By Bruce Levine–
(CBS) The fact that White Sox starter Jose Quintana will be traded soon is a forgone conclusion.
Some sources insist that Quintana, the 28-year-old would-be ace of the staff, will be dealt before spring training camps open on February 14th. With that in mind, the most interesting man at White Sox spring training in Glendale will be left handed pitcher Carlos Rodon.
When Quintana is dealt, the new ace of the staff will be Rodon. You can debate that if James Shields can make a comeback this season, he will be the man. Others might indicate that new addition Derek Holland will bounce back and be the lead pitcher on the team.
In 22 starts, Holland was 7-9 with a 4.95 ERA in 2016. Shields had his worst season ever. The 35-year-old former All-Star was 6-19 with a 5.85 ERA last year combined with the Padres and White Sox. His ERA in Chicago was 6.77 ERA.
Miguel Gonzalez had a nice bounce back season with Chicago after he was designated for assignment by Baltimore, going 5-8 with a 3.73 ERA. Really nothing about Gonzalez says future top-of-the-rotation starter going forward. That leads us back to the obvious.
Rodon, at age 24 with less than two big league seasons under his belt, is the de facto leader of the the Sox staff moving toward the future.
Like it or not, with a combined 18-16 record and a 3.90 ERA in 306 innings, Rodon is your pitcher with the best stuff. Rodon said he learned a lot in his two years while watching departed ace Chris Sale lead the White Sox staff.
“Chris (Sale) was a guy who took me under his wing and kind of showed me the ropes,” Rodon told me last week. “It was tough to see such a great teammate get moved. I am excited for him moving on to new opportunities and for us getting some really outstanding prospects.”
“We all know baseball is a business,” Rodon said. “Boston got better and so did we. It appears to be a win-win for each team. We still have some questions about who will be with us. I am sure it’s tough being in that situation. I feel playing with that over your head would be tough. I guess from their standpoint, you must block it out and play your game.”
Rodon has moved up the chain nicely with 139.1 innings in his rookie season and 165 in 2016. He should be free to turn loose a 33-start, 200-inning season in 2017. Over the past two campaigns, Rodon was solid in his last 10 starts. The southpaw was 7-2 last year from August 12th on. Rodon allowed just 11 runs in eight of those outings total.
“I can’t predict the future, but hopefully we can build on that,” Rodon insisted. “When I go out there I will give you everything I have. Hopefully I have learned a thing or two about pitching. No regrets going out there. Those last 10 games were a nice little run. History kind of repeated itself two years in a row. I have had good stuff at times and got my butt whopped just the same. That can be very lonely for a pitcher. You do learn from the lumps you take. Maybe not right away. You also learn when you do well.I hate losing, so that is a process.”
Bruce Levine covers the Cubs and White Sox for 670 The Score and CBSChicago.com. Follow him on Twitter @MLBBruceLevine.
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