Sabean's Guide To Building The Next White Sox

Minstrel — Tue, 25 Oct 2005 01:03:51 -0000

Brian Sabean, grizzled former wunderkind, is an acclaimed baseball treasure. He doesn't subscribe to fad knowledge trends like "Moneyball" or "Smartball" or "Baseball." He approaches building a team without consideration to any of those things.

Now, Brian Sabean dissects what went right for the American League Champion Chicago White Sox and shows you, the reader, how to build the next Chicago White Sox success story.

Step 1: Defense wins wars

I like to say that a run saved by the defense is worth two runs produced by the offense. That may seem counterintuitive to some, but it's really quite simple. When you save a run on defense, like via a great catch with a man in scoring position, not only is that a run off the board for the opposition, it's a shot in the arm for your pitcher. I can't count the time that a great play by an Omar Vizquel or a younger Barry Bonds led to the pitcher, later in the game, manning up and relinquishing another run less than he would have otherwise.

I truly believe that Bonds' numerous Gold Gloves say more about his impact as a player than his relatively few home run / batting titles.

Therefore! It is incumbent upon a truly successful team to start with defense, and the White Sox did this in spades. Eschewing traditional group think that powerful men are necessary in baseball, they built a team of rangy defenders, constructing a virtual Maginot Line across the baseball diamond. Joe Crede, Scott Podsednik, Aaron Rowand, Jermaine Dye...the list goes on and on. It's safe to say that their defense produced more complete games than their pitching staff.

The San Francisco Giants are well on their way to putting together such an epic defense. Omar Vizquel and Mike Matheny are the Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig of team defense. Edgardo Alfonzo was part of one of the greatest defensive infields ever (although it was at a different position, five years ago). You don't forget defense, though. Ray Durham is fast and veteran. JT Snow, of course, is a magician on the field and a red-ass. Our own Darin Erstad. I truly believe JT could go out and play an amazing centerfield, like Erstad, if we asked it of him. He's too valuable at first, though, where he exerts a calming influence on the entire infield. Bonds and Alou are superstars, in every sense of the word, and true professionals. All we need is a gutsy centerfielder, in the Rowand mold, and the Giants will field a championship-caliber defense.

On my wishlist to bring this to fruition: Jacque Jones, Bernie Williams and Terrence Long. Don't pay attention to the nay-sayers. Don't let them tell you that they've lost a step or that Jones doesn't play center field. They are all three gutsy players and frequently make spectacular catches.

Step 2: Pitching is different from throwing

Lots of franchises have throwers. Championship teams have pitchers. The Yankees and Angels have throwers. The White Sox and Astros have pitchers. A good team ERA is worthless if it comes from throwers, obviously.

The San Francisco Giants are building a staff of pitchers.

Jason Schmidt, despite what "experts" will tell you, had a great year. Unlike a thrower such as Peavy (that young man sure showed up big in the post-season, didn't he?), Schmidt pitched with craft and guts. In my estimation, you can throw his ERA right out the window. Gone. Any idiot could see, with their own eyes, that Schmidt was pitching with heart. He is every bit the pitcher Mark Buehrle is.

Noah Lowry has made great strides. His breaking ball is the one of the best since Sandy Koufax was making Vin Sculley pant and what he lacks on the radar gun, he makes up for in secondary speed. What is secondary speed? It's the speed that the defense reacts behind a pitcher that they respect. Lowry may be young, but you can bet he's respected by every manjack on that roster. Is it too early to say that he's equivalent to Freddy Garcia? I don't think so; Garcia was just a thrower prior to this season, while Lowry pitches.

Matthew Cain I love like a son. He plays the game the right way. His slider slides, his breaking ball breaks and his fastball...fasts. Well, that's awkward but you get the idea. I fully believe that he can reprise Jon Garland's role in 2006.

So there you have it, the Giants' equivalent to Beuhrle, Garland and Garcia. Jose Contreras' role can easily be filled by a free agent acquisition, which will give San Francisco the pitching staff that the White Sox have been dominating the post-season with.

On my wishlist to bring this to fruition: Paul Byrd. That's it. He's the stable veteran, the white Jose Contreras. Whatever it takes to get him, the Giants will pay. (Ha, don't tell Byrd's agent I said that.)

Step 3: Snow White and the seven dwarves

Barry Bonds is Paul Konerko on steroids. That's just a figure of speech. Again, you get the idea. Bonds is an absurd upgrade on Konerko. In fact, he's like Konerko plus Frank Thomas. The White Sox are proving my longheld, and much mocked, belief that one big hitter and a bunch of munchkins can win a championship.

The San Francisco Giants have their one big hitter. And their munchkins. Hopefully, our new center fielder will bring heart and speed to the top of the lineup, our own iPod (that's my nickname for Podsednik, the 'i' stands for 'Internet').

On my wishlist to bring this to fruition: NOTHING. (Well, maybe Dante Bichette to anchor the bench and ocassionally pop to the lineup.)

Post-Game Wrap Up: I hope you found this tutorial on baseball success fun and informative. And I hope it gets you excited about the 2006 San Francisco Giants. Our needs are modest, but our ambition is skyhigh. We are only a few tweaks from being the buzz of baseball, much as those clutch White Sox have been this season!

Poll

Which gutsy veteran do the Giants need most urgently?

Jacque Jones

3 votes

Paul Byrd

9 votes

Bernie Williams

5 votes

Dante Bichette

8 votes

Terrence Long

6 votes

31 votes | Poll has closed