Deadline Central: Chicago White Sox

As the trade deadline approaches and the rumors begin to fly, I thought I would take a team by team look at the A.L. Central, and what the trade deadline could bring for the franchise. With the new CBA in place, it is going to be interesting to see the type of movement we see around the league, if there is much at all. The Central is interesting in that maybe it is a little better than anticipated, and that could make for an exciting deadline.

Here is a look at the Chicago White Sox…

Buyers or Sellers?

I am not sure that this is as cut and dry as everyone would like to believe. Most would assume seller. GM Kenny Williams has never been one to shy away from trading prospects for big league players. Given that the White Sox lead the division, winning the division is going to be the priority of course. I just have this feeling that the White Sox have already made their move by landing 3B Kevin Youklis. I don’t see them as a major buyer, and potentially if an offer was right, I could see the Sox even move a guy. The White Sox have sent mixed signals since the beginning of the season, and I wouldn’t be surprised if that continues.

Team Needs:

White Sox have a couple, and it’s mostly due to injuries. Their pitching staff has taken a hit on the injury front this season, and currently they have John Danks and Gavin Floyd on the disabled list. Neither is a sure thing to come off anytime soon as Danks had shoulder issues and Floyd’s injury appears to be an elbow. Jake Peavy is having a strong year, and Chris Sale and Jose Quintana have been phenomenal. But do they really want to trust that to continue. If the Sox are doing an honest assessment, the long term prognosis for their club with those three plus Dylan Axelrod and Phillip Humber aren’t great.

Their bullpen, although it’s been pretty good, could use some help as well. Addison Reed and Matt Thornton have been good this year, but the rest of that bullpen is filled with guys, you say…who?…to.

State of the Farm:

It’s about as ugly as it gets down on the White Sox farm. They do have a couple of pieces to trade if they would like to acquire someone, but that person wouldn’t be of significance. Their best prospects are in the lower minors, so the Sox may have to deal from the major league club which they did to get Youklis. If they do make a deal from their minor league system, it will just further damage the worst system in baseball.

Potential Partners:

I haven’t heard much speculation about the White Sox in the market at this point. I will say this however, I would think a team with a reliever or two to trade might interest Chicago. Maybe a guy like Brett Myers, or an expensive starter like Wandy Rodriguez, where the contract might be what the Sox trade for and the prospect return is minimal.

So, yeah, now that I think of it, maybe Houston.

Prognosis:

Nothing I guess would surprise me with Kenny Williams at the helm. He always seems to manage to do something, whether that is good or bad. I still don’t get the Sergio Santos deal at the start of the year, but he is hurt so that didn’t turn out all that bad. The Carlos Quentin deal as well didn’t exactly net anything either. But here we are, the Sox are in first, mainly because Adam Dunn and Alex Rios aren’t terrible, and Jake Peavy and Chris Sale are anchoring the staff.

This team is pretty good, but it’s going to fade if they don’t get some starting pitching.