Five trade targets from the Chicago White Sox for the Colorado Rockies

Chicago White Sox first baseman José Abreu would be a great, but likely unrealistic fit, for the Colorado Rockies

Chicago White Sox first baseman José Abreu is the exact kind of power bat that the Colorado Rockies need. With the exceptions of 2018 (when he was injured) and 2020 (shortened season), Abreu has had at least 100 RBI in every season he has been in the majors. In 2021, the Colorado Rockies did not have a player with 100+ RBI.

In 2021, Abreu had 30 homers, 117 RBI, a slash line of .261/.351/.481 with an OPS+ of 125. In 2020, he was the American League MVP as he hit 19 homers and had 60 RBI (which led the league) with a slash line of .317/.370/.617 (the latter of which also led the league) and an OPS+ of 165. He led the American League in RBI in 2019 with 123 and he hit 33 homers, .284/.330/.503, and had an OPS+ of 118.

With C.J. Cron at first base, the Rockies would have to use Abreu and Cron in a platoon at first base with the other DH’ing (assuming the DH comes to the National League in 2022).

Abreu could be traded because he is entering the final year of his contract but other than the White Sox being in playoff contention, there are a few other things that could hold up a deal. He has a partial no-trade clause, which has five teams on it in 2022. Who those five teams are is unknown. His $18 million salary could be a non-starter for the Rockies too, depending on if the White Sox would pay the money, if at all.

With all things considered, it’s highly unlikely that the Rockies would be able to trade for him but he is the kind of bat the Rockies need in their lineup to make strides forward in 2022.

Chicago White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel would bring a big name to the Colorado Rockies bullpen

Reportedly, the Chicago White Sox were shopping reliever Craig Kimbrel on the trade market before the lockout was put in place so once the lockout ends, the White Sox will likely still try to get rid of Kimbrel and the Colorado Rockies obviously need some help in the bullpen department.

That’s part of the reason why we talked about Kimbrel as an option for the Rockies back in October.

Kimbrel, despite being the active MLB leader in saves at 372, was a setup man for the White Sox when they acquired them from their crosstown rival, the Chicago Cubs, at the trade deadline. He was the closer for the Cubs and he was phenomenal (0.49 ERA, 1.10 FIP, 0.709 WHIP, nearly 16 K/9, 3.2 BB/9) but with the White Sox, he was the complete opposite.

He pitched to a 5.09 ERA in 24 games with the Sox with a FIP of 4.56, and a WHIP of 1.217.

For the Rockies, the main two issues with Kimbrel would be that he is owed $16 million next season. The Rockies would want some relief on that salary. Secondly, as Rockies fans know, pitchers with high groundball rates pitch better at Coors Field and pitchers that don’t tend to struggle more at altitude. Kimbrel has had a groundball rate of no higher than 33.3 percent in any of the last four seasons.

However, the Rockies need a closer and he could do just that and if Kimbrel is striking out 14-16 batters per nine innings (he was at 16.4 K/9 in 2020, 15.1 K/9 in 2021, and his career average is 14.7 K/9), then you don’t need to have a ton of groundballs.

Chicago White Sox reliever Aaron Bummer is another great fit for the Colorado Rockies

Like José Abreu, Aaron Bummer would be a great fit for the Colorado Rockies but the Chicago White Sox are unlikely to give up their reliever unless it’s for a big haul.

In 2021, Bummer appeared in 62 regular season games with an ERA of 3.51. He had a FIP of 2.96, an ERA+ of 124, and struck out 12 per nine innings. His biggest issue was his walk rate, which was 4.6 per nine innings.

Bummer, 28, is entering the third year of a five-year extension and he has two team options at the end of that so he would take a lot to get but for the Rockies, he would be valuable in two ways.

First off, he’s a lefty and the Rockies have Lucas Gilbreath and Ben Bowden as their left-handed bullpen options entering 2022. Both of them have not even played a full season in the majors.

Secondly, he’s the best groundball pitcher in baseball. According to FanGraphs, among relievers with at least 100 innings pitched since 2019, Bummer has by far the highest rate. His staggering 73.5 percent groundball rate is 8.5 percent above the next highest reliever in Clay Holmes, who was on our trade target for the New York Yankees.

For comparison, Antonio Senzatela’s 52.1 groundball percentage since 2019 is best on the Rockies and 6th-highest among starters with at least 300 innings pitched. Bummer’s groundball rate is 21 percent higher than Senzatela’s.

Which leads us to our last pitcher …

Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Dallas Keuchel could fit well into the Colorado Rockies rotation

The aforementioned Aaron Bummer is #1 among relievers in groundball percentage since 2019 but the Chicago White Sox have both the reliever and starter with the highest groundball rates. The starter is Dallas Keuchel.

Keuchel, who turns 34 in a few weeks, is a native of Oklahoma (and the Rockies are known to love their Oklahomans). He had a rough 2021 season as he had a 5.28 ERA in 32 games (30 starts). His FIP wasn’t much better (5.23) and he had a high WHIP of 1.531 so the White Sox would be selling low on him.

However, the 2015 American League Cy Young Award winner had a phenomenal 2020 season. He made 11 starts and had an ERA of 1.99. He had a FIP of 3.08 with a WHIP of 1.089, and he only gave up two homers. In the three previous seasons, his ERA+ was 141, 111, and 122.

Keuchel’s 56.4 percent groundball rate since 2019 is the highest among all starters with at least 300 innings pitched. In that same span, Antonio Senzatela, Germán Márquez, and Jon Gray have all been in the top 20 in groundball percentage and all three pitched better at Coors Field than on the road.

Keuchel is entering the final guaranteed year of his contract as he is owed $18 million in 2021 but if he pitches 160 innings or more in 2022, his $20 million option for 2023 vests. The Rockies would want some salary relief for him but he could slot in nicely in the Rockies rotation.

Next up on our list is the Cleveland Guardians as we continue through the American League Central.