One of the most pressing needs the White Sox addressed this off-season was finding a permanent center fielder, a position that has given the ChiSox headaches ever since they traded Aaaron Rowand to the Phillies in the Jim Thome deal.
By trading for Nick Swisher and Carlos Quentin, as well as with the emergence of rookie Jerry Owens and Brian Anderson’s patently familiar story (highly touted White Sox outfield prospect who doesn’t pan out), White Sox GM Kenny Williams hoped to have that issue put to rest.
The Sox were hoping to give Owens a shot in the outfield this year, but after a strong April (leading his team in four offensive categories), Quentin has effectively blocked what should have been Owens’ season to shine. (Owens did start the year at Triple-A due to injury).
The problem is the Sox offense is not hitting much, with nine of their last home runs being solo jobs (a trend that was common place last year) and even though management knows Owens could be a spark plug, Manager Ozzie Guillen doesn’t want to recall Owens to have him sit on the bench. Unless Quentin cools off, the status quo calls for an uncomfortable log jam in the ChiSox outfield.
Alejandro Leal writes for UmpBump.com. You can reach him here
