Chicago White Sox: Predictions for Each Hitter in the 2012 Lineup

The Chicago White Sox were all-in in 2011. They spent a lot of money on Adam Dunn, A.J. Pierzynski and Paul Konerko. They also had huge contracts invested in Jake Peavy and Alex Rios. On paper (meaning money), they looked to be World Series contenders last year.

Yeah, how did that work out for them?

The White Sox will look to bounce back from a bad season in 2011 with a playoff berth in 2012. That will be difficult considering they traded their closer and one of their best hitters this offseason, and they have signed no one of significance.

But you just never know.

The White Sox have a shot to win their division this year, not because the Sox are good but because it is the worst division in the MLB. The Sox are pretty bad right now going into 2012. Everyone knows it, so don't get mad at me.

What can make that perception change, however, is if the Sox actually play up to their potential. If Alex Rios can actually hit a baseball, if Gordon Beckham can actually hit a baseball, and if Adam Dunn can actually show up to the park, then the Sox could be in good shape next year.

Here are my predictions for the White Sox lineup this season.

(I will not be predicting RBI totals because those, to me, are all about what the players in front of the hitter do and are way too hard to predict. Yes, this is just to save me from making terrible predictions on players RBI totals, but I just can't predict when a player's double is going to come when there's people on base. Sorry.)

Alejandro De Aza

I'm high on Alejandro De Aza. While he may be unproven at the age of 27, he still hit .329 last season and showed some quality speed and defense. Considering the Sox themselves don't even think they have a shot at the playoffs, you might as well give the kid the playing time he's deserved.

De Aza will likely take the leadoff spot from Juan Pierre, and I think he will do a solid job. He makes good contact and he's a fast guy, and he really can't be much worse than Pierre (not that Pierre was awful, but if De Aza is worse than Pierre then De Aza will be awful). 

I may be too high on De Aza, but I try to be an optimist. He has done nothing to show me that he can't be an above-average player for the White Sox because he's played very well for the past two years. I think every single Sox fan would love it if De Aza performed the way I have him performing in 2012.

Prediction: .306 BA, 42 2B, 8 3B, 11 HR, 36 SB

Gordon Beckham

Again, let's try to be the optimist here. While Beckham was absolutely terrible at the plate last year for Chicago, he still has a lot of talent and can develop into a solid hitter. Right?

Maybe.

Beckham has a great glove but he is a pretty bad hitter. He hit .230 last year (...........) and he really looks nothing like we thought he was going to be. He appears confused at the plate and his swing is inconsistent and sometimes ugly. As a result, he will look to have a solid year in 2012 to prove all his doubters wrong (or everyone wrong), but he will probably fall short (because he is a .230 hitter).

I'll predict him to have a better year than last year because he still has all of that talent I talked about, but this was a guy that was supposed to be an All-Star. It's just a shame.

Prediction: .253 BA, 32 2B, 1 3B, 13 HR, 7 SB

Adam Dunn

Adam Dunn is awful.

In 2011, Adam Dunn was the worst player in Major League Baseball. He had one of the worst seasons in league history. I'm obviously taking into account that Dunn was a starter and was supposed to be good, making his season worse than a guy who started for a couple weeks mid-season and flopped.

Dunn hit .159 last year (........) and had 11 home runs. I would pay for him to stay home in 2012 and not go to the games, and I'll start saving up now. He looked absolutely awful and is one of the worst free-agent signings of all time. 

At least so far.

Dunn will be only 32 in 2012 and is still in his prime, so he can still bounce back next season (it's sad that hitting .200 will be bouncing back). I'll be an optimist again when looking at Dunn for 2012, but Sox fans should keep their expectations low for Dunn next year and hope he proves us all wrong.

Prediction: .211 BA, 20 2B, 0 3B, 22 HR, -5 SB

Paul Konerko

Paul Konerko is a beast. He hit .300 last year with 31 home runs and 105 RBI (that is hard to do on the Sox). He is an All-Star on and off the field and if he keeps having big years he could be in the Hall of Fame someday.

Keeping up with my optimistic article, I'll predict Konerko to continue playing great baseball. He's still a good hitter and besides his age there's no reason to think he'll drop off a whole lot in 2012. Obviously Adam Dunn did last year, but Dunn doesn't compare with Konerko so there is a difference.

Prediction: .293 BA, 22 2B, 0 3B, 33 HR, 0 SB

Dayan Viciedo

There are two players that I can't wait to watch in 2012: Chris Sale and Dayan Viciedo.

Sale will be in the starting rotation after two good years in the bullpen. I can't wait to see how he pitches and I think he will be one of the better young starters in the AL next year.

Viciedo, on the other hand, is a hitting prospect that has also played well the past two years. He has a boat-load of talent and potential, and with Carlos Quentin gone, Viciedo will get his chance to prove himself as a MLB starter.

I think Dayan will have a great year in 2012. He has tremendous ability and I believe he will develop into a franchise hitter for the White Sox. Alright, I'm a guy that loves young players and loves to dream that they will become amazing. I also loved Gordon Beckham (not nearly as much as I love Viciedo, though). 

However, this article is optimistic, remember? I don't think Viciedo will hit 45 home runs next year (though I don't think it's impossible), but I do think 2012 will be the first year when the league gets a real look at how good Viciedo will be for the White Sox.

He didn't have the best numbers last year in limited at-bats, but he'll be 23 years old in 2012 and he will finally break out.

Prediction: .286 BA, 33 2B, 1 3B, 28 HR, 5 SB

A.J. Pierzynski

Pierzynski will be 35 years old in 2012. For a catcher, that is pretty old.

He hit .287 last year and had eight home runs. Honestly, we can probably expect similar numbers from him in 2012 if he starts for the Sox the entire season. 

The Sox may want to play Tyler Flowers in 2012 because he might be the future at catcher for the Sox, but Flowers has not looked good for the Sox when he has played. We can expect Pierzynski to at least get the majority of starts for the Sox next year.

I don't see him having a major drop-off just because he got one year older. Look for A.J. to continue making solid contact for the Sox in 2012.

Prediction: .278 BA, 25 2B, 2 3B, 10 HR, 1 SB

Alexei Ramirez

Alexei Ramirez is a very hot-and-cold hitter. In the warm weather, he is very hot, and in the cold weather, he is very cold. 

Ramirez hit .269 last year, his lowest average for his career. Next year will also be only his fifth year in the league (he's 30 years old). He probably will post numbers next season around his career norm because he's in his prime and all of his years in the league are pretty similar.

This being an optimistic article, however, I don't see why Ramirez can't have a career year. His best season so far has been his rookie season, but maybe Robin Ventura can coach Ramirez up and get him back to his old form of 2008.

Prediction: .291 BA, 34 2B, 3 3B, 18 HR, 11 SB

Alex Rios

Words cannot even begin to describe how bad Alex Rios is.

In fact, my prediction for him really needs no explanation. See the picture to the left? That picture (obviously of Alex Rios striking out on three pitches) is something you're going to be seeing a lot next year.

Prediction: .243 BA, 23 2B, 1 3B, 12 HR, 13 SB

Brent Morel

This will be another optimistic prediction because Morel showed some power at the end of last season, and I might as well predict that he can keep that up going into 2012.

He only hit .245 last year (with an OBP of .287), so it's not like Morel is a good hitter. But, he is only 24 years old and he can still turn out to be a solid bottom-of-the-order producer. He can keep hitting a solid number of home runs and hit for a solid batting average (for him, something like .250 or higher), and if he can do that then every Sox fan would be happy. 

I look for Morel to have a strong campaign next year, but that's mostly due to the fact that I don't want to think that a player is going to perform badly for my favorite team in the upcoming season.

That's just the way it goes sometimes.

Prediction: .258 BA, 24 2B, 2 3B, 19 HR, 7 SB