Lillian

Kenny Williams is apparently focused upon finding a potent left handed bat. I must admit that I have been almost myopically obsessed with the same quest. I just looked at last season's split stats for the Sox, assuming that I would see corroborating evidence of their ineffectiveness versus right handed pitching, due to the total lack of a left handed threat. I was shocked to discover that they actually hit right handers better than southpaws!! Among all Big League teams vs left handers, they ranked 16th in runs, while posting a .251 avg. .331 OBP, .419 SLG and .750 OPS However, vs right handers they were 5th in the Majors in runs scored, while posting a .271 avg. .332 OBP, .420 SLG and .752 OPS Maybe some of you knew that, but it should give pause to reconsider KW's off season agenda. While the offense was nothing special, it does appear that facing right handed pitching, without a potent left handed bat, was not the problem. The Sox still need a left handed presence in the middle of the order, but let's hope that it's someone who can also hit left handed pitching. They can't afford to do any worse vs southpaws.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Nov 18, 2010 -> 09:42 AM) This I believe. I bet it's not easy playing in NY either. I bet it's an entirely different animal. AND they were the defending world champs. That's gotta be added pressure. Also let's not forget where Granderson is from. Coming home for some home cooking and playing in front of family and friends might be just what the doctor ordered. I just don't wanna lose E. Jackson to get him. Maybe the Yanks will take Gavin Floyd instead? Good God no. I bet the minute he puts on a Twins uniform, he reverts back to 2005 form and launches 50+ bombs for the twins... I felt all last season that the Sox misused Jones. He was in great shape, and eager to play, but instead he was platooned and saw too little playing time to keep his timing. It's very hard for a slugger, with a fairly long swing, to hit without consistent playing time. Nevertheless, he still managed to hit 19 homers in a half season's at bats.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Nov 11, 2010 -> 11:54 PM) We should sign J Dye. My guess is that bat is still good and he can platoon in RF and at IB to I have the same answer to this suggestion that I have to most of the candidates recommended on this forum, ie: "He is another right handed hitter, and this team desparately needs a LEFT HANDED BAT".

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Nov 5, 2010 -> 03:57 PM) Sarcasm? Anyway, in 2 years he can write his ticket anywhere. Why give up that opportunity and that flexibility? For a couple extra million this year and next? I just don't see the pressure on his side to complete an extension. Isn't the added security of considerable value to Danks? What would happen if he got injured, and could not pitch effectively again?

The organization is completely void of a potent left handed bat, and management knows it. Werth is another right handed hitter. It is pretty apparent that K.W. will pursue a left handed hitter, as his highest priority, at least regarding the offense. I think that names like Willingham, Vlad Guerrero and any other right handed hitter are just not realistic targets, unless they involve a trade of one or more of the Sox' right handed hitters.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Nov 4, 2010 -> 09:59 AM) There are several options, just look up any 2010-11 free agent list. Cots Contracts has a great one......... Of course, I"m very familiar with the Cot's Contracts website. However, the list of left handed free agents in this year's class is not very impressive. Adam Dunn is the most intriguing name, but he doesn't want to DH, and he's a defensive liability. I think a trade may make more sense.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Nov 4, 2010 -> 08:29 AM) The Sox don't have to trade anybody to get a left handed bat considering the amount of left handed bats on the free agent market. I could see Carlos Pena being a guy the Sox target in the free agent market...guarantee him 2/$16 with a $12 mill team option or $2 mill buy out and see if he bites. I do think they have to trade a starter to free up some money, but they don't have to acquire a left handed bat in return. Hell, acquiring a package of minor leaguers wouldn't be the worst thing. Would Pena really represent a sufficient upgrade? His numbers were horrible last year. Is a .196 Avg. with 158 strike outs really worthy of $8 million a year. Moreover, he only hit .204 vs RHP. Who else would you target?

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Nov 4, 2010 -> 05:14 AM) The Cardinals will not trade Colby Rasmus for Carlos Quentin and a minor piece. Colby Rasmus has made amends with Tony LaRussa, is cheap, is under control his rights for 4 more years, and he plays a solid CF.. Carlos Quentin is injury prone, is about 10 times more expensive than Colby Rasmus, is only under control for 2 more seasons, and he is horrendous defensively. I also don't think it really matters that there isn't a huge book out on Rasmus...the dude was a top 5 prospect 2 years in a row for a reason. He's going to be a 25-30 homer guy for a long time. The Cardinals trading Rasmus now would have been like the Indians trading Grady Sizemore after his 2005 season. If the Cardinals actually decided to trade Rasmus, they could center a package around him and acquire pretty much any player they wanted (with some exceptions, of course). Honestly, if the Cards offered Rasmus straight up for Zach Greinke, I think the Royals would consider it (they'd need more, but they would consider it). Can you say the same thing about Carlos Quentin? Carlos Quentin has little trade value right now and any team acquiring him would be bringing him in as a flier hoping to catch lightning in a bottle. He is not going to be traded for Colby Rasmus. If your assessment is correct, then the Sox may be better served keeping Quentin, in which case it doesn't make much sense to try to resign Konerko, because that would leave them with too many right handed hitters. It would be better to spend the money that it would require to resign Konerko on a left handed hitter. What other left handed hitter might be available in a trade for one of the Sox' starting pitchers?

The biggest need that this team continues to have is an impact left handed bat. They didn't have one last year, and won't again in 2011 unless they sign or trade for one. Even the best young hitting prospects in the organization are all right handed. Morel, Viciedo and Flowers should all eventually be regulars, but are all right handed. If they are going to trade for a left handed bat, the obvious place where the Sox have a surplus is starting pitching. Sale is too good to leave in the pen, and if he starts, they have 6 really good starters in Peavy, Jackson, Floyd, Danks, Buerhle and Sale. They should be able to trade one of those 6 for a solid left handed bat, especially if they are willing to throw in another minor piece. The most likely candidates are Floyd or Danks, as both Buerhle and Jackson will be free agents in 2012, and no team would likely take Peavy's contract. However, I'd consider any of the 6, with the exception of Sale. The Quentin for Colby Rasmus trade would begin to address the lack of left handed hitting, but would probably not completely resolve the problem, as he is still unproven as a middle of the order big producer. He would however, at least provide a left handed presence. The Sox would likely have to include one other minor piece to the Quentin for Rasmus trade. If they then trade one of their starting pitchers for an established left handed power hitter, they might have the balance they need. Depending upon what position that other left handed bat plays, they might still have a place for Konerko, and he could be the free agent signing for this off season. For example, if the left handed bat acquired for a pitcher were a D.H., then Paulie could return to play first. Given that scenario, they could have a roster that looked something like this: LF Pierre 3RD Vizquel RF Rios DH Left Handed Hitter acquired for the SP 1B Konerko CF Colby Rasmus (LH) 2B Beckham SS Ramirez C Castro & Flowers Against left handed pitching, they might use Alexei in the two hole, where he has been very effective. That would be a place to substitute Morel for Vizquel, and have him bat in Ramirez' 8th spot. I'd also love to see de Aza get some playing time vs right handers, instead of Pierre. De Aza had an OBP of .402, while hitting .342 vs right handers in AAA, and he can do a lot of things pretty well.

I've forgotten. In what spot in the order did Beckham hit the best last year? Weren't his best offensive games the ones in which he batted second?

Here's an interesting stat: In a White Sox uniform, Carlos has now hit a total of 76 homers in 1,093 at bats. That's a homer every 14 at bats, which projects to 40 homers per season. This year he is right on that same pace of one home run per every 14 at bats. "Is he back?" He never left. He struggled a little with his average, but he has been driving in runs all year.

Last night's injury to Peavy makes a pretty dramatic statement regarding the inadvisability of including Hudson in any trade for Fielder, or any other LH bat. The Sox have been pretty lucky regarding the health of their pitching staff. It's pretty common to have injuries to pitchers, and having a guy at AAA, who is stretched out, and ready to step in for an injured pitcher is invaluable. I think the hope of acquiring a big impact bat has now been pretty well dashed. I'd still like to see Kenny acquire a decent LH hitter for the middle of the lineup, but it won't be Dunn or Fielder. Perhaps they can get someone like Edmonds, or a free agent signing like Delgado (if he's ready).

Well, he's no Fukadome, but he is THE Carlos Quentin!!!! Just imagine how we would all feel if he were doing this on the other side of town. Thank God Kenny wasn't listening to some of the absurd suggestions that were floating around these boards.

I agree with those of you who think that Fielder, or Dunn for that matter, would be too expensive. Of course, it would be great to add a guy who can hit 40 or 50 homers with an OBP of .400, but this team doesn't need a guy that good in order to win. Moreover, I don't think that we have the pieces and the money to get, and keep, someone like that. We do however need a respectable LH bat vs. RH pitching. for all of the reasons I've stated in previous posts. Adding a decent left handed hitter to the middle of the order would make a significant difference, just by his presence: LF Pierre SS Ramirez RF Quentin 1B Konerko DH (Any Decent LH Power Hitter with an OBP north of .360) CF Rios C A. J. 3B Viciedo 2B Beckham Now that Quentin is hot, and hopefully back, and Rios is back to his career norm of a 20 to 25 homer hitter, instead of a true slugger, I love the idea of having Rios bat 6th. He can be like a second leadoff hitter for the bottom of the order. A. J. is a capable #2 type hitter, to bat behind Rios. Then you have Viciedo as an RBI threat, serving as a #3 type hitter, for the bottom of the order. Beckham can also drive in a run, once he gets back on track, and also serves as a second lead off hitter at the bottom of the order. Of course, eventually he should hit higher in the lineup. That's a very good, and well balanced lineup, once you plug in a respectable LH Bat at DH. They could platoon Teahen with Viciedo, when he comes off the DL. Vizquel is a great late inning defensive replacement for both of them. Again, I'd love to have Fielder or Dunn, but if the other guys are performing up to expectations, the Sox don't need to spend the money, and give up the prospects that it would take to get one of those guys. Then next year, let's sign a big free agent LH bat to take Paulie's place. They may have the money to do that, if they don't resign Konerko. That way they would still have to spend the money, but wouldn't have to also "give up the farm".

Fielder would cost the Sox too many good prospects, and be too expensive to keep past next season. Moreover, he is a better hitter than the Sox really need. They simply need a good left handed bat for the middle of the order. They need a guy who can add a left handed presence and break up the string of right handed hitters. However, they don't need that guy to be their best hitter. A guy with an on base percentage of .370 or better, who is capable of hitting 20 to 25 homers, and driving in 80 to 90 runs would be fine. Pitching is what will carry this team, if they are to make a run at the post season. The offense would be good enough with a more modest acquisition. A player of the caliber of Dunn or Fielder is really not necessary, if the pitching holds up.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Jul 5, 2010 -> 04:15 PM) I'm the last person who would trade prospects, but Fielder's only 26, he's a proven commodity, if he can be resigned for at least 5 years, the White Sox should consider it. I imagine the Brewers would want either Viciedo or Flowers as the centerpiece in the deal, a replacement level player to take over first base. They'll want at least two pitchers, possibly three and one or two position players. You're looking at sending them five players for Fielder. Fielder isn't a free agent until after 2011, so they would be need to be overwhelmed. Not only is that way too much to give up for a season and a half of Fielder, but I'd be surprised if it would really take that much. I did read that the Brewers are reportedly not interested in trading either Fielder or Hart, as they are considered core players, and the Brewers do not want to go into a full rebuilding mode. If that's true, then perhaps they would need to be overwhelmed to be persuaded to alter that plan. However, even then, your speculation still sounds like an awful lot for them to ask. Which two or three pitchers were you contemplating? If you are talking about some Minor League pitcher, other than Hudson, then perhaps that would be reasonable.

Those of us who have watched Lillibridge's horrible at bats, since being acquired from the Braves, are understandably skeptical of his recent success. Who knows if he can continue to be even respectable? However, it is worth noting that he appears to have made some adjustments. Ozzie had been imploring him to change his game, or find himself out of baseball. The coaching staff had been urging him to shorten his swing and try to make contact, and to thus utilize his speed. I noticed last night that he is choking up on the bat just a little, and his swing looks shorter. I remember watching him in Spring Training from my very close vantage point, and thinking; "why doesn't this guy choke way up on the bat and just try to make contact". I turned to the fans around me and made some remark like "the guy thinks he's Albert Pujols". In fact, at times it looked like his swing was longer than a lot of sluggers. What has impressed me is that he seems to have shortened his swing. If he can stay short and quick, a la Paulie, he might be able to at least perform respectably at the Major League level. Not surprisingly, now that he is choking up and using a shorter swing, he's hitting the ball harder and further than when he appeared to be trying to kill the ball. He does have great speed, and he's considered a decent defender. I think that he overthrew that ball last night because he was trying to make sure that he didn't hit the runner, who was coming into to second pretty high, in an effort to break up the double play.

QUOTE (Vance Law @ Jun 29, 2010 -> 05:32 PM) I was thinking the same thing. Does anybody think that De Aza couldn't at least beat Juan Pierre's 59 OPS+? In addition to his speed, he can actually take a walk and get a few extra base hits. Did you notice De Aza's line vs. RHP this year in AAA? 97 AB .330 Avg .425 OBP .485 SLG 7 doubles 1 triple 2 HR's 11 RBI 14 BB 14 SO 8 SB 0 CS Last year at AAA in half of a season, vs. right and left handed pitching: 267 AB .300 Avg .370 OBP .506 SLG 21 doubles 5 triples 8 HR 34 RBI Add his good defense, and you get a pretty compelling player for consideration to take Pierre's place. If he can perform anywhere near that level, you can then try to move Pierre in the off season, and get some salary relief to be applied toward other needs. What's wrong with giving him a chance to show what he can do? It'd beat watching Pierre's "Punch and Judy" routine. Jeez, can the guy even hit a fly ball deep enough to score a runner from third? The only way he gets on is with a "seeing eye" single, or a blooper. I'm sick of watching it. At least Pods wasn't affraid to drive in a big run.

There is one other reason that Juan Pierre is not good enough to bat lead off for this team. In the A. L. the lead off hitter often comes to bat with men on base. Without the automatic outs at the bottom of the order, there are too many RBI opportunities to exploit to settle for a guy who isn't a good clutch hitter. Pierre doesn't get on base enough, rarely gets an extra base hit, and can't drive in a run. All he can do is steal a base. He would be fine as a pinch runner, but he is not a good lead off hitter. The Sox should bring up De Aza and let him lead off and play left field. He's not only a decent hitter with a little pop, but he can also steal a base. His defense is good enough to play CF, and in left he would be way above league average. This link provides a little insight on De Aza: http://soxbronzetitan.wordpress.com/2010/0...ejandro-de-aza/

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 28, 2010 -> 02:05 PM) Or maybe the fan base is smart enough to realize managers have to say they like their current team and need nothing else. It is obvious Oz still likes Kotsay, but at least he isn't playing Jones as much as he used to. I think we'd be fine if he'd just stop being stubborn and let Viciedo be a regular. Of course, that phenom the Pirates called up is hitting below .100 in his first 30 at bats and strikes out every other at bat so there still could be some adjustment time for Dayan. As much as we need a LH bat, I'd still rather see Jones than Kotsay. His upside is much higher, and he has never had much of a problem hitting RH pitching. He also improves the defense when he's in the outfield. But then we've discussed all of that earlier in the season. I understand that Jones' average really went south, but that may be attributable to his lack of playing time. Kotsay has proven that he can produce while playing very sporadically. After all, he's a great pinch hitter. However, Jones is a slugger, and he needs to play regularly to keep his timing sharp. If they are only going to play him versus lefties, they would be better off not playing him at all.

QUOTE (Milkman delivers @ Jun 28, 2010 -> 07:50 AM) The 2005 Chicago White Sox. Well, they did have Everett, and he was dangerous enough as a left handed hitter to at least force the opposing manager to make a pitching change, late in a game.

The biggest hole in this team is a potent left handed bat. Not only isn't there a single LH power hitter on the 40 man roster, but there really isn't one in the entire organization. This glaring deficiency has become even more apparent with Teahen's injury, although he really isn't that good to begin with. It's important to have a least one LH threat because pitchers just get too comfortable facing one right handed hitter after another. Moreover, late in the game, this team's lineup doesn't force the opposing manager to make any lefty-righty match ups, unless of course there is a left handed starter. Does he really need to go to the bullpen to bring in a left handed reliever to face A.J., Kotsay, or Teahen? It would be interesting to research how many teams have ever made it deep into the post season without at least one dangerous left handed hitter. I can't think of one, can you? So, who is out there, and who could the Sox afford to give up in exchange? Many of you have mentioned Dunn, Fielder, La Roche, Markakis, Shin-Soo Choo and A. Gonzales. Perhaps K.W. should target a younger player who hasn't yet completely established himself, as the others would cost too much, both in players sacrificed and salary owed. I mentioned Chris Davis some time ago, and I still think that he's a good candidate. Texas needs pitching, and Davis is blocked by Smoak at 1B. They have Davis playing a lot of 3B at AAA. He had a great half season for the Rangers a couple of years ago, when he was just 22, and he's tearing up AAA this year. I understand that he has struggled a bit with his big swing, but he's young enough to make adjustments. Perhaps the Sox could offer Garcia. He could help the Rangers rotation, and the Sox have Hudson to take Freddy's place as the 5th starter. If Davis is not the answer, then I'd search for a similar young LH power hitter who could fill that void, not only this year, but for several years to come.

Several of you have echoed my biggest reservation about moving Rios to lead off. Of course, as I stated, you would like to have his production in the heart of the order. However, to reiterate, such a move is predicated on the acquisition of a potent LH bat. Since no one seems to think that Delgado will be a viable possibility, just plug in your own choice for the LH bat, and then consider that you would still have an effective middle of the order with Quentin, the new LH bat, and Konerko. The acquisition of a LH power hitter, with a good OBP, is the most important issue, and the key to my whole suggestion, because that then affords the luxury of moving Rios to lead off.

QUOTE (bighurt574 @ Jun 25, 2010 -> 08:18 AM) We've won 9 in a row and 13 of 14. I'll wait til we lose a few to suggest big changes. To argue that you don't make any changes because they're winning is not very convincing. Pierre is not the reason that they're winning. The main reason that the Sox have suddenly turned it around is because the pitching is finally living up to its expectations. Pierre hasn't had an extra base hit in a month. He doesn't get on base nearly enough for a lead off hitter. You do all realize that his OBP is still only .315!!! They aren't winning because of him, they're winning in spite of him. The Sox have to get better at lead off if they're going to keep winning. After all, they won't be facing the weakest N.L. teams the rest of the way. I guarantee you that K.W. isn't thinking he doesn't need to tinker with this team just because it finally put together a decent run.

QUOTE (Jenksy Cat @ Jun 25, 2010 -> 07:48 AM) Delgado. Haha The Angels seem to think that he could help them: http://blog.prorumors.com/2010/06/rumors/l...es-replacement/