Report: White Sox targeted Salvador Perez at Trade Deadline

File this under “things we didn’t see coming.”

In his Sunday Notebook column, USA Today’s Bob Nightengale reported that the White Sox were engaged in “serious trade discussions” with the Royals regarding catcher Salvador Perez at this year’s Trade Deadline. This was previously rumored by the New York Post’s Joel Sherman – though, during the craziness of the Trade Deadline, it almost went overlooked.

Nightengale had this to say on the topic in his column:

“The Chicago White Sox and Kansas City Royals were engaged in serious trade discussions for Royals All-Star catcher Salvador Perez on trade deadline day before the White Sox simply weren’t willing to give up the prospects the Royals sought.” 

– Bob Nightengale, USA Today

Once considered a Gold Glove catcher, Perez hasn’t been nearly as strong this season as in the past. In 100 games this season, Perez is hitting .244/.288/.423, good for a .303 wOBA and 88 wRC+. His 17 home runs have not made up for a lack of complementary skills, evidenced by his 0.1 fWAR – the same amount of value as Yasmani Grandal this year. In addition, Perez has only caught 16% of base stealers and is among the worst framers and blocking catchers in baseball.

Both Perez and White Sox manager Pedro Grifol have spoken highly of each other in the past, so this likely is a big part of why the White Sox even reached out in the first place. As a Royals coach from 2013-2022, Grifol, a former minor league catcher, developed a special bond with Perez. Grifol also served as the team’s catching coach from 2014-2017.

Perez had this to say about Grifol when he was named the White Sox manager:

“The good thing about him is, he listens to the players. It’s hard to have a good relationship with 26 players when they make millions of dollars. You got to be honest… He’s going to explain to a player when he makes a decision, when he makes a move. I think that’s why he’s going to be one of the best managers in the game.”

– Salvador Perez (via NBC Sports Chicago)

At this time, it’s not clear what exactly the Royals wanted in return – though it’s likely they place a higher value on Perez than the rest of the league. But, when you take a look at the above, combined with the $21M price tag for each of the next 2-3 seasons for Perez’s services, it makes it hard to figure out where exactly Perez fits as the White Sox work through this transitionary period – even with Grifol’s strong bond with Perez. However, given that it was at least discussed at this trade deadline, keep an eye out for reports about a possible reunion this offseason.

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Featured Image: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports