MLB: Is Craig Kimbrel tradeable?
Craig Kimbrel's future unclearThe Chicago White Sox put together an excellent bullpen for last season's playoff run. Pairing Craig Kimbrel and Liam Hendriks on paper, gave the White Sox a dominant pair in the back of the bullpen.
The White Sox are 18/1 to win the World Series and their bullpen woes were confirmed when Kimbrel struggled in the eighth inning, dooming the White Sox in the postseason.
Related MLB News
MLB: Hernandez has Mets shirt retired
MLB: Athletics to name Ausmus as coach
This led to the expectation that Kimbrel would be traded in the offseason. The back office had indicated that they were picking up his option to deal him anyway, hoping to recoup some of the prospect capital that they traded away, when they acquired him in the first place from their crosstown rivals the Chicago Cubs.
How easy would it be to trade Kimbrel?
The 33-year-old struggled in his new role, posting a 5.09 ERA in 23 innings. This followed rough showings in 2019 and 2020 so who would want him with his trajectory on the way down.
The 2022 season could be different though for Kimbrel. If he were to have a defined role at the start of the season, he would not have to change teams.
Henriks still the star man
Kimbrel started his career with the Atlanta Braves, before a season with the San Diego Padres in 2015. He was traded to the Boston Red Sox in 2016, picking up a World Series ring in 2018. He didn't re-sign with the Red Sox and opted for a move to the Chicago Cubs in a three-year deal worth a reported $43 million.
Hendriks will still dominate the closer role for the White Sox, so how does Kimbrel fit in?
Discover more from the world's favourite online betting brand
Manage session information and enable users to navigate through the websiteFunctionality
Store information which enables us to remember user preference e.g. preferred language, sort types, media settings, They are also used to improve users' experience e.g. stopping users from being shown the same message twice.Fraud Prevention
Store information which helps us stop fraudulent use of the websiteTracking
Store information about how users have landed on the website. We need to record this so that we can appropriately pay our Affiliates.