Chicago White Sox Community Roundtable: Week 5

1. With the way the hitting has been lately, do you feel that Greg Walker's job should be in jeopardy?

Dieter Kurtenbach: I'm not a fan of Greg Walker, but I think that he is a good guy and should not be the scapegoat for the lack of hitting on this team. It's not his fault and he shouldn't be fired for it, frankly. This team strikes out entirely too much. There isn't a player on this team who doesn't have at least minimal strikeout issues. Alas, I think that the recent issues at the plate can be solved with a simple lineup shift and a benching or too. I think the lack of a spark plug at the top of the order is detrimental to this team. As much as I wanted to accept that Swisher could be a good leadoff hitter, despite his unconvention, this offensive dependency on the longball (currently leading the AL, yet remain in the bottom half of the AL in total bases) will be the downfall of this team. As much as I love Carlos Quentin, but unless he can play second base full time or Danny Richar is ready to play every day at the top of the order, Jerry Owens needs to be moved up to the show and the White Sox need to see what he can do on a regular basis. 

Chris Pennant: In a town like Chicago, you never know.  Kenny Williams has never been gun-shy and every team in this town loves to point the finger at the coaches and managers.  That said, I don't think Walk's job should be on the line.  All teams go through bad stretches during the season, and last season was an aberration.  All the interviews and articles say that the team still feels good and is ready to break out of this slump.

Aaron Rusnak: I thought he should have been gone after last year's debacle. He's taken his second chance and done nothing with it. Get him out of here, or at least put him at first base and see what Harold can do.

Leo Londono: I am not so sure its Walker's fault, although for a team to have been slumping for an entire year and 30 some odd games into this one, it does look very suspicious. My argument is this: how do you blame Walker? He has proven veteran hitters on his team. Baseball is a game of stats and history. We know Konerko can hit at least 30 homers a year because he has for the last four or five. We know Thome can do the same if not more, and Dye as well. Teams are never as good as they look when they are clicking on all cylinders and never as bad as they are when slumping. But Sox fans have to ask, why the "team slump?" Usually it's two or three hitters, not an entire team. Why is Quentin the only bright spot? As mind-boggling as it is, and as much as we search for answers, it comes down to the players, and I think the players are all the same. Let me explain. I know Thome is no Uribe, and Uribe is no Konerko and Konerko is no Dye. But as an opposing  pitcher, you would pitch to them the same way. They are the same type of hitter. Aggressive on the fastball, can hit the occasional changeup, keep any breaking balls low in the zone and they will swing away. Throw a hard slider down and away at Uribe and he's gone. Throw a sweeping breaking ball low and away to Thome and he can't resist, down and in on Dye and he thinks he can get his hands inside of the pitch. Ultimately, I think it comes down to the mental thought process that is going through each players head, and maybe it falls on the players, not Walker.

TJ March: If it were younger, rookie/sophomore hitters struggling, I would be much more inclined to say yes. However, the hitters that are currently having the most trouble at the plate are veterans. Thome, Konerko, Dye, Swisher, and Crede are all professional veteran hitters who know (or should know) how to correct whatever is currently wrong with their swings. If it was Quentin and Anderson struggling to put the bat on the ball, I would wholeheartedly say yes.

Thomas Barbee: Should it be in jeopardy? No. Will it be? Probably. As I said in my previous article ("In the Mind of White Sox Hitting Coach Greg Walker: Stop Blaming Me"), Greg Walker cannot be blamed for the slumping veterans on the team. If you look at what he's done for guys like Carlos Quentin, Brian Anderson, and the re-emergence of Joe Crede—you can't say he hasn't helped. With many of the guys in the lineup being over the age of thirty, there isn't a lot for a hitting coach to tell them to make much difference. If anything, this should be a time that we look to see how good of a manager Ozzie Guillen will be this year—if he's able to make the lineup changes to help spark the offense again, he will truly prove his worth.

Steve Jankowski: Yes. One year of bad hitting can be chalked up to an aberration. Two (if this year turns out as bad as last year) is a trend, and the only person you can look to for that is the hitting coach.

JJ Stankevitz: Walker is the easy scapegoat for these offensive struggles—especially considering what happened last year—but at this point, aging, slow veterans are to blame. Firing Walker might light a fire under these hitters for a little while, but the next hitting coach can't turn back the clock to 2006 for Jim Thome and Paul Konerko.

2. Do you think some of the recently slumping hitters—Swisher, Thome, Konerko, Crede to name a few—will pull out of their slumps sooner or later, if ever?

Dieter Kurtenbach: Every hitter slumps, and apparently our big hitters are all on the same cycle. I hear that happens when they live in closed quarters together for long enough. Frankly, Thome is the most inconsistent big slugger in the game, so I would be lying to you if I thought that he would stop striking out at this clip for a while.

Chris Pennant: Konerko, as we all know, has a history of starting slow. He'll warm up by the middle of the month, if the trend holds true. The middle of the order might take a while to heat up; Thome does not look like he's going to finish the season above .270, no matter what the team does. I think Konerko will start to hit very soon, along with JD and Swisher. They hit the ball hard in Minnesota, but the outfielders took a lot of hits away.

Aaron Rusnak: Something tells me this team isn't going to be hitting .200 all year. These guys will pull through at some point—they're major leaguers. But maybe they won't. Maybe they will just be pathetic the whole year like last year was.

Leo Londono: I think they will. The problem is that they are all power hitters, and it's all or nothing with these guys. I would much rather see them string together three or four base hits than to see a three-run bomb. When the Sox are getting base hits, its when they are dangerous because the long ball threat is always there and if you string together some hits, then the longball, that makes for a potent offense. Baseball is full of streaks and slumps, and yes, even luck, so I think with the Sox being proven hitters, they will bounce back sooner rather than later.

TJ March: Swisher, Konerko, and Thome all have on-base percentages at, or above, .350. As long as they are still working counts, getting pitches they like, and getting on base, I couldn't care less if they all hit below the Mendoza Line. Once again, they are all veteran hitters. They know what they need to do to get back into the swing of things (pun intended).

Thomas Barbee: Well, I think that some people forget that most of the guys in our lineup have never hit for a high average. Nick Swisher, as much as he gets on base, had his highest career batting average last year at .262. Meanwhile Joe Crede, outside of his banner year in 2006, has never hit above .261 in a full season. That's not to say that none of these guys will get better, because they all have the capability to turn it around, but what both fans and GM Kenny Williams have to realize is that this is a pretty old team. That being said, I'd expect Swisher, Konerko and Cabrera to pull out of their respective slumps soon.

Steve Jankowski: I think they can if they can find a new approach, and part of that rests with Walker. If not, then we may see a repeat of 2007, only with a better bullpen.

JJ Stankevitz: I think Swisher and Crede will be fine in the long run, but I'm not sold that Thome and Konerko will ever really pull out of their slumps. There really isn't much the organization can do except hope they miraculously start hitting better.

3. A lot of glaring similarities to 2007 have shown up in the last week or so of games. Do you think these are part of a simple slump or a sign of things to come?

Dieter Kurtenbach: This is Ozzie's test. Last year, he let the team wallow in slumps instead of shaking things up and seeing what happened. By the time the season was over, the Sox were in a slump that had lasted 162 games. Ozzie needs to shake things up. I think it starts at the top of the lineup with Owens or Richar.

Chris Pennant: It's tough to say. After a season like last season, it's difficult not to have flashbacks and worry about the worst coming true.  But the pitching staff hasn't wilted yet, and the hitters are still in there trying.  Ozzie has juggled the lineup already for tonight's game, which is a good sign: he's willing to try and spark things. My bottom line: if the Sox break even this week or even one over .500, I'm calling it an early-season slump. If they finish the week with a losing record, then we might have to pull the fire alarm.

Aaron Rusnak: I really have no idea. Something tells me the slump could end tonight or in this upcoming homestand. But, something tells me they will be awful the whole year like 2007. I really have no clue. The difference is this year, they started hitting the ball okay, and now have slumped. Last year, the whole season was awful, so hopefully they can get the form they had the first few weeks of this year back.

Leo Londono: Simple slump. We will come out of it as long as Ozzie makes a move. The lineup needs to be mixed up a bit. Ozzie needs to realize that Thome should be hitting fifth, not third and the Quentin should move up in the lineup along with AJ—putting your hot bats where they need to be. This patience game Ozzie plays every year is wearing thin and I'm not so sure its the way to go about it. We are getting great pitching and nothing to show for it. Its the managers job to minimize the damage and show the strengths on his ballclub. So far, Ozzie has shown nothing of the like.

TJ March: Yes, a lot of similarities have shown up. However, there are still shining stars. The Sox are still getting on base, still pitching, and Quentin and Pierzynski are still hitting. Ask the 1906 White Sox how having the worst average in baseball works. In fact, better example, ask the 2007 Arizona D-Backs. As long as the, '08 White Sox are getting on base and throwing the ball like they have been, the bats will keep them afloat.

Thomas Barbee: Part of it is a slump, and like I said before, part of it is the fact that we've got a bunch of older sluggers on the team. At this point, the best numbers Jim Thome can put up is somewhere around a .260 average with 30 homers. Not bad, but not what you want out of a guy that's the heart of your lineup. What I like about the Sox this year though is that they're still fighting, and the pitching is keeping them in a lot of games—that's going to help the Sox a lot this year.

Steve Jankowski: They haven't hit all that well this year, they just got a bunch of clutch hits late in games early this season, but now, they aren't getting any key hits in big spots.  It could be a simple slump, but I'm feeling a little deja vu over here.

JJ Stankevitz: It's impossible to get those images of 2007 out of your head if you're a Sox fan. Through this stretch, it's been all too easy to say "here we go again!" The key, though, is to remember that the pitching is leaps and bounds better than it was last year. I don't see it falling off any time soon, so as long as we can get some semblance of an offense, I think we'll contend for the division.

4. Finally, a hypothetical: you're Kenny Williams. There's a big hitter on the market who would likely jump-start this lineup, but leave for a large contract after this year. Do you mortgage what you have left in the farm system (Fields, Broadway, etc.) to get the hitter? The larger question: do you think the Sox have a realistic chance to still win this year?

Dieter Kurtenbach: The problem is the sluggers. We need more solid guys to get on base that can move and play defense, like Carlos Quentin and Nick Swisher. Frankly, if this continues, Josh Fields might be a better option than any bat on the open market, but it is far to early to panic just yet.

Chris Pennant: It's way too early for a fire sale, and the farm system has been ravaged in recent years by Kenny's willingness to make a big market move. Jim Thome is not looking like he'll be productive past this season (or even last season), and we lost some good prospects and Rowand to get him. Don't spring for a big bat unless it's the end of July and we're only batting .260.

Aaron Rusnak: I think this year, they can contend with what they have. Once they start hitting again, they will be back atop the division. The question is this, though: will they start hitting again? I don't necessarily think adding one big bopper to the lineup will jump-start us anyway, so I leave the minor league system as is. 

Leo Londono: No, I stand pat. The last thing we need is another "big bat." We need table setters and speed. When the offense goes into a slump like we are, you have to find ways to get on base and score. Speed helps with that tremendously and we dont have much of it.  I say, sit on the Fields trade for a bit and see what the ballclub really needs and who needs what in the marketplace. We can hold Fields for ransom, as they say, when the timing is right later in the year. The club doesn't look that bad when we are hitting the ball and our pitching is solid. Kenny's wheels are turning but I don't think I'd make a move just yet.

TJ March: A big bat? No, the White Sox have plenty of so-called "Big Bats." If a veteran lead-off hitter, a Johnny Damon, Coco Crisp, ect, then I would have to think about it. What the Sox need most though is another starter. If a Millwood, Randy Wolf, ect, becomes free, then yes, I would think about trading Fields or Broadway to bring him in in order to win this year. They are relying too heavily on Floyd, Danks, and Contreras. There will be hiccups during the 162 game season. It would be beneficial to have an alternative if one shows signs of falling off the edge.

Thomas Barbee: If I were Kenny Williams, I'd hold off on trading any more minor league talent unless the deal is just too good to pass up. This is the time for Williams to show off his creativity as a GM. There are a few pieces that he could stand to move (Thome, Uribe, possibly Dye and Crede) that offer a good amount of value for a lot of teams out there. In return he could get guys that would help improve the Sox current weaknesses (someone that hits to the opposite field, high BA would be nice, etc.). Getting a guy like Ryan Freel would be a nice addition, for example, or maybe even Clint Barmes. Small additions like that could be a great help to the Sox so that they can win this year without betting the farm to do it.

Steve Jankowski: First the hypothetical: No, don't mortgage the future for this year. There isn't much left in the farm system, and I'd rather keep that and build a solid young core for the future (look at the Blackhawks).  Secondly, I think their pitching will give them a chance to win the division this year, mainly because of the issues the Tigers have had, and the Indians aren't exactly dominant.  They have a shot, just not a great one.

JJ Stankevitz: Trading Fields, Broadway, Poreda (sorry, had to do it even though they can't trade him yet), or any of the other higher-level prospects would be a terrible move at this point. We're going to need Fields to replace Crede and Broadway to replace Contreras as early as next year. Unless they can bring in huge parts that we sorely need, I say we don't sell the farm and play for a few years down the road while trying to win with what we have right now.