SOX’ RIGHT TURN LEADS TO MAZARA
Team addresses need in outfield by making a trade with Rangers, who get No. 6 prospect Walker
SAN DIEGO — The White Sox came to the winter meetings needing a right fielder and won’t go home empty-handed after acquiring outfielder Nomar Mazara from the Texas Rangers for Class A outfield prospect Steele Walker.
Mazara, 24, is far from the glossy acquisition that the Sox’ win-starved fan base — setting its sights on Nicholas Castellanos, Joc Pederson or Starling Marte — was rooting for this week. But he’s coming to the Sox after a trade late Tuesday night.
“At just 24 years old, Nomar provides us with a left-handed-hitting right fielder who fits into our current team’s development arc and who still has untapped potential,” Sox general manager Rick Hahn said. “Nomar adds yet another young, exciting bat with upside to our lineup.”
Mazara has a .261/.320/.435 career slash line. He hit 19 homers in 469 plate appearances last season, including the longest homer in the majors, a 505-footer against Sox righty Reynaldo Lopez. He has hit 20, 20, 20 and 19 homers in his four seasons (with 101 RBI in 2017) but hasn’t met the expectations that followed his signing as a $5 million international free agent in 2011. He was getting squeezed out of playing time in Texas by Joey Gallo, Willie Calhoun and Shin-Soo Choo. And his defense has been suspect, with minus-4 defensive runs saved in right field in 2019.
“He’s obviously a powerful man,” Sox manager Rick Renteria said. “He’s 6-4, but he looks like he’s 7-foot every time I see him in the box. Runs extremely well for a big guy. Can defend. Good arm. Brings a lot of qualities to the plate. Can pop one in the seats as quickly as anybody.”
Mazara, who has two years of contract control and is projected to make $5.7 million in arbitration, cost the Sox their No. 6 prospect, per MLB Pipeline. Walker played at two levels of Class A in 2019, batting .269/.346/.426 with 10 homers in 100 games at advanced Class A Winston-Salem. The Sox have a fair amount of outfield depth in their farm system with Blake Rutherford, Luis Basabe, Micker Adolfo and Luis Gonzalez, not to mention minor-league player of the year Luis Robert.
“We’ve had a lot of conversations again today, both on the free-agent front and the trade front,” Hahn said.
“And I’m not in a much better position today than I was yesterday in terms of handicapping the likelihood of anything happening in the next day or two, much less the timing of anything.
“I do know we are pleased with the pace of the conversations and hope to start addressing some of our needs while we are here, if we can.”
It didn’t sound as if the Sox, who came here in need of one or two starting pitchers and a right fielder, were close to signing a free agent. Agents and other team executives are saying the Sox have been aggressive, but there have been few links between the Sox and the best free-agent pitchers out there — left-handers Madison Bumgarner, Hyun-Jin Ryn and Dallas Keuchel.
The Sox’ top pitching target was righthander Zack Wheeler, but the former Met declined the Sox’ $120 million-plus offer for five years in favor of $118 million with the Phillies. The Sox viewed Wheeler as a better fit for long-range production than the group of lefties and won’t be pursuing those players with close to the same fervor, if at all.