White Sox ST Update: Third Base Concerns, Offense Pops Against A’s

March 23, 2009 By Leave a Comment
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Josh Fields - Spring Training - White SoxErrors, errors, errors.

That has been the common theme that I have been witnessing first hand at White Sox Spring Training. It would not be so bad if they were spread out amongst the team but it all seems to be Josh Fields, whose fielding percentage thus far in Spring Traning is .885. I was in a much better position during the game against the A’s to really look at what he is seeing and how he is reacting.

He appears to be reading the ball just fine. What he does not seem to be able to do is to make a commitment on how and when is going to field it. With complete understanding of what a hot corner third base is, it should be understood that it will take him time to get into his comfort zone. Right now I think the only thing that is saving him is his hitting. I just want to know how long it is going to be until Ozzie has seen enough of Fields’ defense.

The 12-10 victory over the A’s began with a hitting barrage by the visiting White Sox. It was a relief after the effort that was seen against the Cubs. It was nice to see Wilson Betemit playing first base well and hitting the ball with such power. I think he will make a great second tier guy not only at first base but at other infield positions.

Jermaine Dye, however, did not look as good as I thought he would have. His choices of pitches to swing at was questionable and he always appeared to be swinging for the high home run. Of course Jim Thome hit a towering home run that bounced quite ironically of a Hooters restaurant sign.

All in all the team put together a nice offensive game.

Prior to the game I spent the morning over at Camelback Ranch getting to watch the minor league team workout. I was impressed with Dayan Viciedo and how relaxed he looks. Could he be a sizable Cuban presence in the White Sox organization in the future? If so, he appears to be making great strides in his transition to the major and minor league baseball in the States.

The stories are true. He is a big kid. Shedding some weight will definitely improve his quickness in the field, which really is not all that bad already. His hitting was in great form. He was being worked out at third base and from what I have been told that is where he is going to be playing while he is in the system. I think that it is only a matter of time and he will be up in the big leagues. My feeling is that he will be starting at third base before this year’s All-Star break.

Josh Fields photo credit: AP Photo/M. Spencer Green

Filed Under: Featured Column, MLB Tagged With: Chicago White Sox, dayan viciedo, jermaine dye, josh fields, MLB, spring training 2009

White Sox 2009 Spring Training Schedule Begins Today

February 25, 2009 By Leave a Comment

The first official pitch of Spring Training begins this afternoon for the Chicago White Sox at 2:05 CT when the team takes on the Angels in the opening of Cactus League action.

If you are planning to go to any of the White Sox 2009 Spring Training games, here is a helpful resource for tickets at StubHub:

Chicago White Sox Spring Training Tickets

Below is the complete 2009 Spring Training schedule for the White Sox, including the times and TV listings for each game. (Be sure to check out the links underneath it for the most up-to-date White Sox news from around the web.)




Chicago White Sox 2009 Spring Training Schedule

Date Game Time TV
Wed. 2/25 White Sox v Angels 2:05 PM None
Thu. 2/26 White Sox v Rockies 2:10 PM None
Fri. 2/27 White Sox v Diamondbacks 2:05 PM None
Sat. 2/28 White Sox v Cubs 2:05 PM None
Sun. 3/1 White Sox v Dodgers 2:05 PM CSN/MLBN
Mon. 3/2 White Sox v Mariners 2:05 PM MLB.TV
Wed. 3/4 SS White Sox v Athletics 2:05 PM None
Wed. 3/4 SS White Sox v Cubs 9:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 3/5 SS White Sox v Dodgers 2:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 3/5 SS White Sox v Cubs 3:05 PM MLBN
Fri. 3/6 White Sox v Australia 2:05 PM None
Sat. 3/7 White Sox v Rangers 2:05 PM None
Sun. 3/8 White Sox v Dodgers 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Mon. 3/9 White Sox v Indians 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Wed. 3/11 White Sox v Brewers 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 3/12 White Sox v Royals 3:05 PM None
Fri. 3/13 White Sox v Padres 3:05 PM None
Sat. 3/14 White Sox v Rangers 3:05 PM CSN/MLBN
Sun. 3/15 White Sox v Mariners 3:05 PM None
Mon. 3/16 White Sox v Royals 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Tue. 3/17 White Sox v Diamondbacks 3:05 PM None
Wed. 3/18 White Sox v Angels 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 3/19 White Sox v Giants 3:05 PM None
Fri. 3/20 White Sox v Giants 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Sat. 3/21 White Sox v Cubs 3:05 PM CSN/MLBN
Sun. 3/22 White Sox v Athletics 3:05 PM None
Tue. 3/24 White Sox v Indians 3:05 PM CSN
Wed. 3/25 White Sox v Athletics 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 3/26 White Sox v Diamondbacks 3:05 PM CSN
Fri. 3/27 White Sox v Cubs 3:05 PM None
Sat. 3/28 White Sox v Dodgers 3:05 PM WGN
Sun. 3/29 White Sox v Diamondbacks 3:05 PM None
Mon. 3/30 White Sox v Angels 3:05 PM None
Tue. 3/31 White Sox v Rockies 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Wed. 4/1 White Sox v Padres 3:05 PM MLB.TV
Thu. 4/2 White Sox v Brewers 2:05 PM CSN/MLBN
Fri. 4/3 White Sox v Diamondbacks 8:40 PM None
Sat. 4/4 White Sox v Diamondbacks 3:10 PM None
       
  *-MLB.TV games available online    
  *-MLBN is MLB Network    

Chicago White Sox 2009 Spring Training TV ScheduleAnd now a few White Sox links as you get prepared for the opening pitch of Spring Training:

Great White Sox 2009 season preview, including a vote for Jenny McCarthy as a candidate for hottest White Sox fan ever — (Sharapova’s Thigh)

Battle for Second Base job heats up — (Chisox.com)

Ozzie wants Floyd to take the slow road — (Sun-Times)

Gordon Beckham makes Baseball America’s Top 20 — (MSF)

Preparing for the return of the one-tool leadoff man — (Sox Machine)

Who’s on Catcher? — (South Side Sox)

Roster Roulette — (Scott Merkin White Sox Blog on MLB.com)

Filed Under: MLB Tagged With: Chicago White Sox, MLB, spring training 2009

Chicago Cubs: 2009 Spring Training Non-Roster Invitee Breakdown – Hitters

January 24, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Chicago Cubs 2009 Non-Roster Invitee HittersYesterday, I wrote about the 2009 Non-Roster Invitee pitchers and today I am concluding with the position players, categorized as either suspect or prospect.

Here is the list of NRI hitters:

C Mark Johnson
C Welington Castillo
C Steve Clevenger
SS Darwin Barney
SS Andres Blanco
SS/3B Erick Almonte
2B/SS Luis Rivas
2B/3B Bobby Scales
OF Doug Deeds
OF Jason Dubois
OF So Taguchi

C-Mark Johnson-The 33-year old former 1st round pick of the Chicago White Sox. He is a suspect that is likely competing for a spot at Iowa’s AAA roster alongside Tony Richie if Koyie Hill ends up as Soto’s back-up. Johnson won’t hit for average or power as he lacks bat speed, as one of the best eyes in the minors, decent arm strength, and pitchers generally like pitching to him.

C-Welington Castillo-Definite prospect. Baseball America has him ranked #5 in their 2009 Baseball Handbook (which is always a must buy for any baseball fan) and it appears he made strides offensively since last seen at Peoria. With that said, I’m not as sold on him even though it was two years ago. He does have a strong arm, but I wasn’t impressed with his footwork as his pop time to 2B was league average around 1.95 seconds from home to 2B and did not show good mobility behind the plate, appearing to get lazy at times. Offensively, he showed fair bat speed and an ability to hit to all fields. I doubt he’ll ever be a hitter that will hit for a high average or much power, his ceiling is that of a starting major league catcher, but I think he is more likely to end up in the Henry Blanco mold of back-up catchers.

C-Steve Clevenger-Prospect. Right now, he is behind Castillo as the 2nd best C in the organization. Depending on whether or not you consider Sam Fuld a prospect, Clevenger has the best approach and eye of any Cubs minor leaguer and his ability to improve defensively will determine whether or not he can continue his climb through the minors. He swings a level bat with great contact spraying the ball to all fields and lacks power. If he progresses defensively, he can become an everyday catcher or he might mold into a Tyler Houston type of role with the ability to both C and play the infield as a reserve.

SS-Darwin Barney-Prospect. A 4th round pick out of Oregon St., Darwin Barney reminds of Ryan Theriot in some ways. I don’t think he has the bat of Theriot but is very similar as far as having tools to carry him through the minors without any of them standing out much. Barney’s best tool is his hands as he fields the ball extremely clean with fair range and average to slightly below average arm strength.  He is extremely instinctive in the field. Offensively, he struggles to center the ball and will not hit for power, this will likely put him as a projected utility player brought in for defensive purposes. As a baserunner, he has average running speed and good instincts on the basepaths. I wasn’t a fan of the drafting of Theriot out of LSU in 2001 as a 3rd round pick and I was wrong.  Hopefully I will be wrong about Barney as well given that 4th round picks shouldn’t be used on marginal players.

SS-Andres Blanco-Suspect. Blanco is a 24 year old SS who spent his first 7 years with KC after being singed as a free agent by the Cubs last year. One of the more spectacular fielding shortstops around with a strong arm and good range, his ability to field is overshadowed by his bat. Offensively, there’s not much there as he’s not physically strong enough to generate any bat speed or center the ball. I don’t see him beating out Matt Camp or Matt Matulia at Iowa for the SS spot.

SS-Erick Almonte-Suspect. Soon to be 31-year old SS has spent the majority of his career with the Yankees and played with Detroit at AAA last year. He shows decent pull power, won’t hit for a high average, has decent hands and arm strength. Like Ronny Cedeno, he will get careless on routine plays.

2B/SS-Luis Rivas-Suspect. Former top prospect of the Twins who, as a career major league back-up, has amassed well over 2000 major league ABs. His best year was probably in 2001 when hit .266/.319/.362 and stole over 30 bases. He is a plus defender in all areas (arm, hands, and range) but at the plate he doesn’t for power since he isn’t particularly strong and will strike out too often for someone who doesn’t drive the ball.

2B/3B-Bobby Scales-Suspect. 31-year old 2B/3B who played at Iowa last year and hit .320 with 15HRs. Scales is one of the guys that you always root for, one of the nicer guys in all of baseball, and he is someone that hasn’t had that call-up yet. He is undersized with good hands, not a strong arm with decent range, generates power his good bat speed, and an average runner. Personally, I know the odds of him making the 25 man roster aren’t very good and that he’ll likely go to Iowa and fight for a roster spot, but he’s the one that I am hoping makes the biggest impression down in Mesa.

OF-Doug Deeds-Suspect-26 year old RF who has a nice short compact stroke from the left side, who doesn’t generate enough power to play at the corners at the major league level. Defensively, he has a strong and accurate arm with good instincts but is a slightly below average runner.

OF-Jason Dubois-Former Cubs prospect who has bounced around a few times since leaving the Cubs. One of the stronger guys in the game who when he centers the ball will send it a long ways. He is built like a Mack truck at 6’5” 230LBs of mostly muscle and with that strength comes the flaws in his game. Mechanically, his swing is long and rigid and he lacks the speed, range, and mobility of a decent OF’er despite the strong arm. Dubois is likely to return to Iowa to destroy the thin Pacific Coast League air.

OF-So Taguchi-39 yo. former Cardinal, and Phillies OF’er who is unlikely to beat out Gathright for that 5th OF’er and more likely in Mesa being a confidant for Fukudome. Fundamentally sound CF’er who can hit lefties at a decent clip, won’t hit for power or draw many BBs.

Filed Under: Featured Column, MLB, Uncategorized Tagged With: chicago cubs, spring training 2009

Chicago Cubs: Breaking Down the 2009 Spring Training Non-Roster Invitee List: Part I – Pitchers

January 23, 2009 By Leave a Comment

Chicago Cubs 2009 Spring Training Non-Roster InviteesEach year the Cubs will invite 20 or so players that are not included on the 40 man roster who will participate in Spring Training with the Major leaguers, the Cubs also conduct a minor league as well at Fitch Park in Mesa, AZ. I will break these down these NRIs into prospect and suspect categories as well as the possibility of them making the 25 man roster out of camp.

Here is the complete list of the Chicago Cubs non-roster invitees to Spring Training 2009:

LHP Ed Campusano
RHP Andrew Cashner
RHP Esmailin Caridad
RHP Angel Castro
RHP Chad Fox
RHP Ken Kadokura
LHP J.R. Mathes
RHP Rocky Roquet
LHP Matt Smith
LHP Jason Waddell
LHP Bill White

C Mark Johnson
C Welington Castillo
C Steve Clevenger
SS Darwin Barney
SS Andres Blanco
SS/3B Erick Almonte
2B/SS Luis Rivas
2B/3B Bobby Scales
OF Doug Deeds
OF Jason Dubois
OF So Taguchi

Today, I will break down the pitchers:

LHP Ed Campusano- Definitely a prospect. Projects as a lefty specialist at the ML level, throws a low 90s FB with tail as well as a sharp 81-84 MPH slider and a show me change-up. Was taken as a Rule 5 pick by Milwaukee in 2006 and was immediately traded to Detroit and was returned to the Cubs. Campusano missed all of 2007 with Tommy John Surgery and spent 2008 rehabbing from that and like most coming off of TJS suffered with his control. I expect him to do well as Lou Piniella has already taken a liking to him as a future lefty specialist and I suspect that he has a chance to pitch this September when the rosters expand (assuming he starts at AA and recovers fully from the Tommy John Surgery).

RHP Andrew Cashner-Obvious prospect. Throughout the Winter I will have a feature called Prospect Corner and I will highlight prospects within the Cubs’ farm system and I will highlight as far as stuff, ceiling, starter or reliever, etc. Obviously with Cashner being a 1st round pick in the 2008 draft, he has a ML above average ceiling. Showcasing him with the major leaguers will likely be more for the Cubs coaching staff to see what they have in him. I do expect him to start at Peoria.

RHP-Esmailin Caridad-A 24-year old Latin American prospect who has an interesting story as far as his path to the Cubs minor league system. He was originally signed to play in a Japanese academy as well as various industrial leagues as a teenager and spent his final year (2007) playing in the Japanese Central League on the same roster as Kosuku Fukudome with Hiroshima Carp. The Cubs or Caridad’s agent/advisor found a loophole in the contract allowing to him to sign with a major league team and the Cubs with Hendry/Flieta have seen him pitch in the Domincan Republic and signed him for $175K, or 5th round money. He features a low 90s FB with probably the best curveball/change-up combo in the organization. I will highlight him in my prospect corner as well at a future date because he is in my top 20 prospects overall.

RHP-Angel Castro This is one of my favorite under the radar moves the Cubs did this past off-season. Angel Castro was drafted by the Tigers in ’06 in the 13th round. Physically, he is short and stocky for a pitcher at 5’11” 210 LBs. The Major League Scouting Bureau gave him a 53 on their OFP scale, which in draft terms meant he could’ve gone rounds 4-6, but he was drafted as a 23-year old, which hurt his stock as well as his size. He is said to have a FB that touches 95 with sub-par breaking stuff. I consider him a prospect more than a suspect because if he doesn’t make the 25 man roster, I expect to be at AA in the bullpen for the Smokies.

RHP-Chad Fox- The first of the suspects so far. I have a great deal respect for someone who has put the time and effort to go through the rehab as well as everyday weight strengthening, etc., but he’ll be 39 in September, and has throw all of 23IP since the 2003 season. When he was healthy he had an outstanding FB/slider combo, but with his stressful delivery and the toll it has taken on his arm, his stuff isn’t the same and I can’t imagine taking an assignment to Iowa at 38, if they offer him one.

LHP-Ken Kadokura-Signed him out the Japan who was released by Yomiuri Giants. He is a 35-year old lefty with a mid to upper 80s FB, slider, splitter and an occasional curve ball. Has suffered through some back problems in recent years and unlikely to break camp with the Cubs. Definite suspect.

LHP-JR Mathes-Drafted by the Cubs out of Western Michigan in the 16th round in 2004. The good sized lefty features a cutter as well as a sinker in the mid to upper 80s, serviceable change-up, and a below average breaking ball. As a 28-year old, he has probably run out of chances to make an impression and without a plus pitch, this might be his last chance. Another suspect.

RHP-Rocky Roquet-Signed as an undrafted FA (5th year senior) out of Cal Poly, he has progressed nicely through the Cubs organization. He should start out at AAA unless he is able to catch the eye of Piniella with a remote shot of making the 25 man roster. I say remote because he is very similar to Wuertz with an above FB and slider combo with inconsistent control. He’s still a prospect, but being 26, time is running out on that label.

LHP-Matt Smith-I’m unclear what his stuff is now after having Tommy John Surgery, but before that he was a lefty specialist with ML average FB (88-92) and a plus curve. Given that he has gone through the major injury as well as turning in July, he is most likely a suspect that might be given a shot in Iowa’s bullpen this year.

LHP-Jason Waddell-I like this acquisition among the lefties they have brought in to fill the lefty specialist role. I would say that he is the most likely to impress. He has the best sliders of the NRIs and throughout his minor league career has been extremely tough on the lefties. He’s a suspect given that he is 27 years old, but he is my sleeper of the pitcher NRIs.

LHP-Bill White-The other sleeper of the pitchers NRIs, it should be a good battle between him and Waddell as far as who is most likely to impress since it is an either/or type of scenario. Like Waddell he has a very good slider, but has the better FB of the two. Still a suspect given that is he 30 years old and in his two stints at the Ml level has failed to show good control.

Filed Under: MLB Tagged With: chicago cubs, spring training 2009