The Rockies have traded relief pitcher Tommy Kahnle to the Chicago White Sox in exchange for minor league pitcher Yency Almonte, as first reported by the Chicago White Sox's Twitter account:
#WhiteSox have acquired RHP Tommy Kahnle from the @Rockies in exchange for minor-league RHP Yency Almonte.
— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) November 24, 2015
Kahnle was designated for assignment by the Rockies on Friday as part of the roster moves made to clear space to protect prospects from the upcoming Rule 5 draft.
Kahnle was acquired by the Rockies in the 2013 Rule 5 draft and had spent the last two seasons showing flashes of bullpen potential. Unfortunately, he was unable to completely harness his talent in Colorado, which resulted in walking 7.6 batters per nine innings in 2015. He compiled a 2-2 record with two saves over his two years with the club, ending up with a 4.41 ERA, 9.0 K/9 and 5.2 BB/9.
Yency Almonte was drafted out of high school by the Los Angeles Angels in the 17th round of the 2012 draft. He was traded to the White Sox this past February as a player to be named later to fulfill the Gordon Beckham trade.
Almonte's overall minor league numbers are not all that impressive with a 16-16 record, a 4.70 ERA, 6.8 K/9 and 2.8 BB/9. However, this past season in the White Sox organization Almonte made some positive gains across two levels, while pitching against players one and two years older, on average. In 24 games (22 starts) split between Class-A Kannapolis and Class-A Advanced Winston-Salem, Almonte recorded a 7.2 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and a much improved 3.41 ERA.
While Almonte may be somewhat overshadowed within the Rockies' organization simply because of the depth of the club's current minor league system, he adds another intriguing arm to the mix and should be expected to start the 2016 season in Modesto.