Can't pitch around ChiSox's 3-4-5 hitters
Leave it to Joe Torre to find a weakness and then expose it.
During the five-game sweep of the Boston Red Sox, Yankees pitchers walked Manny Ramirez nine times -- five times intentionally. You can do that when you have the likes of Kevin Youkilis, Eric Hinske and Javy Lopez hitting behind him.
And now with 37 games remaining in the season, Ramirez has 94 walks, only three short of his career high. While David Ortiz and Ramirez make the middle of Boston's batting order a no-man's land for opposing pitchers, it is possible to tiptoe through to the bottom of the order.
Terry Francona's No. 5 hitters are batting only .237. Teams facing the defending World Series champion Chicago White Sox, however, only wish their problems stopped with the cleanup hitter.
Through the first two games of a four-game series in Detroit this week, Thome is hitting .292 with 36 home runs and 90 runs batted in. Konerko is at .306-27-86, and Dye at .320-34-93.
Their OPS figures are 1.022, .925 and 1.012, respectively.
You can almost hear Ozzie Guillen laughing every time Thome or Konerko comes to bat. Go ahead, pitch around them if you want. Then Dye will get you. Even Dye has only three intentional walks. That's because the No. 6 hitter, Joe Crede, is almost as productive as the top three.
"The middle of that order will test you every time around," Torre said during a recent visit to U.S. Cellular Field. "You're holding your breath every time you see [Scott] Podsednik and [Tadahito] Iguchi come up because you know who is coming next. There's no let-up, no easy way out. You have to make good pitches or get lucky, sometimes both."
Tigers manager Jim Leyland echoes that sentiment.
"I'm not the guy to ask who is the best at this or the best at that, but I do know that is a great group of hitters Ozzie has in the middle of his lineup," Leyland said earlier this season. "They were strong last year and then they added Thome, who looks as good as he has ever looked. Dye is the guy people don't seem to talk about, but believe me, we take our time to talk about him [in pitchers meetings]. You just hope that not much is going on when those guys come up because you know all of them are going to give you good at-bats -- not once or twice a game, but every time. That's what makes them so tough. A game is never over when you have those guys hitting in a group."
A year ago, the White Sox were 99-63 during the regular season and 11-1 in October. That would suggest a smooth ride, but it was anything but for hitting coach Greg Walker. Eight American League teams scored more runs than the Sox, including Tampa Bay.
"We didn't have any easy games," Walker said.
This season has been different, largely because of the addition of Thome but also because Dye has built on the success he had a year ago, when he was healthy all season for the first time since 2001 and received affirmation with his selection as World Series MVP.
By scoring 49 runs in the five games against Boston, the Yankees passed the White Sox to become the highest scoring team in the majors. The Sox (averaging 5.5 runs per game, an increase from the 4.6 runs they averaged in 2005) are currently eight runs behind the Yankees.
Konerko was the one consistent force in the middle of the order a year ago. Guillen batted Dye sixth for most of the year, wanting him to rebuild his confidence without carrying too large a load.
With Frank Thomas hurt most of the season, the guys hitting on either side of Konerko were generally Carl Everett, Aaron Rowand and A.J. Pierzynski.
The White Sox's collection of No. 3 hitters hit .234, the lowest average in the league, and had a .419 slugging percentage, better than only Minnesota. The No. 5 slot fared better, but still fell in the second half of the league in most categories.
No wonder the White Sox felt it was so important to keep Konerko, who last year hit .283 with 40 homers and 100 RBI. Entering free agency immediately after celebrating the franchise's first championship since 1917, he was close to signing with the Los Angeles Angels before White Sox owner Jerry Reinsdorf agreed to essentially match the Angels' offer of a five-year, $60 million package.
Thome and Dye came in deals more typical of how general manager Ken Williams has built Reinsdorf's team, giving him bang for his bucks.
Thome, signed to a six-year, $85 million contract by Philadelphia before 2003, was available because of the emergence of Ryan Howard. Thome had played only 59 games last season because of back and elbow injuries, which limited the interest in him. National League teams were afraid to count on him to play first. Williams, who hadn't yet re-signed Konerko, had the luxury of being able to consider Thome as a designated hitter or first baseman.
The Phillies were under such pressure to move Thome that they agreed to pay $22 million of the $46 million remaining on his contract. And Dye might be even more of a bargain.
The White Sox had paid Magglio Ordonez $14 million to be their right fielder in 2004 and Williams didn't feel he could make that kind of commitment in a corner outfielder to replace him, not with him committing a higher percentage of payroll to starting pitching. Dye, who had driven in at least 106 runs from 1999 through 2001, was signed to a two-year deal with an option that will pay him a total of $15 million once the '07 option is exercised.
Credit Dave Wilder, the White Sox's farm director, for steering Williams toward Dye. Wilder had scouted the state of California for the Atlanta Braves when Dye was playing at Cosumnes River College in Sacramento.
"So smooth, so natural, and he always has been that way," Wilder said. "He never has been an 'I' guy. Jermaine does his job. That's why we got him. And that's the way he's always been."
Dye didn't complain when Guillen left him in the No. 6 spot in the order until late in 2005. He hasn't made an issue about his undervalued contract or appeared jealous of the attention others have received. He's the perfect supporting actor, even if he has leading-man ability.
"I go about my business, do what I can to help the team win," Dye said. "I don't get caught up in all the hoopla if I have a good game."
Dye hit .311 for the White Sox last October, including the up-the-middle grounder that drove in the lone run in the sweep-clinching 1-0 victory over the Houston Astros in the World Series. He's hitting .358 with runners in scoring position this season, which is the same neighborhood as Konerko (.352) and Thome (.345).
Barring injury or a prolonged slump, Thome, Konerko and Dye should all drive in 110-plus runs this season. That's rare air for a 3-4-5 combination.
Chicago hasn't had a team with three 110-RBI men since 1930, when the Cubs' Hack Wilson, Kiki Cuyler and Gabby Hartnett did it. In the eras of Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Ted Williams, this was a fairly common occurrence, but it didn't happen in the AL from 1951 through '94.
Eight AL teams did it in a seven-year run from 1995 through 2001. Seven of those teams made it to the playoffs, with the lone exception being the Seattle Mariners of 1996. That team had a 5.21 ERA. Sterling Hitchcock and Bob Wells were its winningest pitchers.
The White Sox's pitching hasn't been nearly as sharp this season as a year ago, but they're not the '96 Mariners, either. The 3-4-5 combination of Thome, Konerko and Dye could be a trump card in the wild-card race that includes Minnesota and fading Boston.
The White Sox have a chance to become the first AL team in five years and ninth since 1950 to have three hitters with 110-plus RBI. A look at the last eight:
| Trios of 110-RBI guys | ||
| TEAM | YEAR/FINISH | HITTERS |
| Mariners | 2001/1st | Bret Boone (141), Edgar Martinez (116), Mike Cameron (110) |
| Athletics | 2001/2nd, WC | Jason Giambi (120), Eric Chavez (114), Miguel Tejada (113) |
| Rangers | 1999/1st | Rafael Palmeiro (148), Juan Gonzalez (128), Ivan Rodriguez (113) |
| Indians | 1999/1st | Manny Ramirez (165), Roberto Alomar (120), Richie Sexson (116) |
| Indians | 1996/1st | Albert Belle (148), Jim Thome (116), Manny Ramirez (112) |
| Orioles | 1996/2nd, WC | Rafael Palmeiro (142), Bobby Bonilla (116), Brady Anderson (110) |
| Mariners | 1996/2nd | Ken Griffey Jr. (140), Jay Buhner (138), Alex Rodriguez (123) |
| Mariners | 1995/1st | Jay Buhner (121), Edgar Martinez (113), Tino Martinez (111) |
Phil Rogers is the national baseball writer for the Chicago Tribune, which has a Web site at www.chicagosports.com. His book, "Say It's So," a story about the 2005 White Sox, is available at bookstores, through amazon.com or direct order from Triumph Publishing (800-222-4657).
