White Sox turn surplus into starting centerfielder

The White Sox resolved their logjam of starting pitchers by dealing one on Tuesday.

The Sox sent Hector Santiago and a player-to-be-named (probably Brandon Jacobs) as part of a three-team trade with the Diamondbacks and Angels, receiving Adam Eaton.

The 25-year-old left-handed outfielder has been highly touted coming through Arizona's farm system since being drafted in the 19th round of the 2010 draft. After a successful cup of coffee with the D'Backs in 2012 in which he hit .259/.382/.412 over 103 plate appearances, last season was derailed for Eaton when a torn UCL in his throwing arm sidelined him July. He ended up batting .252/.314/.360.

Eaton probably owes his low draft position to his modest stature (he is only 5-foot-8), but the results speak for themselves: In 1,560 minor-league plate appearances Eaton has slashed a .348/.450/.501 line, and has mostly answered questions about his ability to stick in centerfield.

That batting average isn't likely to carry over to the American League, but Eaton still has the offensive tools to be a very good leadoff hitter.

This is a big get for a White Sox team that probably wasn't going to stretch Avisail Garcia in center, and has apparently moved on from the idea of Alejandro De Aza playing there regularly. The Sox are now set to deal either De Aza, or incumbent left fielder Dayan Viciedo. If they don't like the offers for either player, De Aza probably becomes a fourth outfielder and Viciedo likely loses playing time against right-handed pitchers, against whom he's only managed to hit .242/.287/.388 so far in his big league career (vs. .322/.357/.551 against lefties).

As far as the players the Sox gave up, Santiago was a fun player to watch, and a fun player to root for, but despite the huge strikeout numbers (8.7 K/9), he still hasn't managed to get his walks under control (4.5 BB/9), and is too often victimized by home runs (17 allowed last year in 149 innings).

Santiago was not likely to repeat his 3.56 ERA from last year with those factors working against him. It's also an open question if he can handle a starter's workload as last year he wore down noticibly as the season progressed, partially evidenced by his declining K rate each month from May on (10.0 in May, 9.9 in June, 9.5 in July, 6.7 in August and 4.7 in September).

That's not to say Santiago can't improve, the same way Quintana did in a second season spent primarily as a starter. But Santiago was still the rotation's weakest link, making him the most expendable piece the Sox could give up in trade.

Jacobs, an outfielder that came over from the Red Sox in the Matt Thornton trade, only batted .237/.291/.327 at Charlotte after his arrival. The 23-year-old will be eligible to be taken in this week's Rule V draft, though probably won't be selected.

White Sox trade Matt Thornton to Red Sox

I mentioned earlier this week the time was right for the White Sox to trade Matt Thornton. Indeed, the rumored deal with the Boston Red Sox came to pass Friday night. The South Siders sent the veteran left-handed reliever and cash considerations to the Red Sox for outfield prospect Brandon Jacobs.

Thornton, 36, was 0-3 this season with a 3.86 ERA in 40 appearances. He ranks first in White Sox history in all-time relief appearances with 512. In those games, he went 31-35 with a 3.28 ERA. He recorded 486 strikeouts in 463.1 innings. There's no question Thornton was an effective bullpen piece for the Sox for a long time.

But, as we noted, because of age, declining performance and contract status, it was time for a change. The Sox made a move that makes sense for all parties involved.

Thornton is going to a contending team in Boston. The Red Sox lead the American League East by 4.5 games entering Saturday's play. He'll be reunited with Juan Nieves, the former White Sox bullpen coach who now serves as the pitching coach in Boston. He'll be able to fill a role as a situational left-handed reliever, a hole the Red Sox needed plugged after losing Andrew Miller for the season.

The White Sox, meanwhile, got some salary relief out of this deal. Reports indicate the team shipped about $750,000 to Boston as part of the trade, which will almost cover the buyout for Thornton's contract at the end of the season. Including buyout, Thornton was owed about $3.5 million for the rest of his deal. So, the Sox get a savings of roughly $2.75 million.

They also acquire the right-handed hitting Jacobs, who is an OK, but not great prospect.

Jacobs, 22, is hitting .247 with 11 home runs, 44 RBIs, 46 runs scored and 10 stolen bases in 84 games this year with Class-A Salem and Double-A Portland. He hit .421 with six doubles, two home runs and 12 RBIs over his final 11 games with Salem before being promoted to Portland on July 10.

Scouting reports indicate he lacks the arm strength to play right field, so the Sox will probably assign him to Double-A Birmingham and park him in left field. Baseball America ranks him as the 13th-best prospect in the Boston system.

Some White Sox fans have griped about the team not getting enough for Thornton, but to be honest, this is about what I expected out of this trade. Realistically, Thornton will probably make 25-30 appearances for Boston the rest of the season. He'll probably provide about 25-30 innings pitched as well, and then the Red Sox will buy him out and let him walk at the end of the year.

How much is 25-30 innings of aging Matt Thornton worth on the trade market? Well, it's worth a second-tier prospect and some salary relief. And that's what the Sox got for Thornton.