On Friday, the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago White Sox made an intriguing trade. The Dodgers and White Sox have reached an agreement on a trade that would send AJ Pollock to Chicago in exchange for Craig Kimbrel.
Given the rarity of trades in MLB, especially for a reliever and an outfielder, this is one of the offseason’s more intriguing transactions. According to sources, neither team will be providing money or draft picks.
Grades For Each Team
Below, we will go over a grade for both teams.
Dodgers: B+
The acquisition of Craig Kimbrel by the Los Angeles Dodgers is an interesting move. Given the Dodgers’ decision to not keep Kenley Jansen, this is a fantastic addition to an already star-studded roster.
They won’t just have Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Cody Bellinger, and a slew of other players on their roster. They will also have a bullpen that includes Craig Kimbrel, Blake Treinen, Daniel Hudson, and Brusdar Graterol, with Dustin May, Danny Duffy, Tommy Kahnle, and Phil Bickford anticipated to return at some time throughout the year.
Even before this trade, the Dodgers were unquestionably going to be the favorites heading into the season.
White Sox: B
The White Sox, on the other hand, benefited greatly from this. Given that Liam Hendriks will remain their closer, adding a guy like Pollock, who can get on base at a high level and has proven to be an above-average pro throughout his career, makes sense from their standpoint.
It’s usually a good move for a team that has struggled in the postseason to go out and get a player with plenty of postseason experience. AJ Pollock hit .297 in 384 at-bats last season, and he also hit 21 home runs.
Given that he won’t have as much support behind him in Chicago due to their lineup, it’ll be fascinating to see what kind of production he can put forth, but he should still be able to be the serviceable pro that he has been throughout his career.
Both of these teams are among the best in baseball, and they both got a lot better on Friday.
Add The Sports Daily to your Google News Feed!
