Nearly three weeks ago, it was reported that the Chicago White Sox had officially agreed to trade ace left-hander Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for four minor leaguers. The headliner of the deal was MLB Pipeline's number one ranked overall prospect infielder Yoan Moncada, followed by top five Red Sox farmhand starting pitcher Michael Kopech, as well as throw-in's Luis Alexander Basabe and Victor Diaz. In return, the Red Sox received one of baseball's best starting pitchers, let alone left-handers, in 27-year old Chris Sale.
Sale, is coming off a 2016 season that saw him register a career high in innings pitched (226.2), while delivering ace-like numbers, and ranking second in the American League in strikeouts (233), t-4th in wins (17), 9th in ERA (3.34), and first in complete games (6). For someone with as funky a delivery and as many moving parts as Sale, one would think his success at controlling the strike zone would be spotty at best, but as a starter in the majors, Sale has never allowed more than 51 walks in an entire season. One of the most feared and persistent throwers in the sport, Sale spearheads a Boston rotation that aims to be one of the best in the sports in 2017, challenging the likes of the Cubs and Mets.
The return Rich Hahn and the Chicago White Sox received is nothing short of spectacular, as Moncada has both the attributes and the persona to be the next Robinson Cano of an upcoming wave of young, energetic players. A 21-year old middle infield prospect, Moncada has stormed national headlines since they day Boston signed the Cuban as an international amateur free-agent. Unanimously rated as one of baseballs best young, premier talent, the 6'2", 205 lb machine has been routinely mentioned as an all-world athlete, let alone future-star ball player. Coming in as a somewhat raw teenager, Moncada has taken strides to shore up the holes in his game, from shortening his quick and powerful swing to making better decisions on the base paths. While rotating between single A and double-A for the majority of the 2016 season, Moncada registered a .294/.407/.511 line over 106 games. He would go on to launch 15 bombs, knock in 62, and swipe 45 bags, while being cut down 12 times. The most impressive part of Moncada's aggregate game is his ability to seek out pitches, and not be overly aggressive when facing more and more stringent pitching. On the other side of things, it is unquestioned that Moncada has a good eye, but struck out at an alarming rate when getting a brief cup of coffee with Boston; 12 times in 20 plate appearances, and 124 times in the minors. While very rarely will a player come in to the game with barely anything to work on, and Moncada does have many striking parts to his game which could help him to develop into an offensive juggernaut; the strikeouts could be his achilles heel when separating his floor from his ceiling. Many analysts have referenced Moncada to Seattle Mariners franchise cornerstone Robinson Cano, as both have a similar build and work ethic, Moncada has a long way to come before claiming the title of one of MLB's best players, but projects to be a .280 hitter with 20-25 big fly's per year during his peak seasons at the major league level.
Kopech brings a 105 mph fastball to the table, with a devastating curve that makes for a brilliant one-two punch for a pitcher of his caliber. The question going forward for Kopech and the White Sox is helping to deliver a third pitch that separates Kopech's overall game and solidifies his ability to stick as a rotation candidate in the longterm. Tall, skinny and eager, Kopech has risen through the prospect rankings since being selected in the first round back in 2014, and has amassed 2.60 ERA since being drafted. With 172 strikeouts over 135 innings pitched in his first three years of pro-ball, Kopech has the necessary swing-and-miss stuff to his game that will help him to eventual materialize into a projected middle-of-the-rotation starter, if not fearsome no. 2 behind Jose Quintana in the long run, if Quintana isn't dealt. With the extreme velocity, and the overpowering stuff and movement, Kopech does run into the trouble of locating pitches, and walking too many batters. Some outings will see Kopech permit upwards of five walks, which kills pitch counts and tires bullpens. For Kopechs sake, he, as well as the White Sox coaching know that going forward, and in his development, a large focus will be put on helping him to become a pitcher, and not just a thrower. As seen by Nathan Eovaldi, Yordano Ventura, and Michael Foltynewicz, high-octane gas can be hit if its thrown straight, and all three have posted middling results, even thought they are regarded as some of the hardest throwers in the game today. Chicago will look to groom Kopech into another Chris Sale, in that velocity isn't everything, and by diversifying a pitchers arsenal, and mixing pitches, it can go a long way into making an a formidable big league starter.
So, at the end of the day, the Boston Red Sox gave up the farm to acquire Chris Sale, one of baseballs unheralded and best pitchers, while significantly impacting the longterm future of the organization. Dombrowski already had a rotation that delivered a post-season berth this year, led by American League Cy-Young Rick Porcello, and recently signed ace left-hander David Price, who received a $217 million pact to now pitch as Boston's potential no. 3 starter. The price was always going to be high to get Sale, but the question came down to who was willing to dish out their future for an immediate opening at gaining an easier path to the World Series. White Sox fans should be eccentric, while Red Sox fans should be livid at Dombrowski's gratuitous moves that are proving his disregard for premium bluechip prospects. Boston has benefited in the present in acquiring Sale, and Chicago has helped bolster their longterm infield and pitching situations.
This trade was seen as inevitable for quite sometime, and the makings and conversations of it finally came to fruition. The upcoming season will gently exhibit which team benefited more from this blockbuster deal, and the longterm ramifications both organizations look to face will be studied under a magnifying glass by both fans and the media looking to justify their teams return in this deal. The tables will now turn to see whether fellow-lefty Jose Quintana is dealt this winter as well, and what franchise changing return Rick Hahn and co. may look to fetch in the near future.
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