Offseason Notes: White Sox

Although it looks altered, I didn't do a damned thing to this photo

So, I did it for the Cubbies, and the White Sox also have their own problems. Here's 5 quick moves that make the White Sox much better in '09.

#1. Trade Josh Fields. He's a butcher at 3B, strikes out more than Sosa in his prime, and is more of the same old "home run or bust" mentality that gets us nowhere. His inability to draw walks magnified by his unacanny ability to get hurt means a full season of Fields kills whatever trade value he has right now. Deal him in a package for a vet, or deal him for some relief pitching. Honestly, I would rather have Juan Urine up there. Yeah, I said it. This goes double if the Sox re-sign Urine on the cheap.

#2. Re-sign Toby Hall and Bobby Jenks. This is a no-brainer. Hall filled in admirably for Pierzynski, and has shown full recovery on his shoulder. Also, we've been REALLY lucky AJ never misses time. Gotta hedge your bets. As for Bobby, he's going with more finesse over power these days, but he still has the heat - did you see the post-season radar gun? Triple digits!

#3. Find a way to deal Thome or Konerko to the Angels. This is probably the least likely thing to happen, but it's a necessary move to fix a major problem with this ballclub. Two slow sluggers past their prime? Yeah, not digging it. Supposedly, there's a chance the Sox could nab Chone Figgins as part of a Konerko deal, in which case, I'm all for it. High average speedsters with a glove (read: Pablo Ozuna pre-suck) are always welcome here.

#4. DON'T trade Javy Vazquez. OK, he's a turd in the clutch. We get it. He's also a workhorse during the season. He gets a lot of K's, and usually gets his job done. For a 5th starter next year (after Richard), you can't do much better. Besides, if we deal him, you had better believe we're eating his contract anyways. Javy is a big step over Broadway, so I'm OK with it.

#5. Give Swisher the keys to first base. He's a step down from Quentin and Dye in the field, and putting him in center gives me bad nightmares of Mackowiak. He's got a good glove for a 1B, and if Paulie or Thome goes, you had better believe that the guy who sticks around becomes DH. I would much rather Anderson hit .230 in CF than Swisher hit .250 there.