COULD DYLAN CEASE BE BRONX BOUND?

The Chicago White Sox will be in Glendale, Arizona in two days for Spring Training. Question is, will Dylan Cease be there with them?

At this point, there are more reasons for the White Sox to trade Cease than keep him. A trade is coming, it's just a matter of when and to which team. Yankee fans selfishly want that to be us and quite honestly we NEED another quality arm badly and the White Sox know it. Over the weekend, there was a small glimmer of hope that the Yankees could make a trade happen, check it out HERE.  

The Yankees are still "Open" to trading for Cease, but a deal would not include outfield prospect Spencer Jones. Cease comes with two years of team control so it's no surprise that the White Sox want a high level prospect in the deal. Cease is going to come with a bigger price tag than Corbin Burnes did.

The White Sox are ready and willing to start their season with Cease on the mound. They can wait for the deal they want and they know it. At the end of the day though, it makes sense to move him sooner rather than later.

First, Cease's trade value may never be higher than it is right now. It could drop as soon as he starts pitching in meaningful games. I like Cease, I think he could make the Yankees stronger. Last season he ranked 10th in strikeout percentage amongst pitchers that threw at least 400 innings since 2021. He's only one season removed from his impressive second place finish in Cy Young voting in 2022 and as impressive as that was in his career, that seems like an outlier. Last season his ERA increased to 4.58 not all his fault thanks to the dreadful defense that was the 2023 White Sox. Now Cease can get a pretty trade package, but it could be less pretty later into the season.

Last but not least, the White Sox were terrible last year and won 61 games. There is no reason to believe they wont be just as bad this year.....or in 2025. The White Sox are not going to be competitive for a while. It would be wise to trade him now for some pieces the White Sox can rebuild with. Cease will not be a long term solution for the White Sox, so even though they know the Yankees (and other teams) want and need another starter, we know it is also in their best interest to move him.

I'm still holding onto hope that the Yankees still make a pitching move happen whether it is through trade of free agency. If it's not Cease I won't be devastated, but I will be disappointed if they do nothing. We need more quality arms behind Gerrit Cole. The Yankees still need more. 

Make it happen already!

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj