Red Sox top Nationals' offer, land Sale in blockbuster trade

NATIONAL HARBOR, Md. - The Nationals finished runners-up in the Mark Melancon sweepstakes on Monday. And it appears they've now finished runners-up in the Chris Sale sweepstakes today.

The White Sox have struck a deal to send Sale to the Red Sox for elite prospects Yoan Moncada and Michael Kopech, plus two other minor-leaguers, according to multiple reports here at the Winter Meetings.

It's a blockbuster trade featuring one of the game's best left-handers going to a powerhouse contender in exchange for two of the most promising prospects in the sport, and it once again leaves the Nationals on the outside looking in.

The Nationals had been serious pursuers of Sale and went to bed late Monday hopeful they had put together a strong enough package to acquire the five-time All-Star. Exact details of the Nationals' offer aren't known yet - and may never be - but it's believed right-hander Lucas Giolito and 19-year-old outfielder Victor Robles were among the names in the mix.

That would have been a significant haul to give up from the Nationals' perspective, and indeed there was some trepidation among club officials that it was too much to offer. General manager Mike Rizzo had refused to shop any of his top four prospects - Giolito, Robles, Trea Turner and Reynaldo Lopez - at the July trade deadline, but the only name from that group that appears to be completely off-limits this winter is Turner.

The Nationals spent Tuesday morning waiting for the White Sox to respond to the offer they made Monday evening, but Chicago's front office spent that time seeing what other offers might be available from other clubs. The Red Sox always loomed as the Nationals' strongest threat, and sure enough they put together a package of prospects that exceeded what Rizzo offered.

Moncada, a 21-year-old third baseman, is regarded as one of the premier prospects in baseball at the moment, perhaps topping the list throughout the sport. Kopech, 20, is one of the hardest-throwers in the game and profiles as a frontline starter in the big leagues within the next few years.

While Giolito (rated by some experts as the top pitching prospect in baseball at the outset of the 2016 season) and Robles (who has five-tool potential) are elite prospects in their own right, the Nationals likely couldn't have topped Boston's final offer without including Turner in the package.

That's something Rizzo is unwilling to do, deeming the 23-year-old outfielder/shortstop as untouchable and one of the most important pieces to the Nationals' success both in the short- and long-term.

This trade leaves the Nationals as spectators so far at the Winter Meetings, having also come up short in their bid to re-sign Melancon, who on Monday accepted a four-year, $62 million contract from the Giants. But it hardly means they will be shut out altogether from the kind of significant transaction they're seeking to make before pitchers and catchers report for spring training two months from now.

With Sale off the table, the Nationals could refocus their efforts on acquiring Andrew McCutchen from the Pirates, though it appears they aren't willing to offer as much for the 30-year-old outfielder as they were for Sale.

They also could pursue another outfielder via the trade market, not to mention a closer either by free agency (Aroldis Chapman, Kenley Jansen) or trade (Wade Davis, David Robertson).