The Chicago White Sox appear to be holding firm on their desire for a massive return for Dylan Cease.
The 28-year-old starter has been considered a likely trade candidate for months as the White Sox rebuild their roster, and as spring training has gone on there has been increasing smoke around his name.
Cease is coming off a down year by his standards in which he went 7-9 with a 4.58 ERA, but he still is an ace-caliber pitcher. He finished second in Cy Young voting in 2022, when he went 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA. Further bolstering his trade value is he remains under team control for 2024 and 2025.
With all those factors in mind, Audacy MLB insider Jon Heyman told Mully & Haugh that the White Sox want more for Cease than what the Brewers just got for Corbin Burnes.
“You hear complaints from other teams that the White Sox are asking for too much, I don’t blame them. Ask for a ton,” Heyman said. “He’s only making $8 million this year, which is nothing for a very good starter, ace potential, and another year to go under contract. So they should be able to get a haul for him. …
“Obviously, the Cease trade is going to be a big one. Again, I don’t blame (Chris Getz) for asking (a lot), and my impression from what I heard is that he’s asking for like 1.5 times more than what Milwaukee got for Burnes. Players are not numerical, it’s subjective, but basically more than that, but not double what Milwaukee got for Burnes.”
The Brewers got Joey Ortiz, DL Hall and the No. 34 pick in the 2024 draft for Burnes, who has a more proven track record of success than Cease but will be a free agent next offseason.
Ortiz, the No. 63 prospect in baseball according to MLB Pipeline, is an infielder who boasts a great glove and decent offensive ceiling. Hall was the No. 97 prospect going into last season, and though he came up as a starter spent most of his big league action last year in the bullpen.
If the Orioles are looking for more than that, then it would take a pretty substantial offer in order for Cease to get moved.
One team that makes sense on paper is the New York Yankees given uncertainty around Gerrit Cole, who is likely to miss Opening Day with elbow discomfort. His status beyond that remains uncertain.
But Heyman suggested that the Yankees don’t seem to be diving back into the Cease sweepstakes.
“I’m not sure that all the teams that have been out there are exactly right,” Heyman said. “We’ll see, I mean obviously it’s fluid, you never know who could come in. But (I’m) hearing more talk on the Padres, Giants, Rangers. Not the Orioles, and from what I understand, the Yankees are really not involved at this moment.
“Maybe that’s because they asked for too much from the Yankees – you heard the name (Anthony) Volpe was thrown around at one point, and certainly Spencer Jones the outfield prospect was mentioned, and I don't think the Yankees want to trade him. But if anybody could use a starter, it is the Yankees. Not going to rule anything out, but right now not hearing the Yankees - and it certainly does seem to be pretty hot right now with Cease.”