The Great Chicago Fire of 2008
The White Sox sure make a lot of noise, but are they actually any good?
It’s hard to imagine anyone topping the circus that has been the New York Mets in recent weeks, but Ozzie Guillen and the Chicago White Sox are sure trying. Guillen, who has yet to meet a bleep he didn’t like, has managed to keep his team in the spotlight throughout the first half of the season with his tirades about everything from the Cubs, blow-up dolls, to his team’s hitting. That is, when he’s not making rap videos with Lou Piniella.
The White Sox, at 42-35, have a half-game lead over the Twins in what is proving to be the second-weakest division in baseball behind the NL West. The division that was supposed to be won by a great offense (the Tigers) is instead being won by one of the strongest pitching staffs in the AL. The team is second to the Oakland A’s in team ERA while having the fourth-most strikeouts and the second-fewest walks allowed. In the middle of the rotation are two guys not many people have heard of. Gavin Floyd is in the top ten in the AL with 8 wins and a WHIP of 1.12. John Danks is 4th in the league with an ERA of 2.80. The rotation has also been aided by the resurrection of Jose Contreras, who has managed to have an ERA under four since 2005, the last time Chicago won the World Series. The bullpen is anchored by Bobby Jenks, who is still fat and still unhittable, with 16 saves and an ERA of 2.16.
But what of the offense that has drawn so much of Guillen’s ire and four-letter words? Overall it’s fourth in the AL with 373 runs scored, 3rd in total bases and third in slugging percentage. The lineup has been anchored by the trio of Jermaine Dye, Carlos Quentin and Joe Crede. Quentin has grabbed plenty of headlines with his early home run and RBI barrage, Dye is tied with Quentin with 17 home runs (2nd in the AL) while Crede has hit fifteen more. Unfortunately, they’re almost the whole show, thanks to disappointing seasons from Jim Thome and Paul Konerko (.229, .215 BA, respectively). The team is a less extreme version of the Detroit Tigers, capable of 10 runs one night and none the next. There are no regulars batting over .300 and a lack of speed (last in steals in the AL) has led to White Sox relying on the long ball, which has left them open to slumps and losing streaks.
Fortunately for the White Sox they play in the AL Central, against whom they are 21-11 so far. The pieces seem to be in place for a deep postseason run; there are simply too many players (Nick Swisher, Mark Buerhle) not performing up to expectations. Once they do, the White Sox will be a force in October. If they don’t, expect more rants from Ozzie.
26 June 2008 16:30
Sounds a lot like 2005 to this fan of the Pale Hose, but they lack one thing that 2005 had: Tadahito Iguchi. I think the value of his knack to get a key hit that wasn’t a long ball really helped that club. That’s something I have yet to see in 2008, though some of that same knack could be masked in Swisher’s slump or Alexei Ramirez’s unproven skills. Time will tell.
26 June 2008 20:17
“2nd worst division”? Hmmm…20 games over .500 against the NL, playing against both the West and the Central of the inferior league. The worst division in the AL (and it’s still arguably the West, not the Central) is still better top to bottom than the BEST division in the NL. So the AL Central can be 3rd best…at worst.
27 June 2008 12:51
I think we’re guaranteed to hear more rants from Ozzie either way. I just don’t know if they can keep this run up much longer. There have been some players play way beyond expectations that are likely to fall back some. Once that happens, the Sox better hope the aging sluggers and Swisher can snap out of their funks and do their part. We have already seen Contreras begin to slump back, I expect we will shortly see the same with Floyd and maybe even Danks. The pitchers are the key to their whole season. As you said, the reliance on the long ball can help at times, but also hurt you just the same.
27 June 2008 13:42
Those offensive rankings are wildly skewed by their feast-or-famine composition: they average 6.79 runs per win compared to 2.28 per loss.
But as a Sox fan, I can tell you this could’ve been a three-word article: no, they’re not. I’d rather they tank now rather than wait to get swept out of the ALDS come October.