Anyone ever go? What should I expect??

The Sox signed got four of the top prospects in baseball for a starter who’s injury prone and has one good season, got a good return for signing and trading Fredde and Dejong. Plus got a good deal for Cease who the Padres are all ready trying to unload.

Getz on board for the Sox dynasty in 2026 and beyond!

This Saturday my toddler was sick and the ONLY way I could get that kid to sleep was driving around in the car. Unfortunately, the most tolerable thing on my wife’s AM/FM radio believe it or not was December analysis of the 120 loss Chicago White Sox performed by Connor McKnight. And I have to say, even as a Cubs fan… I was OK with it. Connor is incredibly informative. I’ve always been a fan and he helped get me through this one, so I just wanted to make sure he got a shout out cuz he always does great work. Hope he is as appreciated as he should be.

Full disclosure, I'm a White Sox fan so yes, I am biased. The Cubs recently traded for OF Kyle Tucker. They gave up 3B prospect Cam Smith, RHP Hayden Wesneski, and 3B Isaac Paredes. I won't spend much time on 'the return' the Astros got for Tucker, because you can't seriously analyze it until about 3-4 years have passed. The Cubs get an obvious upgrade to their lineup/team in 2025, even when you subtract MLB contributors in Paredes and Wesneski. I do think, on paper, the Cubs should be NL Central favorites before this season begins. Keep in mind the Cubs were favorites before the 2024 season as well and did not come close to winning the division, which is largely due to how well the Brewers have done developing young and unproved talent at the MLB level.

The Kyle Tucker trade is eerily similar to the moves Kenny Williams made post-2005 on the south side. Post-2005, the next 10-12 years of White Sox baseball was a flat circle. Since Reinsdorf was unwilling to improve the team by outspending other franchises in free agency, and with the massive pressure to continue succeeding, the Sox were forced to gut their farm system in return for uncontrollable rental players. James Shields, Edwin Jackson, Jeff Samardzija, Nick Swisher, Kevin Youkilis, Orlando Cabrera, and Todd Frazier are a few examples. Not every prospect traded away ended up being a hit, but we did send away two perennial all-stars in Tatis Jr. and Semien. Daniel Hudson and Frankie Matas have also enjoyed decent careers, as well.

When you look at the Tucker trade objectively, you can see why Jed Hoyer is making this move. There is a narrative that the Cubs lack of success is due to their lineup's lack of star power (which is fair). Because of this, Hoyer is likely on the heat seat. He has not delivered any playoff success in his tenure. However since Ricketts, much like Reinsdorf, is unwilling to dish out $300 million+ for a star player via free agency, the only choice Hoyer has right now is to trade the future for a rental. This is the same exact situation Williams and Hahn were forced into 10-15 years ago with the Sox. There is a chance the Tucker trade works (i.e., he has a career years and multiple players outperform expectations to make a run at a world series). This is a huge ask though, as they will likely be dumping Bellinger and/or Suzuki in the coming months, which likely offsets the boost you will get from Tucker unless a prospect or low-hanging free agent steps up big time.

I have also seen some MLB and Cubs fans suggesting this gives the team access to extend Tucker before any other teams, so the move is justified on that alone. This couldn't be more untrue in today's modern MLB, as the league functions uniquely to the other major sports right now. There is zero incentive for Tucker (or any player) to negotiate with any team prior for his impending free agency because of the current market and bidding wars among the big spending teams. Juan Soto just got paid $765 million dollars by the Mets and looks like a genius for denying the $350 million offered by the Nationals in 2022. Juan Soto is fantastic - and Tucker is more of the same. In fact, their WAR numbers are similar since 2021 (26 vs. 21.6). Basically, Tucker is in line to be paid next year in free agency. He'll be 29 years old and I'd imagine the AAV will be ~$50 million per season for at least 8 years. This is a conservative guess, considering Soto is making $51 million per season for double the length. It would not shock me if Tucker surpassed a $500 million mark after bidding wars. If history tells us anything, Ricketts and the Cubs will not come close to this number (have already been burned on Swanson, Heyward, and Bellinger contracts).

In summary, Hoyer has paid what seems to be a high mark for a great rental player who will be placed on an otherwise slightly above average MLB team. Unless they win 90+ games in 2025 and make a postseason run, Cubs fans will be asking for Jed Hoyer's head on a silver platter and call out Rickett's penny-pinching tendencies after Tucker walks in FA, which is what Sox fans have done to their team for the past 20 years. I do think it is in the range of outcomes that the Cubs outperform expectations, but it's also possible we have two dysfunctional baseball franchises run by the lousiest owners in pro sports.

And seriously... y'all really think Kyle Tucker is going to suddenly make the Cubs World Series contenders?

Any one know when the promotion schedule will be posted for the 2025 season? I see other teams posting theirs.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ghillie_suit

Hat: Albert Belle maybe? Although it doesn’t really look like the other autos I’ve seen online of his.

Ball: No clue

Red Sox fan (I come in peace) here. FWIW giving up Teel and other top 100 guys hurts a lot, but it was the price we needed to get a young starter. I'm hoping Crochet will continue to be healthy and improves, but those are not guaranteed 🤞

As White Sox fans what has been your impression of Crochet over the last year? How is he in the clubhouse and with the media?

Boston fans are a tough bunch, but Chicago sports fans are equally challenging. It would be great to hear more about him from fans outside his stats.

Obviously not the final product but here’s how I think the lineup looks entering the Winter Meetings…

1. RF - Mike Tauchmann - LH

2. CF - Luis Robert Jr. - RH

3. LF - Andrew Benintendi - LH

4. 1B - Andrew Vaughn - RH

5. DH - Austin Slater - RH

6. 3B - Bryan Ramos - RH

7. C - Edgar Quero - Switch

8. SS - Chase Meidroth - LH

9. 2B - Brooks Baldwin - Switch

• Kyle Teel

• Braden Montgomery

• Chase Meidroth

• Wikelman González