May is off to a decent start for the White Sox, but unless they show sharp improvement after their woeful April, they could end up being sellers come August 1.
Chicago stumbled out of the gate for the second straight season, and its group again looks destined to underachieve. The White Sox sit at 12-23, seven games back of first place in the division -- with their season already marred by injuries and underperformance. There’s no disputing the White Sox have talented pieces, but the sum continues to be less than its parts.
USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported over the weekend that the White Sox don’t plan to keep Lucas Giolito beyond this season, and that they could move him at the deadline if they’re out of the race. He also mentioned Kendall Graveman and Joe Kelly as potential options to be moved, as well.
“Certainly, if it continues along this line they’re going to have to make some changes,” Audacy MLB insider Jon Heyman said Monday on “Mully & Haugh” on 670 The Score. “And certainly when you have a guy (Giolito) who’s a free agent and is going to be an expensive free agent and things haven’t worked out, I think it would be unlikely to really spend big to bring him back.
“So I do think if things continue along these lines they do look like a seller. They probably could get something for Lucas Giolito. A lot of the sellers this year – there are a half-dozen teams that are just horrendous and have no good players, they’re not in that boat. They do have some good players, they’re just not a good team for whatever reason.
“Lucas Giolito would have a market, obviously (Dylan) Cease would have the best market, but I doubt they would even consider trading Cease, despite the slump. Obviously, his value is extremely high.”
Giolito is 1-2 with a 3.67 ERA across seven starts this season. His walk rate is down this season, but so too are his strikeouts.
Reaching the point of moving Cease would be a nuclear scenario, and the White Sox could probably get away with retooling with trades instead of embarking on a full-fledged teardown. If things don’t improve though, changes all but certainly will be coming.
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