The first major domino fell in Major League Baseball free agency yesterday, as it was reported by various outlets that Blake Snell signed a five year deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
This should come as no shock, as the Dodgers are in on every single big name free agent, regardless of their current payroll situation. However, the Dodgers landing a big name starting pitcher not named Roki Sasaki is a bit surprising.
While that philosophy is quite the antithesis of the White Sox, the Sox got a boost by the Dodgers making the Blake Snell move in free agency.
Red Sox were in on both Snell and Kikuchi before losing out. They seek rotation upgrades and have preferred a lefty.
— Jon Heyman (@JonHeyman) November 27, 2024
According to Jon Heyman, the Boston Red Sox were very interested in signing Blake Snell to bolster their rotation, which is one of the weaker parts of their team. They were also interested in signing Yusei Kikuchi before he signed with the Angels.
Additionally, Heyman reports they are looking for rotation upgrades, specifically left-handed pitchers if possible. This is a good sign, as the White Sox have an elite left handed starter available on the trade market.
Since Boston has missed out on their top two targets, Crochet may be the next man up, as there has been reported interest of a Crochet trade with Boston, according to Jon Morosi.
The more free agent starting pitchers that sign with teams other than the Red Sox will continue to benefit the White Sox, as the need for Garrett Crochet will increase.
Since there is already a bidding war going on, as multiple teams are interested in Crochet’s services, Boston’s desire to acquire a top of the rotation arm could make them pull the trigger on a trade for a price they may not wanted to have paid originally.
When Chris Getz didn’t trade Crochet at the deadline, he drew criticism from skeptics, as many thought that Crochet had a good amount of value, and teams would have overpaid to have Crochet help them during a playoff run.
However, holding on to him seems like the right move, as the starting pitching market continues to develop and get more expensive, the White Sox will have more desperate suitors for Crochet. As things heat up over the next few weeks, don’t be surprised to see a Crochet trade before Christmas.
