(670 The Score) In making a blockbuster trade Wednesday, White Sox general manager Chris Getz believes the organization took an important step forward.
The White Sox traded ace Garrett Crochet to the Red Sox for four prospects – highly regarded catcher Kyle Teel, outfielder Braden Montgomery, infielder Chase Meidroth and right-hander Wikelman Gonzalez.
“It’s never easy to have to make decisions like this,” Getz said. “Garrett, what he did this past season was nothing short of excellent, but you look at the long-term health of the organization and to inject the type of talent that we just did in this trade is really exciting for us.
“When you talk about accelerating a rebuild, this was a deal that we feel like can do that.”
The 22-year-old Teel was the headliner in the trade return for the White Sox. He’s rated as the 25th-best prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline. A lefty bat, Teel hit .288 with 13 homers, 78 RBIs and an .819 OPS in 112 games split between Double-A and Triple-A in 2024.
Teel gives the White Sox a second promising catcher in their farm system alongside Edgar Quero.
“We feel like they can both be catchers for us at the major league level,” Getz said. “You’ve got a switch-hitter in Edgar Quero that’s really strong from the right side currently. And you’ve got Kyle Teel that’s left-handed and has versatility in his background. The catching position is just so valuable and such a hard position to fill. To have two guys like that and then a Korey Lee – going back to talking about the foundation of an organization, so many things start in the middle of the diamond. It begins at the catching position and how much they can impact the game.
“To have strength there is really important to us … Catching is gold right now in this game based on conversations we’ve had with other clubs.”