Chicago White Sox: 3 landing spots for Craig Kimbrel
By David Hill
The writing is on the wall with Craig Kimbrel. The Chicago White Sox made it clear that they picked up his option for the 2022 campaign with the idea that they would trade him in the offseason. Adding Kendall Graveman on a three year deal essentially underscored that premise.
Even though Kimbrel is slated to be a free agent at the end of the upcoming season, and will receive $16 million this year, he is still expected to be one of the hotter names on the trade block. It is just a matter of the lockout coming to an end.
Three landing spots for Chicago White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel
There are plenty of teams that are looking to contend that are in need of a closer. The White Sox should be able to move on from Kimbrel without issue. They may even get a surprisingly solid return considering his salary for the upcoming year and his struggles after being sent across Chicago.
Where will Chicago White Sox reliever Craig Kimbrel end up? Let’s take a look at three possible landing spots for the former All Star.
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are still planning on addressing their pitching staff as they have stated a desire to add another starting pitcher. Those concerns could be mitigated by addressing the bullpen instead.
In theory, the Mariners have their closer in Diego Castillo, who was acquired in a series of moves that involved Graveman being sent to Houston. There would be a bit of irony in Graveman heading to the Chicago White Sox, displacing Kimbrel who would take over his former role as Seattle’s closer.
This is also a move that makes sense. While the Mariners are looking to end their postseason drought, they also have a relatively young roster. Kimbrel has plenty of playoff experience, appearing in the postseason in eight of his 12 years in the majors and being part of a World Series winning team in 2018.
His presence would make a major difference in the bullpen as well. Castillo would slot in as one of the better setup men in the game, making the relief corps that much deeper overall. This also helps a rotation with a lot of question marks as the Mariners could go to the bullpen that much quicker.
The Seattle Mariners are looking to upgrade their pitching staff. Adding Craig Kimbrel would certainly help.