St. Louis Cardinals acquire Paul Goldschmidt from Arizona Diamondbacks in four-player trade

Paul Goldschmidt

The St. Louis Cardinals finished three games out of a wild-card spot and seven games back of the National League Central Division lead in 2018.

How should they make up that difference? Trading for the most complete first baseman in baseball is one way to start.

The Cardinals on Wednesday acquired Paul Goldschmidt from the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for pitcher Luke Weaver, catcher Carson Kelly and infielder Andy Young.

I like this move for St. Louis, especially because they did not give up any of their elite prospects, and none of the players they sent to the Diamondbacks figured prominently in their 2019 plans.

Now, Goldschmidt only has one year remaining on his contract, so it's possible this is a one-year rental. But, what a rental it is. Goldschmidt has hit 33 or more home runs in three of the past four seasons, and he has driven in 110 or more runs in three of the past six seasons. His OPS has been .900 or better in five of his six full seasons in MLB, and it was .899 in the one season that it wasn't.

Since his first full season in 2012, Goldschmidt has posted a .400 on-base percentage and .534 slugging percentage, good for a .934 OPS. This is a topnotch middle-of-the-order run producer.

And, oh yeah, he's a three-time Gold Glove winner at first base. The Cardinals now have a much stronger defensive infield with Goldschmidt and second baseman Kolten Wong on the right side. This trade will move Matt Carpenter back to third base, and while I'm not a huge fan of Carpenter at third and Paul DeJong at shortstop -- at least from a defensive perspective --  St. Louis already is better than it was last season.

Can the Cardinals sign Goldschmidt, 32, beyond this year? It won't be easy, although they've traded for and then signed players to long-term deals in the past -- think Scott Rolen, Jim Edmonds and Matt Holliday. St. Louis tried a similar strategy with Jason Heyward, although it didn't work. Heyward entered free agency and eventually signed with the Cubs. Although Heyward now wears a Cubs World Series ring, perhaps the Cardinals don't regret seeing Heyward walk -- he's mostly struggled with the bat in three years in Chicago.

But I digress. I'm a little bit surprised the Diamondbacks didn't get any star power for Goldschmidt. What they did get is, well, guys who are potential pieces to the puzzle.

Weaver, 25, struggled to a 7-11 record and a 4.95 ERA in his first full season with the Cardinals. He likely wouldn't have a spot in the St. Louis rotation for 2019, but he will have an opportunity in Arizona -- especially with Patrick Corbin now in Washington.

Kelly, 24, hasn't had much playing time in St. Louis -- 63 games over three seasons -- and his .154 career average in the major leagues fails to impress in a small sample size. He wasn't going to take Yadier Molina's job with the Cardinals, but should get a longer look in Arizona.

Young, 24, projects as a utility guy, although second base is his best position. He hit .289 at two levels in 2018, finishing the year at Double-A Springfield, where he hit .319 in 35 games.

It's possible that a couple of these guys will help Arizona, but I don't see a future All-Star in the group. St. Louis did well in this trade.

Now, can the Cardinals add the bullpen piece they need to become serious challengers to the Milwaukee Brewers and Cubs? How about Zach Britton or Andrew Miller? 

Sources: White Sox send Jim Thome to meet with Bryce Harper

Bryce Harper

Are the White Sox competent enough to land one of the offseason's biggest free agents, outfielder Bryce Harper?

As a Sox fan who does not believe in the current owner and front office, the guess here is no. Harper already has turned down $300 million over 10 years from his current team, the Washington Nationals. So, what makes us believe that the Sox -- a team that has never signed a player to a nine-figure contract -- are going to go the extra mile and offer Harper, say, $400 million over 10 years?

I expect Harper to sign somewhere else, and come SoxFest, we will hear general manager Rick Hahn talking about how the Sox didn't value Harper at the same level as Harper's agent did. Sox brass will say, "Hey, we tried," and expect fans to give them points for making the effort.

To me, making an effort isn't good enough. I'm sick of losing, and I want this front office to get the team into contention now, this offseason, not in 2021.

Of course, there's a real possibility that Harper would not come to the South Side of Chicago even if ownership meets his high price. Other clubs such as the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and Los Angeles Dodgers reportedly are in the mix, and all can offer something that the Sox cannot: proof of recent success and the presence of a win-now roster.

Will a major free agent want to join the Sox, knowing they are coming off a 100-loss season and have lost 195 games over the past two years? Not sure. If I'm Bryce Harper, and obviously I am not, why would I take a leap of faith that all these Sox prospects are going to pan out? Would I be willing to wait until 2021 to have a legitimate chance to win the World Series? I doubt it.

The Sox, for their part, sent Hall of Famer Jim Thome to Las Vegas to meet in person with Harper, and to try to sell him on coming to the South Side, according to a report from Yahoo's Jeff Passan.

Thome is, of course, one of the nicest men in the game of baseball, and if there is anyone who could pitch a player on the Sox, it probably would be Thome. But I'm not convinced that even he can woo Harper to the Sox.

Some of the latest MLB transactions ...

Robinson Cano

Catching up on a few things ... the Seattle Mariners are selling everyone, I guess. Here are three transactions that have happened in the past few days:

• The Mariners traded former All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano and All-Star closer Edwin Diaz to the New York Mets in exchange for outfielder Jay Bruce, relief pitcher Anthony Swarzak and prospects Gerson Bautista, Jarred Kelenic and Justin Dunn.
• The Mariners traded All-Star infielder Jean Segura and relievers Juan Nicasio and James Pazos to the Philadelphia Phillies for first baseman Carlos Santana and shortstop J.P. Crawford.
• The Washington Nationals have signed left-handed pitcher Patrick Corbin to a six-year, $140 million contract.

The last move is too bad, because Corbin was one of the players who was on my wish list as a White Sox fan. Of course, if the Sox signed him, he'd probably blow out his elbow next season anyway.

White Sox non-tender Avisail Garcia, Matt Davidson; sign Leury Garcia

Avisail Garcia

The White Sox must be confident that they can sign a corner outfielder as a free agent this offseason.

How else to explain their decision Friday to non-tender right fielder Avisail Garcia? Infielder Matt Davidson also was non-tendered, and utility player Leury Garcia was signed to a one-year, $1.55 million contract.

First, Avisail Garcia: In principle, I agree with the decision to move on from him. Yes, he was a 2017 All-Star, but that .330 batting average and full season of health from that year was the exception in his career, not the norm.

Avisail Garcia in 2018 reverted back to what we've seen him be throughout most of his Sox career -- injury-plagued and inconsistent. While he hit a career-high 19 home runs, injuries limited him to 93 games, and his .236/.281/.438 slash line was not up to par. In particular, the batting average and on-base percentage were poor, well below his career norms.

But let's take a longer term view of Avisail Garcia's career. He's been with the Sox for five years, so we have a good sample size:

2014: .244/.305/.413
2015: .257/.309/.365
2016: .245/.307.385
2017: .330./380/.506
2018: .236/.281/.438

I think it's time to cue up our friend, Cookie Monster:

That's right, Cookie. One of these things is not like the other things. And, in this case, that thing is Avisail Garcia's 2017 season. We can wish for him to be that guy all we want, but I think he's much closer to the player we saw from 2014-16 and again in 2018.

It's OK to move on from Avisail for just that reason: Four years of mediocrity or worse trumps one career year. The key is, you have to replace him. So, Rick Hahn, spend some money and replace him, please.

We know Eloy Jimenez is going to get his chance in left field for the Sox in 2019. He hit a grand slam in his first game in the Dominican Winter League this week. That's one corner outfielder. Who is the other one? It won't be Avisail Garcia, and I'm hear to tell you it isn't going to be Daniel Palka (he's a DH) or Nicky Delmonico, either.

As for Davidson, he's had two full years with the Sox and hit 20 home runs or more in both, but he's also a career .226 hitter. Sure, he improved his on-base percentage from .260 to .319 in 2018. He's to be commended for that, but that's still not good enough from a bat-only player. Davidson came up as a third baseman, but he rarely plays there anymore. He's been mostly a designated hitter and a first baseman, and guys who do that either need to bat higher than .230, or hit 30-plus homers. I don't think Davidson is that guy. Let's move on.

Leury Garcia, hey, his ability to play center field might be saving him. Jose Rondon, 24, is a younger, cheaper and possibly more effective option than the 27-year-old Leury Garcia as a backup infielder. However, we've not seen Rondon play outfield, and we have seen Leury Garcia fill in at all three outfield spots -- including center field.

That sort of utility, the ability to play six positions, keeps guys around in this era when teams are carrying 13 pitchers and only 12 position players. Now, I would argue that Leury Garcia plays none of those six positions particularly well, but the Sox don't seem to care about that. They want roster flexibility, and this is a player who provides it.

I'm assuming a prospect eventually will come up from the minors and unseat the Adam Engel-Leury Garcia combination in center field, and I'm not expecting that position to be addressed in free agency this offseason.

White Sox trade catcher Omar Narvaez to Seattle for pitcher Alex Colome

Omar Narvaez

The White Sox on Friday made a trade that I didn't see coming.

Catcher Omar Narvaez has been dealt to the Seattle Mariners in exchange for relief pitcher Alex Colome.

I can't say I mind this trade. The Sox's defense behind the plate has been terrible the past few years, and Narvaez's questionable framing and blocking skills were a big part of the problem.

However, Narvaez made significant strides with the bat in 2018, finishing with a .275/.366/.429 slash line with nine home runs and 30 RBIs in 97 games. He was one of the few Sox hitters who took his walks, and his power took a significant leap forward. Narvaez's slugging percentage was 89 points higher last season than it was in 2017.

When Kevan Smith was lost on waivers to the Los Angeles Angels, I assumed the Sox would go into 2019 with Welington Castillo and Narvaez as their catching combination, with Seby Zavala as a fallback option.

Evidently not. Is Zavala a candidate to make the team out of spring? Not sure. Or is there another move to come?

I'm good with the addition of Colome, a 29-year-old veteran reliever with 243 career appearances and 96 saves on his resume. In 2017, he had a league-high 47 saves for the Tampa Bay Rays.

This past year, Colome struggled in Tampa Bay. He went 2-5 with a 4.15 ERA and 11 saves over 23 appearances. He was dealt midseason to Seattle, where he regained his form.

In 47 games with the Mariners, Colome went 5-0 with a 2.53 ERA, one save and a 1.036 WHIP. If that's the pitcher the Sox are getting, he will look good in a bullpen that is young and short on experience in high-leverage situations.

Slow start to the offseason, huh?

Josh Donaldson

It's only Nov. 29. The winter meetings haven't happened yet, but still, I'd say the free agent market is off to a slow start this year.

I was looking at the recent transactions on mlb.com, and there are only three of them that I would say are significant or even somewhat notable:

• Josh Donaldson signed a one-year, $23 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.
• Brian McCann signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Braves.
• Lonnie Chisenhall signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Yeah, that's about it. Two of these three are not even that interesting.

McCann is 34 years old and coming off an injury-plagued season in which he batted .212. He lost his starting job with the Houston Astros, and as far as I can tell, he's going back to the place where he had his best seasons -- Atlanta -- to finish up what has been a respectable career.

Chisenhall is a platoon corner outfielder who likely will have some utility for the Pirates as a left-handed bat off the bench. He's not a bad role player, but not a huge difference-maker, either.

Donaldson's signing easily is the most interesting of the three. He's three years removed from his MVP season of 2015, and he had a three-year stretch of brilliance from 2015-17 in which he hit 33 or more home runs in each season and posted an OPS of .939, .953 and .944, respectively.

However, injuries hit hard for Donaldson in 2018. He was limited to 52 games, and the Toronto Blue Jays traded his expiring contract midseason to the Cleveland Indians. Finally healthy down the stretch, Donaldson appeared in 16 games for Cleveland, posting a .280/.400/.520 slash line with three home runs and seven RBIs.

Donaldson will turn 33 years old in about a week, so that combined with his injury history depressed his market to where he was willing to take a one-year deal. It's a very lucrative one-year deal with the defending NL East champion Braves, mind you, but a one-year deal nonetheless.

The Braves are getting a great hitter if Donaldson is healthy, but there's an increased risk of injury with this player going to the National League. The DH is not an option in Atlanta, so Donaldson will need to play third base every day.

I have no doubt the guy still can play. It's just a question of whether he can stay on the field.

White Sox claim Ian Clarkin off waivers from Cubs -- LOL

Remember my last post? I noted that left-handed pitcher Ian Clarkin had been claimed off waivers by the Cubs, and thus he was no longer a part of the White Sox organization.

Well, only six days later, the Cubs placed Clarkin on waivers, and the Sox claimed him Monday.

Clarkin now is back in the Sox organization and on the 40-man roster, which sits at 39.

Welcome back, Ian!