The Boston Red Sox reportedly completed a blockbuster trade Tuesday, acquiring Chicago White Sox ace Chris Sale in exchange for a package headlined by prized infield prospect Yoan Moncada.
Ken Rosenthal of Fox Sports first reported the deal, and Jon Heyman of FanRag Sports confirmed the agreement was in place.
Joon Lee of The Ringer summed up the general reaction around the baseball universe:
DJ Bean of WEEI joked about the other, far less significant, potential moves:
WEEI’s Rob Bradford passed along some reaction from an AL rival:
Michael Hurley of CBS Boston found the perfect time for the iconic Vince McMahon strut:
MLB Memes provided a humorous take on the deal:
Baseball Is Fun spotlighted the Red Sox’s tendency to move prospects for proven talent:
Boston Strong also discussed president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski’s wheeling and dealing:
Sportsnet’s Tim and Sid noted the disappointment north of the border:
It’s a stark contrast from Only In Boston’s take on the Red Sox’s bolstered rotation:
Michael Schlact went with the Moneyball reference:
ESPN’s Bill Barnwell is a little worried about Sale’s potential reaction to Boston’s uniform choices following his jersey incident in Chicago last season:
The impact of the trade is wide-ranging, as left-handed-hitting Cleveland Indians second baseman Jason Kipnis illustrated:
His teammate, Jose Ramirez, was amused by early declarations that the Red Sox are the clear favorites in the American League:
Even if the reigning AL champion Indians aren’t ready to hand over their crown yet, the Red Sox walk away from the deal with an outstanding rotation. Sale, David Price, Rick Porcello, Eduardo Rodriguez and either Clay Buchholz or Drew Pomeranz is tough to beat.
While Boston had to give up an impressive group of young talent, Sale is just 27 and should continue to contend for the Cy Young Award annually with the run support he’ll receive with the Red Sox. Now, the question is how their biggest rivals will try to answer during the rest of the offseason.
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