Trade Talks Surrounding Chicago White Sox Ace Dylan Cease Reportedly Heating Up
Trade talks concerning Chicago White Sox starting pitcher Dylan Cease have intensified in the last 48 hours, MLB Network's Jon Morosi reported Wednesday afternoon.
Morosi said that some people close to the negotiations believe it is becoming "increasingly possible" that a deal gets done before the annual Winter Meetings, which are set to get underway Dec. 3 in Nashville, Tennessee. Per Morosi, the Atlanta Braves are among the group of finalists to reel in Cease.
Cease was born and raised in Milton, Georgia, which is located 30 miles north of Atlanta.
Cease, who is set to turn 28 years old this offseason, has completed five seasons at the MLB level.
The right-hander improved his ERA, WHIP and WAR every year from 2019 to 2022, capping off that stretch with a second-place finish in AL Cy Young voting. Cease went 14-8 with a 2.20 ERA, 1.109 WHIP, 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings and a league-best 6.4 WAR that year.
Cease's numbers came back down to Earth in 2023, however, as he finished the season just 7-8 with a 4.58 ERA, 1.418 WHIP, 10.9 strikeouts per nine innings and a 2.4 WAR.
Still, Cease has started 30-plus games in three consecutive seasons. His 97 starts since 2021 lead all of baseball, and his 3.54 ERA in that time ranks fourth among the 10 players with 94 or more starts.
For his career, Cease is 43-35 with a 3.83 ERA, 1.305 WHIP, 10.8 strikeouts per nine innings and a 11.7 WAR.
The White Sox initially acquired Cease – plus Eloy Jiménez and two other prospects – when they traded José Quintana to the Chicago Cubs in 2017. Cease was the Cubs' No. 4 prospect at the time of the deal, and he ranked No. 3 in the White Sox's system before he got promoted.
It remains to be seen what Chicago could fetch in return for Cease heading into the 2024 season.
Cease has two years left of team control before he hits free agency. MLB Trade Rumors projects his arbitration salary for next year to come in around $8.8 million.
If the Braves do end up swinging a deal for Cease, he would join a rotation that already features Spencer Strider, Bryce Elder and Max Fried, when healthy. Atlanta traded for White Sox reliever Aaron Bummer earlier this month, right before they signed former White Sox reliever Reynaldo López to a three-year deal.
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