White Sox's 'perfect' trade target is 0.89 ERA Padres closer

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The Chicago White Sox are sitting atop the AL Central right now, with the Cleveland Guardians right there alongside them. Both teams are contenders and could look to be buyers at the 2026 MLB trade deadline.

Ahead of the deadline, the White Sox are already looking to trade for a new catcher, and could also aim for a rotation upgrade or two. But that's not all the White Sox could benefit from adding, as a new reliever or closer would be a nice move.

Jim Bowden of The Athletic agrees and named San Diego Padres 0.89 ERA closer Mason Miller as the "perfect" trade target for the White Sox this season.

Mason Miller is a 'perfect' trade target for White Sox

"Because they have so much depth in their farm system, I believe they should try to go for it and make an overwhelming proposal to the Padres to land Miller, who is the best closer in baseball," Bowden writes.

Bowden believes the White Sox should make a massive offer to the Padres for Miller, and it certainly will cost a fortune if they want a chance to land the superstar closer.

Miller is 27 years old and has a 0.89 ERA this season with 2.4 bWAR, 78 strikeouts, and 25 saves in 41.2 innings pitched during the 2026 campaign.

He'd be a dream-come-true for any contender with a bullpen need this summer. The White Sox, with an elite farm system that just got better by drafting Roch Cholowsky No. 1 overall in the 2026 MLB Draft, could take a big swing for Miller.

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He's under club control through the 2029 season, so the White Sox wouldn't just be getting someone to help out in 2026, but also for the 2027, 2028, and 2029 seasons.

For a team like the White Sox, which is ascending at the same time, opening the franchise's window of contention for the next few seasons, adding Miller would be about the best possible move they could make.

He'd dramatically increase their playoff odds this year and give them a huge advantage come the postseason with arguably the best closer in baseball waiting to be used out of the bullpen.

Sure, it will cost a fortune, and might be risky to invest so much into a closer. But this is the kind of move that shows they're ready to contend, which this iteration of the White Sox clearly is capable of doing.