Cooper: Pitching Staff Will Keep Sox Competitive
(WSCR) Coming into the 2012 season, nothing but questions surrounded the White Sox.
Would Adam Dunn return to form? Can Robin Ventura manage a big league ball club? Will Jake Peavy stay healthy? How will the pitching staff hold up without Mark Buehrle and Sergio Santos?
While many of those questions remain unanswered, pitching coach Don Cooper said his staff will be a bright spot throughout the season.
"We have a long haul to go," Cooper told The Mully and Hanley Show. "I am sitting here believing that the pitching over that long haul is going to give us a chance to win games. We'll piece it together. We've got four rookies in the bullpen. That's a challenge. We have Chris Sale going from reliever to starter. That's a challenge. And then there's just the challenge of the rest of the four starters going out there. Each guy is in a different spot and playing to try to get to the next level. We've got our work cut out for us individually and collectively, but I think we're going to give our team a chance to win because the pitching is going to be solid."
LISTEN: Don Cooper on The Mully and Hanley Show
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Taking the mound for the White Sox in their home opener will be Jake Peavy. In his first start this season in Texas, Peavy tossed six innings, allowing three runs on eight hits.
"He's been throwing the ball consistently as we've seen him over a period of time," Cooper said. "We've had a lot of starts and stops with him, so to speak, with a lot of physical problems, but we're hoping that he's finished with them so we can run him out there on a regular basis to give us a chance to win. The other day in Texas, he gave us that chance."
