know, get that job done.

“…Our goal coming in was to win a World Series…And, you know, try and come out and play every game hard and try and win every single game. We don’t want to just kind of show up and play and go home at the end of the day, and whether we win or lose, not really care. We want to come out and play well, and put on a show for these fans and win games for them. I mean, if you don’t want to do that, I don’t see the point of showing up at the park.”

On the surface, identifying so strongly as a Cub and as part of something bigger than himself seems to be good news when it comes to keeping him a Cub. But with the opening bid for his services likely to be in the 10-year, $500 million range, it’s hard to ignore what may be the pull of being a part of something bigger than himself, elsewhere, for a lot more money.

The Red Sox have that money and are not shy about throwing it around.

The post Chicago Cubs: Could Boston Red Sox emerge as another big-money suitor for free agent Kyle Tucker? appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox have had to change their roster all season due to players not finding their footing and injuries that have nagged them since the beginning of the season. The White Sox have spent most of their time scouring the waiver wire to find and sign players to aid them in their ordeal with injuries.

Some moves have panned out and others haven’t, with those players no longer around. The White Sox made more adjustments to their roster, with some players down on the farm having some success, and others needing to go since they weren’t performing well enough to remain.

The Chicago White Sox make some more adjustments to their roster

The White Sox have once again changed up their roster, announcing a flurry of moves that saw some players recalled, others added to the injured list, and one departing for either Charlotte or free agency.

To start, the White Sox recalled utility man Brooks Baldwin from Charlotte after he had done well since being sent down back in May. The White Sox then reinstated left-hander Tyler Gilbert from his rehab assignment. Next, they claimed first baseman Ryan Noda from the Boston Red Sox and assigned him to Charlotte.

Finally, to make room for Baldwin and Gilbert on the 26-man roster, the White Sox optioned right-hander Owen White to Triple-A and designated outfielder Joshua Palcios for assignment.

pic.twitter.com/rJrhIfCXW8

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) June 13, 2025

White had made one appearance for the White Sox since getting called up, which came in relief against the Houston Astros after Sean Burke failed to go four innings.

Having Baldwin back will give the team a boost

Having Baldwin back will give the team a nice boost and a valuable utility man, which the White Sox lacked. Baldwin had performed well since getting optioned to Charlotte, hitting over .400 in June (.415) and had an OPS of .805.

Baldwin has proven that he no longer needs to be down on the farm and should be up in the big leagues to figure things out. In his 45 games with the big league club, he hit .214/.255/.328 for an OPS of .538.

The post The Chicago White Sox add two players to the roster and option or release three more appeared first on ChiCitySports.

With the Chicago White Sox engulfed in another disastrous season, the focus is solely on the future. Because of that, the franchise is looking to cash-in on any tradeable talent when necessary.

Things will heat up once the trade deadline gets closer. Teams will have a better idea of what they need for the stretch run and what kind of talent is actually available. But one thing is for certain, the White Sox will be sellers.

Before those festivities kick off, Chicago tried to swing an under-the-radar trade with the Boston Red Sox. With Tristan Casas injured and Bobby Dalbec designated for assignment, the Chicago offered him to Boston. However, the latter declined the White Sox’s offer and decided to go in a different direction, via Sean McAdam of MassLive.

“Prior to designating Bobby Dalbec for assignment — and after the season-ending injury to Triston Casas — the White Sox checked in with the Red Sox to see if they had any interest in their former corner infielder,” McAdam wrote. “They did not. Casas subsequently signed a minor league deal with Milwaukee.”

For the record, Dalbec was the one to sign a minor league deal with the Brewers as Cases underwent season-ending surgery.

Bobby Dalbec’s road to and departure from Chicago White Sox 

Dalbec began his career with the Red Sox as a fourth-round pick, making their refusal to take him back in a trade very telling. As recently as 2021, he ranked as high as the No. 3 prospect in Boston’s organization, via MLB Pipeline. However, Dalbec has yet to put things completely together at the major league level.

Over his five years with the Red Sox, Dalbec hit .222 with 47 home runs 142 RBI and nine stolen bases. Most of that production came between the 2021 and 2022 seasons, where he had 37 home runs, 117 RBI and five steals. But after that 2022 campaign, Dalbec completely fell off the map. He never played in more than 31 games at the major league level. In his final campaign in Boston, he hit just .133 with one home run, eight RBI and three steals.

Still, the White Sox were intrigued by Dalbec’s prospect pedigree and signed him to minor league contract. He performed well enough in the minors to get another opportunity in the bigs. But over his seven games with the team, he hit .222 with an RBI and no other counting stats. Chicago ended the experiment early and designated him for assignment. Now, Dalbec is with the Brewers’ Triple-A team.

Ultimately, the White Sox wouldn’t have gotten a lot in a Dalbec trade. However, it would’ve been some form of return rather than watching him walk for free. Still, the corner infielder never lived up to his prospect hype. Even playing for a Chicago team with nothing to lose, Dalbec missed his shot. In turn, the Red Sox decided they are going to avoid a reunion.

The post Red Sox turned down Chicago White Sox former top prospect trade offer: Report appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox won their first series of the year, beating the Boston Red Sox two games to one and outscored the Red Sox 15 to six.

The series also featured two exciting storylines, one being the return of former White Sox star left-hander Garrett Crochet and the other being the debut of the White Sox’s eighth overall prospect Chase Meidroth.

An ironic moment happened between Crochet and Meidroth in game three of the series, where Crochet had a no-hitter rolling into the eighth inning, and Meidroth broke up the no-hit bid for Crochet with a single to leftfield.

The irony is that Meidroth was one of the prospects sent in return for Crochet, and in Crochet’s first start back in Chicago since being traded, nobody other than Chase would break up Crochet’s chances at history.

What a series for the Chicago White Sox’s young prospect!

Meidroth made quite the first impression in his first-ever action up in the big leagues. During his debut, Meidrothwent 3-7 (.429), with a .600 on-base percentage, while scoring three runs and walking three times.

“What a debut series for Chase Meidroth”

What a debut series for Chase Meidroth @IDOT_Illinois pic.twitter.com/qF8wvBwT2F

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) April 14, 2025

A strong showing from Meidroth

Meidroth received a call to the big leagues after getting off to a hot start at Triple-A Charlotte, where he slashed .267/.450/.600 for an OPS of 1.050 in nine games.

Meidroth could have, and more importantly, should have made the White Sox Opening Day roster out of spring training, but he didn’t hit well enough to do so.

In 41 at-bats (50 plate appearances), Meidroth hit .146/.300/.171. The best part of his showing in spring was his almost 1:1 ratio for walks (9) to strikeouts (10). Walking and getting on base are the names of Meidroth’s game, and the White Sox need this skill set.

With the White Sox struggling to score runs and accrue baserunners, having Meidroth getting on for the run producers (those have yet to be found) to drive him in will be key to winning more ballgames.

The White Sox will need Meidroth’s on-base skills to continue as the Athletics come to town for a three-game series. Sean Burke will be taking the bump for the Sox, while Jeffery Springs opposes them for the A’s.

The post Chicago White Sox’s No. 8 overall prospect strong series against the Red Sox appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox could not pull off the sweep of the Boston Sox as they dropped the series finale, losing 3-1.

Thankfully, the White Sox captured the series with an 11-1 win in game one and a walk-off win in game two, with Brooks Baldwin being the hero.

The series finale saw Red Sox Ace Garret Crochet return to Chicago for his first start since getting traded, and he was nothing short of amazing.

Crochet returns to face off against the Chicago White Sox

The White Sox made it a point this off-season to trade away the best player they had in Crochet to jump-start their rebuild.

The White Sox traded Crochet to the Red Sox over the off-season for a package of prospects, with one, Chase Meidroth, already debuting.

The now-former White Sox returned to Chicago, where he dominated and showed why he is worth every penny of the $170 million contract he signed.

In his first start back in Chicago since being traded, Crochet was nothing short of dominant, carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning and having his best strikeout stuff. Crochet had eleven over his 7.1 innings of work.

The White Sox thankfully broke up the no-hitter with their rookie Chase Meidroth getting a base hit off of Crochet in the bottom of the seventh.

That hit marked the end of Crochet’s afternoon, with MLB.com Scott Merkin reporting that when manager Alex Cora made the call to the bullpen, Crochet left the mound to a standing ovation.

“Meidroth breaks up the no-hitter with one out in the eighth. And Crochet exits to a standing ovation.”

Meidroth breaks up the no-hitter with one out in the eighth. And Crochet exits to a standing ovation.

— Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) April 13, 2025

Looking like a Cy Young contender

Crochet has looked great since joining the Red Sox, as he could be in the running or even win the American League Cy Young Award.

To begin the year Crochet after this outing will move to 2-1 and saw his ERA drop from 1.45 to 1.38.

Now that Crochet is locked into a contract and is in a place he is happy to be, he has settled in and looks to be unlocking his full potential, which could spell a nightmare for the rest of the league.

The post Chicago White Sox drop the series finale to Red Sox 3-1 as their Ace dominates appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox won their first series of the year against one of the better teams in the American League, the Boston Red Sox.

The White Sox had been scuffling up to this point, snapping an eight-game losing streak once the Red Sox came to town.

The series has also seen the debut of one of the White Sox’s top prospects, Chase Meidroth, who has shown off his ability to walk and get on base.

The White Sox won the series on a clutch pinch-hit at-bat from another one of their young guys, who will be counted on to do more given all their injuries.

Chicago White Sox win their first series of the season

The White Sox won their first series of the season, taking two games from the Red Sox as they saw a great pitching performance from Davis Martin in game one, where he gave them six strong innings, allowing six hits, one earned run, giving walk, and striking out six.

The second game of the series saw the White Sox climb back to win on a walk-off pinch-hit double by Brooks Baldwin.

“BROOKS BALDWIN CALLS GAME”

BROOKS BALDWIN CALLS GAME pic.twitter.com/rouEgooL2H

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) April 12, 2025

Baldwin’s hit not only captured the Series for the White Sox but gave the Sox their first back-to-back wins of the season.

More playing time is incoming for Baldwin

Baldwin will be getting more playing, as outfielder Austin Slater requires knee surgery after tearing his right knee meniscus.

In 39 at-bats this season (13 games), Baldwin has had some success, hitting .256/.250/.359 for an OPS of .609, and has been used all over the field by manager Will Venable.

Baldwin’s success at the plate and ability to be moved around should help him get the bulk of the reps while the guys on the injured list work their way back.

The White Sox will wrap things up this afternoon as rookie Shane Smith will try to continue his run of dominance on the mound and will square off against former White Sox Garrett Crochet. This will be Crochet’s first appearance in Chicago since being traded this off-season.

The post Chicago White Sox win two in a row on a clutch base hit appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox have finally ended their eight-game losing streak after they blew out the Boston Red Sox 11-1 in the opening game of the series on Friday night.

The White Sox needed a game like this after getting outscored 42-16 during their losing streak. The White Sox scoring eleven runs in this game marks a season-high and will hopefully lead them out of the gutter.

Fans were in for a treat last night as one of the White Sox’s top prospects made his Major League Debut after getting the call to come to the show after a great showing down at Triple-A Charlotte.

Chicago White Sox’s No. 8 prospect shines in his debut

Chase Meidroth, the White Sox’s No. 8 overall prospect in the organization, debuted last night for the Sox after he got off to a hot start down at Charlotte, where he had an OPS of 1.050 in his first nine games at Triple-A.

The 23-year-old Meidroth was one of the players the White Sox got in return in the deal that sent left-handed pitcher Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Meidroth, catcher Kyle Teel, outfielder Braden Montgomery, and right-handed pitcher Wikelmann González.

Meidroth was spectacular in his debut, showing why he’s an underrated prospect and why he will be a future top-of-the-order piece and on-base guy for the White Sox.

Manager Will Venable gave Meidroth the honor of batting seventh in the order, where he went 1-1 (four plate appearances overall) picking up his first major league hit in the bottom of the fourth inning on a fastball that Red Sox left-hander Sean Newcomb left out over the plate. Meidroth also scored twice. 

“First big league game, first big league knock for Chase Meidroth!

The @whitesox No. 8 prospect was acquired this offseason in the Garrett Crochet blockbuster.”

First big league game, first big league knock for Chase Meidroth!

The @whitesox No. 8 prospect was acquired this offseason in the Garrett Crochet blockbuster. pic.twitter.com/aRg2PMQw6t

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) April 12, 2025

The most impressive aspect of Meidroth’s debut was the fact he walked three times, which was the first time a player had a hit and three walks in a game since Montreal Expos outfielder and Hall of Famer Larry Walker did it on August 16, 1989.

“quite the debut for Chase”

quite the debut for Chase pic.twitter.com/AS8Ctfgvx3

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) April 12, 2025

The road ahead for Meidroth

Meidroth played second base in his debut, and Venable could slide him in there and give him the bulk of the reps at second, as that’s his primary position and his best position.

Now that he’s here, Meidroth will get a lot of runway to show why he was one of the four players the Sox brought over to help their rebuild.

Meidroth is the first of those prospects to debut and the second top-ten prospect to debut for the Sox, the other being right-handed pitcher Jairo Iriarte.

His debut could mark the opening of the floodgates and signal the White Sox’s willingness to start calling up their prospects and seeing who will give them the best chances at building a new ballclub.

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The Chicago White Sox are off to a rough start to the season and could be on pace to get close, if not break the loss record.

The rough start to the season hasn’t gotten any better, as the White Sox placed leftfielder Andrew Benintendi on the injured list after he suffered a left adductor strain. Thankfully, his IL stint is retroactive to the 7th, which means he could be activated as early as the 17th.

The White Sox will miss Benintendi’s offensive production and will need their pitching staff to take a step forward as three of the five White Sox starters struggling in their second outings.

One pitcher on the White Sox staff who appears like he’s the real deal is Shane Smith, and it’s all thanks to one pitch in his arsenal.

Chicago White Sox starter’s elite pitch

The White Sox selected Smith out of the Milwaukee Brewers organization with the first pick in the Rule 5 Draft, which took place over the off-season.

The White Sox decided to keep Smith and add him to their Opening Day roster after he impressed Will Venable and the White Sox front office this spring.

What impressed them the most was his stuff, specifically his changeup, which is emerging as his best pitch and the pitch he goes to for strikeouts.

This season, Smith has thrown his changeup 25.7% of the time, which is second to his changeup, which he’s throwing at 42.6%.

Smith’s changeup has some velocity, averaging 90.3mph on the radar gun and having hard downward movement. Smith is getting more than 32.5 inches of vertical break while breaking 13.1 inches to his arm side.

Shane Smith's Changeup is an absolute weapon. pic.twitter.com/rqM54nvw10

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) April 8, 2025

According to White Sox on CHSN, Smith taught himself how to throw this changeup over the off-season, leading him to have this success.

Chuck Garfien added that if the Brewers knew about this, they wouldn’t have let him go.

"Who taught Shane Smith that change up…he did that himself."@ChuckGarfien and @OzzieGuillen on Smith teaching himself how to throw his change up on #WhiteSoxCountdownLive. pic.twitter.com/LjaFfukOeY

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) April 9, 2025

Something special

The White Sox seem to have something special in Shane Smith, as he’s off to a great start to his young career.

If he can keep this up, Smith and the White Sox could find themselves having this American League Rookie of the Year.

Smith’s next start in the rotation should come next Sunday when the Boston Red Sox come to town.

That start could be interesting, as it could be Garrett Crochet’s first start back in Chicago since being traded.

The post Chicago White Sox rookie elite pitch is what’s leading to his success appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox will likely be one of the worst teams this season, but to start the year, they have been playing some good baseball.

The White Sox enter this season in the second year of their rebuild, which started in the off-season, where general manager Chris Getz’s main mission was to trade away Garrett Crochet.

The White Sox accomplished that feat by trading Crochet to the Boston Red Sox, where they received a nice package of prospects that included catcher Kyle Teel, infielder Chase Meidroth, outfielder Braden Montgomery, and pitcher Wikelman Gonzalez.

Since the trade, Crochet has looked great in a Red Sox uniform, performing great this spring, and was named the Ace of their Staff and Opening Day starter.

Given he’s one of the top-tier pitchers in the American League, the Red Sox awarded him by giving him a lucrative extension he has longed for.

Former Chicago White Sox left-hander inks massive extension

According to ESPN’s Jeff Passan, the Red Sox and Crochet have agreed on a contract extension worth $170 million for six years. Passan says the deal will take effect next season and includes an opt-out after 2030.

“BREAKING: Left-hander Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a six-year, $170 million contract extension, sources tell ESPN. The deal starts in 2026 and includes an opt-out after 2030. By far the largest deal ever for a pitcher with 4+ years of service.”

BREAKING: Left-hander Garrett Crochet and the Boston Red Sox are in agreement on a six-year, $170 million contract extension, sources tell ESPN. The deal starts in 2026 and includes an opt-out after 2030. By far the largest deal ever for a pitcher with 4+ years of service.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) April 1, 2025

Crochet had longed for an extension for almost a year, first signaling he wanted one last season while still with the White Sox.

Crochet stated last season that if he traded, he wouldn’t pitch in the postseason for his new team unless he got a deal. Ultimately, that didn’t happen, as he remained with the Sox last year.

Crochet’s time with the White Sox

The White Sox drafted Crochet in the first round (11th overall) in the 2020 draft from the University of Tennessee, and he quickly ascended through the minor leagues.

Debuting the same year as he was drafted, Crochet pitched a scoreless inning against the Cincinnati Reds, where he picked up two strikeouts.

Originally a reliever, the White Sox switched Crochet to a starter after he showed promise.

Last season was Crochet’s first season as a full-time starter and two years removed from Tommy John surgery.

In his first season as a starter, Crochet went 6-12 with a 3.58 ERA and 209 strikeouts in 146.0 innings.

The future for the Red Sox

Crochet will now be the main cog for the Red Sox’s success after signing this massive deal.

Crochet is quickly emerging as one of the top pitchers in all of Major League Baseball and could be the American League Cy Young winner for this season.

Fans won’t have to wait too long to see Crochet again, as the Red Sox come to Chicago April 11-13.

The post Chicago White Sox: Boston Red Sox sign left-hander to a huge contract extension appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox had a fantastic offseason from the perspective that they added to their depth and brought in some veterans to lead the young core.

The White Sox needed to trade away Garrett Crochet this offseason to accumulate prospects for their rebuild, and they did just when they sent him to the Boston Red Sox.

Since becoming a Red Sox, Crochet has been his dominant self, which has given him a high honor.

Former Chicago White Sox pitcher receives a high honor

Crochet has had a dominant spring, where he’s had a zero ERA in three games started. Crochet has also managed to punch out 14 batters in 6.1 innings, which is good enough for an astonishing 19.9 strikeouts.

This dominant performance has given the 25-year-old Crochet the honor of being the Red Sox Opening Day starterin his first season with the team.

“Garrett Crochet will get the nod on Opening Day for Boston”

Garrett Crochet will get the nod on Opening Day for Boston pic.twitter.com/YDZWD9mZbG

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) March 15, 2025

Crochet with the White Sox

If the White Sox weren’t in rebuilding mode Crochet would’ve been an excellent piece to build around. The former first-round pick (11th overall) from the University of Tennessee, Crochet originally debuted with the Sox as a reliever, where he first showed his dominance.

The White Sox then decided that since Crochet was so dominant he could work out as being a starter. In his first season as a full-time starter and two years removed from Tommy John surgery, Crochet was excellent pitching to a 6-12 record with a 3.58 ERA in 146.0 innings. These numbers were good enough to help Crochet make his first All-Star team.

This also helped the White Sox build his trade value for when they shopped him this offseason and netted themselves prospects in return.

Success with the Red Sox

Crochet should have success with the Red Sox this season, given he’s looked so strong.

Crochet will be the Ace of the Red Sox staff, which they lacked last season, and will help lead them to the playoffs this season.

The Red Sox will be one of the better teams in the American League this season, and Crochet will be a big reason why.

The post Former Chicago White Sox Ace receives high honor by the Boston Red Sox appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago Cubs didn’t get free agent third baseman Alex Bregman [insert frowny emoji].

Instead, that evil, evil Bregman went and signed with the Boston Red Sox for Aaron Judge money, earning $40 million a year for three years, with opt-outs after each season. With this one offseason hold-out move, he now becomes tied for fourth highest-paid MLB player.

The Cubs, meanwhile, only offered him the pittance of $120 million for four years, making his yearly pay just $30 million and putting him a lowly 19th on the list of top earners.

From the talk online, some Cubs fans are way too despondent over the loss of Bregman.

But Cubbie loyalists need not fret too much. This is totally not as serious as some are making it out to be. Remember just a short month ago when that guy wasn’t even on Cubs fans’ wish lists? On the grand scale of frustrating disappointments, this ranks somewhere between losing Kyle Schwarber for nothing and dropping half your $7 dollar Wrigley hot dog on the peanut shell-covered ground.

So, what do the Cubs do now that Bregman is out of the picture?

They move on…they LIVE…and, hopefully, they spend some of that Bregman cash.

Here are 4 things the Cubs should do in an Alex Bregman-less reality.

Go “all in” with Matt Shaw (and Nico Hoerner)

Honestly, Matt Shaw was probably always the answer when it comes to third base. He’s 23, busting with raw potential and big league drive. Defensively, he’s worked hard and, according to reports, he’s not that bad (with potential to be pretty good). They need to go with the kid and see where it goes. He’s certainly more affordable than Moneybags Bregman. Trust that Shaw is no Christopher Morel. And, while going with Shaw, the Cubs can keep going with Nico Hoerner, who is wildly underrated and underappreciated.

Spend some of that Bregman money

With that $30 million saved by losing out on Scrooge McBregman, there’s a lot the Cubs could do to improve the team. They could pick up a veteran insurance piece like Justin Turner to help with third base and first base. Turner knows how to win and has tons of postseason experience. They could also pick up one more bullpen piece because, well, you just never know (I won’t mention Ryan Pressly by name, ahem).

Make that big pitcher trade

Now that Bregman is off the Cubs’ Valentine list and media has stopped scribbling “Cubs + Bregman Forever” in their notebooks, the path is cleared for that big, rumored trade for top-of-rotation starting pitching. As of this writing, the San Diego Padres may or may not still be dangling Dylan Cease and Michael King as trade bait. Why not kick the tires on a big deal for either, or, perhaps, someone else? There’s budget for it. The Cubs’ rotation is pretty solid at the moment, but there’s no such thing as TOO MUCH good starting pitching.

Save up for Kyle Tucker

If the Cubs don’t spend anymore this offseason, they could always take those Bregman Bucks, roll them up tight, and slide them into their Clark the Cub piggy bank for Kyle Tucker, who will become a free agent at the end of this season. The 28-year-old Tucker will demand a pretty penny as, by far, the best available outfielder in the free agent class of 2026 and could command a deal of nine or ten years for upwards of $350 million. He’ll be worth every penny, but it’ll take some serious coupon cutting and relish packet recycling to get the Ricketts family to the point of even looking at such a deal without feeling light-headed.

In short, the Cubs will be just fine despite not landing Bregman. If not, fans can root obsessively against him and angry-laugh when he bangs lowly singles off the Green Monster in Fenway.

The post Chicago Cubs: 4 ways to mend a heart broken by Alex Bregman appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago Cubs have had a great offseason so far with acquiring superstar outfielder Kyle Tucker and All-Star closer Ryan Pressly.

Both will be key contributors to the Cubs this season and hopefully lead the Cubs to the playoffs.

The Cubs needed to add one more big bat to their lineup to give them another veteran and another big bat to pair with Tucker and Seiya Suzuki. However, the Cubs lost out on another top-tier free agent.

The Chicago Cubs lose their future third baseman

The Cubs have been in the mix for Bregman all offseason and were recently named the most ‘aggressive team’ pursuing him. Bregman would’ve brought a winning mentality to the Cubs, which they desperately needed. Bregman was a part of the Astro’s historic run of making seven consecutive American League Championship series.

According to Chandler Rome of The Athletic, Bregman is stinging a three-year $120 million deal with the Boston Red Sox. 

“Alex Bregman’s contract with the Red Sox is for three years and $120 million, a source tells @TheAthletic. Opt-outs after each season.”

Alex Bregman's contract with the Red Sox is for three years and $120 million, source tells @TheAthletic. Opt outs after each season.

— Chandler Rome (@Chandler_Rome) February 13, 2025

According to USA Today columnist Bob Nightengale, the Cubs reportedly offered a four-year deal worth $120 million, and the Tigers offered Bregman six years at $171.5 million.

“The Cubs offered 4 years, $120 million”

The Cubs offered 4 years, $120 million https://t.co/dLwAjNX3gp

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 13, 2025

“The Tigers offered Alex Bregman a 6-year, $171.5 million contract.”

The Tigers offered Alex Bregman a 6-year, $171.5 million contract.

— Bob Nightengale (@BNightengale) February 13, 2025

What did the Cubs lost out on?

Bregman would’ve brought some more thump to the Cubs lineup by proving capable of hitting 30 home runs in a season, accomplishing the feat twice in his career (2018, 2019). The future Hall of Famer had a solid 2024 season for the Astros, where he played in 145 games and won the Gold Glove award. Bregman also tallied 30 doubles, two triples, 26 HRs, 75 RBI, and a slash line of .260/.315/.453 for an OPS and OPS+ of .768 and 118.

Bregman is still in his prime and would’ve been a valuable piece to have either batting second or fifth in the Cubs order. As I stated, Bregman would’ve brought more power to the Cubs lineup, but where he excels is getting the good part of the bat on the ball and putting the ball in play. When looking at Baseball Savant, Bregman ranked in the 96th percentile for squared-up percentage (33.8%).

The New Mexico native did show he still had a good eye at the plate, ranking in the 98th and 94th percentiles for both whiff and K percentage. Bregman showed why he was worthy of winning a Gold Glove last season, ranking in the 91st percentile for his range and leading the AL in fielding percentage at .972%. He also leads in putouts (103), assists (242), and double plays (23).

Adding Bregman would’ve also helped top prospect Matt Shaw in his development. Shaw draws comparisons to Bregman and has been studying films of Bregman to mimic him. For the Cubs to have signed Bregman, he would’ve been a mentor to Shaw. That would’ve helped to further his development and his overall game.

The Bregman sweepstakes are over

Now that the Red Sox have signed Bregman, the Cubs can finally move on and prepare for the season. Matt Shaw can now breathe a little easier knowing his path to being the starting third baseman is now wide open. 

The Cubs have a stacked rotation, and a strong bullpen should help the Cubs start this season off on the right foot.

The Cubs have proven winners in Tucker and Pressly. Both will help the Cubs this season navigate the ups and downs to help lead them to the Promise Land.

The post Chicago Cubs fumble the ball on another top tier free agent appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The former Chicago White Sox Ace gets candid in an interview about being traded to the Boston Red Sox.

Former Chicago White Sox Ace Garrett Crochet who is now with the Boston Red Sox got candid in a new interview about his thoughts on being traded over from the Chicago White Sox.

Garrett Crochet’s Chicago White Sox career

The 25-year-old Garrett Crochet was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the first-round eleventh overall of the 2020 MLB June Amateur Draft. Considered to be the most polished pitcher coming out of college in that year’s draft Crochet quickly ascended through the minor leagues and made his Major League Debut that same season for the Chicago White Sox pitching in one inning with two strikeouts on September 18th, 2020, against the Cincinnati Reds.

The University of Tennessee product started his career as a reliever but was quickly turned into a starter with the level of stuff he possesses. In his first season as a starter after being two years removed from having the infamous Tommy John surgery, had a solid season and proved he was able to handle a full season’s workload as a starting pitcher. Making 32 starts with a record of 6-12 with an ERA of 3.58, 209 strikeouts, 1.068 WHIP in 146.0 innings.

The All-Star was even better when you get deeper into his Baseball Savant page its shocking Crochet didn’t receive any Cy Young votes for his effort. Ranking in the 99th percentile for his fastball run value (21), the 98th percentile for K percentage (35.1%), and the 93rd percentile for chase (33.5%) and whiff (33.1%), and extension (7.1ft). Being ranked that high for extension means the ball is getting on the hitters quicker which ups Crochets “perceived velocity”. So, Crochet’s fastball currently averages at 97.2mph, so with getting extended that far down the mound makes it look over a hundred.

The interview with Garrett Crochet

The 6’6″ lefty joined NESN’s Tom Caron at Fenway Fest and got candid with Caron about his feelings about being traded over to the Boston Red Sox. Crochet started by saying:

“Going back to last year’s trade deadline it was something that I’ve kind of been expecting, the writing was on the wall so to speak. I remember right when the offseason hit me and my wife were having the conversation of teams that could possibly be in the mix, and the one that jumped out to me was the Red Sox. It was something that we were hoping for. The idea of coming to Boston, to a young team that’s up and coming… this was number one on our list, and we’re just glad it worked out.”

Since joining the Boston Red Sox there have been rumblings that a possible contract extension could be in the works and that has finally been confirmed with Mass Lives Chris Cotillo that both the Red Sox and Crochet had open talks on a contract extension. Eagar to have a fresh start with the Boston Red Sox after having to be surrounded by misery last season with being on the worst team in Major League Baseball history, Crochet seems excited to join a Red Sox team poised to get back to their winning ways.

The Red Sox have done well so far with their moves given they haven’t spent money in so long. The last key to their puzzle would be to add another righty to their lineup in order to break up all those left-handed hitters they have in their lineup. If the Red Sox can ink to Crochet to an extension who is still under contract for this year and the next before becoming a free agent, they will be a force to be recon with in the NL East. Hopefully Garrett Crochet does well in Boston, and hopefully the haul the Chicago White Sox got back all pan out for them like top catching prospect Kyle Teel.

The post Former Chicago White Sox now Boston Red Sox Ace gets candid in tough interview appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago Cubs are building what they hope to be, at the very least, a division-winning team.

They’ve added some names in that effort, notably Houston Astros outfielder Kyle Tucker (via trade) and Cleveland Guardians pitcher Matthew Boyd (via free agency).

Puzzlingly, they’ve also subtracted some names from their roster.

Most notably, the Cody Bellinger trade to the New York Yankees may have made sense economically, but it didn’t make a whole lot of sense as a move made by a team serious about winning.

Seiya Suzuki to the Red Sox? Does It Make Sense?

Along the same line of thought, it seemed oddly self-defeating when, a little while back, rumors emerged regarding trading Japanese star Seiya Suzuki to the San Padres and then to the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Why add an offensive powerhouse like Tucker if your just going to remove the team’s other best hitters after doing so?

Last season, the right-handed hitting Suzuki was the team’s best offensive player, hitting 21 home runs and batting .283 in 585 plate appearances. It would be a little perplexing if the Cubs dealt the 30-year-old, unless his stated unhappiness over being the designated hitter indefinitely was really so great that it would affect his field efforts.

Jackson Roberts of SI.com feels, however, that a deal for Suzuki, resulting in him playing in Boston is entirely feasible.

The Proposal

In his trade proposal, Roberts has the Red Sox acquiring Suzuki in return for two top prospects within the Red Sox organization– 19-year-old middle infielder Yoeilin Cespedes (no. 5 on the MLB.com list of top Red Sox prospects) and 25-year-old pitcher Hunter Dobbins (no. 16 on the MLB.com list of top Red Sox prospects).

Per Roberts:

“Suzuki’s swing would play well at Fenway Park and he’d be able to handle left-field duties on top of getting the lion’s share of the designated hitter at-bats once top prospects Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell arrive in Boston. He could be a 30-homer bat to replace Tyler O’Neill, but with fewer strikeouts.”

Cespedes is an athletic 19 year-old middle infielder shortstop with an average glove, quick hands, and above-average arm strength. At the plate, the right-hander shows promising bat speed and gap-to-gap power potential. Though still raw offensively, his strong work ethic and tools suggest a high ceiling as he matures.

Dobbins, meanwhile, is a 25-year-old right-handed pitcher who may be major league-ready immediately. His pitch arsenal features a mid-90s fastball with late life, complemented by a sharp slider and a developing changeup. His command and mound presence are strengths, making him a potential back-of-rotation starter.

Along with Suzuki comes two remaining years on his contract and a total of $38 million still owed. He also has a firm “no trade” clause in his contract which means he’ll only go somewhere else if he feels like going somewhere else.

Final Thoughts

In some aspects, the Suzuki to the Red Sox trade makes sense for the Cubs. They’d be able to dump more salary while adding to the pitching depth they’ve talked about since the end of last season by adding a potential rotation piece in 2025 with Dobbins.

In other ways, though, it just doesn’t make sense. Why would the Cubs deal away a top offensive asset when they need offense and are supposed to be “all in” when it comes to winning this year?

The post Chicago Cubs-Boston Red Sox Seiya Suzuki Trade Proposal Is An Odd One appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox and the Boston Red Sox have come together once again for a trade which sends left-handed reliever Cam Booser over to the Chicago White Sox.

For the second time this winter the Boston Red Sox and The Chicago White Sox have come together on a trade, this time sending over left-handed reliever Cam Booser to the Chicago White Sox according to FanSided and MLB Insider Robert Murray. According to MLB Trade Rumors they are reporting that James Fegan of Sox Machine and Chris Cotillo of MassLive reports that the return for Booser will be a minor league pitcher.

Per Bruce Levine of 670 The Score minor league right-hander, pitcher Yhoiker Fajardo is going back to the Boston Red Sox in the deal. In a corresponding move according to Levine the White Sox Designate for Assignment outfielder Corey Julks. The Chicago White Sox 40-man roster now is at capacity.

The Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox came together earlier this winter at the Winter Meetings finalizing a blockbuster trade in which the Boston Red Sox acquired Ace of the White Sox staff Garrett Crochet in exchange for prospects. Headlining the deal back were catching prospect Kyle Teel and outfielder Braden Montgomery.

Cam Booser

The acquisition of Booser now gives the White Sox plenty of lefty options for their bullpen as well as adding much needed depth to the roster especially when it comes time to finalize the 26-man roster coming out of spring.

Currently in the bullpen Booser would be joining fellow lefties: Jared Shuster, Fraser Ellard, and Jake Eder, all of whom saw time in the White Sox bullpen at one point or another last season and who will all be competing for a bullpen spot this spring. Last season was Booser first look in the Major League and during his time in the big leagues Booser made 43 appearances (42.2 innings) accumulating a record of 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA, and 43 strikeouts.

Booser comes into White Sox Spring Training profiling to be someone the White Sox use in middle relief appearances, preferably somewhere around the fifth or sixth innings. According to Booser’s Baseball Savant he features a repertoire of a Four-seam fastball (which averages 95.3 mph), a Cutter, and a Sweeper. Booser also sports a pretty good strikeout rate posting a 23.5% K rate in 2024 which is good for a strikeout/9 ratio of 9.1.

With Booser still in the pre-arbitration phase of his Major League status which makes him set to make just $800,000 this coming season according to Spotrac, this deal is perfectly in line with how the Chicago White Sox will look to operate in 2025. Finding cheap and controllable talent along the margins that could potentially have high upside and better the roster.

Booser does have the potential to be an impact type of arm for the White Sox or a high leverage reliever, but he can provide stability and take down innings for the White Sox. And given his age and controllability I wouldn’t be surprised if he over performs in the first half of next year that the White Sox won’t look to flip him at next year’s trade deadline.

The post The Chicago White Sox Acquire Lefty Reliever from the Boston Red Sox appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Boston Red Sox are acquiring left-handed pitcher Garrett Crochet from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for prospects.

It finally happened the Chicago White Sox have dealt Garrett Crochet to the Boston Red Sox for prospects: catcher Kyle Teel (Red Sox #3, MLB #25) outfielder Braden Montgomery (Red Sox #4) infielder Chase Meidroth (Red Sox #11) and right-hander Wikelman Gonzalez (Red Sox #14) per ESPN Jeff Passan.

The Boston Red Sox who were in the bidding for Blake Snell before losing out to the Los Angeles Dodgers as well as Max Fried who went to division rival New York Yankees finally got their man. In his first season as a starter Crochet had a solid season making all 32 of his starts and logging 146 innings with a record of 6-12 an ERA of 3.58 all while striking out 209 batters.

Now acquired by the Boston Red Sox Crochet will anchor the top of their rotation as their Ace while the rest of the rotation figures to be a mix of Tanner Houck, Kutter Crawford, Bryan Bello, Lucas Giolito, as well as Garrett Whitlock.

The Boston Red Sox in my evaluation are getting a pitcher similar if not possibly better than Chris Sale. Crochet has all the earmarks of being like Sale, having an electric fastball, a wipeout slider, and a the ability to be a top of the rotation piece that could help the Red Sox’s win a World Series or at the very least make the playoffs.

For the Chicago White Sox they’re getting a pool of position players back in the deal which they desperately needed as well as wanted. Catcher Kyle Teel who is the centerpiece of the deal and who expected to debut in 2025 last year for Double-A and Triple-A combined played in 112 games had 123 hits, 23 doubles, 13 HRs, 78 RBI, and a slash line of .288/.386/.433 for an OPS of .819.

As for Montgomery he is still a ways away from making it into the Majors only being drafted just this year (2024). According to MLB.com Montgomery best two tools are his Power which he grades 60/80 and his Arm which is graded at 70/80 which would be considered elite. With the White Sox having a need in the outfield they may look to fast track Montgomery to the bigs.

As for Meidroth and Gonzalez the Chicago White Sox will have to see what they’ll be getting. Meidroth who is the more intriguing player and will most likely big with the White Sox out of spring training last year played in 122 games at Triple-A last season. In those 122 games Meidroth had 128 hits, 20 doubles, 3 triples, 7 HRs, 57 RBI, all while slashing .293/.437/.400 for an OPS of .837.

Now that the Chicago White Sox have traded away their most prized possession in Garrett Crochet all eyes now turn to Luis Robert Jr. His market is slowly heating up with the Reds taking the most interest in him. With this move made however, the Chicago White Sox offseason is virtual over. Minus singing a few more mid to low level free agents. Time will tell to see how good the White Sox made out in this trade, but at first glance I led say they did a decent job.

For now fans can have some hope that the White Sox won’t repeat or come anywhere close to what happened last season. It’s now on new manager Will Venable to teach these players the ropes of being quality big leaguers and hopefully lead them to success.

The post Breaking: The Boston Red Sox Acquire White Sox Ace appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox have the ability to potentially hit big at the MLB Winter Meetings when they trade away their Ace LHP Garrett Crochet.

General Manger of the Chicago White Sox Chris Getz has the opportunity to showcase his skills at the MLB Winter Meetings with trading away his most valuable asset he has on his roster and that’s left hander Garrett Crochet. Crochet has been garnering interest from teams since being made available at last year’s trade deadline. Now proving that he’s capable of staying healthy for a full season as a starter the value that he will bring back for the White Sox has only increased.

In 2025 Garrett Crochet will be three years removed from having Tommy John surgery. In 2024 the Chicago White Sox decided to convert Crochet from a reliever to a starting pitcher. The 25-year-old proved not only that he can stay healthy for a full season, but that he is more than capable of being a top of the rotation arm. Making all 32 of his starts (146 innings) Crochet had a 6-12 record with a 3.58 ERA, 209 strikeouts with only 33 walks that’s good for 6.33 strikeout/walk ratio. Crochet also had a strikeout per nine rate of 12.9 as well as a WHIP of 1.068, and oh yeah, he was also named to the 2024 AL All-Star Team.

Any team trying to acquire a talent such as Crochet at the MLB Winter Meetings this year will more than likely have to give up at least two MLB Top 100 Prospects as well as possibly Major League ready talent. When examining Garrett Crochets Baseball Savant page, it just oozes red. One notable category that stood out in which Crochet exceled in, was he was in the 98th percentile for K% (35.1) which is a decent clip to be punching guys out at. The Chicago White Sox have also made it clear that their priority for a return in any Crochet trade will be to get position players back in return.

Teams Interested in Garrett Crochet

According to Jon Morosi of MLB Network the two most viable teams in on Garrett Crochet at the MLB Winter Meetings this year are the Boston Red Sox and Chicago Cubs. The Red Sox need a left-handed starting pitcher with them having an abundance of righties already in their rotation. And if the Red Sox can’t sign Max Fried at the MLB Winter Meetings, being he is the sole remaining top of the rotation type left hander left on the free agency board after Blake Snell signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers, Crochet would be a perfect prize to have instead.

As well as it would be pivotal for the Chicago Cubs to make a move for Crochet at this year’s MLB Winter Meetings even though they have an abundance of left-handed starting pitching already after they signed Matthew Boyd to a two-year deal. That wouldn’t matter if the Cubs were to acquire Garrett Crochet because first as the old saying in baseball goes “you can never have enough starting pitching” and two for someone of Crochet’s talents the Cubs would make room for him as would any other team in the same situation.

Other teams who have either been rumored to be in on Crochet or who would be perfect fits for him are the Philadelphia Phillies and New York Mets. Possibly a team like the New York Yankees could make a play and be in the mix for Crochet as well. Being they are currently in a bidding war along with the Boston Red Sox for Juan Soto, the New York Yankees could look to add another left-handed starter at the MLB Winter Meetings as well as signing Soto. Their only projected lefty for the rotation to start the season in 2025 is Carlos Rodón.

Chicago Cubs

The Chicago Cubs enter the MLB Winter Meetings primed to make headlines. Having one of the better farm systems in all of baseball and with a need for a top of the rotation type arm the Cubs and White Sox look to be destained to make a deal. As I said before to acquire Garrett Crochet it will require sending back at least two MLB Top 100 prospects in return, which the Cubs have a good amount of. Some holes the White Sox need to fill would be in the outfield and finding someone who can play second base.

The Chicago Cubs receive: Left-handed pitcher Garret Crochet

The Chicago White Sox receive: outfielder Owen Caissie (Cubs #2 prospect, MLB #34 prospect), second base/outfielder James Triantos (Cubs #5, MLB #55), and shortstop Derniche Valdez (Cubs #14)

Caissie who is 22 was just recently added to the Chicago Cubs 40-man roster being he was eligible to be plucked at this year’s Rule 5 Draft. In a full season a Triple-A Caissie in 127 games had 131 hits, 29 doubles, 3 triples, 19 HRs, and a slash line of .278/.375/.473 and with an OPS of .848. Caissie is more than ready to make his MLB debut and withe the Cubs currently having all three-outfield spots occupied Caissie is going to need consistent playing which if he’s traded to the White Sox he will certainly get.

Triantos who is just 21 is also primed to break out and be on the Major League roster. Currently Nico Hoerner occupies second base, but with him on the shelf at the moment as he is recovering from off season surgery and with speculations that he may be traded before the season starts, fellow prospect Matt Shaw appears to be the one tapped to fill Hoerner’s shoes instead of Triantos.

In 115 games combined last season between Double and Triple-A Triantos hat 133 hits, 23 doubles, 6 triples, 7 HRs, 52 RBI, and a slash line of .300/.346/.427 with an .773 OPS. The Chicago White Sox currently have an opening at second base as well as in the outfield. With Triantos ability to play all over he provides a lot more value to the White Sox if at all else he turns into a super utility player. Valdez would be a flier the White Sox take a chance on and see what type of player he develops into. He is still on 18-years-old and is still in rookie ball.

The Boston Red Sox

As I stated earlier the Boston Red Sox need a left-handed starting pitcher especially if they miss out on Max Fried. Theoretically if the Red Sox decided not to pursue Juan Soto and instead put those funds toward a Max Fried, the Red Sox have the necessary prospect capital to then make a trade for Garrett Crochet giving them two high-end lefty starting pitchers in one off season. The Red Sox also have an abundance of left-handed hitters in their lineup already that they don’t necessarily need someone like Juan Soto, even though his splits against left/right-handed pitching are almost similar.

The Boston Red Sox receive: left-hander Garrett Crochet

The Chicago White Sox receive: first basemen Triston Casas, outfielder Roman Anthony (Red Sox #1 prospect, MLB #3 prospect), and second basemen/outfielder/shortstop Kristian Campbell (Red Sox #3, MLB #10)

The Chicago White Sox receiving Triston Casas in the return for Crochet would be very valuable. A good defender over at first base Casas would pair nicely with Andrew Vaughn who will figure to split time at both first and designated hitter this coming season. As for Roman Anthony he has all the makings to be a star in the league for years to come. In 119 games combined between both Double and Triple-A last season Anthony had 132 hits, 32 doubles, 4 triples, 18 HRs, 65 RBI, 21 stolen bases, all for a slash line of .291/.396/.498 for an OPS of .894.

If and when the Chicago White Sox find a suitable trade partner for Luis Robert Jr. if Anthony is acquired, he would figure to be an equal if not hopefully an improvement over Robert Jr. As for Campbell he also figures to be a star in this league along with Anthony. At three levels last season in the Red Sox organization Campbell played in 115 games where he had 142 hits, 32 doubles, 3 triples, 20 HRs, 77 RBI, 24 stolen bases for a slash line of .330/.439/.558 for a total OPS of .997.

The Red Sox and Chicago White Sox in my opinion are the best partners suited to make a deal for Garrett Crochet at the MLB Winter Meetings this year. For the reasons given all indicators point to it as well as their willingness to finally spend some money I believe all systems are a go for this to happen before the meetings are up.

Philadelphia Phillies

The Philadelphia Phillies are another team that has been linked to Garrett Crochet for some time now. They were heavily involved in Crochet last year at the trade deadline, but nothing happened. Now with the MLB Winter Meetings here they once again look to acquire Crochet. The Phillies don’t necessarily need another arm for their rotation their biggest needs are finding a big bat for the outfield and a backend of the bullpen piece particularly a Closer. Adding Crochet to an already stacked rotation which features Zack Wheeler, Aaron Nola, Cristopher Sanchez, and Ranger Suarez, adding someone of Crochet’s talents jumps the Phillies to having the best rotation in baseball.

The Philadelphia Phillies receive: left-hander Garret Crochet

The Chicago White Sox receive: shortstop Aidan Miller (Phillies #1, MLB #26), catcher Eduardo Tait (Phillies #5), shortstop Starlyn Caba (Phillies #4, MLB #81)

With Colson Montgomery being added to the 40-man roster recently and primed to see what he can do over at shortstop that would mean that the likes of Aidan Miller if acquired would have to find time at either second or third base which he is capable of doing. Tait is a young and up and coming catcher whose bat as of now if far ahead of his defense. Just 17-years-old Tait still has a lot to learn, but he has all the makings to quickly rise through the system.

Caba is an above average defender grading out at 65/80 for his glove. The question for Caba is the opposite the complete opposite than that of Tait in which his glove far outweighs his bat and will his bat ever come along? That question will yet to be answered, but having the ability to pick it the way he does at a primer position such as shortstop is valuable for any team.

New York Mets

The New York Mets could figure to be that surprise team in on Garrett Crochet that nobody appears to be talking about. With a ton of money coming off their book Steve Cohen and the New York Mets are going to be spending big at the MLB Winter Meetings this year. The Mets currently have a need for starting pitching in particular another left. The Mets just signed right Clay Holmes to a three-year/$38 million deal in the hopes of converting him back into a starter.

The Mets really could use someone like Crochet to take over that number one spot in the rotation which is what they lacked last year during their post season run and is part of the reason they were eliminated. As it stands the Mets rotation is set to feature Kodai Senga, Clay Holmes, Frankie Montas, David Peterson, and possibly Tylor MeGgll. If the Mets were to acquire Garrett Crochet and slot him in as their Ace followed up by Kodai Senga, Frankie Montas, and if all goes well with Clay Holmes, the Mets could have a decent starting rotation.

The New York Mets receive: left-hander Garrett Crochet

The Chicago White Sox receive: second basemen/shortstop/outfielder Ronny Mauricio (Mets #6), outfielder/first basemen Ryan Clifford (Mets #4, MLB #87), and outfielder Drew Gilbert (Mets #3, MLB #74)

Mauricio has already made his debut in the big leagues, but he still has a ton of control not becoming a free agent until 2030. With his versatility Mauricio could be a valuable asset for the Chicago White Sox during this rebuild. With no clear path on the Mets for consistent everyday playing time the White Sox could see what he’s able to do over at second where there’s a vacancy as well as in the outfield where there are some vacancies as well. As for Gilbert and Clifford with them being lower-level MLB prospects the Chicago White Sox would really be hoping for the best that the do develop into at least everyday big-league players.

New York Yankees

The New York Yankees off season like some other teams off season all hinge on if they can sign Juan Soto or not. With close to $70.5 million coming off their books the Yankees have a lot of financial flexibility to play with. If they were to acquire Crochet, I would foresee them immediately extending him as would every other team on this list would. The Yankees could use another lefty for their rotation which feature Gerrit Cole, Carlos Rodón (only lefty), Clarke Schmidt, and Luis Gil with Marcus Stroman possible seeing some time there as well.

The New York Yankees receive: left-hander Garrett Crochet

The Chicago White Sox receive: outfielder Jasson Domínguez (Yankees #1, MLB #14), catcher/first basemen Rafel Flores (Yankees #30), and utility-man Oswaldo Carbrera

Jasson Domínguez would be the center piece in the return back for the Chicago White Sox. At three levels in the Yankees organization last season Domínguez played in 58 games where he had 71 hits, 8 doubles, 1 triple, 11 HRs, 35 RBI 16 steals, for a slash line of .314/.376/.504 for an OPS of .880. Flores would be a great addition to the Chicago White Sox who if Flores was added would be relatively deep at the catching position.

With Korey Lee holding the everyday job down and #4 prospect Edgar Quero waiting in the wings Flores would slide in behind him. Carbrera with still four more years of control could contribute to the White Sox right away and provide valuable depth.

The MLB Winter Meetings are shaping up to be one of the most exciting meetings in recent memory. With all the talent available either on the free agent market or the trade market teams will be vying to get a piece of the action. As for the Chicago White Sox their only goal is to be getting back the best package, they can get for Garrett Crochet and nothing else.

The post Chicago White Sox Winter Meeting Preview appeared first on ChiCitySports.

A look back at Anthony Rizzo’s debut with the Chicago Cubs

On this day 12 years ago, the Chicago Cubs started a young first-baseman who had just been called up from Triple-A Iowa. Anthony Rizzo was relatively unknown to Cubs fans, having been acquired in the offseason in a trade with the San Diego Padres. Now, 12 years later, Rizzo is a household name in Chicago and one of the most beloved players in franchise history. Even as he continues his career with the New York Yankees, he will always be remembered from the 2016 Cubs team that did the seemingly impossible.

𝐉𝐮𝐧𝐞 𝟐𝟔, 𝟐𝟎𝟏𝟐

Anthony Rizzo makes his Cubs debut!
pic.twitter.com/qZ0aiAs5i8

— This Day in Chicago Sports (@ChiSportsDay) June 26, 2024

Rizzo was initially drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the sixth round of the 2007 MLB Draft. He quickly became a premiere prospect in Boston’s farm system as a power-hitting lefty who displayed good pitch selection. After the 2010 season, he was traded to San Diego as part of a package deal for the Red Sox to acquire All-Star first-baseman Adrian Gonzalez. Rizzo’s MLB debut with the Padres in 2011 was underwhelming to say the least. In 49 games, he hit .141/.281/.242 while hitting just one home run.

The Chicago Cubs acquire Anthony Rizzo

That following January, new Cubs President Theo Epstein worked a trade to acquire Rizzo, who he also drafted while with Boston in 2007. The Padres received right-handed pitcher Andrew Cashner and outfielder Kyung-Min Na, while the Cubs acquired Rizzo and right-handed pitcher Zach Cates. In retrospect, this would go down as one of the great moves made by Epstein in his Cubs tenure.

Starting the 2012 season in Triple-A Iowa, Rizzo quickly proved he didn’t belong in the minors. In 70 games he slashed .342/.405/.696 while posting a 1.101 OPS. He also hit 23 home runs and had 62 RBIs in that span. On June 26, Rizzo was called up by the Chicago Cubs.

The Cubs were in the early stages of an all-out rebuild in 2012. When Rizzo made his Cubs debut on June 26, the Cubs were 25-48 and 15.5 games out of first-place. This was a lost season, but the foundation was being laid for the future. Rizzo went 2-4 with an RBI double in his debut against the New York Mets at Wrigley Field. He would go on to have three game-winning RBIs in his first five games with the Cubs, the first player to do so in franchise history. Rizzo finished 2012 with 15 home runs and 48 RBIs in 87 games, while also winning National League Rookie of the Month in July.

Following the 2012 season, Rizzo hit 20+ home runs in seven consecutive seasons. He also had 100+ RBIs in four of those seasons. Rizzo was a model of consistency for the Cubs. From 2013 to 2019 his lowest RBI total was 78, while his lowest home run total was 23.

The other thing Rizzo did extremely well was get on base. Rizzo drew no fewer than 70 walks in a season from 2013 to 2019, and he actually walked more (91) than he struck out (90) in 2017. For a power hitter this trait is a rarity, as their strikeout numbers are usually high. Rizzo became known for his two-strike approach at the plate, often choking up noticeably on the bat to put the ball in play. This selfless approach is also rare in today’s game, but is yet another reason why Rizzo consistently had low strikeout numbers and a respectable batting average.

Rizzo’s selflessness was second to none

Rizzo wasn’t only known for his play on the field in Chicago. In 2012, he founded the Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, a non-profit organization with the purpose of cancer research and benefiting families fighting cancer. Rizzo, a Lymphoma survivor himself, provides oversight while his family and his management team run the foundation. The foundation has donated over $4 million to the Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago.

It has also hosted countless ‘Walk-Off for Cancer’ and ‘Cook-off for Cancer’ events to raise money for cancer research and children’s hospitals. He has also visited children in these hospitals, showing compassion for young kids with this terrible illness. When it comes to Chicago athletes and charity, you’d be hard-pressed to find someone who has been as selfless and giving as Rizzo.

2016 World Series Championship sealed Rizzo’s legacy in Cubs history

Rizzo’s ten-year Chicago Cubs career included three All-Star selections, four Gold Glove Awards, and a Silver Slugger Award. But none of these personal accolades define Anthony Rizzo’s legacy with the Chicago Cubs. Now, or in 20 years, when you ask a Cubs fan about Anthony Rizzo, their response will undoubtedly be how Rizzo was a fixture on the Cubs team that finally erased the longest championship drought in sports history. They’ll know who played every postion, and they’ll remember the final out that sealed the franchise’s first World Series Championship in 108 years.

That final out, fired into Rizzo’s outstretched glove by third-baseman Kris Bryant, is a memory that every Cubs fans will remember for the rest of their lives. The fact that he was on that team and helped the franchise win it all that year has permanently made Rizzo a Chicago Cubs legend.

Of course, his strikeout of then-Atlanta Braves slugger Freddie Freeman on a 61 mph curveball is also something Cubs fans will always remember. Rizzo, who was known to bug former manager Joe Maddon to pitch in a game where the Cubs were getting blown out, got the opportunity twice. The result? One inning with a 0.00 ERA. Just another accolade for the Chicago Cubs legend: best relief pitcher of all time.

Anthony Rizzo strikes out Freddie Freeman pic.twitter.com/p4bitM5i1j

— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) April 29, 2021

The post Former Chicago Cubs star Anthony Rizzo’s legend lives on 12 years after debut appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago Cubs are interested in making a playoff push with their current resurgence but is the team a prisoner of the moment and being too short-sighted? Will acquisitions at the MLB Trade Deadline make enough of a difference this year?

The Chicago Cubs are reportedly no longer planning on being sellers at the MLB Trade Deadline on August 1st but actually may be buyers to make a playoff push.

Jesse Rogers of ESPN reported on July 30th that the Cubs will not be trading Cody Bellinger at the MLB Trade Deadline.

This can't come a shock at this point. Amazing, the team made it an easier decision than anyone could have guessed (I assume). Sources: Cubs tell teams Bellinger won't be dealt https://t.co/wavoECw6Bh

— Jesse Rogers (@JesseRogersESPN) July 30, 2023

You have to respect the team’s vigor and enthusiasm rooted in their recent hot-streak. The Cubs won seven straight games in a row until falling to the St. Louis Cardinals yesterday, taking three out of four to win the series. The only issue here is that these seven straight wins came against the Cardinals and the Chicago White Sox, teams both under .500 for the year and tremendously underachieving throughout the season.

The Cubs have won twelve of their last fifteen games with the only semi-competitive team being the Boston Red Sox. This shouldn’t be a barometer for the franchises potential success going forward into the second half of the season. The team will have a better gauge of their playoff aspirations in the coming weeks with series against the division rival Cincinnati Reds, NL East leading Atlanta Braves and AL Wild Card contender Toronto Blue Jays.

Too Hasty?

Should the Cubs really be buyers at the MLB Trade Deadline being so far away from serious contention? The team could acquire some help in the pitching rotation, bullpen and add some more reliable hitters to the lineup but can the Cubs feasibly compete with the Braves or the Los Angeles Dodgers if they manage to make it past the Wild Card Series?

Bellinger and Marcus Stroman have been names floated around throughout the season that could see departures at the MLB Trade Deadline for the Cubs. Stroman and Bellinger will both be free-agents next year which will mean if the team doesn’t trade them at the deadline, the Cubs will let them walk without acquiring any assets in return.

Stroman would be a valuable addition to any contenders rotation needing an extra veteran arm. Bellinger has been white hot in the month of July with a .404/.437/.658 slash line. Bellinger is batting .314 on the season with 15 home-runs, 46 RBI’s and a ridiculous 140 OPS+.

More than anyone, we would love to see the Cubs contend but the team should stay the course on its rebuild and deal away their expiring assets which can help them further bolster their farm system. The future is more important than the present and a hasty push for the playoffs this year may derail the progress they’ve made in recent years.

The post 2023 MLB Trade Deadline: Should The Cubs Really Be Buyers? appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago Cubs and the curious case that is Nick Madrigal

As the dust settles from a wild MLB offseason teams have begun to turn their attention to within and analyze the team they have. Maybe one last sneaky good signing or maybe a team will catch lightning in a bottle with a player of the past. Regardless, the calendar has officially flipped to 2023 and that means we are less than two months away from pitchers and catchers reporting to their respective camps.

As Jed Hoyer and the rest of the Cub’s front office begin one last overview of their roster they will find that they have a predicament. That predicament goes by the name of Nick Madrigal. The 25-year-old and former 4th overall pick is entering his 4th year in the big leagues and if the Cubs retain Madrigal for the 2023 season he likely is going to struggle to get consistent playing time at the major league level.

Why Madrigal doesn’t fit

With the Cubs bringing in Shortstop Dansby Swanson in the offseason that will shift Nico Hoerner to second base who had a career year last year. Naturally, one’s mind who is pro-Madrigal may wander to if Madrigal can play third base. Unfortunately, upon reviewing Madrigal’s history defensively he is strictly a middle infielder not even playing one game at third in his collegiate years or during his time in the minors. This makes sense as Madrigal would be viewed as undersized at the third base position. (Update: Nick Madrigal has been taking reps at third base this offseason possibly in the 3rd base mix per Jed Hoyer)

Nick Madrigal did not exactly make his case to be a part of the Cubs future plans in 2022. Madrigal appeared in just 59 games and slashed .249/.305/.282. While it is to be noted that Madrigal battled various injuries last season even still this is not what anyone expected out of the former 4th overall pick. Because of the Cubs current infield situation Madrigal’s time in Chicago is likely running out.

What are the Cubs options with Nick Madrigal?

Madrigal is currently under team control until 2027 and has three more years of arbitration (Cubs avoid arbitration with Nick Madrigal and agree to $1.2 million deal). With that being said the Cubs first option would be to simply do nothing. Let Madrigal play on the big league roster as a bench piece rotating in and out with Swanson and Hoerner whenever they need rest or if injuries arise. The second option would be to send Madrigal to triple A in Iowa where he can get consistent playing time and further his development. Lastly, the Cubs could trade him and the market for a young, controllable, middle infielder full of potential would likely be bustling.

Potential landing spots for Nick Madrigal

When looking around the league and searching for teams that need a middle infielder the two that instantly come to mind are the Boston Red Sox and yes the Cubs rival on the south side, the Chicago White Sox.

The Red Sox under normal circumstances would not be a fit for Nick madrigal but Trevor Story recently went under the Knife and will miss a good chunk of time and their long term shortstop Xander Bogaerts spilt to San Diego in free agency.

Current team with Story injured, as updated by @soxprospects.

If the Devers contract kicks in for 2023 as reported, the team has $3-4MM to spend under the first CBT threshold. pic.twitter.com/3iAcvXeghV

— Red Sox Payroll (@redsoxpayroll) January 10, 2023

The Red Sox desperately need help up the middle and Madrigal would be able to be an everyday player for them and potentially revive his career.

The White Sox make sense as a landing spot for Madrigal for several reasons. They were the team that drafted him back in 2018 at 4th overall so they clearly see the potential in him. They also have a need at second like their “sox” counterpart. At the moment the White Sox are going into the season with Leury Garcia as their second-baseman who had a worse 2022 than Madrigal by offensive metrics.

The White Sox 4th overall prospect Lenyn Sosa could fill their need at second potentially. The catch with Sosa is that he is just 22 years old. Even after coming off a strong season in the minors (.315/.369/.511 and 23 HRs) the White Sox are unconvinced that his success will translate to the MLB.

With all the uncertainty at second the White Sox make a perfect fit for Madrigal, he would once again be able to be an everyday player and play consistently.

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Have the Cubs done enough this offseason to be contenders in 2023?

Heading into the offseason the Cubs were expected to be major players in the loaded free-agent pool. Fast forward to post-winter meetings and as we analyze what the Cubs have done so far there are seriously mixed feelings. Some would argue that the Cubs have done enough with Swanson as their big fish and bringing in Taillon, Smyly, Bellinger, and Barnhart. That what the Cubs already had on the roster plus these additions are enough to contend for a division title in 2023.

On the other hand, there are grumblings around the North Side that Jed Hoyer and the rest of his staff have not done enough. With the aforementioned loaded free-agent pool fans are a little disgruntled that the Cubs did not come away with an Aaron Judge or a DeGrom or even Trea Turner. Apparently the moves the Cubs have made this offseason are not splashy enough for some fans’ appetites.

The Cubs could still make a big move at this year’s deadline

Do not fear Cubs fans more help could potentially be on the way and in a big way. ESPN’s Joon Lee recently reported that the Red Sox and Star Third basemen Rafael Devers are “galaxies apart” in negotiations. With Devers contract expiring at the end of next season he is now in a similar situation as ex-teammate Xander Bogaerts who recently left Boston and inked a long-term deal with the Padres.

With this news about Devers and Boston’s brass in mind, CBS sports recently asked its writers where they think Rafael Devers will begin the 2023 season, finish the season, and where he will play in 2024. One Writer, Matt Snyder, predicted that the Cubs will trade for Devers at some point during the 2023 season and then sign him to a long-term deal.

I’M GOING TO ASSUME THE RED SOX ARE NOT CONTENDERS IN JULY OF THIS SEASON AND THAT THE CUBS ARE FIGHTING FOR SECOND PLACE — BARELY ABOVE .500 OR EVEN JUST AT .500 — WITH THE BREWERS BEHIND THE CARDINALS IN A LACKLUSTER NL CENTRAL. DEVERS’ PRIME FITS WITH THE CUBS’ WINDOW AND A MIDDLE-ORDER LEFTY WHO PLAYS THIRD BASE IS A PERFECT FIT. THEY SHOULD HAVE THE PROSPECT PACKAGE BY THEN TO PULL OFF A DEAL FOR DEVERS. ALL THAT’S LEFT IS BEING AGGRESSIVE ENOUGH WITH AN EXTENSION OFFER TO GET A DEAL DONE BEFORE FREE AGENCY, AS THEY DON’T HAVE MUCH MONEY TIED UP IN FUTURE CONTRACTS OTHER THAN DANSBY SWANSON AND SEIYA SUZUKI.

With Boston being in the AL East and not exactly in a great position to contend this upcoming year the Sox could look to deal Devers. Look at how history has treated the Red Sox in years past. Mookie Betts was traded to LA, Xander Bogaerts just left to San Diego. Im sure they would be able to fetch a massive return for the 26 year old superstar in Devers it would be a debacle for them not to make a deal and have Devers walk for nothing.

What could a potential deal for Rafael Devers look like for the Cubs?

Being that Devers is only 26 years old and an absolute stud, trading for the two time all star and career .296 hitter most likely will come at a hefty price. That being said if the Cubs are able to swing a deal for Devers and are able to lock him up long term it would be completely worth it.

Striking a deal for Devers will be tricky for Jed Hoyers. The Sox will no doubt want one if not two of the Cubs top prospects. Thats where things get interesting. It all depends on timing. Cubs top prospect Alex Canario just recently had ankle surgery and is slated for a mid season return. Brennen Davis was just recently shut down in the AFL with a back injury which could be nothing but still.

The Sox will most likely want MLB ready talent for Devers and that is where Canario and Davis come into play. Say Canario or Davis aren’t ready or performing well by the time the deadlines comes around. The Sox could ask for PCA or another top 10 prospect other than Canario or Davis. Only time will tell.

There could be another interesting twist to the potential Devers trade saga. The Red Sox dumping Chris Sale and his contract on another team to lessen the return for Devers. It has been an up and down roller coaster the past few seasons for Sale with him just not being able to shake the injury bug. With that being said the Sox could potentially include Sale in any Devers deal to free up some money. One potential trade according to another insider including Sale could look something like this.

The full deal would be: Rafael Devers and Chris Sale (Red Sox retain $7.5m in 2023 and $2.5m in 2024) For Chris Morel, Keegan Thompson, and Owen Caissie

The post MLB insider predicts Cubs will trade then sign Rafael Devers appeared first on ChiCitySports.

David Ross, Jon Lester, and Mike Napoli have reportedly met with Xander Bogaerts to help recruit him to the Chicago Cubs

Winter meetings are underway in San Diego. Some teams have already landed upper-echelon players, such as Trea Turner and Justin Verlander. One team that has yet to make a move is the Chicago Cubs. Rumors have been swirling, but unfortunately for fans, that’s about it.

One name that keeps popping up in these rumors is Xander Bogaerts. Bogaerts has spent the entirety of his 10-year career in Boston. With the Red Sox, he’s acquired two championships and four All-Star selections. According to Bruce Levine, some former Red Sox players with major ties to the Cubs have met with Xander Bogaerts. Tony Adracki revealed:

“Another source confirmed to Levine that the Cubs met with Bogaerts 10 days ago with Ross, first base coach Mike Napoli and former pitcher Jon Lester were among those that talked with Bogaerts and explained to the former Boston shortstop what it’s like playing on Chicago’s North Side.”

Xander Bogaerts was teammates with Lester, Ross, and Napoli in 2013. The young Bogaerts only appeared in 18 games that season, so hopefully, Jon Lester and his other former veteran teammates still have some influence on him. Before this meeting, it seems as though Bogaerts already had a small familiarity with the atmosphere of Wrigley Field.

Xander Bogaerts on watching the Cubs growing up. pic.twitter.com/hwj2QAV5Yt

— Dingers: A Chicago Cubs Podcast (@Dingercubs) December 5, 2022

Hopefully, for the Cubs, their meetings and reputation have made an adequate impression on Bogaerts. With only 3 top shortstops left on the market, their efforts are sure to ramp up in the coming days of free agency.

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The Chris Sale trade 5 years later and how the White Sox won the trade

Over five years ago the White-sox shook the MLB to it’s core with an absolute blockbuster of a trade. The trade included at the time then perennial Cy-young candidate Chris Sale and top 50 prospects Yoan Moncada and Michael kopech. Moncada was the real gem of this trade for the White sox. Moncada was given a 70 grade by scouts overall which is mostly unheard of and was a consensus top 3 prospect in all of baseball. Kopech was very highly touted as well. With an 80 grade fastball and potential through the roof, how could White sox fans not be excited. Of course to acquire this much talent the Sox had to send Chris Sale shipping up to Boston.

Over four years later let’s see who really won this trade. Did the Red sox hurt themselves in the long run by pulling the trigger on this trade? Red sox fans may argue no due to the fact that they won it all in 2018. However, four seasons later, Red sox fans may find there’s a sour taste in their mouth when talking about this trade. Especially with the recent news of Chris sale being shutdown for the rest of the season again after falling off of his bike as the team fights for a wild-card berth. Sale is coming fresh off Tommy john surgery and the Red sox are on the hook for $25 million only to have Sale watch from the dugout.

Did the White sox get the last laugh?

The Chicago White Sox got quite the haul for Sale. Not only did they acquire aforementioned Moncada and Kopech. They also got two more prospects by the name of Luis Basabe and Victor Diaz. Basabe was later traded to the Giants for cash considerations in 2020. As for Diaz, Diaz has not played professional baseball since 2017. However when he last played he was pitching for the Red Sox low A affiliate and put up solid numbers.

Over 37 games Diaz put up a 3.88 ERA and even notched a reliever of the month award under his belt. Hopefully when he gets his health back on track we can see what he can do in a similar situation for Kannaopolis. The White sox currently have Moncada and Kopech under team control all the way up to 2026 for way less than what Chris sale is getting to sit on the sidelines. Yes Kopech and Moncada are also both coming off their own respective injuries.

However, Kopech has bounced back relatively nicely from TJ, to the tune of a 3.58 ERA. 98 strikeout’s in just about 111 innings pitched. Though I am sure the Sox would like to see the walks come down a bit.

Yoan Moncada has all the potential in the world when he’s right. I believe based off his previous full seasons Moncada can be a 30 HR 80+ RBI kind of guy who hits anywhere between .250-.270 maybe even higher. A guy who can even sipe 10-15 bags a year. When Moncada was first coming up through the ranks, he was being compared to MLB legend Gary Sheffield. 

Moncada just needs to stay healthy and if he does he can be the face of a franchise with an already bright future. White Sox fans, be patient with Moncada. Though he has gotten off to a slow start this year (and was just recently placed on the IL with a hamstring strain) and has been mostly disappointing, he is the real deal and the fact that he is under team control until 2026 is just another reason to trust the process and trust in the fact that the Chicago White Sox won this blockbuster.

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As the Major League Baseball trade deadline nears many Cubs fans and fans around the league have been watching the names Kris Bryant, Javier Baez, and Craig Kimbrel.  There is one name though that seems to be picking up steam over the last 48 hours and that is of Chicago Cubs first baseman Anthony Rizzo.

On Tuesday ESPN’s Jeff Passan first reported that in the last 24 hours trade talks between the Cubs and Red Sox around Rizzo just begun and were in the “preliminary stages.”  All seemed quiet however until today when Jon Morosi broke the news that talks were still on-going.

Source: #Cubs, #RedSox have discussed an Anthony Rizzo trade as recently as the last 24 hours. @MLB @MLBNetwork @MLBPipeline

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) July 29, 2021

Part of the longer negotiations may be due in part to the value of Rizzo.  Rizzo, who is 31, is having another solid season for the Cubs.  His current slash line of .248/.346/.792(OPS+ of 116) may be slightly below his career averages but the Red Sox have gotten nearly no production from first base this season(-1.3WAR).  The sticking point could have to do with Rizzo being a rental player as he is due to hit free agency at the end of the season.

How much would the Red Sox be willing to pay for a 3 month rental of a below career norms Anthony Rizzo?  What would the Cubs be willing to take for their longtime clubhouse leader who the Cubs offered a 5 year $60million extension prior to Spring Training?

The Cubs have already been active in advance of this year’s trade deadline but it remains to be seen how many pieces of the World Series winning core they will move.

Make sure to check out our Chicago Cubs forum for the latest on the team.

The post Chicago Cubs Anthony Rizzo to Boston Red Sox Rumors Heating Up appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The Chicago White Sox finally made the move to trade Chris Sale and begin their rebuild late in 2016, when they shipped the ace to Boston.

Right away the move was to improve the Red Sox and make them World Series contenders. But for the White Sox, the rebuilding process was going to take a few seasons as they tried to stock pile prospects.

The biggest name in that deal is infielder Yoan Moncada who is considered one of the best prospects in all of baseball.

Moncada is the future star of the White Sox and when he gets called up, all eyes will be on the prospect who is currently 21-years-old.

Sale has been fantastic for the Red Sox through the first 30 games of the season.

The 28-year-old left hander is 3-2 in his first 7 starts, striking out 73 batters. He’s currently in the middle of a streak in which he’s recorded 10-plus strikeouts in six-straight games, joining only Pedro Martinez as the other Red Sox pitcher to put a streak together of that length.

Not too shabby.

But then there’s Moncada.

The 21-year-old is raking in Triple-A Charlotte and is ready to come up but vows to be patient to receive that call from the organization.

Despite the trade happening months ago, there’s an interesting connection between the two players.

Brian Bilek of Future Sox broke down a state involving the two players. On days that Sale pitches, Moncada has been pretty damn good as you see below:

MLB's top prospect Yoan Moncada on days Chris Sale starts after his 4 PAs today:

.500/.630/1.150/1.780 (27 PAs)

4 HRs, 4 SBs#WhiteSox

— Brian Bilek (@BrianBilek_) May 7, 2017

That included another home run, his sixth of the year, in the Knights win on Sunday over the Gwinnett Braves:

ICYMI: Yoan Moncada hit his 6th home run of the season today in Charlotte Knights' 7-1 win vs. the Gwinnett Braves. pic.twitter.com/w7wk1NaESM

— Sox On 35th (@SoxOn35th) May 8, 2017

Rick Hahn spoke on Moncada and his development:

“The fact is, he does remain a 22-year-old that, coming into the year, had fewer than 200 plate appearances above A-ball,” general manager Rick Hahn said via the Chicago Sun-Times. “His development is by no means complete at the minor-league level, but he is making a great deal of progress, and we’re thrilled with where he’s at.”

The White Sox currently sit at 15-15 after being swept in Baltimore and likely won’t be buying at the trade deadline.

They could however be getting a big bat in the form of Moncada’s if they do decide to call him up. Until then, the prospect will continue to rake in Charlotte.

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Theo Epstein ended curses in both Boston and Chicago by bringing World Series titles to both cities.

While the Cubs were in Boston to take on the Red Sox in a weekend series, Epstein was a part of the Hot Stove Cool Music charity event which benefits both the Red Sox Foundation and the Foundation To Be Named Later.

Joining Epstein were players from both teams, reporter Peter Gammons and Pearl Jam front man Eddie Vedder.

During the event, Epstein was jamming out when he tried to jump up onto the stage where the drums were only to take a tumble:

Theo Epstein tries to shred at Hot Stove Cool Music with Eddie Vedder. Takes a tumble pic.twitter.com/9g3GYwOmhF

— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) May 1, 2017

Ouch.

Later in the event, Epstein and Vedder jumped into the crowd trying to get the full rock star experience.

Here’s more on the event via MLB.com:

“It’s great to see these two teams come together,” Vedder said. “It’s nice to see everyone getting along for the greater good. I hope everyone follows their lead.”

Vedder headlined the concert for the third year in a row and played for two hours, singing familiar tunes including “Hearts and Thoughts,” and also some covers like “Comfortably Numb” by Pink Floyd and “The Kids Are Alright” by The Who.

Epstein’s former team, the Red Sox, got the better of the Cubs in the series winning 2-1.

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It has finally happened.

The Chicago White Sox have traded ace Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox in a package for prospects Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech, Luis Basabe and Victor Diaz.

The deal was first reported by Ken Rosenthal at the MLB Winter Meetings:

BREAKING: Sale to #RedSox. Moncada, Kopech and two other prospects to #WhiteSox.

— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) December 6, 2016

Sale has been a hot topic at the Winter Meetings with reports of the Washington Nationals pursuing him heavily on Monday. Then the Boston Red Sox swooped in and offered the White Sox the best package to land the ace.

The 27-year-old Sale went 17-10 in 2016, posting a 3.34 ERA, 1.03 WHIP in 226.2 innings pitched.

In return, the White Sox are getting the top hitting prospect in infielder Yoan Moncada as well as a 20-year-old pitching prospect in Michael Kopech. The right hander hit 105 MPH on the radar gun earlier this summer.

The other two players coming over in the deal are Luis Basabe and Victor Diaz. That means the White Sox got the Red Sox 1st, 5th, 8th and 28th ranked prospects in the deal.

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The Chicago Cubs have acquired pitcher Felix Doubront from Boston, according to Jim Bowden.

The Red Sox will get a player to be named later in the deal. Doubront has struggled for the Red Sox this season and they decided enough was enough. The 26-year-old has a 6.07 ERA in 17 games this season. He has 46 strikeouts and 26 walks in 59.1 innings pitched.

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The White Sox finally pulled the trigger on a deal sending Jake Peavy to Boston in a three team trade that also included Central division rival Detroit. Boston sent prospects J.B. Wendelken, Francellus Montas, and Cleuluis Rondon to the White Sox and top shortstop prospect Jose Iglesias to the Tigers. The Tigers sent out Avisail Garcia to the White Sox and Bryan Villareal to the Red Sox in the deal.

Avisail Garcia, the centerpiece of the deal for the White Sox, is expected to report to Triple-A Charlotte as the White Sox do not have space for him to get everyday at-bats. However, if I were the White Sox, I would make room soon as Garcia has been tough to ignore. With a slash line of .382/.414/.549 Garcia has been tearing it up for the Toledo Mudhens, Detorit’s Triple-A affiliate, and general manager, Rick Hahn, has been quoted as saying Garcia is a five tool player.

Montas and Wendelken, both twenty years old and pitching out of Single-A Greensville this year are solid, but not great pitching prospects. Montas was ranked as Boston’s 22nd overall prospect this past season and is said to have a power fastball that can touch triple digits and miss bats. Another thing I like about Montas is his 10.1 K/9 ratio and the fact that he is a starter. Wendelken is a reliever who is not as overbearing as Montas but also has more control in the fact that he has a 2.8 BB/9. I normally don’t like trading for other teams relief pitching prospects but it’s never bad to have more arms. Rondon was with short season A ball, and doesn’t seem like he’ll be anything special.

However, with every Sox column I write, there needs to be some pessimism. When this broke on twitter, it seemed as though the White Sox were receiving Iglesias and I was rejoicing. I thought that this would mean we could move Ramriez and let Iglesias start, with no pressure to succeed right away. However, when I found out that we had instead acquired another outfielder, I was thoroughly disappointed. Six of the White Sox top twenty prospects are outfielders according to mlb.com and the roster is full of them with Jordan Danks, who was already waiting in the wings and DeWayne Wise rehabbing.

Another thing that baffles me is that this move allowed Detroit, our divisional rival, to get better. The Tigers by far had the worst infield defense in the MLB with Fielder, Cabrera, and Peralta manning three-fourths of the diamond, but with arguably the best defensive shortstop prospect in the majors, this strengthens at least part of their defense. Not to mention that if his bat pans out, he will be a monster.

Ending on a happy note, I feel like the Sox did the best they could and got a solid return, but I wish they could prioritize acquiring some corner infield help along with catching, while not helping out division rivals at the same time. You can’t have it all I guess. Well, here’s to me writing another trade recap about Alex Rios in less than twenty four hours!

The post White Sox Acquire Avisail Garcia, 3 others for Peavy appeared first on ChiCitySports.

Friday evening the White Sox took the first step in their rebuilding process by trading away veteran left-handed reliever Matt Thornton. Thornton, an eight year veteran of the White Sox who was acquired in 2006 for Joe Borchard, will head to the Boston Red Sox. Thornton will fill a need in the Red Sox bullpen for pitchers who can eat innings and provide another lefty reliever for manager John Farrell to use in different situations. In return the White Sox receive Brandon Jacobs a outfielder who played most recently at Double A Pawtucket for the Red Sox.

In this writer’s opinion this is a great move by Rick Hahn and the front office as they got a toolsy outfield prospect for a pitcher who had seemed to lose his effectiveness on the South Side and had a fairly pricey contract option for next year at $6 million. Jacobs on the other hand is twenty-two years old who seems to get on base an awful lot, something the White Sox need. If Jacobs talent can convert from level to level then I would expect him to be an everyday contributor to the starting lineup one day.

Well done Mr. Hahn, well done.

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Just when we started to see the life come back to the Chicago White Sox (21-24), they fell 6-2 last night in their final game against the Boston Red Sox (28-19). It wasn’t a bad series though—with the White Sox winning the first two games against Boston—it’s just that a sweep would have been a solid way to move in to this weekend’s games.

Undefeated Boston pitcher Clay Buccholz was doing something right, because White Sox bats didn’t look as hot as they did earlier this week. Hector Santiago was pulled in for an unexpected start, as Chris Sale was pulled for mild tendinitis in his shoulder.

The Red Sox set the game momentum to their favor as David Ortiz doubled to left field and brought in two runs in the first inning. He hadn’t been hitting to his potential through the series, so it was only a matter of time that he finally got around on the ball. And hey, Big Papi had a career milestone last night: his first career steal.

The White Sox didn’t score until the third when Tyler Flowers started the inning off with an infield hit, and later scored a la fielders choice by Alex Rios off of Clay Buccholz.

Santiago held his own for six innings and saved some arms in the bullpen considering his experience.  But the White Sox’s bullpen allowed four runs in the final two innings, resulting in a 6-1 score going in to the bottom of the ninth.

But leave it to Paul Konerko to stop fans from running to their cars at the ninth inning with two outs. Paulywood slammed a solo shot homer. The good guys may not have won, but hey, at least the fans got a nice homerun fireworks show out of it.

The White Sox continue on their home turf this Friday, May 24^th against the Miami Marlins, and then host the Chicago Cubs for two games starting May 27^th—both teams being in a bit of a rough patch. Sticking a “W” on the board is necessary to keep up the cred, especially since they’re riding off a series win against the tough Red Sox.

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In game two of the Chicago vs. Boston matchup, the White Sox (21-23) edged out the Red Sox (27-19) in a 3-1 win at U.S. Cellular Field.

The strengths in this game weren’t as much the bats, but more the power on the mound. Jose Quintana (3-1, 3.48 ERA) put up a great show today, keeping Boston batters hitless until the 7^th inning.

The game remained scoreless until the fifth, as Boston’s Felix Doubront (3-2, 5.61 ERA) was holding up well too. But after a single by Dayan Viciedeo, Jeff Keppinger followed up with a two-out home run to bring him in. Is this a new side to Keppinger that doesn’t involve being disappointed? I like.

But Quintana’s halt on hits ended in the seventh on David Ortiz’s broken-bat single. After giving up hits to Napoli and Daniel Nava, Quintana was taken out with bases loaded. But you can’t be mad at the guy—he was throwing a no-hitter until that point. And when he took it to the bench, White Sox fans saluted with a well-deserved standing ovation.

Reliever Jesse Crain then came in to strike out Will Middlebrooks and Jarrod Saltalamacchia with bases loaded to end the inning. It was badass. I’m pretty sure Middlebrooks dropped the F-bomb and WGN wasn’t paying attention.

Boston didn’t score until the 8^th inning with Matt Thornton on the mound. Jarrod “Salty” Saltalamacchia walked, and Jacoby Ellsbury singled. The runners advanced on a wild pitch. Dustin Pedroia’s grounder went through Alexei Ramirez’ legs at shortstop (FACE PALM), scoring “Salty”. But the inning ended quick when Ortiz put himself into a double-play.

Bottom of the 8^th, the White Sox gained an insurance run as Alexei Ramirez singled, and was brought home on a double from Alex Rios, whose bat has been on fire these days.

Addison Reed closed out the game in good fashion, his 16^th save in 17 chances—all of this while it began pouring rain in Chicago. And don’t count out that awesome catch in LF by Casper Wells. It was clear that he couldn’t see anything through the downpour, but he stop, drop, and rolled in to a funny-looking, yet still effective catch on the warning track.

Up Next: Chris Sale will not be starting tomorrow due to minor tendinitis in his left shoulder. Boston will still send out the unbeaten Clay Buchholz (6-0, 1.78 ERA), and the White Sox will put up Hector Santiago. Sale says he will “definitely” be back next week for the Crosstown Classic against the Cubs.

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Adam Dunn hammered a three-run homer in the first inning to help push the White Sox  to a 6-4 win against the Boston Red Sox. This was the opener of a three-game run at U.S. Cellular Field.

Monday night’s win against the Red Sox (27-18) was a big win for the White Sox (20-23) in many ways. Allow me to lead off with the obvious; this win stopped Boston’s lefty power hurler Jon Lester from a 7-0 record, which would have made him the first left-handed starter to win his first seven decisions for Boston since Roger Moret in 1973.

Lester started the first inning retiring two batters. But after Alex Rios singled and Paul Konerko was walked, Adam Dunn blasted a shot deep in to the right field stands and drove in the early runs. It didn’t get better for Lester as De Aza, Ramirez, and Viciedo all drove in runs as well before he was taken out after the sixth inning.

Now it’s no reason to celebrate in crushing an athlete’s dreams of breaking a record; but by stopping Lester, the White Sox sent a powerful message to the rest of the American League that they’re a force to be dealt with.

The White Sox were also winning in the defense department. Did anyone see Alexei Ramirez in the second inning? His two amazing stops robbed the Red Sox of what could have been earned runs. Or what about Paul Konerko’s stretch to end the game? The boys were playing the field a lot better than what I’ve been seeing, and it was really fun to watch.

And while Lester struggled, Dylan Axelrod (2-3) shined and won his second straight start. There are rumors of Axelrod getting the boot once John Danks comes off the disabled list, but his performance tonight wasn’t anything to overlook.

So what’s the biggest win of all? This is the White Sox team I want to see on the field. These are the guys that actually get it done. This is the team that can rile up a crowd and get fans excited. The right team showed up today, and it looks like they’re ready to make up the lost ground from earlier this season.

Next game: The White Sox will send left-hander Jose Quintana (2-1, 3.97 ERA) to the mound against Boston left-hander Felix Doubront (3-1, 6.03) in the 7:10 p.m. start at U.S. Cellular Field.

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The good guys return home this Monday for a week-long stretch at the Cell. First team up, the Boston Red Sox.

Now the Red Sox (27-17) will make this an interesting match up without a doubt, as they’ve been on a hot streak behind the bats of David Ortiz, Dustin Pedroia, and well-timed contributions from many others. They move guys around the bases well, and the White Sox are going to need to get their act together in the bullpen and buckle up on defense.

The White Sox (19-23) are coming back from an anti-climactic loss to the Angels where Jake Peavey walked too many batters and the boys didn’t hit nearly as well as the night before.

But despite match up predictions and series expectations, one thing remains certain; the White Sox need these wins against the Red Sox to prove they are at the top of their class.

To put it in to perspective, White Sox fans were celebrating that we finally won four games in a row last week. Personally, I find that a rather depressing thing to celebrate, as I would hope wining four games in a row wouldn’t be such a rare occurrence. And I felt like every time I turned on Sunday’s game versus the Angels, Hawk always seemed to be saying, “Well, it could be a lot worse.”

The southsiders really need to prove to the American League—and their fans—that they’ve got what it takes to stay consistent and have a shot at playoffs.

Playoffs? Yes, it’s May and I’m already talking about playoffs. At this rate, the White Sox will not be a hot contender. That’s why I feel strongly that they need to show up with guns blazing on Monday.

First game is Monday, May 20^th at U.S. Cellular field, starting time of 7:10PM CT. Dylan Axelrod will start for the White Sox against Red Sox tough lefty hurler Jon Lester.

Expected Pitching Matchups:

D. Axelrod (1-3, 4.27 ERA, 26K) vs. J. Lester (6-0, 2.72 ERA, 50K)

J. Quintana (2-1, 3.97 ERA, 34K) vs. F. Doubront (3-1, 6.03 ERA, 42K)

C. Sale (5-2, 2.53 ERA, 61K) vs. C. Buchholz (6-0, 1.78 ERA, 69K)

The post Preview: Red Sox @ White Sox appeared first on ChiCitySports.

The last four MLB seasons have seen a routine blossoming in the Chicago White Sox clubhouse and on filed play…the South Siders wait for next season while they’re still playing the current season. The 2011 White Sox seem to be no different.

It might just be me, but it feels like the black and white squad struggle after the all-star game every year since the 2005 World Series. The pitching falters, bats don’t swing and the roster is rebuilt. The roster didn’t have any huge changes before the trade deadline but pitchers are throwing lobs to opposing batters while the Sox batters are playing T-ball with all the ground outs they’re hitting. Can something be done to make a run for the playoffs?

Currently the White Sox are 52-57 for third place in the American League Central, which is arguably the weakest division in the MLB. Last night the New York Yankees 18-7 bone stomping of the Sox gave Chicago its fifth straight loss and sets up a four game sweep if the Yankees win tonight at US Cellular. In their last five series, the Sox are 2-3 with loses coming from the Boston Red Sox, Yankees and the Kansas City Royals. The wins are against the Cleveland Indians and the Detroit Tigers.

I understand the Red Sox and the Yankees are two of the best teams in the MLB. I understand the Sox just won two series against the teams above them in the division standings, the Indians and the Tigers.  Still, there are questions to be asked and answered about the Sox’s struggles.

First, three of the last five loses have been blow outs, bad blowouts.Boston whooped up on the Sox 10-2 on Saturday and then handed the wounded Chicago team to the Yankees for them to win 6-0 Tuesday and the above mentioned 18-7 bone stomping yesterday. Sure, these teams are good, but isn’t Chicago supposed to be a competitive team. ESPN’s Buster Olney thinks so, he picked them to win the division.

Yesterday, Gavin Floyd allowed 10 earned runs in 2.1 innings. Sorry Ozzie Guillen, can’t blame the bullpen for this one.

Tuesday’s game was postponed because of weather after the top of the seventh inning, but lets be honest, it didn’t matter. The Yankees were hitting everything off of 4-9 John Banks as the Yankees had four runs in three innings. He had five strikeouts and one walk, but gave up two home runs.

Only three White Sox pitchers have a winning record: Mark Buehrle 8-5, Philip Humber 8-7 and relief pitcher Jeese Crain 5-3.

The hitting has been okay, I won’t bash anyone except Adam Dunn who has been the biggest disappointment in all of baseball this year. Did he leave his game in Washington? The man has been a home run and RBI monster for most of his professional career, but, not in Chicago. Since he has been a Sox, he has only hit 10 home runs and batted in 38 runs while striking out a team high 138 times…garbage for 93 games of play.

Chicago has a chance to record a winning season and make it to the playoffs. Six games back isn’t a huge deficit now, but it could be if the pitching doesn’t pick up and the big bats, Dunn, don’t make a difference.

I’ve been a little rough on the Sox and they do have a chance to be successful this season so I won’t completely write them off. However, if they don’t decimate the Minnesota Twins, Baltimore Oriels and the Royals during the next three series, I might do the same thing Ozzie’s team tends to do, wait for next season.

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The White Sox started out this 10 game 11 day road trip with a three game stint with their 2010 nemesis the Cleveland Indians.  On Monday it was Brent Lillibridge, Tuesday, A.J. Pierzysnki, and Wednesday, Paul Konerko.

Three critical home runs, all coming at the most important times in the particular games, and all leading the Sox on their way to three key victories to start this trip.

The hoopla surrounding the Manny Ramirez saga left the White Sox in an interesting situation as this series began.  They could have come out and laid an egg like they have done all year against the Indians, or they could have gotten caught up in the hype and forgotten about winning ballgames.

But they didn’t.  The Sox found ways to claw at three consecutive games, and find themselves just a bit closer to the Twins than they were before entering Cleveland.

And they did it with something that is very familiar to the South Siders… the long ball.

One great way to re-energize a ballclub is to hit big home runs late in games.  Another way is to hit 3 big home runs late in games.

The Sox are beginning to dream again.  Edwin Jackson looks like a bona fide ace.  Manny should add some extra pop to a lineup that may need it.  And Chris Sale appears to be the shining light the Sox bullpen has been looking for.

I know 3.5 games in a month is a tough deficit to overcome, but it starts with your own team.  Win your own games, and beat the teams you should.  3 for 3 against the Tribe is a start.  Now with a day off, and two Twins games to watch, the Sox can pick up another full game if all goes right in Minneapolis.  And if not, the Sox are still looking pretty good, and starting to feel much better about themselves.

This was a big series in Cleveland.  And with a day off before the treks to Boston and Detroit, this team has got to keep their eyes on the prize.  Keep playing your game, and keep winning every time you can.  The rest will take care of itself.

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