The White Sox are reportedly only looking to add prospects who have yet to make their major league debut, per MLB Network’s Jon Morosi.
According to Morosi the Red Sox have emerged as one of the front runners for Crochet, specifically if they fail to sign Corbin Burns or Max Fried in free agency. His report that the front office is targeting prospects who haven’t graduated to the majors also pours cold water on speculation that Triston Casas and Wilyer Abreu could be included in a potential trade package.
This approach signals just how far the White Sox feel they are from contending. Casas and Abreu each look like upgrades for at first base and right field, a position the White Sox have been struggling to adequately fill for years. However, Casas is only under team control through 2026 while Abreu is under team control until 2027.
The fact that Chis Getz does not feel the White Sox will be able to contend by then is concerning but should come as no surprise. Crochet is set to become a free agent after the 2026 season. That timeline does not fit Chris Getz’s plans to overhaul the roster. By adding untested prospects the White Sox can kick the can further down the road for when they need to spend money to become contenders.
Crochet is set to become a free agent in 2026, which is one of the reasons the front office feels a sense of urgency to move him. An argument can be made the White Sox would be better off extending him. Last season Crochet produced a 32.1 percent whiff rate which ranked first in the MLB. He also had a 33.3 percent strikeout rate and a 6.3 percent walk rate, making him the only starting pitcher in the American League with a strikeout rate above 30 percent.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale previously reported the White Sox “quietly engaged in brief contract extension talks” with Crochet. However, after failing to reach an agreement the team no longer felt optimistic about extending him. That reluctance to spend money, explains why the White Sox are trying to push their contention window farther down the road by getting prospects who haven’t made their debut. In Casas and Abreu they would be getting players they would have to extend in just two years.
The White Sox tested their luck with unproven prospects during their last rebuild attempt with little success. Many of their prospects such as Yoan Moncada, Eloy Jimenez, and Luis Robert Jr were locked up to long-term deals before they had proven themselves in the majors. Because of this, the organization was able to get what they felt were “team friendly” deals given how good their core was projected to be.
Acquiring any sort of prospect comes with inherent risk. But the fact remains trading Crochet still presents a bit of a gamble for the White Sox, especially if they will only consider players who haven’t gotten their feet wet in the bigs.
