White Sox gift Red Sox recent Yankees prospect in latest 'get out of jail free' trade

Oh, great. The New York Yankees' Austin Slater trade - a wise idea at the time that quickly disintegrated into nothingness - has reared its ugly head again on Sunday (as the Yankees reportedly weigh whether or not to bring Slater back again).

The Yankees needed balance in their lineup and bench last summer, but in the end, Slater cost them Gage Ziehl, a recent fourth-round pick out of the University of Miami, and provided them with 14 games and three hits, suffering a hamstring injury almost immediately upon arrival.

Now, Ziehl will be heading East to his third home in the past calendar year: it's the Red Sox, traded by the White Sox in exchange for Jordan Hicks and hard-throwing prospect David Sandlin.

Sandlin is the real target in this trade. He must be. After all, why else would someone (non-Red Sox division) willingly take on the majority of Hicks' money as he flails? Of course, the White Sox couldn't toss Boston another life raft without somehow involving the fruits of the Yankees' farm system.

Red Sox acquire former Yankees prospect Gage Ziehl after ditching Jordan Hicks to White Sox

Maybe Elmer Rodriguez will become the first former Sox prospect to hit new heights with the Yankees, rather than the other way around (though Boston thieving Carlos Narvaez in the same deal essentially makes it a wash at best). Until Rodriguez's formal arrival, the Red Sox still have a ridiculous edge on the scoreboard, swiping Garrett Whitlock, Richard Fitts, Greg Weissert, and Rob Refsnyder (in a roundabout way) in recent years.

Now, Ziehl - Chicago's 21st-ranked prospect, per MLB Pipeline, at the time of the trade - could follow Refsnyder's footsteps. The Yankees can ship their assets to different divisions, and Boston will still somehow find a way to get their hands on them.

This is not to mention the real tragedy of the deal, of course. The Red Sox willingly agreed to divest of Rafael Devers and take on Hicks' money last year. He was abominable, posting an 8.20 ERA in 21 games. He has two years left on his contract and $24 million on the books; Boston will pay him $8 million to go away, while Chicago picks up $16 million of the tab. Who knows how the Red Sox will finish their offseason, but this makes adding an impact bat on their current budget much easier.

This might not have been quite as dramatic as the Dodgers bailing the Red Sox out of every bad contract they had back in 2012, but (as is tradition), yet another team has watched the Red Sox dig themselves into a financial hole by absorbing a flailing asset, then help lift them out of their predicament. You're in the same league. You're not required to help them.

And, to make matters worse, the White Sox let the Red Sox get their hands on another one of their favorite things: a Yankees pitching prospect they can dangle in front of their rivals for years to come. Thanks, White Sox. Hope David Sandlin is worth it.