Lance Lynn An Intriguing Name For Trade Market After 16-K Showcase

Entering the trade market from stage right — Seattle, specifically — please welcome Chicago White Sox right-hander Lance Lynn.

On Sunday afternoon at T-Mobile Park, the 36-year-old Lynn delivered an outing that would have scouts from every contender salivating had it come with a week of the August 1 deadline. He lost to the Mariners, yes — and that seemed to be all he focused on afterward — but in doing so he delivered a staggering showcase of his pitching skills.

Lynn not only matched a 69-year-old White Sox record with 16 strikeouts but he very quietly compiled 33 swing-and-misses among 114 total pitches. That’s the most in the major leagues this season and tied the fourth best total since 2008, when those totals were first universally tracked.

Making this even more impressive, Lynn did this by flummoxing Seattle hitters five different pitchers (six if you separate his sinker from a four-seam fastball).

His most elusive pitch was a cutter he threw with a five-miles per hour difference in speeds (from 85.3 to 90.2) but he also got at least five whiffs with his fastball, slider and changeup. He used his slider most often to put away hitters but was comfortable with his all his pitches in any count.

Lynn is 11th among active pitchers in strikeouts but has never ranked better than fourth in a season (246 with Texas in 2019). He’s currently third in the American League with 102 over 84 1/3 innings. The strikeouts, however, are the only bright spot in what has been a perplexing season.

Lynn is currently 4-8 with a 6.51 earned run average. He’s given up 94 hits, the most in the American League, and 18 of those have been home runs. But his performance on Sunday suggests he’s figuring things out.

There is a huge demand for pitching around the majors, and Lynn could develop into a very interesting piece. He has historically pitched better in the second half (3.32 ERA) than the first half (3.94 ERA) and is viewed as a workhorse. Even this season he’s gone five-plus innings in 13 of his 15 starts.

Barring a major turnaround, the White Sox are expected to be deadline sellers. Lynn’s status could be impacted by an organizational belief that they can keep the same core largely together and contend in 2024. The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal recently reported that as of now they might only be willing to trade impending free agents like Lucas Giolito and Yasmani Grandal, not players under control like Lynn and shortstop Tim Anderson.

The White Sox traded for Lynn before the 2020 season. He was entering the last year of a three-season, $30 million contract, and the White Sox then extended him for $38 million over two seasons. That deal includes a club option for 2024 — $18 million or a $1 million buyout.

The ’24 option should significantly increase Lynn’s value if the Sox do decide to make him available. Teams with immediate needs could pop Lynn into the rotation for the stretch run and then weigh whether he’s a fit for ’24, based on his performance and their pitching inventory.

His emergence over the next month could put the White Sox in position to receive a return that forces their hand (not to mention that they’d be off-loading millions off their payroll). The same is true with Anderson, who is due $14 million on a ’24 club option.

Lynn is next scheduled to start against Boston on Saturday. There will be a lot of evaluators watching to see if he picks up where he left off.