White Sox Acquire Third Baseman Todd Frazier to Anchor Infield
The Chicago White Sox acquired Todd Frazier in three-team deal with Dodgers and Reds.
The White Sox have acquired the All-Star from the Cincinnati Reds in a trade involving seven players and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
The Reds receive Jose Peraza and Brandon Dixon, two infielders as well as Scott Scheler an outfielder from Los Angeles. Chicago will send Frank Montas, pitcher Micah Johnson an infielder and Trayce Thompson to the Dodgers.
Frazier’s arrival will help push the new infielder for the team Brett Lawrie to second from third. Last season Frazier had a batting average of .255 with 35 home runs and 80 runs batted in. He was the winner of the Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game and was an All-Star both of the last two seasons.
Frazier said he was excited about joining the White Sox, even though playing in the American League will be different and will take time to become acclimated. However, the lineup he saw that his new team has makes him excited about playing for the White Sox.
The general manager for the White Sox Rick Hahn said that Frazier was one of the better all-around third baseman that has a bat, which will impact the middle off the team’s batting order.
According to reports, Peraza was the fourth ranked prospect for the Dodgers last season, while Shcbler was 13th.
The Dodgers have yet to make a big splash during the free agent market, but with this move now it strengthens their team and can help them to make bigger moves in the short-term.
Thompson is the brother of Klay Thompson the talented shooting guard for the Golden State Warriors. He played in just 44 big league games last season but battled .295 with 5 home runs and 16 RBIs.
Thompson was described as very athletic and with strong bloodlines.
Montas is a right-hander who struck out 20 batters in just 15 innings in the majors last season. He likely will play with Oklahoma City in Triple-A.
The hard throwing Montas could be an impact player by the middle of 2016 said the Dodgers general manager.
The GM things he has a solid chance at being a very successful starting pitcher in the major leagues, and even suggests that Montas could even make the major league lineup and not pitch in Triple A.
