Alright, I had my Thanksgiving dinner (two of them actually) and I had some time to think about this. In some ways, I like the deal and in others I don’t.
First off, let’s look at what we’re getting. We know Jim Thome well because he was a scourge of the rest of AL Central when he played for the Indians. Since moving to the Phillies, he’s had two really good years (more then 40 homers and more then 100 walks along with an OPS above .950). Then last year, he broke down due to elbow and back problems. He played in only 59 games and hit at a .207/.360/.352 clip (OPS of .712). Thome will turn 36 in August
If Jim Thome comes back and is healthy and can get his power back, I like the deal. Yeah, he strikes out, but he’s also an on base machine. And he’s going from a pitchers park where only three years ago he hit 47 homeruns to a hitters park known for the long ball. Throw in the fact that he’ll have 40 games against the Tigers and Royals instead of playing in the deepest division in baseball and I think you’d expect 35 homers from Thome, but you’d be hoping for 50.
The move also free’s up an outfield spot, so hopefully Brian Anderson will get his chance. He should have been the starter in left field last year, but the Podsednik deal put that to pasture. Anderson hit a healthy .295/.360/.469 at Charlotte in 2005 and he was the White Sox third best prospect according to John Sickels. I HOPE that the speculation that we’ll be looking to deal for Juan Pierre turns out to be false, because then we’d be stuck with two slappys out there.
Now, what are we giving. First off is Aaron Rowand. Rowand took a step back last year in just about every offensive category. His OPS dropped from .905 to .736 and his Eqa dropped from .291 to a below average .253. He was solid in the field (27 FRAR and 7 FRAA) and he can play all three outfield spots (although last year he was used exclusively in center field).
My biggest beef with the deal was losing Gio Gonzalez. He struck out 163 batters in 131 innings with stops in Kannapolis (A) and Winston-Salem (High A) and he’s the White Sox second best prospect (and he would have been first when 2006 rolled around, but now he’s gone). I really don’t know much about Daniel Haigwood but he was very solid in two minor league stops. He started at Winston Salem and was 8-2 with a 3.77 and 84 strikeouts in 76 1/3 innings. He also had eleven starts at Birmingham (AA) and was even more impressive. He finished 6-1 with a 1.74 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 67 1/3 innings (and no homeruns in that AA stint).
So we gave up two solid arms who are a few years away and Rowand. We do get $22 million to help offset the $43.5 million that’s still owed. So we’ll be putting up a little more then $7 million a year for Thome, which isn’t bad. If we weren’t coming off of a championship season, I’d probably say I don’t like it. But I definitely think the risk is going to be worth the reward as we make a run at a second World Series.
It’ll really be interesting to see what happens next. I’d have to say Frank Thomas isn’t coming back, nor do I think Konerko is going be back on the south side. They still need to pick up another big bat at DH. I wouldn’t mind seeing the Sox make a run at Mike Piazza, who could spell A.J. Pierzynski at catcher and then become the teams mostly full time DH.
