White Sox Are Now Listening To Offers On Dylan Cease

The Chicago White Sox appear to have had a sudden change of heart. According to Ken Rosenthal the White Sox are listening to offers on Dylan Cease and everyone else on their roster. 

This comes just days after Bob Nightengale reported that teams keep asking for Dylan Cease and Aaron Bummer but the White Sox are keeping them. 

However, Rosenthal believes that the White Sox would be willing to move him at the right price. The pressure on buyers is rising as the 5 p.m. CT Tuesday deadline looms. He writes in The Atheltic: 

“The perception among many in the industry is that Cease and center fielder Luis Robert Jr. remain all but untouchable. But some rival executives see the White Sox’s willingness to entertain offers as an opening, however small
In the White Sox’s view, nothing has changed. They are simply doing their due diligence, staying open-minded, assessing the values of players and what might be possible. a trade of cease, a 2022 American League Cy Young finalist who is under club control for two additional seasons, would require a massive return” 

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Cease would demand a huge haul, especially considering the returns they already got for rental pitchers Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez. There are not many quality arms available and Cease is under team control for two more seasons.

The Cincinnati Reds, Baltimore Orioles, and Houston Astros all stand out as teams looking for starting pitching. The Reds and Orioles have the prospects to make a deal for Cease happen while the Astros have shown they are willing to go big game hunting given their recent interest in Justin Verlander. 

If Cease is indeed available he could be one of the most coveted arms on the market given his age and talent. 

Cease is coming off a historic season where he ranked second in the American League in ERA (2.20), strikeouts (227), opponent batting average (.190), and hits per nine innings (6.16). He also ranked third in the MLB in strikeout percentage (.304), strikeouts per nine innings (11.10) and slugging percentage (3.06). 

His 2.20 ERA was the lowest by a White Sox starter since Chris Sale in 2014 while his 227 strikeouts were the eighth most in franchise history. 

The 27-year-old right-hander has taken a step back this season. In 22 starts he’s posted a 4.15 ERA with 143 strikeouts and a 1.34 WHIP. However, he still ranks near the top of the league in strikeout rate, whiff rate, fastball velocity and fastball spin. 

Max Scherzer landed the Mets a top-100 prospect in Luisangel Acuna, from the Rangers. The Mets had to pay $36 million to get the deal done. Cease is much cheaper so the White Sox should be able to net an even greater return. 

They already got a top 100 prospect from the Angels, catcher Edgar Quero, along with left-hander Ky Bush. There is also no pressure for the White Sox to move Cease which adds to their leverage. If they are not overwhelmed by a return they can hold onto him and possibly try to move him again in the offseason or keep him as the ace of their staff if they want to compete in 2024.