This has been one of the most interesting trade deadlines in recent history, as many big time players moved teams, but not one single Baseball America top-100 prospect was moved at the deadline. For all the talent that was available and the so called “sellers” market, that is a bit odd.
This likely was one of the reasons the White Sox did not move any of their big time players, as it seems that a lot of teams were interested in keeping some of their best young prospects. For better or for worse, that is how the deadline played out, and now the White Sox have a semi new roster to play with until October. Here are the winners and the losers after the deadline:
Dominic Fletcher
With the White Sox not adding any close to MLB ready outfielders at the deadline, it opened a spot for consistent playing time in the outfield, as Tommy Pham was traded to the Cardinals. The White Sox have a few players that could take that spot, but it seems that Dominic Fletcher is getting the first crack at it, as he has been in the lineup the last few days.
Fletcher also gets the benefit of the doubt from the GM, as he was acquired by Chris Getz this offseason, so I’m sure Getz wants to give him every opportunity to prove himself. Fletcher hasn’t had much of an opportunity since he was demoted, so it will be interesting to see how he does with consistent playing time, as he has played very well in the minors since returning from injury. Expect to see Fletcher in the lineup more often than not the rest of the season.
Davis Martin
Similar to Fletcher, Martin will now get an extended look in the rotation, as he will slot into Erick Fedde’s spot in the rotation. As of right now, this is his spot to lose, as he got the nod over many of the highly touted arms in the minors.
Martin looked very good in his first major league action in 2022, showing the potential to be a back-end starter in a very good MLB rotation. Now, post Tommy John, Martin has another opportunity to get consistent playing time to close out the 2024 season and potentially cement a spot on the 2025 roster.
Chris Getz
Regardless of what you think about Getz’s trade deadline, it was clear that a majority of baseball news outlets weren’t a fan, as he faced a significant amount of criticism following the Erick Fedde trade. This isn’t a great look as a first time GM, as it is key to make a solid impression at such an important part of the season.
However, Getz failed to make an impression at the deadline and made a lot of people unhappy with his trades. Regardless of whether the deals turn out to be good, as that will take time to figure out, there is a valid criticism that he didn’t trade enough players, as there are still plenty of pending free agents and players still on the team that could have been traded.
Since Getz works for the White Sox, his job won’t be in jeopardy, but there is a chance that his reputation league-wide took a hit.
Triple A Arms
Since the White Sox moved a few arms on the major league roster, it was thought that it could open the door for some of the AAA prospects that have been highly touted the last few seasons. They could have promoted pitchers Ky Bush, Jake Eder, Sean Burke, or recalled Nick Nastrini. All four have the potential to be contributors on a major league club, however, the White Sox opted to call up Touki Toussiant, Sammy Peralta, and Fraser Ellard.
While Ellard brings intrigue to the big league club, we already know what Touki and Sammy can do. This would have been a perfect opportunity to give the AAA arms an extended look to close out the season, but it seems that now is not the time for that. The opportunity could still come, but as of right now they will have to wait.
White Sox Fans
Unfortunately, White Sox fans remain losers after the deadline, as if they choose to watch the team they will be subjected to some of the worst baseball of all time. At least fans can look forward to the next record breaking loss, as Wednesday’s game continued their losing streak which now sits at 17 games.
