Let me just start off by saying, that as White Sox fans, we are in for a very special season. White Sox fans everywhere should be very grateful we have one of the best general managers in the game of baseball in Kenny Williams. Kenny went out this offseason and made a lot of noise acquiring slugger Adam Dunn, relief pitchers, Will Ohman and Jesse Crain. What I think was overlooked by a lot of people (especially those in the national sports media) were the moves that brought these acquisitions together to make them truly dangerous.
First, the re-signing of Paul Konerko, who proved age is just a number last year, putting up some truly remarkable numbers (.312 avg, 39 HR, 111 RBI). Being able to have Dunn couple with Konerko in the 3 and 4 spot in the lineup made the Dunn pickup substantially more impressive.
Second, Williams was able to come to terms with veteran catcher AJ Pierzynski. A great presence in the club house and an on field leader. Pierzynski, although not the best defensive catcher in baseball or the most dangerous bat on the roster, calls a fantastic game, knows how to handle his pitchers, and keeps the club house loose, but focused. His value to the team does not always show up in the box-score, but it is most definitely vital to this team.
Possibly the most important re-signing of the offseason and, ironically, the one that gets overlooked the most, was the re-signing of John Danks. Danks could quite possibly be the best pitcher on the Sox staff and a dark horse for the AL Cy young award this season. John Danks staying with the club, single handedly kept the White Sox pitching rotation amongst the top 5 in the MLB this season. He fits in perfectly with the team in terms of chemistry in the clubhouse and grinds it out on the mound. He's a managers dream come true. This is a guy who will always give you innings and will always take the blame when things go wrong. Hes a team player with a ton of talent and truly is the glue that holds this staff in place.
Willaims also picked up veteran relievers Will Ohman and Jesse Crain. Ohman, although off to a rocky start in these first few series is a guy who has proved himself and seems to be settling down. The South Side won twice when we picked up Jesse Crain, we took him from the Twins and added a solid arm to our bullpen. So far, Crain has done his job quietly so far, coming in and doing what he needs to do to get out of innings.
When you combine all of these moves with the direction this club is headed in, it forms a path of destruction, taking down anyone in the way. The White Sox have a stacked lineup from top to bottom, a mix of youthfull eagerness and veteran stability and leadership, some speed, a lot of power and the mindset to always find away. Makes this offense a pitchers nightmare. Couple that with an outstanding pitching rotation in Buehrle, Jackson, Danks, Floyd, and Humber (Hopefully Peavy soon) and a bullpen that is sure to settle in nicely, makes this team one that has potential to go as far as they want.
As I write this first posting, the Sox are 8 games into the 2011 season. Averaging around 7 runs a game, which is absurd, by the way. The Starting pitching has been above average, highlighted (so far) by Edwin Jackson's stellar performance in the home opener, setting a franchise record 13 strikeouts in 8 innings. The only question mark, causing any reason for concern has been the bullpen. Matt Thornton seems to be struggling the settle into the closers role, Will Ohman has been shaky, the bullpen overall has been average. They have the potential to be a very tough pen to face late in a game, they just need to settle into their roles, get a few games under their belts and mark my word, they will be FINE.
Predictions for the 2011 season
-Dark horses to watch for (look for these guys to contribute more than anyone expects, impacting the team in a very positive way)
Offensively- Carlos Quentin
Starting pitcher- Edwin Jackson
All around- Brent Morel
Bullpen- Chris Sale, Jesse Crain
AL Central
1. White Sox
2. Twins
3. Tigers
4. Royals
5. Indians
Look for Adam Dunn to lead the team in homeruns with 50 (bold, I know)
Look for Beckham to hit over .300 with a slight increase in his power numbers. Lead the team in doubles
Konerko will have a similar season to last years, look for his average to dip, homeruns and Rbi's, will dip slightly, but he'll still produce.
Look for Alexi Ramirez to start contributing around June, still wont be able to hit to the opposite field, get a bunt down, or hit a breaking ball by the end of this season.
Alex Rios will have a nice season hitting around .300, 30 homers, 100 knocked in
Look for Quentin to break out, taking the way back machine to a baby version of his 2008 season
Look for the Sox to win the Central and make some noise in October, surprising a lot of people (mainly ESPN and other national sports media members, whose opinions only reflect the agenda of any East coast baseball team)
And look for me to blog after just about every game, going on random tangents and angry rants, hell, I'll even throw in some Cub bashing (you can count on that) Enjoy.
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