Adam Frazier (Photo by Joe Sargent/Getty Images)
An already great White Sox offense could get even better at this year’s trade deadline.
The White Sox have been among the elite in baseball this season. Despite numerous injuries to key position players, 76-year-old Tony La Russa has come out of retirement and led Chicago to the second-best record in the majors (42-25) thus far.
It’s hard to find a weakness on the team at the moment as they hold a 4.5 game lead over second-place Cleveland. As a collective group, the White Sox rank Top-5 in the majors for runs scored, batting average, and on-base percentage. Their starting rotation has been just as good, posting MLB’s second-lowest ERA (2.93) this season. Chicago’s bullpen also owns the seventh-lowest ERA (3.53).
So what exactly does this team need? A lot of depth wouldn’t hurt given their injury luck. The White Sox are 17 games above .500, but they are just 13-15 against teams with a winning record.
It’s only going to get more difficult as they face tougher teams in the grind of a full-season, they’ll need a few reinforcements at the deadline.
1 trade White Sox need to make: Adam Frazier would be an upgrade at 2B
As mentioned Chicago has been dealt a poor hand with player health. They lost Eloy Jimenez (torn pectoral) during spring training and Luis Robert (torn hip flexor) who are both out indefinitely. The most recent loss is second baseman Nick Madrigal who has been ruled out for the remainder of the season with a torn hamstring.
Madrigal’s .305 batting average and ability to put the ball in play (7.9 K percentage) will be missed, but acquiring Adam Frazier of the Pirates would be the next best thing, if not better.
In 257 at-bats, Frazier is slashing .331/.393/.467 with an MLB-leading 85 hits 23 doubles. The 29-year-old is playing into the prime of his career, and just like Madrigal, he has a knack for putting the ball in play (11.2 K percentage).
Frazier is due $4.3 million this season and has one final year of arbitration eligibility remaining before becoming a free agent in 2023. He won’t be cheap, but Frazier would surely make an already dangerous White Sox lineup even better.