July 27 (UPI) — The Los Angeles Angels added another quality starting pitcher to their rotation, acquiring Lucas Giolito in a trade with the Chicago White Sox, the teams announced.
The Angels and White Sox announced the swap Wednesday night. The Angels will send the White Sox minor-league catcher Edgar Quero and pitcher Ky Busch in exchange for Giolito and fellow right-handed pitcher Reynaldo Lopez.
“These aren’t just moves on the back of a baseball card,” White Sox general manager Rick Hahn told reporters Wednesday. “You have relationships with these guys.
“Lucas and Rey in particular are two guys we brought in with the goal of winning together and over the course of our tenure here there wasn’t enough winning or as much winning as we had hoped. That’s disappointing.”
Giolito, 29, is 6-6 with a 3.79 ERA over 21 appearances this season. The 2019 All-Star is 59-53 with a 4.26 ERA over eight seasons at the big-league level.
He entered the league as the No. 16 overall pick by the Washington Nationals in the 2012 MLB Draft. The Nationals traded Giolito to the White Sox in 2016. He is set to hit free agency this off-season.
Lopez, 29, is 2-5 with a 4.29 ERA over 43 appearances this season. He made his MLB debut in 2016 for the Nationals. He owns a 38-47 record with a 4.42 ERA over 216 career appearances.
Lopez also is set to hit free agency in 2024.
Quero, 20, is the No. 65 prospect in baseball, according to MLB Pipeline. He was the No. 2 prospect in the Angels organization. He hit .246 with three home runs and 35 RBIs in 70 games this season for the Class-AA Rocket City Trash Pandas.
Busch, 23, was the Angels’ No. 3 prospect. The left-handed pitcher went 1-3 with a 5.88 ERA in six starts this season for the Trash Pandas. He also went 0-1 with a 15.75 ERA in two starts this year for the Arizona Complex League Angels, the franchise’s Rookie-level affiliate.
The Angels own the fourth-worst ERA (4.44) in the American League. Angels relievers own a 4.18 ERA, the 11th-worst in baseball.
The Angels (52-49) sit in third place in the American League West, seven games behind the first-place Texas Rangers (60-43) and a half-game ahead of the fourth-place Seattle Mariners (52-50). The Houston Astros (58-45) are in second place, while the Oakland Athletics (28-76) sit in last place.
The Angels will face the Detroit Tigers in a doubleheader Thursday in Detroit. First pitch of the first game is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. EDT at Comerica Park.
