Rejoice, White Sox Fans! Samardzija and Robertson Are South Siders

If you're just waking up you missed all the action! As my head was hitting the pillow last night rumors were strong about the White Sox picking up starting pitcher Jeff Samardzija via trade and reliever David Robertson via free agency.

Those rumors have become actual news, via ESPN:

The Chicago White Sox pulled off a major shake-up to their pitching staff Monday night, as sources confirmed they acquired both starter Jeff Samardzija in a trade with theOakland Athletics and former New York Yankees closer David Robertson via free agency.
The White Sox will send infielder Marcus Semien, right-hander Chris Bassitt and a third player to the A's, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
Robertson agreed to a four-year deal with the White Sox that is worth $46 million, a source confirmed to ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick.

I will admit I'm not a huge Samardzija fan, but the price is right even if he doesn't rise to "ace" level. The Sox gave up Semien but have other similar player to step into his void. Bassit is a decent pitching prospect but not projected to be anything special. Unless the third player is a top prospect it's an appropriate exchange for what likely is just one year of Samardzija. He's been clear that he wants to test the free agent market after the 2015 season.

Meanwhile, Robertson was perhaps the best reliever on the free agent market. He'll slide right into the back end of the Sox bullpen, which was one of the worst in baseball last year. The Sox also really missed having a strikeout guy in the pen. So many of the relievers on staff last year were sinkerballers pitching to contact.

What does it all mean? The White Sox are going for it right now. And why not? Players generally peak around the age of 27. Jose Abreu had a great rookie season but already will be 28 in 2015. Lead-off man and center fielder Adam Eaton will be 27. How many years of prime Chris Sale remain? With Samadzija in town it makes total sense to sign up Robertson go for it right now.

Don't stop now, White Sox general manager Rick Hahn. I don't think you can begin 2015 with Conor Gillaspie as your starting third baseman. I like him, but think he fits better as a utility/platoon guy. Shore that up and the lineup looks solid. Are there still questions? Sure. You've gotta hope Tyler Flowers turnaround from the end of 2014 is real. You have to believe Avisail Garcia continues to develop. And it would be really nice if Micah Johnson or Carlos Sanchez turn out to be an OBP machine.

As for the rotation, I'd be shocked if last year's first round draft pick, Carlos Rodon, isn't with the big league club in May. Until that occurs, I'm actually comfortable with John Danks and Hector Noesi taking the 4-5 slots.

All in all, the 2015 season just went from "continued rebuild" to "compete now" and the price has not been prohibitive. The A.L. Central could be one of the most competitive divisions in baseball in 2015. The Royals were in the World Series. The Tigers still have massive talent. The Indians are improving with a really good pitching staff. The Twins...well, the Twins stink.