The White Sox are trading Dylan Cease to the San Diego Padres, the team announced Wednesday. Jeff Passan was the first to report the materialization of the trade.
In return, the White Sox received pitching prospects Drew Thorpe and Jairo Iriarte, who are the No. 5 and No. 8 prospects in the Padres' system, according to multiple reports. They are also getting 29-year-old reliever Steven Wilson and 19-year-old outfielder Samuel Zavala, the latter of which is the No. 7 prospect in the Padres' system.
The South Side gets three top-10 prospects from the Padres' farm system.
Stay in the game with the latest updates on your beloved Chicago sports teams! Sign up here for our All Access Daily newsletter.
The trade rumors involving Cease have swelled since the offseason began. It's well-documented that newly promoted general manager Chris Getz has held a high price for Cease, too, asking for multiple prospects in return for the White Sox's ace.
Recently, The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal reported the White Sox were getting "more serious" about Cease in trade talks. The South Side had recently engaged in talks with the Texas Rangers, as they await three starters to return to their rotation from injuries. Rosenthal also mentioned the Yankees and Padres as potential trade destinations for Cease.
The rumors have gone on for months. Yet Cease, who's been pitching for the Sox in spring training, isn't focused on the noise at this moment.
White Sox News
“At this point, it’s happened so many times over the past couple of months that it really kinda feels like noise. But I definitely see what’s being said. People send me stuff and all that. But I don’t know, I feel like if I was overly focused on that it would be hard to perform, so I just prioritize performance over everything else really.”
In spring training, Cease has been dominant. Just over eight innings pitched, Cease's ERA stands at 2.16. Against the Reds, in a dominant 14-1 win, Cease pitched 3.1 innings, allowing just one run.
Previously, multiple reports showed the White Sox likely planned to wait until the MLB trade deadline to restart talks with Cease. But he admitted his performance this spring likely contributed to trade talks heating up again.
“Yeah, I think the way I’ve pitched this spring has probably increased (the chances of a trade) a little bit,” Cease said. “I’ve been really locked in. It really just depends. I think if we’re in a spot– assuming I’m still with the team– where at the deadline we’re either in first or hunting for first, I could see me not getting traded. There’s obviously the business side where in a lot of scenarios (a trade) would make sense.
“But crazier things have happened. Nothing’s written in stone.”
Until now. The White Sox's ace is a Padre. The new Padres rotation is now highlighted by Cease, Yu Darvish, Joe Musgrove and Michael King. Jhony Brito and Matt Waldron figure to compete for the final spot in their rotation.
Check back here for more details