Imagination Land: White Sox Outfield

Imagine if the White Sox never...

(1) ...failed to re-sign Magglio Ordonez. After 2005, the future Hall of Famer right fielder has batted .323, belted 74 home runs, driven in 357 runs, and had a .380 OBP.

I'm not saying his replacement is bad at all. I mean, Jermaine Dye was the MVP of the 2005 World Series and is putting up monster numbers this year, again. But here's a stat comparison. With the White Sox, Dye has batted .286, belted 115 home runs, driven in 354 runs, and had a .349 OBP.

(2) ...traded Carlos Lee for Scott Podsednik. Since 2005, Lee has been an offensive juggernaut. He has batted .295, belted 129 home runs, driven in 449 RBI, and had a .352 OBP.

Again, I'm not saying his replacement was bad by any means. Scott Podsednik was the reason the White Sox got to and won the 2005 World Series. But he only lasted two-three years with the White Sox. He had his magnificent 2005 year, and then a terrible 2006 and 2007. Looking back, it seems like he was only good for that one year.

(3) ...traded Aaron Rowand for Jim Thome. After 2005, Rowand turned into an even bigger offensive beast. Rowand since 2005 has batted .287, belted 49 home runs, driven in 197 runs, and had a .349 OBP.

Jim Thome has been a nice addition for the White Sox in terms of power (with a 109 and 96 RBI season). But Rowand's center field replacement has been an issue. The White Sox have tried Brian Anderson, who hasn't played to his potential, and now are with a slumping Nick Swisher.

Do not get me wrong. I am not saying the White Sox have a terrible outfield. I mean, Carlos Quentin and Jermaine Dye are by far top-10 MVP candidates. That's why the title of the article is Imagination Land. Imagine a world in which the White Sox outfield was Carlos Lee, Aaron Rowand, and Magglio Ordonez. The White Sox would almost be like the Rangers, except with decent pitching.

It seems like the White Sox sacrificed the future for now (now being 2005). Was it worth it? We'll have to wait in see. I loved the 2005 White Sox World Series team, but can this team perform as well? Hopefully...