Does Kevin Youkilis Turn The White Sox Into Favorites?

Kevin Youkilis changed the color of his socks over the weekend. Does this make the White Sox favorites in the AL Central?

White Sox Acquire Kevin Youkilis For Brent Lillibridge And Zach Stewart

Try saying all those names fast!

After a flurry of activity surrounding Kevin Youkilis' departure from the Red Sox/Braves game, it has now been made official; apparently the teams were waiting for the White Sox/Brewers game to end before making an announcement. But Youkilis is now a member of the Chicago White Sox:

SOURCES CONFIRM: #WhiteSox acquire Kevin Youkilis for Zach Stewart and Brent Lillibridge. #RedSox

— Jon Morosi (@jonmorosi) June 24, 2012

The White Sox have been in the market for a third baseman ever since Brent Morel went down with an injury; they tried converted second baseman Orlando Hudson there, but he didn't hit -- .167/.247/.286 in 95 plate appearances before Sunday -- so the Sox of White looked toward the Sox of Red for help.

Youkilis, once one of the better hitters in the American League, has spent time on the DL this year and hasn't hit much either -- .225/.311/.359 with just four home runs in 161 plate appearances before Sunday, by far his worst major league season.

Further, this trade doesn't provide Boston much salary relief:

The Red Sox are eating all but $2 million of the money owed to Youkilis for the rest of the season.

— Buster Olney (@Buster_ESPN) June 24, 2012

They're hoping that Stewart, once a promising Blue Jays prospect, will help their rotation issues, and that Lillibridge, who can play multiple positions, will provide some bench help behind Will Middlebrooks, who now takes over full-time at third base.

It's a risk for both teams, who both hope to continue to contend in their respective divisions.

For more on the Red Sox, please visit Over The Monster and SB Nation Boston.

VIDEO: Red Sox Fans Give Kevin Youkilis An Ovation At Fenway Park

When Kevin Youkilis was lifted for a pinch runner in the seventh inning on Sunday, it became clear that Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine was giving the Boston fans one last chance to salute their long-time third baseman.

Yup, according to a report, the Red Sox have agreed to trade Kevin Youkalis to the White Sox.

Here's a look at Youkilis's last moment on the field at Fenway Park in a Red Sox uniform. The fans call "Yoooooooouk" to get him out of the dugout for a curtain call. As one fan says at the end, "I'm gonna cry."

One Red Sox fan, ncblake, uploaded the picture below to Instagram with the caption "Tribute."

For more fan perspective, head to our Red Sox Blog, Over the Monster and SB Nation Boston.

Red Sox Trade Kevin Youkilis To White Sox, According To Reports

The Kevin Youkilis trade writing has been on the Red Sox clubhouse wall for several weeks now. On Sunday, Youkilis played in what appears to be his final game in a Boston uniform at Fenway Park. The Red Sox have reportedly dealt the third baseman to the Chicago White Sox.

Clubhouse source says Youkilis traded to White Sox. Nameplate is gone

— Rob Bradford (@bradfo) June 24, 2012

In a bizarre and touching moment, Youkilis ended his Red Sox career with an RBI triple in the seventh inning. When he stood up, he was pulled for a pinch runner and walked off to applauding fans, who had to know what was going on. The Providence Journal's Brian MacPherson has great detail in this on-the-scene report:

Youkilis ripped off his helmet and pointed his fingers into the air, even blowing a kiss. It was a tribute to the fans who have showered him with cheers -- and "Yoooooooooouks" -- since he made his major-league debut in in 2004. He embraced Punto in the middle of the infield and then embraced a Dustin Pedroia-led horde of teammates at the top step of the dugout. After he'd disappeared into the dugout, Valentine was among those who motioned Youkilis back out onto the field. Home-plate umpire Al Porter obliged by calling for time, and Youkilis popped back out onto the field to a massive roar from the 37,000-plus in attendance. The Red Sox then played a short Youkilis highlight reel on the video board in center field after the inning ended.

For more fan perspective, head to our Red Sox Blog, Over the Monster and SB Nation Boston.

Kevin Youkilis Benched, Denies Talk With Bobby Valentine

While rumors swirl that Kevin Youkilis is on his way out the door, Boston Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine isn't making it any easy on his corner infielder, benching him in favor of upstart Will Middlebrooks at third base. Valentine reportedly said such a move required a conversation, but, according to the Providence Journal, Youkilis denies one ever happened.

"I don't know my situation," Youkilis said. "I never was told what's going on here. Let's put that straight. There was no conversation, and I'll leave it at that. I don't want to start up anything. There was no conversation. That was it. It has been addressed."

[...] "I'm a paid employee here. They make the decisions with that. When you're a paid employee and the boss tells you to do something, you do it. Until they tell me something, I'm here to play with the Red Sox."

Youkilis is hitting just .225 this season with a .311 on-base percentage with four home runs and 13 RBI in 142 at-bats.

Kevin Youkilis Getting Some Bench Time

The Boston Red Sox probably weren't trying to squeeze every last drop of trade value out of Kevin Youkilis when they kept playing him despite an awful slump. Manager Bobby Valentine was likely trying to put what he thought was the best team on the field. But it looks like he's thinking differently now:

Bobby V had a chat with Youkilis that he'll be sitting for a while and Middlebrooks will play.

— Nick Cafardo (@nickcafardo) June 22, 2012

Middlebrooks was in something of a slump, dipping down to a .289/.328/.484 line after a ridiculously hot start. But he has six hits and two home runs over his last eight at-bats, which brought him up to .316/.352/.551. You have to love the volatility of small samples.

If a team was interested in a slightly dinged and slumping Youkilis, they probably aren't going to be scared away from a slightly dinged, slumping, and rusty Youkilis. And it's looking more and more inevitable that he's going to leave Boston soon.

The Kevin Youkilis Market

Kevin Youkilis is a hot trade commodity, but he's also supposed to come cheap. Both of those can't be right, can they?

FanGraphs: What Is Kevin Youkilis Worth?

Kevin Youkilis is 33 years old, he's slumping, he's recently been injured, and he's effectively been replaced in Boston by rookie Will Middlebrooks. Recently, the Red Sox denied that they were looking to move Youkilis in a trade. Then, Monday night, Fox Sports passed along rumors that Youkilis was being shopped aggressively to anyone and everyone. The most sensible thing would be for the Sox to be shopping Youkilis, so it stands to reason that they would be doing that.

So that kind of answers the question of "is Kevin Youkilis available?" That doesn't answer the question of "how much is Kevin Youkilis worth?" We turn to FanGraphs and Chris Cwik:

Youkilis will be owed roughly $6 million the rest of the season. For the Red Sox to get something significant in return, they’d have to eat a large chunk of that salary. There are certainly teams in the race that could use help at third — namely the Chicago White Sox, Arizona Diamondbacks and Cleveland Indians — and Youkilis would represent an upgrade over their current options. There’s also the Los Angeles Dodgers, which could finally rid themselves of James Loney and put Youkilis back at first base.

Even if those teams are desperate for help at their corner infield slots, they shouldn’t have to give up any significant prospects for Youkilis. Middlebrooks’ play has made Youkilis redundant. If the Red Sox continue to play Youkilis at third, they’ll do so at the expense of Middlebrooks. And since the Red Sox already have better players at first and DH, the Red Sox don’t have a lot of leverage. If the Red Sox were to cover most — or all — of Youkilis’ remaining salary, it’s possible they could receive a low-level impact player. Maybe a reliever or a good bat off the bench. But right now, there’s no reason for a team to break the bank on Youkilis.

That's most of the conclusion, and I didn't quote the analysis that led there. Click through for that. Basically, Youkilis is getting up there in years, his health is a bigger question than it's ever been, and he was a productive bat as recently as last season. That's why Youkilis would be desirable, and that's why Youkilis would come pretty cheap. Of course, all it takes to drive up a player's price is an active market, and Youkilis would have more than one suitor, but don't look for the Red Sox to cash in. This isn't the core of a blockbuster. Unless a blockbuster with other good players is built around Kevin Youkilis somehow.

Kevin Youkilis Trade Rumors: Sox 3B 'Being Shopped Everywhere'

When the Boston Red Sox brought up third-base prospect Will Middlebrooks to cover for a Kevin Youkilis injury, things got complicated. Middlebrooks started raking, and Youkilis kept ailing. Rumors started that suggested Youkilis was on his way out, which GM Ben Cherington strongly denied. Middlebrooks started to slump a bit -- .212/.289/.212 in 33 June at-bats -- and the rumors died down a bit.

Until now! From the Ken Rosenthal/Jon Morosi tandem:

Trade dialogue surrounding the beleaguered Boston third baseman has intensified in the last 24 to 48 hours, major-league sources told FOXSports.com. The Red Sox have made clear that (a) Youkilis is available and (b) they are willing to include cash to facilitate a better player return. In response, a number of clubs have indicated that they have interest in acquiring the three-time All-Star.

The usual suspects are getting a mention as trade possibilities. The Dodgers, White Sox, and Indians were mentioned, as well as the Diamondbacks and Pirates.

Youkilis is hitting .215/.301/.341 on the season, and if we're going to mention what Middlebrooks is hitting in June, it's only fair to point out that Youkilis is hitting .128/.261/.179 for the month.

Red Sox: Kevin Youkilis Trade Rumors 'Inaccurate'

Well, it was fun while it lasted. Earlier on Friday morning, CBS Sports reported the Boston Red Sox were "definitely" going to trade corner infielder Kevin Youkilis to make room for Will Middlebrooks. But in an e-mail to WEEI.com, Red Sox GM Ben Cherington denied that report:

"That’s inaccurate," Cherington e-mailed WEEI.com Friday afternoon. "Some teams have checked in on him. We haven’t told any teams we plan to trade him. It’s our job to listen if teams have interest. He’s swinging the bat well since coming off the DL and [is] a big part of our team and lineup."

But as Craig Calcaterra points out, it wouldn't make a whole lot of sense for Cherington to come out and publicly proclaim the Youkilis auction was open. So the dream of a Red Sox-fueled rumor orgy is still alive! Never lose faith. The Red Sox don't have to trade Youkilis. They've said they aren't trading him. But we can still pretend they are.

Red Sox Reportedly Shopping Kevin Youkilis

The Boston Red Sox are reportedly open to trading Kevin Youkilis. Is this just about making room for Will Middlebrooks, or is there something more to the idea?