In a rare 1 for 1 swap, the White Sox are sending veteran closer Craig Kimbrel to the Dodgers in exchange for outfielder AJ Pollock.
The deal clears up some roster related questions for the two division favourites heading into opening day 2022. Chicago had been looking to flip Kimbrel since they exercised his 2022 option. The White Sox already feature several veteran relievers in their bullpen including 2021 All-Star Liam Hendriks, making Kimbrel expendable.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers roster is loaded with bats, but has lacked a true closer since Kenley Jansen’s departure in the offseason. Pollock will now join a White Sox outfield that includes Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert, and likely signals a move to DH for Andrew Vaughn.
From an LA perspective, the trade allows manager Dave Roberts to use Blake Treinen as a matchup dependent reliever which is a role better suited to his skillset. It also means that the uber talented Gavin Lux will now play a prominent role in the Dodgers lineup, as there was previously a log jam of hitters preventing him from having regular at bats.
Kimbrel, 33, is set to make $16M this year, and will be an unrestricted free agent at season’s end. The right handed hurler enjoyed a bounce back campaign in 2021 posting a 2.26ERA, 0.905WHIP and 24 saves split between the Cubs and White Sox.
Conversely, Pollock is under team control for the next two seasons at a price tag of $10M annually. He hit .297 in 2021 with 21HRs, 69RBIs and 53 runs scored for his most productive season since coming over from Arizona.
No additional draft picks or cash were exchanged in Friday’s deal.