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Odds and Ends: Hendrickson, Soria, Sherrill

By Tim Dierkes [January 16, 2008 at 4:35pm CST]

Here's today's random collection of links.

The Marlins signed Mark Hendrickson as the veteran leadership guy for '08, at a cost of $1.5MM. He was knocked around in 15 starts for the Dodgers in '07 but was solid in the pen. The Marlins will put him in the rotation, perhaps to tutor fellow southpaws Andrew Miller and Scott Olsen.

Craig Brown would like to see the Royals use Joakim Soria as a starter.

There is a theory that the Mariners' signing of Arthur Rhodes will allow them to trade George Sherrill in an Erik Bedard deal. Seems a half-baked theory, wherever it originated. I don't think Sherrill is holding this deal up.

An argument for the Nate Robertson extension from Danny Knobler, and one against from J.C. Bradbury. Also, Peter Abraham thinks Chien Ming-Wang's agent will use Robertson as a comparable.

The White Sox are still considering Bartolo Colon, according to ESPN Radio's Bruce Levine.

Pat Burrell would love to re-sign with the Phillies after this season. Pat, by the way, doesn't have a computer and owes his second half success to "more hits."

Phil Hughes has a computer, and even a new blog. Not much going on over there yet though.

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"Half baked" to say the least. Even more compelling is the fact that I may have a better chance than Rhodes making the M's 25 man roster.

Posted by: Logger | January 16, 2008 at 04:43 PM

I agree that Soria needs to start. He could be a 15 game winner this year if he did. He has great poise and the stuff to be an ace for many years to come. However, as some people here know, as crazy as it sounds I believe the Royals will win the division in 2008. Yeah, that's a bold statement; but, I honestly believe it. The main reason for that is the Royals strong, young pen. Soria is the anchor for that bullpen. Removing him, without signing an Octavio Dotel or acquiring a Huston Street, could lead to no stability in that pen next year. So, as good as a starter Soria could be, don't move him there unless you're out of the race at say the All-Star break.

Posted by: C-Gouds' UltimateBaseball | January 16, 2008 at 06:33 PM

We have every reason to be interested in Colon. If he appears to be healthy and ready to go, sign him. Danks and Floyd as our 4 and 5 starters is a bigger risk than Colon's health and performance.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 06:34 PM

Im guessing AL Central goes like this:

1. CLE
2. DET
3. KC
4. CHI
5. MIN

Not really concrete on Chicago and Minnesota, especially if Santana stays.

Posted by: JD | January 16, 2008 at 06:41 PM

"The Marlins signed Mark Hendrickson as the veteran leadership guy for '08. He was knocked around in 15 starts for the Dodgers in '07 but was solid in the pen. The Marlins will put him in the rotation, perhaps to tutor fellow southpaws Andrew Miller and Scott Olsen. "

Tutor them on how to suck?

I don't think its about tutoring. I think it's a desparate reach for innings with a rotation full of kids.

Posted by: bsox21 | January 16, 2008 at 06:47 PM

I just don't see any scenario where the Royals win the Central. I could see third, but they would have to be right around .500 for that to happen, and even if the Twins trade Santana and Nathan, their pitching staff as a whole will still probably be at least average, and their offense could get quite a bit better, which would put it at about average. Mauer and Morneau should play better, they added Young, and Kubel is a good bet to be much better than he has been. I might be wrong about that, who knows.

I don't think the CWS will be that good, but I could see them winning 75 games, and CLE and DET will both be around 90 wins, so I just don't know where the wins for the Royals will come from.

That said, if Soria was in the rotation, and Meche, Bannister, and Greinke don't take a step back, that would be the makings of a pretty strong rotation, and like C-Gouds' said, if they got Dotel the bullpen would still be pretty good, so I definately see his point. Their offense is like the Twins in it should take a step forward, so who knows.

I think JD is right on his AL Central prediction, but that is the best case scenario for the Royals, probably.

Posted by: mattk | January 16, 2008 at 07:01 PM

I have a hard time believing the Royals will finish 3rd let alone win the division. Their offense was one of the worst in baseball last season and the only upgrade made was the acquisition of Guillen (who could falter with no PED's).

Granted, a full season of Butler and good play from Gordon should help a little, but not enough to make that offense anything more than average.

Soria should definitely start at some point within the next 2 seasons though.

Posted by: Slayer | January 16, 2008 at 07:50 PM

Taking out my biased opinion, could someone explain to me how KC is going to have a better year than Chicago or Minnesota? Adding Guillen didn't push them up into contention for the division.

A lot of guys on the White Sox underachieved in 07, and you should have every reason to believe they'll bounce back in 08. Not to mention we added Cabrera and Swisher to the lineup. Getting rid of Garland didn't screw us as much as people like to believe.

The Twins, even after they get rid of Santana, they still have Mauer and Morneau. They can still fight the good fight.

Cleveland is overrated. I don't care what they did in 07, people forget that they finished fourth in 06. I don't think they'll finish any higher than 3rd this year.

Yes, KC has been getting better. But I don't see them winning the division or coming close.

Here's my prediction...

1. DET
2. CHI
3. CLE
4. MIN
5. KC

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 08:05 PM

I think the reason people feel that way is while the Royals and Twins had 2 of the worst offenses in the AL, the White Sox did have the worst offense in the AL, and they played in a really hitter-friendly ballpark.

The White Sox are perceived as getting old and only getting worse, where the Twins and Royals are looked at as having guys who should get better offensively.

Also, the White Sox pitching just looks like a mess. ThomeTime25, you could be right, it's just that the general perception is that the White Sox are at best a 3rd place team this year, and after 2008 that they are in big trouble.

But, like you said, maybe the older guys will bounce back, and Swisher is a nice addition.

Can't say that I agree Cleveland is overrated though. I think 2006 was just bad because of their bullpen. Everyone knew they were good, and a lot of people picked them to win the AL Central before last year.

Posted by: mattk | January 16, 2008 at 08:26 PM

"Taking out my biased opinion"

"1.DET
2.CHI
3.CLE
4.MIN
5.KC"

Lol. Chicago finishing second? I highly doubt that. There lineup looks pretty good at...
C- AJ Pierzynski
1B- Paul Konerko
2B- Danny Richar
3B- Joe Crede
SS- OC
LF- Carlos Quentin
CF- Nick Swisher
RF- Jermaine Dye
DH- Jim Thome

Not bad at all. But you have the injury concerns in Thome, Crede, Dye, and Quentin. But, then you look at the bullpen and rotation.

Bullpen: Jenks, MacDougal, Linebrink, and Thorton.
Rotation: Buehrle, Vazquez, Contreras, Danks, and Floyd.

That is what is going to kill you right there. Beurhle, Vazquez, and Jenks are solid. But, everyone else is basically a huge question mark. If you can get decent seasons from everyone, you might finish in 3rd. But, the fact remains that the Indians and Tigers are just better.

The Indians have Betancourt and Perez, those guys are fucking good and will continue to be this season. Sabathia and Carmona are beasts. They added Kobayashi and their rotation and lineups are solid-great.

The Tigers are a powerhouse, you just can't compete against the speed and power of that lineup. Granderson, Sheffield, Ordonez, Guillen, I-Rod, and Cabrera are all going to have monster seasons. I can't really find a weakness in that lineup save maybe Jacque Jones and even he has .280, 25HR capabilities. Their rotation is solid. The only weak spot is their bullpen, but I feel the starting will go deep enough as to where that won't be much of a problem.

The Twins and Royals are both very good teams, and will give all of these teams problems. This is the way I see it.

AL Central(If the White Sox stay healthy):
1. DET
2. CLE
3. CHI
4. MIN
5. KC

AL Central(If the White Sox don't stay healthy):
1. DET
2. CLE
3. MIN
4. KC
5. CHI

The fragile offense of the White Sox cannot hold up a fragile pitching staff and bullpen. Sorry White Sox fans.

Posted by: bravesrule14 | January 16, 2008 at 08:35 PM

I do think Chicago will finish last in the division next year but if everyone has a solid season they could finish third. I would be very worried about the future of that franchise if i was a fan. They just seem to be treading water and getting nowhere. In such a tough division they should just have a fire-sale and make good signings in next year (potentially) strong market and try to compete in 3 or 4 years.

Posted by: themfightnwords | January 16, 2008 at 09:06 PM

In regards to Soria being a starter than a closer, so many people were saying the same thing about Mariano Rivera when he was starting out as John Wettland's setup guy. They're saying the same thing about Joba the Hutt too.

Posted by: Mr. JavaScript | January 16, 2008 at 09:09 PM

The AL central is going to be a wild division next year, but I believe in the end it will be the Cleveland Indians who come out on top. Detroit will follow behind them in probably a close 2nd, possibly grabbing the Wild Card.

Detroits Lineup will rival the Yankees for best lineup in the game, however, their pitching is another story. Their Ace is Justin Verlander, who cannot be relied on to be an ace just yet. He could prove me wrong by maturing and showing that he is a legit ace, but he is still very young. His postseason stats just don't show he's as good as Josh Beckett, which is what Detroit needs if they're going to challenge Cleveland, and eventually Beckett and the Red Sox. Verlander has been dreadful in the playoffs, with a cumulative ERA of 5.82 in 4 starts.
Do I believe their lineup can propell them into the play offs? Yes, mostly because the two teams in the AL central mirror the two dynamos in the AL East, the Red Sox and the Yankees. The Indians are well balanced, with a pretty powerful rotation, also they have a balanced lineup and solid defense, just like the Red Sox. The Tigers have the prolific offense but their pitching is just as shaky as the Yankees.
I'm expecting an amazing race between those 4 teams for the 3 playoff spots that are possible for them to garner in 2008.

Posted by: dudewheresmygrl | January 16, 2008 at 09:59 PM

one thing you guys are forgetting with the Royals. We don't have Buddy Bell managing us anymore. No more idiotic lineups, or sitting players on a hot streak or playing terrible fundamental baseball.

We have Trey Hillman now, who has a very high winning percentage as a manager showing he knows how to successfully manage with what he has.

In Japan, his Nippon Ham Fighters won the Japan series with the worst offense in the league. I have a feeling players will buy into his coaching and perform..Look for an increase in power from Gordon, Teahan and Butler. Better pitching from Greinke and Bannister and Soria staying lights out as a closer.

I will admit, one theory i saw makes sense. Keep Soria in the closer role unless KC is bombed by the all-star break...then stretch him out in spot starts..see how he does and look to 09 with him in the rotation.

Posted by: bobhamelin | January 16, 2008 at 10:33 PM

Let me make something clear right now, our lineup is more than "pretty good". IF we are healthy like you say we must be..and IF the players hit like they are supposed to (not how I'm dreaming they will), then I think we are in a position to go toe-to-toe with any lineup in baseball.
Our middle of the order is very capable of hitting around 100 HRs. Did I mention Swisher is now in a hitters park? Did I mention that we have Cabrera as our #2 or leadoff hitter? Did I mention that everything points to Josh Fields also hitting around 30 HRs too? I just feel like we are being seriously underestimated.

I want to discuss pitching and the bullpen, but I've written too much already. Haha. If you want to debate it some more just add me on MSN (gozer_the_traveler).

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 10:37 PM

I understand that some guys on the ChiSox are getting up there in age. And I understand that there are health risks that come with age. I'm not going to try and predict who won't get injured this coming season. I have no way of knowing. But in regards to this quote...

"But you have the injury concerns in Thome, Crede, Dye, and Quentin."

#1 I'm 90% sure that Crede won't be playing for us. Fields is going to get that job. Crede is going to get traded. Fields is young and healthy.
#2 I'm not convinced that Quentin will be the full time LF for the Sox. Jerry Owens is going to get time there too. I would prefer Jerry to get a full time CF job with Swisher in LF, but KW and I rarely agree. Regardless, if Quentin goes out we have Jerry Owens to fill that void. I'd rather have Owens out there anyways.
#3 Thome got injured last season yes. I know this. He's getting old yes. I know this too. But he's a full time DH, so I don't expect his body to experience a lot of strain. He was healthy in 06, and in 07 (despite being injured for a month) was the best player on the team.
#4 Dye has dealt with some injury problems, but they haven't caused him to miss serious time in the last couple of years. So yeah, a question mark. But who knows what'll happen. Probably nothing.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 10:37 PM

This is a great discussion. I remember around this time in 2005 everyone picking the White Sox to finish 4th place and if my memory serves me correct, the did win the World Series that year.
On paper the obvious powerhouse is Detroit. Acquiring Cabrera, Willis, Renteria, and Jacque Jones is an incredible off-season for the Tigers.
Granderson, CF
Polanco, 2B
Cabrera, 3B
Ordonez, RF
Sheffield, DH
Guillen, 1B
Renteria, SS
Jones, LF
Rodriguez, C

DAMN!
They could start against the NL in the AllStar game.
But over the course of the season anything can happen. Injuries, ect.
If Minnesota keeps Santana and gets a healthy Liriano back, they will be extremely competitive. Delmon Young is gonna be a stud with Morneau and Mauer and Cuddyer in the middle of the line up.
Cleveland is a bit overrated but definately a good team. They havent made too much noise this off-season so its basically the same team as last year.
KC is getting better and those youngsters have some experience now.
The Sox are the biggest question mark. IF they stay healthy and get production like they did in 2006 from guys like Dye, Thome, Konerko, and Crede they will be in the race for sure. If Konerko and Dye are hitting .200 at the AS break again, they will be last in the division. They still need a solid starter, Livan Hernandez or Bartolo Colon could be options.

Posted by: gogowhitesox | January 16, 2008 at 10:42 PM

The White Sox are in pretty good shape. They just need a #3 starter, #4 starter, #5 starter, bullpen improvement, a 2b, and a LF. LOL good luck with that. Best case, Sox finish in 3rd.

Bartolo is probably a few slices of Chicago style pizza away from 400lbs by now.

Posted by: GlenallenHill | January 16, 2008 at 11:11 PM

As a Dodgers fan, I thank god that Mark Hendrickson is no longer a Dodger. The only thing the Marlins will be able to use Hendrickson for is the same thing Brett Tomko will be doing-throwing batting practice, whether it's pregame or a normal game. Those guys must have a good chiropractic because their neck does a lot of jerking and twisting to see those balls fly by.

Posted by: atticusdude3 | January 16, 2008 at 11:13 PM

"The White Sox are in pretty good shape. They just need a #3 starter, #4 starter, #5 starter, bullpen improvement, a 2b, and a LF. LOL good luck with that. Best case, Sox finish in 3rd."

You are absolutely correct sir. We have none of those things. Not one. I keep wishing that we could get a LF, 2B, three starting pitchers, and a some bullpen improvement...but then again that's just too much to ask for........ Give me a break dude...

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 11:25 PM

You honestly wouldn't be surprised if Contreras, Danks, and Floyd all had ERAs under 5? I'm not trying to trash them, but it's hard for me to believe any of them will. My bet is Lance Broadway ends up doing better than all 3 of them next year.

Other than Jenks and Wasserman, there was no one in their bullpen that had an era under 4 last year, let alone 3. Linebrink will be better than what they had simply because he can throw strikes, but that ballpark isn't very big, and he gave up 12 homeruns in around 70 innings last year.

Posted by: mattk | January 16, 2008 at 11:45 PM

The reason the bullpen fell apart last year was because the hitting never came around. The first month of the season they probably had the best bullpen in baseball. And headlines on MLB.com were saying so. But when the hitting never came around they got shakey and caved. I firmly believe that MacDougal and Thornton will bounce back. Linebrink will help and Jenks will be Jenks.

I'm not saying that Danks and Floyd will put on outstanding performances next season. All I'm saying is that I think we'll get by. Danks learned from his first full season in the big leagues, and hopefully Floyd will find consistancy when he's pitching every 5 days. It could be a lot worse.

I am hoping that they sign Colon though. I think its worth the risk. If he delivers it'll really pay off. I understand there is a risk with Danks and Floyd, but thats just something you have to deal with when giving young guys a chance in the majors. They'll never learn if they aren't given a shot.

And mattk, don't think that I'm angry with you. I highly respect your opinion, and you come off as an intelligent baseball fan.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 16, 2008 at 11:58 PM

"The White Sox are in pretty good shape. They just need a #3 starter, #4 starter, #5 starter, bullpen improvement, a 2b, and a LF. LOL good luck with that. Best case, Sox finish in 3rd."

Well last I checked we had 2 capable Left fielders in Owens and Quentin. I really hope owens gets the job so he can bat leadoff. It is real easy to overlook the White Sox, but throwing these ignorant comments out there is just sickening to read. I will admit that I was very upset at the Garland trade, mainly because we could have gotten a ton more if we just held onto him longer. I hated the Swisher trade. Don't get me wrong he is a good ballplayer in all, but we gave up way to much. It could be a long year and it could be an exciting year, only time will tell. As long as there is WHITE SOX BASEBALL this summer, I will be happy.

Posted by: PIERZYNSKI 4 PREZ | January 17, 2008 at 12:08 AM

OH, and I think signing Colon would be a great idea. If he could return to form, We might have the best staff in the division. I think Floyd could be a late bloomer, as was Danny Haren, and Chris Carpenter. Contreras was hitting 94 mph on the gun last year. What people don't know is he was going through a painfull divorce last season that really took his mind off of baseball. Not to make excuses for him, but the stuff is there. I look for him to bounce back, im predicting 15 wins. Danks is the guy I worry about. I think he will be a great pitcher in the near future, but I feal he was kind of rushed. Last year he would have 100 pitches by the 6th inning every start and that kind of concerned me. To many 3-2 counts. It would not hurt to let him develop in the minors 1 more year and see if Colon could bounce back.

Buehrle
Vasquez
Colon
Contreras
Floyd

Owens
Cabrera
Thome
Konerko
Swisher
Dye
Crede
Pierzynski
Uribe

I think this can get it done!

Posted by: PIERZYNSKI 4 PREZ | January 17, 2008 at 12:21 AM

Pierzynski 4 Prez, I'm pretty sure that Crede is gone and Fields is in.

I also think Contreras will come back to form this season as well.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 17, 2008 at 12:28 AM

The thing with Crede is we can not just give him away for nothing, and I do not think we will get equal value in a trade at this point. I think a healthy Crede in his walk year will put up monster stats, and could help this team. Fields in my opinion will be a major run producer down the road, but he ded strikeout 125 time last year in 370 at bats. He also could benefit from another season in AAA, although I do think he could produce next season. So you have to ask yourself this? You could give the job to Fields and trade Crede for unequal value, or you could let Crede have a breakout season this year, and take the draft picks next year, which he could be a type A free agent. I think I would have to go with option B. If boras wasn't his agent, resigning him could still be a possibility.

Posted by: PIERZYNSKI 4 PREZ | January 17, 2008 at 12:42 AM

This really isn't a matter of what I want. This is about what likely is going to happen. And all signs point to Crede getting traded. Even if its just for prospects. I would gladly have a fully healthy Crede back in the lineup personally, I just don't think he'll get that chance.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 17, 2008 at 03:43 AM

Thome, will they fire Kenny Williams if they tank this year, or is he going to be there no matter what? As a fan, what do you think of him?

Posted by: mattk | January 17, 2008 at 08:02 AM

Pierzynski, you think gavin is better than danks? no way

KW will get rid of crede, he's not worth much right now. Besides his D, the best thing he's got going for him is a low risk cheap 1 yr contract left.

Posted by: whitesoxfan424 | January 17, 2008 at 08:10 AM

Well Matt, I think if the White Sox fall flat on their face this season that Ken Williams will come under a lot of scrutiny. Especially since he wasn't willing to offer up the big bucks for Rowand or Hunter. I personally think he waited around a got a really awesome deal with Nick Swisher, so I'm not that upset. Spending all that money on Rowand or Hunter would have likely come back to haunt us.

I think that KW makes a lot of shocking deals. The fans rarely see them coming. Sometimes the deals are dumb, like the Freddy Garcia/Gavin Floyd deal. I personally think we could have gotten more. But oh well. At the same time KW is made some trades that have been absolutely genius. They wanted to burn him at the stake after he got rid of McCarthy for Danks and Masset, but if you look at how McCarthy performed last season it is quite obvious that we benefited from the trade. The same thing for the Carlos Lee and Scott Podsednik deal. It worked for us.

The fact is this... Kenny Williams, Jerry Reinsdorf, and Ozzie Guillen brought Chicago its first World Championship in many many many years. And as much as I don't like him..and as much as I hate to say it..we as fans should give them a little more trust and respect.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 17, 2008 at 08:30 AM

Any other players with official blogs other than Schilling and Hughes? Definitely always fun to get the players perspective.

Posted by: gfulla | January 17, 2008 at 08:46 AM

I definately like the Swisher trade. Would you rather have had them keep Garland and play Alexei Ramirez at SS? Can he play SS in the majors?

I like the Quentin trade, too.

Yeah, his winning a World Series will go a long way, and I guess it should.

Posted by: mattk | January 17, 2008 at 08:55 AM

A lot of people complain about the Swisher deal and say that we gave up too much for him. In reality we gave up three question marks for a guy who is more than likely going to produce big for the team.

Alexei Ramirez was another fine pickup, but I doubt he'd be ready to play in the bigs every day just yet. Losing Garland made me sad, but in return we are getting a veteran player who is going to get on base consistantly in front of Thome, Konerko, Swisher, and Dye. That's huge.

The Quentin acquisition will be awesome as long as he can stay healthy. As I stated before, I would personally rather have Jerry Owens playing LF every day because he can steal a lot of bases and leadoff. He proved himself this past season in my humble opinion.

It had been 88 years since the Sox and Chicago had been World Series Champions, so I think KW should garner some respect.

Posted by: ThomeTime25 | January 17, 2008 at 09:51 AM

I thought Alexi Ramirez is starting off the season n like A+ ball. I doubt we will see any of him this year.

Posted by: Barroid_Bonds | January 18, 2008 at 11:47 AM

Odds and Ends: Hendrickson, Soria, Sherrill

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