The 2017-2018 offseason has been slow to develop. That may be changing soon as Jon Heyman is reporting that the Chicago White Sox are in active talks with the Boston Red Sox and other unnamed teams about trading Jose Abreu.
While there is no direct connection to the Rockies at this point, it is hard to imagine that Colorado isn’t one of the teams checking in on the first baseman. When Abreu was a free agent coming out of Cuba, the Rockies were seriously pursuing him and he’s done nothing in his time with the White Sox to have changed their opinion of him. The Rockies have also been very public about their pursuit of a slugging first baseman this offseason rather than go into 2018 with Ian Desmond as their starter.
The main name connected to the Rockies’ pursuit has been the Kansas City Royals free agent Eric Hosmer. However, his offensive profile may not be the best fit for the Rockies. The Rockies are undoubtedly looking at all the possible options at first base and Abreu would definitely fill the team’s hole there. While his arrival would cost prospects, his contract is considerably more affordable than either Hosmer or Carlos Santana, who is the other premier free agent first baseman. Signing either of those free agents would also cost the Rockies a draft pick so they wouldn’t be solely a financial cost either.
Given the Jeff Bridich’s preference for working in silence, we may not hear anything about the Rockies being involved, but it doesn’t take much to connect the dots.
We’ll have more about the potential prospect cost of an Abreu trade for the Rockies later today.