WHITE SOX HEADLINES OF DECEMBER 8, 2016 “White Sox land Giolito, 2 more prospects for Eaton” … Scott Merkin, MLB.com “Moncada welcomes expectations awaiting White Sox” … Scott Merkin, MLB.com “Kopech next in long line of Texas fireballers” … Phil Rogers, MLB.com “In rebuild mode, Hahn has 5 assets to deal” … Richard Justice, MLB.com “In span of day, White Sox system skyrockets” … Jonathan Mayo, MLB.com “With another blockbuster trade, White Sox GM Rick Hahn has become … the prospect collector” … Michael Clair, MLB.com “Much-needed face lift has vastly improved White Sox farm system overnight” … Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago “White Sox manager Rick Renteria won’t be fazed by rebuild” … Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago “White Sox deal Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, two others” … Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago “Chris Sale: Trade from White Sox ‘bittersweet,’ ready to move on with Red Sox” … Dan Hayes, CSN Chicago “The Chris Sale trade had a major impact on the 2017 World Series odds” … Tony Andracki, CSN Chicago “Yoan Moncada ‘thrilled’ to reunite with Jose Abreu on White Sox” … Paul Roumeliotis, CSN Chicago “Scouting reports on Yoan Moncada, Luis Giolito and newly acquired White Sox prospects” … #WhiteSoxTalk, CSN Chicago “White Sox send Adam Eaton to Nationals for top rated MLB pitching prospect” … Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune “Meet the new White Sox guys: Prospects acquired in the Adam Eaton trade” … Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune “Chris Sale ‘as excited as anybody’ for the chance to contend with Red Sox” … Colleen Kane, Chicago Tribune “Reality TV star declares ‘I like Chicago’ after BF traded to White Sox” … Tracy Swartz, Chicago Tribune “White Sox select pitcher Dylan Covey in Rule 5 Draft” … Daryl Van Schouwen, Chicago Sun-Times “White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nats for top prospects” … Daryl Van Schouwen, Chicago Sun-Times “White Sox continue rebuild, trade Eaton to Nationals for prospects” … Scot Gregor, Daily Herald “No. 1 prospect Moncada feeling good about joining White Sox” … Scot Gregor, Daily Herald “Imrem: Weighing in on Sox moves, Bears blues and Cubs news” … Mike Imrem, Daily Herald “Eaton is done, but White Sox are still hungry for more trades” … Sahadev Sharma, The Athletic “Red to White Sox: Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech excited for change” … Lauren Comitor, The Athletic “The only way for the White Sox to conquer risk is to keep selling” … James Fegan, The Athletic “Sheehan: Analyzing both sides of the Chris Sale trade” … Joe Sheehan, The Athletic “Chris Sale’s White Sox journey ends in unfulfilled promise” … Cee Angi, The Athletic “Levine: Rick Hahn, White Sox transform farm system in span of 30 hours” … Bruce Levine, CBS Chicago “The Bernstein Brief: Rick Hahn’s Sci-Fi superpowers” … Dan Bernstein, CBS Chicago “White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, 2 more prospects” … Staff, CBS Chicago “White Sox take RHP Dylan Covey in Rule 5 Draft” … Staff, CBS Chicago “White Sox nailing the art of the sale” … Jayson Stark, ESPN.com “MLB Rumor Central: White Sox in search of young catcher?” … Nick Ostiller, ESPN.com “Nats trade prospect Lucas Giolito to White Sox in deal for Adam Eaton” … Staff, ESPN.com “How the White Sox won the Winter Meetings” … Jeff Passan, Yahoo Sports

“White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, two others” … Mike Oz, Yahoo Sports “Nationals acquire outfielder Adam Eaton in trade with White Sox” … Bob Nightengale, USA Today “Nationals pay high price, but see ‘arrow going up’ in acquiring Adam Eaton” … Steve Gardner, USA Today “MLB Hot Stove: White Sox’s rebuild gets off to a big start with Sale, Eaton trades” … CBS Sports, USA Today “White Sox trade Adam Eaton in blockbuster deal” … James Neveau, NBC Chicago “White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, prospects” … Staff, Sports Illustrated “White Sox send Adam Eaton to Nationals for three top prospects” … Lindsey Foltin, FOX Sports “Nationals acquire center fielder Adam Eaton from White Sox” … Kevin Leitzell, Washington Times “What are the Washington Nationals thinking?” … Josh Benjamin, Forbes “White Sox skipper sees star in Moncada” … Sam Dykstra, MiLB.com “Washington Nationals acquire Adam Eaton from Chicago White Sox” … David Driver, Sports Xchange

White Sox land Giolito, 2 more prospects for Eaton By Scott Merkin / MLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- Here's a sentence White Sox fans have not heard in quite some time: Top 10 Minor League system. But that is the new reality for the franchise, according to MLBPipeline.com's Jonathan Mayo, after the White Sox acquired right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning from the Nationals for right fielder Adam Eaton on Wednesday. The trio represented the Nos. 1 (Giolito), 3 (Lopez) and 6 (Dunning) prospects in the Nationals' system. Thanks in part to Tuesday's acquisition of infielder Yoan Moncada and right-handed pitcher Michael Kopech from Boston for left-hander Chris Sale, the White Sox have, in a span of about 24 hours, added the Nos. 1, 3, 30 and 38 overall prospects in the game, according to MLBPipeline. White Sox general manager Rick Hahn doesn't get caught up in such rankings, especially considering the caliber of talent he had to trade to acquire this youthful group. "It's nice for our fans to see, so it's a little more relatable in this day and age, when they're able to pick up a scouting report or video of a prospect, and they're a little more familiar names than they would be to, perhaps, the casual fan 15 years ago," Hahn said. "The weird part for me is -- [White Sox executive vice president] Kenny [Williams] and I were talking about this this morning -- as we walk around here, you have a lot of people congratulating us. "Kindly -- well-intentioned congratulations from scouts or executives of other clubs, and it's a little awkward for us because, yeah, we traded Chris Sale. "That's not something you feel great about," Hahn said. "That's not a feather in your cap, so to speak. But this is where we are, and I think people understand both within the game and certainly [based on] the reaction we've heard from White Sox fans over the last 24 hours. They get this is a necessary step in the process." Based on White Sox fans' euphoric reaction on social media, they understand. And beyond the congratulations for Hahn and Williams as they took their unintended lobby victory lap, so do people in the game. "There are going to be some painful spots along the way, like when we have to say goodbye to important players like Chris and Adam," Hahn said. "But hopefully, they're starting to see some of the long-term benefit and what the goal of the plan is." Giolito and Lopez will start as part of the Triple-A Charlotte rotation, with Dunning opening at the Class A level. Eaton's strong offensive and defensive numbers, along with his club control through 2021 via two club options, certainly raised Chicago's asking price. The Nationals were in on the negotiations for Sale, and Washington general manager Mike Rizzo and Hahn realized that no players were off the table. Those discussions led to the Eaton deal coming together fairly quickly over the past two days. The White Sox rebuilding process has grown bittersweet for Hahn, he has said repeatedly during the Winter Meetings, and it's not close to finished. Players such as Jose Quintana, Jose Abreu, David Robertson and Nate Jones figure to draw interest over the next few weeks or few months, or even into next offseason. "What's going to dictate the pace is the value of our players, the potential return we get and how that fits with our long-term plan," Hahn said. "So there may well be nothing else while we're down here. There

may not be anything else until after the holidays or through the [non-waiver] Trade Deadline, or into next offseason. "We're taking a longer-term view. We're going to do this deliberately and with reason and logic, and react accordingly with the market." Giolito and Lopez should compete for spots in an unsettled White Sox rotation. But while Giolito is ranked among the top prospects in baseball and Lopez also has a solid Minor League track record, both should open '17 on waivers in mixed formats after struggling with the Nats a year ago. In Chicago's outfield, Eaton's departure may open up a starting role for prospect Charlie Tilson -- a fleet-footed 24-year-old with solid contact skills who could help owners in 15-team leagues.

Moncada welcomes expectations awaiting White Sox By Scott Merkin / MLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- It didn't take long for Yoan Moncada -- the face of the White Sox future, acquired from Boston with three other prospects for Chris Sale on Tuesday -- to get in touch with Jose Abreu, the face of the White Sox present. "Abreu texted me yesterday," Moncada said through translator Billy Russo during a conference call on Wednesday. "He welcomed me to the White Sox organization. We were talking a little bit about this opportunity for both of us to play again. "I can reconnect with Abreu, and he's a person who is going to give me some advice. He will be like a tutor for me." Moncada and Abreu played together with Cienfuegos in Cuba during the 2012 season. But before the switch-hitting infielder looks to Abreu for season-long advice, he'd better make sure the first baseman, who has accumulated at least 25 home runs and 100 RBIs in each of his first three big league seasons, remains with the White Sox. General manager Rick Hahn has already added four of the Top 40 prospects in baseball, according to MLBPipeline, and seven in all through two Winter Meetings trades. Included in that haul is Moncada, who's No. 1 overall. On Wednesday evening, approximately three hours following the introduction of Moncada and Michael Kopech, who also was part of the return from Boston, right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning joined the group via a trade that sent outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals. Getting traded at such a young age is a jolt to a player. Kopech was going through an offseason workout on Tuesday and went into a physical therapy session as a member of the Boston Red Sox but left as a member of the White Sox. After processing the moment, the right-hander, who boasts a 100-mph fastball, is glad to be on the ground floor of the White Sox rebuild. "As far as I know, this trade was like the starting block for that," Kopech said. "I'm excited about it. I'm sure they are excited about it, to have this rebuilding year, or years. "Any time you get young talent, we're all wanting to compete and get to the same spot. Once you get there, you all want to win. That's the competitiveness in all of us." Kopech felt as if he put too much pressure on himself in 2016 and strengthened his mental resolve in the process. Moncada is excited to be reunited with his Cuban countryman but is also focused on being the best player he can be in making his way toward the Majors.

"Right now, I have the opportunity to represent the White Sox organization and be one of the key players in this process," said Moncada, who hit .211 over 20 plate appearances in the Majors this past season but will start 2017 at Triple-A Charlotte. "I feel good, and I hope this pays off for the team, too."

Kopech next in long line of Texas fireballers By Phil Rogers / MLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- Michael Kopech threw a 105-mph fastball in June, as you may have heard. But here's what the accounts from that Carolina League outing did not include: He was throwing an easy 105, if such a thing is possible. "It wasn't so much different than some guys throwing 95,'' Kopech said on Wednesday from his home in Texas. "I wouldn't say [throwing 105] feels any different than throwing 95, 90 or whatever the case may be.'' It sure looks different. It even sounds different. For the White Sox, Kopech's fastball could make a huge difference in an intriguing overhaul. The Sox formally launched their rebuilding campaign with the Tuesday trade that sent ace left-hander Chris Sale to the Red Sox for MLBPipeline.com's No. 1 overall prospect Yoan Moncada, Kopech and two others. They followed that up with another eye-popping deal on Wednesday. General manager Rick Hahn and the Sox's busy front office acquired Lucas Giolito, ranked as the No. 1 pitching prospect in MLB, and two other potential top-of-the-rotation right-handers -- Reynaldo Lopez and 2016 first-round Draft pick Dane Dunning -- from the Nationals for outfielder Adam Eaton. Hahn still has several other valuable pieces to deal, including Jose Quintana, Todd Frazier, David Robertson and, for the right package, Jose Abreu. When the Nationals and Red Sox trained in Florida for Spring Training, they talked about Giolito and Moncada like guys headed for Cooperstown. It's hard to believe that Hahn could even ask about them in trades, let alone actually get them. It helps if you have dozens of conversations. And Hahn and his guys have had hundreds of them as they studied their options. "I think it was a couple weeks ago when [Nationals general manager] Mike [Rizzo] said, 'I know the caliber of players we're talking about; you can't offend me with anybody you ask about,''' Hahn said. "When you're talking about trading Chris Sale or a player like Eaton, you wouldn't be doing your job if you didn't ask about everybody.'' After the Sale trade, the immediate buzz was more about Moncada, the powerfully built Cuban infielder who has been a known commodity in prospect circles since the Red Sox spent $63 million to win a bidding war for his services in February 2015. But when you take a step back to weigh the full impact of that deal, it's clear that Kopech deserves his own headlines. Ranked by MLBPipeline.com as the sixth-best pitching prospect, and No. 30 overall, Kopech has the chance to become a top young power arm. At age 20, he's the complete Noah Syndergaard starter kit. He's a few inches shorter than his fellow Texan at 6-foot-3, but attacks hitters in similar fashion, with his long, blond hair flying in the wake of his delivery. Kopech does not run from the comparison.

"I've heard that before,'' he said. "I'm a fan of him. I like his style. I like that he gets after it in the weight room, that he's a hard worker. It's hard not to compare 6-foot-plus [pitchers], long, blond hair to another one. There aren't many of us. At the same time, I don't want that to be my ceiling, no disrespect to him. He's a great pitcher. But I want to set my own limits. I'd like to see what those are for myself.'' Syndergaard, the 38th pick in the 2010 Draft, pitched for Double-A Binghamton when he was 20. Two years later, he won a start in the World Series for the Mets, and this season was a 23-year-old ace and first-time All-Star. Kopech, the 33rd pick in the 2014 Draft after pitching for Mount Pleasant High School in northeast Texas, will probably start next season at Double-A Birmingham. Based on the progress he showed in the Arizona Fall League, he has a chance to develop as quickly as Syndergaard. Like Clayton Kershaw, Corey Kluber and Jake Arrieta, both Syndergaard and Kopech somehow made it out of Texas without having been steered by coaches into college football careers. It's not easy when you're built like those guys. "It wasn't easy to escape football,'' Kopech said. "I was asked every year to come play football. That's just how Texas is. Football's No. 1 and baseball's tied for second with every other sport.'' Kopech follows the likes of Nolan Ryan, Roger Clemens and Kerry Wood in the line of intimidating right-handers from Texas. He tried the Red Sox's patience with a 50-game suspension for using amphetamines and a hand injury he suffered in a fight with a teammate last spring, but now seems determined to prove he will be worth the earlier trouble. He struck out 86 in 56 1/3 innings in two Class A leagues in 2016, after his hand healed. In the Fall League, he put together a 2.01 ERA over six starts, striking out 26 in 22 1/3 innings. He's coming into his own at the right time for his new organization, like Syndergaard did after the Mets acquired him from the Blue Jays in a trade for R.A. Dickey. "I've always kind of thrown hard,'' Kopech said. "A lot of it's genetics and a lot of it's hard work. I've looked at those guys [like Ryan], hard-throwing Texans or whatever, those guys were my idols growing up. I always wanted to throw hard and it worked out to where I did. Hopefully I become another name like [those]. I want to be mentioned with those guys one day.'' Being the next Syndergaard would be a nice start.

In rebuild mode, Hahn has 5 assets to deal By Richard Justice / MLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- White Sox general manager Rick Hahn is off to a great start. In trading Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, he has already acquired four of MLB's top 40 prospects in the entire game. Maybe the first step -- the trading of Sale to the Red Sox -- was the hardest. Now, Hahn is full speed ahead into a rebuild that will reshape the White Sox around youth and energy. Change will come quickly as Hahn continues to find new homes for his best players. When he's done, the White Sox will have taken a huge step toward an exciting future. As a public service -- and what are we here for if not to serve -- let's help the process along by suggesting destinations for five more White Sox. Here goes: Jose Quintana, LHP Age: 27

2016 stats: 13-12, 3.20 ERA, 208 innings, 181 strikeouts, 1.163 WHIP Contract status: Signed for two more seasons ($7 million, $8.85 million), plus two team options ($10.5 million, $11.5 million). Best fit: Astros Quintana would be a perfect finishing touch to a tremendous offseason remake. Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow has already made his team a consensus favorite to win the American League West by adding designated hitter/outfielder Carlos Beltran, outfielder Josh Reddick, catcher Brian McCann and right-hander Charlie Morton to a team that won 84 games. In four full Major League seasons, Quintana has averaged 204 innings with a 3.34 ERA. He's signed through a team-friendly contract for four more seasons. The Astros are one of the teams that has the prospects to satisfy the White Sox. Jose Abreu, 1B/DH Age: 29 2016 stats: .293 batting average, 25 home runs, 100 RBIs, .820 OPS Contract status: Arbitration-eligible next three seasons, then a free agent. Best fit: Rangers Abreu is the perfect addition for a team that needs a middle-of-the-order bat. To put him in a lineup with Adrian Beltre, Jonathan Lucroy and Shin-Soo Choo would deepen a lineup that is already very good, and the front office doesn't seem inclined to trust Joey Gallo as its everyday first baseman just yet. General manager Jon Daniels has a deep enough farm system to make this deal, and because Abreu is still three seasons from free agency, this is far from a short-term fix. Todd Frazier, 3B Age: 30 2016 stats: .225 batting average, 40 home runs, 98 RBIs, .767 OPS Contract status: Arbitration-eligible in 2017, then a free agent. Best fit: Dodgers This is a one-year arbitration case that would allow the Dodgers to focus on signing a free-agent closer if they are uncomfortable with the money it would take to re-sign third baseman Justin Turner. Turner may be a slightly better defensive player, but Frazier's 40 home runs and outgoing team-first personality would play well in any clubhouse. David Robertson, closer Age: 31 2016 stats: 37 saves, 7 blown saves, 62 appearances, 62 1/3 innings, 3.47 ERA, 1.364 WHIP Contract status: $12 million in 2017, $13 million in '18. Best fit: Yankees Robertson's contract looks like a bargain in the context of the prices closers are getting in 2017. To bring him back to the Bronx would pair him with Dellin Betances and create a bit of the super bullpen that Yankees had with Andrew Miller, Aroldis Chapman and Betances last season. Nate Jones, RHP Age: 30 2016 stats: 71 appearances, 70 2/3 innings, 3 saves, 2.29 ERA, 0.892 WHIP. Contract status: Signed for 2017 ($1.9 million) and '18 ($3.95 million). Team options for '19 ($4.65 million) and '20 ($5.15 million). Mutual option for '21 ($6 million). Best fit: Everywhere This will be Hahn's easiest call. At least a dozen teams -- and probably more -- would love to have a 30-year-old reliever who can handle a variety of roles and is signed to a reasonable contract for the next four seasons. The Nationals, Mets, Rockies, Angels, Mariners and Royals are among the teams that almost certainly will be interested.

In span of day, White Sox system skyrockets Organization’s Minor League depth among Top 10 in game after 2 blockbusters By Jonathan Mayo / MLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- For the second time in as many days, the Chicago White Sox seriously upgraded their farm system by unloading an established Major Leaguer. On Wednesday, it was outfielder Adam Eaton getting shipped to the Nationals for a trio of right-handed pitching prospects. Not just any pitching prospects. Lucas Giolito is the highest-ranked pitching prospect on MLBPipeline.com's Top 100 at No. 3 overall. Reynaldo Lopez isn't that far behind, at No. 38 overall. Dane Dunning was a first-round pick from the 2016 Draft who, while having a lower profile than his trade-mates, has the chance to be a very good big league starter. If it seems like the White Sox did well in this deal, it's because they did. Yes, Eaton is a very solid player with an extremely team-friendly contract. But the prevailing thoughts around baseball were very positive in terms of Chicago's haul. In terms of pure stuff, Giolito is still considered to be the best pitching prospect in the game. His fastball has sat in the mid- to upper 90s in the past, though his velocity dipped at times in 2016, due mostly to some mechanical issues he seemed to address by season's end. Giolito's breaking ball, a true power curve, has also routinely been graded as the best among all pitching prospects in baseball. His changeup has improved and is his third above-average pitch. More often than not, Giolito has very good command, though he struggled with that at times in 2016, particularly in the big leagues. Giolito's Major League struggles to maintain his elite velocity and his command, which came in a small sample size, led some to believe that perhaps the right-hander's star had faded a bit. But one evaluator from an organization not involved in the trade said he didn't believe that to be true and couldn't believe what Chicago had gotten in return for Eaton. In many ways, Lopez was a more effective pitcher than Giolito in 2016. At one point, there were concerns Lopez might end up in the bullpen because of some cross-fire in his delivery. Those worries have greatly been assuaged, as he's made effective adjustments and filled the strike zone well with his plus fastball, excellent curve and improved changeup. Both he and Giolito should make major contributions to Chicago's big league rotation in 2017. Dunning was part of a 2016 Florida Gators staff that was so deep that he couldn't crack the rotation, though he would have been a weekend starter in just about any other college program in the country. While he pitched largely out of the 'pen as a junior, Dunning absolutely profiles as a starter, and the White Sox definitely coveted him as the third piece in this deal. Not as overpowering as Giolito or Lopez, Dunning nonetheless has the chance to have three pitches that are at least Major League average, with more than enough stuff to be a middle-of-the-rotation type in the future. In a span of slightly more than 24 hours, the White Sox have pulled off a renovation that would make the producers of "Extreme Makeover" extremely jealous. The organization has added four players currently in the Top 40 among all prospects in the game, thanks to the Eaton and Chris Sale deals, and now has six new members on its own Top 10 list. The first four -- Yoan Moncada, Giolito, Michael Kopech and Lopez -- are as good as any organization's top four. For years, the White Sox had been perceived as having one of the weakest farm systems in baseball, often using prospects to bring in big league talent in an attempt to compete in the American League Central. Sure, the team has developed and produced big leaguers, but there has been a lack of impact-level talent and depth, keeping the franchise in the bottom third among the game's 30 farm systems, if not the bottom five. With two trades, there is no question Chicago now has a top-10 system.

The talent is also distributed throughout the organization's system. Moncada, Giolito and Lopez all figure to spend much, if not all, of the season in the big leagues, perhaps along with 2015 first-round pick Carson Fulmer. Kopech is a year away, with Luis Alexander Basabe perhaps not too far behind him, while 2016 first-rounder Zack Collins could be on the same path. Dunning might be ready by the start of 2019. As is always the case with prospects, such promise is meaningful only if they perform at the highest level. But at least on paper, this reboot gives the White Sox the chance not only to be competitive in the future, but to have prolonged success as the pipeline continues to feed this talent up to Chicago.

With another blockbuster trade, White Sox GM Rick Hahn has become … the prospect collector By Michael Clair / CUT4 MLB.com | December 8th, 2016 Among all the trades and signings at the Winter Meetings this week -- with Jorge Soler and Wade Davis changing teams and Carlos Gomez returning to Texas -- there has been one spectre looming at the edges. One name whose mere mention surely sends shivers down the spines of scouting directors: Rick Hahn. That's right. Just as the dreaded Krampus is rumored to take children in a basket, leaving a silver branch in return, the White Sox GM has been stealing away top prospects and surrendering star players in their stead. It started on Tuesday when the White Sox traded ace starter Chris Sale to the Red Sox. In exchange, Hahn plucked MLB Pipeline's No. 1 prospect Yoan Moncada from the Red Sox's brimming system. Moncada was joined by starters Michael Kopech (No. 30) and Victor Diaz, who struck out over a batter per inning in his full season debut this year. He also acquired 20-year-old outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe. It's no surprise that Moncada led the group, considering that he can do things like this to a baseball: Hahn was back at it on Wednesday. With the defensive wizard Adam Eaton coming off a career year after moving to right field, Hahn traded him to the Nationals. This time the White Sox GM netted Lucas Giolito, baseball's No. 3 overall prospect, Reynaldo Lopez (No. 38) and the Nationals' No. 6-ranked prospect (and clearly an unused Stan Lee character), Dane Dunning. Giolito may be able to step right into the rotation, too. While he struggled in four Major League starts, he decimated Triple-A batters with a 2.17 ERA in 37 1/3 IP after being promoted from Double-A thanks to easy mid-90's heat: With the White Sox now officially in rebuilding mode -- and with Todd Frazier, Jose Quintana and David Robertson among the names that may entice other teams -- it's likely that the trades aren't over. Which means that at the end of the offseason, the White Sox may have every Minor League player. Just look at this chart, which extrapolates this rate of Minor League additions through the rest of the month. There's definitely not enough roster spots for this many players: Description Or, to put it another way, Hahn has done an awfully good (and fast) approximation of the crosstown Cubs: Will the White Sox pull off any more grand Winter Meetings trades before the week is over? Will cautious GMs start locking their doors for fear that Hahn will enter and make an offer they simply can't refuse? These are all things we'll be watching for.

Much-needed face lift has vastly improved White Sox farm system overnight By Dan Hayes / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — Bolstered by a pair of franchise-altering trades, including the Adam Eaton deal on Wednesday, the White Sox totally revamped their farm system overnight. In the span of 29 hours, the White Sox added seven high-caliber minor leaguers to a previously razor thin farm system, including baseball’s top position and pitching prospects. Headed by second baseman Yoan Moncada and right-handed pitcher Lucas Giolito, one of three pitchers acquired from the Washington Nationals on Wednesday in exchange for Eaton, all seven acquisitions are among the team’s top-10 MLB.com prospect list. Wednesday’s additions also include right-handers Reynaldo Lopez, who MLB rates as the No. 38 overall prospect in baseball, and Dane Dunning, Washington’s 2016 first-round pick — a player the White Sox highly coveted at draft time. A day earlier, the White Sox received Moncada, hard-throwing righty Michael Kopech, outfielder Luis Basabe and right-hander Victor Diaz in exchange for five-time All-Star Chris Sale. “We are ecstatic about the return we were able to secure for Adam's services,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “That's a result of hard work by our scouts, the amateur scouts, the background they have done on these players over the number of years, and our international scouts and pro scouts and everybody from the front office targeting what we feel are high-impact potential rotational pieces that will help further our goal of getting ourselves in a position for success.” Last month, one MLB executive suggested the White Sox would have an almost unprecedented talent pool to deal away were they to rebuild. The group was similar to the 1976 Oakland A’s, who tried to sell off a number of stars, including Hall of Famers Reggie Jackson and Rollie Fingers, before they hit free agency only to have most deals overturned. With only two players dealt — arguably their first and third most valuable pieces — the White Sox have already positioned themselves extremely well for the future. Not only have they acquired the two headliners in Giolito and Moncada, they added potentially elite pitching depth to a system that has proven incapable of providing replacement-level talent whenever the White Sox were in need. And their situation should only improve as the White Sox endure what they expect to be a painful, slow rebuild. In an attempt to self-sustain, the White Sox plan to dig deep and continue to trade away valuable major leaguers in an attempt to ensure they limit future instances where they don’t have the pieces to pull off a blockbuster trade or even simply fill a hole when one arises. “The problem with our roster the last year or year before wasn’t the top third or so, certainly wasn’t Sale or Eaton,” Hahn said. “It was the matter of, in my opinion, a lack of 1-25 depth, or even 1-40 depth given some injury issues that every club encounters, and that’s what we’re trying to rectify over an extended period of time. We’re trying to get ourselves in a position where we not only have that high-end impact talent at the top of the roster that we’ve benefited from and that other teams are coveting, but that we also have the depth to survive when you have unfortunate underperformance or injury along the way.” So far the White Sox couldn’t be much happier. There was an audible gasp in the media room (and perhaps throughout the building) on Wednesday when it became clear what the White Sox received in exchange for Eaton and Eaton alone. Even though the White Sox no longer have Eaton or Sale, they still have pitchers Jose Quintana and Nate Jones on team-friendly contracts, 2018 free agents Todd Frazier and Melky Cabrera, slugger Jose Abreu and closer David Robertson to potentially trade. Given that pool, Hahn and the front office believe they can continue to further overhaul a farm system that has resided in the bottom third of baseball for much of the last decade.

“Expectations are high in these deals,” Hahn said. “We expect there to be strong returns for them. We were very pleased with how these first two have gone so far.”

White Sox manager Rick Renteria won’t be fazed by rebuild By Dan Hayes / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- Rick Renteria knew a White Sox rebuild would be a possibility when he took over as manager and he’s not afraid of the challenges it presents. Same as he told them in October, the new White Sox manager said on Day 3 of the Winter Meetings on Wednesday that he’s OK with whatever direction the team chooses to head. Given the events of the past two days, when the White Sox reigned in four elite prospects in pair of blockbuster deals for Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, Renteria has a pretty firm grasp of what’s to come. Shortly after trading they traded Sale to the Boston Red Sox for four minor leaguers on Tuesday, the White Sox acquired three top pitching prospects from the Washington Nationals for Eaton on Wednesday. Despite what promises to be an inexperienced roster in 2017, Renteria plans to take the same open-minded approach into next season as he always has regardless of the makeup of the roster. “We're obviously going to miss Chris,” Renteria said several hours before the Eaton deal was completed. “He was an integral part of our organization and our team. My only concern is obviously whatever players, what group of players I have, those are the ones I have to manage. So at this point, we have what we have right now and we'll see how it continues.” When he hired him on Oct. 3, general manager Rick Hahn said he did so in part because the Renteria could handle a veteran roster equally as well as a youthful one. Hahn mentioned Tuesday that the entire major league coaching staff has been restructured with player development in mind, including the additions of third-base coach Nick Capra and bullpen coach Curt Hasler. Regardless of whether or not the team planned to compete next season, Renteria expected to at least work with some younger players. It’s the way of the world, promoting prospects to the majors with the idea it’s the final step in their development, Renteria said. Renteria didn’t sound as if he’s worried if he was inundated with prospects. “There was talks of the possibility, but there was nothing set in stone at the time obviously,” Renteria said. “Younger players are filtering in a lot sooner than they used to in the past. You still have to continue to teach at the Major League level, and that's one thing that's evident throughout.” Renteria said the key to players young or old is communication. Either way his approach would mostly be the same. “Every human being is the sum total of all their experiences, so you've got to get to know people first, see what it is that motivates them, what kind of clicks with them to get them to act out on certain things that you might have them perform on a more consistent basis,” Renteria said. “I think that baseball has its own language. It's something that is indescribable at times. But working with the younger guys, I relish it. I look forward to it. "But I also look forward to working with older veteran players, too. It's the same. My approach doesn't change a lot, other than you give people with experience their place.”

White Sox deal Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, two others By Dan Hayes / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The White Sox completed another blockbuster deal at the Winter Meetings on Wednesday night sending Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals. One day after they traded Chris Sale to Boston for four minor leaguers, including two elite prospects, the White Sox traded their outstanding leadoff man for three more top prospects, including pitchers Lucas Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez and Washington’s 2016 first-rounder Dane Dunning. In doing so, the club has completely revamped its farm system as all seven players acquired over the two days are part of MLB.com’s top-10 prospect list. And they might not be done. “We are very pleased with the way this has started,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “However, we realize we are far closer to the beginning than we are to the end of this process. This is going to take time. If we had our druthers, we’d have three more of these things while we’re down here. But in reality, our desire to move this thing along is not going to be what dictates the pace. What’s going to dictate the pace is the value of our players, the potential return we get and how that fits with our long-term plan. “The Eaton deal came together because Washington was fairly aggressive, as were other suitors that sort of accelerated the timeframe. We are open and eager for that to happen again, but if it doesn’t, we’ll be patient and move when the time is right.” The Nationals’ top minor leaguer and MLB.com’s third-rated prospect in the game, Giolito was one of the main players included in a reported package for Sale only two days earlier. A first-round draft pick in 2012, the 22-year-old right-hander features an outstanding fastball-curveball combination. Lopez is the No. 38 overall prospect in baseball and Dunning was selected with the 29th pick in the June draft. Giolito is the second top-5 prospect the White Sox have added in two days along with infielder Yoan Moncada, the 2016 minor league player of the year, who came over from Boston in the Sale trade. The White Sox also acquired right-hander Michael Kopech, the 30th overall prospect, in the Sale deal.

Chris Sale: Trade from White Sox ‘bittersweet,’ ready to move on with Red Sox By Dan Hayes / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 There’s no question he’s excited about the chance to pitch for a perennial playoff team in front of Fenway Park crowds deep into October. But Chris Sale described the trade that sent him from the White Sox to the Boston Red Sox as bittersweet on Wednesday morning. On his way out of town, Sale, who was traded Tuesday for four minor leaguers, including two elite prospects, credited the White Sox for their support and belief in him from the outset of his career. But while he wishes he could have won a title on the South Side, Sale also said he’s ready to move on. “It’s exciting for all the reasons I already said,” Sale said. “It’s tough. You build a relationship with these guys and they are like family. Everybody over there is being in your family. You are around these guys probably even more during the year than you are around your family. It’s tough. But knowing what lies ahead makes it a little bit easier for that transition.

“It didn’t work out. I really wish it did. I have nothing but really good things to take from that and I appreciate my time with the White Sox. But I’m looking forward to the next chapter.” After several years of hearing trade speculation, the five-time All-Star said he started to sense the possibility was real a few weeks ago after a conversation with his agent. The chatter began to increase with the start of the Winter Meetings this week and Sale said he was inundated with texts from friends and family in anticipation of where he could be headed. When he learned it was the Red Sox, Sale said was ecstatic to learn he’d be playing for one of the “greatest baseball franchises ever.” “It’s kind of like being monkey in the middle, you’re just glad when you finally get the ball,” Sale said. “It’s hectic. There’s a lot of speculation. There’s story after story and obviously getting flood with text messages from family and friends. Just to have the whole process out the way and to get back to normalcy will be nice.” Many of those messages came from former White Sox teammates. Sale said he and his wife, who is soon due with their second child, spent much of Tuesday looking at old pictures and nostalgia from his White Sox tenure. Though he’s disappointed by the lack of team success with the White Sox, Sale said the team’s support was a critical element to his success. The White Sox drafted Sale with the 13th overall pick in 2010 and he reached the majors later that season. Though he spent the first two seasons in the bullpen, the team’s plan all along was to make Sale a starting pitcher, something others weren’t certain he could handle. Sale has been an All-Star and also finished in the top six in the Cy Young Award vote in each of the five seasons since he became a starter. “It didn’t work out the way we wanted it to in Chicago, but that doesn’t mean there weren’t a lot of great moments,” Sale said. “I had a very good conversation with Rick (Hahn) yesterday. “I was in a situation in 2010, how many teams would have done what they did? It’s hard to say now, but probably not very many. They drafted me in the first round when people had questions. They brought me up to the big leagues really fast and people probably had questions. They threw in the rotation and people clearly had questions. “They were really, they had my back a lot and they gave me opportunities that not a lot of other people would have given me. I’m very thankful for that.”

The Chris Sale trade had a major impact on the 2017 World Series odds By Tony Andracki / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 When the White Sox traded Chris Sale to the Red Sox Tuesday, it shook up the balance of power around Major League Baseball. Wednesday morning, that power shift was present in Bovada's 2017 World Series odds. On Nov. 3 (the day after the World Series ended), the Cubs were the frontrunners for the 2017 World Series at 7/2 odds. The Boston Red Sox were right behind at 9/1. After acquiring Sale, the Red Sox have now bumped up to 11/2 odds to win it all while the Cubs have gone down slightly to 15/4. Here is the complete list of the Top 5 odds, as of Wednesday morning: 1. Cubs - 15/4 2. Red Sox - 11/2 3. Nationals - 9/1 4. Indians - 12/1

5. Astros - 12/1 The Cubs' odds may also see a boost if/when the Wade Davis trade becomes official. On the other hand, the White Sox odds fell from 40/1 the day after the 2016 World Series to 66/1 Wednesday morning after dealing away Sale. Of course, Sale is only one player, but it's more so the Sox trading him away is a clear indication they are not "going for it" in 2017 for the major decrease. If the Sox continue to sell, look for those odds to fall even further. As of Wednesday morning, the Colorado Rockies (before they signed Ian Desmond to a five-year deal), Arizona Diamondbacks, Cincinnati Reds and San Diego Padres were the only teams with lower odds to win a championship in 2017 than the White Sox.

Yoan Moncada ‘thrilled’ to reunite with Jose Abreu on White Sox By Paul Roumeliotis / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 Yoan Moncada and Jose Abreu are back together. The two Cuban natives were teammates in 2012 when they played for Cienfuegos in Cuba, and now they'll be in the same dugout once again — this time in Chicago. "To get the opportunity to play with him right now in the United States, it's an honor for me," Moncada said through a translator on a conference call Wednesday. "I'm thrilled with that." Moncada said Abreu sent him a congratulatory text following the blockbuster trade, welcoming him to Chicago. "He welcomed me to the White Sox organization," Moncada said. "We were talking a little bit about this opportunity for both of us to play again." As the White Sox enter full rebuild mode, no player is considered untouchable. But the White Sox may decide to hang on to Abreu, who could serve as a mentor for Moncada. It also helps that the White Sox have a Latino manager in Rick Renteria, making it easier to communicate. "I think it is very good for me and for everybody," Moncada said. "I can reconnect with Abreu again and he's a person who is going to give me some advice. He will be like a tutor for me. "To have a Latino manager is something I think will be very good, too, because we can communicate in the same language. I feel good that I'm going to play with Abreu and have a Latino manager. But that doesn't change anything for me. My biggest thing is to play and be the best player I can be." Moncada got his first taste of big league action at the end of the 2016 season. He made his MLB debut on Sept. 3 to help the Boston Red Sox with their playoff push. Despite only playing in eight major-league games — going 4-for-19 with an RBI and three runs — Moncada understands what it takes to play in The Show. "I learned that you have to be open to making adjustments because this is the best baseball in the world and you're going to face the best of the best," Moncada said. "You have to be open to get some advice and to apply it. That was the most important thing that I learned in my time in the majors."

White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said that the 21-year-old will begin his White Sox tenure in the minors at second base. But Moncada, who has experience at third base and outfield, said he's willing to play any position the team needs him to. "Everybody knows that I played at second with Boston and third base, too," Moncada said. "But like I said, any position the team needs to play I am willing to play that position, of course. I have to practice and feel comfortable at that position first. My priority is to help the team." The future is looking quite bright for the White Sox. And after Wednesday's trade, it looks even brighter.

Scouting reports on Yoan Moncada, Luis Giolito and newly acquired White Sox prospects By #WhiteSoxTalk / CSN Chicago | December 7th, 2016 The White Sox rebuild is in full effect. Rick Hahn & Co. have traded Chris Sale and Adam Eaton in exchange for eight prospects in a span of two days. Take a look at scouting reports for all eight players. Yoan Moncada, 21, 2B — No. 1 prospect on MLB.com (Acquired from Red Sox for Sale) "Moncada brings a tantalizing blend of physicality, power, speed and athleticism as a switch-hitter with defensive versatility, making him one of the most dynamic prospects in the game. He projects as a plus offensive force, a plus defender at either second base or third base, and a plus runner capable of wreaking havoc on the basepaths. The one big area of his game that needs improvement is his plate discipline, which was exposed after he struck out 12 times in 20 plate appearances with the Red Sox. Despite that poor showing, he demonstrated patience throughout the minors and has shown a propensity for making quick adjustments before. He could start 2017 in Triple-A, but very well could break camp with the White Sox and solidify himself as a starter from day one in his new organization." — (Baseball America) Lucas Giolito, 21, RHP — No. 3 prospect on MLB.com (Acquired from Nationals for Eaton) "The 2012 first-round pick and four-time BA Top 100 prospect made his long-awaited major league debut in 2016 but struggled, getting rocked for 26 hits and 16 earned runs in 21.1 innings, with more walks (12) than strikeouts (11). Giolito in the past sat in the upper 90s with his fastball and frequently reached triple-digits, but saw his stuff back up and sit in the 92-94 mph range and top out at 96 in 2016 with poor command. That fastball gave Giolito his biggest problems in 2016, with MLB opponents batting .349 against it with a .730 slugging percentage, per Statcast. While his fastball stalled, he still limited big league hitters to sub-.200 averages on his curveball (.167) and changeup (.143). The Tommy John survivor has seen his prospect stock fall in light of his recent struggles, but if he can rediscover his fastball velocity still projects as one of the most promising young righthanders in baseball. Scouts reported issues with his mechanics and pitchability this year, but both are correctable issues that should lead to improved command once they are solved." — (Baseball America) Michael Kopech, 20, RHP — No. 30 prospect on MLB.com (Acquired from Red Sox for Sale)

"Kopech is the latest in a long line of big, hard-throwing Texas righthanders, with a 98 mph fastball that routinely gets up to triple-digits and recently hit 102 in the Arizona Fall League. The 33rd overall pick in 2014 is more than just a thrower though, with an 87 mph power slider and 91 mph changeup that both made significant progress throughout the 2016 season and give him two quality offerings to confound batters even further. Taken on the surface, his raw stuff draws comparisons to Noah Syndergaard. Kopech does come with red flags, however. In 2015 he was suspended 50 games for amphetamine use and in spring training 2016 he broke his hand in an altercation with a teammate. If he can harness his talent without any more incidents, Kopech profiles as a possible No. 1 starter." — (Baseball America) Reynaldo Lopez, 22, RHP — No. 38 prospect on MLB.com (Acquired from Nationals for Eaton) "Lopez entered 2016 as the Nationals’ second-best pitching prospect behind Giolito, but by the end of the year had surpassed him in the eyes of most evaluators. Lopez is just 6-foot, 185-pounds but possesses an electric 95-97 mph fastball that touched 100 in his major league debut in 2016, and backs it up with a low 80s curveball that grades plus, as well as an upper-80s changeup. Lopez’s biggest bugaboo is his command, which wavers at times and resulted in 4.5 walks per nine innings once he got to the majors. Still, the quality of his stuff allowed him to survive in both a relief and starting role once he got to Washington, and he gives the White Sox a young, major-league ready, power righthander to pair with lefties Jose Quintana—assuming he’s not traded—and Carlos Rodon." — (Baseball America) Dane Dunning, 21, RHP (Acquired from Nationals for Eaton) "The Nationals drafted Dunning 29th overall this past June and signed him for $2 million after he was a core piece of Florida’s dominant pitching staff. Dunning bounced between starting and relieving in college but has the stuff to be a starter, with a low-90s fastball that gets up to 95 mph and a changeup and slider that both have a chance to be average. He demonstrated impeccable control at Florida and continued it with a 32-to-7 strikeout to walk mark over 33.2 innings in his pro debut. With strikeout stuff, plus control and a prime pedigree, Dunning has a chance to move quickly up the White Sox system and help sooner than later in Chicago." — (Baseball America) Luis Alexander Basabe, 20, OF (Acquired from Red Sox for Sale) "Basabe signed with the Red Sox along with his twin brother Luis Alejandro out of Venezuela when they were 16. They climbed the system together until this year, when Luis Alejandro was traded to the Diamondbacks midseason for Brad Ziegler. Now, Luis Alexander is on the move too after reaching high Class A as a 19-year old and solidifying himself as one of Boston’s top 10 prospects. He is a switch-hitter with the speed and athleticism to stick in center field, and his 25 stolen bases in 30 attempts last season are a testament to how his speed plays on the basepaths. Basabe is still very raw and refining his game, particularly his plate discipline and strike-zone judgement, but has shown the skill set to become a top of the order center fielder down the road." — (Baseball America) Victor Diaz, 22, RHP (Acquired from Red Sox for Sale) "Diaz has a power fastball in the 96-100 mph range, an 87-90 mph slider that is his main secondary pitch, a riding two-seamer and a splitter in its nascent stages. He is still learning how to harness his arsenal after issuing 41 walks in his first 90 career innings. If he does that, he becomes a bona fide closer prospect down the road." — (Baseball America)

White Sox send Adam Eaton to Nationals for top rated MLB pitching prospect By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune | December 7th, 2016 General manager Rick Hahn stressed Wednesday the White Sox rebuilding process will take time, some of it painful, as the club gives up current talent to stock up on prospects. The beginning of that process, however, has been a 30-hour blitz at the winter meetings that has made Hahn the talk of the baseball world. The Sox followed Tuesday's blockbuster trade of ace left-hander Chris Sale to the Red Sox with another big one Wednesday. Outfielder Adam Eaton went to the Nationals for right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning to bring the Sox's two-day haul to seven prospects, including two of the top three nationally in MLB.com's rankings and four in the top 38. But the Sox, who didn't have any top-50 prospects Monday, had to give up another talented major-leaguer to do it, though Eaton isn't the accomplished All-Star that Sale is. Hahn said he feels a bit awkward accepting well-intentioned congratulations from scouts and executives because of that. "Yeah, we traded Chris Sale — that's not something you feel great about," Hahn said. "That's not a feather in your cap, so to speak. But this is where we are. … This is a necessary step in the process, and there are going to be some painful spots along the way like when we have to say goodbye to important players like Chris and Adam. "(We hope the fans) are starting to see some of the long-term benefit and what the goal of the plan is." Trades of this nature — solid major-league players for well-regarded prospects — can't truly be judged until a few years down the road. But the Eaton deal was perhaps more surprising in its return than the Sale trade that brought back top overall prospect Yoan Moncada and 30th-ranked Michael Kopech, along with two others. MLB.com ranks Giolito the No. 3 prospect nationally — and the top pitching prospect — while Lopez is rated No. 38. Dunning was the 29th overall draft pick this summer. Eaton is a valuable player — a two-time Gold Glove finalist and a .290 hitter valued at 15.4 WAR during his three years with the Sox. But he's not a five-time All-Star like Sale, so the acquisition of three solid arms looks pretty good on paper. "We view all three of them, actually, as having the potential to become front-end of the rotation fixtures for us over an extended period of time," Hahn said. Giolito and Lopez both made their major-league debuts midway through the 2016 season and they could have a chance to compete at the major-league level in 2017. But Hahn said they also might need more seasoning at Triple A. Giolito, 22, posted a 2.97 ERA with three minor-league teams in 2016. In six appearances with the Nationals, he had a 6.75 ERA with 11 strikeouts and 12 walks in 21 1/3 innings. Lopez, 22, had a 3.21 ERA and 126 strikeouts over 19 starts last season at Double A and Triple A and a 4.91 ERA with 42 strikeouts and 22 walks in 44 innings in 11 major-league games. "These are guys who came quick and got to the highest level at a young age," Hahn said. "They're not finished products. We are very optimistic about their ceilings and their ability to force the issue and get

themselves to Chicago quickly, but we're going to do that on the timeline that their performance dictates as opposed to potentially a need in Chicago immediately." The two-day return is a partial credit to the affordable contracts the Sox negotiated with Sale and Eaton. Sale had three years, $38 million left on his deal, while Eaton has five years, $38.4 million left on his contract. General manager Mike Rizzo said the contract was one of several factors that drove the Nationals to acquire Eaton. His ability to make contact and hit for some power as well as his energy and hustle were among the things Rizzo listed that also made him a key player for the Sox since he was acquired from the Diamondbacks in a three-team trade before the 2014 season. Eaton is a career .284 hitter with a .771 OPS, 96 doubles, 34 triples and 34 home runs in parts of five major-league seasons. The Nationals also had been in discussions for Sale. Rizzo said the Eaton deal gained momentum after the Sox opted to send Sale to the Red Sox. "Adam fit our club perfectly — left-handed bat, balanced our line-up, high-energy guy, edge to him, plays the game the right way, good hitter, good defensive player both in center field and outstanding in the corner," Rizzo said. "A productive player throughout his career. We see the arrow still going up with him." Given Eaton's control through 2021, the Sox could have chosen to keep him in the rebuilding process, but they added instead to a younger core that has everyone from manager Rick Renteria and the players themselves buzzing. And that might only grow bigger as rumors continue about left-hander Jose Quintana, third baseman Todd Frazier and closer David Robertson. On an introductory conference call, Moncada and Kopech said Wednesday they were excited to be a part of the rebuilding process. "I'm extremely honored to be a part of this," Kopech said. "Chris Sale is obviously one of the top pitchers in baseball, and to kind of be on the back end of this trade, I feel incredible about it. It really makes me want to, if nothing else, prove the White Sox right. I'm excited to get after it.''

Meet the new White Sox guys: Prospects acquired in the Adam Eaton trade By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune | December 7th, 2016 The White Sox added three more top prospects Wednesday when the traded outfielder Adam Eaton to the Nationals. Here's a look at who they are. Lucas Giolito Age: 22. Position: Right-handed pitcher. Prospect rank: No. 3 nationally by MLB.com and No. 4 in Baseball America's midseason rankings. Highest level achieved: Made his major-league debut on June 28. Spent most of the season in Double A and Triple A. 2016 stats: Posted a 2.97 ERA with three minor-league teams. In six appearances (four starts) with the Nationals, posted a 6.75 ERA with 11 strikeouts and 12 walks in 21 1/3 innings.

FYI: The 6-foot-6, 255-pound Californian was picked 16th overall in the 2012 draft out of high school, but had Tommy John surgery soon after. Quote: "These are guys who came quick and got to the highest level at a young age. Certainly what they did at the big-league level was something we looked at, but probably not quite as closely as what they have done over the body of their career and what they did over the course of their larger sample at the minor-league level." — Sox general manager Rick Hahn on evaluating Giolito and Reynaldo Lopez Reynaldo Lopez Age: 22. Position: Right-handed pitcher. Prospect rank: No. 38 nationally by MLB.com and No. 48 in Baseball America's midseason rankings. Highest level achieved: Made his major-league debut July 19. Spent most of the season in Double A and Triple A. 2016 stats: Posted a 3.21 ERA with 126 strikeouts over 19 starts at Double A and Triple A. Recorded a 4.91 ERA with 42 strikeouts and 22 walks over 44 innings in 11 major-league games (six starts). FYI: Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2012, he has a mid-90s fastball that can touch triple digits. Made his career postseason debut with two innings in Game 4 of the National League Division Series in October. Quote: "There is still a fair amount of development with each of them. Both Lucas and Lopez made it to the big leagues last year and conceivably will contribute to the 2017 White Sox. However, we are going to wait to the point where we feel they are ready to contribute and perform well at the big-league level over an extended period of time." — Hahn Dane Dunning Age: 21. Position: Right-handed pitcher. Prospect rank: No. 6 in the Nationals system by MLB.com. Highest level achieved: Class A. 2016 stats: Posted a 2.02 ERA with 32 strikeouts and seven walks over 35 2/3 innings (eight starts) at the Rookie and Class A levels in his first minor-league season. FYI: Was the 29th overall draft pick in 2016 out of the University of Florida and received a $2 million signing bonus from the Nationals. Quote: "Dane Dunning was a guy on our draft board very high last summer and someone our amateur scouts were excited about acquiring over the last few days as his name came up." —Hahn

Chris Sale ‘as excited as anybody’ for the chance to contend with Red Sox By Colleen Kane / Chicago Tribune | December 7th, 2016 Chris Sale is moving from a White Sox team that has compiled four straight losing seasons to a Red Sox team that instantly upgraded its status an already-serious 2017 contender with his presence in the rotation. He is moving from a ballpark in Chicago that ranked 26th in attendance in 2016 to historic Fenway Park, where he expects to see sellout crowds. He joins a rotation that includes current American League Cy Young Award winner Rick Porcello and former winner David Price. He and his wife like the city of Boston. And on top of all that, with his second child due in a couple of weeks, he will get to spend his spring in a Florida training facility not too far from his home. So it is natural that the longtime face of the White Sox is "as excited as anybody" about his destination in Tuesday's trade. But he also called it "tough" Wednesday to leave the organization where he blossomed from the No. 13 overall draft pick in 2010 to one of the best pitchers in the AL. He said that reality hit home upon receiving texts from White Sox teammates, including reliever Nate Jones. "It didn't work out the way we wanted it to in Chicago," Sale said on a conference call with reporters, "but that doesn't mean there weren't a lot of great moments. "You build a relationship with these guys and they are like family. You are around these guys probably even more during the year than you are around your family. It's tough. But knowing what lies ahead makes it a little bit easier for that transition." What lies ahead is a legitimate chance to do something Sale always has said is his foremost goal — making a run at the postseason. Sale comes from a solid White Sox rotation that included Jose Quintana and Carlos Rodon, but he said a rotation that includes Porcello and Price should be able to foster a healthy competition. Price already reached out to him to welcome him to Boston. "Regardless of who's pitching on what night, the next night we have as good if not a better chance, all the way down the line," Sale said. "It takes some pressure off of everybody. Just pitch because you don't feel like you have this huge weight on your shoulders to win this game, for sure, 100 percent." Sale sometimes carried the weight of a losing team on his shoulders over the last few years. The White Sox's inability to build a contender around him and Quintana finally pushed them to begin a huge rebuilding project with Tuesday's trade. Sale, the subject of trade rumors nearly every year, said his agent warned him over the last couple of weeks that the move might be coming. Sale said he had a "very good conversation" with general manager Rick Hahn after the deal was done, and he said he was thankful for the opportunities the White Sox gave him. He alluded to the Sox's confidence in his ability to be a starter over a reliever and in his physical endurance amid questions about how his delivery might cause injuries. "They drafted me in the first round when people had questions," Sale said. "They brought me up to the big leagues really fast and people probably had questions. They threw me in the rotation and people clearly had questions.

"They had my back a lot, and they gave me opportunities that not a lot of other people would have given me. I'm very thankful for that."

Reality TV star declares ‘I like Chicago’ after BF traded to White Sox By Tracy Swartz / Chicago Tribune | December 7th, 2016 That at didn't take long. "Don't Be Tardy" star Brielle Biermann declared affinity for Chicago Wednesday, a day after her boyfriend Michael Kopech was traded to the White Sox. "I like Chicago already!!" Biermann tweeted after social media users argued about whether her face is "fake." The debate ensued after a tweeter declared Biermann "Chicago's new hottest wag," a term used for wives and girlfriends of sports stars. Kopech, 20, was among four Boston Red Sox prospects the White Sox acquired Tuesday in exchange for five-time All-Star Chris Sale. Kopech and Biermann, 19, have been dating for months. Biermann has been in the reality TV spotlight for years. Her mother, Kim Zolciak-Biermann, was an original cast member on "The Real Housewives of Atlanta," which premiered on Bravo in 2008. Her family has been featured in a spinoff, "Don't Be Tardy," since Zolciak married NFL linebacker Kroy Biermann in 2011. "Don't Be Tardy" airs 9 p.m. Wednesdays on Bravo.

White Sox select pitcher Dylan Covey in Rule 5 Draft By Daryl Van Schouwen / Chicago Sun-Times | December 8th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The White Sox selected right-hander Dylan Covey from the Oakland Athletics in the major-league phase of the Rule 5 Draft Thursday. A first-round draft pick out of high school by the Brewers in 2010, Covey, 25, was limited to six starts with Class AA Midland because of an oblique injury. Covey went 2-1 with a 1.84 ERA and 26 strikeouts over 29 innings before the injury. “Obviously he’s not a finished product but we think he has a chance to compete for a spot in our bullpen or possibly even in the rotation,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “Long term he has starter potential and we’ll just have to wait and see how he looks when he gets to Glendale. But he’s an interesting arm and we’re interested in adding as much talent as we can to the organization. Rule 5 draft is another avenue to do that.” The Sox must keep Covey on their 25-man roster for the entire 2017 season or offer him back to the A’s before he can be sent to the minor leagues. With the Mesa Solar Sox in the Arizona Fall League in 2016, Covey went 4-0 with a 4.74 ERA in six starts. He owns a 4.83 ERA over 369 innings with 264 strikeouts over four career minor-league seasons. “We had three scouts see him in Arizona, and recommend him for the Rule 5 selection,” Hahn said. “Up to 95 [mph] with some sink. Has a four-pitch mix.” At the time he was drafted out of high school, Covey was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. Facing an uncertain future he decided to attend the University of San Diego.

“My first year in college, there was an adjustment period in learning how to deal with [diabetes],” he told MiLB.com. “But ever since then, I’ve had everything under control. It’s almost nonexistent at this point. I got used to it as a freshman and it’s just a normal part of my life right now.” The A’s picked Covey in the fourth round of the 2013 draft.

White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nats for top prospects By Daryl Van Schouwen / Chicago Sun-Times | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The White Sox mean business about this rebuilding thing. Pulling off his second blockbuster trade for high end prospects in as many days Wednesday, general manager Rick Hahn continued on his quest to stockpile top minor league talent, trading outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals for a package of three right-handers including the No. 1 pitching prospect in baseball according to MLB.com For Eaton, the Sox’ most valuable position player in 2016, the Sox received not only right-hander Lucas Giolito — the No. 3 prospect in baseball and top pitcher — but Reynaldo Lopez, their No. 3 prospect, and Dane Dunning, ranked No. 6. It was a haul that played to raves from talent evaluators and media around the Winter Meetings, and it came 24 hours after the Sox traded five-time All-Star Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox for four prospects — including infielder Yoan Moncada, the No. 1 ranked-prospect in baseball — in the first of what is expected to be a series of major rebuilding moves for Hahn. By almost all accounts, the two trades immediately elevated the Sox farm system into one of the top five to 10 systems in baseball. “We are ecstatic about the return we were able to secure,’’ said Hahn, kicking the Sox rebuild into high gear. “An important part of the process we are pursuing is acquiring quality pitching talent. We feel like we’ve done that today — and yesterday — en masse,” Hahn said. “Giolito and Lopez rank among the top prospects in baseball, while Dunning is another young prospect who possesses front-of-the-rotation potential.’’ Eaton batted .284/.362/.428 with 14 homers and 14 stolen bases in 2016 and was a finalist for a Gold Glove, playing most of the season in right field after playing in center his first two years. Nats GM Mike Rizzo raved about Eaton’s overall skills as well as his hard-nosed, high-effort style. What made the deal possible for the Sox was the appeal of Eaton’s contract, which keeps him under club control for five more seasons, topping out at a club option for $10.5 million for 2021. Hahn went to the interview podium after the deal with mixed feelings, same as Tuesday after he traded Sale. “We’ve received well-intentioned congratulations from scouts or executives of other clubs, and it’s a little awkward for us,’’ Hahn said. “Because yeah, we traded Chris Sale. That’s not something you feel great about. That’s not a feather in your cap so to speak. But this is where we are.’’ After four straight losing seasons, the plan is to build the farm system as quickly and deeply as possible. More trades will follow, with third baseman Todd Frazier, closer David Robertson and perhaps Jose Abreu and Jose Quintana among those available for the right return. By the end of the winter, Hahn might be looking for a few veterans to fill roster spots for the short term.

“We’ll have to augment the roster as we get closer to spring training,’’ Hahn said. The Sox farm system has lacked for position players more than pitching, but five of the eight prospects acquired here are pitchers. “When you give up a pitcher like Sale, you have to get young controllable pitching back ready to come to the big leagues very soon,’’ a former executive said. But it’s early. The Sox won’t stop there. “We were looking for the best prospects that we can, the most impactful position players or pitchers that we can find,’’ Hahn said. “After [Tuesday’s] deal [for Sale], we felt with the balance between the hitters and the pitchers, bringing back some high-caliber arms would be a nice follow-up. But this is going to be an extended process, it’s going to take some time.’’ Here is more on what the Sox get in return: Giolito, 22, combined to go 6-5 with a 2.97 ERA and 116 strikeouts over 115 innings last season between stops at Class A Hagerstown, Class AA Harrisburg and Class AAA Syracuse. The 6-foot-6, 255-pounder pitched in six games (four starts) with Washington, going 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA and 11 strikeouts over 21 innings. Giolito was selected by the Nationals 16th overall in the 2012 draft and was named Washington’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2014. Lopez, 22, went 5-7 with a 3.21 ERA and 126 strikeouts over 19 starts and 109 innings last season between AA and AAA. Lopez made his major-league debut with the Nationals in 2016, going 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA over 44 innings. He struck out 11 batters over seven innings in a victory at Atlanta on August 18, becoming just the fourth rookie in Nationals history to strike out 10-plus in one game. Dunning, 21, a 6-4, 200-pounder, went 3-2 with a 2.02 ERA over 35 2/3 innings with 32 strikeouts with the Gulf Coast League Nationals and Advanced Rookie Auburn. Dunning was a first-round draft pick (29th overall) in 2016 draft out of the University of Florida as compensation after the Nationals lost Ian Desmond in free agency.

White Sox continue rebuild, trade Eaton to Nationals for prospects By Scot Gregor / Daily Herald | December 7th, 2016 The past four seasons, the Chicago White Sox had Chris Sale and Jose Quintana at the top of the starting rotation, and they were surrounded by a cast of veteran players. The White Sox were 63-99 in 2013. They were 73-89 in 2014, 76-86 in 2015 and 78-84 this past season. It was a long, dreary stretch for the franchise, and odds are very good another losing season is coming in 2017. But things are different on the South Side. Completely different. A day after Sale was traded to the Boston Red Sox for four prospects -- fronted by second baseman Yoan Moncada -- the White Sox dealt outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals Wednesday for three more young players with high ceilings.

The Sox got right-handed starters Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning for Eaton. According to MLB.com, Giolito ranks No. 3 on major-league baseball's top prospect list. Moncada is No. 1. Lopez is No. 38 overall, and Dunning was the Nationals' No. 6 prospect. In a span of just two days, the White Sox's farm system has gone from barren to booming. And with remaining veterans like Jose Quintana, Todd Frazier and Jose Abreu attracting trade interest, even more young talent might be coming. "As you know … our behavior over the last several years has been on the other extreme in terms of adding big-league talent as opposed to accumulating prospects," Hahn told reporters at the winter meetings after the Eaton trade. "So expectations are high in these deals. We feel not only in Chris and Adam but other players, very high caliber players under control for an extended period of time. We expect there to be strong returns for them. We were very pleased with how these first two have gone so far." Hahn talked to Washington about a Sale trade, so the foundation was already set when the Nationals paid a steep price for Eaton, who batted .284 with 29 doubles, 9 triples, 14 home runs, 59 RBI and 91 runs scored last season. The Nationals' first-round draft pick in 2012, Giolito was a combined 6-5 with a 2.97 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 115.1 innings with Class A Hagerstown, AA Harrisburg and AAA Syracuse last season. The 6-foot-6, 255-pounder also pitched in 6 games (4 starts) with Washington and was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA. Lopez was 5-7 with a 3.21 ERA and 126 strikeouts in 109.1 combined innings with Harrisburg and Syracuse last season. In 11 games (6 starts) with the Nats, he was 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA. "Lucas and Lopez made it to the big leagues last year and conceivably will contribute to the 2017 White Sox as well," Hahn said. "However, we are going to wait to the point where we feel they are ready to contribute and perform well at the big-league level over an extended period of time." Dunning, drafted No. 29 overall out of the University of Florida in June, was a combined 3-2 with a 2.02 ERA for the Gulf Coast League Nationals and Advanced Rookie Auburn. "Dane Dunning was a guy on our draft board very high last summer and some of our amateur scouts were excited about acquiring him over the last few days as his name came up," Hahn said. "He's further behind. He will begin the year in A-ball. And when we go through this process, part of it is going to be about accumulating as much potential impact talent as we can. With the starters over the last few days in Giolito and Lopez, Dunning and (Michael) Kopech, we feel we got four guys that have the potential to be at the front end of the White Sox rotation for a long time."

No. 1 prospect Moncada feeling good about joining White Sox By Scot Gregor / Daily Herald | December 7th, 2016 The Chicago White Sox added three more names to their growing pile of prospects on Wednesday, and even more figure to be arriving in the coming days and weeks. When the flurry of moves does end, Yoan Moncada is still going to be the Sox's most impressive acquisition of the off-season. Along with hard-throwing righty Michael Kopech, outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe and relief pitcher Victor Diaz, Moncada joined the White Sox on Tuesday in the trade that sent ace starting pitcher Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox.

According to MLB.com, Moncada is the No. 1 prospect in major-league baseball. A 21-year-old switch-hitter, Moncada slashed .294/.407/.511 with 31 doubles, 6 triples, 15 home runs, 62 RBI and 45 stolen bases in 106 combined games with Class A Salem and AA Portland last season. How did the 6-foot-2, 220-pounder react when he heard the trade news? "I feel good with the trade," Moncada said through an interpreter on a conference call Wednesday. "I don't feel sad or happy. I just feel good. I think this could be a very good opportunity for me. I didn't know too much about the White Sox organization before this trade but I'm excited to be a White Sox right now and I hope to be a White Sox for a long time." The Red Sox called up Moncada in September, and he was 4-for-19 (.211) with 1 RBI in 8 games. He also struck out nine straight times to end the season. "I learned that you have to be open to making adjustments because this is the best baseball in the world and you're going to face the best of the best," Moncada said. "You have to be open to get some advice and to apply it. That was the most important thing that I learned in my time in the majors." Moncada said Jose Abreu welcomed him to the White Sox after the trade. The two were teammates for one season (2013). "I played with him in Cuba with Cienfuegos, I was 17 at that time," Moncada said. "To get the opportunity to play with him right now in the United States, it's an honor for me. I'm thrilled with that. Abreu texted me yesterday. We were talking a little bit about this opportunity for both of us to play together again." Favorable comp: With flowing blond hair and a big fastball, new White Sox prospect Michael Kopech is already being compared to Noah Syndergaard, a standout starter for the New York Mets and fellow Texan. "I somewhat know Noah," Kopech said on a conference call Wednesday. "Kind of fooling around on Twitter, joking with him a little. Yeah, I've heard that (comparison) before and I'm a fan of his. I like his style, like that he gets after it in the weight room. He's a hard worker and at the same time it's hard to not compare a 6-foot-4 plus, long blond hair, hard-throwing pitcher to another one. There's not many of us. "At the same time, I don't want that to be my ceiling, no disrespect to him. I want to kind of set my own limits. I would like to see what those are for myself. I'm not big on comparisons, but that's not a bad person to be compared to." Kopech, who regularly throws 100 mph and was clocked at 105 last season, is the No. 30 prospect in baseball, per MLB.com "First of all, I'm very honored to be considered one of the faces of the rebuilding stage or however you put it," Kopech said. "That sounds very good to me. I'm extremely honored to be a part of this. Chris Sale is obviously one of the top pitchers in baseball and to kind of be on the back end of this trade, I feel incredible about it. It really makes me want, if nothing else, to prove the White Sox right. I'm excited to get after it."

Imrem: Weighing in on Sox moves, Bears blues and Cubs news By Mike Imrem / Daily Herald | December 7th, 2016 Let's boost the sophistication quotient of this exercise by referring to it as a potpourri rather than tidbits: • Of all the local analysts and fans opining on the White Sox trades of Chris Sale and Adam Eaton, did more than 3.7 percent ever hear of Yoan Moncada or Lucas Giolito before this week? Much less any of the other minor-leaguers headed here? Hopefully someone associated with the Sox did. • The report that Bears defensive coordinator Vic Fangio won't return next season sums up the mess this team is in. Head coach John Fox and Fangio tried to quell speculation Wednesday but generally where there's smoke there's firings ... or maybe resignations. Fangio probably is the one person surviving unscathed from this season's rubble. If he's destined to be finished here sooner than later, he will depart as respected as when he arrived. Oh well. • Wednesday's trade for Royals closer Wade Davis effectively ended Aroldis Chapman's tenure with the Cubs. Their gamble on Chapman was among all the victories the Cubs enjoyed on the way to a World Series championship. Chapman arrived in Chicago this summer as baseball's best closer and as a player who was suspended 30 games in 2016 for violating the league's domestic violence policy. The impression was that the Cubs decided to hold their breath, hold their nose and hold out hope that Chapman would stay out of trouble for three months. Mission accomplished. Now Chapman can move on to a mega-contract elsewhere and the Cubs can move on as World Series champs. • If Jorge Soler doesn't make it as the Royals designated hitter, maybe the Bears should bring him back to town as a tight end. • Rashaan Salaam's death this week at age 42 revived a memory of just how big a name he was at one time. No, the vision wasn't of him running toward the 1994 Heisman Trophy at Colorado or being the NFC offensive rookie of the year for the Bears in 1995. The vision was of an autograph session during the NFL Experience leading up to Super Bowl XXX in Arizona. A line of fans snaked all through the Phoenix Convention Center to get a signature, photograph or mere glimpse of Salaam, at the time a huge name in pro sports on the way to becoming bigger than huge. Didn't work out that way.

Salaam was out of the NFL after three more seasons. Twenty years later he is dead instead of headed to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Such a sad end to such a promising start. • Michael Kopech, the hard-throwing pitcher that the White Sox acquired from Boston in the Chris Sale deal, can't get here soon enough. Kopech's girlfriend is Brielle Zolciak-Biermann, a reality-TV personality on some Bravo show that I never heard of. With the Bears expected to divorce quarterback Jay Cutler before next season, gone with him will be his reality-TV-personality wife Kristin Cavallari. A vacuum will be left in Chicago for an athlete with a TV-personality partner and Zolciak-Biermann is the most promising candidate to fill it. Cavallari expressed a disdain for living in Chicago, while Zolciak-Biermann already expressed an affection for the city. Let's propose that Kopech propose marriage to Zolciak-Biermann at home plate in Sox Park. • Finally, what exactly is a potpourri?

Eaton is done, but White Sox are still hungry for more trades By Sahadev Sharma / The Athletic | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — It didn’t take long for the White Sox to become the darlings of the winter meetings. When the White Sox mostly stood pat at the trade deadline last summer, many around the league were perplexed by the direction of the organization. If there were any more questions as to where they’re headed, general manager Rick Hahn and the team answered them on Wednesday afternoon with the trade of outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals for a trio of pitching prospects, led by Lucas Giolito. This came a day after the Sox traded their ace Chris Sale to Boston for Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech and two more prospects. More trades are expected. Certainly the other 29 teams know the White Sox mean business in an entirely new way. “We’re very pleased with the way this has started,” Hahn said. “However, we realize we are far closer to the beginning than we are to the end of this process. This is going to take time. Again, as I said yesterday, if we had our druthers we’d have three more of these [press conferences] while we’re down here. But in reality, our desire to move this thing along is not going to be what dictates the pace. What’s going to dictate the pace is the value of our players and the potential return we get and how that fills with our long-term plan.” It was just a few months ago that rumors were flying about differences of opinion between Hahn, executive vice president Kenny Williams and chairman Jerry Reinsdorf in the White Sox front office as to how to handle the future of the organization. However true those rumors may have been at the time, and there are serious questions to their veracity, there’s no doubting the White Sox have a clear and focused plan and are aggressively pursuing it.

After bringing in four prospects on Tuesday when shipping Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox, the White Sox nabbed right-handed pitchers Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning for Eaton. Those who were questioning the White Sox front office are now praising them for a trade that is a clear win for Chicago. Part of what helped push the White Sox from being stuck in the mid-70 win doldrums was the fact that they were limited this winter in their ability to upgrade their own roster due to a weak free-agent class. That same weak class meant the top-tier players on their roster became all the more desirable to other teams looking to upgrade their clubs. Those teams have rosters that are much closer to competing than the White Sox. “Obviously as we prepared for this offseason and you look at the players we have under control and what’s available to others via free agency and trade, you get a sense for the potential value for what you’re holding on to,” Hahn said. “If we felt that we were in a position this offseason to add in a way that was going to put us in a position to contend for the 2017 World Series without mortgaging the future or putting ourselves in an untenable financial situation going forward, perhaps we would have gone that route. But based upon where we were as an organization, where we were as minor-league system and what was available to us via free agency and potentially via trade, it became pretty clear that now was time to flip the script.” The White Sox came away with quite a haul Wednesday. Hahn said the Sox scouts were familiar with Dunning, who was drafted with the 29th pick in the compensatory portion of the first round this past summer, three picks after the Sox drafted Louisville pitcher Zack Burdi. Of the three pitchers, Dunning is the furthest away from the majors and is expected to start somewhere in Single-A next spring. Giolito and Lopez will probably start at Triple-A Charlotte. “Both Lopez and Giolito obviously had time in the big leagues last season,” Hahn said. “We feel they have pretty high ceilings and the good ones have a way of forcing the issue. I would say at this point, having known them off of video, scouting reports and objective analysis, they probably both wind up in the Charlotte rotation initially. But we’re going to keep an open mind and we’ll see.” Giolito, the 16th pick in the 2012 draft (three picks after the Sox selected outfielder Courtney Hawkins), went into last spring as arguably the top pitching prospect in baseball, but after a rough big-league debut he has lost some of his luster. The book on Giolito is that he has a curveball with 80-grade potential, a heater that can touch triple digits and a developing changeup. However, his fastball velocity ticked down a bit during his time in the bigs last summer and his command was poor. That led to a high walk total and a huge drop in strikeouts (10.9 percent rate in 21 1/3 big-league innings) as hitters pounded the fastballs he left in the zone and avoided the ones outside of it, rendering his curveball — mostly used as a chase pitch — largely ineffective. However, according to scouting sources, the Nationals tinkered with his mechanics and that led to the command issues. If there is one area the White Sox are lauded for, it’s their development of pitching. Identifying and rectifying mechanical issues in young players is an organizational strength. Giolito was traded to the right place. Lopez isn’t as big of a name, but he’s a highly thought-of prospect after signing with Washington as an 18-year-old in 2012. Some evaluators who are bullish on his future would put him ahead of Giolito. A little undersized (6-feet) with effort in his delivery, Lopez has the capabilities to be a mid-rotation arm or a reliever. Scouts are split on his ultimate destination, but his velocity (97 mph average) and makeup are impressive. Dunning works with a fastball (91-93 mph) and a changeup and thrives with strong command, movement and deception. He’s a possible fourth or fifth starter if his breaking ball improves. With the Eaton and Sale trades, the White Sox have now netted five pitchers. Hahn said that was not by design. The organization was just looking for the best possible combination of prospects. But he admitted

that building around young pitching, something both the New York Mets and division rival Cleveland Indians have done, is an enticing path. With Lopez, Giolito, Kopech, Carson Fulmer and Alec Hansen, the White Sox may have the best collection of starting pitching prospects in baseball. “It’s one of the more difficult things in the game to acquire, impactful pitching, front-end type guys who are reliable and are No. 1, No. 2 types,” Hahn said. “The more of those you can have running around, the better. And the longer you can keep them together, the easier it’ll be to keep yourself in ballgames and play deep into October.” That statement may seem counterintuitive with Sale traded and Jose Quintana clearly on the open market. However, Hahn made it clear, the team didn’t struggle because of the top-tier talent it boasted, rather it was the lack of depth that sunk them. “We know we had high-caliber talent on that roster,” Hahn said. “The problem with our roster last year or the year before wasn’t the top third or so of the guys. It certainly wasn’t Sale or Eaton or some of the other guys who have been rumored to be of interest to clubs. It was a matter of, in my opinion, a lack of one through 25 depth, or even one through 40 depth, given some injury issues that every club encounters. And that’s what we’re trying to rectify over an extended period of time.” Now that Sale and Eaton have been moved, the White Sox will move on to trying to move Quintana, Todd Frazier, David Robertson, Melky Cabrera and perhaps even Jose Abreu. Hahn was clear that the team wouldn’t be in any rush to get deals done. “We’re taking a longer-term view and we’re going to do this deliberately and with reason and logic and react accordingly to the market,” Hahn said. “This deal came together because Washington was fairly aggressive, as were a few other suitors that sort of accelerated the time frame. We are open and eager for that to happen again, but if it doesn’t we’ll be patient and move when the time is right. There may well be nothing else while we’re down here, there may not be anything else until after the holidays or through the trade deadline or into next offseason.” However long it may take, it’s no longer a question for what the White Sox have planned. Anyone who doubted a complete teardown can now clearly see in what direction this organization is headed. There are more moves to come, and if the first two are any indication, the future, though seemingly far away, looks bright.

Red to White Sox: Yoan Moncada, Michael Kopech excited for change By Lauren Comitor / The Athletic | December 7th, 2016 Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech don’t know much about the White Sox’s ongoing rebuild, but they’ll find out soon enough. The two were traded by the Boston Red Sox, along with outfielder Luis Alexander Basabe and pitcher Victor Diaz, for former White Sox ace Chris Sale. A couple hours after Moncada and Kopech spoke to reporters via conference call Wednesday, the Sox made another huge deal, sending outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals for top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito and fellow right-handers Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning. Kopech, a hard-throwing righty from Texas, said he was working out with a trainer on Tuesday and had just exited a cryotherapy chamber to the news that he had a new team. While Kopech was shocked by the trade, he said he was excited to be a part of the first of what should be a rejuvenating youth movement that eventually reaches the South Side of Chicago.

“I’m very honored to be considered one of the faces of the rebuilding stage,” he said. “That sounds really good to me. I’m extremely honored to be a part of this. Chris Sale is obviously one of the top pitchers in baseball. To kind of be on the back end of this trade for him, I feel incredible about it. It really makes me want to, if nothing else, prove the White Sox right, and I’m excited to kind of get after it.” Kopech is most well-known for touching 105 mph in July for the Salem Red Sox of the Carolina League, where he posted a 2.25 ERA in 11 starts. He’s also garnered comparisons to Mets pitcher Noah Syndergaard, for obvious reasons. But he’s also missed significant time, first on a 50-game suspension for taking a banned stimulant in 2015, and then for a broken right hand from a fight with a roommate to start the 2016 season. But Kopech says he’s used that time away not only to improve on the mound, but also as learning experiences in order to mature. He’s only 20 years old. “Bottom line, you can’t take anything for granted,” he said. “I missed too much time in my opinion, I think in most people’s opinion. So this half of the year was very important for me. I needed to show people that I’m still out here to compete and I’m still out here to get better and with the little bit of time I had, I tried to show to the best of my ability that I’m going to compete, I’m going to be a good pitcher. “I was putting a little bit of pressure on myself, maybe a little too much, but overall I strengthened my mentality the second half of this year and I think that’s matured me quite a bit and it’s put me in a good mindset to compete for a big league spot sooner than later.” Kopech isn’t quite as far along in his development as Moncada, the 21-year-old Cuban star who was called up by Boston in September and went 4-for-19 with 12 strikeouts in eight games. It’s not quite unanimous, but many believe Moncada is the top prospect in all of baseball. Boston paid him more than $30 million to sign as a free agent, on top of a 100 percent tax to Major League Baseball. He’s an absolute steal, money-wise, for the Sox, but will he prove to be their new face of the franchise? First they have to find him a position. He played third base in his limited innings in Boston, but he has played second base in nearly 1,500 minor league innings. Hahn said he’ll start at second base, likely in Triple-A Charlotte. “I’m open to play every position,” Moncada said through White Sox interpreter Billy Russo. “The position that the team wants me to play. Everybody knows that I played at second with Boston, and third base too, but like I said before, any position that the team asks me to play, I’m willing to play that position. Of course I have to practice there and feel confident in that position first. But my priority is to the team.” Moncada said he’s also looking forward to playing with Jose Abreu, a fellow Cuban whom he played with on Cienfuegos in the Cuban National Series when he was 17. Abreu reached out to Moncada when the trade was announced, and Moncada said the first baseman could act as a “tutor” and give advice. Of course, it’s entirely plausible that Abreu is shipped off to another team before the two have a chance to reconnect on the field. But with or without Abreu, Moncada will likely make a name for himself in a White Sox uniform. “I didn’t know too much about the White Sox organization before this trade,” he said. “But I’m excited to be a White Sox right now and I hope to be a White Sox for a long time.”

The only way for the White Sox to conquer risk is to keep selling By James Fegan / The Athletic | December 7th, 2016 Finally, the White Sox are the team trading away their top stars, stepping away from theoretical playoff contention, and stockpiling their farm system. Yet it still feels like they are taking on a ton of risk. In two deals consummated over two days, the White Sox traded Chris Sale and Adam Eaton for seven prospects. Three of those prospects, Yoan Moncada, Lucas Giolito and Michael Kopech, are now the top three in the White Sox’s burgeoning minor league system. It’s exactly what everyone felt the Sox should set out to do this offseason. But the feeling of uncertainty remains. Part of this is just inherent, the Sox turned a proven star in Sale, someone we had seen overwhelm major league hitters time and again, into four youngsters with no success on the major league level. That’s a cause for anxiety. On Tuesday, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn called Moncada “the centerpiece” of a four-prospect package that came over from Boston for Sale. He is certainly qualified. The Red Sox paid him $30 million when he was 19, plus another $30 million in taxes, and MLB.com has him as the No. 1 prospect in all of baseball because he has true superstar potential at an up-the-middle position. Moncada also struck out a lot last year. He sported a 30 percent whiff rate in Double-A — albeit as a 21-year-old in Double-A. He was there because he liquefied High-A pitching enough to earn a midseason promotion When he got a surprise cup of coffee in the majors in September, that strikeout rate doubled with 12 strikeouts in 20 plate appearances. Moncada has so much talent and bat speed that it’s hard to find any evaluator who thinks he will actual ly fail due to contact problems, but he stirs memories of previous super-athletic Sox prospects who never could put the bat to the ball enough to make their other talents matter. Names like Jared Mitchell, Keenyn Walker, Trayce Thompson (for much of his tenure), Tyler Flowers, even Joe Borchard. None of them could hold a candle to Moncada, but all contributed to the sense that the Sox have trouble reducing strikeouts in prospects who already struggle with their contact. That concern will apply to Moncada’s fellow trade teammate, 20-year-old switch-hitting center fielder Luis Basabe too, as he struck out over 25 percent of the time in Single-A. As I wrote earlier this month, before the White Sox became suddenly stocked with raw, young, super-talented position prospects, shortstop Tim Anderson’s development was a source of hope that the Sox’s inability to bring raw offensive profiles to maturity was coming to a slow end. But Moncada raises the stakes significantly. The Sox need him to be much more than someone who hits enough to be a regular at shortstop, but a face-of-the-franchise-type producer. More to the point, if the Sox are going to launch a full-scale rebuild, they cannot be bound by the same limitations in developing offense that had them building half-contenders that relied on pitching to drag a struggling offense to the playoffs. Moncada is as good as a prospect with contact issues can be, but hitting on players like Basabe will be critical to speeding the arrival of the next good Sox team, and giving them the larger core of cost-controlled talent. Kopech, a right-handed fireballer, is an order of magnitude riskier than Moncada. Baseball Prospectus’ prospect team projects him as a reliever due to command limitations. One scout put his chances of sticking as starter as low as 10 percent, but he’s much more in line with the traditional type of White Sox pitcher.

Giolito, another right-handed pithcer, was the centerpiece of Wednesday’s Eaton deal with Washington. He has Moncada’s pedigree, but saw a velocity drop and diminished results during a year where his delivery went through countless adjustments. He fell from future ace status in the eyes of his own team. Right-handers Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning, the other two pitchers coming over from Washington, could be the middle of the next great White Sox rotation, but they will have their own issues to overcome to stay out of the bullpen. For over a decade, the Sox have been leaning on pitching coach Don Cooper and his staff’s ability to refine live, wild arms and sort out command issues. Kopech even has the same issues with a head whack in his delivery that the Sox have helped Carlos Rodon smooth out. Giolito’s value is at is nadir, relatively speaking, but he’s still paces ahead of where former fourth overall pick Gavin Floyd was when the Sox scooped him up from Philadelphia. One of the issues in mapping out the Sox’s path to building their next competitor, is figuring what they will use to dominate the league. They are not cheap, in the sense that their major league payroll is typically near the median, as is their international spending and draft spending. But with all that being in the middle, what is their advantage over everyone else? It’s still developing arms and keeping them healthy. The Sox are betting on themselves with a risky electric-stuff, worrisome-delivery project like Kopech, just as they did when drafting Alec Hansen, Carson Fulmer, and not too long ago, Sale. They collect fallen ace prospects such as Giolito like pack rats. Until there’s a massive paradigm shift, taking big bets on live arms is the White Sox’s hill to die on. That said, the risk involved in some of the packages they have received can be startling and there’s really only one cure for it: sell more. Jose Quintana, Todd Frazier, Jose Abreu, David Robertson are the next four veterans who are being dangled in trade talks. The only cure for the uncertainty of building from prospects is volume. They need to assemble a legion of young talent so that even an average success rate is enough to build complete team. An above-average rate is enough to create a surplus of resources to trade from. Just note how the Cubs flipped the blocked Jorge Soler for Wade Davis. Health and pitching development have been natural advantages for the Sox for years, and for the most part they have not been enough to make them an elite franchise, or even a successful one. Rare is it that a team with such a valuable core executes a total teardown, and the Sox look like they are ready to take their big chance to lap the field.

Sheehan: Analyzing both sides of the Chris Sale trade By Joe Sheehan / The Athletic | December 7th, 2016 Red Sox trade IF Yoan Moncada, RHP Michael Kopech, OF Luis Alexander Basabe and RHP Victor Diaz to White Sox for LHSP Chris Sale This is what Dave Dombrowski does. A general manager who spent the first half of his career building young teams on low payrolls in small markets has evolved into one who cashes in a farm system for superstars. Since taking over the Red Sox a little more than a year ago, Dombrowski has dealt away Moncada, Kopech, Basabe, Manuel Margot and Anderson Espinoza; four of those players, all but Basabe, were among Baseball America‘s midseason top 100 prospects, with three ranking in the top half of the list. Dombrowski has cashed in the work of the man he replaced, Ben Cherington, in an effort to improve the chance of a championship in the next few years. It may make the fans happier, it may draw praise from the media, but there’s something awkward about watching it happen, watching Dombrowski spend Cherington’s capital in such a profligate way.

As with the other trades Dombrowskl has made, however, the math of this one is clear: the Sox project to be better in the short term with all the cost sloughed off to the medium and long term. Moncada is the best prospect in baseball, but his brief stint in the majors at the end of the year — 12 strikeouts in 19 at-bats — made it clear that he is at least a half-season, and perhaps a full season, from being ready. He couldn’t help the Sox win in 2017, and that, in Dombrowski’s calculation, made him expendable. You can say the same for Kopech, Basabe and Diaz, none of whom projected to help next year’s team. Chris Sale…will help next year’s team. I may be low man on Sale — I have called him a high #2 rather than a #1, and he showed some wear last season — but he’s clearly a four-win upgrade on Clay Buchholz, and perhaps more. (MLB’s Mike Petriello indicated that Sale was hurt by the catchers he threw to in Chicago; as with all umpire-incompetence notes, I present that with a grain of salt.) There was a lot of talk about Sale pitching to contact last year, but his lower fastball velocity and sharply lower strikeout rate came with a lower groundball rate and no change in his pop-up rate. The exit velocity he allowed actually jumped from 86 mph to 89 mph. He shaved a tenth of a pitch per batter faced, or about three pitches per 27-batter start. It’s an open question whether what we saw last year was a young pitcher losing velocity as he turned 27 and passed through 1,000 career innings, or the product of an effort to lower per-pitch workload. One reason why Sale was so expensive in trade is his contract, which may be the best transaction Kenny Williams ever made. Sale is guaranteed just $13 million — $12 million in 2017, with a $1 million buyout of his 2018 option. The 2018 and 2019 seasons are options at $12.5 million and $13.5 million. The downside risk for the Red Sox is entirely on-field, because their financial commitment to Sale is a year-to-year one. Even if Sale is a four-win pitcher now, the Sox can turn an enormous profit on his services. Sale’s contract became even more valuable a week ago, when the new CBA increased the penalties on teams that exceed the luxury-tax threshold. Dombrowski made it clear that he’d like to keep the Red Sox under the threshold, and acquiring a top starting pitcher making $12 million is one path to doing so. All it cost him were three of the top eight prospects in the organization, players in which he had nothing invested. The Red Sox will now be named the AL favorites, to whatever extent that matters. As good as this team is — it’s very good — its season will come down to winning best-ofs against good teams in which it can’t possibly be more than a 55/45 favorite. Last year, Dombrowski bet a lot of the team’s future in an effort to win a World Series now. After falling victim to the vagaries of short-series baseball, he’s doubled down on that bet. It’s easier, I suppose, when the chips were bought by someone else. White Sox trade LHSP Chris Sale to Red Sox for IF Yoan Moncada, RHP Michael Kopech, OF Luis Alexander Basabe and RHP Victor Diaz You only get to trade Chris Sale once. The history of these trades shows just how hard it is to get one right. The Twins traded Frank Viola — the Chris Sale of the 1980s — to the Mets in 1989. Two years later, three pitchers they got back in the deal accounted for a quarter of the innings thrown in their World Series win over the Braves. David Cone, coming off a Cy Young Award in strike-shortened 1994, was traded twice in four months for six guys who totaled less than ten career WAR. The Indians traded CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee and their Cy Young Awards and had to wait years for Michael Brantley and Carlos Carrasco to pay off. The Mariners traded Randy Johnson for pieces that helped build a 116-win team. The Diamondbacks traded Curt Schilling for pieces. These deals, when they come along, alter the course of a franchise one way or another. All you can do, as a general manager, is identify and bring back as much talent as possible. In yesterday’s big trade, Rick Hahn did as well as you could have hoped. In Yoan Moncada, Hahn acquired the best prospect in baseball, a 22-year-old infielder who projects as an average-and-power second baseman. Moncada, who was signed for a record — and rule-change-inspiring — $63 million, reached the majors in just his second year Stateside. He was overmatched, but that doesn’t take away from a 2016 season that saw him

destroy the Carolina League (.307/.427/.496) and hold his own at Double-A (.277/.379/.531). There was enough degradation in his plate discipline as he rose through the minors — and to the majors — to temper expectations in the short term. Moncada will have to improve his recognition of breaking stuff, but he’s shown in the low minors a willingness to take walks, so he’s not Tim Anderson 2.0. I’ve often argued that teams looking to trade stars should concentrate as much return as possible into one player. It’s generally better to get one top-ten prospect than to get three in the lower half of the top 100. Had Moncada been the only return for Sale, it might have been a win for the White Sox. However, they also got back, in Michael Kopech, the most famous minor-league pitcher in the world. Whether Kopech did or didn’t touch 105 mph earlier this year doesn’t matter; what matters is that this 2014 supplemental #1 pick can regularly touch 100, and struck out 40% of the batters he faced in the minors this year. Kopech’s talent isn’t in question. Everything else is. He was suspended for 50 games in 2015 for amphetamine use, and missed half the 2016 season after breaking his hand in a fight. There have been two effects here. One, you have to wonder about Kopech’s judgment and maturity. Two, and more concrete, is that he’s yet to throw 70 innings in a pro season. It’s possible that Kopech could step into an MLB bullpen tomorrow and be effective; for him to be a starting pitcher, though, he’s going to need to be built up. He is at least a season-and-a-half from contributing in the majors as a starter, and it will be 2019 or 2020 before you can count on him for a full year in a Sox uniform. The trade crawled across your screen as “Moncada, Kopech and two prospects,” but I want to make note of one of the others. Luis Alexander Basabe signed at 16 and reached high-A ball last year at 19. If you knew nothing else about Basabe, you’d have to take him seriously; age and level are the two most important things to know about any minor leaguer. Basabe, whose twin brother was also signed by and traded by the Red Sox, hit .258/.325/.447 with 25 steals and 12 homers in the Sally League at 19. Contact — 116 strikeouts in 474 PA — can be an issue, but Basabe has shown a broad range of skills, and his power is impressive for someone whose body is best described as “lanky.” He’s a raw outfielder who may end up in a corner, but he’s young enough to improve and stay in center. For Basabe to be the third-best prospect in this deal underlines just how well Hahn did in trading Sale. Now, Hahn needs to follow through. Having traded Sale and gotten no 2017 value back in return, he’s made it clear that the 2017 White Sox can’t win, and the 2018 ones probably can’t, either. The target has to be 2019, when Moncada will be a sophomore, playing next to Tim Anderson in an exciting young middle infield. By then, Carlos Rodon has established himself as at least a credible #2, with Carson Fulmer taking regular turns in the rotation, with Zack Collins pushing for AL Rookie of the Year. Everyone not named in that paragraph is trade bait. Jose Quintana may not be as sexy as Chris Sale, but he’s a legitimate #2 starter and, like Sale, controlled for a while on a below-market deal. He should return…well, think of the Sale package, but without Moncada. Jose Abreu, Todd Frazier, David Robertson have to be sent out for players who will be on that 2019 team, who will be on the field for the next White Sox playoff game. The White Sox have been floundering since the core of their 2005 championship team aged and drifted apart. Yesterday ended that era in team history, and while the next two seasons won’t be fun to watch, they should — as they did on the North Side — yield to exciting, successful baseball teams.

Chris Sale’s White Sox journey ends in unfulfilled promise By Cee Angi / The Athletic | December 7th, 2016 Four seasons, 823 innings, and 941 strikeouts. It’s hard not to memorialize wasted accomplishments. In March 2013, Chris Sale signed a contract extension with the Chicago White Sox. It was one of the best things that could have happened for both the emerging lefty ace and the organization. That season, the Sox lost 99 games, and so the deal felt like a weird incongruity. One of the worst teams in the majors, one whose internal resources were so limited that a quick turnaround would be unlikely, controlled one of the

best pitchers in baseball, a lopsided and superfluous nicety that brought no shortage of suitors to the door since before the ink had even dried. For the past four seasons, Sale-centric trade discussions have popped up each July and winter, and just as regularly Sale stayed on. Four seasons of drain-circling made speculation about if and when the Sox would be ready to trade Sale a more compelling and more urgent topic than the team itself. That debate was settled on Tuesday at the Winter Meetings, as Rick Hahn finally pulled the trigger, trading Sale and his current hosiery for that of another color in a deal that sent the starter to the Boston Red Sox in exchange for Yoan Moncada, whom Baseball America currently has ranked as the best prospect in baseball, Michael Kopech, Luis Alexander Basabe and Victor Diaz. The return for Sale was the rightful ransom, a fair bounty for the most inquired-about player of the past four seasons. Multiple teams were interested, but it isn’t just Sale’s major-league performance — his five All-Star appearances, a career 31.1 WAR, his finishes in the top six in Cy Young voting for the past five seasons, or the nasty slider — that has made him the envy of every rotation in baseball. The team-friendly contract extension that the Sox and Sale reached really is the genesis of the annual tug of war of teams wanting, and the Sox holding out, refusing to heed their own desperate need for reinvigoration, because he was capable and affordable, and the team that already had him couldn’t fathom parting with the ace for the exact same reasons. When the extension was finalized in 2013, the Sox were laying roots, giving a vote of confidence to a rising, yet still unproven, ace. Two seasons in, it was still impressive that he had been drafted by the Sox in the first place. Entering the 2010 draft, the Sox had their eye on Sale, which in itself was miraculous given how poor their record of judging first-round talent had been and would continue to be for years afterward. They expected that he would be picked up in the top 10 by other teams. When he was still on the board as the Sox came up as 13th pick, they selected him, but there was apprehension that a deal might not be finalized. In the end, Sale signed and less than two months after the deal was finalized, he made his major-league debut with the White Sox in a relief appearance. Sale remained in the bullpen for the 2010 and 2011 seasons, presenting all of the peripherals — velocity, deceptive movement on a slider, high strikeout rates — to be a great closer, a role he might have assumed if the Sox hadn’t made some difficult decisions related to the rotation: trading Edwin Jackson in July 2011 and deciding not to re-sign Mark Buehrle after 12 seasons with the team. The idea of Sale in the rotation seemed preposterous to some. The 6-foot-6 left-hander, who earned the nickname “The Condor” for his bony and flapping wing span, as well as his unconventional pitching motion, seemed like a risk from a mechanical and health standpoint. The critics said his frail 185-pound frame and contortionist pitching motion seemed to portend increased risk for injury and inability to eat innings. The naysayers also thought that he’d struggle in the rotation, with few relievers successfully making the transition from relief to the front innings of the game while maintaining their high strikeout rates and velocity. It was a risk the Sox were willing to take however, as Sale had impressed them with what he accomplished in his first two seasons. Plus, if there was ever a coach who could whisper a pitcher from one role to another, it would be Don Cooper. In his five full seasons in the rotation, he has exceeded all expectations. Of players in his same 2010 draft class, Sale has the highest career WAR. He led the league in strikeouts in 2015, and earned the franchise record for strikeouts in the same season. He’s been consistently dominant, matching a major-league record of five consecutive starts with 12-plus strikeouts (tied with Pedro Martinez and Randy Johnson), managing to silence the critics who thought he might lose some command under a heavier workload. Sale’s numbers have dipped from time to time, particularly in periods where he was forced to move away from his slider to protect his pitching arm, but on the whole he has performed near the top of his class —

that is, the class of major league pitchers. The concerns about longevity and mechanics have been partially silenced; though he has exhibited soreness in his elbow over the course of his career, he has never been shut down for extended periods of time. Sale’s five-year, $32.5 million contract extension with the Sox was easily one of the most team-friendly contracts in modern baseball history given what a pitcher of his ability and results would be worth on the open market. Some of his contemporaries in the Cy Young voting earn double his salary. The contract was conceived with the risks of a premature starter in mind, not the ace that has emerged, so not only is the total payout light, it has the structure most teams prefer — back-loaded to give the organization financial flexibility for other free agents, two team options, and instead of guaranteed money, escalators for achievements and awards, a monetary pat on the back to reward a top performance but also insurance against disappointment. It was the sort of contract that players rarely accept. The only problem with the agreement was that having Sale on the roster was a lot like driving a convertible with the top down in a downpour: one can wish for a sunny day, but doesn’t mean it will stop raining. He was too valuable to trade but also too good to keep. The first sign of trouble for the Sox was July 2013, just four months into Sale’s extension. By the trade deadline, the Sox were 40-65 and an abysmal 16 games out of first place in the AL Central. The weak performance came on the heels of the collapse at the end of the 2012 season, which sent the Sox for the sofa as second-place finishers in the AL Central, but that seemed more like a team running out of gas at the end of the season instead of a cancer that would spread into 2013. At no point since Sale’s contract extension were the Sox competitive. Since 2012, the Sox haven’t had a season above .500, nor have they finished higher than fourth place in a rather lackluster AL Central. That’s four seasons, 823 innings, and 941 strikeouts from Sale wasted on meaningless baseball. There were moments of promise (or delusion) along the way that the Sox could turn it around and compete. They signed Jose Abreu. Jose Quintana developed. Weak links like Dayan Viciedo, Tyler Flowers and Gordon Beckham all departed. But success has not been sustainable. While some organizations have taken a measured approach, embracing process first and outcome second, the Sox continued to reach for the stars without sound reasoning, just crossing their fingers that the rocket boosters to the top of the standings wouldn’t malfunction at the time of liftoff. Spoiler alert: every season has been an explosion. The Sox have trailed their peers in international signings, development of the farm system, identifying talent and getting the most from free agent signings. That left them provisioned poorly at the major-league level, with a thin roster and nothing on the farm coming up behind it. Unwilling to concede that trading Sale and starting over was the only way out of the trap, they pursued the only policy left: praying for upside and hoping that the sum of its parts could outperform its Shieldsian shortcomings. It took four seasons to surrender, but the inevitable is no longer delayed. The tipping point for the Sox seemed to be the most obvious one after all — the right time to make the trade was only after they’d exhausted all of their options of winning a ring before 2018. It took longer, much longer, for them to get to that point than might have been reasonable, but barring catastrophic injury or regression, the Sox recognized that there would always be a market for Sale. This is not the only decision, though undoubtedly the most difficult one, that Hahn will have to make before the season starts. This deal wasn’t done in a vacuum and there will be more dominoes to fall. No absence will be felt more than that of Sale, whose performance and presence as the face of the franchise was the sole source of light on many dark days. The contract extension that once signaled that the future would be lanky and relentless on the mound now is completely unknown. It may belong to Yoan Moncada and a few of his fellow ex-Red Sox, but it will be some time before we know for certain if the White Sox received anything like equal value for Sale or made the moves that will finally restore this team to contention. Certainly Moncada is one of the best, if

not the best prospect in baseball, but they call them prospects for a reason — certitude about them is still in their, and our, futures. And so the White Sox started with Sale and end, for now, with a mystery. That doesn’t seem like much of a return for a great pitcher, but it allows for so much more hope than the path they were on.

Levine: Rick Hahn, White Sox transform farm system in span of 30 hours By Bruce Levine / CBS Chicago | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. (CBS) — The White Sox are on the way up the ladder of minor league systems. Within a span of about 30 hours spanning Tuesday and into late Wednesday afternoon, general manager Rick Hahn transformed an organization that had previously ranked often in the bottom five of farm systems into a one that’s among the 10 richest in minor league talent. Hahn did so with headlining trades of ace left-hander Chris Sale to the Red Sox and outfielder Adam Eaton to the Nationals. The moves netted Chicago seven prospects, highlighted by 21-year-old second baseman Yoan Moncada (MLB.com’s No. 1 prospect) and 22-year-old right-hander Lucas Giolito (No. 3). Along with Giolito, the White Sox also received from the Nationals right-hander Reynaldo Lopez (No. 38 prospect) and right-hander Dane Dunning (a 2016 first-round pick). All three pitchers have big upside. Couple that with Moncada and right-hander Michael Kopech being acquired Tuesday from the Red Sox, and that’s quite the haul for the White Sox in a short period of time. It all adds up to a good first step in a rebuild. “We are very pleased with the way this has started,” Hahn said Wednesday at the Winter Meetings after the Eaton trade became official. “However, we are far closer to the beginning than we are to the end of this process. If I had my choice, we would have three more of these (deals) done before we leave here. In reality, our desire to move this process along is not what will dictate the pace. What will dictate the process will be the value of our players and the potential return that we get fitting into our long-term plan.” The next players to be dealt off the White Sox will likely be third baseman Todd Frazier and closer David Robertson. The 30-year-old Frazier plays solid defense and is coming off a season in which he hit 40 homers with 98 RBIs, so he should be popular on the trade front. He’s likely to earn around $15 million in arbitration ahead of the 2017 season, after which he’ll be a free agent. The 31-year-old Robertson is coming off a season in which he had a 3.47 ERA, a 10.8 strikeout/nine innings rate and 37 saves. He also should garner plenty of interest. Free-agent closers Aroldis Chapman and Kenley Janssen are expected to receive deals in the ballpark of five years and $90 million. Those that can’t afford that could then turn to Robertson, who figures to look good to any contending team. He’s owed $25 million over the next two seasons. The Nationals may turn out to be the team bidding on Robertson. As for the White Sox, Hahn cautioned not to get ahead of the rebuild story and its timetable. “There may well be nothing else we accomplish down here,” Hahn said of the Winter Meetings. “There may not be anything else until after the holidays or through the trade deadline, even into next offseason. We are taking a longer-term view, and we are going to do this deliberately and with reason and logic. We will react accordingly to the market. We are open and eager for what happened today in this trade to happen again. If it doesn’t, we will be patient and move when the time is right.”

The Bernstein Brief: Rick Hahn’s Sci-Fi superpowers By Dan Bernstein / CBS Chicago | December 7th, 2016 (CBS) Obi-Hahn Kenobi just used the Jedi mind trick on the Nationals on Wednesday, making Mike Rizzo part with three top pitching prospects to the White Sox in exchange for Adam Eaton. It appeared to have worn off in time for Rizzo’s press conference alongside manager Dusty Baker, the two men looking like they had already seen and heard the reaction around baseball. It was a swift and brutal consensus mixing shock, laughter and pity over anybody giving up that much for a questionable defensive center fielder already with his third organization at age 28, due largely to the same kind of annoying personality that moved Nick Swisher through five teams. Getting a proper return for Chris Sale was one thing for White Sox general manager Rick Hahn, but getting a package including some of the names originally linked to a potential Sale trade for an interchangeable part coming off an outlier of a career season is just mastery. The longer Hahn stalks the cantina at Mos Eisley spaceport looking for more potential victims of his use of the Force, the closer the White Sox get to sustained contention for championships.

White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, 2 more prospects By Staff / CBS Chicago | December 7th, 2016 (CBS) The White Sox’s overhaul continued Wednesday, as they traded starting outfielder Adam Eaton to the Nationals for highly touted 22-year-old right-hander Lucas Giolito and two more pitching prospects. The move comes a day after Chicago traded ace left-hander Chris Sale to Boston in a deal that signaled a focus on the long-term picture and not winning in 2017. In Giolito, the White Sox get a player who was rated as Baseball America’s No. 4 prospect as recently as last July and whom MLB.com currently ranks at No. 3. Giolito appeared in six games at the big league level in 2016 and struggled with a 6.75 ERA in limited action, but he was dominant in the minors. He had a 2.97 ERA and 9.1 strikeout/nine innings rate in 22 starts last season. Washington took Giolito in the first round of the 2012 amateur draft. The White Sox also acquired 22-year-old right-hander Reynaldo Lopez and 21-year-old right-hander Dane Dunning in the deal with the Nationals. Lopez was ranked as the No. 48 prospect in the game by Baseball America last year, when he had a 3.21 ERA and 10.4 strikeout/nine innings rate in 19 starts across two levels in the minors. He also appeared in 11 games for the Nationals, recording a 4.91 ERA. Lopez is MLB.com’s No. 38 prospect. Dunning is a lower-tiered prospect who had a 2.14 ERA at Class-A in 2016. Washington selected him in the first round of this past season’s amateur draft. “An important part of the process we are pursuing is acquiring quality pitching talent,” White Sox general manager Rick Hahn said in a statement. “We feel like we’ve done that today — and yesterday — en masse. Giolito and Lopez rank among the top prospects in baseball, while Dunning is another young prospect who possesses front-of-the-rotation potential.” With the addition of seven prospects in the past two days, the White Sox now boast four of the top 38 prospects in the game, as rated by MLB.com. That includes two of the top three in second baseman Yoan Moncada (No. 1) and Giolito (No. 3). The 28-year-old Eaton had spent the last three seasons with the White Sox, primarily as the team’s lead-off hitter. He played center field before shifting to right field for most of the 2016 season, a move that resulted in him rating among the league’s best defenders and staying healthy. Eaton hit .284 with 14

homers, 59 RBIs, a .790 OPS and .362 on-base percentage in 157 games last season. He’s expected to play center field for the Nationals with former MVP Bryce Harper stationed in right field. Eaton is under team control through 2021. Being in the prime of his career and with his value arguably as high as it has ever been, Eaton didn’t fit the timeframe for the now-rebuilding White Sox. During his time with the White Sox, Eaton was one of the team’s vocal leaders, though his approach sometimes caused teammates to roll their eyes. In one of the more memorable interviews in recent Chicago sports history, Eaton in March staunchly defended what 14-year-old Drake LaRoche meant to the White Sox following a controversy in which his father, designated hitter Adam LaRoche, was asked by a team executive to have his son spend less time around the clubhouse, leading to the elder LaRoche’s retirement. “Drake was more than just a kid that came to the clubhouse,” Eaton said. “He did more for people than we did for him by having him there every day. It’s a difficult dynamic to understand, and that’s why there’s such a strong outreach for us. “We lost a leader in Drake, which is crazy enough that a 14-year-old could be looked at like that, but the kid was so tremendous.”

White Sox take RHP Dylan Covey in Rule 5 Draft By Staff / CBS Chicago | December 7th, 2016 (CBS) The White Sox on Thursday nabbed right-hander Dylan Covey from the Athletics in the Rule 5 Draft. The 25-year-old Covey has a 4.83 ERA across four minor league seasons. He was slowed by an oblique injury in 2016, when he was 2-1 with a 1.84 ERA in 29 1/3 innings at Double-A. Rule 5 Draft picks can’t be optioned down for the entire season after which they’re draft. They must stay with the selecting team’s 25-man roster for the entire next season or be waived. The Athletics took Covey in the fourth round of the 2013 amateur draft. The White Sox’s 40-man roster is now full.

White Sox nailing the art of the sale By Jayson Stark / ESPN.com | December 8th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- There's an old expression you hear from general managers every winter. It goes kind of like this: Buying is easy. Selling is hard. So for a team that hasn't held a storewide clearance sale in almost 20 years, you have to hand it to the Chicago White Sox. They're turning out to be every bit as good at this as Macy's. Two days and two monster trades into their Everything Must Go sale, they've made two of the best winter-meetings sell-off deals of modern times. And it has changed the face, and the direction, of their franchise. Already. "I don't know where their farm system was ranked before this week," said one rival farm director Wednesday night. "But it's ranked really high now."

One day after reeling in two potential superstars (Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech) in the trade that sent Chris Sale to Boston, the White Sox didn't quite top that haul Wednesday, when they agreed to the stunning trade that shipped off Adam Eaton to Washington. But all three pitchers they received -- Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning -- have top-of-the-rotation upside. Chris Sale and Adam Eaton might be headed for bigger and better things in the near future, but with their trades, the White Sox won't be far behind. USA Today Sports So if there was any doubt that the White Sox meant it when they started making noises last month about retooling, we would like to make this important announcement: No further doubting will be permitted by the proper authorities. This. Is. Happening. And guess what? It's not done happening, either. "They're obviously not done," said a National League executive. "[Todd] Frazier is probably next. Why keep him? And I'd expect Jose Quintana to get moved. Once you trade Sale, who's one of the five or six best pitchers in baseball, that's what you do. You just keep going." So fasten those seat belts. They could all go now: Frazier and Quintana, Jose Abreu and David Robertson, and who knows how many more. They might not go this week, said White Sox general manager Rick Hahn. They might not even go this month. Some of them might not go until July. But "it's much more important to do it right," Hahn said, "than to do it quickly." In order to truly appreciate the incredible work Hahn has already done, you need to take a step back and consider the perspective of recent franchise history. And by that, we mean: They never, ever do this. Most of the guys they've traded for this week were in preschool the last time their owner, Jerry Reinsdorf, signed off on SELL mode. That was in 1997, when Reinsdorf and pretty much the entire South Side was scarred permanently by what would forever be known as the White Flag Trade, which you should probably Google if you're not familiar with it. After all the abuse heaped on the franchise's powers that be back then, it took nearly two decades for this team to be able to face reality and understand it was time, once again, to sell, sell, sell. But here we are. It's a decision that was actually made over a month ago. Hahn and executive vice president Kenny Williams gathered their most trusted scouts and decision-makers in their annual organizational meetings. And after several days of kicking around all their options, they came to a conclusion they'd been talking themselves out of for years. They'd been patching the roof long enough. And the damned thing was still leaking. The direction they chose, Hahn said this week, "doesn't fit with how we have acted over the last several years. We've been in a more of a `win now and patch and play' type of situation." But of course, they weren't winning. They hadn't enjoyed a winning season since 2012. They hadn't won a postseason game since 2008. They hadn't won a postseason series since Ozzie Guillen, Mark Buehrle and the boys swept the World Series in 2005. Meanwhile, that other team in town -- yeah, you know, THAT team -- was heading in a slightly different direction. So if this wasn't the time to go print up those FOR SALE signs, then when the heck was it? "The last thing you want to be is caught in between," Hahn said. "You don't want to be a club that's not good enough, not capable of winning a championship, but at the same time is just sort of mediocre or stuck in the middle."

The funny thing is, though, that in order to pull this off, they had to do more than simply talk about rebuilding. They had to convince the teams they were talking with that this time, they meant it -- that this time, they were on the same page, all of them: Hahn AND Williams AND Reinsdorf. No kidding. "At the GM meetings," said another exec, "they were openly saying that this was what they were going to do. They were ready to rebuild and change the mix. And that told me that even Jerry was on board. I'd never heard them say it before. This was the first time. They never said once, 'We're not trading Chris Sale.' So this time, you had to believe they meant it." Yessir. They meant it, all right. And now they've pulled it off. But it feels so strange, after all those years of going in the other direction, that even Hahn has to admit he's having a hard time handling all the praise he's getting -- for breaking up a team HE built. "The weird part for me," he said Wednesday, after announcing the Sale deal, "is that we walk around here [and] you have a lot of people congratulating you. ... It's a little awkward -- because we traded Chris Sale. That's not something you feel great about." Yes, but if you're going to sell, you might as well nail it. And two days into Sale-A-Thon 2016, Hahn and his front office have already proven they've got the hang of this. Fortunately, this time, there isn't a white flag in sight.

MLB Rumor Central: White Sox in search of young catcher? By Nick Ostiller / ESPN.com | December 7th, 2016 The rebuilding process for the Chicago White Sox began in earnest Tuesday when the team traded away ace Chris Sale for a haul of prospects from the Boston Red Sox. Rumor CentralWhile the deal was a boon for the White Sox, there are also some smaller wheels turning within the organization. According to Jenifer Langosch of MLB.com, Chicago is in search of a young catcher as it looks toward the future. One potential target that Langosch mentions is St. Louis Cardinals prospect Carson Kelly, a 22-year-old who hit .289 with a .343 OBP in 96 games split between Double-A and Triple-A last season and was also a September call-up, appearing in 10 games for the Cardinals. Kelly, who owns a minor league Gold Glove behind the plate, also played well in the Arizona Fall League, where he was named to the all-prospect team. St. Louis' interest in negotiating with Chicago revolves around White Sox outfielder Adam Eaton, whom the Cardinals reportedly view as a potential option to fill their opening in center field. Kelly would represent an upgrade over the backstops currently on Chicago's 40-man roster, namely Alfredo Gonzalez, Omar Narvaez and Kevan Smith. Gonzalez, 24, has never played in an MLB game, while Narvaez, 24, and Smith, 28, have 133 big league plate appearances between them. None of the three produced a batting average higher than .240 at any level last season. The White Sox drafted catcher Zach Collins with the 10th overall pick this past June. The 21-year-old slashed .244/.396/.435 with six home runs and 18 RBI in 39 games between rookie ball and high Class A ball.

Nats trade prospect Lucas Giolito to White Sox in deal for Adam Eaton By Staff / ESPN.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- The Washington Nationals acquired outfielder Adam Eaton from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for three pitchers Wednesday. In return for Eaton, the Nationals sent right-handed pitchers Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning to Chicago. The trade, which represents Washington's first major transaction of the offseason, comes one day after the Nats missed out on former White Sox ace Chris Sale, who had been strongly linked to the Nationals in trade talks but instead wound up going to the Boston Red Sox. "It's never easy to let go of your prospects," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said. "You feel like a proud daddy when they get to the big leagues." Eaton, who turned 28 years old on Tuesday, hit .284 with 14 home runs, 59 RBIs and an American League-leading nine triples. Eaton has a .284 career batting average with a .357 on-base percentage and a .414 slugging percentage, with 34 homers and 177 RBIs in five seasons in the majors. He led the AL in triples in two of the past three seasons. "He's a high-energy guy," Rizzo said. "There's an edge to him." Defensively, in his first season playing primarily right field, Eaton accounted for 22 runs saved, second-most in the AL behind Mookie Betts. "We see the arrow still going up with him," Rizzo said. A 19th-round pick of the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2010, Eaton has three guaranteed seasons left in a $23.5 million, five-year contract that calls for him to earn $4 million next year, $6 million in 2018 and $8.4 million in 2019. The deal includes a $9.5 million team option for 2020 with a $1.5 million buyout and, if 2020 is exercised, a 2021 team option for $10.5 million with a $1.5 million buyout. "We discussed (Eaton) and several other players with the White Sox for quite a while now. It did gain momentum after the Sale deal was done," Rizzo said. "It actually came together fairly quickly over the last couple of days." Rizzo also acknowledged talking with the Pittsburgh Pirates about a deal for center fielder Andrew McCutchen. Predominantly a center fielder before last season, Eaton will likely switch back to center in Washington, a move that would allow young star Trea Turner to return to shortstop, his natural position. "The only negative I've heard is you have to calm him down a little bit," Nationals manager Dusty Baker said of Eaton. "Because he goes 100 percent all the time, which is not a bad way to play this game. ... He's not afraid to get dirty and grimy, greasy, nasty -- do everything there is to beat you." As for where Eaton might hit in the lineup -- like Bryce Harper and Daniel Murphy, he bats left-handed -- Baker said: "That remains to be seen. We do have options to try to break them up." In the deal, the Nationals have surrendered two first-round picks. Giolito, the 16th overall selection in 2012, was rated as one of the top prospects in baseball this past summer by both ESPN's Keith Law (No. 2 overall) and Baseball America (No. 4 overall). In six games with Washington last season (four starts), the 6-foot-6 righty was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA. Dunning, a University of Florida product, was the Nationals' first-round pick last season (29th overall).

Also headed to Chicago is Lopez, a 22-year-old native of the Dominican Republic who was rated as the team's third-best prospect. In 11 games with Washington in 2016, the 6-foot right-hander went 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA. "We view all three of them, actually, as having the potential to become front-end-of-the-rotation pitchers," White Sox GM Rick Hahn said. "There's still a fair amount of development with each of them."

How the White Sox won the Winter Meetings By Jeff Passan / Yahoo Sports | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – This is what a rebuild is supposed to look like. The Chicago White Sox hemmed and hawed, lived in that dangerous ZIP code where they weren’t awful but weren’t any good, either, and found themselves once again staring at a question no team ever wants to ask itself: Are we good enough? The answer, as is almost always the case when such an examination begins, was no. The ability for enough self-reflection to do something about it is always the hard part. Honesty amid introspection can be hard to come by in a business judged solely upon wins and losses, which makes what the White Sox did over the final two days of the Winter Meetings all the more impressive. In trading Chris Sale and Adam Eaton – one a superstar and the other quite underrated, both on the sorts of team-friendly deals the White Sox have excelled at negotiating – Chicago managed to kick off its demolition in the best fashion possible. Wednesday’s deal that sent Eaton to the Washington Nationals for pitching prospects Lucas Giolito, Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning was, in the words of one executive, “Shelby Miller 2.0.” And while that may be an exaggeration – the Miller-for-Dansby Swanson/Ender Inciarte/Aaron Blair swap brought two everyday players, while the Eaton trade trafficked in the uncertain quantity known as pitching prospects – the implication was obvious: Chicago extracted immense value out of Eaton and the five years and $38.4 million that remain on his contract, should the Nationals exercise the two club options at the end of it. “We are ecstatic about the return we were able to secure,” said White Sox general manager Rick Hahn, the architect of the Eaton deal as well as the Sale trade that secured them star-in-the-making Yoan Moncada, 100-mph-flamethrower Michael Kopech, outfield prospect Luis Basabe and power arm Victor Diaz. In Giolito, the White Sox bought low on a 21-year-old right-hander who, before six ugly outings in Washington, was thought to be the best pitching prospect in baseball. In Lopez, they got an ultra-quick right-hander who, if he can start, is a potential No. 2 and, worst-case scenario, ends up an eighth- or ninth-inning arm. And in Dunning, they secured the Nationals’ most recent first-round pick, a righty with the potential to move fast. Or, as Hahn put it, “High-impact, potential front-of-the-rotation pieces.” The danger, of course, is that they’re arms, and arms break. Giolito’s ulnar collateral ligament tore in high school, and he’s four years removed from Tommy John surgery. Lopez missed most of 2013 with arm issues. Which is part of the reason volume return in these deals was so important to Hahn: The only antidote for pitchers getting hurt is having more pitchers down the pike. What was a thin-but-improving system – scouts love Alec Hansen, the monster right-hander whose disappointing junior season allowed the White Sox to thieve him in the second round of the draft, after getting Zack Collins and his big bat in the first – is now trending toward one of baseball’s finest. And that’s before Hahn dealt Jose Quintana, Todd Frazier, Jose Abreu, David Robertson or Nate Jones, all of whom could go if Chicago chooses a full teardown. That’s almost always the best course of action. It’s what the team 10 miles north did, and you may know about them. The Chicago Cubs won the World Series in 2016. They’re favorites to repeat in 2017. And they’ll keep churning in 2018 and 2019 and 2020, too, because most of the big-time prospects they acquired during their nuking happened to turn into productive major leaguers.

Hitting on prospects at that rate is uncommon and perhaps an unreasonable expectation for the White Sox. And yet the lesson the Cubs offer is instructive: Even in a big market, sometimes the best option is to commit arson and start from scratch. It takes patience and confidence and a willingness to bear risk, because if it doesn’t go as planned, it sets a franchise back a decade instead of three years, and that’s something no owner will oblige, not when attendance craters as it’s expected to. “This is going to take some time,” Hahn said. “There’s going to be difficult elements of this along the way.” Both statements are true. Rebuilding is often ugly, and some of the perks of the past, like an increased bonus pool for international signings or a disproportionately large domestic draft pool, are gone from the new collective-bargaining agreement. The White Sox and San Diego Padres will be the first new test cases for how the current rules affect starting from scratch. If the White Sox score for the rest of its desirables anything close to what they did from Sale and Eaton, the rules may not matter. The market for Quintana is bustling. Whether it’s the Houston Astros, the Colorado Rockies, the Los Angeles Dodgers or any other team that wants a front-of-the-rotation type, the price will be heavy, and Chicago will extract it thanks to another great long-term deal that accompanies Quintana. The market for Abreu may not reveal itself this winter, but a bat like his is always desirable. Frazier is a free agent-to-be and as good as gone. Robertson has closing experience in a market without enough to satisfy the number of suitors for it, and Jones may be even better than him. And with a goofy-great contract – five years at less than $14 million if he needs elbow surgery, four years at $15.65 million if he doesn’t – Jones’ value is absurdly high. The catbird’s seat is Rick Hahn’s, the White Sox’s, because they’ve done what they had to do. Even with Andrew McCutchen, Dexter Fowler, Charlie Blackmon and others available, Hahn preyed on the Nationals’ desire to win now, with Bryce Harper around for only two more years, and played the vulture that dive-bombed that which was most prone. It’s no fun moving out of that in-between ZIP code into one with a win total that starts with a six, but that’s merely a pit stop on the way to something bigger and better. Moncada at second base. Giolito, Kopech and Lopez in the rotation. It’s tough to say a team won the Winter Meetings while resigning itself to losing, but, well, the Chicago White Sox did. And this is just the beginning.

White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, two others By Mike Oz / Yahoo Sports | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The Washington Nationals are getting the centerfielder they’ve been chasing and the Chicago White Sox now look like a team stockpiling big-name prospects. The two teams completed a trade Wednesday that will send Adam Eaton to the Nats in exchange for a package of prospects led by Lucas Giolito, a 22-year-old right-handed pitcher who is the Nats’ No. 1 overall prospect. The Sox are getting two more minor-league pitchers too. Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports was first to report the deal was done. Our Jeff Passan confirmed it: According to Dan Hayes of CSN Chicago, the White Sox are also getting Reynaldo Lopez, the Nats’ No. 3 prospect, and Dane Dunning, the Nats’ No. 6 prospect. That’s a big return for Eaton, a 28-year-old who slashed .284/.362/.428 last season and plays above-average defense. He was worth 6.0 Wins Above Replacement last season, according to Fangraphs, which was tied for eighth-best in the American League, on par with Robinson Cano. Adding Eaton also allows the Nats to move prized youngster Trea Turner out of the outfield, so he can play shortstop full-time.

“Adam fit our club perfectly, left-handed bat, balances our lineup, high energy guy, edge to him, plays the game the right way,” said Nats GM Mike Rizzo. “We see the arrow still going up with him and he’s a guy that will have years of control and cost certainty and it allows us the flexibility to do many more things.” Making Eaton even more appealing to the Nats is his contract. He’s under team control through 2022 and is due $4 million next season, $6 million in 2018 and $8.4 million in 2019. The Nats will now hold team options for Eaton: $9.5 million in 2020 and $10.5 million in 2021. What the Nats are saving in money, they might be giving up in future talent. Dunning was the Nats’ first-round pick (No. 29 overall) last year. Lopez, 22, struck out 126 hitters in 109 minor-league innings last season. He was also 5-3 with a 4.91 in 11 big-league appearances. Giolito, of course, was one of the Nats’ most-coveted youngsters the last few years. He ranks as the No. 3 overall prospect in the game, according to MLB Pipeline. He made his MLB debut last season, starting four games and make two relief appearances for the Nats. He had 6.75 ERA. In five minor-league seasons, he had a 2.73 ERA. With Tuesday’s trade of Chris Sale, that means the White Sox have acquired three of MLB Pipeline’s top 30 prospects in two days. Yoan Moncada, the centerpiece of the Sale deal, ranks No. 1. and pitcher Michael Kopech, also in the Sale deal, ranks No. 30. And Lopez isn’t far behind. He’s No. 38 on the list.

Nationals acquire outfielder Adam Eaton in trade with White Sox By Bob Nightengale / USA Today | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. — The Chicago White Sox continued their aggressive launch of a rebuilding plan Wednesday, this time furnishing the Washington Nationals with their leadoff hitter and starting center fielder. The White Sox traded outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals for top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito and two other right-handed starters. The Nationals will also send right-hander Reynaldo Lopez and minor league starter Dane Dunning to the White Sox. Eaton, who has a .362 on-base percentage the past three years and was an elite defensive right fielder in 2016, is under contract through 2019, with club options through 2021. He will likely play center field, moving Trea Turner back to shortstop. He'll make $4 million in 2017, offering significant flexibility for the Nationals to make other moves. Eaton's 20 defensive runs saved ranked third in the major leagues last season, according to FanGraphs. He spent most of the season as the White Sox's right fielder, but will shift to center in Washington. "It was one of the few times where the analytics in the war room matched up with the scouting eye," Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said Wednesday night. "He's performed admirably throughout his career. And it gives us the flexibility to do other things." Giolito, 22, the Nationals' No. 1 pitching prospect, made his major league debut in 2016, making four starts for Washington and posting a 6.75 ERA. He struck out 112 batters in 108 1/3 innings at Class AA and AAA this season. "We traded from a position of depth and strength to correct a hole in our lineup," says Rizzo. On Monday, the White Sox traded ace Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox for Yoan Moncada, the top infield prospect in baseball. They also received top pitching prospect Michael Kopech, pitcher Victor Diaz and outfield prospect Luis Basabe.

Nationals pay high price, but see ‘arrow going up’ in acquiring Adam Eaton By Steve Gardner / USA Today | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. – The Washington Nationals didn’t have an attractive enough package of prospects to get ace pitcher Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox. But persistence eventually paid off Wednesday as the Nats checked a different box in their offseason shopping list, acquiring outfielder Adam Eaton from the White Sox for three pitchers, including top prospect Lucas Giolito. “We discussed this player and several other players with the White Sox for quite a while now,” general manager Mike Rizzo said. “It did gain momentum after the Sale deal (with Boston) was done and it actually came together fairly quickly over the last couple days.” The Nationals could have used an ace of Sale’s caliber, but Rizzo noted they still have their entire starting rotation from last season returning. Adding an outfielder will allow them to move NL rookie of the year runner-up Trea Turner back to the infield and his natural position, shortstop. “It leaves us with a lot of options,” Rizzo said. “We continue to have positional flexibility and we’ll make those decisions down the road as we see fit.” Most of the speculation entering this year’s winter meetings centered on the Nats pursuing 2013 NL MVP Andrew McCutchen of the Pittsburgh Pirates. Although McCutchen’s performance on offense and defense slipped considerably in 2016, he is still a five-time All-Star who just turned 30 in October. In Eaton, the Nationals get a player who’s two years younger and is under team control through 2021. “I like win-win deals. I think the White Sox did a good job of acquiring potential upside players,” Rizzo said. “We got ourselves a good young, skillful player who we control at below-market value for five seasons.” Eaton isn’t the run producer McCutchen has been, but he posted an excellent .362 on-base percentage and scored 91 runs last season for a White Sox offense that ranked 20th in the majors. The 5-8, 185-pound Eaton also has some surprising pop in his bat, hitting 14 home runs with an OPS that was even better than McCutchen’s (.790 vs. .766). “We see the arrow still going up with him,” Rizzo said. “He hits for average, he’s a contact guy, he gets on base, he’s got some power, he plays great defense." Indeed, Eaton was one of the best defensive players in baseball last season. His 20 Defensive Runs Saved ranked third among outfielders, according to Fangraphs, and he led the majors with 18 outfield assists. His defensive metrics were sharply better after moving from center field to right field this season. However in Washington, he’ll go back to playing center – with Jason Werth in left and Bryce Harper in right. Rizzo praised Eaton’s “makeup, his attitude and positional flexibility,” which may have been an unintentional reference to the other big story involving the Nationals that came out of these Winter Meetings. Harper can become a free agent after the 2018 season, and one team official told USA TODAY Sports that the Nats are unlikely to be able to meet his contract demands once he hits the open market.

Eaton could easily slide to right field in two years, possibly around the time top prospect Victor Robles, now 19, will be ready to take over in center. The cost to obtain Eaton was certainly high. Giolito, 21, and Reynaldo Lopez, 22, both saw time with the Nationals last season. “These are guys who came quickly and got to the big leagues at a young age,” White Sox GM Rick Hahn said. “They’re not finished products, but we’re optimistic about their ceilings.” Giolito was a consensus top-5 overall prospect last spring, and was on a fast track to the majors with a 2.97 ERA at three minor league levels. However, his velocity dropped and he struggled with his control after being promoted to Washington and he finished with a 6.75 ERA over 21 1/3 innings. Lopez went 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA in 44 innings for the Nationals. The White Sox also acquired a third pitcher in the deal, 21-year-old Dane Dunning, who was Washington's first-round pick in the 2016 draft. Fantasy impact Eaton is a good, but not great, fantasy player who doesn't contribute an overwhelming amount of power or speed. He had career highs of 14 home runs and 18 stolen bases in 2015 -- and matched that home run total last year. His main value is an ability to get on base and score runs. He scored 98 and 91 times the past two seasons, making him more valuable in 5x5 formats. But he ends up being a better player in real life because of his contributions on defense. The biggest question is where he'll hit in the Nationals lineup since they already have a pretty good leadoff hitter in Turner. A .357 career OBP indicates Eaton should hit toward the top of the lineup, but if he hits second, it would presumably put three left-handed hitters in a row in Eaton, Daniel Murphy and Bryce Harper. Nationals manager Dusty Baker said he wasn't terribly concerned about that arrangement -- if he were to go that route -- because all three hit left-handed pitchers well. Eaton's career slash line vs. right handed pitchers: .284/.356/.436 ... vs. left-handed pitchers: .285/.359/.352. As for the pitchers the White Sox received in return, both Giolito and Lopez are expected to begin the 2017 season at Class AAA Charlotte. If they have success there, it shouldn't be long before they're back in the majors. Both should be drafted in AL-only leagues, with Giolito an upside pick late in mixed-league formats.

MLB Hot Stove: White Sox’s rebuild gets off to a big start with Sale, Eaton trades GM Rick Hahn’s trades involving Chris Sale and Adam Eaton have remade the White Sox’s farm system By Dayn Perry / CBS Sports | December 7th, 2016 After two seasons of trying to construct a contender around a core of Chris Sale and Jose Abreu, the White Sox have wisely embraced the rebuilding process. GM Rick Hahn didn't do a very good job of surrounding his key contributors with a playoff-worthy supporting cast, but thus far his teardown is going swimmingly in the extreme. Simply put, the recent trades of Sale to the Red Sox and Adam Eaton to the Nationals have drastically improved the club's base of young talent. Consider the seven prospects they've added since Tuesday and where four of them ranked on Baseball America's midseason top-100 prospects list ... Prospect Midseason overall rank INF Yoan Moncada

No. 1 RHP Lucas Giolito No. 4 RHP Reynaldo Lopez No. 48 RHP Michael Kopech No. 93 Yes, the White Sox have added to the fold four top-100 prospects (and two top-five prospects) as part of these two trades. That's to say nothing of outfielder Luis Basabe and right-handed pitchers Victor Diaz and Dane Dunning, the "lesser" parts of these deals who also have some upside. Also on BA's top-100 list is White Sox right-hander Carson Fulmer at No. 73. As well, Kopech's excellent second half means he'll be much higher on a pre-2017 top-100 list. Need more? Catcher Zack Collins, the 10th-overall pick in the June draft, has top-100 potential, and let's not forget high-ceiling youngsters like shortstop Tim Anderson and left-hander Carlos Rodon who have already graduated to the major-league roster. The White Sox will also have the No. 12 overall pick in the 2017 draft and, given the stripped-down roster, a very high pick in 2018 seems a given. That is to say, there's a lot of high-ceiling talent in place, and more may be on the way. Speaking of "more on the way," Hahn may not be done dealing. Given the going rates on starting pitchers, right-hander Jose Quintana would fetch quite a return. He's consistently strong, has a healthy track record, and is signed to a team-friendly contract potentially through 2020. Suffice it to say, he'd have a great deal of appeal on the trade market. It's not certain that the Sox will shop Quintana this offseason -- they may wait to see whether the non-waiver deadline market is stronger -- but he's a valuable chip. Elsewhere, veterans like Todd Frazier, David Robertson, Melky Cabrera, and perhaps Jose Abreu won't yield the return that Quintana will, but they're moveable veterans who may not have much to offer by the time the South Siders are ready to contend again. That brings us to Hahn's next challenge -- wholesale embrace of the rebuild. At the very least, he needs to move Quintana by July 31 of next year. The Sale and Eaton deals were two true needle-movers, and a trade of Quintana has the potential to be the same. The case is strongest that Quintana should be dealt sooner rather than later, as you never want to take the chance on having a pitcher get hurt or struggle in the short run and thus lose trade value. Hahn's already to be praised for what he's achieved this offseason, but his work isn't done. No, things are not going to be pretty on the field for the White Sox in the near-term, but these trades are the kind that can remake franchises. For instance ... He's not wrong. In a span of hours, Hahn turned the White Sox's farm system from one of the worst into one of the best. Quibbles? Sure. A lot of the future value is tied up in young pitching, and there's risk inherent in pitching-heavy systems. Again, though, we come back to Quintana and what he could yield. Shopping him in exchange for a hitter-heavy return package would be highly advised. Perhaps the Nationals could be re-engaged about an offer built around Victor Robles. Hahn's already said he's willing to trade with the crosstown Cubs, so perhaps there's a fit there. The Astros have been mentioned in connection with Quintana, and the Rockies, who just signed Ian Desmond to a five-year deal, could be a potential fit. Perhaps the Dodgers and Pirates could be engaged. The Yankees? It's not hard to think of a number of teams who could both use Quintana and send position prospects back the other way.

In any event, it's possible we'll be talking about the White Sox's winter of 2016-17 for a long time. Perhaps the truly impressive thing is that have the pieces in place to make this offseason even more memorable.

White Sox trade Adam Eaton in blockbuster deal By James Neveau / NBC Chicago | December 7th, 2016 The Chicago White Sox were the talk of Washington, D.C. after trading Chris Sale on Tuesday, and the team is back in the headlines again Wednesday as they've dealt another big part of their roster. This time, the trade piece is outfielder Adam Eaton, who has reportedly been traded to the Washington Nationals. In exchange, the White Sox received the Nationals' top prospect in Lucas Giolito, number three prospect Reynaldo Lopez, and 2016 first round draft pick Dane Dunning in a massive haul of prospects. Eaton, who registered a 6.2 WAR this season with the White Sox, is expected to play center field for the Nationals next season, with rookie sensation Trea Turner moving in to play shortstop for Washington. As for Giolito, he was ranked as the top pitching prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline earlier this year, and he made his MLB debut this season. Topping out in the high 90's with his fastball, Giolito did appear a bit raw when pitching for the Nationals, but the White Sox are optimistic that he will be able to work with pitching coach Don Cooper and smooth out any flaws in his delivery. "I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the Chicago White Sox," Giolito said on his Twitter feed. "I can't wait to play in the great city of Chicago for such a storied franchise." In the case of Lopez, he projects more as a bullpen arm than as a starter, but the White Sox could conceviably use him ineither role. He posted a 3.21 ERA in 19 games in the minor leagues this season (all starts), but struggled a bit at the big league level as he posted a 5-3 record and a 4.91 ERA in 11 appearances with the Nationals.

White Sox trade Adam Eaton to Nationals for Lucas Giolito, prospects By Staff / Sports Illustrated | December 7th, 2016 The Chicago White Sox have reportedly agreed to trade outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals in exchange for pitchers Lucas Giolito, Dane Dunning and Reynaldo Lopez, the team announced. Eaton is under team control through 2021 and is coming off a season in which he hit .284 with 14 home runs and 59 RBIs with an on-base percentage of .362. Over the last three seasons, only Mike Trout (27.8), Mookie Betts (17.6) and Kevin Kiermaier (16.4) have recorded a higher WAR than Eaton's 15.4. Giolito, who is the top prospect in the Nationals' system, went 0–1 with 11 strikeouts and a 6.75 ERA in his six games for 2016. Lopez is ranked as the No. 3 prospect in the Nationals' system and No. 28 overall, according to MLB.com. “Today is both an exciting and a humbling time after being traded from the Nationals to the White Sox,” Giolito wrote on Twitter. “I am grateful to the Washington Nationals organization for giving me the opportunity to pursue my dream of playing in the MLB. I will miss the wonderful people I met along the way. I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the Chicago White Sox. I can't wait to play in the great city of Chicago for such a storied franchise. Look forward to meeting my new teammates, the coaches & staff.” The move allows the Nationals to focus National League Rookie of the Year finalist Trea Turner on playing shortstop while Eaton plays center field. Jayson Werth will become a free agent after next season, which would allow Eaton to move back to right field where he played 121 games for the White Sox last season.

Washington has also been linked to interest in Pittsburgh Pirates outfielder Andrew McCutchen and Kansas City Royals outfielder Lorenzo Cain. The Pirates were reportedly asking for Giolito from Washington as the centerpiece for any trade, according to Jon Heyman. Jose Quintana has also drawn interest from other teams at the winter meetings.

White Sox send Adam Eaton to Nationals for three top prospects By Lindsey Foltin / FOX Sports | December 7th, 2016 The Chicago White Sox continued their offseason fire sale on Wednesday, sending outfielder Adam Eaton to the Washington Nationals in exchange for three top pitching prospects. FOX Sports' Ken Rosenthal confirmed that the White Sox would trade Eaton, who is under club control through 2021, for the Nats' No. 1 prospect Lucas Giolito, who is also the third-best overall pitching prospect in baseball. The trade package was first reported by CSN Chicago's Dan Hayes. It's a hefty return for Eaton, who batted .284 with 14 home runs, AL-leading nine triples and 59 RBI in 2016. The 28-year-old center-fielder is owed $38 million over the next five years, making his contract extremely team-friendly. The move comes just one day after the White Sox dealt ace Chris Sale to the Red Sox in a deal that included the No. 1 overall prospect in MLB, third baseman Yoan Moncada. Chicago has now acquired two of baseball's Top 3 prospects over the past two days.

Nationals acquire center fielder Adam Eaton from White Sox By Kevin Leitzell / Washington Times | December 7th, 2016 The Washington Nationals may have found their new center fielder. The Nationals acquired veteran outfielder Adam Eaton from the Chicago White Sox on Wednesday for three young pitchers — right-hander Lucas Giolito, right-hander Reynaldo Lopez and 2016 first-round pick right-hander Dane Dunning. Eaton batted .284 with 14 home runs, 59 RBI and 14 stolen bases last season with the White Sox. After moving over from center, Eaton spent last season in right field and was a finalist for an American League Gold Glove Award. He led the majors with 18 outfield assists. “Adam fit our club perfectly, left-handed bat, balanced our lineup, high energy guy, edge to him, plays the game the right way, good hitter, good defensive player both in center field and outstanding in the corner, a productive player throughout his career,” Nationals general manager Mike Rizzo said. “We see the arrow still going up with him and he’s a guy that will have years of control and cost certaintly, and it allows us the flexibility to do many more things.” Eaton has three seasons left on his $23.5 million, five-year contract. He’s due to make $4 million next season, $6 million in 2018 and $8.4 million in 2019. With the acquisition of Eaton, the Nationals can move National League Rookie of the Year runner-up Trea Turner from center field to his natural shortstop position. However, Rizzo wasn’t about to commit to such a move. “Positional flexibility is a good thing to have, we have it,” Rizzo said. “We have several players that can play different positions successfully. Trea has proven he can play shortstop, center field, second base

effectively. Bryce has proved he can play center field, left and right, same thing with Adam Eaton. So we have a lot of flexibility and it allows us a lot of ways to put a lineup on the field.” The White Sox have become familiar with the Nationals’ prospects as the trio being sent to Chicago were reportedly discussed as part of trade offers for lefty Chris Sale before he was shipped to Boston on Tuesday. “We’ve discussed this player and several other players with the White Sox for quite a while now,” Rizzo said. “It did gain momentum after the Sale deal was done and it actually came together fairly quickly over the last couple of days.” Giolito, 22, was the Nationals’ first-round pick in 2012. He made his major-league debut in June and was 0-1 in six starts with a 6.75 ERA. “Today is both an exciting an a humbling time after being traded from the Nationals to the White Sox,” Giolito said in a statement on his Twitter account. “I am grateful to the Washington Nationals organization for giving me the opportunity to pursue my dream of playing in the MLB. I will miss the wonderful people I met along the way. I am absolutely thrilled to be joining the Chicago White Sox. I can’t wait to play in the great city of Chicago for such a storied franchise. Look forward to meeting my new teammates, the coaches and staff!” Lopez was 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA in 11 games for the Nationals last season. “It’s never easy to let go of your prospects,” Rizzo said. “All three of those guys are high serving guys that have a bright future.”

What are the Washington Nationals thinking? By Josh Benjamin / Forbes | December 7th, 2016 The Washington Nationals are in the headlines today, and not for a good reason. Per Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports, GM Mike Rizzo has acquired outfielder Adam Eaton from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for top pitching prospect Lucas Giolito and two other young pitchers in Reynaldo Lopez and Dane Dunning. Thus the following question: what are the Nationals thinking??? Granted, Washington did need an upgrade in the outfield and Eaton provides one, but Rizzo still gave up way too much not only from a talent standpoint, but also a financial one. Let's start with Eaton, the centerpiece of the deal. He's 28 years old and has been serviceable at the top of the White Sox's lineup during his three years in the Windy City. Eaton hit .290 with an on-base percentage of .362 over that stretch and twice led the American League in triples, in 2014 and 2016. He also has a team-friendly deal, having signed a contract worth $23.5 million over five years prior to 2015. Per Spotrac, Eaton will earn $4 million in 2017 and also has a pair of club options for 2020 and 2021 worth a grand total of $20 million. He isn't a dominant leadoff man, but has enough pop in his bat and enough speed on the basepaths to be a difference-maker. And then there are the prospects that the Washington Nationals gave up for Eaton. First, there's Giolito, who Washington selected 16th overall out of Los Angeles' Harvard-Westlake High School in the 2012 Amateur Draft. He got his first taste of the majors at age 21 last season and was not particularly impressive. Giolito appeared in six games for Washington in 2016, starting four, and was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA and 1.78 WHIP. In five years in the the minors, however, Giolito was 25-15 with a 2.73 ERA. He also struck out 397 hitters in 369 innings and posted 1.19 WHIP, and that was after undergoing Tommy John surgery late in 2012. He's also just 22 years old, so his early big league struggles could have just been adjusting to a higher level of play.

Adam Eaton gives the Nationals the outfielder they need, but at way too steep a price in terms of what the White Sox got from Washington. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh) That brings the conversation to Lopez, who debuted in the major leagues along with Giolito last season. The Dominican youngster started six out of 11 total appearances and was 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA and 1.56 WHIP, though he did strike out 42 batters in 44 innings. For his minor league career, Lopez was 19-19 with a 3.16 ERA and 1.12 WHIP and, at 22 years of age, also had a bright future in the major leagues. In terms of 21-year-old Dunning, Washington's first-round pick in 2016, the young righty posted a 3-2 record and 2.02 ERA with an 0.92 WHIP in eight minor league starts across rookie and low-A ball. That all being said, now take a look at the entire package. Washington receives a reliable outfielder in Eaton, who provides a lefty contact bat at the top of the order and allows prospect Trea Turner to return to his natural position of shortstop. His contract is team-friendly and easily moveable if things don't work out, and he can also play all three outfield positions. All in all, the Nationals could have done worse. Now, have a look at the White Sox's haul. Chicago GM Rick Hahn should be celebrating tremendously because he just committed an extreme case of highway robbery. Giolito and Lopez's collective potential is such that they can both be a formidable 1-2 punch at the top of a starting rotation someday, and both should slide right into Chicago's rotation since ace Chris Sale was dealt to the Boston Red Sox yesterday. Both men are also set to be under team control for the next several seasons, so just why Rizzo pulled the trigger is puzzling. Even more mind-boggling is that just yesterday, according to another report by Heyman, the Nationals had shifted their attention to Pittsburgh Pirates star outfielder Andrew McCutchen. Rob Biertempfel of The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review reported that Pittsburgh asked for Giolito and speedy outfield prospect Victor Robles in return, but Rizzo balked at that because of McCutchen's 2016 slump. This is the part where Rizzo really needs his head examined. He's willing to give up top prospects for an above-average talent in Eaton, but not a former MVP in McCutchen? Sure, McCutchen hit a career-low .256 in 2016 and only managed six stolen bases, but he still managed 24 home runs with 79 RBI even if his speed is starting to decline. It's also worth noting that McCutchen is only due $14 million in 2017 and has a 2018 club option worth $14.5 million, so it's not as though Rizzo would have been taking on an albatross of a contract if things didn't work out. If Giolito becomes a star pitcher in the Windy City, there's a strong possibility that Washington could want this trade back once its older pitchers start to show their age. (AP Photo/Nick Wass) That brings the final equation. The White Sox received three young pitchers, all of whom have high ceilings on the MLB level, while the Nationals received an outfielder who, though serviceable, is unlikely to be a major difference maker in the long run despite posting a wins-above-replacement (WAR) of six in 2016. He is also due, per Spotrac, another $18.4 million in guaranteed money through 2019. How does Rizzo explain the deal if Eaton's numbers go tremendously south? Moreover, what happens when rotation staples like Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg start to age out of No. 1 and No. 2 starter status? Giolito and Lopez will surely be missed at that point despite Tanner Roark and Joe Ross also being on the roster. The long and short of it is this. The Washington Nationals gave up way too much in this deal, especially after passing on the opportunity to land a former MVP instead. Hopefully, this doesn't affect their standing as the reigning top team in the National League Eastern Division.

White Sox skipper sees star in Moncada Renteria already views areas for improvement in top prospect’s game By Sam Dykstra / MiLB.com | December 7th, 2016 NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. -- Rick Renteria has been the manager of the Chicago White Sox for two months. He's been Yoan Moncada's Major League manager for less than 24 hours. But he thinks he's got a decent idea already on how to fix the one glaring hole in the promising youngster's resume. The White Sox acquired Moncada, the top overall prospect in baseball according to MLB.com, from the Red Sox as the headliner of a four-prospect package in return for All-Star left-hander Chris Sale on Tuesday in what is expected to be the biggest blockbuster move of the 2016-17 offseason. The 21-year-old switch-hitter is considered above-average in almost every facet of the game and showed it in 2016, his second stateside season after signing a $31.5 million signing bonus with Boston following his exit from Cuba. Moncada hit .294/.407/.511 with 15 homers, six triples, 31 doubles and 45 stolen bases in 106 games for Class A Advanced Salem and Double-A Portland. Along with a move to third base, he showed enough offensively to earn a promotion to the Majors on Sept. 2, and it was at the game's highest level that Moncada's biggest offensive weakness was exposed. Moncada has struck out in at least 21.1 percent of his plate appearances at each of his three stops in the Minor Leagues -- at Double-A, that number was as high as 30.9 percent -- and the problem was only exacerbated in the Majors. The infielder fanned in 12 of his 20 plate appearances (60 percent) over an eight-game run with Boston and didn't play after Sept. 12. Renteria said Wednesday that he has watched both Major and Minor League video on Moncada with an emphasis on the former and believes there's plenty to work with in an effort to cut down the strikeouts. "I think that's just experience," he said. "I think it's him, for example, they were coming down, finishing him off underneath the hands down and in. He's a 21-year-old man who probably hasn't seen that type of bite coming from some of these pitchers, and it's him probably changing the lane in which he's looking for that particular type of slider, where he's got get it out and away. He also has shown discipline. He walks. So it's one of those things where I think time will tell us, but I think there's a look to him and there's a passion to him that I believe will generate change of that particular outcome." The White Sox skipper also highlighted how much there is to like about Moncada, based on his initial views. "Moncada, the first clip I saw of him he reminded me a little bit from his setup and everything of a Cano," Renteria said. "He's a switch-hitter. He's shown some discipline at the plate. I know at 21 years of age, he still has a long way to go in terms of what he's ultimately going to be. But I think he's a really talented human being who we hope is going to be able to be an impact-type player." Beyond the strikeouts, the key to Moncada's immediate future in Chicago may depend on his defense. He played primarily at second base with the Red Sox but moved over to third when it became clear there was a Major League need at the hot corner with Pablo Sandoval injured and Travis Shaw struggling. However, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn called Moncada an "up-the-middle talent" in his press conference Tuesday, an indication that the organization is likely to keep him at second for now but could also move him to center field. With the Sale trade a clear indication Chicago is ready to sell valuable assets in return for major rebuilding blocks, it remains to be seen what positions will be open on the South Side. If more moves are to come, Moncada could move up the depth chart. For now, the White Sox have him penciled in for the Minors -- likely Triple-A Charlotte -- to begin the 2017 season. The key will be getting the timing right for his arrival in Chicago, according to Renteria.

"One thing I think the game has shown is that young players are filtering into the game a lot sooner than they used to in the past," said the White Sox manager. "You still have to teach at the Major League level. That's one thing that's [been] evident for a while. I think you have organizations that have shifted their mode and started building with the younger core of players. You have to have vision and how you move forward with them, but you have to have belief and trust. That's not the easiest thing to do, but it's doable obviously." Does that mean Moncada could get a longer look at Major League Spring Training? That, like so much else involving the game's top prospect, is to be determined. "Once we get him here, once we have conversations," said Renteria, "we'll see where we sit and where he fits."

Washington Nationals acquire Adam Eaton from Chicago White Sox By David Driver / Sports Xchange| December 7th, 2016 OXON HILL, Md. -- The Chicago White Sox may not be a strong contender in 2017. But the American League club could be a force down the road after reeling in some more good young prospects for the second day in a row at the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings near the nation's capital. One day after trading pitcher Chris Sale to the Boston Red Sox for a strong group of prospects, the White Sox dealt big league outfielder Adam Eaton, 28, to the Washington Nationals late Wednesday afternoon for young pitchers Lucas Giolito, 22; Reynaldo Lopez, 22, and Dane Dunning, 21. Giolito entered 2016 as the top pitching prospect in the minor leagues. He made his big league debut last season with mixed success. Lopez also made his major league debut with the Nationals last year, and by the end of the season had surpassed Giolito as the best young pitcher in the system, according to many onlookers. "An important part of the process we are pursuing is acquiring quality pitching talent. We feel like we've done that today -- and yesterday -- en masse," said Rick Hahn, White Sox senior vice president/general manager. "Giolito and Lopez rank among the top prospects in baseball, while Dunning is another young prospect who possesses front-of-the-rotation potential." The National League East champion Nationals had been in talks with the Pittsburgh Pirates about center fielder Andrew McCutchen. Now it appears Washington will put Eaton in center field and move Trea Turner to shortstop, his natural position. Danny Espinosa was the Washington shortstop in 2016 and has started at second base in the past. He could be dealt, or used as a utility player. Eaton is a .284 career hitter who hit his average last season, with 14 homers. Giolito was 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA last year with the Nationals in six starts. Lopez was 5-3 with a 4.91 ERA in 11 games, with six starts. Dunning was a first-round pick of the Nationals out of the University of Florida in 2016, and he advanced to short-season Auburn of the New York-Penn League.