Finally some new rumors. Todd Frazier was getting really boring, or better said, fantasizing a team still a major piece away from being taken seriously was getting boring.
Read MoreTypically, August 31 is not a frenzied rush of trades, but when it comes to trading half-useful veterans to contenders with part-time roles to fill, the White Sox were all over it, moving both Alejandro De Aza and Adam Dunn for minor league arms within the same 24-hour period.
The results are rather strange.
Read MoreWhile I was spying on his Twitter account a while back, Jon Bernhardt, formerly of the sadly gutted Sports on Earth masthead, pontificated that the problem of homerism was not explicitly because fans are intrinsically poor analysts, but because they watch their favorite team too much.
Not only does this give them a lack of perspective of how players on the team they watch compare to the rest of the league, but they simply have too many details. We become so well-versed in such a wide breadth of details that it's hard to see the forest for the trees. We could provide a detailed account of Alejandro De Aza's miserable start and mid-season recovery at the plate, his plus-speed but inability to use it properly to man center field or steal bases, his suicide slides, his vulnerability for breaking balls at his feet and love for yanking his hands in to rip singles through 3-4 hole, when others would leave the summary of him at "left-handed fourth outfielder" and move on. Would they be better or worse off?
Read MoreThe White Sox's first pilgrimage to the Western time zone left a sour taste in my mouth for more than one reason. Slogging to a 3-6 record, including losing the last three games to the Angels, the White Sox offense brought back memories of 2013, scoring no more than five runs in any single game.
Read MoreIt's getting steadily harder to imagine how the next contending White Sox team will include meaningful contributions from John Danks or Alejandro De Aza, who both struggled to make it respectable in an ugly 8-2 loss to moribund Houston.
Read MoreAfter a pair of subpar outings and general blah results through six starts this season, the White Sox hope John Danks can turn things around as they go for their fourth straight victory and a series win Wednesday against the Chicago Cubs.
Read MoreWhen the White Sox agreed to bring back Paul Konerko on a "last hurrah" contract for 2014, one had to wonder how the roster would fare with three DH/1B types on the roster in Konerko, Adam Dunn and Jose Abreu. (Well, four if you count Dayan Viciedo).
Early-season injuries to Avisail Garcia, Conor Gillaspie and, now, Adam Eaton made that a conundrum earlier than most expected, and when the White Sox played their fourth of 10 games in National League parks Monday against the Cubs, the issue was further magnified.
Read MoreWith the month of Abreu — sorry, the month of April — officially in the books, James Fegan, Collin Whitchurch, Nick Schaefer, Matt Adams and Rob Flot sat down and discussed what we've seen out of the White Sox so far. Among the topics we broached were Jose Abreu, the pitching staff, Adam Dunn, Alexei Ramirez, trades and attendance. Feel free to join in on the conversation in the comments below.
Read MoreA day after the atrocity that is the White Sox bullpen used up every last pitch in its arsenal in a 6-4, 14-inning loss to the Red Sox, Chris Sale takes the mound in hopes of avoiding the shenanigans that led to that embarrassing conclusion.
Leury Garcia is starting at second base and will likely be unavailable in relief for tonight's 7:10 rubber match against Jon Lester and the Boston Red Sox, but one can rightly assume Daniel Webb, fresh off of a gutsy, 59-pitch performance as the only actual arm left in the bullpen, won't be.
Read MoreWhat do the White Sox have at each position after the 2014 offseason? The picture has gotten a bit clearer with the recent cuts and reassignments. Let's take a look at the White Sox's corner outfield positions to see how it stacks up for 2014 and beyond.
Read MoreAfter a week of games one thing is certain — there are still 156 games to play.
Yes, it's a long season. But let's take a look at some of the more noteworthy bits and pieces we saw after six games of White Sox baseball.
Read MoreFourth place by default in 2013, and trotting out the talented but not desirable Ricky Nolasco as their Opening Day starter, the Twins provide a fine early litmus test on whether the Sox have transitioned from monstrosity to major league-quality franchise. As they often are capable of doing when Chris Sale takes the mound and flyballs from mercurial left fielders are flying into the seats, the Sox at least kept up appearances.
Read MoreMuch of the excitement leading up to the 2014 season has been built around anticipation for the young building blocks Rick Hahn acquired over the past six months.
In Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton, Avisail Garcia and pretty soon Matt Davidson, the White Sox have players fans can get excited to watch develop over the course of the next season and beyond.
The development of those four, as well as the likes of Erik Johnson and Marcus Semien, will be a major factor in whether 2014 is viewed as a success or failure. But while how those guys fare is key in shaping the team for success in 2015, 2016 and beyond, the team's success or failure in 2014 will largely be shaped by the performances of the incumbents.
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