Chicago Cubs Sweep White Sox, Force Trade with Angels

The Chicago Cubs swept their cross-town rivals, the Chicago White Sox, on Wednesday night. They might also have altered the trajectory of one of the trade deadline’s most sought-after players.

After the Cubs’ 10-7 win over the White Sox, the Los Angeles Angels announced that it had traded for White Sox starter Lucas Giolito and reliever Reynaldo López for two Angels minor league prospects — left-handed pitcher Ky Bush and catcher Edgar Quero.

Giolito was one of the more sought-after starting pitchers on the trade market. He was 6-6 with a 3.79 ERA in 21 starts. He is a free agent after this season. He’s part of a group of White Sox pitchers that have been connected to other teams, including Lance Lynn and Dylan Cease.

So how did the Cubs alter the deadline? Well, by sweeping the White Sox they clearly turned their south side rivals into sellers.

With the White Sox dealing starting pitching to the Angels, it sends the message that Shohei Ohtani — the two-way superstar who is a free agent after this season — is far less likely to leave the Angels via trade.

The Angels are three games over .500 and within four games of the last American League Wild Card spot.

While the Cubs apparently sent the White Sox over the edge, it’s still not clear what the Cubs will do at the deadline.

The win over the White Sox brought the Cubs to 50-51, one game under-.500 and six games out of the lead in the National League Central. They’re also just 4.5 games back of the final NL Wild Card berth.

With four games against their rival, the St. Louis Cardinals, starting on Thursday, the Cubs have one final chance to position themselves to be a buyer — or slip into seller mode — at the deadline.

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