Have the White Sox seen better trade offers for Erick Fedde? Offer from a rival team, per report originally appeared in NBC Sports Chicago
O White socks confused some fans when they treated the veteran starter Eric Fedde to the Cardinals as part of a three-team trade that netted South Side OF Miguel Vargas, INF Alexander Albertus and INF Jeral Perez.
The return was apparently lower than Fedde’s expected value and disproportionate to the packages sellers received for other starting pitchers in the league.
According to a report from a Twins writer, the White Sox may have received a better offer from their division rival.
“They (White Sox) wanted one of these three: Walker Jenkins, who is a potential No. 6, Brooks Lee, who is a No. 13, and Emmanuel Rodriguez, where depending on where you look, he is 30-40 among several services,” Dan Hayes said in “Foul Territory.”
“That was the opening piece. The Twins, that’s not a starter for them. They’re not going to touch these guys. If they wanted to do something, they would have surrounded Luke Keaschall, who looks like a very good player, but the negotiations didn’t advance anything.
“And they realized, with both Detroit and Chicago, that they just didn’t want to trade in the division.”
Details about the Erick Fedde twins’ business negotiations @DanHayesMLB:
• The White Sox wanted to start a conversation with Walker Jenkins, Brooks Lee or Emmanuel Rodriguez. The twins said no.
• The Twins were willing to trade Luke Keaschall, but the White Sox negotiations never moved forward. I didn’t want to negotiate in the division. pic.twitter.com/OguMpNl7T7
– Dirty Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) August 1, 2024
To clarify, Hayes is reporting that the White Sox were interested in one of Jenkins, Lee or Rodriguez, who are the Twins’ No. 1-3 prospects in their system. Keaschall is the Twins’ No. 5 ranked prospect and No. 92 overall prospect in the minor leagues, according to MLB.com.
The Twins were reportedly willing to part ways with Keaschall, 21, and potentially other lower-tier prospects in their system. Keaschall, currently a Double-A infielder, is batting .297 with an .870 OPS in 51 Double-A games this season.
Instead, the White Sox went with Vargas, who was ranked No. 37 in 2023, and two 19-year-old infielders who are just scratching the surface of their professional careers.
It’s debatable. But as mentioned above, the sellers at the deadline benefited greatly from the resignation of their top arms. For example, the Marlins (four top Padres prospects for Tanner Scott), the Angels (two top Phillies prospects for Carlos Estévez) and the Rays (three Padres prospects for Jason Adam) have reaped strong packages.
Fedde, 31, was undoubtedly one of the most valuable veterans on the market. The right-hander renewed his career in Korea in 2023, winning the league MVP award with the NC Dinos.
This season, Fedde holds a 3.11 ERA and 1.142 WHIP in 21 starts (121.2 innings). He struck out 108 batters while walking just 34. Additionally, he has 1.5 more seasons remaining on his contract, which pays him $7.5 million per season. That’s a steal for a strong addition to most league rotations.
And the White Sox’ fear of a split trade with Fedde is baffling. He only has 1.5 seasons left on his contract, meaning he can’t stay with the Twins longer than the remainder of his contract. Considering the White Sox won’t be a competitive team this season or next, handing them Fedde shouldn’t stop them.
Unfortunately, general manager Chris Getz opted to switch three teams, putting Vargas in the lineup this season. Although he doesn’t have much to show for his young MLB career. He is batting a career .196 with a .645 OPS in 442 plate attempts seen in 131 games in the majors.
Did the White Sox get the most value possible from Fedde? It seems debatable. But it also might not be the only missed opportunity the White Sox missed before the trade deadline.
