Sox Machine: Chicago White Sox blog

Right size, wrong shape

In a way, Rob Mackowiak pretty much symbolized the wasted opportunity that was and is the Chicago White Sox of the last year and a half.

That's not to say that Mackowiak deserves any great blame for the failures the Sox have suffered.  As of today, when Kenny Williams shipped him to San Diego for A-ball reliever Jon Link, he led the team in hitting at .278, and had been slugging .688 over the past month.

Not to mention that Mack had never had a more consistent full season than he did last year, when he set career highs in batting average and on-base percentage.  Add in decent speed for a team that didn't have much and a strong outfield arm, and Mackowiak had tools to help the team at a number of positions.

The problem was that he was mainly used at only one position, and it happened to be his worst -- center field.  His nervous feet didn't pose nearly as significant of problems in left or right, but with more directions to choose from when chasing flyballs, it made it easier for Mack to select the wrong ones.

Thus, his defense offset a lot of contributions with his bat, and his season summed up the White Sox's in many respects.  They were tremendous at cancelling their strengths out, often in different ways from game to game.

It was never made clear why Mackowiak didn't see more time at other positions he could handle better, aside from Ozzie Guillen's complete disdain for Brian Anderson.  Still, Anderson played about half the games, giving Mackowiak opportunities to go elsewhere.  It just never happened -- Ozzie had made up his mind that Mackowiak was an outfielder, and that was that.

For the record, let's close the book on where Mackowiak would have been better utilized:

Third base:  Joe Crede played the second-highest total of games on the Sox in 2006.  Crede also broke down in September, and never righted himself this year before undergoing surgery.  Would more time off have helped?  It couldn't have hurt, especially when Crede was just about useless at the plate in the final month last year, and most of this season.

Second base:  There were times last year where Tadahito Iguchi couldn't do much against right-handers.  Mackowiak would've been a better option than Alex Cintron or Pablo Ozuna, though Cintron wasn't bad.

Left field:  I've gone over this before.

Leadoff hitter:  Yes, we know it's not a position, but since Ozzie treats it like one, we have to count it.  Successful leadoff hitters should at least have above-average speed and a good OBP.  Unfortunately, White Sox leadoff hitters aren't allowed to slug higher than .400, so Mack was pretty much screwed.

When you factor in providing some rest for Jermaine Dye and Paul Konerko at right field and first, there were plenty of places to stick Mackowiak or a game or two.  Unfortunately, he rarely made it there.

That's why Mackowiak's Sox career is pretty much a microcosm of the last 18 months.  He looked good on paper, but when viewed on the field, it just didn't look right.  It's just a shame that there was nothing he could do about it.

See ya later Mack

GO-GO CINTRON!

Jayson Stark is reporting that Rob Mackowiak is heading out to play some baseball in San Diego, which as we know is German for a certain large sea mammal's naughty bits.  I'm not bitter at all.  That seems to be about all that's happened in White Sox land, as the Dye to Boston talks seem to have dried up again.  Looks like the BoSox have decided to turn their attention to acquiring Eric Gagne pending him waiving his no-trade clause.

This pretty much looks to be it as far actual deals go so far.  We'll let you know if anything else important happens.

On deadline day, Iguchi eulogized

It's great to see that Tadahito Iguchi has gotten off to a fast start with the Phillies. He's reached base seven times in his first three games -- including a homer -- and scored four runs.  He and Aaron Rowand pretty much took down the Cubs today by themselves.

Meanwhile, I used the off day to add a tribute to the Emperor in the White Sox Eulogies section.

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The Baltimore Orioles claimed Gustavo Molina off waivers to clear a spot on the 40-man roster, and it speaks to Molina's abilities that his barely noticed departure could make a far greater on the major-league club than his play ever did.  Remember when he got that hit?  That was awesome.

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An assortment of thoughts before the 3 p.m. deadline:

*As Matt noted this afternoon, there were reports of the Sox and Jermaine Dye talking about a contract extension, but it looks like that's not going to happen.  It shouldn't, because Dye is one wrong step away from giving the Sox three designated hitters at one defensive position.  His bat is perfect for the Sox outfield, but I can't see his legs holding up for $10+ million a year through the decade.  It seems to me that this is a leverage ploy more than anything, because Wily Mo Pena and Manny Delcarmen do nothing for me.

*At least Kenny Williams appears to be valuing draft picks, because the non-tendering of David Riske last year concerned me quite a bit.  (Riske, by the way, has a 2.22 ERA in 46 games with the Royals.  Go figure.)

*Dave Van Dyck dropped this note in his trade deadline story:


Jon Garland and Javier Vazquez's names have been bandied about, but if a team is genuinely interested in Jose Contreras' services without forcing the Sox to take on part of his salary, I would have hoped Kenny Williams would have said "yes" already.  At this point, he's no better than Charlie Haeger or Gavin Floyd, and when you consider that the Sox have three sterling starting prospects in the minors, that money needs to go to position players.

*If the Sox got a single B-prospect for Rob Mackowiak, I'd be thrilled. 

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Minor league round-up:

• Louisville 6, Charlotte 3
  • Lance Broadway went the distance in one of the uglier complete games you'll see.  He gave up six runs on 10 hits, walking two and striking out six.  He threw 120 pitches; 80 for strikes.
  • Ryan Sweeney may have started the rise from his slump, going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles.
  • Darin Erstad went 0-for-4, extending his hitless streak to 19 at-bats.
• Montgomery 9, Birmingham 3 (10 innings)
  • Adam Russell had a tough night -- he gave up two runs to allow Montgomery to tie the game in his first inning of work, and then couldn't work his way out of a 10th inning in which he allowed four of the Biscuits' six runs.
  • Ryan Wing pitched five solid innings of one-run ball.
  • Cory Aldridge and Ricardo Nanita had two-hit games.
• Salem 9, Winston-Salem 7
  • Ricky Brooks struck out six over 2 2/3 innings of scoreless relief, the only bright spot on the mound for the Warthogs.  Gary Bakker and Matt Zaleski were both hit hard.
  • Micah Schnurstein and C.J. Lang drove in two runs each; Javier Castillo hit a solo homer.
• Kannapolis PPD
  

Quickie Trade Recap

Ken Rosenthal is a busy man:

• First off, it looks as if the Braves are a step away from getting Octavio Dotel to go along with their side of Mark Teixeira, Rosenthal reports.  They're having a productive day to say the least.  This might increase the rumblings around Matt Thornton a bit.
• Next up on Rosenthal's plate is the Phillies acquistion of Kyle Lohse from the Reds.  One more starter off the market; now to see how the rest of the league reacts.
• Finally, the Mets have filled their imaginary gap at second with the Twins' Luis Castillo.  One piranha down, still a bunch left. 

Check back for more updates.

Tex to the Braves, Dye to do something

Looks like we are finally starting to see some big action on the trading front, as numerous sources are reporting that Mark Teixeira to the Braves is all but complete. The Rangers will be receiving stud prospect Jarrod Saltamacchia, A-ball shortstop Elvis Andrus, and two pitching prospects for Teixeira and bullpen lefty Ron Mahay.

Just in time for the Rockies to get into town. Fantastic.

Now the fun begins, as all of the teams who missed out on Tex now have to move to find other options. Jermaine Dye has now come back into the thoughts of many suitors as their solutions to their power shortage. Of course, no one seems to know for sure what exactly is going on yet...

Option #1: For those who saw Baseball Tonight yesterday, Peter Gammons took a minute to wax poetic about Dye possibly being moved to the Red Sox. Since conflicting reports are the norm at this time of year, it's hard to say what will come of those negotations. Although if anyone knows the Red Sox's minds, it's probably Gammons.

To add a little more smoke here, here's Gordon Edes of the Boston Globe:


Option #2: The Angels seem to be determined to make some sort of deal to add power, and if last week's rumor about their interest in Paul Konerko is any indication, they like what the Sox have to offer. It looks like they've moved on to inquiring about Dye to bolster their lineup. Seems to be more smoke then fire here, as the Angels outfield situation is just as crowded as the Red Sox's.

Option #3: Then again, Rosenthal also has reported that the White Sox are now considering a contract extension for Dye, so who knows exactly what's going on here. Regardless, Dye is doing nothing but raising his trade value with his recent power binge.

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Rosenthal also mentions that the asking price for Jon Garland seems to have scared off the Mets. That only leaves around five other teams inquiring about him, although you can probably scratch the Braves off the list now that they have landed Mark Teixeira.

Unsafe at various speeds

Gavin Floyd made his first appearance out of the bullpen today and turned in a perfect 1-2-3 inning, striking out one while throwing eight of 10 pitches for strikes.  It's a worthwhile experiment, because 1) it'll give him more time to work with Don Cooper, and 2) he has two plus pitches with which to get hitters out once.

The only issue is the home-run rate.  As Brandon McCarthy illustrated on many occasions last year, a curveball isn't a great tool to help keep the ball in the park.  Therefore, he's not ideally suited for high-leverage situations, because he's no stranger to throwing gopher balls.

Then again, pretty much every reliever aside from Bobby Jenks can't be trusted in a close game.  I'd suppose I'd rank them in the following order, but each have their drawbacks:

1. Matt Thornton:  His fastball isn't effective at 94 as it is around 98, and it's pretty straight.  That might explain why his ERA is 7.41 since June.
2. Ehren Wassermann:  Outside his shaky outing against Boston, he's gotten hitters out.  Lefties will hit him, though.
3. Ryan Bukvich:  He's surviving, but don't ask me how.
   
4. Charlie Haeger:  If a baserunner gets on, he can score by himself with the increased probability of stolen bases and/or wild pitches.
   
5. Boone Logan:  He's been hit in July (12 hits, three homers in seven innings).
6. Floyd.

Mike MacDougal may make a push for a bullpen spot -- his K:BB ratio is 10:1 in the bullpen so far -- as long as he can stay healthy, and it'll be interesting to see who fails to stick.  I'd assume it's Floyd if Jose Contreras isn't moved.

Contreras says he feels good, by the way, but I'll believe it when I see it.  All I can say is I'm glad I'm not going to Tuesday's game.

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I went to the movie theatres for the first time in four years to see The Simpsons Movie, and it didn't disappoint.

On the other hand, after watching previews for Daddy Day Camp, and the Game Plan, it may be even longer before I go back.

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Minor league round-up:

• Charlotte 3, Indianapolis 2
• Mike MacDougal and David Aardsma gave the Knights the kind of outings we thought they'd give the Sox: MacDougal struck out five over two innings, allowing only one hit; Aardsma struck out the side in the ninth, although he allowed a hit and a walk.
• Heath Phillips pitched six strong innings, allowing four hits and a walk while striking out three.  He has a 2.53 ERA over his last seven outings (46 1/3 innings).
• Ryan Sweeney snapped his hitless streak, but his average dropped once again with a 1-for-5 day.  Darin Erstad went 0-for-4, and is hitless in his last 17 at-bats.
• Birmingham 6, Montgomery 2
• Jack Egbert pitched a magnificent game, striking out 12 over seven shutout innings.  He allowed only three hits and walked two.
• Kenny Perez went 4-for-5 with a pair of RBI; Thomas Collaro went 0-for-2 with three walks and two RBI; Donny Lucy had a three-hit game.
• Winston-Salem PPD, Kannapolis OFF
  

The weak will inherit the earth (updated)

Following up on...

...today's ballgame:  On the same day Jerry Owens barely muscled out his first major-league homer against the Blue Jays tonight, the Minnesota Twins' Jason Tyner did the same.  In the process, Tyner ended the league's longest active homerless drought at 1,220 at-bats.

When you look at the video of Tyner's home run compared to the video of Owens' shot, it's almost the exact same swing on the exact same pitch, and the ball ended up in nearly the exact same spot.  Owens' first just came 1,075 at-bats earlier.  Now the question is who will be the first to hit No. 2.

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...the Scott Podsednik effect:   Tonight's victory improves the Sox's record to 5-1 when Podsednik starts (16-7 this season), but the last two games will bolster arguments for those claiming that the divide is merely dumb luck.

On Friday night, Pods went 0-for-4 and stranded six runners at the plate (although he did have one productive out), and his defense led to three Blue Jays runs.  He didn't wear the collar today, but he killed a rally when John McDonald caught him overrunning third base for the third out of an inning.

Nevertheless, the Sox keep winning.  It's some kind of bizarre.

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...warped perspective of Californians:  Joe Cowley's strange fixation on Sox players who hail from the West Coast continues.  He revisits from common themes, like Jon "Dude, Where's My Car?" Garland and Brian "Runs through walls for honeys" Anderson, while applying the same shtick to Jerry Owens:

Yeah.  Give us Darin Erstad, who not only hurt himself swinging a bat, but recently had trouble lifting his head. 

The day this storyline dies will be one of the happier days of my Sox fan existence.  Perhaps the single most significant indicator of Aaron Rowand's grindertude is that nobody mentions that he grew up in California, too.

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...a day at the races:  Fittingly enough, Mister White Socks finished third.  Instead, today's hero was Blackfoot Trail, who won the fifth race and paid $63 on a $2 bet.

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Minor league round-up:

• Indianapolis 7, Charlotte 1
• Erstad went 0-for-4; his average is down to .154.  Ryan Sweeney matched him -- he's hitless in his last 15 at-bats, and 2-for-32 over the past week or so.
• Earl Snyder, starting at shortstop, went 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles.
• Edwardo Sierra pitched well in his first start, allowing a run on three hits over four innings.  He didn't walk anybody and struck out four.
• Carlos Vasquez took the loss, giving up four runs (two earned) over two innings.
• Birmingham 2, Montgomery 0
• Wes Whisler pitched 7 2/3 innings of shutout ball, scattering seven hits, walking nobody and striking out five.
• Oneli Perez finished it off.  He's thrown 18 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings (13 outings), and last allowed a run on June 22.
• Cory Aldridge went 2-for-3 with a pair of triples and an RBI.
• Winston-Salem 5, Frederick 3
• Brian Omogrosso continues to pitch well as a starter.  He allowed two runs on two hits over 7 1/3 innings, striking out seven and walking three.  He's allowed two earned runs or fewer in six of his last seven starts.
  
• David Cook went 4-for-4 with two doubles and three runs scored.
• Robert Valido, Javier Castillo, Cole Armstrong, Paulo Orlando and Tyler Reves each had two hits.
• Rome 8, Kannapolis 4
• Fautino De Los Santos pitched a scoreless inning of relief, and Michael Dubee struck out the side in a perfect inning for his Kannapolis debut.
• Chris Carter and Francisco Hernandez each went 2-for-4.
  

The White Sox get Richar, the Red Sox get richer?

One day after the Sox shipping Tadahito Iguchi to Philly (Kenny Williams said there was a very quiet market for a second baseman), Danny Richar will take over duties as the attempted everyday second baseman.

The thing that interests me most about Richar is that he gives the Sox a different-looking player out there.  The Cheat made a good call with the comparison to Orlando Cabrera in terms of his swing, but even though Cabrera is a player with a fairly low ceiling, the Sox really don't have that kind of player on their roster.  The Sox seem to be loaded with high-strikeout, long-swing guys (Josh Fields, Andy Gonzalez, Brian Anderson), or slow-swinging contact guys (Alex Cintron, Jerry Owens).

Richar can cover the plate (the video I took of the 14-pitch at-bat on his scouting report is good evidence of that), he can take the occasional walk, he can hit line drives using the whole field, and he can run.  I'm afraid his bat will weaken in the majors during this first sting, and he'll be lucky to get anything past the outfielders, but it'll be nice to have a different-looking ballplayer out there.

Just get ready for a defensive downgrade.  Iguchi's range was never his strong suit, but he made just about all the throws.  Richar has an erratic arm, and while I didn't get to see him turn two, I wouldn't be surprised if he and Juan Uribe have some difficulties there.  Hopefully, it'll only be temporary.

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An emerging contender for Jermaine Dye's services?  The Boston Red Sox, says Ken Rosenthal.


It seems like every year, Theo Epstein tries cooking up a complex deal that always falls flat.  I wouldn't expect this one to be any different, although it would give the Red Sox an embarrassment of riches at DH.  Similarly, it'd be fun to watch Jermaine try to tame Fenway's strange right field.  He's not exactly Dwight Evans.

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Looks like I'll be sinking more money into the Pale Hose later today, but maybe this time it'll help me get some cash back.

A three-year-old gelding named Mister White Socks is running in the third race on Saratoga's card, and surprisingly enough, it's running at 5-1 odds so far.

Knowing my luck when I'm in attendance (I'm 2-10 this year, if you count Spring Training), Mister White Socks will break down coming around the first turn, and will require euthanization.  My apologies in advance to his owners and trainers.

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Minor league round-up:

• Buffalo 5, Charlotte 2
• Nick Masset pitched an effective four innings, allowing one run on three hits.  He didn't walk anybody, and struck out two.
• Paulino Reynoso had a tremendous outing -- he walked the only three batters he faced on 16 pitches, and tossed a wild pitch to boot.
• Both Darin Erstad and Ryan Sweeney wore the collar, going 0-for-5 each.  Sweeney's now 2-for-28.
• Earl Snyder hit a two-run homer to provide all Charlotte's scoring.
• West Tenn 6, Birmingham 1
• Corwin Malone pitched five scoreless innings, scattering four hits and allowing no walks while striking out four.
• Josh L. Fields let the game get away from him, giving up a grand slam in the sixth.
• The Barons had six hits scattered over six batters, with Kenny Perez driving in the lone run.
• Frederick 5, Winston-Salem 4
• Derek Rodriguez threw a quality start and struck out seven over six innings.
• Micah Schnurstein hit a two-run homer, and Paulo Orlando hit a solo shot.
• Cole Armstrong went 2-for-4, raising his July average to .324.
• Rome 8, Kannapolis 1
• Neither Carlos Perez nor Steven Spurgeon pitched well.
• Chris Carter went 1-for-3 with an RBI double; Sergio Miranda hit a triple.
  

Sayonara, Tadahito (updated)

Well, we knew this was coming:


Trades like these are the biggest casualties in a season like this.  Here you have a solid, hard-working, easily likable ballplayer in Iguchi who's made some of the most memorable plays in recent Sox history -- in some cases, all of Sox history -- and Kenny Williams has no choice but to unceremoniously dump him for A-ball dreck.

According to Dave Van Dyck's account, Iguchi cried when Ozzie broke the news to him about the deal.  His family is staying in Chicago, and Iguchi would consider re-signing with the Sox should the opportunity become available.

Unfortunately, there was no point in keeping Iguchi in the position the Sox are in right now, especially with Danny Richar hitting so well in Charlotte.  Iguchi's contract didn't allow the Sox to offer him arbitration, they wouldn't have received draft picks if they kept him.  The only reason to hold on to him would be if the Sox were in contention.  As we all know, they aren't.

So Williams got a live body for him, and not much else.  Dubee is a 21-year-old relief pitching in Single-A who sports a decent groundball rate, an OK strikeout, hit and walk rate, and that's about it.  Plus, it concerns me that he's the son of Phillies pitching coach Rich Dubee.  From my playing experiences, coaches' sons were often shoehorned into positions or situations they didn't deserve to be in.

At least Iguchi will know a few people over in Philly, between Aaron Rowand and Freddy Garcia (if he ever stops by the clubhouse).  There would be worse places for him to go, I'm sure.  We'll get a look at Richar starting Saturday.

Rumors, lies, and Bill Bavasi

Before we talk about the Sox, it looks like Kenny Lofton is headed back to the Indians for Single-A catcher Max Ramirez.  So there you go, the first big trade of the day…

Moving on to news that directly affects the White Sox:

Jon Garland:  As Jim has already reported, the Mariners are very interested in obtaining Garland’s services, for a package of Wladmir Balentien and whatever Mr. Williams can pry away from Bill Bavasi.   

ESPN’s Rumor Central reports that the Yankees have interest in Garland and Matt Thornton, but the package is yet to be seen.  Kenny Williams has sent special assistants Bill Scherrer and Dave Yoakam to scout the Yankees’ games against the Devil Rays and Royals.  They have also had scouts at the Yankees’ Single-A games in Tampa.  

Jayson Stark further complicates the issue, adding the Braves, Dodgers, Mets and Phillies to the list of people interested in Garland.  Chances are no one will have a handle on what exactly is going to happen here until it happens.

Jose Contreras:  Jose Contreras is an interesting proposition.  $10 million left on his contract in each of the next two years and not exactly performing to up to standards.  According to the Tribune’s Mark Gonzales, Ozzie Guillen doesn’t believe that he’s pitched himself out of the trade market.  Might be hard to believe, but teams are still sending scouts to the Count’s starts, even if they haven’t exactly been impressed.  The Cubs, Braves, Marlins, Indians, and Phillies have had scouts monitoring the Count according to ESPN, but between his performance issues and the monetary concerns it’s hard to say if anyone will get desperate enough to actually pull the trigger there.

Jermaine Dye:  Surprisingly, did not see any new information about Jermaine Dye’s availability.  I’ll keep my eyes open for anything extra that happens there.  

Paul Konerko:  The most surprising news in my mind is the Angels pursuit of Paul Konerko.  They’ve already been after him once in 2005, when Konerko decided to resign with the Sox instead of taking the Angels’ offer.  Knowing that the Angels are still involved in the Mark Teixeira sweepstakes, it makes the results of that chase much more intriguing.  For example, if the Braves make a deal for Tex, then at that point it might make the Angels get serious about Konerko.  With the depth of the Angels farm system, it’s possible to get a nice package of young players for a player of Konerko’s caliber.

That’s all for now.  Anything else that hits the wire, I’ll try to pass along the rumors to everyone.

Pods sheds his grace on thee

It's weeks like these that make the Scott Podsednik Adventure a truly exciting, baffling and frustrating ride.

Pods singled in the game-tying run, then scored the go-ahead one in the Sox's thrilling comeback Tuesday.  Then he doubled in a run early in today's game, and later scored from first on a throwing error to cap off the rare walk-off sacrifice bunt attempt.

These moments are why many people -- fans, media, whoever -- consider Pods the key to the offense when he's away, and the win-loss numbers do offer some support.

In 2005, the Sox were 80-44 when Podsednik started; 19-19 when he didn't.  The next year, the Sox were 75-46 in Podsednik starts; 15-26 when he didn't.

Today's victory, in which Podsednik started in left and batted sixth, improves the Sox's record to 14-7 in Podsednik starts.  When he's not in the game, the Sox are 32-49.

It's difficult to reconcile these win-loss records when you consider Pods' tools and numbers.  At his best, he offers above-average on-base percentage coupled with above-average speed and average defense.  When he's the slightest bit off his game, he has a wet newspaper for a bat, questionable baserunning instincts, and he doesn't get nearly good enough jumps to offset his awful throwing arm.

Sure, there are non-Podsednik reasons that explain the divide:

2005:  Pods missed a good amount of time in the second half, at the same time Jon Garland, Freddy Garcia and Mark Buehrle began regressing to the mean, and El Duque was running on fumes.  His chief backups were Carl Everett (who had a poor second half) and Timo Perez, and I've already said enough about his baseball skills.

2006:  Pods never missed large chunk of time, but he was banged up and rendered completely helpless against left-handed pitching when the Sox's swoon kicked in to high gear.  Unfortunately, Pablo Ozuna took those at-bats, and he managed to be more injured and worse.  During that time, Mark Buehrle had the worst three months of his career, Jose Contreras scuffled, Jim Thome battled injuries, Joe Crede collapsed and Mike MacDougal had to visit the DL while Bobby Jenks wore down.

2007:  Andy Gonzalez, Jerry Owens, Darin Erstad, Luis Terrero and Ryan Sweeney.  'Nuff said.

On the other hand, Pods isn't that good of a player to where his shoes should be that difficult to fill.  Even after shooting holes in those win-loss records, it's still bizarre to see that the Sox boast a .635 winning percentage when Podsednik starts, and .413 when he doesn't.  If only he had that kind of timing on the basepaths!

One has to wonder if this phenomenon is going to push Kenny Williams towards keeping Scott Podsednik for one more year, even though he's already averaging 50 games missed per year over his Sox tenure, and that number's only going to go up until the end of this season. 

Even if this trend continues through September, it looks Kenny should resist that call.  Williams has had enough trouble finding capable backups in both center and left field as it is, and with Pods' salary due to rise from this year's $2.9 million, it's going to make that task even more difficult.  Of course, Ryan Sweeney could give the Sox a cheap, in-house solution to that issue... if he ever develops.

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Shipping Jon Garland to the Mariners makes a lot of sense if the Sox are looking to rebuild more than attempt to reload.  Wladimir Balentien fills a need as a powerful, walk-drawing corner outfield prospect, and the blocked Jeff Clement would give the Sox a more advanced minor-league catcher than any other "prospect" in the system.Seattle also has one of the best bullpens in the game right now, so they can spare an interesting arm.

On the other hand, that would mean two almost-automatic losses in a week if Jose Contreras stays and plays out the string, while Gavin Floyd, Charlie Haeger or Nickdrew Massco engage in a war of attrition for the fifth spot.  Plus, Balentien's having unprecedented success in the PCL, a haven for hitters, and he'd be a high-strikeout guy going to a system where hitting coaches shrug at flaws.

I'm still holding out hope that somebody can take Contreras off Williams' hands without forcing the Sox to pay salary, giving the Sox some money to reinvest in the outfield.  Plus, considering Phil Rogers is behind this trade, chances are it's not going to happen.

At any rate, my buddy Matt is going to help track any trade deadline rumors (or action, if there's any) during the day, since my job keeps me away from the site.  Not to mention that horse racing season is upon us here, so I'll be at the track this weekend.

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Minor league round-up:

• Buffalo 5, Charlotte 4
• What goes around, comes around:  Andrew Sisco had a nice start (5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 6 K), but the bullpen couldn't hold it.  Sisco hasn't allowed an earned run over his last three starts (14 IP).
  
• After the Knights tied it in the top of the ninth, Dewon Day came in and walked the first batter he faced.  Then he threw a wild pitch.  Then he walked the second guy.  Then he balked, forcing him to intentionally walk the third guy.  Then he allowed a single to end the game.  He threw only two of 16 pitches for strikes.
• Wiki Gonzalez and Casey Rogowski each hit two-run homers.  Sweeney went 0-for-4, extending his slump to 2-for-23.
• Birmingham 6, West Tenn 3 (11 innings)
  
• Gio Gonzalez had a terrific outing, striking out 11 over 6 2/3 innings.  He allowed only two hits, two walks and one earned run.
• Oneli Perez shows the danger of taking blown saves for granted.  He came in with runners on second and third, no outs and a two-run lead, got a groundout (one run scored) and a strikeout, but Donny Lucy's throwing error brought another run in.  Perez pitched well, striking out four over two perfect innings, and didn't deserve the BS.
  
• Lucy did go 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI; Mike Myers put the Barons ahead for good with a three-run shot.
  
• Frederick 3, Winston-Salem 2 (10 innings)
• Kyle McCulloch struggled with his control, walking four over 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs.
• Daron Roberts and Robert Hudson had two hits apiece.
• Kannapolis 11, Rome 8
• John Shelby had a monster game, going 4-for-6 and falling a double short of the cycle.  He scored three runs and drove in three.
• Chris Carter went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two walks; Francisco Hernandez and Archie Gilbert had three-hit games.
• Justin Edwards couldn't make it through five, but Noe Rodriguez pitched well enough (two runs, one earned over three innings) for the win.
  

The one that got away

It's interesting that the little spat between former Sox scouting director Duane Shaffer and Kenny Williams developed during the same week Curtis Granderson is killing the White Sox.

The Tigers' center fielder is 7-for-17 with two doubles, two homers, two walks, five RBI and eight runs scored over the first four games of the series, and it's incredibly frustrating to watch this display knowing that he grew up in the Sox's backyard.

A big part of the Atlanta Braves' success over the past two decades is their dedication to smothering their region.  Brian McCann, Jeff Francouer (although he's doing his thriving for St. Louis) are native Georgians, and Chipper Jones and Jarrod Salatamacchia grew up just south in Florida.  John Schuerholz also drafted Adam Wainwright, although he's doing his thriving for St. Louis.

Meanwhile, Granderson grew up in Blue Island, went to high school at Thornton and attended UIC, and yet he lasted until the 80th pick of the 2002 draft, while the White Sox took a couple of West Coast guys before that.  They took a reliever (Royce Ring) with the 18th overall pick, a pick that would become the butt of a joke in the opening of Moneyball, and for good reason.  To Shaffer's credit, the second-round pick, Jeremy Reed, actually looked like he was going to become something, aside from the answer to the trivia question about how the Sox acquired Freddy Garcia.

This is all an exercise in hindsight, but when you think about how the Sox might look with Granderson in center field instead of Jerry Owens/Andy Gonzalez/Darin Erstad/Brian Anderson, it's awfully easy to get jealous.  More so when you read his blog and get the feeling that he's incredibly easy to root for, as well.

(Of course, Granderson would have also had to come up through a Sox system that doesn't/won't/can't fix holes in swings, so considering that Granderson is a high-strikeout guy, there's a significant change that he wouldn't have developed into anything, anyway.  But still...)

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If Josh Fields is going to have large platoon splits, at least they're going in the right direction:

• vs. LHP: .385/.439/.731
• vs. RHP: .191/.258/.309

The Sox are 10-21 against left-handed pitching last year, following up on a 31-34 season against southpaws even with career years from righties Jermaine Dye and Joe Crede.  With no other quality right-handed hitters on the horizon, Fields' ability in this part of the game is a welcome development.

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Minor league round-up:

• Charlotte 5, Buffalo 3
• Lance Broadway allowed only one earned run over six innings while striking out seven, but the four walks are a bit much.
• Carlos Vasquez made it interesting when he allowed a two-run homer, but Nick Masset and David Aardsma pitched scoreless innings.
• Jason Bourgeois went 2-for-5 with a triple and three RBI; Danny Richar and Ryan Sweeney both went 1-for-4.
• Birmingham 13, West Tenn 8
• Speaking of first-round flameouts, Kris Honel continues his sad demise.  He came in to pitch the ninth with a 12-run lead, and allowed two hits, two walks, hit a batter, threw a wild pitch, all while recording only one out.  Tim Bittner made it more interesting by giving up a grand slam.
• Ryan Wing allowed only one run over five innings, but he walked six guys.  Carlos Torres pitched three scoreless innings of relief.
• Adam Shabala, Victor Mercedes and Mike Myers each had three hits; Mercedes' hits were all doubles.
  
• Winston-Salem 3, Lynchburg 1
• Clayton Richard allowed only three hits and one unearned run over eight innings.
• Dave Cook hit a two-run homer, and Cole Armstrong went 2-for-4.  He's hitting .313/.378/.478 in July.
• Rome 12, Kannapolis 5
• Jacob Rasner, Ryan Rote and Jason Rice were all hit hard.
• Brandon Allen went 2-for-5 with two doubles and two RBI; Lee Cruz and Maurice Gartrell also had two hits.
  

Vazquez's stuff nothing to sneeze at (updated)

With eight strikeouts in eight innings during his fantastic start this afternoon, Javier Vazquez now has 127 on the season over 20 starts.  If you extrapolate that number over 32 starts, he's on pace to finish with 203 K's.

It's been 11 years since a White Sox pitcher racked up 200 strikeouts in a season.  Alex Fernandez hit that mark on the dot in 1996, but he needed 258 innings to do it.  Vazquez is only on pace for 218 this season.

Had Fernandez allowed one more ball in play, we'd have to go back to the dashing Tom Bradley who struck out 209 batters in 1972.  He also struck out 206 in 1971, although he averaged 272 innings over those two years.  Wilbur Wood struck out 199 in 1973, but he pitched 359 1/3 innings that year.

If we're talking strikeout rate, the only Sox pitcher who stacks up in recent history is Floyd Bannister, who struck out 198 batters over 207+ innings in 1985.  He never came close to duplicating that for the Sox before or after.

There was an AFLAC! trivia question a week or two ago asking who was the last Sox pitcher to lead the team in strikeouts in two consecutive seasons.  The answer was Mike Sirotka, who struck out 125 in 1999, and 128 in 2000.  He hasn't pitched since.

Basically, what I'm trying to say is the Sox haven't had much luck with strikeout pitchers, whether they attempt to develop them or acquire them, and holding on to Vazquez is probably a pretty good idea.

UPDATE:  Eriq Jaffe e-mailed me to inform me that Esteban Loaiza topped 200 strikeouts in 2003, leading the league with 207.  His strikeout rate declined the following season, and by the time he was traded for Jose Contreras, had only amassed 83 over 140 innings. 

Fortunately, my greater point still stands, but thanks to Eriq for pointing out my egregious oversight.  Which is funny, since in Vazquez's 2007 preview, I made the direct comparison between the two.  Whoops.

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If Darin Erstad ever gets healthy again, watch out:


If I had access to Ozzie's iPod, I would fill it up with 10,000 copies of this song.

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The death of Mike Coolbaugh is raising all sorts of safety issues for first- and third-base coaches. 

One aspect I'm wondering about is whether it'll cause any changes for the Charlotte Knights, who use players not in the lineup to coach first during games.

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Minor league round-up:

• Charlotte 2, Buffalo 0
• Heath Phillips threw seven scoreless innings, scattering six hits and one walk while striking out five.
• Mike MacDougal and David Aardsma each threw a perfect inning, striking out one.  Better yet, MacDougal threw 10 of 14 pitches for strikes; Aardsma 10 of 12.
  
• Jason Bourgeois went 2-for-4 and scored both runs.
• Darin Erstad and Ryan Sweeney both went 0-for-4; Sweeney is in the midst of a 1-for-15 slump.
• Birmingham 4, West Tenn 3
• Jack Egbert had control issues -- he walked three in four innings, leading to three runs on five hits.  He did strike out four.
• Tim Bittner, the other Josh Fields (making his first appearance of the season) and Oneli Perez shut it down the rest of the way.
• Shawn Garrett and Jeremy Frost had three hits apiece.
  
• Lynchburg 2, Winston-Salem 0 (6 innings)
• Gary Bakker took the loss despite allowing one earned run over five innings; John Lujan threw a perfect inning.
• Robert Hudson had two of the Warthogs' four hits; Micah Schnurstein and Cole Armstrong had the others.
• Kannapolis PPD
  

Dispatches from the ER

Another day, another Mike North-fueled controversy.  And to think that he was rumored to be Ed Farmer's partner before they hired Chris Singleton.  Nevertheless, the article is worth reading if only because of the injury updates at the end.  Breaking them apart:


So, who's going to be sent down?  My guess would be Luis Terrero, who has had one at-bat since July 15 and might've hurt himself making a diving catch during tonight's loss, and the other will be Dewon Day or Ehren Wassermann.

Terrero has been pretty much worthless at the plate, considering he's slugging .212 over the past month.  Nevertheless, it creates a very likely -- and scary -- scenario that Podsednik will start alongside Jerry Owens.

The good news is that Owens has an eight-game hitting streak going.  The bad news is that he's only hitting .263 over those eight games.  The worst news is that Owens doesn't have one extra-base hit over his last 118 at-bats.  Yep, since starting his season off with a double in each of his first two games, it's been all singles.  So, basically, if this what Owens looks like when he's "hot," we're in trouble.

Owens is basically a poor man's Podsednik, and considering Podsednik managed to make three outs on the basepaths during his rehab assignment, we could be looking at the two weakest outfielders in baseball playing next to each other, day after day.  Enjoy going to the games!


Just for the record, it's been 54 days since Erstad dropped like a sack of potatoes after swinging a bat.  I can't wait for the next time somebody refers to him as "tough."

That's not to say Erstad isn't doing all he can to return, but when I think of "tough," I think of Mike Matheny, who played the day after breaking his rib in a collision at home plate once, and caught 10 innings after catching a pitch in the face during an at-bat another time.  Erstad's just a hard worker who unfortunately happens to be extremely fragile.


What's the rush?

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The White Sox honored Billy Pierce with the unveiling his statue during a pre-game ceremony.  Nice of Billy to show up.

Since only my immediate family would understand the above, allow me to explain.  Back in 1996, my dad and I went to a book signing at a Barnes & Noble in Oak Brook.  Bob Vanderburg, the Tribune writer who wrote the linked article above, and Pierce were supposed to sign copies of Vanderburg's book, Minnie and the Mick.  Vanderburg was there; Pierce wasn't.  About 20 minutes in, they called Pierce, who just plum forgot about the signing entirely. 

Fortunately, Vanderburg was a heckuva nice guy, and we sat there and talked Sox baseball with him for over a half an hour as a bunch of disappointed fans came and went.  I haven't yet read the book, but I believe my dad enjoyed it quite a bit.  So that's my minor, 10-and-a-half-year-old grudge involving Pierce.

Speaking of White Sox literature, a few books found their way onto my desk at work recently.

• White Sox Essential, by another Trib writer, Lew Freedman.  The tag line says "Everything you need to know to be a real fan!"  Also real fans: anybody who has paid to watch this team more than once.
  
• Dreaming Baseball by James T. Farrell.  Farrell died in 1979, but he had various manuscripts of a novel about the 1919 White Sox lying around, and some editors worked them together and published the book this year.
  
• Sox and the City by Richard Roeper.  It's probably the most popular book about the 2005 team, but I hadn't picked it up yet.  A friend at another paper snagged me an advance reading copy, so I'll be trying to spot the errors.

I'll probably start with Roeper's, since 1) I've heard good things about it, and 2) it's the shortest.

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Minor league round-up:

• West Tenn 4, Birmingham 3
  • Wes Whisler allowed two unearned runs over six innings, and Adam Russell struck out two in a perfect inning of work.
  • Unfortunately, Fernando Hernandez blew the save and took the loss after allowing two runs in the eighth.  He'd allowed only one run over 11 2/3 innings in July before tonight.
  • Shawn Garrett went 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBI.  Unfortunately, he's 28 and the Sox are his fifth organization in the last four years.
• Winston-Salem 2, Lynchburg 1
  • Brian Omogrosso pitched six scoreless innings, allowing only three hits, walking two and striking out two.
  • Clevelan Santeliz picked up the win with two scoreless innings to close out the game.
  • Cole Armstrong went 3-for-4 with a double.
• Kannapolis 10, Columbus 9
  • Sergio Miranda went 2-for-5 with three RBI out of the leadoff spot; Matt Sharp went 2-for-3 with a two-run homer and a walk.
  • Matt Long was hit hard (4 IP, 7 ER), but Steven Spurgeon pitched 3 1/3 effective innings of relief for the win.
• Charlotte PPD

20 years ago today...

On July 22, 1987, the Chicago White Sox lost to the Baltimore Orioles, 10-5.  Ozzie Guillen went 1-for-4 with a stolen base, Greg Walker had two hits, Harold Baines went hitless in four at-bats and Kenny Williams hit his fifth career homer.  The loss dropped them to 37-55, good for last in the AL West.

Fast-forward one score, and now the same four are back where they started -- except this time they're on the coaching end of it.  Today's loss, coupled with a Kansas City win, dumps the Sox at the bottom of the AL Central.  It marks the deepest the Sox have gone into the season with the division's worst record since the American League split into three divisions.

So let me introduce to you...



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Minor league round-up:

• Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 7, Charlotte 2
• Nick Masset got off to a rousing start in Charlotte rotation: 2 1/3 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 HR
• Danny Richar went 1-for-4 with a double; Scott Podsednik was picked off, after getting caught stealing twice yesterday.
• Winston-Salem 7, Myrtle Beach 3 (Game 1, 7 innings)
• Derek Rodriguez allowed one earned run over five innings, striking out six for his 10th win.
• Cole Armstrong went 2-for-2 with two doubles, two walks and three RBI.
• Micah Schnurstein went 1-for-2 with a triple and two walks.
• Myrtle Beach 4, Winston-Salem 3 (Game 2, 7 innings)
• Matt Zaleski met the bare minimum for a quality start, but Ryan Rodriguez gave up the game-winning run in the seventh.
• Daron Roberts went 3-for-3; Javier Castillo and David Cook had two hits apiece.
• Kannapolis 7, Columbus 1
• Jose Zazueta gave up one unearned run over six innings for the win, giving up six hits and three walks while striking out three.
• Chris Carter hit a three-run homer, his 22nd of the year; Brandon Allen went 2-for-3 with an RBI and two runs scored.
• Birmingham OFF
  

The relievers' new clothes

After reading about the Boston massacre of the White Sox bullpen once again, it hit me that if it weren't for a snowout in Rochester back in April, I would've seen all four relievers deployed by Ozzie Guillen today pitch for the Charlotte Knights.  Charlie Haeger had been scheduled to start the cancelled game, and oddly enough, he was the only one that escaped today's mess unscored upon.

The divide has been downright scary:

Dewon Day:

Day	G	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Minors	23	28	26	10	1	14	53	3.21
Chicago	12	11	18	15	1	9	7	12.27

Ehren Wassermann:

Wassermann	G	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Charlotte	38	42.2	34	10	0	18	33	2.11
Chicago	2	1.1	3	3	0	2	3	20.25

Boone Logan:

Logan	G	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Charlotte	4	8.1	8	2	1	4	11	2.16
Chicago	39	26.1	29	15	4	10	19	5.89

Ryan Bukvich:

Bukvich	G	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Charlotte	23	28	24	9	2	9	32	2.89
Chicago	20	15.1	17	7	2	8	7	4.11

Charlie Haeger:

Haeger	G	IP	H	ER	HR	BB	K	ERA
Charlotte	17	101	100	54	10	57	92	4.81
Chicago	4	5.2	6	1	0	3	1	1.59

Haeger and Wassermann's sample sizes are too small to mean anything, but still, it's remarkable how each reliever has seemingly incinerated upon arriving to Chicago. Haeger aside, there hasn't even been a case of a reliever joining the club -- or in Mike MacDougal and David Aardsma's case, rejoining the club -- and posting a superficially decent ERA out of the gate.

Bukvich, although he scares the bejeezus out of me, has pitched respectably after giving up a grand slam to Alex Rodriguez in his second outing.  He had an ERA of 27.00 after his first complete inning of work (which took two outings to amass), and he's allowed only four earned runs in the subsequent 14 1/3 innings.  Nevertheless, even when taking out his first two outings, he's walked more guys than he has struck out.

At the rate it's going, there won't be any reason to get excited about any relief pitcher in the Sox system unless he throws a knuckleball.  Actually, "excited" is a little too strong.  We'd be lucky to register "remotely encouraged."

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Minor league round-up:

• Charlotte 5, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 1
• Andy Sisco allowed one unearned run over five innings, allowing two hits, walking four and striking out four.  After his 1/3-inning disaster a couple weeks ago, he's thrown nine straight innings without an earned run.
• Carlos Vazquez pitched three scoreless innings in relief, and David Aardsma closed it out with one himself.
• Scott Podsednik and Darin Erstad went 1-for-4; Danny Richar went 2-for-5 with a double.
• The Wiz at South Side Sox beat me to it:  The Knights fared better against Tyler Clippard than the White Sox did in June.
  
• Birmingham 4, Chattanooga 0
  
• Gio Gonzalez had his best start in two months -- six innings, no runs, four hits, one walk, nine strikeouts.
• Adam Russell pitched two scoreless innings in his first outing as a reliever; Oneli Perez struck out two in his scoreless inning.
• Thomas Collaro went 2-for-4 with a two-run homer and two runs scored; Ricaro Nanita went 3-for-4.
• Myrtle Beach 7, Winston-Salem 2 (Game 1, 7 innings)
• Clayton Richard wasn't sharp in his start, giving up six runs (four earned) over five innings.
• Cole Armstrong had the lone extra-base hit, a double.
• Myrtle Beach 3, Winston-Salem 0 (Game 2, 7 innings)
• Kyle McCulloch gave up three runs over five innings, walking none and striking out four.
• Javier Castillo went 2-for-3 with a double, amounting for half of the Warthogs' hits.
• Kannapolis 4, Columbus 1
• Chris Carter busted out of his slump with a 3-for-4 day, knocking in two runs.
• Sergio Miranda and John Shelby also had three-hit days, with Shelby driving in two himself.
• Carlos Perez, recently demoted Jason Rice, Noe Rodriguez and Kanekoa Texeira combined to allow no earned runs.
  

Death of a sales pitch? Not really

I'm pretty sure the general consensus is that Ozzie Guillen left Jose Contreras out there far too long during tonight's debacle.  What I'm not sure about is how much the 10 spot under the earned runs column affected his trade value.

Yes, 10 is an ugly number, and it raised his ERA to an unsightly 5.76.  But considering how Sox relievers pick up a starter about once every two weeks (and the bullpen just helped out Javier Vazquez yesterday), there were no guarantees that calling in Ehren Wassermann would have saved Contreras' line score.

In the previous two times Contreras found himself in big-time trouble (three if you count the first inning), he did nothing to limit damage.  Leaving the game in the midst of another one won't wow the scouts, but getting out of a jam for once could've left a somewhat positive impression.

Of course, Jose did the exact opposite, throwing one of those dopey, drop-down, do-nothing "sliders" that Lugo crushed over the Green Monster.  But if that moment was the dealbreaker for any MLB GM, then chances are he isn't a good one.

Contreras' struggles are by no means a secret, and Kenny Williams won't be able to pull wool over anybody's eyes.  His velocity comes and goes, his command isn't there, he can't hold runners, he doesn't field his position particularly well and nobody trusts his age.  There's such a collection of question marks that a GM or scout watching Contreras tonight isn't going to be swayed by his manager leaving him in five batters too long.

The only hope is that a GM thinks Contreras' stuff is still live enough to get hitters out for his respective team.  If anything's going to help boost Contreras' trade value, threatening to deport him for dropping down in big situations might actually make a difference.

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With an 0-for-4 night, Josh Fields is in an 0-for-12 slump, and has started his second half 4-for-35.  Worse yet, he looks as bad as his numbers indicate.

While on the subject of trade value, now might be a good time to give Rob Mackowiak a spot start there.  Expand his horizons, and maybe it'll expand the number of teams interested in his services.

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Minor league round-up:

• Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 8, Charlotte 4
• Lance Broadway pitched decently -- he gave up four runs and seven hits over six innings, but he only walked two and kept the ball in the yard.  He also struck out seven.
• Scott Podsednik went 2-for-4 and drew a walk, but he was caught stealing two of the three times he reached.
• Ryan Sweeney went 0-for-3 with a walk, RBI and outfield assist; Danny Richar went 0-for-3 with two walks.
• Chattanooga 4, Birmingham 3
• Ryan Wing threw six shutout innings, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out nine.  Carlos Torres promptly gave up four runs the next inning.
  
• Thomas Collaro went 1-for-4 with a double; at .268, he owned the Barons' highest batting average tonight.
• Charleston 10, Kannapolis 8
• Jacob Rasner had a bad night -- nine hits, three walks, five earned runs over three innings.
• Chris Carter hit his 21st homer, a two-run shot, for his only hit of the night.
• Francisco Hernandez went 2-for-4 with a double; Sergio Miranda recorded his first professional triple.
• Winston-Salem doubleheader PPD
  

Diving into the fifth starter pool

Adam Russell's demotion to the Birmingham bullpen knocks one possibility out of the future starter conversation.  It's long overdue -- after developing into a dark-horse candidate for a bullpen spot in spring training, he's dealt with a loss in velocity, leading to a diminshing strikeout rate and fading overall effectiveness.

Although some may consider this change a failure on Russell's part, it could be a bonus.  As you may be aware, the Sox need bullpen help.  On the other hand, they have a glut of candidates to choose from when filling the fifth starter role when a trade of Jose Contreras creates an opening (he types, fingers crossed).

I figure since there's nothing that interesting to talk about at the major-league level (unless Juan Uribe's desires interest you that much), I'd open this up for discussion:

Gio Gonzalez:  One thing that frustrates me about MiLB.com is that pitch counts are only recorded at the Triple-A level.  I feel that's one thing that keeps us from getting a handle on his potential as a major-league starter.

There's nothing to dislike about his peripherals except his home run rate.  He's only given up nine in 102 2/3 innings, but Birmingham's a big park.  On the other hand, his ground ball rate has improved dramatically at no cost to his strikeout rate, so it seems like he could jump to a smaller park with few issues.

So really, the only thing keeping me from getting excited about Gonzalez is that total of innings pitched, which averages out to about 5 1/3 innings a start (5.37).  For comparison's sake:

• Jack Egbert: 6.10
  
• Wes Whisler: 5.57
• Russell: 5.56

There are a lot of factors that go into this.  He did have one rain delay-shortened start on June 4 limiting him to 2 1/3 innings, and also since his strikeout rate dwarves those of any of the above, it intrinsically means he's going to throw more pitches.  The organization could also be babying him more, since he's unquestionably the prized pitching prospect.

On the other hand, for a small guy (5'11", 185, which seems generous) with a maximum-effort delivery, I can see big-league hitters wearing him down early in the game if it is an efficiency-related issue -- especially in a