The White Sox have dealt 29-year old righty swinging RF Carlos Quentin to the San Diego Padres for 23-year old righty starting pitcher Simon Castro and 22-year old lefty starter/reliever Pedro Hernandez. Quentin played in 118 games for the White Sox last year and he was 107 of 421 (.254 avg, .838 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 24 homers, 77 RBIs and 1 stolen base. He played in 478 games in his four years with the White Sox and he was 438 of 1,705 (.257 avg, .857 OPS) with 269 runs scored, 107 homers, 320 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. Dayan Viciedo will replace Quentin in RF for the White Sox in 2012. Simon Castro came into last season as the Padres’ #3 prospect according to Baseball America, but he had a rough year in 2011. He pitched in 22 games (all starts) in AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 7-8 with a 5.63 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Castro has now pitched in 117 games (113 starts) in his first six years in the minors and he is 29-33 with a 4.24 ERA and a 1.29 WHIP. Pedro Hernandez wasn’t a highly thought of prospect in San Diego, but he has pitched better than Castro in the minors. Hernandez pitched in 28 games (18 starts) in A+AA+AAA-ball last year and he was 10-3 with a 3.49 ERA and a 1.22 WHIP. He has now pitched in 93 games (48 starts) in his first five years in the minors and he is 25-11 with 1 save, a 3.55 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP. This has the look of a salary dump and little more for the White Sox.

The White Sox have signed 32-year old lefty starter/reliever Eric Stults to a minor league deal. He pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Rockies last year and he was 0-0 with a 6.00 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. He has now pitched in 41 games (24 starts) in his first five years in the majors and he is 8-10 with a 4.93 ERA and a 1.49 WHIP. Stults will get a shot to win a job in the White Sox’ bullpen next spring, but he will more than likely start the 2012 season in AAA.

The White Sox have dealt 28-year old righty closer Sergio Santos to the Blue Jays for 22-year old righty starter/reliever Nestor Molina. Santos pitched in 63 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 4-5 with 30 saves, a 3.55 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. He pitched in 119 games (0 starts) in his two years with the Pale Hose and he was 6-7 with 31 saves, a 3.29 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP. The White Sox look like they are starting to rebuild with this move. Nestor Molina pitched in 26 games (23 starts) in A+AA-ball last year for the Blue Jays and he was 12-3 with a 2.21 ERA and a 1.00 WHIP. He gave up only 114 hits in 130 1/3 innings in the minors last year while whiffing 148 batters and only walking 16! Those are pretty impressive numbers. Molina has now pitched in 103 games (27 starts) in his first five years in the minors and he is 27-7 with 9 saves, a 2.21 ERA and a 1.03 WHIP. Molina has a nice upside, so it’s hard to argue with this move as the White Sox could be nearing a big rebuilding phase.

The White Sox have signed 30-year old switch-hitting infielder Ray Olmedo to a minor league deal. Olmedo played in 124 games in AAA-ball last year for the Rays and he was 119 of 457 (.260 avg, .625 OPS) with 60 runs scored, 0 homers, 27 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. He last played in the majors way back in 2007 with the Blue Jays. Olmedo has played in 198 games in his first five years in the majors and he is 92 for 403 (.228 avg, .569 OPS) with 45 runs scored, 2 homers, 26 RBIs and 6 stolen bases. He will have a shot to win a job on the bench next spring for the White Sox.