2013 has not been kind to the Chicago White Sox. What was expected by many to at least be a competitive team, the White Sox haven’t even been that. 2012 ended in disappointment, after being in first place most of the season. But, I don’t think anyone believed they would have the fourth worst record in MLB by the end of August.
By Brian Madsen (White Sox Correspondent): Follow @brianm731
Follow @mlbreportsHere are the White Sox, in last place in the AL Central, behind just the Astros, Marlins and Cubs for the worst record in the game. And though the season hasn’t been a good one, there are some bright spots.
Quintana is leading the world in no-decisions, compiling 16 so far in 2013. This is really an amazing number, and a credit to the lack of offense produced by the White Sox this season.
Chris Sale has continued to flourish, posting a 2.99 ERA with 193 K’s, and a 1.06 WHIP in 25 games, some of the best numbers in baseball. Sale is just one of several young, promising Sox pitchers.
Jose Quintana has had another solid season. In 27 starts, Quintana has a 3.66 ERA with 138 K’s.
Hector Santiago, the fourth left-hander in the Sox’ rotation (John Danks would be the third), has a 3.25 ERA with 126 K’s in 19 starts.
Recently, the Sox called up the young Andre Rienzo (who would have thought, a right-hander!!) to the majors, and he has also impressed.
Rienzo became the first Brazilian born pitcher to start a MLB game. In 6 starts, Rienzo has a 4.21 ERA, but with just one decision.
That’s been the theme for the White Sox this year. Solid starting pitching, little offense. They traded veteran right-hander Jake Peavy, in a three team deal, to the Boston Red Sox.
The third team involved in that deal was the Detroit Tigers, from which the Sox acquired Avisail Garcia. Garcia was Detroit’s #2 rated prospect in their farm system.
Garcia was immediately assigned to the White Sox Triple A affiliate, Charlotte Knights. His stay in Charlotte wasn’t long, as the Sox soon traded Alex Rios to the Texas Rangers in a waiver deal.
Garcia was immediately called up to the big league club, where he has been the Sox starting right-fielder since.
In the last week, the Sox called up Leury Garcia to the big league club. Garcia (one of two Garcia’s acquired at the trade deadline by the Sox) was the PTBNL in the deal with Texas for Alex Rios.
Both Garcia’s have impressive so far since their arrival in Chicago.
Avisail has hit over .300 since joining the White Sox and hit his first HR in a Sox uniform last night against the Astros. With that HR, Avisail became the 600th player in White Sox history to hit a HR.
Some people in the Tigers organization referred to Garcia as “Mini-Miggy”, a huge compliment for sure. White Sox fans certainly don’t want to raise their expectations of Garcia’s potential that high, just yet. But he does project as a 5-tool player, and should be a cornerstone in the Sox lineup for years to come.
Leury Garcia has shown speed on the base-paths that White Sox haven’t seen since Scott Podsednik. While solid defensively, Leury has struggled at the plate. In order to display the great speed he possesses, he needs to get on base at a higher clip.
Gordon Beckham has had a solid year, both at the plate, and in the field.
What was once considered to be one of the best double-play combos in the game in recent years, Beckham’s partnership has been lackluster this season with the struggles of Alexei Ramirez at SS.
What was a strong suit for Ramirez, has turned into a weakness with 21 errors and a .964 fielding percentage so far in 2013.
Many believe that Ramirez’ struggles defensively are mental, and can be corrected during the off-season. He certainly hasn’t carried his defensive troubles to the plate, as he’s hitting .287.
Maybe 2014 will be the year he puts both quality offense and defense together.
Regardless of just how bad the Sox 2013 season ends up (they have won 10 of their last 12 games), there have been some bright spots. If the young starting pitching continues to grow, coupled with the youth recently inserted into the lineup, add some pieces in the off-season (a lot of $ came off the books with those the Sox have traded this year) , who knows? While 2013’s failures have been a bit of a surprise, maybe there will be some good surprises in store for White Sox fans in 2014….
*** The views and opinions expressed in this report are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of mlbreports.com and their partners***
A big thank-you goes out to our ‘White Sox Correspondent’ Brian Madsen for preparing today’s featured article. Brian was born and raised in Chicago Heights, IL, a south suburb of Chicago.
He attended Illinois St. University, majoring in education/teaching. Brian now lives in Joliet, IL with his wife Suzanne two daughters, Abby, 9, and Grace, 4.
He has worked at The Little Guys Home Technology for 12 years as a salesman/system designer/custom integrator. Brian is an avid White Sox, Bears, Blackhawks, and Bulls fan. Follow @brianm731
Please e-mail me at: mlbreports@gmail.com with any questions and feedback. To subscribe to our website and have the Daily Reports sent directly to your inbox, click here and follow the link at the top of our homepage.
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Tagged: @brianm731 on twitter, alex ríos, alexei ramirez, andre rienzo, avisail garcia, boston red sox, Brian Madsen, Charlotte Knights (INT), chicago white sox, chris sale, gordon beckham, hector santiago, houston astros, jake peavy, john danks, jose quintana, Leury Garcia, miami marlins, miguel cabrera, scott podsednik, texas rangers
