The Boston Red Sox need a boost to their starting rotation.
Through 86 games, Boston’s starters have thrown just 25 quality starts for a 29% clip. That puts them as the ninth-worst team in that category and things aren’t getting much better.
With the deadline now less than a month away, perhaps the Red Sox start looking to the trade market to improve their pitching.
They’re sitting at .500 on the season but that has them in last place in a tough division. Nevertheless, Boston is just five games back of the Astros and Yankees for a playoff spot.
WEEI’s Rob Bradford of the Audacy Original Podcast “Baseball Isn’t Boring” was joined by Sammy James and Nat “Gordo” Gordon to dissect two different offers for Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Dylan Cease.
The 37-50 White Sox are trending toward selling but even if they sell, Cease could be someone they’re looking to build around as he’s cost controlled for the next few years.
The first offer is outfielder Alex Verdugo in a straight-up swap for Cease.
“I think the White Sox wouldn’t do it,” they said (3:08 in player above). First of all, I think Dylan Cease is much more valuable and then also he has two-and-a-half years of control compared to Verdugo’s one-and-a-half.”
“I think you’re going to have to sweeten the pot a little bit,” Bradford interjected. “Just a little.”
“If you’re the White Sox and you’re selling Cease, aren’t you just committing to the rebuild?” they added “Why do you even want Verdugo if you’re selling Cease?”
Cease finished second in AL Cy Young voting last season with a sparkling 2.20 ERA. He went 14-8 for the White Six while striking out 227 batters in 184 innings.
However, he’s hit a bit of a rough patch this season with a 3-3 record and 4.10 ERA in 18 starts (96 ⅔ innings). Walks have also been an issue for Cease, who led the league with 78 last season. He’s handed out 42 free passes as opposed to 115 strikeouts so far this year.
So, a swap of Verdugo for Cease may not go over well in Chicago. Perhaps a package of prospects could help bring the ace to Boston.
“Even with him having a down year, I feel like they’re going to want any offer to start with (Marcelo) Mayer, but I just didn’t even go there because I don’t think the Red Sox are going to touch him."
The second trade proposal is as follows:
To Red Sox: Cease and Andrew Vaughn
To White Sox: Tristan Casas, Ceddanne Rafaela, Nick Yorke, Chih-Jung Liu
Vaughn and Casas are similar bat-first players, but Casas is under team control for two more years than Vaughn’s three-and-a-half It would be a change of scenery for two former prospects that haven’t really panned out just yet with their current teams.
Rafaela is Boston’s second-best prospect and can play both shortstop and in the outfield. Yorke, a second baseman, is right behind him as the third-best Red Sox prospect
Liu is a lower-tier prospect that could be swapped out depending on Chicago’s preference.
Still, even with this package, it’d be hard to imagine the White Sox giving up their 27-year-old ace.
Who says no?
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