MLB Free Agents: Re-Signing Mark Buehrle a Must for Chicago White Sox

Mark Buehrle has been a wonderful asset to the Chicago White Sox for several years. While Buehrle is the White Sox' ace, he is an unusual ace.  Unlike Justin Verlander, Buehrle doesn't make the White Sox an instant contender.  While Jered Weaver burns batters with heat, Buehrle locates the ball and simply makes outs as he can.

For most starting rotations, Buehrle would be a No. 2 pitcher; however, the White Sox pitch him No. 1.

Who else could the White Sox pitch as No. 1?

The White Sox badly need to re-sign Buehrle.  This needs to be a No. 1 priority for Kenny Williams.  Williams needs to give Robin Ventura a reliable arm for his first season as manager.  Williams would be sending Ventura out shorthanded in 2012 if he gave him any less than Buehrle as the ace.

Trotting out John Danks as the ace would be just a little better than the Pittsburgh Pirates pitching Jeff Karstens as the ace.

The White Sox Starting Rotation Would Be in Shambles without Buehrle

Imagining the White Sox starting rotation without Buehrle sends shivers up a person's spine.  The White Sox rotation would likely feature Danks, Phil Humber, Gavin Floyd, Zach Stewart and Dylan Axlerod.  Maybe Jake Peavy will be healthy enough to figure highly, but don't count on it.

That's two pitchers (three including Peavy) who have started at least two full seasons, one who has started for one full season, and two have fewer than a dozen MLB starts.

Such a rotation is an abysmal thought.  None of these pitchers can carry the rotation.

Danks slipped last season after three straight solid seasons.  From 2008 to 2010, Danks had ERAs below 4.00 and winning records.  Last season, he suffered from periodic lapses and a lack of run support.  After three solid months, he spun out in September with a 7.76 ERA.

Danks could recover, but he likely doesn't want the pressure of being the White Sox ace.

Floyd struggled to string together quality outings.  Only once did he string together three straight quality starts. 

Floyd couldn't hold up at home.  At U.S. Cellular Field, Floyd went 4-7 with a 5.66 ERA. 

Among AL pitchers, Floyd was one of the wildest.  He was fourth in wild pitches (12), seventh in hit batsmen (11), and ninth in walks per nine innings (2.09).

Floyd's 2011 performance was a far cry from his 2008 form, when he won 17 games and pitched 206.1 innings.

Humber is hard to figure after one year as a starter.  On its face, Humber's 3.75 ERA looks nice.  However, his second half was nothing like his first half.  After going 8-5 with a 3.10 ERA in the first half, Humber went 1-4 with a 5.01 ERA in the second half.  Talk about a tale of two halves.

No pitcher last season was nearly as consistent as Buehrle, who matched a White Sox record by allowing three or fewer runs in 18 consecutive starts.

The White Sox can't replace his consistency.  Williams doesn't have a way of replacing someone who pitched 200 innings in 11 straight seasons.

Williams Needs to Find a Way to Re-Sign Buehrle

Williams needs to do what he can to re-sign Buehrle.  If that means budgeting in other areas of the roster, that would be nice.  If Williams has to part with Carlos Quentin in order to re-sign Buehrle, that may have to do.  Buehrle—who had the highest wins above replacement of any White Sox player—beat Quentin by 0.5 wins.

Retaining the most valuable player on the team means pulling out stops.  Williams might have to plead to Jerry Reinsdorf to let him spend the money. 

Williams might need to find a way to dump one of his bad contracts.  Perhaps, by some stroke, he could deal Adam Dunn or Alex Rios for a relief pitcher or low class minor league player.  Granted, trading Rios is tricky since he must be paid $500,000 in the event of a trade.

Conclusion:  Buehrle Doesn't Have to Go

Buehrle has called the White Sox his team for 12 years.  The White Sox pulled him out of the 38th round of the draft in 1998.  Buehrle remains a valuable player for the White Sox.

Williams needs to communicate to Buehrle how much he means to the White Sox.  If not by the dollar, Williams could persuade Buehrle by word.  Williams could tell him how much Buehrle has made a difference in the success of the White Sox.  Also, Williams could relate the disappointment White Sox fans would feel if Buehrle signs elsewhere.

The next few years won't be the best for the White Sox, but they don't have to turn for the worst by turning Buehrle loose.