MLB Roundup 12/22: White Sox sign Dallas Keuchel

White Sox sign Dallas Keuchel

The White Sox have been aggressive this winter, though that hasn’t always left them with the player they were targeting. They missed out on getting a potential two or three starter in Zack Wheeler, but they still need some pitching help. They addressed that on Saturday by signing Dallas Keuchel to a three-year deal worth $55.5 million. There is also a vesting option for a fourth year. Keuchel, of course, had to wait into the season to sign last year after failing to get a favorable deal all winter. That certainly changed this time around. This is a little pricey, but Keuchel is good for innings thrown at at least average capabilities. Chicago is in a division that is wide open, and it’s nice to see a team going for it while the Indians mystifyingly consider tearing down.

Sox Spin: One has to think a David Price trade should be coming at some point relatively soon. The options on the free agent market are now dwindling, with Hyun-Jin Ryu potentially being the only multi-year free agent remaining on the market.

Tigers sign C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop

Well, this is a nice little change of pace for rebuilding teams. The Tigers have virtually no chance at contending in 2020, but they still added a pair of veterans on cheap, one-year deals in C.J. Cron and Jonathan Schoop. Neither player is a major game changer, but they certainly are better than the replacement level filler players Detroit would have put out in their stead. It’s refreshing to see rebuilding teams add players like this. Of course, it’s not without its merits for a rebuilding teams, either. The idea here is almost certainly that if/when both of these players have solid first halves they can be traded at the deadline for prospects.

Sox Spin: There’s really not much here. The Red Sox may want a first baseman, but Cron is a righty. Boston could use a lefty.