It isn’t unheard of for the Chicago Cubs and White Sox to make trades, but could the teams link up for a blockbuster deal involving Garrett Crochet?
According to MLB Network’s Jon Morosi, that possibility exists, and the Cubs could be kicking the tires on making a deal happen.
. @MLB trade market update:
— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) December 4, 2024
The Cubs and Reds are among the viable candidates to acquire White Sox ace Garrett Crochet.
Of note, the Cubs and White Sox have made 4 trades since 2017, beginning with the José Quintana deal. @MLBNetwork
“The Cubs and Reds are among the viable candidates to acquire White Sox ace Garrett Crochet,” Morosi reported Wednesday.
The Cubs currently have one of the top-ranked farm systems in baseball, and could part with several hitting prospects to sweeten the pot for any deal involving the White Sox.
Fans of both teams are certainly aware of the recent trade history between the clubs. The biggest trade of all occurred in 2017 when the Cubs acquired pitcher José Quintana from the White Sox in exchange for four prospects, including Dylan Cease and Eloy Jimenez.
Cease went on to be a Cy Young Award finalist for the White Sox, with a 43-35 record and a 3.83 ERA in five seasons on the South Side.
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The Cubs and White Sox also linked up on a 2021 trade that sent closer Craig Kimbrel to the South Side in exchange for Codi Heuer and Nick Madrigal.
Since 2000, the Cubs and White Sox have made five trades with one another, with four taking place in the last seven years.
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All of that being said, it’s unclear just how far the Cubs will be willing to go to acquire Crochet. They do have several rotation pieces in place, and they have a handful of young pitchers in their farm system, but Crochet’s stats last season, as he posted a 3.58 ERA and struck out 209 batters in 146 innings of work, certainly would make him arguably the top hurler in that rotation.
There are concerns about Crochet’s durability, as the 146 innings he pitched in 2024 were by far the most he’s thrown in his career. He also struggled badly in 13 appearances during the 2023 season, so there are also concerns about whether he’ll be able to repeat last year’s performance.
At any rate, there are several other teams who would likely be involved in a Crochet sweepstakes, including the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox.
Discussions around Crochet will likely heat up around the winter meetings, which begin on Monday in Dallas.
