The Chicago White Sox did well for themselves by acquiring A.J. Pollock to fill their glaring need for an outfielder.
But it appears it wasn't Pollock or bust for the White Sox.
The Detroit Tigers took another step in their effort to challenge Chicago in the American League East by trading for slugger Austin Meadows. A hard-hitting 26-year-old under team control who can play corner outfield or be a designated hitter, Meadows will be a great fit for Detroit this season and likely beyond.
Given how the Rays tend to operate, Meadows always seemed attainable for the right price. And Audacy MLB Insider Jon Heyman shared Tuesday on 670 The Score’s “Mully and Haugh” in Chicago that the White Sox had tried to trade for Meadows.
"(The Pollock trade) makes sense to me," Heyman said. "It seems like they needed a right fielder, and whenever I’ve talked about the White Sox’ situation I talked about the fact that they could’ve used one more outfielder. It could’ve been better if it was a left-handed batter. Austin Meadows, he just went to the Tigers, they tried for him. That would’ve made sense.”
It’s not totally clear what prevented Chicago from landing Meadows, whether the Rays didn’t like the package being offered, or if he was a lower priority target than Pollock. Kimbrel would've made sense for the Rays, but not only is it uncertain if Tampa was even interested in him, but it also would've been taking on way more money in a Kimbrel-Meadows swap.
The White Sox ultimately traded Craig Kimbrel straight up for Pollock, making for a mutually beneficial trade where each team dealt from a position of depth to bolster an area of weakness.
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