Nate Jones is in a weird spot this season. Jones is a veteran arm with stuff that’s either lights out, or those brilliant lights aren’t doing much more than illuminating the way to the doghouse.
The guy is a likable, meat and potatoes everyman relief pitcher that fluctuates between the roles of either setup man or closer, depending on the game. White Sox fans generally like Nate Jones. His blowups can be frustrating, but that’s the gamble with the bullpen. Not everyone who grabs the red seams of a baseball is Goose Gossage.
Some days, Jones comes in and mows down all comers. Make no mistake about it, the dude can throw, plus he can eat innings.
His lifetime ERA is under 4.00 – he’s not a headcase, and the younger guys coming up seem to respect his methods while watching the 2018 White Sox thrive or choke from their front row seats in the bullpen. There’s a lot to like about Jones.
Nate Jones is a seven-year man with the White Sox, and by and large, he’s served the team well, but it let’s throw something out there. Let’s play Devil’s Advocate: could Nate Jones return anything on the open market?
Teams will be making exciting moves as baseball barrels toward the deadline. This year’s free agent class will be something akin to an All-Star Game, so why not make a few crazy trades? Put a little sauce on the whole thing and see where it goes, amiright baseball gods? Could Rick Hahn send Jones somewhere for a couple of prospects?
There are always contending teams who’ll make minor tweaks to their mix, turning a small dial and adding either a relief pitcher no one expected or a bench guy no one’s ever heard of (See: Geoff Blum). It might seem insane, but hey, crazier trades have happened.
Anyone remember Randy Johnson for Mark Langston? Randy Johnson for Freddy Garcia? John Smoltz for Doyle Alexander? Not saying that this is a situation of the same caliber, but you know – weird trades get made when people are looking like that Charlie from It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia in the war room with the red string meme.
Could a club look past the blown saves that haunt Jones career? Teams have traded for worse. And considering that ERA once again, it’s no stretch to the think a contending team could snap him up. Jones potentially could be in Chicago’s trade deadline conversation.
Let’s not kid ourselves and dream that Jones would earn the White Sox troves of riches in prospects, but should one or two higher performing kids somewhere in a team’s farm system pique Rick Hahn’s interest, the Nate Jones thing plays out two ways:
Do you let Jones go to another team for the sake of the continual rebuild of 2018 and 2019? The team is expected to be a contender by 2020. Where does Nate Jones fit into that baseball mix?
Or do you let him continue to be a veteran presence and offer situational wisdom to the guys in the bullpen? Does Jones anchor Don Cooper’s vision? Are the young guys leaning on Nate Jones for guidance? Considering the current White Sox bullpen isn’t exactly winning any awards, it’s a scenario worth considering.
The career of a reliever isn’t typically one of loud fanfare. Sure, a closer will sneak into the Hall of Fame once a decade or so, but for the most part, you can find the projection that a reliever’s shelf life isn’t a long one.
Does Nate Jones deserve a shot on a contender, helping the make it down the stretch or does Chicago keep their man?
Slug it out in the comments. We’ll be watching.
