Strong off-season has White Sox ready to contend
So expectations for the White Sox heading into 2008 — at least in places other than the South Side of Chicago — were quite low. Third place would be a realistic goal, but hanging with the likes of Detroit and Cleveland? Little chance.
Well, a glance at the standings shows that not to be the case. The White Sox occupy first place in the AL Central, while the Tigers and Indians are foundering at the bottom.
Sure, we've played barely 10 percent of the season, and any team can look good over such a small span of games. Still, this White Sox team is for real. That's not to say they're going to win the division, but an AL Central flag in Chicago is a distinct possibility.
Over the winter, GM Ken Williams, who's quietly earned a spot among the top operators in the game today, eschewed calls for rebuilding and instead focused on shoring up weaknesses in the outfield, at shortstop, and in the bullpen. Namely, he brought in Nick Swisher, a thoroughly underrated hitter, wisely "bought low" on Carlos Quentin, dealt for Orlando Cabrera, and sprung for free-agent relievers Scott Linebrink and Octavio Dotel.
For Williams' efforts, the White Sox are a much better team. Swisher boasts a gaudy OBP of .448, Quentin is flashing excellent power, Cabrera is providing on-base skills and consistent defense, and Linebrink has an RA (runs allowed per nine innings) of 3.86. Those additions in tandem with the impressive return of Joe Crede have pushed the ChiSox to an early lead.
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| Joe Crede is a big reason why the White Sox are off to a strong start. (Jonathan Daniel / Getty Images) |
What's also notable is that they're excelling at all phases thus far: Chicago ranks first in the AL in runs scored per game, and it ranks second to Oakland in fewest runs allowed per game. It's the latter mark that's perhaps most surprising.
Sure, the bullpen had improved somewhat coming into 2008, but the reliably good Jon Garland was lost from the rotation in the Cabrera deal. Ace Mark Buehrle is a known quantity — he's going to give you innings and a likely sub-4.00 ERA. Javier Vazquez is another quality starting pitcher.
However, Jose Contreras was miserable last season and youngsters John Danks and Gavin Floyd were varying shades of awful. Yet, the White Sox boast a rotation RA of 4.05, and that's despite a rough start to the season for Buehrle.
More generally, the Chicago pitching staff is doing an unbelievable job of keeping the ball in the yard — thus far, White Sox pitchers have given up just five bombs in 142.1 innings (!). Oh, and keep in mind that they're pitching their home games in the AL's best park for home runs.
What's also shocking — and this comes courtesy of the team stat pages over at the Hardball Times — is that of the fly balls allowed by Chicago pitchers, only 4 percent have gone for home runs. That's a wildly low figure, and it can't possibly last.
It may be that Contreras has rebounded and that Danks and Floyd are exhibiting genuine skills growth. However, those home-run rates simply can't be maintained, particularly as long as the ChiSox call U.S. Cellular home.
With all that said, though, the Sox are very much for real. While the pitching staff is going to come back to earth at some point, the team as a whole has what's necessary to contend.
Core hitters like Jim Thome, Jermaine Dye, Paul Konerko, Joe Crede and Swisher make for a powerful offense, and manager Ozzie Guillen is wisely committed to a hands-off approach when it comes to dugout tactics ("I'd rather have people on base, have 100 people on base than have 100 guys stealing bases," he recently told MLB.com. "I think the on-base percentage is pretty important.").
As for the bullpen, it's been improved, particularly from the right side, and Bobby Jenks has established himself as an elite closer. As mentioned, whether the White Sox prevail in the AL Central will likely come down to the success of the rotation behind Buehrle and Vazquez. If Contreras, Danks and Floyd give them passable innings, then the South Siders will find themselves playing October baseball.
So, the disregarded White Sox as contenders ... contrary to expectations? Maybe. The reality in the tough AL Central? Absolutely.
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