A few proposed trades for Dylan Cease
The Red Sox need no-doubt-about-it top of the rotation starters. At least one, anyway. That's why Dylan Cease's name has come up.
Cease, it would seem, is available in a trade from the White Sox for the right price. The problem for teams drooling over the 27-year-old is that price figures to be fairly steep.
While Cease's numbers in 2023 took a turn for the worse (4.58 ERA in 32 starts) after finishing second in the American League Cy Young Award balloting, there were enough signs that the righty is a pitcher a rotation can be built around.
Another positive for any acquiring team is that Cease is under team control for the next two seasons, slated to make just more than $8 million in 2024, his second-to-last year of arbitration eligibility. It's why he was in demand at the trade deadline, and also the reason for the steep asking price from the White Sox. (Chicago asked for a package of players that included Brayan Bello when the Red Sox came calling.)
Now, it seems like a good time to revisit a potential trade for Cease, which is what Sammy of the 'Play Tessie' podcast did when appearing on 'Baseball Isn't Boring'. So, who says no?
Red Sox get: Dylan Cease P, Eloy Jimenez OF/DH
White Sox get: Jarren Duran OF, Nick Yorke 2B, Luis Perales P
The reasoning for including Jimenez is the Red Sox need for right-handed pop at both the outfield and DH spots, along with the White Sox getting out from under the $13 million that is owed the 27-year-old in 2024. Jimenez also has club options for 2025 and 2026. In 120 games last season, Jimenez hit .272 with a .758 OPS and 18 home runs.
As for the White Sox' return, a big part of the package is obviously Jarren Duran, who showed flashes of a dynamic outfielder who could enter All-Star consideration on an annual basis. Yorke - the former first-round pick who finished with a .785 OPS in 125 Double-A games in 2023 - continues to trend as an offense-first major league second baseman. The 20-year-old Perales is considered the Red Sox' top pitching prospect has the kind of powerful fastball that suggests he could evolve into a top of the rotation option.