White Sox Starters: 15-15 in September-October
Mark Buehrle celebrating his perfect game on July 23 but would only win two more games the rest of the season.
After Mark Buehrle pitched his perfect game against the Rays on July 23 his record stood at 11-3. He wouldn’t win another game till September 7 when he defeated the Red Sox. His record was 2-7 after the perfect game and he ended the season with a 13-10 record.
Danks 4-1 in August
While Buehrle was struggling in August John Danks posted a 4-1 record but would only win one more game the rest of the season with the win coming against the Indians in his last seven starts. He was bombed by the Twins in a key game on September 22 when he gave up seven runs in a 8-6 loss to the Twins.
Floyd Won Three Games After July 20
Gavin Floyd won only three games after July 20 and would win only three of his final 11 starts. He pitched his last game of the season on September 16.
Torres Posted 6.04 ERA
Carlos Torres filled in during the second half as a starter but was only 1-2 in six starts. His only win came against the Cubs on September 3 when he pitched seven scoreless innings in a 5-0 win by the White Sox.
Peavy Made First Start on September 19
Jake Peavy didn’t make his first start for the White Sox until September 19 but posted a 3-0 record in three starts. Peavy was with the White Sox 50 days before taking the mound. If he had been healthy it is almost certain the White Sox would have been in the race to the last days of the season.
Freddy Garcia Lost to Royals Twice
Freddy Garcia lost his first start of the 2009 season to the Royals on August 18 and would lose again to them on September 20. The second loss against the Royals saw an excellent outing by Garcia wasted in which he gave up only two runs in eight innings.
He pitched his worst game of the season when he allowed the Tigers to score seven runs in a 12-5 loss on September 26 but would take a 5-1 win over the Tigers on October 3.
Daniel Hudson 1-1 in September-October
Daniel Hudson lost to the Twins and defeated the Tigers in his only starts for the White Sox in 2009. He didn’t allow more than two runs in either start.
SEPTEMBER – OCTOBER RECORDS FOR STARTERS
MARK BUEHRLE – 2-3
JOHN DANKS – 1-2
GAVIN FLOYD – 1-2
CARLOS TORRES – 1-2
JAKE PEAVY – 3-0
FREDDY GARCIA – 3-2
DANIEL HUDSON – 1-1
The six starters combined for an 12-12 record in September-October. The White Sox started September with a 64-68 record and finished the season with a 79-83 record and posted a 15-15 record after August 31.
The White Sox lost by three runs or less in 12 of their last 15 losses. They were 1-4 against the Twins in September-October and posted a 4-2 record in that time span against the Tigers.
The 7-0 loss to the Twins on September 21 combined with the back to back 8-6 losses to the Twins on September 22 and September 23.
The key to the White Sox starting pitching in 2010 is for Mark Buehrle to pitch well all season and for Jake Peavy to be healthy all season. The White Sox were second in ERA in the AL behind the Mariners in 2009 with a 4.14 ERA while the Mariners posted a 3.87. The White Sox were seventh best in the major leagues.
The White Sox were tied for last in batting average in the AL in 2009 with a .258 average tying them with the Mariners. They finished 24th in the major leagues.
The key to the hitting will be for Alex Rios to regain his form of past seasons with the Blue Jays. Having Gordon Beckham all season should help considerably.
MLB.com lists Juan Pierre in right field, Alex Rios in center and Carlos Quentin in left field. Mark Teahen is listed at third base and while his career best home run and RBI totals are 18 HR’s and 69 RBI’s this will be a new experience for Teahen to be in a pennant race and may spark him to have his best season. The outfield lineup could change if there is another deal made for an outfielder.
With Alex Ramirez at short, Gordon Beckham and Paul Konerko at first base the infield should be solid with A.J. Pierzynski playing what may be his last season as the starting catcher for the White Sox. There is still a remote chance that Jim Thome may be back as DH but he may not fit in with a more athletic White Sox team.
Andruw Jones and Mark Kotsay will be reserve outfielders with Kotsay also filling in at first. Jayson Nix can play all the infield positions except for first base and he can play both corner outfield positions. Omar Vizquel like Nix can fill in at any infield position except first base.
Right now Jones looks like the best option for designated hitter.
This could be a very interesting season for the Chicago White Sox with the present roster but there will probably be some other moves made by opening day.
Baseball Notebook 