CHICAGO -- The White Sox were telling people over the weekend that they've now moved past Jake Peavy and on to Plan B.
They weren't saying what Plan B is.
|
|
| Chicago isn't complaining about keeping young lefty Clayton Richard, who would have been a key piece in the trade. (AP) |
In fact, in the days after Peavy turned down the chance to come to Chicago (at least for now), White Sox players and coaches seemed to have little interest in what move the front office would try next. Instead, they kept saying that this team -- with no major changes -- still could repeat as American League Central champions.
"The goal is still attainable," first baseman Paul Konerko said Sunday.
He's right. The White Sox have been so bad that they actually have a worse record than the Pirates (19-24, after Sunday's 4-3 loss to Pittsburgh). But the American League Central is so mediocre that if not for Sunday's Bobby Jenks blown save, the Sox would have finished the weekend just 4½ games behind the first-place Tigers.
"It's got to be up for grabs, because with the way we've played, it feels like we should be 15 back, and we're not," Konerko said. "I take that as a positive."
There are other positives, including encouraging starts last week by John Danks and Gavin Floyd, and by Clayton Richard, the young left-hander who would have been part of the Peavy trade. Of Danks and Floyd, who were key to last year's title, pitching coach Don Cooper said: "There's no question in my mind they're going to be OK."
If he's right, the White Sox could be OK, because there's reason to believe the offense won't be as bad as it has been so far. The ball tends to fly out of U.S. Cellular Field in the summer months, and that tends to suit the White Sox, who despite their attempts to become more rounded are still overly dependent on the long ball.
"You just wait," said Pirates outfielder Craig Monroe, a longtime Sox opponent from his days with the Tigers and Twins. "Everybody knows these guys will hit."
Some White Sox people aren't so sure it will turn around this year. Some in the organization are already wondering what general manager Ken Williams will do if the team is far out of the race in July, wondering whether Williams might look to sell off Konerko, as well as potential free agent outfielder Jermaine Dye.
Meanwhile, some Peavy watchers are wondering if he'll eventually decide that playing for the White Sox wouldn't be that bad an idea. The Padres ace has told some friends that contrary to early reports, he actually likes the idea of playing for Ozzie Guillen, and that his anti-American League stand could have been another way of begging the Cubs to come calling again.
For now, though, the White Sox are moving on, and Williams watchers are focused on what he tries next to get his team going this year.
"I still think Kenny's going to be aggressive," one Sox person suggested Sunday.
Yes, it's on to Plan B. Whatever that is.
The other stories to watch this week:
Trade talk starts early: Maybe the Peavy talk got everyone going, because over the weekend it seems everyone was starting to think about which teams need help and which players could go between now and July 31.
One scout even brought up Roy Oswalt's name, raising the question of whether Astros owner Drayton McLane would consider allowing his baseball people to put their ace on the market. The baseball people would also like to market shortstop Miguel Tejada, closer Jose Valverde and catcher Pudge Rodriguez, but they know that McLane doesn't like the idea of being a July seller.
Meanwhile, other scouts said the Braves are now looking all over for a right-handed hitter, willing to move Jeff Francoeur. The Phillies and Dodgers are both searching hard for pitching, and the Rays really want to add help in the bullpen (particularly with the possibility that Troy Percival will retire).
The Brewers have interest in both Peavy and Mark DeRosa, but apparently not right away. It seems the Brewers want their team to first prove it can be a contender, worthy of a midseason addition.
The Marlins have made it known they'll be willing to talk about Jorge Cantu or Dan Uggla, although they've also said they're not yet ready to give up in the National League East.
And then there's A's outfielder Matt Holliday, who was supposed to be the most exciting name on this summer's trade list (especially with the A's in last place). He could still be traded, but scouts are suggesting that the A's won't get as much for him as they would have hoped (and that he won't get as much on next winter's free-agent market as he would have hoped).
"He's so easy to pitch to right now it's unbelievable," said one scout who watched Holliday last week. "He just hits mistakes. He's rolling over fastballs he used to drive the other way. Maybe it's from working with Mark McGwire over the winter, because right now, his swing doesn't work. It looks like he's trying to get back to the way he hit in Colorado, but he's not there."
CC comes home: CC Sabathia doesn't spend too much time looking back, or at least he didn't want to look back when I asked him recently about the $140 million the Angels offered him last winter. He eventually signed with the Yankees for more than that ($161 million), but the Angels' offer show, confirmed by sources, shows how serious they were in their attempt to sign him (and also shows that he had another decent choice, besides the Yankees).
Sabathia might be more interested in a look back this week, because he'll pitch Saturday night in Cleveland, returning there for the first time since the Indians traded him to Milwaukee last July.
Did the Dodgers teach everyone how to pitch the Cubs? The Dodgers are at Wrigley Field this weekend, which has some people thinking back to last year's playoff series between the two teams. And with many Cubs struggling at the plate, some scouts are wondering if National League teams learned a lesson from the way the Dodgers pitched the Cubs last October.
One example: Geovany Soto, who went 2-for-11 in that series against the Dodgers. The Dodgers fed Soto a steady diet of sliders off the plate early in the count, then came back with fastballs that tied him up because he was still looking for the slider.
Scouts who have watched the Cubs this year say that now every team is pitching Soto that way. Entering play Sunday, Soto was hitting just .208.
Three games to watch:
1. Cardinals at Brewers, Monday -- Weren't the Cubs supposed to own this division? Well, maybe not, and two reasons are the pitchers who will match up on Monday at Miller Park. Chris Carpenter goes for the Cardinals, Yovani Gallardo for the Brewers.
2. Rays at Indians, Monday -- Seven weeks later after opening day, the Rays find themselves right at the .500 mark. So let's just pretend the record's 0-0, and the season is starting with David Price in the rotation. Price makes his 2009 debut Monday night at Progressive Field, which might well give the Indians something else to be unhappy about.
3. Tigers at Royals, Tuesday -- Zack Greinke vs. Justin Verlander would have had more star power, but Greinke (tops in the AL with an 0.82 ERA) vs. Edwin Jackson (fourth in the league at 2.55) isn't bad, either.
