Sox-O-Meter... The Vazquez Trade

After plenty of speculation, rumors, and hearsay, the White Sox and Braves officially finalized their 6-player deal that sent Javier Vazquez from Ozzie Guillen's doghouse to the middle of the National League East (still trying to figure out whether or not Javier got the raw end of this deal). I'm going out drinking a little bit later, so let's get right to the nitty gritty. 1st part of the Sox-O-Meter measures how much I'll miss the guys that we're saying good-bye, too; 5 Sox mean I'll be holding a candlelight vigil outside of the Cell later this week, 1 Sox means I would stuff the guy in a box and maybe send him Express 2-day mail to Atlanta... If the Sox would let me.

JAVIER VAZQUEZ

I know that everyone is ready to shit all over Javier because his last four starts in a White Sox uniform (the last, of course, being his Game 1 Meltdown in the ALDS) were god awful: 4 G, 0-4 record, 24 ER, 16.1 IP, 13.22 ERA, 24 H, 8 BB 1.960 WHIP, and 18 K.

Ouch. Of course, the book on Javier has always been a guy with A+ stuff and F- balls and his meltdown in 4 of the Sox's biggest games didn't do much to discredit that reputation. But this is still a guy who over the last 9 years has averaged 216 IP and 193 K every 162 games. Those kind of pitchers don't just grow on trees, and for all the huffing and puffing that Javier was a April/May pitcher, I never got the memo that stated games in April and May meant less in the standings than games in September. Yes, he wilted under the pressure, but he still showed up and ate a lot of innings and preformed, at worst at the league average. Unfortunately, I think a lot of people are getting caught in the "Javier Sucks" hype that started when Ozzie called him out, escalated when Javier stupidly said he'd rather spend his time on a beach in Puerto Rico, and was sealed when he performed with the same effectiveness of a BP pitcher.





Look, I knew this was a move that was going to be made back when Ozzie Guillen publicly mused he would start Clayton Richard over Javier had the ALDS made it to a Game 5. Once you're in the Ozzie Doghouse, you don't come back out, but right now there are two very big holes at the back of the White Sox rotation, and unless the Sox add another starter to help shore up the rotation, I have a bad feeling that a lot of people will be pining for Javier by midseason.

BOONE LOGAN
Awesome name. Awful pitcher. Does anyone remember that on June 14, Logan had an ERA under 1.90 and he still finished with an ERA approaching 6? Do you realize how bad you have to be to raise your ERA 4 runs over 18.1 IP? 23 ER, a FOUR HUNDRED BAA, an OPS Against of 1.211 (for comparison, the all-time career OPS leader, Babe Ruth, posted a 1.163 during his career). The fact that Boone's a lefty doesn't even save him now, Matt Thornton's impressive season and Aaron Poreda's probable move to the bullpen mean the Sox have no need for more left-handed arms, especially left-handed arms that only get about 55% of opposing batters out.





Not only would I not ship Logan Express to Atlanta, I would probably first mail him to Prague just so he had to sit in the box for a few extra days.

All right, now we're to the 4 players we get back. Again, the Sox-O-Meter is on a scale of 1 to 5, 5 being I'm psyched for this guy, 1 meaning, I have no idea why he was included.

TYLER FLOWERS

The centerpiece of this deal from the Sox's perspective, and Kenny Williams called him a potential All-Star. Plus power. Plus power. But unlike the Sox's previous dabbles with power prospects (Joe Borchard), Flowers seems to understand that concept known as the "strike zone." Last season, in the Carolina League, he posted a .427 OBP and walked 98 times, while still hitting 17 HR, driving in 88 runs, and slugging .494, 5th best in the league amongst guys who spend their entire season in the Carolina League. It would also be nice to point out now that Flowers played insanely well during the AFL, hitting .387/.460/.973 with the Mesa Solar Sox.

The one downside to Flowers I've read have been some questions about his defensive ability behind the plate, but luckily the Sox will likely be shedding Jim Thome after 2009, Paul Konerko after 2010, and Jermaine Dye either after '09 or '10, depending on whether or not his option is exercised. Looks like there'll be some room for him.





Kenny hit a home run here, acquiring a guy with a monster bat who fits in much better in the American League.

BRENT LILLIBRIDGE
Lillibridge absolutely fell apart at the plate last year. After hitting between .275-.300 for most of his first three seasons in the minors, he posted a .220 BA in 90 games in AAA Richmond and then a .200 BA in 29 games with the Braves. Williams called him a supersub in the same style as Pablo Ozuna, but for all the crap Ozuna got around here, he still hit .290 in his 3 1/2 years with the Sox... Looks like big shoes to fill for Lillibridge. Considering the Sox lineup right now might have as many as three gaping holes (Getz/Nix at 2B, Fields at 3B, Anderson in CF), there's only so much offense you can give up.





Whatever, I don't expect anyone to recognize the name Brent Lillibridge in 5 years, except for the high school kids back in Everett, Washington that he'll be coaching by then.

Drinking time now... More to come later. Check back tonight or tomorrow!

Sox-O-Meter... The Ken Griffey Trade

Well, by now everyone's certainly heard that the White Sox acquired Ken Griffey, Jr. from the Reds today for Nick Masset and Danny Richar. Let's analyze!

1 Sox = getting/giving this player will not do well for the White Sox, 5 Sox = Having/unloading this player will be awesome for the Pale Hose.

KEN GRIFFEY, JR.
Obviously not the player he was even a few years, ago but can still be an impact bat. He still gets on base at a .355 clip, but he's only slugging .432 this season, down over 100 points from his career average and 50-60 points below both of his last 2 seasons. All this despite playing in the bandbox known as The Great American Ballpark.

PROS: Despite some injury troubles in Cincinnati, he's been remarkably healthy the last 2 years, playing in 246 of the Reds' 271 games in '07 and '08. As I said, I still like his OBP and his 61/64 BB:K ratio is something that is sorely lacking on this team. For reference, that is 1 walk for every 1.05 strikeouts. Meanwhile, the Sox have collectively walked 372 times and struck out 667 times; a walk every 1.79 strikeouts. The Reds are picking up a chunk of Griffey's contract and the Sox really didn't give up much to acquire him.

CONS: Well, I don't know where he's going to play. Griffey has not played a game in CF since September 4, 2006. He's been in RF for the last 2 years, and while his numbers are still all right (7 outfield assists... Nice), I don't know if Old Legs is really the answer the Sox were looking for defensively. Sandwiched between Quentin and Dye, that's got to be one of the league's slower outfields, but the White Sox play in one the smaller outfields.

VERDICT


A nice pickup, he's another left-handed bat to break up the righty dominated middle of the Sox order and if the rumors are true, he's replacing Paul Konerko in the lineup. Couple that with the reduced salary the Sox are paying and the fact that Williams didn't have to part with any big-time prospects. A classic low-risk, high-reward trade.

NICK MASSET
Masset came to the Sox in the McCarthy-Danks trade and was never able to wiggle his way into the Sox rotation. Though he's only started a pair of games, he's looked good in both. Of course, we remember his memorable win over Carlos Zambrano and the Cubs last season, but in his time in the White Sox bullpen, Masset had his successes and failures.

PROS: Not a whole lot from the White Sox perspective. Masset struggled in the bullpen and with 4 veteran starters ahead of him and a handful of more intriguing pitchers behind him, Masset was never going to get a chance to pitch every 5th day in Chicago. He may be able to win that opportunity with the Reds.

CONS: Again, not that many. Granted, the White Sox bullpen has been a mess lately, but Masset's not the answer. His career ERA in the bullpen is 5.75 and a whopping 8.31 in the 2nd half of the season. I think Nick still has a promising future if he can learn how to harness all his pitches, but he wasn't going to be a key guy for the Sox in 2008.

VERDICT

I mean, he's still on the 25-man roster so the Sox obviously felt he was better (or at least, more polished) than the arms in Charlotte and Birmingham, but his future is not with this organization.

DANNY RICHAR
Though he looked to be the starting second baseman when Spring Training started in February, visa troubles and injuries completely derailed his season. Currently he's hitting .262/.321/.427 with the Knights.

PROS/CONS: Richar made himself expendable and the White Sox suddenly find themselves flush with middle infield talent. Alexei Ramirez is obviously a keeper, he's had a great rookie season in Chicago with presumably a few years of maturing to go. Chris Getz is having a nice little year in Charlotte and has made himself a fan favorite of Sox farmhand watchers. Hell, 1st round pick Gordon Beckham may only need a few seasons of seasoning before he's ready to debut in the Show, if he's as good as the hype. Double hell, even Juan Uribe, who is a superior defensive infielder has even looked somewhat competent with the bat since getting PT to cover for Joe Crede.

All in all, middle infield is a position of depth and strength for the White Sox. While Richar might have been a nice option at 2nd base if Orlando Cabrera doesn't resign with the Sox (which he reportedly won't), it's not like the cupboard is bare. Williams has supposedly been taking a long hard look at Orlando Hudson, the Diamondbacks second baseman who will be a free agent this winter. OK, so the last 2 FA's Williams targeted were Torii Hunter and Aaron Rowand, and we know how that worked out, but there are a lot of options, with or without Danny.

VERDICT

No real loss here. Danny's a nice talent, but he's not a blue chipper, and if he's the pivotal player you give up in a deal, you can't be very upset.