For White Sox fans, a rant you might be interested in:
By Matt Porter
I have given this a ton of thought. I think that it is crucial that we take advantage of the outstanding pitching and defense that we are getting. They say that those two things are what wins championships.
Here is my player by player breakdown...
Starting Pitching
Buehrle - He has his ups and downs but he should be the least of our worries. He has been a consistent winning starting pitcher for his entire career - that is the hardest thing in baseball to find.
Danks and Floyd - Both look to be finding themselves and could be solid starters for many years to come. With very little major league service time they are ours for next to nothing in pay for several years. If they continue to pitch like this they will quickly become the most valuable assets we have.
Vazquez - Has re-established himself as one of the more dominating pitchers in baseball. My theory is that he is the type of player that could not handle the pressure of New York. Now that he is comfortable in his situation, he should continue to roll.
Contreras - The biggest question mark on the staff. I think the final verdict on him is that the last two years were both flukes (not as good as 06/not as bad as 07) -- Will be a serviceable pitcher for the rest of his Chicago stay -- his contract expires after next year.
Summary -- Danks and Floyd are the key. If they both can stay focused and confident we have what everyone wants -- a solid starting staff top to bottom that is under contract long term...
Bullpen
I am a big believer in the idea that other than the top two guys, bullpen pitching is a complete crapshoot from year to year. Only the top guys on each team are consistent from year to year. Jenks has been solid every year and Linebrink looks to be a consistent setup guy. The rest of the pen will be fill in guys every year.
Infield
Konerko - I think with Paulie you know what you are going to get. He will go through an occasional slump but with one exception he has been pretty much the same player season after season. He will never be an MVP quality guy but he will drive in 100 runs -- hit 35 HRs and have good at bats year after year. He is a solid defender and a good teammate. His lack of speed on the bases is only becoming an issue because the entire team is beginning to look that way. I think it's acceptable to have one or two sluggers that slow the team down -- we have 7. Paulie is the face of the franchise and the teams most popular player -- plus is under contract through 2010, so I can't see not keeping him.
Thome - Of all the players who are struggling, I think Thome is the most likely to not come out of it. He has been slowly deteriorating over the last 3-4 years and is at the age where he may no longer be effective. Remember McGwire was all world one year and sucked the next. He brings zero to the table on defense. When he makes out they are unproductive outs as he strikes out a ton and is a nightmare as a baserunner. The good news is that his contract expires at the end of this year. Bottom line -- since Thome came on board we have not won -- and now we stink. Time to cut him loose.
Uribe - I have nothing positive to say about Uribe. While he at one point in time was solid enough on defense and got enough big hits to make up for being a bad hitter he has since went backward in both areas. It's amazing that a guy like him continues to start for a major league team. A bad omen that our minor league system cannot produce a suitable replacement at second base. Contract ends this year -- he is as good as gone.
Cabrera -- I haven't seen enough of him to make a solid call. He has been solid throughout his career, though, so he should come out of his slump. Plays solid defense and is in a contract year, so I think when it's all said and done he will be okay.
Crede -- I have long been a huge Crede fan. He is a phenom on defense and although he never puts up monster stats, there is nobody on the team that drives in more important runs. I think we should make an effort to resign him at seasons end unless he gets an inflated offer from another team (entirely possible considering his is represented by Boras).
Outfield
Dye -- Although JD has struggled at times, I still think he has a few good years in him. He is similar to Paulie in that you know what you are going to get. He is also a slow runner which is magnified because it is such a huge team problem.
Swisher -- I like Swisher a ton. He is a solid teammate and big-time on-base guy. He is under contract for five years at reasonable money, so he will be a big part of the team for years to come. I'm baffled by his current slump, but think he will come out of it soon.
Quentin -- What a steal. Another solid player who is young enough to be basically free to us for the next five years. Too soon to tell whether he will keep it up, but he was highly touted for a reason and is healthy now for the first time in a while.
So here is what I would do.
I think the biggest problem with the offense is that we have a ton of the same type of player. Guys that rely a lot on the home run and do not do well base to base. It's hard for our offense to develop a rhythm because almost nobody on the team is capable of doing the little things on the bases. (Scoring from second on a hard single, advancing from 1st to 3rd on a hit, scoring on a medium range flyout from 3rd, stealing a base, ect.) -- all the things that put pressure on the defense and opposing pitcher (the name of the game)..
Now not everybody has ARod on their roster. It is acceptable that a few players will be slow and will make up for it by driving in runs and going deep. We just can't have everyone like this. Thome is the best candidate to dump. I would either trade him or bench him. Bring up Jerry Owens and move Swisher to DH. Also, start Ozuna at second base and dump Uribe. The lineup would look like this.
CF Owens
SS Cabrera
RF Dye
1B Konerko
C AJ
LF Quentin
3B Crede
DH Swisher
2B Ozuna
I'm not sure it solves our long-term problem but at least it may give us a boost. The bottom line is that this is so frustrating because we really just need to be a mediocre offense and we can win (sounds like the Bears). It's the only problem that needs fixing.
......
OK, so the whole rant suggests Owens can add speed and a table-setter. Not bad. Rotisserie owners surely would like to see the self-proclaimed 60-steals candidate up in the majors.
Thome has power and is not hurt, so I think he comes around. He is always streaky and is the type of slugger that can put a team on his shoulders -- even at his advanced ago. He is certainly a candidate to bench in mixed leagues right now, though.
Ozuna is hardly an upgrade over Uribe. If only Alexei Ramirez could find himself and/or Danny Richar could get healthy for a June return.
Emack.
