THIS DATE IN SOX HISTORY: JANUARY 5TH/Trade with Yanks; Cook

THIS DATE IN SOX HISTORY: JANUARY 5TH

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BARTERING WITH THE BRONX BOMBERS

1987: The White Sox acquired pitcher Scott Nielsen and minor leaguer Mike Soper from the New York Yankees for pitcher Pete Filson and minor leaguer Randy Velarde. Nielsen had shown some promise with the 1986 Yankees but didn’t realize it with the Sox. The right-hander from BYU went 3-5 with a 6.24 ERA in 19 games for the 1987 Sox. He was returned to the Yankees in a five-player swap that netted the Sox Dan Pasqua and Steve Rosenberg Nov. 12, 1987. The gem of the deal turned out to be Velarde, who was a late-bloomer. His best season was 1999 when he logged 200 hits and hit .317 between the Angels and A’s.

COOK IN THE BOOKS

1994: The White Sox signed reliever Dennis Cook. The feisty left-hander turned out to be an important part of the bullpen for the strike-shortened season. Cook was 3-1 with a 3.55 ERA in 38 apparances in what turned out to be his only season on the Southside.