The Cleveland Baseball Club and the Chicago White Sox have discussed a possible deal involving starting pitcher Mike Clevinger.
According to reports the Cleveland Baseball Club and Chicago White Sox have had discussions in regards to a trade of Mike Clevinger. The original report came from Bob Nightengale of USA Today. Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic would later confirm Nightengale’s report.
First things first, let’s address the two players that are mentioned by Nightengale as part of a trade package, Adam Engel and Michael Kopech. There is upside with Kopech, but he is not a headliner in a deal for a team like Cleveland is struggling offensively. As far as Engel goes, he doesn’t really do anything that their outfielders don’t already provide. Engel doesn’t hit for power or average and after typing that out he would fit in quite well with how bad the Cleveland outfield has been as a group this season. The reality is that Engel would be an add-on type player in a deal for Clevinger. Several other high quality players would be required in addition to someone like Engel.
Now onto the obvious point of discussion. Trading a high-level pitcher to a division rival who the team is currently fighting with for a playoff spot. This would be an all-time disastrous move for a team that sees their contention window closing. Unless the White Sox are going to part ways with players they have no intention of trading it is best for Cleveland to explore other trade partners.
