What They Need - Chicago White Sox: A Starting Pitcher
Until this past weekend, it was really hard to think of what the Chicago White Sox might need.
While they do not have the absolute best team in the majors, they had a decent to great hitter at every position, a stacked rotation, and a lights-out bullpen. Even their bench is solid. And by run differential, they are the third best team in all of baseball, behind only the Boston Red Sox, and the Chicago Cubs.
But now that Jose Contreras was placed on the DL Sunday with elbow tendinitis, we can say that the White Sox are in need of a starting pitcher.
Adding a starter also makes sense given that Gavin Floyd and John Danks have been pitching better than their peripherals would suggest. Floyd in particular has allowed a huge amount of unearned runs, suggesting that he is not anywhere near as good as his ERA would suggest.
Moreover, both Floyd and Danks are young pitchers who are being asked to pitch 200 innings for the first time, and it is very questionable if either pitcher can make it all the way, or whether the White Sox will let them, given that Floyd’s previous high in IP was only 178 way back in 2004, and Danks’ was a mere 156 in 2005.
So even if Contreras is able to make a speedy recovery from his elbow woes, the White Sox would still be well advised to pick up another starter.
July 22nd, 2008 at 11:34 am
I think this second half will unravel like 2006. Pitching has been lights out but I’m not sure if they can keep it up all year, and, there’s always the possibility of the hitters going back to slump mode. Something that is becoming more of a reality as the second half gets underway. Is that enough to go get more offensive help? I don’t know; Nick is right in that the Sox have good hitters at every position, so as long as they’re firing on all cylinders, they can get the job done – like in the first half.
Oh the ambivalence!
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July 22nd, 2008 at 11:43 am
Good points Alejandro. What I see as the problem with the Sox potentially trying to get offensive help, and why I didn’t suggest it, is that who do you replace? The two guys who have been slumping are Konerko and Swisher, but those guys are stars who would not at all be easy to bench. I think that offensively the ChiSox are in a position where they just have to ride the horses they’ve got, unless someone got injured or something. That’s one of the risks you take when you lock up so many aging veterans the way Kenny did recently, when I thought they should be rebuilding.
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