White Sox Make A Great Trade And Instantly Blow It

The White Sox just lost two out of three against the Oakland Athletics, but they were in each loss and they could have gone either way. But, right before the series started, they made a fantastic move, adding Gage Workman in a trade with the Cubs.

While that was a great move and one that could pay off for the White Sox, it was the corresponding move that was head scratching. When they added Gage Workman to the White Sox active roster, they designated Nick Maton for assignment.

This was an interesting move considering Jacob Amaya is still on the roster, who has been considerably worse than Maton has this season.

When you compare the stats, Maton was hitting .173, but had a .295 OBP, which was one of the highest on the team. Amaya is only hitting .080 with a .109 OBP. While Maton's average probably isn't where he wanted it to be, he was hitting considerably better than Amaya.

Additionally, Maton has the positionally versatility to play the outfield in addition to every position in the infield. Amaya has only played second and shortstop in his short major league career. On top of that, Amaya has accounted for -.9 WAR while Maton is at 0.

Maton also provided more in terms of power, as he has two homeruns to Amaya's zero. The White Sox desperately need power bats, especially lefties, and while Maton isn't necessarily a power hitter, he provides much more power than Amaya does.

Nick Maton. Pride of Chatham, IL 🚀 pic.twitter.com/JrXa0Ey7yF

— White Sox on CHSN (@CHSN_WhiteSox) April 2, 2025

While Maton was in no way playing like an all-star to start the season, he was playing significantly better than Amaya to this point and deserves to be rostered over him.

While the White Sox made a fantastic move to acquire Workman, as he showed a ton of potential in Spring Training, the White Sox had to follow it up with a head scratching move. Amaya continues to get consistent at-bats at shortstop while having the 7th worst WAR in the major leagues.

According to the Scott Merkin, Maton cleared waivers and will be playing in Charlotte, so if Amaya continues this trajectory, there is still a chance for Maton to get his spot back. However, this move may be a moot point, as it is likely that Josh Rojas should take Amaya's roster spot when he returns from injury.

Regardless of what happens in the future with Amaya, the White Sox sent the wrong message by DFA'ing Maton over Amaya, as he has played significantly better than Amaya, and there were plenty of shortstop options on the team, including Maton.