Similar to the signing of Andruw Jones, Kenny Williams is adding one of his former rumored targets years past their prime. In the case of Jones, it worked well with him earning a 1.7 fWAR in part-time duties. While I don’t believe Fukudome will give the White Sox the production they received from Jones, I believe he will serve a purpose for the White Sox.

Fukudome accomplishes a few of the needs left for the White Sox. First off, he is the fourth outfielder the team needed. Going into camp, people were figuring Jordan Danks – who isn’t ready yet – would be the fourth outfielder. Now with Fukudome, the White Sox don’t have to rush a player who isn’t even that good anyway. Secondly, Fukudome is an insurance policy. With youngsters like Vicideo and De Aza, Fukudome gives the Sox a sure thing. Of course, that sure thing isn’t the best production in the world, but I will take a player with a career .368 on-base percentage versus right-handers.

The White Sox can easily use a platoon with Fukudome. De Aza – who I believe will be the best player in terms of WAR for the White Sox – can easily handle center field, with Fukudome handling left field, which leaves Rios/Viciedo handling right field. Not only would that alignment help the White Sox offensively, but it should help the team defensively. Fukudome is a weak right fielder, but should be able to handle left field with relative ease, especially with his arm. And we know De Aza and Rios are above average fielders.

Considering that the White Sox signed him for one million dollars, with a club option for 3.5M in 2013, it’s a smart low-risk move. Worse comes to worst, the Sox get a player who gets on-base at a better rate than Juan Pierre.

So in conclusion, Fukudome gives the White Sox a fourth outfielder option they didn’t have previously, should be used in a platoon, and never see the light of day versus left-handers. Lastly, in the big scheme of things, this move hardly costs or changes the 2012 Chicago White Sox.

Let me be blunt for a second. I hate Ozzie Guillen. I realize hate is a strong word and shouldn’t be used lightly, but that is how much I loathe the “man”. Here are the four tweets in question:

  “When i get to chitown lets make one thing clear what happen last day whit the sox stay tune”

“Iam out the country now but i never quit in anything yes be ready when i talk going to be fun”

“I will kill peoples fellings no mercy i turn the page but they no let me a long then get ready going to be bad”

“People want me to look bad but I so honest i wiil saynthe real true put u seat belt on”

His Twitter tirade is responding to Jake Peavy’s criticism of his former skipper about quitting on the team before the season ended. Peavy, who was shut down after the White Sox were eliminated from post-season considerations, went on WSCR The Score to explain what really went behind the decision to shut it down. Peavy said Guillen was against the decision, but Kenny Williams, Don Cooper, and Herm Schneider were in favor of shelving the injury prone starter. Here is a quote from Peavy:

“But at the end of the day Ozzie didn’t finish the season with us the last few games so I don’t know who quit on who. It is what it is and we’re all looking forward to 2012.”

We all know that Guillen resigned two games prior from the season ending; leaving Cooper in charge. Not even a week later, Guillen was named manager of the Miami Marlins. Peavy ended the interview by saying he was looking forward to a new season, with Robin Ventura at the helm.

Who can blame him?

This is one of the reasons I am cautiously optimistic about the White Sox in 2012.

The poison is finally gone.

No longer do Sox fans have to worry about the juvenile outbursts, the broken English expletives, and the moronic decisions made by him personally and professionally. As I’ve stated before, 2005 is a gift and curse. The gift is pretty obvious. I don’t think I have to go in-depth on that one. However, the curse is that this man gets all the credit from some clueless fans, ignorant writers, and loyal management.

If it wasn’t for the fluke – yes, fluke – in 2005, Ozzie Guillen would have been out of baseball a few years ago, or at best, getting runners thrown out as a third base coach.

A breath of fresh air can be inhaled for the first time in years at US Cellular Field. For that reason alone, White Sox fans can look forward to a season where the circus left town. I believe Ventura’s calm demeanor will do wonders for this team. It is a team full of veteran players that know what they need to do to succeed. They don’t need a condescending boob screaming at them after every miscue they have.

While I’m sure some players like Guillen, I guarantee more were sick of the antics and outbursts. The act grew tiresome and certainly ran its course.

A course that was sent back to the kitchen a few years too late.

I – like many others – was away for the New Year’s holiday, but that didn’t stop Kenny Williams from making a move. The White Sox GM shipped Carlos Quentin to the San Diego Padres for two minor league pitchers.

Quentin, who is in his last year being under team control, would have been a free agent after the 2012 season. The off-season has been a confusing one for White Sox fans. The trade of Sergio Santos stirred the rebuilding pot, but then the John Danks extension might have implied that Williams was going to re-buy from his “All-In” team in 2011. But with this recent trade, I have absolutely no idea what in the world is going on. All I ask is that White Sox fans chill out.

Chicago fans in general are some of – if not the biggest – knee-jerk reactors in the country. The majority of Chicago’s fan base makes it hard for people who are not Chicago fans through and through. I’ve already seen people upset with this deal and saying it wasn’t enough.

Really?

Quentin will be a negative win player in Petco Park. His fielding is going to make Brad Hawpe look like Roberto Clemente. Also, Quentin is a pop-fly hitter whose successes depend on home runs. It’s almost certain we can cut Quentin’s home run total in half.

Simon Castro, a prospect that the White Sox got back in the deal, had a very rough 2011. But prior to that, he was one of San Diego’s best prospects. While old, here’s a scouting report of Castro’s stuff from 2010 by Adam Foster.

Simon Castro’s rise up the prospect ranks hasn’t been smooth and easy. The 6-foot-5, 210-pounder spent three seasons between rookie ball and Low-A before getting a chance against upper-minors hitters.

Kudos to the Padres’ player development staff for being so patient with him. It’s hard to keep a mid-90s fastball in the minors for so long. That patience will likely lead to a pitcher who’s ready to make a big-league impact in 2011.

Built similarly to Dontrelle Willis, Castro jumped from Low-A in 2009 to Double-A in 2010, skipping High-A entirely. He was rewarded for a successful Double-A showing with a two-start trial in Triple-A to end the 2010 season. The Dominican Republic native, who has now reached the 140-inning mark in back-to-back seasons, toed the rubber when I was in Surprise on April 1, 2010.

The classic White Sox fan response is a project for Coop! And that’s exactly what it is.

Dayan Viciedo is the logical replacement in rightfield. Viciedo, who has been one of the hottest prospects in the Sox system, will finally get his chance to shine. The jury is still out on Viciedo.  Let’s just hope it’s more of his AAA numbers and not his September MLB numbers. At best, Viciedo will outperform Quentin by a win – I had Quentin projected at 1.6. At worst, he’ll do what an injured Quentin would have done. Contrary to what some Sox fans will tell you, corner outfielders that can’t field don’t have much of a market.

No need to panic from this deal yet. Now if Floyd gets traded, it’s time for worrying.

After yesterday’s deal that sent Sergio Santos to the Blue Jays, Kenny Williams said a word that he has never said in his tenure with the White Sox.

“It’s the start of a rebuilding”

Dun-dun-dun!

The dreaded R-word every fan fears. The R-word that eliminates any sort of hope for next season.

Rebuilding.

Well all I have to say is it’s about damn time. The Chicago White Sox have been near the bottom in terms of organizational ranking for quite some time. Their farm system has been as barren as Tampa Bay Rays crowd in May. The man they acquired, Nestor Molina, automatically becomes the White Sox best prospect, when he was as low at sixth on the Blue Jays.

This rebuild won’t be easy. It’s likely it will be grueling, and major turnover will come from it. The thing that has to bug Kenny Williams is that he will have to start rebuilding, but won’t be able to finish it.

Williams is essentially digging his own grave that he will have to lie in. I highly doubt Williams will last past 2012 for the Chicago White Sox. It’s going to be tough to sell if Williams has another mediocre season. For a man that has brought the only championship this town has seen in 95 years, it has to be a tough pill to swallow. As an admitted life long Raiders fan, Williams has always had the Raiders adage of “Just win, baby,” and Williams never tried anything different.

I know how hard it is to rebuild and let go. Even when I play silly games simulation baseball games with friends, it’s hard for me to let go and rebuild. I can’t even imagine what it feels like when you are hellbent on winning year in and year out in the real life.

I have mixed feelings about Williams. He has done a lot more good than he has bad. It’s just that his bad has been overshadowing his good in the past few years. If it’s not Swisher to the Yankees, it’s Hudson to the D’Backs.

Thank you for your services Mr. Williams. I’m glad you have swallowed the rebuilding bullet, and I look forward to the finish product with someone else.

Sergio Santos was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays today. Santos was electric for the White Sox in 2011. His 13.07 K/9 ratio was among the leaders in the American League, as was his 1.6 WAR. What makes the trade even more shocking is that Santos signed a very nice cost effective extension a few months ago.

The White Sox received Nestor Molina from the Blue Jays. Just from looking at his MiLB stats, the guy looks awesome. 2.21 career ERA, a 5.89 K:BB ratio, and an 8.9 K/9 ratio are all very positive signs. The 22-year old starter will be expected to start off in AA Birmingham for the start of 2012. According to the Minor League guru, Joel Sickels, Molina is ranked second in the Jays system.

The question now for the White Sox is what is next? Many scenarios can occur from this trade. I’m sure the most popular opinion is that Sale will stay in the bullpen, which is contrary to what Williams has been saying. It could also mean Addison Reed will be thrown into the fire.

If you don’t know who Addison Reed is then you will soon. I picked Reed on my “Five White Sox That Need to Perform in 2012″ list a few weeks ago. I added him for the sole fact that most do not know about him. Now with this trade, the Sox will need Reed more than ever. Reed has a K:BB ratio over 10 in his career between the Minors and his short time with the White Sox.

I think this is a pretty good trade for Williams, a shocking one, but a good one. Relievers contunity of production is quite small, and Santos could just lose it. Molina appears to be a darn good starting pitcher, and Addison Reed should step up and give the same production as Santos.

It’s sad to see Santos go, but it’s a necessary move for team that desperately needs a youth movement.

I feel like I should emphasis how bold of a prediction this is by typing this all in bold, but that would be as obnoxious as a Ndamukong Suh presser.

De Aza, 27, could be another case of a man who is a late bloomer. Alejandro De Aza was a force for the Chicago White Sox in 2011. In 435 plate appearances in Charlotte (AAA), De Aza put up an .872 OPS. De Aza also included 22 stolen bases in his time with the Knights. With his fantastic play in Charlotte, De Aza got the call up to the show, in which De Aza just showed off.

In 171 plate appearances for Chicago, De Aza had a .920 OPS, a 9.7 UZR, and a 2.8  Fangraphs WAR (fWAR). His high OPS was aided by an abnormally large and unsustainable .404 BABIP. It’s pretty obvious De Aza isn’t a 900 OPS bat. I am not expecting him to be a .900 OPS bat. I do think it’s reasonable he is an .800 OPS bat, and with his elite defense, should be the White Sox best player in 2012.

I know you must be reading this and wonder how I can say this with Paul Konerko on the roster. It’s pretty easy, actually. Konerko is a first baseman, slow as molasses, and doesn’t neccessarily have positive range at 1st base. Konerko is the team’s best hitter. That isn’t really debatable.

Hitting doesn’t translate to playing. De Aza can do it all. He can hit, field, run, get on base, and hit with some power. His only competition is Alexei Ramirez, who lead the White Sox in fWAR at 4.9. Ramirez’ WAR is aided by his excellent range in the field. Baseball Reference has Ramirez worth only 3.3 wins. Further proving that Fangraphs is obsessed with fielding a bit too much.

Bill James has De Aza’s projection to be about 240 plate appearances with a line of .291/.353/.450. It’s pretty clear that De Aza is going to get more than 240 plate appearances with the White Sox in 2012. With more games, De Aza’s line will likely weaken. My projection for De Aza would be around .270/.340/.440 with 30+ stolen bases and 10-15 runs saved defensively. I firmly believe De Aza is going to be a 4 win player. Both on FanGraphs and Baseball Reference.

I was so thrilled to learn a few weeks ago that Williams is leaning towards De Aza at lead-off. After two blatantly obvious (except to Ozzie Guillen and Joe Cowley) putrid seasons of Juan Pierre, De Aza is going to be a breathe of fresh air.

I will be sure to bring this article back up in June to prove I am right. Or never speak of it again if I am wrong.

I’ll admit I drank the Kool-Aid a couple years ago when Gordon Beckham came up after his historic College World Series performance.  Beckham has never lived up to his performance in that partial season.  Grant this wannabe talented a second baseman consistent offense and a closer look at a Gold Glove award.

Gordon’s offense looks so promising at times.  Once he gets that hitch in his swing, all promise goes away.  His looping swing may only cost him a millisecond, but that’s all it takes to make or break an at-bat in Major League Baseball.  Greg Walker couldn’t seem to get rid of it.  Maybe Jeff Manto knows something he doesn’t.  It may have taken a trip down to Charlotte to get his confidence going again last season.  We’ll never know.  We do know his .303 average during May last season is what the White Sox need from him in the other five and a half months during the season.  Chicago can’t afford to have someone considered to be part of the nucleus of the future of this organization batting .230.

If it isn’t too much to ask, Beckham deserves a Gold Glove.  Maybe his offensive output, or lack thereof, takes away from him getting a look if that makes sense.  Maybe it’s his team’s lack of output.  Eight errors in 723 chances last season equals a near .990 fielding percentage.  Pretty darn good if you ask me.  Dustin Pedroia had one less error and one less chance, which means he beat Beckham in fielding by one hundredth of a point in total fielding percentage.  Cut the kid a break!

Thanks again for listening baseball Santa.  Beckham has a lot of baseball left in him and the Sox seem to like him.  Let’s make the best of the situation at hand and get Gordon back on track.

Sincerely,

Joseph Tichy