White Sox willing to include cash in trade talks with Blue Jays on Luis Robert Jr

The South siders don't have as much to offer as many other potential sellers around the league, partly because they've already sold off many desirable assets earlier in this rebuild but also due to the significant salaries of some of their remaining veterans.

To that end, Ken Rosenthal and Will Sammon of The Athletic report that the South Siders are willing to include cash to help pay down the salary on Luis Robert Jr.

Heading into the season, GM Chris Getz surely hoped that wouldn't be necessary with regard to Robert, in particular.

The 27-year-old has performed at a superstar level in the past when healthy. As recently as 2023, Robert slashed .264/.314/.542 (128 wRC+) with 38 home runs, 20 steals and elite center field defense in 145 games.

That's the only season in Robert's career where he's played more than 100 games, however. Injuries have repeatedly dogged the electric young outfielder.

Robert is 22-for-27 in stolen base attempts in 2025, and Statcast measures his sprint speed at 28.8 feet per second.

That's actually his fastest mark since his 2020 rookie year and places him in the 87th percentile of big leaguers.

Given that plus speed, it's not surprising to see Robert way up in the 97th percentile in terms of outfield range (as measured by Statcast).

Robert is hitting the ball hard, playing strong defense, showing more patience than ever before and running better than he has since his rookie season.

He's also hitting .190/.273/.303. It's a confounding state of affairs, but as sharp as the tools may look, the results are clearly going to weigh down his trade value.

Many teams with needs in the outfield would love to roll the dice on a Robert rebound following a change of scenery, just not at his current price tag.

One thing the Blue Jays have is an array of young controllable MLB ready outfielders and is exactly what the South siders need in their current rebuild.

The Blue Jays have Daulton Varsho and Anthony Santander on the injured list at the moment, but there's still a surplus of outfield talent on the roster, particularly with Nathan Lukes returning from the concussion list today.

Shi Davidi of Sportsnet looks at what could be a looming logjam. Varsho is one of the game's premier defenders and will man center field once healthy.

Santander and George Springer will share one corner spot and the DH spot. Addison Barger is in the midst of a breakout and has logged plenty of time in right field, but he can play third base regularly once the rest of the group is healthy.

Prospects Alan Roden and Jonatan Clase are also in the mix, as are Lukes, Will Robertson, Myles Straw, Davis Schneider and don't forget Joey Loperfido.

It's highly doubtful the Jays would move one of the more established veterans or Barger, given how well he's hitting, but Davidi wonders whether the Blue Jays might be deep enough in outfielders to deal from that hefty supply as they look to improve for the stretch run.

Chisox GM Chris Getz is willing to pay down some of this year's $15MM salary and the $2MM buyout on Robert's 2026 club option, they could likely find a taker who'd be willing to give up some degree of prospect value.

If Ross Atkins can swing a deal where Getz pays down a large chunk of Robert Jr's salary and Toronto sends for instance, Davis Schneider as well as one of the aforementioned young controllable outfielders, that would be be truly beneficial for both parties,

He's a gamble, but a high-upside one who can be controlled for two more years at reasonable rates. There's jackpot potential for a new team, and if things don't work out in the final couple months, said club could always hit the «eject» button and decline Robert's 2026 option.

As a fan of the Blue Jays would you make this trade or is it too risky?

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