Derek Holland and Carlos Rodon say goodbye to Jose Quintana
- by Grant Boone
- in Sports
- — Jul 14, 2017
That 2006 trade-which sent reliever Neal Cotts to the North Side for reliever David Aardsma and pitching prospect Carlos Vasquez-was the first between the two teams since 1998, and only the third since '92. And here it is.
The Cubs and White Sox pulled off a surprise deal Thursday, with Sox ace left-hander Jose Quintana going to the Cubs for outfielder Eloy Jiménez, the No. 5 prospect in baseball according to Baseball America's updated midseason rankings, right-handed pitcher Dylan Cease, first baseman Matt Rose and infielder Bryant Flete. Quintana is under club control through 2020, owed about $31 million from 2018 through 2020. He has made 32 or more starts while reaching 200 or more innings in each of the last four campaigns.
In a similar vein, in 1973, the Cubs dealt future Hall of Famer Ron Santo to the White Sox after his ninth and final All-Star season (and 14th overall), but as freakish as the sight of one of the Cubs' franchise heroes playing in pinstripes might have looked, it didn't last long: The veteran third baseman played only one year (and a poor one at that) for his new team before calling it quits.
Quintana is 4-8 with a 4.49 ERA in 18 starts this season. Among qualifying pitchers starting in 2013, Quintana has received the second-lowest run support average in the American League in that span.
In case you're curious about whether or not the Cubs and White Sox make deals often, the answer is "no". Currently, he is 1-2 with a 2.79 ERA for South Bend. He was originally selected by the Cubs in the sixth round of the 2014 Draft. He was originally selected by the Cubs in the 11th round of the 2015 Draft. Flete is a 24-year old that was signed as an amateur out of Venezuela, and is hitting.305/.355/.425 with six homers at high-A.
In 2001, the New York Mets traded two-time All-Star and six-time gold glove victor Robin Ventura, of grand-slam single fame, to the New York Yankees for former Rookie of the Year and three-time All-Star David Justice.
While the trade seemed inevitable with the White Sox looking to acquire younger players as part of a rebuild, it is a tough moment for the fans along with the players to say goodbye to the team's top pitcher. Cease was another prospect talked about for the Cubs. He has struck out 109 batters in 104 1/3 innings. Cease posses a fastball that touches the upper 90s but his best pitch may be his curve if he can throw it for strikes. He has also had an increase in his power numbers over the last two seasons, and that is likely to continue to improve.
