Hoge: White Sox Suspiciously Silent So Far
By Adam Hoge-
Is it just me or is it just too quiet around the White Sox these days?
This was supposed to be one of the more tumultuous offseasons in franchise history. Where are the Twitter wars, rumors regarding Paul Konerko and bitter contract negotiations with A.J. Pierzynski?
The White Sox are at a fork in the road. Do they re-sign two valuable veterans and add a few pieces to win now? Or do they let Konerko and Pierzynski go and hope young players like Brent Morel, Dayan Viciedo and Tyler Flowers are good enough to keep this team competitive?
It may be quiet now, but the winter meetings start next Monday in Orlando so things are sure to heat up.
Elsewhere around the country, players are signing like crazy. Familiar names like Jon Garland, Javier Vazquez and Juan Uribe already have new deals.
Here in Chicago, there has hardly been a whisper about free agency.
So let's start the buzz:
What's the latest on Paul Konerko and A.J. Pierzynski?
The White Sox offered Konerko arbitration, but did not do the same for Pierzynski. This means the White Sox will get two compensatory draft picks if Konerko signs elsewhere. Pierzynski offered the same kind of compensation, but the Sox didn't want to risk having to pay A.J. more than $6.75 million for one more season through arbitration. There's still a good chance Pierzynski plays for the White Sox next season, but he'll have to take less money on a deal that likely won't exceed three years.
J.J. Putz was also offered arbitration and we'll find out Tuesday if either he or Konerko will accept it, but both are longshots at best and remain free agents.
The White Sox also declined to offer Manny Ramirez arbitration so he'll take the $3+ million he basically stole from the Southsiders and run elsewhere. Good riddance.
Where will the White Sox look in free agency or trades?
The first thing Kenny Williams needs to figure out is whether or not Konerko and Pierzynski will be back. If they leave, then the priorities change.
Right now, third base seems to be the only area where the White Sox are involved in trade talks. Multiple reports say Williams has discussed a Gavin Floyd trade with Colorado that would bring Ian Stewart and Dexter Fowler to the Southside. Such a move doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me. Fowler is just a poor man's Juan Pierre and Stewart is basically Mark Teahen. The most games Stewart has played in one season is 147 in 2009 and while he hit 25 home runs, he only drove in 70 runs and batted a measly .228. Sounds exactly like Mark Teahen to me, although Stewart's glove is much better.
But if the White Sox want to make a slash at third base, signing free agent Adrian Beltre would be a better move. Unfortunately Beltre is a Scott Boras client so don't expect those talks to take off unless Williams loses Konerko and is desperate for a bat.
Another Boras client is Carl Crawford, who Williams has coveted for a long time. He would be a great fit in the outfield. With Crawford, Pierre and Alex Rios, the White Sox would have the fastest outfield in baseball. And any move that takes Carlos Quentin out of the field and into the full-time designated hitter role is an upgrade in my mind.
Meanwhile, until he signs elsewhere, Adam Dunn is going to be linked to the White Sox. I'll take a guy like Konerko who can hit for power and average over Dunn any day, but if Konerko leaves then Williams might not have a better option than Dunn.
What about Peavy?
Jake Peavy is not going to be back at the start of the season and anything before June is extremely optimistic. That's why I think it would be a mistake to trade Floyd.
Chris Sale still projects as a starter and it sounds like the White Sox would love for him to be in the rotation when the season begins. But has there ever been a team to go through a whole season with only five starters? If the White Sox have six starters by the time Peavy is ready -- if he is ever ready -- then so be it. You can never have enough starters.
Other needs
Alexei Ramirez is arbitration eligible and he will likely choose to go to an arbitrator unless a multi-year deal can be worked out. At this point, a long-term deal for Alexei would be a good idea. There are few shortstops that have his combination of speed, defense and offense and he still isn't at a level where he commands a huge salary. Locking up Ramirez would be a bargain for what he can provide at the position for years to come.
If the White Sox don't make a move for a third baseman, Brent Morel is likely to start the season there. Morel looked comfortable at the position when he was called up late in the season and would be fine there, but if the White Sox are serious about competing in 2010, Williams might want to go bigger.
If the Sox lose Pierzynski they might be forced to rely on Flowers who appears to have regressed offensively while improving defensively. But it hardly looks like he is ready to play 162 games at the major league level and there aren't a whole lot of other options out there.
A final word
If Konerko and Pierzynski leave, the entire offseason direction will change dramatically. Theoretically you could plug in Teahen or Viciedo at first base -- the entire organization believes Viciedo is going to be a superstar with his bat -- but how can you enter a season with Morel at third, Viciedo at first and Flowers at catcher and say you are serious about winning a World Series?
It may be time to go young, but that's a dangerous road to go down with the current feud between Ozzie and Kenny that is certainly not going away no matter what they say.
It may be quiet at 35th and Shields right now, but I have a feeling things are going to heat up in a hurry soon.
Adam will be following the White Sox's offseason closely all winter long. For the latest White Sox news and opinions, follow him on Twitter @AdamHoge670.
