By Mike Axisa | at
Let's keep track of the day's minor moves right here…
By Ben Nicholson-Smith | at
We'll keep track of the day's minor moves right here…
By Tim Dierkes | at
The White Sox invested in John Danks, but said goodbye to Ozzie Guillen, Sergio Santos, Carlos Quentin, and Mark Buehrle.
Major League Signings
International Signings
Notable Minor League Signings
Extensions
Trades and Claims
Notable Losses
White Sox GM Kenny Williams has always marched to the beat of a different drum, and this offseason was no exception. While Williams met expectations by sitting out free agency and trading some veterans, he also authored a surprising extension and bucked industry consensus in the nuances of his trades.
In September, Williams pulled off a rare type of trade, sending allowing manager Ozzie Guillen to join the Marlins for Marinez and Martinez. Marinez and Martinez profile as a setup man and utility infielder, but it's still a win to get potential big leaguers for a manager who had seemingly already checked out. I see the appeal of replacing Guillen with Ventura, who might be Guillen's polar opposite but also a fan favorite. Someone like Davey Martinez might have been a more practical choice, however.
Sergio Santos seemed like a building block for the White Sox, even if they were mostly punting on the 2012 season. Santos was extended to a team-friendly deal in September, but traded to the Blue Jays in December with no advance warning. The hard-throwing 28-year-old closer was not known to be available. In the trade, Williams placed his bet on a lone prospect, 23-year-old starter Nestor Molina. Despite dominant numbers at High-A and in a short Double-A stint last year, Molina is seen by prospect experts as a back-of-the-rotation type. It's unlikely the White Sox agree with that assessment. They certainly had inside knowledge on Molina, having hired former Blue Jays director of Latin American operations Marco Paddy prior to the trade. Paddy later convinced Williams to spend $250K on 17-year-old Venezuelan Luis Martinez, a big step for a team typically reluctant to spend internationally outside of Cuba.
It was in response to a question, but Williams took the leap and agreed the Santos trade was "the start of a rebuilding." The GM qualified that by saying it wasn't a "falling domino rebuilding," because the offers for his starting pitching were lacking. Williams backed up his words by extending Danks about three weeks later. Coming off his worst season in quite a while, Danks didn't give much of a discount on the eve of his contract year. The White Sox made a sizeable five-year commitment, including four free agent seasons at $14.25MM apiece. Just 27 in April, Danks represented a better investment to the White Sox than longtime ace Buehrle, who had recently signed a four-year, $58MM free agent deal with Ozzie Guillen's Miami Marlins.
Danks' 2011 season was all over the map, with a reduced strikeout rate against left-handed hitters, an awful May, and strong work from June through August sandwiching a month missed from an oblique strain. In three seasons prior, he'd posted a 3.61 ERA over 608 1/3 innings. Danks' extension includes a full no-trade clause only for 2012, so Williams retains flexibility for a future trade. Danks' rotation-mate Gavin Floyd seems more likely to be dealt in the near future, as a solid mid-rotation starter who can be controlled through 2013. If the Sox aren't contending but Floyd has a decent first half, he'll be one of the better starters available.
Quentin, on the other hand, was not extended heading into his contract year. The 29-year-old right fielder was dealt to San Diego for pitching prospects Castro and Hernandez. Castro, the headliner, has decent upside even after a lost 2011 season. Still, no one considers him among the best 100 prospects in the game. Unlike the Santos trade, I think the White Sox were just taking the best they could find for Quentin rather than bucking industry consensus in their prospect evaluations. Quentin is good for only 120 games per season, his defense is average at best, and his OBP is respectable by virtue of getting hit by a pitch 20 times a year. He's not the type of difference-maker for which a team can extract top prospects.
Frasor was an unnecessary bullpen luxury for the Sox even with Santos gone, so Williams shipped him back to the Blue Jays for a couple of prospects. The deal justified Chicago's earlier decision to exercise Frasor's club option.
Ventura will provide a fresh outlook for the White Sox, especially since he has no prior coaching experience. His hire signals a youth movement, and the White Sox need results from Dayan Viciedo, Brent Morel, Gordon Beckham, and Chris Sale. However, the team's 2012 chances still hinge on disappointing well-paid players such as Adam Dunn, Alex Rios, and Jake Peavy.
By Zachary Links | at
In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe ranks every manager in the majors, one through 30. Cafardo's top five skippers in the game for 2012 are Joe Maddon (Rays), Jim Leyland (Tigers), Mike Scioscia (Angels), Charlie Manuel (Phillies), and Joe Girardi (Yankees). Here's more from Cafardo..
By Mike Axisa | at
The White Sox have signed Conor Jackson to a minor league contract, reports Mark Gonzales of The Chicago Tribune (on Twitter). The SFX client was assigned to Triple-A.
Jackson, 29, was released by the Rangers earlier this month. He hit .244/.310/.341 in 390 plate appearances for the Athletics and Red Sox last year. Jackson has plenty of experience in both outfield corners and first base, and he typically does his best work against left-handed pitchers.
By Ben Nicholson-Smith | at
Keeping track of the day’s minor moves…
By Zachary Links | at
Here's the latest from Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com..
By Zachary Links | at
We’ll keep track of today’s minor moves right here:
By Zachary Links | at
In today's column, Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe argues that two best players at catcher and shortstop positions in camp with the Red Sox organization are Ryan Lavarnway and Jose Iglesias and believes that they absolutely should be on the final 25-man roster. There could be disagreement from different factions of the club about what to do with the two players and it'll be interesting to see how it all turns out. Here's more from Cafardo..
By Zachary Links | at
We'll keep track of today's minor moves right here..
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