July 2017 seems far off in the distance compared to where the White Sox are one year later. Last season the White Sox handed off a package of contributors to the New York Yankees and shocked the world when they finalized a deal with the Cubs to grab Eloy Jimenez and Dylan Cease. The Yankees deal wasn’t a negligible deal either, considering the Sox culled Blake Rutherford, Ian Clarkin and Tito Polo in that deal.
This season has been completely different. Few expected the White Sox to make a splash at the non-waiver trade deadline given how they value on high-character players and a slew of injuries that sapped value from possible trade chips like Avisail Garcia. Still, deals were made this July that could have a serious ripple effect on the organization.
Something was a Brewing
The only trade the White Sox consummated last week was a deal that swapped Joakim Soria for Kodi Medeiros and Wilber Perez. Soria injected life into his trade value of the last few months as he became a dependable closer for the White Sox through July. After missing out on Zack Britton and other options, the Milwaukee Brewers were pressured to find a solution to the back of their bullpen and the White Sox were willing to oblige.
Left-handed pitching had been a concern for some (me included) and the White Sox satisfied this need in grabbing Medeiros from the Brewers. As a former first-round pick in 2014, he had the cache of a serious prospect and at only 22 years old and dealing in Double-A he may quickly find himself forcing a decision.
The other arm is a high-ceiling prospect with a lot of unanswered questions. Perez is a right-hander with success in the Dominican Summer Leauge, but at 20 years old the serious question is “why is he still in the DSL?”
Buying the Future From New York
The Yankees faced a serious problem this offseason: Risk losing an enormous amount of prospects in the Rule-5 draft with few spaces available on the 40-man roster.
This was a problem they addressed last season but became an open wound this season. Considering the White Sox were very familiar with New York’s farm system after last year’s trade, it’s not surprising that Rick Hahn went back to the well for more.
Caleb Frare is another southpaw (checks another box) and was practically bought from the Yankees for $1.5 million in international bonus-pool money, an irrelevant sum based on the fact that the White Sox couldn’t sign any international free agents for more than $300,000 after making a splash with Luis Robert last summer.
It was a win-win for both teams: The White Sox flushed unusable money and picked up a Triple-A reliever with serious potential. Frare has less draft-glow than other prospects as an 11th-round pick in 2012, and it is concerning that he has already undergone Tommy John surgery. One look at his mechanics and you’ll understand the trouble with his arm action.
Yet, it is precisely that that makes him so valuable as a reliever. He can run the ball up there in the mid-90s with serious action on his pitches and has flummoxed hitters at two levels this season. Frare was assigned to Triple-A and he may still need some time before he is promoted, but I don’t expect the White Sox to wait long in promoting him.
The Tide Ebbs in Tampa Bay
Few expected the Tampa Bay Rays to throw everything out on the lawn and cash in on whatever they had, but after Nathan Eovaldi was traded to the Boston Red Sox, something was afoot.
The Sox had no use for any major-league players and instead hashed out a deal for more international bonus-pool money and grabbed yet another left-hander in Hunter Schryver. This move is a tad more enigmatic given the age and developmental milestones Schryver has checked off.
He was a seventh-round pick last season out of Vilanova with a lengthy resume of Big-East and Big-5 honors. Still, Schryver was a senior-sign and begs the question of why he wasn’t picked in 2016. Now, he is 23 years old and still in High-A (Winston Salam).
The final figure the White Sox paid for Schryver is still unknown, but he’s been very good this season, which doesn’t really say much considering he is 1.1 years older than the average Carolina-League prospect. The White Sox are sure to challenge him soon with a promotion to Double-A. And if they don’t, well, that in and of itself makes a resounding statement.
When you boil it down to the necessary parts, a ripple effect has a broader impact than dropping a boulder into the ocean and watching it sink. The White Sox made a splash last season and hope the ripple effect of 2018 will cast a wide radius over their developmental success.
