THIS DATE IN WHITE SOX HISTORY/Bobby Bonilla

[StatManDu]

Today, Bobby Bonilla celebrates his 49th birthday.

 

I often wonder what the White Sox of the 1990s would have been like if the White Sox had kept Bonilla, Harold Baines, Doug Drabek and Bob Wickman.

 

Played strictly by the book, this means Jose DeLeon, Lance Johnson, Sammy Sosa, Wilson Alvarez, Scott Fletcher, Roy Smalley, Steve Sax and George Bell would not have been members of the White Sox. These were players all acquired by the Sox for either Baines, Bonilla or Drabek.

 

The most glaring absence from the aforementioned list would have been Lance Johnson, who is one of the most underrated players in franchise history, and Wilson Alvarez. Fletcher's absence would have made Joey Cora a regular quicker. Bell gave the Sox one good year and Sosa was erratic at best.

 

This is not to say Himes could have gotten Johnson from the Cards for Floyd Bannister or Richard Dotson or Dave LaPoint and/or prospects.

 

But, let's play it straight up:

 

That lineup, without Johnson, would have been Raines LF, ???? in CF, Bonilla RF, 3B Ventura, SS Guillen, 2B Cora, 1B Thomas, C Fisk/Karkovice, DH Baines, SPs (at one time or another): McDowell, Drabek, Fernandez, Hibbard, Bere, Perez, Hough, Sanderson; Pen (at one time or another): Hernandez, Radinsky, McCaskill, Wickman, DeLeon (acquired in 1993), Assenmacher, Pall; Bench: Grebeck, Newson, LaValliere, Pasqua, Paco Martin, Bo Jackson, Huff

 

Even with a below average CF, there is really no pitching around anyone in that lineup.

 

Needles to say, I think, that roster would have netted the franchise more than the one AL West title it won during the 1990s.

[Wanne]

Speaking of Bobby Bo...he made a nice one handed grab of a pop foul over the weekend from the stands at ASU. His son is a freshman LHP pitcher here...throws fairly hard too.

[Dick Allen]

Today, Bobby Bonilla celebrates his 49th birthday.

 

I often wonder what the White Sox of the 1990s would have been like if the White Sox had kept Bonilla, Harold Baines, Doug Drabek and Bob Wickman.

 

Played strictly by the book, this means Jose DeLeon, Lance Johnson, Sammy Sosa, Wilson Alvarez, Scott Fletcher, Roy Smalley, Steve Sax and George Bell would not have been members of the White Sox. These were players all acquired by the Sox for either Baines, Bonilla or Drabek.

 

The most glaring absence from the aforementioned list would have been Lance Johnson, who is one of the most underrated players in franchise history, and Wilson Alvarez. Fletcher's absence would have made Joey Cora a regular quicker. Bell gave the Sox one good year and Sosa was erratic at best.

 

This is not to say Himes could have gotten Johnson from the Cards for Floyd Bannister or Richard Dotson or Dave LaPoint and/or prospects.

 

But, let's play it straight up:

 

That lineup, without Johnson, would have been Raines LF, ???? in CF, Bonilla RF, 3B Ventura, SS Guillen, 2B Cora, 1B Thomas, C Fisk/Karkovice, DH Baines, SPs (at one time or another): McDowell, Drabek, Fernandez, Hibbard, Bere, Perez, Hough, Sanderson; Pen (at one time or another): Hernandez, Radinsky, McCaskill, Wickman, DeLeon (acquired in 1993), Assenmacher, Pall; Bench: Grebeck, Newson, LaValliere, Pasqua, Paco Martin, Bo Jackson, Huff

 

Even with a below average CF, there is really no pitching around anyone in that lineup.

 

Needles to say, I think, that roster would have netted the franchise more than the one AL West title it won during the 1990s.

Don't forget Keith Foulke, Bobby Howry and Mike Caruso. They came from SF in the Alvarez trade. I think the Sox got their money's worth for Bobby Bonilla especially considering he was a rule 5 pick up by none other than Hawk Harrelson. They also got Neal Cotts in the Foulke/Koch trade.

Edited February 23, 2012 by Dick Allen

[The Ginger Kid]

Don't forget Keith Foulke, Bobby Howry and Mike Caruso. They came from SF in the Alvarez trade. I think the Sox got their money's worth for Bobby Bonilla especially considering he was a rule 5 pick up by none other than Hawk Harrelson.

Was that his best move?

[Dick Allen]

Was that his best move?

He also picked up Ivan Calderon for basically nothing. Hawk wasn't nearly the disaster everyone thought. The team he had with Burns never pitching again, and Seaver not being what he was, was doomed.

[StatManDu]

Good call on the "White Flag" trade. But that lineup in the early to mid-1990s is something to think about and, who knows, the production and results of that lineup may have made a "White Flag" trade unnecessary.

[Dizzy Sox]

I think the Sox got their money's worth for Bobby Bonilla especially considering he was a rule 5 pick up by none other than Hawk Harrelson.

 

They got Jose Deleon for Bobby Bonilla who was eventually flipped for One Dog. Bobby Bo was, in his prime, one of the most feared hitters in his day, while LJ was a leadoff guy who didn't walk, had a noodle arm, and always seemed to make boneheaded mistakes on the bases. I don't see how can say we got our money's worth, even if Bonilla was a relatively cheap pickup via Rule 5.

[Brian26]

If the Sox kept Bonilla, the question remains - would they have been in line for McDowell in '87, Robin in '88, and Frank in '89?

 

If the Sox kept Bonilla, the entire future of the franchise could have been altered for the worst. I can't imagine the Sox in the 90s without Frank Thomas.

[YASNY]

We got Bonilla from the Pirates and then traded back to the Pirates after one season. I always believed there was a behind the scenes deal made there that allowed us to pick up Bobby Bo in the first place.

[Dick Allen]

They got Jose Deleon for Bobby Bonilla who was eventually flipped for One Dog. Bobby Bo was, in his prime, one of the most feared hitters in his day, while LJ was a leadoff guy who didn't walk, had a noodle arm, and always seemed to make boneheaded mistakes on the bases. I don't see how can say we got our money's worth, even if Bonilla was a relatively cheap pickup via Rule 5.

One Dog, boneheaded mistakes? Don't think so. He was a good CF despite not being able to throw and was a big part of the Sox success from 1990-1994. Many of Bonilla's big seasons where when the Sox were so awful, they wouldn't have won anything anyway. After 91 he became extremely expensive. As was stated, keeping him might have meant no Robin Ventura or Jack McDowell or Alex Fernandez or Frank Thomas.

[Dick Allen]

We got Bonilla from the Pirates and then traded back to the Pirates after one season. I always believed there was a behind the scenes deal made there that allowed us to pick up Bobby Bo in the first place.

It wasn't even one season. DeLeon had a nice arm.