Playing Pepper 2010: Chicago White Sox

Last year before the season began, I posed five questions to a blogger for each team, so as to get to know the rest of baseball.  I focus so heavily on the Cardinals that sometimes the rest of MLB can pass me by.  That went very well, so much so that it spawned not only a postseason edition but was part of the impetus for the formation of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance.

So this year, I've brought Playing Pepper back, with a little bit of a twist.  Instead of five questions, I posed 10 questions, and this year every team got the same set.  Plus, tapping into those BBA connections, I sent them to every blogger representing that team in the BBA.

We'll try to do two a day in a general alphabetical order, but things may change depending on responses.

Chicago White Sox
2009 Finish: 79-83, third in the AL Central

The White Sox had an up and down year last year, making headlines with the acquisition of Jake Peavy but finishing 7 1/2 games out in a weak division.  Ricky from Tremendous Upside Potential was kind enough to give us a look at the coming season for Chicago.


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C70: How was the off-season? What kind of grade would you give it?

TUP: The White Sox "offseason" started when they traded for Jake Peavy at the deadline last season, and continued when they picked up Alex Rios off waivers in August. Since last season ended, the Sox really haven't done much. Anytime Juan Pierre is far-and-away your biggest pick up, you've likely got problems. And the White Sox do: by letting go of Jermaine Dye and Jim Thome, the Sox's lineup is far less formidable than it was when they began 2009.

Grade? Eh, there are so many question marks. Are we to assume Peavy will be one the AL's best pitchers? Can Rios rebound from a terrible audition last season? Will Pierre be as effect as he was in 2009 for the Dodgers?

I tend to give the White Sox the benefit of the doubt (Chicago sports leaves me with little else to be optimistic about), so I guess I'll give them a B. Passing on Thome (or any other DH for that matter) means I can't go any higher.

C70: What is the key to success for 2010?

TUP: There are plenty of ways to go with this, but I'll say the starting pitching. It has to be as good as advertised if the Sox are going to win the Central. The Sox are hyping Peavy-Buehrle-Danks-Floyd as perhaps the best rotation in baseball. Admittedly, it looks damn good on paper. But there are question marks: no one can say definitively that Peavy will be as dominant a) in the American League and b) in homer happy US Cellular, basically the polar opposite of his home ballpark in San Diego.

Also: John Danks and Gavin Floyd are both fine young pitchers, but they did both regress a tad from 2008 to 2009.

C70: What will be the team's strength?

TUP: Again, the starting pitching. Even if Freddy Garcia can't hold up his end of the deal as the fifth starter, the Sox can give Daniel Hudson, a promising 23-year old right hander, a shot.

C70: What could be their Achilles' heel?

TUP: A lack of production from DH. Kenny Williams inexplicably let Ozzie Guillen decide if he wanted Jim Thome on the team, and Guillen declined. As such, Mark Kotsay and Andruw Jones are going to get the majority of the reps at DH. That's not good for a lineup already light on power.

If DH really is killing the Sox though, I expect Williams to remember he's the GM and make a move. Sox fans can dream about Adrian Gonzalez or Prince Fielder, but the farm system - regarded as one of the weakest in baseball - likely won't have the prospects to get someone of that caliber. Regardless, they'll likely be hundreds of players available more qualified for DH than Kostsay or Jones, so it won't take a star for improvement.

C70: Who will be the team's MVP?

TUP: I'll go with Peavy. He was great in three starts last season, and he's gotten nothing but glowing reviews all offseason. If he's pitching at a Cy Young-level again, the Sox will be in the mix for the division crown all season.

C70: Will a rookie make a significant impact on the team in 2010, and if so, who?

TUP: Daniel Hudson won't start the season in the rotation, but he'll be there before the year's over. No one expects Freddy Garcia to make it through an entire season, and Hudson looked good in a few starts at the end of 2009.

Hudson probably won't be a star - most national prospect rankers have him the around the 80th-ish best prospect in the league - but the Sox don't need him to be, especially not this year.

C70: Who will be the breakout player for the team?

TUP: There really aren't a lot of options here, and Hudson might be the most obvious answer. Still, I'll say Alex Rios, I guess. Can a guy who has been an All-Star have a breakout season? Sure, assuming he hit .199 like Rios did as a member of the Sox at the end of '09.

I'm looking for an .800 OPS and above-average D in center out of Rios this season. If he hits that, the Sox will have themselves a fine player, and Kenny Williams will be able to clean all the egg off his face after Rios' terrible '09.

C70: Which player will drop off the most from 2009?

TUP: Eeek. For the Sox to be good, things need to go right. The most obvious candidates for this question are A.J. Pierzynski and Paul Konerko. If one of them falls flat, which is certainly possible (though both were solid last season), the Sox will be screwed.

C70: Who is the most likely player to be dangled as trade bait?

TUP: If Pierzynski is having a great year and the team is garbage, he could be moved. He's in the last year of his contract, and the Sox have a good catcher prospect in Tyler Flowers waiting the wings. It's an admittedly unlikely scenario, though.

C70: What will be the team's final record and divisional standing?

TUP: I'll say 87 wins and a division title. Why not?

My thanks to Ricky for his time and expertise.  I'm very interested to see how Peavy does outside of the best pitching park in the NL.  As Ricky notes, he easily could make the difference between October and packing up early.