The reported asking price for White Sox Ace Garrett Crochet is VERY high

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This morning Bruce Levine hopped on 670 The Score to share some rumors as we approach Juan Soto’s final decision (this weekend?) and the start of the winter meetings. Among other things, Levine reports that the White Sox are receiving interest in Garrett Crochet from as many as 10 teams, which, as we recently learned, likely includes the Chicago Cubs.

And, hey, why not? The 25-year-old Crochet is a hard-throwing pitcher who is coming off a 32-start season in which he struck out 35.1% of the batters he faced while walking just 5.5%. He’s great.

Garrett Crochet asking price

But before you pack your favorite prospects’ bags and add Crochet to the Cubs’ rotation, consider the South Side’s reported asking price: “You’ll be giving up three of your top players in your minor league system… (For the Cubs, that’s…) Shaw, Caissie, Triantos… the White Sox are going to want three really good young players in return.”

Worth it or not, I find it extremely difficult to imagine the Cubs trading Matt Shaw at all at the moment, let alone next to Owen Caissie and James Triantos. Not only do I think they really like Shaw, but he’s probably going to be their Opening Day starting second baseman as of today.

Even if the Cubs don’t trade Nico Hoerner – and I think they’re trying hard to do just that – Hoerner won’t be ready for Opening Day. Of course, a few weeks of coverage at second base isn’t a good reason not to target someone like Garrett Crochet (if you keep Hoerner), but that’s really just the bonus point. The bottom line is that Matt Shaw seems like a guy the Cubs definitely want to keep around for a long time. I just don’t think he’s going anywhere.

As for the asking price *in general*, I don’t think it qualifies as an opener, even if objectively it’s a lot. These days, three top prospects for two years of control over a 25-year-old starter is just the price of poker. And to put it even more clearly: I already think the Cubs’ other top-100 candidates (Owen Caissie, James Triantos, Kevin Alcantara, Cam Smith, Moises Ballesteros) can, are, and are on the table for an impact starter should Garrett Crochet, this offseason. I’m ruling out Matt Shaw mainly because I think the Cubs are in love.

With all that said, I think it’s at least fair to point out Garrett Crochet’s shortcomings.

For one, he has exactly ONE season as a big league starter (2024). It was a very, VERY good season. Even elite. But it was a season. And in that one season, he threw no more than 4.0 innings in a single start in July, August or September. White Sox fans who want a big trade package will simply dismiss this as a mere attempt at load management. And maybe that’s true, but that was just necessary Because It was his first full season as a starter and because he’s a guy who’s already had Tommy John surgery. This is important context.

Secondly, two years of control is better than one year, but it is also not a normal level of control for a 25-year-old. And that’s important to remember. This isn’t a guy you can get cheap for another 5 years or whatever. At Arb prices it’s two years and then he’s a free agent. OR you extend him for what is probably a very big deal (he really wanted an extension at the trade deadline and is undoubtedly expecting to be PAYED). Again, it’s very likely he’ll be worth it, but that’s all part of the calculation.

But I don’t want to overdo it or be too reactive to the White Sox fans I see on X. Garrett Crochet is truly great and any team would be happy to have him, including the Cubs. Point. If Jed Hoyer can find a way to get him, even if it means dealing with three of their top prospects, I think it would have to be considered very seriously.

However, keep in mind that he’s not the only attractive young starter out there. There are other teams, like the Mariners, with young pitchers who may be less influential but are younger and controlled for longer. And you can only spend a particular prospect as trading capital once.

Additionally, the Cubs rotation already features a solid top four: Justin Steele, Shota Imanaga, Jameson Taillon and Matthew Boyd, with plenty of depth behind them: Javier Assad, Jordan Wicks, Ben Brown, Cade Horton, Brandon Birdsell, Hayden Wesneski, etc . They can absolutely use a guy up front, especially someone who throws hard (and I still think they’ll pursue someone like that this winter). But it’s not like they have multiple positions to fill or a huge need. Jed Hoyer can afford to be more patient than dealing with Matt Shaw and two other top-75 prospects.

And finally, Bruce Levine didn’t seem to think a Garrett Crochet trade was imminent. Although he believes the White Sox will trade him this winter, he believes they could wait until later in the offseason to make a deal. And logically that is the case. If I were the White Sox, I would let Corbin Burnes and Max Fried sign before taking a more serious look at Crochet to the teams that had great success but fell short.