Spring training has come and gone folks. How’s your team doing after the first ten or eleven games? Good, bad? Off to a hot, unexpected start or is your team sort of, ‘getting by’?
Sure it’s odd seeing teams like Toronto atop the American League East in the early going. Seeing the long-running Western Division champs in the A.L., The Los Angeles Angles of Anaheim in the cellar. Is it too early to panic? Well, it depends. Allow me to repeat. “Spring training has come and gone”. The spring was supposed to be when our teams worked out their kinks, shook off their winter dust and got ready for the season. Does your team look like they’re ready for the 162 game season?
Mathematically yes, it is too early to panic. But if you know your team like I do, you are panicking just a little.
For the past few seasons, the White Sox have gotten off to slow starts. By slow, I mean – turtles people. Players like Alexei Ramirez from Cuba, who has never played a baseball game in cold weather in his life until he arrived in Chicago – is renowned for getting off to a slow start. Does he heat up? You bet your you-know-what he does. He can certainly carry a team when he warms up. But if the White Sox continue to creep along, as they are currently five games behind the Central leading Twins, they’ll need a crane to carry them along.
All the talk on radio, in the papers and on the post-game analysis on TV – most, if not all of the analysts are saying something to the effect of “relax, it’s too early to panic … there are still 145 more games to go”. Well, not really.
Realistically, there are only 30-50 games remaining this season. Give or take a series or two. If you continue to fall behind a team like the Twins, and to not take the Tigers lightly, the Twins are showing no signs of early season struggles. Blame the chilly weather all you want … the other team on the field is cold too.
So far, the White Sox pitching staff has lived up to their expectations. A couple of bad starts by Jake Peavy, a rough start for Gavin Floyd in Cleveland, sure … that’ll happen. The bullpen has been outstanding in the early going. So that’s not the problem. Could it be the offense? YES! That’s it.
The White Sox brought in third-baseman Mark Teahen via a trade with Kansas City to help with forming a more athletic club both defensively and offensively. Teahen was a bonafide Sox-Killer in K.C. He hits a lot of doubles, hits to all areas of the field. OK, I get it. They traded away a couple of minor-league pitchers for speedy lead-off man, Juan Pierre. Pierre had an excellent season for the Dodgers in 2009 but became expendable because of Manny Ramirez. He has also been a consistent hitter and base-stealer his entire career. OK, I get it – we have a true-blue lead-off guy who can get on base, steal bases, wreak havoc for starting pitching. BUT – he has to get on base. Something he hasn’t been doing thus far.
Manager Ozzie Guillen has made a pledge to form a team not relying so much on the long-ball. Something the White Sox have been all about for years and years. They won the 2005 World Series with pitching, defense, timely hitting and yes, many home runs. The 2010 club lacks the likes of sluggers Jim Thome and Jermaine Dye’s steady, run-producing power. G.M. Kenny Williams has been quoted as saying he’s “uncomfortable” with Guillen’s “designated hitter-by-committee” philosophy. (Mark Kotsay, Andruw Jones, Juan Pierre, etc).
With versatile players like Pierre, Beckham, Teahen and Alex Rios (acquired off waivers in 2009 from Toronto) the White Sox were supposed to manufacture runs this year with speed and “small-ball” execution. Sure they have some power still in a healthy Carlos Quentin, Paul Konerko and we’ll see how much Andruw Jones has left in the tank. But can you teach an old dog, new tricks? Does Paul Konerko – an icon on the south side of Chicago, really want to change his game in his early-to-mid 30’s and in a contract year? Does he want to buy into the “I shouldn’t be swinging for the fences” mentality? I think not. Again – contract year. Konerko is NOT a selfish player. However, he is not a dumb one either.
Too much has been made of the “2010 Chicago White Sox” team philosophy and thus, too much pressure has been put on the players. If you tell a kid not to do something, they’re more inclined to want to try it. If they’re down 7-0 late in a game, and if I’m a player, I’m not thinking bunt & run! I’m thinking “I gotta do something here”. Enter the Home Run.
There comes a time when you have to consider another means, but not fully abandon your philosophy. Kenny Williams let Guillen have his way this time around with personnel. I don’t expect Kenny to wait this one out too long. With the Minnesota Twins’ line-up stacked from top to bottom with talent, power and skilled veterans, it takes the pressure off their slightly above-average pitching corp.
It’s mid-April and the White Sox are already five games behind them. Sure, there are 16 games remaining between the two, but from where I see it – the Sox had better get with the program. I’ll enjoy nothing more than seeing the Sox over-take the Twins late in the year being the underdog.
Dan McGuinness 