Building for the '08 season started with a couple of big re-signings during the previous season:
3/23/07
Javier Vazquez signs a three-year $34.5 million extension which starts in 2008
7/8/07
Signed LHP Mark Buehrle to a four-year $56 million contract
8/18/07
Signed OF Jermaine Dye to a two-year $22 million contract extension through the 2009 season with a mutual option $12 million for 2010 ($1 million buyout).
8/19/07
Signed LHP Mike Myers to a one-year contract with a $1.1 million option for '09
Analysis: This happened with over a month left of the '07 season, but it was obviously made for the '08 season, which is why it's here. Get how this site works now? The idea here is an extended audition for '08. At this point, the '07 season has long since been over. Myers will get the league minimum, pro-rated. I think that will work out to about $50,000 or so. It's a solid move by KW since there is no buyout price on the option. The Yankees let him go after posting a 3-0 record and a 2.66 ERA.
In the long term: Well, it was worth a shot. He had a few good outings to start, but was declined after posting an 11.20 ERA
9/29/07
Signed C A.J. Pierzynski to a two-year $12.5 million contract extension starting in 2009.
Analysis: People weren't thrilled with this, but I don't see anyone else in our organization or on the free agent market who makes more sense for the Sox. He's going to make $5.85 million this year from his previous contract (which includes bonuses earned from '07), then $6.25 million for each 2009 and '10.
In the long term:
10/31/07
Declined the club options for 2008 on IF/OF Darin Erstad and LHP Mike Myers
Analysis: Nothing surprising here. See the "in the long run" sections for each of these players when they were signed for more info.
11/7/07
Agreed to terms on a one-year $4.5 million contract with SS Juan Uribe.
Analysis: There are a lot of puzzled expressions all over Chicago when this happened. I've been in Uribe's corner for years, but he's fallen out of favor even with me now. Part of it isn't his fault. If the Sox plan on starting Danny Richar at second all season, someone is going to need to pick up the slack of his minors-to-majors learning curve. In my opinion, his defense is stiller far above average, but batting .234 last year and having his average fall for each of the past three seasons is very troublesome. I would think that he was signed simply to include him in a trade package, but I don't know how attractive he is to any team at any price, let alone $4.5 million.
In the long term:
11/19/07 - Big Trade!
Angels get: RHP Jon Garland
Sox get: SS Orlando Cabrera and cash (reportedly $1.5 million).
Analysis: It has taken a while for me to come around, but I finally have grasped that Jon Garland is only an average starting pitcher. After seven and a half years he's amassed 92 wins, but his ERA is a bloated 4.41. His top season was '05 and it looks like that was his peak. He posted 18 wins in a second consecutive season in '06, but the offense was to thank for that (his ERA was over 4.50 (112 runs allowed in 211 innings). Cabrera won a Gold Glove literally days earlier (it was his second). His OPS was around .750 last year, not great, but considerably above Uribe's, which was around .675. OBP is a primary target this year for KW and this looks solid, particularly when you look at the financial savings. The difference in salary plus the $1.5 million thrown in comes out to the White Sox saving $4.5 million. Will Cabrera play instead of Uribe or will they play alongside each other (instead of Richar)? Who will fill Garland's rotation spot?
In the long term:
11/28/07
Signed free agent RHP Scott Linebrink to a four-year $19 million contract; released INF Alex Cintron and OF Scott Podsednik
Analysis: There were those who were surprised that Pods was brought back for the '07 season. How could you not bring back a guy who had just put up 40 steals the year before while almost doubling his RBI total? Granted, most of his offensive numbers were down, but for $2.9 million, he was still a bargain. For Cintron, the hope is that Ozuna will be back at 100%. Short of that, Cintron wouldn't be worth the $2 million it would take to resign him. With Cabrera now in the fold, perhaps Richar takes Cintron's spot on the bench. Now for the real story: Linebrink. The structure goes like this: $4 million in '08, $4.5 million in '09, $5 million in '10 and $5.5 million in '11. The big question is, "How could a middle reliever be worth this much money over this many years?" KW stressed with the money brought in from the last trade to look at it as a Garland for Cabrara and Linebrink deal. I'm sure we all could've found a better way to spend $4.5 million. There is no trade protection in this deal, so if he's lights-out, it may be possible to trade him before he reaches the end of the contract. It was already stressed by many in baseball that it would be a costly sign considering he's a type-A free agent. Four years seems long, but I don't think it's nearly as bad as many are making it out to be.
In the long term:
12/3/07 - trade!
Sox get: OF Carlos Quentin
Arizona gets: Minor League 1B Chris Carter
Analysis: Quentin's going to be paid like a minor leaguer ($381,000) though he may play as a starter depending on how the rest of the offseason goes. The guy has pop and apparently a very high ceiling. To acquire him, we gave up Chris Carter who batted .291 in single-A last year. He's considered a big prospect for the Sox, but a lot can happen between single A and the majors. The overall feeling in the media is that the Sox made a wonderful move here.
In the long term:
12/6/07
RULE 5 DRAFT
Sox Get: RHP Santo Luis
Sox Lose: LHP Ray Liotta to the KC Royals, LHP Ryan Rodriguez to the Baltimore Orioles, RHP Fernando Hernandez to the Oakland A's (returned on 4/16/08)
12/12/07
Did not tender 2008 contracts to INF Andy Gonzalez and LHP Heath Phillips, making them free agents.
Analysis: The Andy Gonzalez move I understand and applaud. He got more time than a rookie call-up would generally get due to the horrendous amount of injuries last season (67 games and 214 plate appearances) and he only posted an average of .185. With Philips, on the other hand, it wouldn't even matter that what he did in the majors last year because he's a young (26) left handed pitcher. What did he do in the majors last year? He posted a 3.68 ERA in very limited (7 1/3 innings) action. He seems primed to break with the team out of spring training out of the bullpen.
In the long term:
12/21/07
Signed
OF Alexei Ramirez to a four-year $4.75 million contract (made official on 1/22/08)
Analysis: My one concern is that according to mlbtraderumors.com (which references ESPN), he worked out for the Red Sox, Indians, Twins, Reds, Cubs, Mets, Yankees and A's. If all of these scouts saw him, how good can he be if the Sox were able to snag him for so little? Apparently, this guy is solid. My opinion is similar to my reaction to the initial Iguchi signing - can't wait to see what he brings to the team. The contractual breakdown goes like this: $950,000 for '08, $1.1 million for each year 2009 to 2011. He also got a $500,000 signing bonus.
In the long term:
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2008
1/3/08 - trade!
Sox get: OF Nick Swisher
Oakland gets: LHP Gio Gonzalez, RHP Fautino De Los Santos and OF Ryan Sweeney.
Analysis: What is the deal with Gio Gonzalez? How many times that the White Sox involve him in a trade? De Los Santos is listed as one of the top prospects for the Sox even though he's only in single-A ball. As I recently stated, it's hard to get too behind a guy that's several years away from the majors. Sweeny's time seems to have come. Sox fans, myself included, wouldn't stand for another Brian Anderson/Joe Borchard-like experiment. Still, it does seem like we gave up a lot for Swisher. From what I hear, he's a gritty Rowand-type player and the move to Chicago could help him reach 20 HRs. Personally, I was looking forward to Owens in center. He still may be with Swisher moving to left and Quinten going to the bench. Quinten would be a great 4th outfielder, but he seems too talented to be riding the pine most of the season. It seems like Ramirez will be that 4th outfielder after a (hopefully short) stint in the minors to start '08. Looks like we have more trade bait here. What is great it that Swisher is signed through 2011 with a $10.25 million option for 2012. There's a $1 million buyout on the option and it jumps to $12 million if Swisher finishes in the top five in MVP voting during any season under this contract. I love the structure of the contract for both sides.
In the long term:
1/11/08
Signed INFs Brad Eldred, Royce Huffman, Jeff Liefer, Michael Rouse, Cs Paul Phillips, Ryan Smith, INF/OF Jason Bourgeois, OF Miguel Negron and RHP D.J. Carrasco to Minor League contracts with invitations to Spring Training; Invited INF Chris Getz to Spring Training.
1/17/08
Signed 3B Joe Crede to a one-year $5.1 million contract, avoiding arbitration
Analysis: There was speculation a few months ago that Crede would be nontendered and would end up a free agent. That said, I don't think it was all too shocking that Crede did get signed. He's of no value to the Sox to simply walk away and this $5.1 million contract gives the Sox a lot of potential upside - really, it is potentially the best move of the offseason so far for KW, though there wasn't much to it. The Sox appear to want to start Josh Fields at third and trade Crede after spring training starts in order to first show the baseball world that he is healthy and merits trading quality players for. Fields is better at third than left, not to mention that the Sox have already added Nick Swisher, Alexei Ramirez and Carlos Quinten to the outfield. However if a trade presents itself that would require moving Fields, the Sox would not be losing anything (for this season) since they're already stocked with two starting third basemen. Crede's deal could end up being worth as much as $5.4 million depending on plate appearances. I'm very surprised that the incentives aren't higher allowing him to earn at least more than $6 million.
In the long term:
1/18/08
Signed Reliever Octavio Dotel to a two-year $11 million contract (made official on 1/22/08)
Analysis: During last year's offseason the Sox went out and brought in a bunch of bullpen help (David Aardsma, Carlos Vasquez, Mike MacDougal, Andrew Sisco, Nick Masset, Ryan Bukvich and Sean Tracey - not to mention other minor leaguers). It seemed like a solid idea, and, at the time, made it look like the Sox were going to have one of the best 'pens in the game. The same problem can't happen twice, right? The biggest difference between this and last year is that this year the Sox are paying for it in cash. Dotel will make more per year than Linebrink. The money Dotel's recieving is similar to his most recent contract, which had a $5 million base, but could've been as high as $7.7 million based on incentives and bonuses (in the end, he made $5.6 million in '07). He's going to make $5 million in '08 and $6 million in '09 - no incentives. Last year in only 30 2/3 innings Dotel racked up 11 saves in 15 attempts between Atlanta and Kansas City. The most promising stat from last year being his 41 strike outs. His command was also solid (he only issued 12 walks). At this point he has a record of 39-32 with 82 saves in 114 attempts whith a 3.76 ERA. The big risk, of course is his health. The last time he put up a good amount of innings pitched or games played was 2004 (85 1/3 in 77 games). Time will tell, but on the surface, this seems like a worse signing than Linebrink's contract. On another note, this signing pushes David Aardsma out of the 40-man roster, personally I would've bumped off Dewon Day.
In the long term:
1/28/08 - Trade!
Sox Get: Minor League pitchers Willy Mota and Miguel Socolovich
Red Sox Get:
Pitcher David Aardsma
Analysis: First, to the strangers. Both of these guys are pretty young. Mota has been in the minors since 2005, but spend the first two years as an outfielder (Baseball America rated him as having the best outfield arm in the whole Red Sox farm system in '06) before pitching in 2007. He was most recently in low A ball. Socolovich has only been in the minors since 2006. In '07 he progressed from low A ball to A ball. With the addition of Octavio Dotel, Aardsma was pushed off of the 40-man. This seems like as good a time as any to re-stock the minor leagues. Aardsma still has a lot of potential to help the Red Sox. He's got a lot of power, but struggled a lot more than expected last season, his only with the Sox. He posted a 6.40 ERA, but did strike out more than one per inning pitched. Aardsma's contract was up, so he'll have to strike something up with Boston. Last year he made $375,000. Aardsma is currently 26 while Mota and Socolovich are 22 and 21 resepctively. The original Cotts for Aardsma trade now looks like a Cotts for Mota and Socolovich deal. Another scoop from MLBTradeRumors.com today - Brian Anderson is as good as traded to a national league team (apparently, this was jumping the gun).
In the long term:
2/6/08 - Announcer, Ken "Hawk" Harrelson signs a three-year extension, keeping him in the booth through the 2011 season. Now where's Steve Stone to provide a little color analysis?
Thoughts? Discuss it on the message board here!
2/8/08 - A Letter from the Editorial Desk
Spring Training begins in about a week and things are looking positive. Being an optomist, I have very high hopes for Alexei Ramirez winning the starting second base job and Carlos Quentin fully recovering from his offseason surgery. Quentin coming back strong gives the Sox a surplus in the outfield, which didn't seem remotely possible even half way through the off season after getting a little screwed in the Fukudome and Hunter sweepstakes. As it stands, Ramirez and Quentin could be two fantastic low risk/high reward acqusitions. That said, it's hard not to get exited about a middle of the lineup that includes Paul Konerko, Jim Thome, Jermaine Dye and Nick Swisher.
Two deals I'd still like to see get done: 1) I'd still be interested in seeing is a veteran pitcher to secure the fifth starter slot. Names like Rodrigo Lopez, Kris Benson, Kyle Lohse, and former White Sox Josh Fogg all sound appealing to me. Also, no need to gamble on an injury risk. Could one year at $5 million get the job done (considerably less for Lopez and Fogg)? It looks like Gavin Floyd is going to get a legitimate shot at breaking with the club come opening day though. There are also fifth starters waiting in the wings in Lance Broadway, Nick Masset and even Jack Egbert, so the situation is far from dire. 2) a trade for a high quality double-A catcher would be a big positive. If Toby Hall fails or finds himself injured once more, the Sox have very little going for them at the moment. Also, I don't believe they have anyone in line to take over for A.J. Pierzynski a couple years down the road yet either.
Another positive is that the White Sox farm system might get some noteworthy help in the coming weeks. Players on the potential-to-likely trading block are Masset, Joe Crede, Juan Uribe and Brian Anderson. If Quentin and Ramirez do pan out, additional names will find their way to this list. More likely than not, each of the players listed will be traded for prospects. Sadly, a trade of Uribe will most likely mean the Sox picking up a portion of his contract.
Naturally, the real question this off season surrounds the bullpen. Just like last year, the Sox have potentially, one of the most solid bullpens in the league. We all saw what happened last year, so it's not even worth my venturing any guesses or analysis at this point.
2/21/08
Signed Pitcher Tomo Ohka
Analysis: Amidst several rumors of a Bartolo Colon signing the Sox signed Ohka to a minor league deal. I'm not going to waste many words here since it's likely comparable to the Junior Spivey signing of a year ago. A former major leaguer signs a minor league deal as opposed to retiring and it gives the big league club an illusion of depth with no realistic intention of the player ever making it to the big leagues.
In the long term:
2/27/08
Signed to one-year contracts: Pitchers Lance Broadway, John Danks ($400,000), Dewon Day, Jack Egbert, Gavin Floyd ($400,000), Charlie Haeger, Lucas Harrell, Boone Logan ($405,000), Nick Masset ($396,000), Oneli Perez, Bobby Jenks ($550,000), Adam Russell, Andrew Sisco, Carlos Vasquez and Ehren Wassermann, Catchers Cole Armstrong and Donny Lucy, INF Danny Richar ($392,500), OFs Brian Anderson ($395,000), Jerry Owens ($397,500) and Carlos Quentin ($400,000).
3/4/08 - Steve Stone takes over for Chris Singleton in the radio booth. Check out the 2/6/08 entry. I called it.
3/5/08
Signed OF DeWayne Wise to a one-year contract
Analysis: Though he definitely can't be called a prospect, any addition to the minor leagues is a good one at the moment. He's played in parts of five seasons with Toronto, Atlanta and Cincinatti. He appeared in the post season with Atlanta in 2004.
In the long term: He appeared in six games for the Sox when Juan Uribe went on the DL and Alexei Ramierz moved to the infield. He went hitless in six ABs, but did score a run and stole a base.
Opening Day Lineup |
| LF |
Nick Swisher |
| SS |
Orlando Cabrera |
| DH |
Jim Thome |
| 1B |
Paul Konerko |
| RF |
Jermine Dye |
| C |
AJ Pierzynski |
| CF |
Alexei Ramirez |
| 3B |
Joe Crede |
| 2B |
Juan Uribe |
| P |
Mark Buherle |
Bold = Not in last year's opening day starting lineup
*Jerry Owens would've started at CF, but was on the DL. 2B is bold because Uribe was SS for last season's opener
Opening day payroll: $121,189,332 ($12,571,499 more than last season). This works out to $1,474,037 per win |
3/30/08 - A Letter from the Editorial Desk
Opening pitch is less than 24 hours away and it looks to be an exciting season for the Sox. Despite the fact that I am a biased Sox fan, I do not think they will reach the playoffs this year, however they will surprise a lot of people with how 'complete' the team is. Some of the biggest pluses this spring training involved players playing with a chip on their shoulder. Brian Anderson and Juan Uribe went from likely being traded for next to nothing to players on the 25-man roster. It's often pointed out that Uribe's cannon of an arm is going to be wasted on second base, but I'm looking forward to the Dye-Uribe-Crede putout at third. Joe Crede being on the opening day lineup is another huge surprise. How he does this year will have a major impact on how the Sox do in '09. If he does poorly, the Sox will get nothing but a bill from him. If he's at least average, he'll be a mid-season trade and if he bounces back to his 2006 numbers, I can see KW working on a multi-year deal and trading Josh Fields, who is going to waste the first several months (at least) in the minors. Speaking of '09 (and beyond), spring training had a number of impressive minor leaguers who deserve a mention here: Chris Getz, Brad Eldred, Jason Bourgeois, Jeff Liefer, Paul Phillips, Miguel Negron and pitchers DJ Carrasco and Tomo Ohka. As I had hoped, Alexei Ramirez is breaking camp with the team and has impressed enough to get the start in center over Anderson. Let's see how many rookie of the year votes come his way in the following off season. Orlando Cabrera was a good addition and will likely get a contract extension during the season, but the most exciting off season addition is Nick Swisher, who many pick to smack 30 homers and drive in over 100. I still really wish that the Sox made a stronger push for Eric Bedard, but the rotation is far from horrible. We know what we're getting with Mark Buherle and Javier Vasquez, but Jose Contreras is a big question mark. Hopefully he ends up with the same productive chip on the shoulder as Anderson and Uribe. I believe John Danks only needs a minor improvement to notch 12 wins, due largely to the improvement in his surrounding cast (in his first five starts in '07 the Sox only produced four runs). Danks and number five starter Gavin Floyd running out of gas in the second half of the season is a scary reality the Sox will likely have to face. Another uneasy situation is Jerry Owens who battled injuries during spring training and will start the season on the DL. Regardless of how the Sox are doing, I see a few minor trades during the season and, thanks to the terrible '07 season, the Sox will get the #8 pick in this year's draft. The unbalanced season, forcing the Sox to play Detroit and Cleveland a bunch is the reason the Sox won't make the playoffs. My prediction: 86-76.
5/9/08
Signed Ray King to a minor league contract
Analysis: In 10 big league seasons, King's appeared in 593 games, compiling a record of 20-23 and an ERA of 3.46. He appeared in the post season with the Braves in 2003 and the Cardinals in 2004. In the post season he has no record and a 2.16 ERA over 8 1/3 innings.
In the long term:
5/19/08
Sox lose Oneli Perez to Cleveland off waivers
In the long term:
5/30/08 - trade!
Sox get: pitcher Jim Brower
Reds get: cash
Analysis: The addition of big league vets to the minors continues. In nine big league seasons, Brower's appeared in 354 games, compiling a record of 33-32 and an ERA of 4.67. He appeared in the post season with the Giants in 2003 and the Braves in 2005. In the post season he has no record and a 2.35 ERA over 7 2/3 innings.
In the long term:
6/4/08
Signed pitcher Esteban Loaiza to a one-year contract (league minimum, pro-rated - Estimated $140,000)
Analysis: Amidst a surprisingly good start to the season in which the Sox have spent most of their time, not only above .500, but in first place, KW made a move to further bolster one of the strongest aspect of this year's club - the bullpen. Linebrink, Logan, and Jenks have spent almost all of the year under 2.50 while Dotel and Thornton have been around 3.00. There has been one inconsistent spot in the bullpen that was most recently filled by Wassermann, who posted a 14.85 era over 11 games. Loaiza may make a spot start now and again, but will be a valuable addition as an innings eater for the 'pen. Loaiza's pay from the Sox this year will be around $140,000. He was DFA'd by the Dodgers, where he posted a 5.63 ERA over seven games (three starts).
In the long term:
6/5/08 - Draft!
Picked SS Gordon Beckham as the eighth overall pick in the '08 draft.
In the long term:
6/17/08 - A Letter from the Editorial Desk
Another armchair GM session! I don't think Jim Thome is going anywhere during the season since his contract is too cumbersome. After the season the Sox will buy him out for $3 million (half of that already paid for by the Phillies). Thome might try to come back at a reduced pricetag (like Juan Uribe this year), but I'd like to see Jermaine Dye (signed through 2009 with an option for 2010) become DH, making room for younger, talented and cheaper talent in the outfield (namely Jerry Owens). The Sox have a higher salary (including bonuses) than most teams, including the Cubs, Phillies, Dodgers and even the Angels. This is true dispite the fact that our starting rotation, usually one of the biggest costs, is making $36.3 million this year (or $7.26 million on average), meaning the rest of the team is costing roughly $85 million. In comparison, the first place Diamondbacks have a team salary of just $66.2 million and the first place Phillies are tagged at $89.1. They are also paying $7 million to Jim Thome and $2.15 million to Wes Helms and are still able to keep their payroll under $100 million. To followup on my February letter, Kyle Lohse signed with St. Louis for one year at $4.25 million. I was hoping the Sox could snag him for one year at $5 million, which I would considered a steal. So far Lohse is 8-2 with a 3.77 ERA. Fortunately, we haven't missed him as Gavin Floyd (7-3, 3.30) and John Danks (4-4, 2.90) have been outstanding.
7/8/07
DFA’d Pablo Ozuna, who chose to become a free agent on 7/16/08
Analysis: This was quite the surprising and, yes, even sad moment. Pablo wasn’t getting much playing time due to the surplus of middle infield talent on the team (just 64 Abs). Still, with DeWayne Wise playing way better than expected while Konerko was on the DL, I thought it may have been Brian Anderson who would get sent down. The Dodgers pounced, picking Ozuna up right away. Ozuna’s contract had an option for 2009 with a $200,000 buyout. I’m not positive on this, but the Sox may be on the hook to pay him that buyout price. However, it was Ozuna who refused the assignment, so can anyone help me out on this?
In the long term:
7/25/07
Released Esteban Loaiza
Analysis: Another surprising move by KW. I’m wondering if this move was a sign on things to come. With Loaiza’s release, the active roster went down to 39. Perhaps leaving room for an addition of some sort? Loaiza only notched three innings pitched before finding himself on the DL. Perhaps the release was also retribution over the righty covering up or downplaying an injury. The emergence of DJ Carrasco as a long reliever made Loaiza expendable (Carrasco lowered his ERA to 1.64 on this day).
7/30/07 -
From the Editor’s Desk: Trade Deadline Talk
While sitting back for quite a long time, KW has been aggressive recently, targeting more bullpen help, but has thus far come up empty. However, this is not a site for trade gossip, we’ll leave that to the pros over at mlbtraderumors.com.
Nope, these “From the Editor’s Desk” entries are all sports column. The reality is that, as I write this, the Sox are a half game up on the Twins for first place. Overall, they’ve played solidly despite some hitters falling well below par. What is interesting about this team is its versatility, which I don’t believe, many people would’ve predicted at the start of the season. The Sox could likely trade two of the following three stars: Konerko, Thome, and Cabrera, and not miss a beat. Honestly, the way Konerko’s been playing, that may be quite welcome. Thome won’t be moved due to his contract and trading Konerko now would be the definition of selling low. Though even my patience with PK is waning, history is on Konerko’s side. O-Cab is the most likely candidate to be traded, though it would be a difficult decision because 1) he’s been one of the more steady hitters since the first month of the season (2nd most hits on the team) with defense that’s as great as advertised, and 2) after trading Garland for him, it would be a stubbornness issue as the whole world would be loudly questioning “Why’d you trade an established pitcher for someone you’re just going to trade away less that a full season later.”
What would be more interesting to me is trading for another starting pitcher. Clayton Richard is showing promise, but will benefit from another half season in the minors. Contreras, now on the DL, is far from a sure thing once he’s back. In truth, he has played far better than expected, having an ERA in the low threes as recently as a month ago. Jarrod Washburn would be an interesting signing, but since he and Contreras would each be signed for 2009 to about the same amount, there’s no way the Sox would carry both and no way Seattle would pass this chance to dump salry. The reality is that the Sox will likely have to live with in-house options as the “available” pitcher that fits the most would be Paul Byrd and nowadays teams aren’t all that fond of trading within the division. We’ll see if Freddy Garcia gets many offers from other teams. Hopefully the Sox can snag him for a performance incentive-based contract in late August.
7/31/07 - Big Trade!
Reds get: RHP Nick Masset and INF Danny Richar
Sox get: OF Ken Girffey Jr. and cash (roughly $7.5 million, $2 million of which comes after the season for Griffey's buyout).
Analysis: My, how Kenny has changed from the early days, huh? He used to talk openly with the media and we'd see things coming a mile away. Now, no one heard a thing about this huge trade until it was announced - take that blogosphere! The Kid, a sure first-ballot Hall of Famer has been having a less than wonderful season, though he's come on as of late, slugging .541 in the month of July. I think the spike in ticket sales alone that will follow will take care of the remainder of his contract. He's got a $4 million buyout on a $16.5 million option for 2009 (The Reds throw in another $2 million for half of the buyout). That said, the Sox may spend $3.5 million on buyouts alone for next season between Griffey and Thome. Griff comes in eventhough there seems to be a surplus of outfield talent (Swisher, Dye, Quinten, Anderson & Wise currently on the big league club). Forget abou a 4th outfielder, we've got 6! There is a lot of confusion about the trade since the biggest need appears to be pitching. That said, it's not like this is a bad trade. Danny Richar is an easy player to lose and I'm happy to see him go in the interest of self-preservation. Before opinion, the facts: He's batting .260 at Triple-A with 11 errors. He's shown some pop, with 11 homers and some speed with 14 steals in 18 attempts. True, he's young and there's room to grow, but after seeing him for an extended time in '07, it looked like the Sox may stick with him like the Bears stuck with Rex Grossman. This further highlights, however, how bad of a deal it was when the Sox sent Tadahito Iguchi away for next to nothing to make room for Richar. Thank you Alexei Ramirez for making him expendable. I don't know what the middle infield free agent market looks like this off season, but it now looks like the Sox will use either Chris Getz or, dare I say, bring back Juan Uribe (for no more than $3 million hopefully) again next year. Masset has been solid with an ERA in the mid threes for much of the year for the Sox, though he's tanked of late, posting an ERA over nine in July and raising his season ERA to 4.63. The Reds will pay Masset around $134,000 for the rest of the season. Fortunately for Masset and the Reds, he's got a good ground ball rate.
In the long term:
8/9/08 - Trade!
Sox get: LHP Horacio Ramirez
Royals get: OF Paulo Orlando
Analysis: There was question how KW was able to pull in a quality lefty reliever for a non-roster outfielder in Advanced A-ball. At a glance, Paulo Orlando appears to be another Willie Harris (batting around .250, good speed and defense). However a lot can happen between single-A ball and the majors. Horacio Ramirez, on the other hand has posted a 2.59 ERA for a pretty bad KC club over 24 1.3 innings across 15 games. Prior to this season he was a starter, posting a 38-31 record in 104 starts. Whether he's called upon situationally to get one or two leftys out or if DJ Carrasco isn't available for some long relief, it appears that Kenny picked up a nice piece that somehow cleared waivers. For a middle reliever, he's got a serious contract, but, being so late in the season, the Sox will have to pay about $798,000 of his one-year $2.75 million contract. Also, try this one on for size: His control is great, only allowing a single walk this season so far.
In the Long term:
September Call-Ups: (on Sept. 1) C Paul Phillips, RHPs Mike MacDougal & Ehren Wasserman, LHP Boone Logan & OF Jerry Owens
Analysis: Based on Spring Training, I would've figured to see Cole Armstrong called up as the third catcher. In Triple-A, Paul Phillips was the regular everyday catcher and calling him up does allow Armstrong more playing time. Any catcher could realistically get the call simply to allow Ozzie some options without having to worry about emergency situations. He can now pinch run for AJ Pierzynski, take the runner out for the next half of the inning and bring in Toby Hall. If Hall goes down, there's yet another glove ready to enter the game. The top choice for pinch running is Jerry Owens. Once considered the opening day centerfielder, an injury during Spring Training opened the door for Carlos Quentin (I mean TCQ of course) to become a starter. I was looking forward to seeing Owens have a great full season in the majors, but few people would have this go any other way. Owens batted .276 in Triple-A, but, just as importantly for him, notched 30 steals in 43 attempts. That's not exactly a great steal percentage (70%) and ya gotta figure it's tougher to seat a base in the bigs. A lot of people remember the Mike MacDougal of 2007, the guy with the 6.80 ERA and a 1.96 WHIP. MacDougal broke with the team out of Spring Training and put up some good numbers. His ERA was only 2.08 over 8 2/3 innings, but he walked as many as he struck out. In the minors, he picked up 4 saves while posting a 3.83 ERA in 49 1/3 innings, but he also struck out more than twice as many as he walked (65:30). Ehren Wasserman also spent some time with the big club, posting a 9.00 ERA in 15 innings. He got started on the wrong foot (bad umpiring in his first outing) and seemed to be the 'if-something's-gonna-go-wrong-it's-gonna-happen-to-him guy. He had a great stretch in the minors though, posting a 3-0 record with 7 saves, 4 holds and a fantastic 1.15 ERA. Lastly, Boone Logan, who was 'the' lefty middle reliever for Ozzie (he had a 1.95 ERA as late as July 9th), started struggling (by August 9th his ERA was 5.36). He didn't do much better in the minors, posting an ERA of 6.00. Though not technically a call-up, it is worth noting that Scott Linebrink was also activated from the DL today. Linebrink's been one of the best middle relievers in the league this year, but hasn't played since July 22nd.
(on Sept. 2) 3B Josh Fields, 2B Chris Getz, RHP Lance Broadway
This is kind of exciting. Almost Spring Training all over again (sorry, I am a real geek for Spring Training if you haven't noticed)! The Sox actually have 33 players on their active roster at this point, which hasn't happened in quite a while. It's 33 players technically, though Joe Crede is apparently on the DL for all intensive purposes after leaving yesterday's game with, big shock here, stiffness in his back. Ya gotta wonder at this point if Crede will have anymore at bats in a White Sox uniform other than one on Fan Appreciation Day. Realistically, he'd have to be left off the (potential) playoff roster at this point. Also, it turns out Juan Uribe really is doing everything in his power to earn himself that $4.5 million contact. For this reason (Crede) and, probably this reason alone, Josh Fields rejoins the team. He's had limited time in the bigs this year and not really taken advantage of it (.182 average over 22 ABs and a .227 Slugging Percentage). Chris Getz is someone I am really high on and it seems to be one of the few teams the Sox front office and I have seen eye-to-eye on a prospect (not that they've been asking). With all the outfielders this season, it seems like there's a lack of bench depth in the middle infield, especially since Pablo Ozuna was released (much to Jose Contreras's dismay). He's only gotten 7 ABs with the big club and has 2 hits (I was present to see 1 of them). Lastly, Lance Broadway, the guy who Sox fans thought would take over the 5th starter spot after his great spot start against KC (only to see him get sent back down) is finally back up. This may be because Clayton Richard (who I haven't given up on completely - just for the remainder of this year) has been inconsistent at best, recently giving up 4 runs in 4 innings to Cleveland. Clayton has potential, already among the contestants to take over Jose's rotation spot out of Spring Training next year, but Broadway will likely get the 1 or 2 remaining '5th starter' games.
(On Sept. 6) INF/OF Jason Bourgeois
It's starting to get hard to find a place to sit in the dugout now. Like Getz, Brad Eldred and Armstrong, Jason Bourgeios had an impressive Spring Training (anyone know if those stats are saved anywhere?). In addition to being yet another defensive replacement, Bourgeois is likely in the bigs because of his speed. He stole 30 bases in 41 attempts in Triple-A this year. In 2007 he picked up 23 in 29 attempts. Unlike most of the call-ups so far, Bourgeois has never played in the major leagues.
9/5/08: Injury Adjustments
I've never done any injury coverage on this site in the several years its been up, but the ripple effect the current Carlos Quinten injury may have on other people's playing time is interesting to note. Sox fans far and wide are crying that the sky is falling and the season is over eventhough the Sox still maintain a 1 1/2 game lead in the division. Even with the lead, this does look like an uphill battle. Now, the Sox are still a power house of home run hitters, however, with the expanded roster, a return to 'Ozzie ball' would be a welcome sight. I honestly don't see this happening unfortunately. I would love to see at least one game that features Jerry Owens (or DeWayne Wise) batting lead off, followed by Orlando Cabrera.
Remeber that terrible season Paul Konerko had in 2003? He still finished with a fantastic final two months of the season. I see this happening again and it's already in the process. He batted .333 in August and has a hit streat bridging into September where he has 9 hits in his last 18 at bats. I don't think it's gonna happen right away, but a return to the 3-hole for PK, followed by Dye at clean-up sounds solid. Perhaps, Swisher takes the number 5 spot, protected by Thome batting 6th, then Alexei Ramirez, AJ Pierzynski and Juan Uribe. The fun thing about this team is all of the flexibility when you factor in guys like Chris Gerz and Brian Anderson, not to mention Ken Griffey Jr., there really are a lot of ways to win games. Though I do have some faith in Griffey, I think it's a mistake to put the hopes of the team on his shoulders.
TCQ goes under the knife on Monday for his broken wrist and could possibly be back in time for the final week of the season. If the Sox play smart ball the rest of the way, hopefully we'll see him shine on the big stage this October.
10/7/08 The Season's Closing Thoughts
The 2008 White Sox season was one of continuous re-evaluation of expectation. Of the early prognostications, my guess was one of the most optimistic. I predicted a finish of 86-76, with no post-season play. After a 163 game season, they finished 89-74. Easily my personal best prediction ever (since I know you care so much).
The Sox bats didn't really get started. However Carlos Quentin's bat did and for a while that's all that mattered. The opening game was a crazy one where some umpiring calls were suspect while others were just God-awful. Still, starting with a huge deficient to a team that many thought would make the playoffs, the Cleveland Indians, the Sox battled all the way back before three bad calls were made, each on run-scoring plays. Though it was still a loss, it was very noteworthy that the Sox were keeping up with a team that was supposed to be far better than them.
As the months rolled by the Sox saw themselves in first place for over 120 days and the much-feared Tigers fell by the wayside after getting off to a 2-10 start. The Sox became favorites, building a comfortable lead over the Twins who started slow, but picked up speed through the dog days of summer. Slowly, injuries to the White Sox started to rack up. Paul Konerko hit the DL for the first time in his career. One of the bigger off-season signings, Scott Linebrink, who was near the top of the league in holds, hit the DL for a very prolonged period. Not surprising too many, Joe Crede's back limited him to only 97 games. He made the All-Star team, but missed almost the entire second half. Even Bobby Jenks was not spared the injury bug. Most importantly, the Sox lost their most consistent and most prolific hitter of the season, Carlos Quentin, for all but one September game and the entire playoffs.
In a thrilling series of three games against three teams in three consecutive days, losing any one of them would mean elimination from the playoff race, the Sox pulled it together and clawed their way to the post-season. Unfortunately, needing their three best arms to get to the playoffs, they had to throw Javier Vasquez in game one. Having to practically forfeit one game during a five-game series created a situation that was very difficult to overcome against a very good team. The Sox lost the first round of the playoffs three games to one. This was the first time in 102 years that both Chicago teams made the playoffs in the same year. They went a combined 1-6.
Post-Season Heroes
Our 'Sample Size' is pretty small since the Sox only participated in four playoff games this season, but it's still worth noting who performed. It's also worth noting that Alfonso Soriano and Aramis Ramirez play on the other side of town. AJ Pierzynski, Jermaine Dye and Konerko all posted averages over .300, with AJ leading the way with .385. DeWayne Wise lead the team in slugging, posting a gaudy .857 while Konerko was the only player with multiple Home Runs. Wise lead the way with 5 RBI & Konerko lead the team with six hits and three runs scored.
