2008 MLB Preview: Chicago White Sox

I'm even more skeptical about Floyd. The White Sox brass has been raving about what Floyd has done this spring, which is curious because his spring ERA is 6.55. 

Floyd did have a few good starts last year (namely, a couple against Detroit), but I'm not so sure he can be consistent over a full season. Don't be surprised if he and Contreras both find themselves with ERAs well above 5.00 at the end of the season.

I've been saying all offseason that, for the Sox to contend, they're going to need all three of Danks, Contreras, and Floyd to pitch well. The way I see it, only one of those three will pitch well, and thus, this team will fall out of contention unless GM Kenny Williams can swing a trade that brings in two bona fide starting pitchers, something almost certainly won't happen given the state of the White Sox farm system.

Starting rotation grade: C+

Bullpen

While Bobby Jenks may not throw in the upper 90's like he did in 2005, he doesn't need to. Jenks has learned how to pitch over the last two seasons, sacrificing velocity for accuracy on his fastball. He's also added a very good cut fastball to go along with his devastating 12-6 curve that makes him one of the best closers in the game.

Don't believe me? Ask any one of the 42 batters he retired in a row last season.

Jenks was about the only bright spot in the White Sox bullpen last year (Ehren Wasserman excluded, he only pitched about two months and may not even make this year's Opening Day roster) that, like the offense, mysteriously struggled after doing so well in 2006.

Matt Thornton turned in a subpar year after being so good in 2006 (ERA of 3.33 in 54 innings), throwing 56.1 innings with a 4.79 ERA. I don't expect Thornton to pitch as well as he did in 2006, but I do expect him to see a little bit of improvement and have his ERA settle somewhere in the low-four range.

Boone Logan will be the other left-handed in the Sox bullpen this year. Logan, who will turn just 24 in August, has struggled through his first two MLB seasons with a career ERA of 5.82.

However, there are a lot of people in the White Sox community who think Logan is due for a big year. His fastball is creeping up into the mid-90's and you have to keep in mind that he spent the majority of his minor league career in rookie ball before surprisingly making the MLB squad in 2006. 

If Logan emerges into the pitcher many think he can be, it'll take a lot of pressure off Thornton to be the No. 1 lefty in the White Sox bullpen, taking him out of a lot of the pressure situations that he struggled in last year.

From the right side, the additions of Linebrink and Dotel give some much-needed depth to this bullpen. Both of the free agent signees are seasoned veterans who should be counted on to pitch in big spots.

I don't expect Linebrink to be as good as he was in San Diego (which was largely due to the park he was pitching in), but he still should be a quality eighth inning setup man.

Dotel has struggled in spring training, but if he can stay off the disabled list, I think he'll be just fine pitching in the seventh or eighth inning as well.

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