Dylan Cease's Asking Price Just Skyrocketed

It was rumored that the White Sox were close to trading Dylan Cease right before the Winter Meetings, but they started pulling back to let the market develop. This will likely turn out to be a good idea, as the return the Tampa Bay Rays received in the Tyler Glasnow trade highlights how much the White Sox can get for Dylan Cease.

Tampa Bay traded Glasnow and outfielder Manuel Margot to the Los Angeles Dodgers in return for Ryan Pepiot and Jonny Deluca. This was a fantastic return for Tampa Bay, as they were able to shed a significant amount of salary while getting two young and promising players that will be ready for the major leagues in 2024, allowing them to still be competitive.

This might seem like an overpay for the Dodgers, as they also signed Glasnow to a four-year deal totaling roughly 110 million. This was a lot to give up for Glasnow, as he is an expensive, injury prone, pitcher that will be 31 years old this summer.

Don't get me wrong, when healthy, Glasnow is a very effective pitcher. The problem is, he hasn't been healthy. Since coming into the league in 2016, he has pitched over 100 innings just two separate seasons. That is not great for someone you are committing 25 million+ a season for.

Glasnow has had multiple arm injuries, which does not bode well for his long term success with the Dodgers, which makes this trade seem like an overpay. Last year, over 120 innings Glasnow pitched to a 3.5 ERA over 21 starts. He had a 2.0 WAR. Glasnow has never placed in the MVP voting or any Cy Young voting. He could have in both 2019 and 2021 but injuries cut those seasons short.

The addition of Margot to the trade isn't significant as he is solid, but profiles more as a fourth outfielder. He is quite expensive for the production he brings, so he was simply a salary dump in the trade to give the Dodgers more depth in the outfield.

At this point, Dylan Cease holds a significant amount more of value to a club that could trade for him. He is much cheaper for the next two years and he is about 2.5 years younger than Glasnow. He is also the complete opposite in terms of reliability. Cease has been one of the best workhorses in the league since he came into the league. He led the league in starts in both 2021 and 2023 and had 32 starts in 2022. Plus, at this point Cease has more MVP and Cy Young votes as well. On top of this, Cease has been much better and more available than Glasnow, making him more valuable in a trade.

This bodes well, as if Cease is more valuable in a trade, the Glasnow trade is going to help the Sox out significantly. Despite all the shortcomings of Glasnow, the Rays still got two very good young players in return.

The Dodgers sent over Ryan Pepiot and Jonny Deluca. Pepiot is a 26 year old starting pitcher who recently graduated off the top-100 prospect list. He is under team control for the next 5 years, as he has two years before he even enters arbitration.

Pepiot had a great 2023, as he had a 2.14 ERA in 42 innings. This is a small sample size for him, but he looked very good in that span. This is a great pickup for the Rays, as he will be in their rotation for the foreseeable future and could be better than Glasnow for a fraction of the price. This is a great pickup for the Rays, as he could potentially be a front line starter.

Deluca on the other hand performed well in his short time in the majors in 2023. He is also under team control until 2030 for a very cheap price, giving the Rays exactly what they want. In 42 at-bats, he hit .262 with two homeruns, six RBIs, and one stolen base. Again, a small sample size but he is a very promising young player. He will likely slot in a spot in the outfield everyday for the Rays and get a chance to show his potential.

This was a great deal for the Rays and it lays the foundation for an absolute haul in any Dylan Cease trade, as he has significantly more value than Glasnow. With this being the most recent starting pitcher trade, the Sox should easily get 2-3 top or former top 100 prospects that are ready to play in the majors and maybe a sweetener. Thank you Los Angeles.