The White Sox have been making some good moves to add solid young players to their roster. They signed 26-year-old Cuban star Jose Abreu, acquired Adam Eaton, 25, in a three-way trade with the Diamondbacks and Angels, and then nabbed 22-year-old third baseman Matt Davidson in return for Addison Reed. Just like that, Chicago has a talented young core to work with and now they have turned their attention to acquiring a catcher.
Other than Rule 5 pick Adrian Nieto, @whitesox haven't addressed catching void. Yankees' J.R. Murphy among targets in potential trades.
— Phil Rogers (@philgrogers) December 22, 2013
Right now the White Sox have a collection of replacement-level catchers in Josh Phegley, Tyler Flowers, and Adrian Nieto, so it makes sense that they want to add someone else. If they continue their strategy of acquiring young talent, the Yankees could be a perfect match. Whether it's Murphy, Austin Romine, or Francisco Cervelli, they have plenty of young catchers to trade.
The Yankees are always competing, so they could use major league players right now. There isn't much on their roster, but there is second baseman Gordon Beckham, shortstop Alexei Ramirez, third baseman Jeff Keppinger, and right-hander John Danks.
After losing Robinson Cano, the Yankees have added Kelly Johnson and Brian Roberts to play second. Beckham is a below-average bat after five full seasons in the majors. As a 27-year-old, he still has two more seasons of arbitration before he becomes a free agent.
The Yankees already have Derek Jeter and Brendan Ryan, but if they want a more permanent shortstop, the White Sox would probably be more than happy to get rid of Ramirez. He has $19.5 million in guaranteed money between 2014 and 2015, and then a $10 million team option for 2016, which the Yankees can easily turn down.
Jeff Keppinger can play third base and second base, and while he had an awful season in 2013, it might have been due to a shoulder injury. The Yankees previously tried to sign him last offseason, but he ended up getting a three-year deal with Chicago instead and has $8.5 million due to him over the next two seasons.
To fill out the rotation, the Yankees could look into John Danks, who is due $42 million through 2016. He has been a below-average pitcher over the last two seasons, but he could beat the free agent demands out there right now.
None of these options are very interesting, but the Yankees need infielders and pitchers and it's highly unlikely that they start the season with five catchers on the 40-man roster, so it could happen.