Chicago White Sox News: Team sends mixed messaging after Trade Deadline

The Major League Baseball Trade passed on Tuesday evening and the direction of the Chicago White Sox remains unclear.

There is no question that the deadline activity got off to the right start for the White Sox last week as they were able to move pitchers Lucas Giolito, Lance Lynn, Kendall Graveman, Joe Kelly, and Reynaldo Lopez for a handful of prospects that have moved their farm system to the middle of the pack in terms of prospect rankings.

The moves seemed to set the stage for what should have been an eventful day for the White Sox yesterday at the deadline.

The team was in a position to drive the market with the potential for trades including starting pitchers Dylan Cease and Mike Clevinger, shortstop Tim Anderson, outfielder Eloy Jimenez, and catcher Yasmani Grandal.

In the case of Cease, there appeared to be a real momentum building toward a trade.

That is why there was some shock across Major League Baseball on Tuesday night when the only move that the White Sox made was sending relief pitcher Keynan Middleton to the New York Yankees.

The messaging from White Sox general manager Rick Hahn only added to the confusion of the plan moving forward for the team.

"“We still have many impactful talents in Chicago,” Hahn said Tuesday. “We still play in a division where no one has really run away and hid in. Certainly competing for the postseason is viable in 2024.”-Rick Hahn via NBC Sports Chicago"

The Chicago White Sox continue to prove they are a lost organization.

White Sox fans should be insulted by the continuous implications from Hahn that they are dumb.

By all accounts, the White Sox had every intention of moving Cease to the Baltimore Orioles before the deadline on Tuesday. The Orioles acquired starting pitcher Jack Flaherty from the St. Loius Cardinals as the deadline arrived and that likely is the reason why Cease will remain with the team, for now. The fact that the White Sox approached the goal line in a potential Cease trade should be telling.

The White Sox are not going to contend in 2024.

The White Sox are bringing back a core that failed in 2022 and 2023. And now, after the window of contention has closed on their original rebuild and the team did not spend to address their holes, the White Sox want fans to believe them when they say they will spend this off-season to contend next season.

Don’t fall for the banana in the tailpipe, White Sox fans. You deserve better.