Just what BA wanted to hear...

[Gregory Pratt]

We had to send Rowand down a few times. It was ultimately good for him.

Might be a nice wakeup call for BA if he gets sent down.

 

And if it totally destroys his confidence? He was never fit for the big leagues to begin with, then.

[whitesoxfan101]

We had to send Rowand down a few times. It was ultimately good for him.

Might be a nice wakeup call for BA if he gets sent down.

 

Point taken, but Rowand never became more than a slightly below average MLB CF (if you take into account offense and defense), so bad example.

[Kalapse]

Just a couple quick comparisons I came up with off the top of my head:

 

Alfonso Soriano through 394 career ABs: 98H | 55R | 25 2B | 9HR | 38RBI | .249/.280/.391/.670

 

Aramis Ramirez through 399 career ABs: 89H | 29R | 16 2B | 7HR | 38RBI | .223/.283/.326/.609

 

Brian Anderson through 399 career ABs: 88H | 49R | 24 2B | 10HR | 36RBI | .221/.281/.361/.642

 

Miguel Tejada through 400 career ABs: 91H | 55R | 21 2B | 10HR | 48RBI | .228/.293/.370/.663

 

Paul Konerko through 398 career ABs: 93H | 42R | 14 2B | 13HR | 48RBI | .234/.286/.372/.658

 

Troy Glaus through 400 career ABs: 93H | 59R | 26 2B | 12HR | 53RBI | .233/.301/.388 /.689

 

So yeah, Brian Anderson is pretty f***ed.

[Capn12]

Just a couple quick comparisons I came up with off the top of my head:

 

Alfonso Soriano through 394 career ABs: 98H | 55R | 25 2B | 9HR | 38RBI | .249/.280/.391/.670

 

Aramis Ramirez through 399 career ABs: 89H | 29R | 16 2B | 7HR | 38RBI | .223/.283/.326/.609

 

Brian Anderson through 399 career ABs: 88H | 49R | 24 2B | 10HR | 36RBI | .221/.281/.361/.642

 

Miguel Tejada through 400 career ABs: 91H | 55R | 21 2B | 10HR | 48RBI | .228/.293/.370/.663

 

Paul Konerko through 398 career ABs: 93H | 42R | 14 2B | 13HR | 48RBI | .234/.286/.372/.658

 

Troy Glaus through 400 career ABs: 93H | 59R | 26 2B | 12HR | 53RBI | .233/.301/.388 /.689

 

So yeah, Brian Anderson is pretty f***ed.

 

I'm gonna have to ask you not to go and throw simple facts into this disillusioned argument mister.

[retro1983hat]

Just a couple quick comparisons I came up with off the top of my head:

 

Alfonso Soriano through 394 career ABs: 98H | 55R | 25 2B | 9HR | 38RBI | .249/.280/.391/.670

 

Aramis Ramirez through 399 career ABs: 89H | 29R | 16 2B | 7HR | 38RBI | .223/.283/.326/.609

 

Brian Anderson through 399 career ABs: 88H | 49R | 24 2B | 10HR | 36RBI | .221/.281/.361/.642

 

Miguel Tejada through 400 career ABs: 91H | 55R | 21 2B | 10HR | 48RBI | .228/.293/.370/.663

 

Paul Konerko through 398 career ABs: 93H | 42R | 14 2B | 13HR | 48RBI | .234/.286/.372/.658

 

Troy Glaus through 400 career ABs: 93H | 59R | 26 2B | 12HR | 53RBI | .233/.301/.388 /.689

 

So yeah, Brian Anderson is pretty f***ed.

 

 

Off the top of your head? Wow, that's impressive. I can't remember what I ate for lunch.

[Gregory Pratt]

They are facts, per se, but they're misleading as well. We might see BA go on like these guys -- I doubt it -- or we might see BA go on to be a little below league average -- probably -- or we might see him go up there and fail completely again.

 

We won't know for awhile.

 

I really just think he belongs in AAA for a while longer.

[pcullotta]

I'm gonna have to ask you not to go and throw simple facts into this disillusioned argument mister.

 

It's true that those numbers are facts but obviously there are hundreds of players who started poorly and became great, hundreds of players who started great and turned poor, and hundreds of players who started poor and stayed poor. With BA, the bottom line is we don't know. Yes he hit better for a couple months but then he tanked the last one. His Inconsistency is what makes him hard to judge. Hopefully he gets enough time to develop into the good every day player he has the potential to be. But if he makes the team and lays an egg the first month, I think he's pretty much screwed here. The manager here doesn't seem willing to have him develop at the major league level.

[Kalapse]

The point is, it does happen. Players do struggle when they first hit the bigs and then become pretty damn good players though some would have you believe otherwise. Other players start off hot their first couple hundred ABs in the bigs and then go to s*** after that. (Ruben Mateo, Ben Grieve, Travis Lee) and then some players start off s***ty and never adjust, they spend their entire careers as the same player they were they day they were called up.

 

It's not impossible for a player to put up power offensive numbers for his first 400 ABs and then turn it around, as a matter of fact it happens quite often. That's all I'm trying to say.

[SleepyWhiteSox]

The manager here doesn't seem willing to have him develop at the major league level.

 

Me either if it reduces our chances to be successful. The organization's decision, not mine. Damnit, they better get it right.

[Heads22]

The key is, how is our team going to be put in position to be most successful? I think it's with an OF of Erstad-Anderson-Dye.

[southsider2k5]

Just a couple quick comparisons I came up with off the top of my head:

 

Alfonso Soriano through 394 career ABs: 98H | 55R | 25 2B | 9HR | 38RBI | .249/.280/.391/.670

 

Aramis Ramirez through 399 career ABs: 89H | 29R | 16 2B | 7HR | 38RBI | .223/.283/.326/.609

 

Brian Anderson through 399 career ABs: 88H | 49R | 24 2B | 10HR | 36RBI | .221/.281/.361/.642

 

Miguel Tejada through 400 career ABs: 91H | 55R | 21 2B | 10HR | 48RBI | .228/.293/.370/.663

 

Paul Konerko through 398 career ABs: 93H | 42R | 14 2B | 13HR | 48RBI | .234/.286/.372/.658

 

Troy Glaus through 400 career ABs: 93H | 59R | 26 2B | 12HR | 53RBI | .233/.301/.388 /.689

 

So yeah, Brian Anderson is pretty f***ed.

 

Great work as usual.

 

They are facts, per se, but they're misleading as well. We might see BA go on like these guys -- I doubt it -- or we might see BA go on to be a little below league average -- probably -- or we might see him go up there and fail completely again.

 

We won't know for awhile.

 

I really just think he belongs in AAA for a while longer.

 

Why are they misleading? They are guys who were in the exact boat as Anderson and still went on to be pretty damned good ML players. Anderson was a first round draft pick, so it isn't like the guy doesn't have potential. There is something there that has seen him fly through the minors, and attract attention from a very young age. Whether he realizes that potential is yet to be seen.

[witesoxfan]

Just a couple quick comparisons I came up with off the top of my head:

 

Alfonso Soriano through 394 career ABs: 98H | 55R | 25 2B | 9HR | 38RBI | .249/.280/.391/.670

 

Aramis Ramirez through 399 career ABs: 89H | 29R | 16 2B | 7HR | 38RBI | .223/.283/.326/.609

 

Brian Anderson through 399 career ABs: 88H | 49R | 24 2B | 10HR | 36RBI | .221/.281/.361/.642

 

Miguel Tejada through 400 career ABs: 91H | 55R | 21 2B | 10HR | 48RBI | .228/.293/.370/.663

 

Paul Konerko through 398 career ABs: 93H | 42R | 14 2B | 13HR | 48RBI | .234/.286/.372/.658

 

Troy Glaus through 400 career ABs: 93H | 59R | 26 2B | 12HR | 53RBI | .233/.301/.388 /.689

 

So yeah, Brian Anderson is pretty f***ed.

 

winnar

 

And don't forget our favorite comparison to Anderson, Torii Hunter. .689 OPS his first full year, and he had a .610 OPS in his callup during 1998.

[southsider2k5]

If he ever gets a real shot again is even the better question.

 

he'll get a shot, it just might not be in Chicago.

[CWSGuy406]

They are facts, per se, but they're misleading as well. We might see BA go on like these guys -- I doubt it -- or we might see BA go on to be a little below league average -- probably -- or we might see him go up there and fail completely again.

 

You seem to be missing a larger point. Nobody is saying that Brian Anderson is going to be the next Justin Morneau, Paul Konerko, or Alfonso Soriano offensively. Just that struggling in your first 300 major league ABs doesn't mean you're never going to make it.

 

Also, as a larger point -- I would tend to say that most Anderson backers don't even know if he's going to be successful if the Sox give him 500 ABs in CF this year. His minor league numbers were good, but not the numbers of a star in the making.

 

But here's the thing -- we want to know whether or not he's the Sox' future CFer. He might be, he might not be -- at this point, nobody really knows. All most of the BA backers want is to see how Anderson handles a full season.

 

And yes, last year, BA 'technically' was on the team for a full year, but his ABs were sporadic at best for a supposed 'starter'. Ozzie jerked him around -- he wouldn't let him face righties despite the fact that he was doing better vs them than lefties. And then there was the suspension. For the most part, he was bad at the plate, but even with that, he was our best CF option in the 2nd half -- Mackowiak had cooled down offensively and was awful in the OF.

 

This is a HUGE decision for the Sox too, BTW. Erstad is -- at best -- a one year 'fix'. His defense in CF is only going to get worse -- ditto his already mediocre bat. Next offseason, Andruw Jones and Ichiro are among two CF options next offseason.

 

If you let Anderson have a full season and he hits, say .250/.315/.415 in 450+ ABs, you can be pretty confident that he's making strides to becoming a league average bat with an above average glove. And no -- that doesn't mean he'd be better than Jones or Ichiro in 2008, just that getting your future CFer becomes less of a 'need'.

 

And hey, if he tanks -- which is certainly possible -- then you know that you need a new CFer, that Anderson is (more or less) done as a starter.

 

Not to mention the fact that this team traded Chris Young because they thought Anderson was going to be competent enough to hold the spot down for the next six-ten (+) years. What an indictment on this organization that'd be to give up on BA after 365 ABs. That'd be absolutely pathetic and embarrassing.

[Gregory Pratt]

Scotty Po played well today.

[RME JICO]

http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20...s&fext=.jsp

Before Podsednik's morning work was complete in the "B" game against the Rockies, he had three hits in four at-bats and had scored two runs serving as the White Sox designated hitter. Podsednik also picked up a stolen base against Colorado catcher Yorvit Torrealba and reported no pain or problems after the effort.

 

Podsednik's thoroughly complete debut had Guillen taking a more serious tone after the game in regard to such an impressive performance.

 

"Awesome. He really impressed me. I never thought this kid would run that well," Guillen said. "Any time you come back from injuries, you're scared to move because you're scared you're going to get hurt again.

 

All four of Podsednik's at-bats Wednesday were significant, but the best sign tied into his particular role for the 2007 season came late in the game. Podsednik tried to bunt the ball on two consecutive pitches and was successful on the second attempt, producing his third hit.

[badatbest]

I just dont understand how KW/Ozzie can take such a hypocritical stance on developing youth with our pitching and turn around and abandon our legitimatly talented outfield youth by going with Erstad and Pods. They are both quick fixes that are not what this team needs going forward.

 

This team in the next 4-5 years needs Anderson hitting .280 with 15-20 HRs and playing amazing defense, he will do that somewhere. I guess not here.

[South Side Fireworks Man]

We had to send Rowand down a few times. It was ultimately good for him.

Might be a nice wakeup call for BA if he gets sent down.

 

And if it totally destroys his confidence? He was never fit for the big leagues to begin with, then.

 

Ditto to all the above.

 

After watching Anderson jumping back out of the way at every strike over the inside corner this afternoon, it appears that maybe starting the season in AAA may be the best thing for both him and the Sox.

 

Not to say that Brian will never be a good major leaguer, but he doesn't appear to be quite there yet.

 

This team in the next 4-5 years needs Anderson hitting .280 with 15-20 HRs and playing amazing defense, he will do that somewhere. I guess not here.

He may very well do that here in the next 4-5 years, but most probably not this year.

[jackie hayes]

That is the biggest point IMO. Young is regarded as one of the Top 10 prospects in all of baseball, by almost every publication out there. The Sox had to think Young was expendable due to the presence of Anderson in CF. It would seem to me if you're going to make that big of a commitment to a player, you give him for than 400 AB's to figure it all out.

I keep wondering if "the Sox" are of one mind at all. Given KW's comments on Anderson, I can't shake the sense that Williams and Ozzie don't see eye-to-eye on Anderson.

[bigruss]

So why the Hell can't he give Brian Anderson the same treatment, and actually use Erstad as the backup OF he should be used as.

 

 

im pretty sure he is trying to field the best team, and if he thinks anderson is going to hit sub .240 this season then maybe he isnt the answer and erstad could be, im not saying that he is but anderson needs to prove himself in AAA before he should start again, he sucked at offense, no one can deny that, and his swing and plate approach was awful and he may need some more instructional ab's in the minors before he is ready to reach his potential

 

 

but i do wish we could rewind to 05 where I waited in aw for Owens, Sweeney, Young, and Anderson to duke it out for what i thought could have been one of the best outfields that the sox have had

[witesoxfan]

im pretty sure he is trying to field the best team, and if he thinks anderson is going to hit sub .240 this season then maybe he isnt the answer and erstad could be, im not saying that he is but anderson needs to prove himself in AAA before he should start again, he sucked at offense, no one can deny that, and his swing and plate approach was awful and he may need some more instructional ab's in the minors before he is ready to reach his potential

but i do wish we could rewind to 05 where I waited in aw for Owens, Sweeney, Young, and Anderson to duke it out for what i thought could have been one of the best outfields that the sox have had

 

if it means anything - and I know it doesn't - Erstad missed 120 games last year and had an OPS just above .600. Shouldn't he have to prove himself down at AAA?

 

Anderson has proven himself at AAA. I'm not entirely against it, because I think he's going to get back into the Chicago outfield before long anyways, but give me a break. The reason he would go to AAA is not because he's not ready for the majors but rather because he needs to be playing regularly everyday.

[scenario]

All the discussion of trading for Rowand and/or Brian going down to AAA etc. etc. is based on the facts that:

(1) Last year Brian had a hole in his swing so large you could've driven a truck through it

(2) As of 10 days ago he was batting .188 in spring training

 

If Brian continues to hit like he has in the last 10 days and finally proves he can consistently hit major league pitching, he'll be our centerfielder. If not, he won't. Simple as that...

Edited March 15, 2007 by scenario

[witesoxfan]

All the discussion of trading for Rowand and/or Brian going down to AAA etc. etc. is based on the facts that:

(1) Last year Brian had a hole in his swing so large you could've driven a truck through it

(2) As of 10 days ago he was batting .188 in spring training

 

If Brian continues to hit like he has in the last 10 days and finally proves he can consistently hit major league pitching, he'll be our centerfielder. If not, he won't. Simple as that...

 

I really doubt that last part is true. If Podsednik is healthy, I see Anderson in AAA. If not, Anderson is in the majors.

[Vance Law]

I love how everyone just assumes Erstad is going to get hurt again. Didn't everyone in baseball just assume Dye would keep getting hurt, too?!

 

agreed. and Frank Thomas isn't going to hit in '06 cause he can't play.

[ScottyDo]

I just dont understand how KW/Ozzie can take such a hypocritical stance on developing youth with our pitching and turn around and abandon our legitimatly talented outfield youth by going with Erstad and Pods. They are both quick fixes that are not what this team needs going forward.

 

This team in the next 4-5 years needs Anderson hitting .280 with 15-20 HRs and playing amazing defense, he will do that somewhere. I guess not here.

I'm aware that when a Sox player has a bad season, they're the scapegoat for all failures until they happen to have a good season, but I'd say we NEED Pods. None of our outfielders are yet capable of holding down LF for a season. Pods is. He's a necessity if we're to succeed this season, whether people like it or not.