White Sox Acquire 3B Todd Frazier In 3-Team Deal
(CBS) The White Sox have acquired All-Star third baseman Todd Frazier of the Reds in a three-team deal.
The White Sox sent three young players to the Dodgers as part of the deal: right-hander Frankie Montas, second baseman Micah Johnson and outfielder Trayce Thompson.
The addition of Frazier means that recently acquired infielder Brett Lawrie will likely slide over to second base for the White Sox.
The 29-year-old Frazier hit .255 with 35 homers, 89 RBIs and an .806 OPS in 2015. He was an All-Star in each of the past two seasons. Frazier will earn a modest $7.5 million in 2016 in the last year of a two-year, $12-million deal. Frazier will be offered salary arbitration in 2017 and then be eligible to become a free agent in 2018.
Frazier is a career .257 hitter with a .784 OPS. He's aggressive at the plate, having walked just a combined 96 times in the past two seasons while striking out 276 times in that span. He hit 29 homers in 2014.
Montas, 22, is a fireballer who wasn't in the immediate picture to join the White Sox's rotation. He had a 4.80 ERA in 15 innings in 2015, his first big league season.
Thompson, 24, is arguably the most intriguing piece that Chicago shipped away. He hit .295 with five homers, 16 RBIs and an .896 OPS in 44 games in 2015. He also played quality outfield defense and was thought by many to be a building block for the team's long-term future.
Johnson, 24, made Chicago's roster out of spring training last season but didn't last long in the big leagues after struggling to hit. He batted .230 with a .576 OPS in 36 games with the White Sox in 2015. He had a strong season at Triple-A, hitting .315.
The Reds' main acquisition in the deal was second baseman Jose Peraza from the Dodgers. He's a highly regarded prospect who had a brief MLB stint in 2015. Cincinnati also received infielder Brandon Dixon and outfielder Scott Schebler from Los Angeles.
In previous talks between the Reds and White Sox, Cincinnati had expressed interest in right-hander Carson Fulmer and shortstop Tim Anderson, arguably Chicago's top two prospects. The White Sox were unwilling to part with those two players, 670 The Score's Bruce Levine previously reported.
The Reds weren't enamored enough by the White Sox's package of prospects to do the deal alone, so that's why the Dodgers got involved, USA Today's Bob Nightengale reported.
The exit of Thompson means the White Sox will likely need to turn to inconsistent outfielder Avisail Garcia to be an everyday player in 2016.
The White Sox's 40-man roster now sits at 36.