Pitching hasn't been a strength for the White Sox in years, especially the starting variety. New GM Allston O'Wharly has taken this problem head-on, assembling a not-terrible rotation from the free agency scrap heap last season. This year he was more aggressive, trading for a top of the rotation arm and getting bigger names in FA.
The combination of those moves, plus the natural improvements of arms already in the system, has created a logjam of talent. The White Sox have 10-15 arms capable of starting in the big leagues, and now have to decide who to hand the ball to for their 5 man rotation.
With Spring Training done, we have some recent stats along with lifetime stats to compare the players by. Let's take a look at the top competitors and the dark horses to see who might be taking the mound every 5 days for the PaleHose.
1. RHP Ramon Martinez (1-year, $5mil)
Career Stats: 170-138, 3.58 ERA
Spring stats: 0-1, 5.53 ERA
Martinez came over from the Padres for OF Jeff Abbott. With name recognition, fan favorite status, and a big contract, Ramon is most likely to be atop the rotation. The White Sox will probably try to flip him for prospects or draft picks, so getting good numbers out of him is important. Even if he doesn't perform, given the contract, the White Sox will probably keep playing him. The 4-time all star pitched 246 innings last season and has topped 200 innings for 9 straight seasons!
2. LHP Scott Baker (2-year, $300k)
Career Stats: 47-88, 4.85 ERA
Spring stats: 1-1, 2.70 ERA
The well-travelled lefty, now on his 5th team, has a drop dead curveball but struggles with command. He still ate 200 innings at a 4.28 ERA last season for the Red Sox, and with his tremendous movement, he's the next likeliest to land a rotation spot for the season.
3. RHP Andy Benes (1 years, $300k)
Career Stats: 148-117, 3.86 ERA
Spring stats: 3-1, 4.03 ERA
Another elder statesman, Benes gives the White Sox another solid name and former All-Star, and he threw a decent 4.05 ERA last season despite battling injury. He hasn't hit the 200 inning mark since '97, so another pitcher will likely take some of his starts during the long season.
4. LHP Glenn Dishman (1 year, $300k)
Career stats: 99-86, 4.22 ERA
Spring stats: 2-2, 3.60 ERA
Dishman did decently as a scrap heap pickup last season, tossing 176 innings of 4.49 ERA ball. He is a fringy backend guy though, and being 31, second lefty in the rotation, he might be outperformed by someone early on and lose his spot. In spring command was an issue, with 16 walks against 15 Ks. Still scouts say he has improved his two-seamer and could lower his HR rate this season.
5. RHP Luis de los Santos (pre-arb contract)
Career stats: 10-14, 5.41 ERA
Spring stats: 3-0, 1.96 ERA
At 24, Luis de los Santos is the internal option that won the 5th starter job out of spring training. Avoiding a loss and posting a sub-2.00 ERA will get management's attention. Hitters managed just .210 against him. Santos is a 5th round draftee from '95 and doesn't have much beyond his fastball, but if he puts it all together this season it will be fantastic.
6. LHP Darrell May (2-year, $300k)
Career stats: 71-72, 4.32 ERA
Spring stats: 2-1, 1.86 ERA
May is on his 4th team at age 29, not a good sign. Last season he was terrible, to a 7.62 ERA in 7 starts (16 games). He hasn't seen an ERA under 5 since '98 when he was shipped to the AL mid-season. Still Spring results are impressive and he could fight his way into the rotation.
7. LHP Mike Myers (2-year $300k)
Career stats: 77-68, 3.86 ERA
Spring stats: 1-0, 4.21 ERA
Another 3-time All Star on the staff, Myers was a lifelong Marlin until struggling to a 4.91 ERA and being relegated to the bullpen last season. He was fantastic in the 2000 playoffs, and he's just 32, so a resurgence is possible.
8. LHP Josh Stewart (pre-arb)
Career stats: 2-4, 6.87 ERA
Spring stats: 2-3, 3.86 ERA
Stewart just turned 23 and is looking to crack the rotation soon - he went 10-6 with a 3.62 ERA in triple-A last season. A blistering 95mph fastball from a lefty is good, but Stewart's changeup features solid movement. Scouts assume he will take over as CHW's ace in the very near future.
9. LHP Mark McLemore (pre-arb)
Career stats: 1-1, 3.07 ERA
Spring stats: 0-0, 4.38 ERA
McLemore is a reliever by trade, but filled in as an emergency starter in September last season, doing pretty well at it. His mediocre fastball (91mph) will probably prevent him from true starting duty - he features a plus slider but an average changeup. Still he is just 21, in just his first season above single-A. To limit MLB batters to a .208 on-base turned a lot of heads.
10. RHP Ruddy Lugo (pre-arb)
Career stats: 1-1, 4.34 ERA
Spring stats: 2-0, 3.21 ERA
If Luis de los Santos hadn't had such a great spring, this 21-year-old might have cracked the rotation. The former Rays prospect limited batters to a .226 average against him this spring, but will start his 3rd season of triple-A while he tries to improve his curve and control. Lugo turns 22 in May and features an incredible 50% groundball rate, marking him as a backend arm of the future.
11. LHP Nate Robertson (pre-arb)
Career stats: 5-10, 5.04 ERA
Spring stats: 0-0, 5.10 ERA (6 starts)
How the mighty have fallen. 1st round pick of 1995 (26th overall), Robertson was once the lefty ace of the future. Last season in triple-A he went 10-2 with a 2.61 ERA, but once he came up he was worse (1-5, 4.97 ERA). He may still factor in - he's just 24 after all and has a good GB rate - but CHW would have to deal about 5 arms in order for him to see MLB roster time at this point.
12. RHP Brandon Duckworth (pre-arb)
Career stats: none
Spring stats: 3-0, 2.56 ERA
Signed out of the independent leagues last season, Duckworth is 26 and a longshot to crack the bigs. He did impress this spring however, and is a decent depth righty to have in the system.
13: RHP Chad Ogea (1 year, $300k)
Career stats: 68-79, 4.90 ERA
Spring stats: 1-0, 2.89 ERA
Ogea had a good spring too, but his ERA has been ballooning over the years - 5.05 in '99, 6.34 in '00, and a nasty 7.45 in 19.1 innings last season. Chicago doesn't want much more of that, but if a lot of trades happen and catastrophic injuries too, Ogea might be in a long man spot again.
14. LHP Eude Brito (pre-arb)
Career stats: none
Spring stats: 1-2, 5.68 ERA
Brito will turn 24 in August and hasn't yet made the jump to AAA. He still has upside though, and is another lefty in the deep lefty stack of Chicago's pitching depth. He can hit 94mph and has a solid sinker with good movement. Brito might put it all together at 26 and become a dominant force, time will tell.
15. LHP Brandon Claussen (pre-arb)
Career stats: none
Spring stats: 1-3, 4.30 ERA
2nd round pick in 1997 might've garnered more hope, but Claussen is just another lefty on the CHW stack. Good slider, good all-around but not excelling enough to grab attention, Claussen is trying desperately to make double-A and keep his career going. A thinner system might already be trying him out on the majors.
Honorable mentions:
Kason Gabbard (19, single-A)
Darrell Rasner (21, single-A)
Bobby Livingston (19, A-ball)
No comments:
Post a Comment