Tim Anderson still without a team; Yasmani Grandal signs with Pirates

Tim Anderson

When the White Sox fired former general manager Rick Hahn and promoted Chris Getz into the position, one of the key questions posed to Getz was, "How are you different from Hahn?"

Actually, I think there are some differences. What I'm about to say is speculation here, but I think Getz handled Tim Anderson's situation much different than Hahn would have.

Getz declined Anderson's $14 million contract option for 2024 and let the former All-Star become a free agent. Then he brought in a glove-first shortstop in Paul DeJong. 

I believe Hahn would have picked up Anderson's option and bet on him having a "bounce-back year." Hahn had a lot of difficulty moving on from his beloved "core players," even when reality was slapping him in the face. Accordingly, Hahn lost his job.

As we sit here on the evening of Feb. 12, two days before pitchers and catchers report, Anderson is still without a team. I feel as though this confirms Getz made the right choice not to pick up that option. Anderson isn't worth a $14 million contract coming off the worst season of his career, and clearly, 29 other teams feel the same way as the Sox.

It stinks to have to talk bad about Anderson, because he was a good player for the Sox from 2019 through the first two months of 2022. But since Anderson suffered a groin injury against the Cubs on Memorial Day weekend 2022, he's never been the same player.

After June 1 in 2022, Anderson played only 39 games and delivered just five extra-base hits -- four doubles and one home run. His batting average plummeted from .356 down to .301. His slugging percentage took a massive nosedive. He was slugging .503 at the time of the aforementioned injury against the Cubs. He finished the year at .395, after suffering a hand injury Aug. 6 that cost him the rest of his season.

We know the story in 2023. Anderson homered only one time in 524 plate appearances. He batted .245/.286/.296. There was no power in his swing whatsoever. You could almost knock the bat out of his hands at times. Even in his prime, Anderson was never a plus defender, and he struggled in the field, as well, in 2023. 

In past seasons, Anderson's good bat covered up for any defensive problems, but what happens to a bat-first player who can't hit the ball with authority anymore? Well, he's still a free agent on Feb. 12. That's what happens.

Rumors have tied Anderson to both the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Miami Marlins. I don't have any bad feelings toward the guy. I hope he gets a job soon. But I'm good with him no longer being a member of the White Sox.

I'm just not sure what Anderson does well at this stage of his career. What role can a team trust him to play? I don't have an answer for that.

Grandal to Pirates

Speaking of players in decline, former Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal agreed with the Pittsburgh Pirates on a one-year deal worth $2.5 million.

I'm somewhat surprised Grandal is hanging on for another year at age 35. He was really bad for the Sox the past two years -- a .570 OPS in 2022 and a .647 OPS last season. Grandal hit only five homers in 2022 and eight homers last year, after totaling 23 home runs for the Sox in 2021.

Injuries have taken their toll. Grandal is arguably the slowest runner I've ever seen in baseball. Yes, I'm taking both Paul Konerko and Greg Luzinski over him in a race. And Grandal's defense declined to the point where there was talk that Sox pitchers preferred to throw to Seby Zavala.

This is another example where I'm good with a player no longer being a member of the White Sox.

Gavin Sheets hits 2 home runs in return to White Sox roster

It's not clear how many at-bats will be available for Gavin Sheets in September, but he made his case for more playing time Wednesday night at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Hours after being called up from Triple-A Charlotte, Sheets was batting eighth as the DH in the White Sox's lineup against the Pittsburgh Pirates. 

He went 2 for 3 with two homers and four RBIs, and the Sox beat the Pirates, 6-3.

Sheets started the scoring with a 3-run homer off Pittsburgh starter Max Kranick (1-3) in the bottom of the fourth inning. Then he finished the scoring with a solo homer off reliever Duane Underwood Jr. in the bottom of the eighth inning. Sheets now has eight home runs this season.

The Sox got five decent innings from starter Carlos Rodon (11-5), who struck out five and walked one, while allowing only one run on five hits.

Rodon threw 77 pitches in his second start back from the injured list. He didn't have his peak velocity -- he was throwing 95 mph, which is not too shabby, but we often see Rodon sit at 97 with his fastball. He didn't have his best slider, either, but hey, these are the last-place Pirates, and he had enough to get his job done.

Once again, the Sox bullpen was a little suspect. Aaron Bummer gave up a solo home run in the seventh inning, and the Pirates also scratched across a run in the eighth against the combination of Ryan Tepera and Liam Hendriks.

But, Hendriks stranded two runners to close out the eighth, then worked a 1-2-3 ninth for his 31st save of the season. Ultimately, Hendriks needed only 18 pitches to record five outs, but it's kind of annoying the Sox are having so much trouble getting the eighth inning covered.

That's still an issue that must be sorted out over the next month.

The Sox are a season-high 22 games over .500 at 78-56.

Oh joy, another round of White Sox injuries

Lucas Giolito

Just when you thought the White Sox were getting healthy for the first time in 2021, Tuesday brought another round of injury concerns.

It turns out that shortstop Tim Anderson's day off on Sunday wasn't just a day off. He's still having a problem with his hamstring. He wasn't in the lineup Tuesday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, and he is not expected to play Wednesday. Thursday is a day off, so maybe Anderson can be ready by this weekend's series against the Kansas City Royals. If not, perhaps a stint on the 10-day injured list is in order.

Pitcher Lance Lynn is on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to Aug. 28. He has right knee inflammation, and he is expected to miss one start. Utility player Danny Mendick was recalled from Triple-A Charlotte to take Lynn's place on the roster.

And pitcher Lucas Giolito left Tuesday night's game in the fifth inning with left hamstring tightness. Giolito slipped on the grass while fielding a grounder in between the mound and home plate. He threw four more pitches -- three of them out of the zone -- before exiting.

Final line on Giolito: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 5 Ks, 4 BBs.

Here's the good news: The Sox were playing the last-place Pirates, so they won 4-2 behind 4.2 innings of scoreless bullpen work.

Ryan Tepera allowed an inherited runner to score, but closed out the fifth without further damage. Michael Kopech, Aaron Bummer, Craig Kimbrel and Liam Hendriks all pitched a scoreless inning. Kopech got the win to improve to 4-2, while Hendriks secured his 30th save.

Jose Abreu hit his 28th home run of the season, and Yasmani Grandal hit his 18th homer. The Sox broke a 2-2 tie in the sixth with two runs, one on a bases-loaded walk by Brian Goodwin, the other on a sacrifice fly by Leury Garcia. 

The Sox are 77-56, and they still lead the AL Central by 10 games with 29 games left in the season. Cross another day off the calendar, and turn the page to September. The Sox still have another month to get as healthy as possible before October.

White Sox continue to slay bums at a ridiculous level

Jose Abreu leads baseball with 48 RBIs.

Believe it or not (and I really don't), the White Sox have the best record in the American League entering Monday's play at 30-16. How did they get there? Well, they beat the living tar out of the three least talented teams in the central part of the country -- the Detroit Tigers, the Kansas City Royals and the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Sox beat the Tigers, 5-2, on Sunday at Guaranteed Rate Field to complete a three-game sweep. The South Siders concluded the season series against Detroit at 9-1, and they improved to 21-3 in 24 games against the aforementioned bottom feeders.

21-3!

With 14 games to play, the Sox are one game ahead of the Minnesota Twins (30-18) in the American League Central Division, and 4.5 games ahead of the Cleveland Indians (26-21).

While the Twins and Indians both have winning records against the second-division teams, it's clear the Sox have done a much better job of slaying bums. 

Minnesota is having a strange season. The Twins are a remarkable 21-5 at home, but 9-13 on the road -- and they've been swept in a three-game series at *both* Kansas City and Detroit this year. Minnesota is in position to potentially win the division because it has gone 7-3 against Cleveland and 4-2 against the Sox, with four games left to play in Chicago this week.

Cleveland, meanwhile, is riding a six-game losing streak. The Indians inexplicably lost the last three games of a four-game series against Kansas City last week, then got swept by the Twins over the weekend. It's not looking too good for the Tribe right now, but they aren't out of the division race yet because they have four games remaining with the Tigers and three left with the Pirates. 

The Twins have two games left with the Tigers, as well, but they are done with the Royals and Pirates. The Sox are done slaying bums for the year, as they have the Twins, the Cincinnati Reds, the Indians and the Cubs remaining on their schedule.

Here's a breakdown of how the Sox, Twins and Indians have done against the worst teams on their respective schedules:

• Sox vs. Tigers: 9-1 
• Sox vs. Royals: 9-1
• Sox vs. Pirates: 3-1
• Sox vs. all the bums: 21-3

•  Twins vs. Tigers: 4-4
• Twins vs. Royals: 5-5
• Twins vs. Pirates: 3-1
• Twins vs. all the bums: 12-10 

• Indians vs. Tigers: 4-2
• Indians vs. Royals: 5-5
• Indians vs. Pirates: 3-0
• Indians vs. all the bums: 12-7 

So, the Sox are eight games better than the Twins when it comes to slaying bums, and 6.5 games better than the Indians. Without a doubt, this is the reason the Sox are in first place.

Still on the Sox's to-do list? They need to prove they can beat the other contenders in their division before the playoffs start. That 4-8 combined record against the Twins and Indians is unsightly.

The Sox are only two weeks removed from losing two out of three to the Twins in Minnesota, a series in which the South Siders committed eight errors in three games. That was ugly.

The opportunity for redemption comes Monday through Thursday this week, and as we mentioned, the Twins are almost unbeatable at home, but are mere mortals on the road. We'll see if the Sox can turn Minnesota away and protect their slim division lead.

The White Sox are 4-0 when Dane Dunning starts

Dane Dunning

The White Sox have won all four games Dane Dunning has started this season, and the rookie right-hander got his first major league win Wednesday, as the Sox bounced back from Tuesday's debacle with an 8-1 win over the last-place Pittsburgh Pirates.

Dunning had an efficient outing. He needed only 76 pitches to get through six innings. He gave up a leadoff double two pitches into the seventh, and that ended his night. Gio Gonzalez stranded the inherited runner to keep Dunning's outing scoreless. 

His final line: 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 Ks, 1 BB and 51 strikes on 78 pitches. 

Anytime a pitcher throws 65% of his pitches for strikes, we'll take it. And Dunning's outing saved the bullpen, too. Gonzalez allowed one run over two innings, and Steve Cishek mopped up in the ninth.

It was nice to see the Sox win a game without having to use Jimmy Cordero, Evan Marshall or Alex Colome.

James McCann had his first career multihomer game and totaled four RBIs. Yoan Moncada also had two hits for the second straight game. Nick Madrigal's two-out, two-run single with the bases loaded in the top of the fourth was the key hit, taking a 3-0 Sox lead to 5-0.

The Sox stand at 27-16, one game ahead of both the Cleveland Indians and Minnesota Twins heading into Thursday's off day.

I'm not sold on this Sox team as a legitimate contender, because I don't think their run prevention is good enough. But here's where the clear progress has occurred: They continue to kick the crap out of bad teams. 

The Sox are a combined 18-3 against the Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals and Pittsburgh Pirates. There are still three more games with the Tigers; those will be this weekend at Guaranteed Rate Field.

After that, the Twins come to Chicago, and we'll see if the Sox are able to win a series against one of their chief division rivals for the first time this year.

Going back to Dunning, his next start figures to be against Minnesota. I'm interested to see how he fares. He's proven he can slay the bums, just like the team as a whole. The biggest tests are still ahead.

White Sox manager Rick Renteria is burning up his bullpen unnecessarily

Rick Renteria

The White Sox entered Tuesday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates with a 99.6% chance of qualifying for the postseason.

So why is manager Rick Renteria treating every game as if it is the seventh game of the World Series?

The Sox lost, 5-4, to the last-place Pirates, but the way they got there was more concerning than the loss itself. Was it really necessary to burn through five relief pitchers to try to win this game? Not in my world.

Starter Dylan Cease got a quick hook after throwing only 79 pitches. He took a 3-2 lead into the sixth inning, and he gave up a leadoff single. That would be all. Not sure why.

Codi Heuer, pitching for the third time in the past five days, was able to finish the inning without giving up the lead.

Enter Matt Foster, who worked a 1-2-3 seventh inning. Foster was pitching for "only" the third time in the past six days, so I thought he might have another inning in him.

Nah.

Renteria needed to go to Evan Marshall, who was pitching for the fourth time in the past five games, for the eighth inning. Marshall gave up two runs to surrender a 4-2 lead and couldn't finish the inning. Ross Detwiler entered and managed to strand the go-ahead run on third base.

But Detwiler gave up two singles to start the bottom of the ninth. Enter Jimmy Cordero, who has appeared NINE TIMES in the past 12 games. A passed ball, an intentional walk and an error later, the Sox were in the loss column.

Good thing Renteria pulled Cease early to make sure the Sox won this one, huh?

The Sox have played 42 games, and Cordero has already made 21 appearances. Marshall has pitched 20 times, and Steve Cishek has pitched 18 times. All three of these men have more appearances than they do innings pitched.

And that doesn't even get into the 40-pitch outing Alex Colome had in Friday's win over Kansas City. Colome was then asked to save the game Saturday night, too, which he did, but at some point he might wear out as well.

Would it kill Renteria to let guys pitch more than one inning? Would it kill him to let a young pitcher like Cease work his way out of his own trouble for once?

The Sox are in really good shape to make the playoffs. But will the bullpen have anything left for October with this kind of usage, or overusage, as the case may be?

Forget about October. Who is going to pitch in relief Wednesday? Probably at least one or two guys who pitched Tuesday night, and that's a problem.

It's time for Renteria to back off the throttle a little bit. He's got to stop micromanaging so much, even if it means losing a few more games.

Lucas Giolito's no-hitter highlights White Sox's thrashing of Pirates

Lucas Giolito

"To right field, Adam Engel ... is there! A no-hitter! The 19th in White Sox history!"

That was TV broadcaster Jason Benetti's call of the final out of Lucas Giolito's no-hitter Tuesday night, as the White Sox defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates, 4-0. The South Siders also won Wednesday, homering four times to beat Pittsburgh, 10-3, and complete a two-game sweep.

But the story of the series was Giolito, who struck out 13 for his second outing in a row. He allowed only one Pittsburgh batter to reach base Tuesday, a leadoff walk to Erik Gonzalez in the top of the fourth inning. Giolito threw 101 pitches, 74 of them for strikes.

Here are some other notes from the no-hitter:

• The no-hitter is only the fourth in the 29-year history of New Comiskey Park/U.S. Cellular Field/Guaranteed Rate Field. Giolito's is the first thrown by a right-handed pitcher. Mark Buehrle threw no-hitters in 2007 and 2009, the second of which was a perfect game. Francisco Liriano no-hit the Sox in 2011 as a member of the Minnesota Twins.
• Giolito's no-hitter is the first for the Sox since 2012, when Philip Humber pitched a perfect game against the Seattle Mariners.
• Giolito's 13 strikeouts are the most for any Sox pitcher in a no-hitter. The previous high was set by Humber, who had nine.
• Among the 101 pitches, Pittsburgh batters swing and missed 30 times. Giolito recorded the most swinging strikes by a Sox pitcher during the pitch tracking era, which began in 1988. Chris Sale had the previous high with 29.
• Giolito nearly tied a record for most swinging strikes in a no-hitter. The record is 31, and Nolan Ryan set that mark in 1990.
• Gonzalez lined out to Engel on a 0-2 fastball to end the game. The final out had a hit probability of 85%, the highest of any ball put in play by Pittsburgh the whole game. It's fortunate the Sox had Engel, an excellent defender, in right field instead of Nomar Mazara.

With the win, the Sox now are 19-12, tied with the Cleveland Indians for second place in the AL Central, a half-game back of the Minnesota Twins (20-12).

It's quite a three-team race with 29 games to go. The Sox have an off day Thursday, before facing the Kansas City Royals in a three-game weekend set at Guaranteed Rate Field.

No paper tickets at Tropicana Field in Tampa Bay

Tropicana Field

I'll be on vacation in Florida when the baseball season opens March 26, so I will not be attending Opening Day festivities at Guaranteed Rate Field this year.

However, that does not mean I won't attend a baseball game on that first day of the season. The Tampa Bay Rays are hosting the Pittsburgh Pirates on March 26, and I've never been to Tropicana Field before. So, I figure, what the hell? Why not go?

I looked into tickets last week, and much to my surprise, the Rays have not put single-game tickets on sale yet. Earlier today, I saw this article in the Tampa Bay Times that gave me some answers.

Turns out, all the Rays' ticketing this season will be done through the MLB Ballpark app on a mobile device. No more paper tickets.

Tampa isn't putting single-game seats on sale until 10 o'clock Friday morning, presumably because the club was working to implement this new policy. Tropicana Field is already a cash-free facility, so it's a different world than what we have here in Chicago.

I'm familiar with the Ballpark App -- as a White Sox season-ticket holder, I access my tickets using that app all the time. The Sox prefer to scan your phone when you enter Guaranteed Rate Field.

I have no idea what the demand is like for Opening Day tickets in Tampa Bay, but I'm going to try to buy some. If I'm successful, it will be interesting to see how these no-paper-tickets and cash-free policies work.

It's likely the wave of the future, and only a matter of time before we see this everywhere.

Some photos from my recent trip to PNC Park in Pittsburgh

Hadn't had the chance to write about it until now, but we stopped in Pittsburgh on our way back from Cooperstown in July, and we took in a Pirates game at PNC Park on July 25.

The Cardinals beat the Pirates, 6-3, and we came away impressed with the ballpark experience there. They did it right when they built that place, and it was a good value too.

I got pretty good seats for $20 a ticket, and each ticket came with $10 "loaded" onto it for concessions. When I bought my lunch, the price was $13.50. I presented my ticket, and they took $10 off and charged me $3.50.

Good deal, huh?

We went to a game on a Thursday afternoon, but we got there the Wednesday night before. There was a night game going on, and it's awesome that you can see into the ballpark from the other side of the river.

Just for proof that I was actually there, here I am.

They have a really large statue of Willie Stargell outside one of the gates.

And, of course, the great Roberto Clemente also is honored with a statue.

Here's the view from behind home plate, with the skyline of Pittsburgh out beyond the right-field wall.

As I said, pretty good seats for $20.

One more shot that I took from my seat at the game. Nice view of the city, great sightlines, friendly people, reasonable prices ... if you have a chance to take in a game in Pittsburgh, I would recommend it.

Taking a baseball road trip that doesn't involve the crummy White Sox

The White Sox are 0-7 since the All-Star break after being swept in a four-game series at Kansas City this week.

Yes, the 36-62 Royals won four straight games against the Sox (42-51), who continue to find new lows in this interminable, hard-on-the-eyes rebuilding process.

But there is good news: I'm leaving town for a week, which means I won't have to watch or hear about this crappy baseball team for seven days. I'm taking a baseball trip that doesn't involve the Sox, and I'm very much looking forward to it.

My itinerary:

Sunday, July 20: Drive to Cleveland
Sunday, July 21: Royals vs. Indians at Progressive Field
Monday, July 22: Drive to Cooperstown, N.Y.
Tuesday, July 23: Visit National Baseball Hall of Fame
Wednesday, July 24: Drive to Pittsburgh
Thursday, July 25: Cardinals vs. Pirates at PNC Park
Friday, July 26: Drive home

I'm going to see a part of the country I haven't seen before, and visiting the Hall of Fame is a bucket list item. Can't wait.

Blogging will resume when I return home. Maybe the Sox will have won a game in the second half by then.

White Sox acquire pitcher Ivan Nova from Pittsburgh Pirates

Ivan Nova

The White Sox on Tuesday acquired right-handed pitcher Ivan Nova from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for 19-year-old pitcher Yordi Rosario and $500,000 in international bonus pool money.

Nova, 31, went 9-9 with a 4.19 ERA in 29 starts for the Pirates in 2018. He struck out 114 and walked 35 over 161 innings. He has one year remaining on his contract and is owed $9.2 million for the coming season.

This was a necessary move as the Sox only had three starting pitchers in place -- Carlos Rodon, Reynaldo Lopez and Lucas Giolito. Someone has to take the place of James Shields as the "stabilizing rotation veteran," and Nova seems to be as reasonable of an option as any.

There's no long-term commitment here. If Nova does not pitch well, he could be replaced in the rotation by the end of the season if top pitching prospect Dylan Cease continues on a positive track. If Nova does pitch well, great, he could be traded to a contender midseason if the Sox are not in the race, or he could be a reliable veteran presence if they are.

Either way, it's reasonable to believe Nova is a one-year stopgap. He'll hopefully serve a purpose in 2019, and move along by Opening Day 2020 when Michael Kopech returns from his elbow injury, and presumably, when Cease makes the jump to the majors.

The question is, do the Sox make another move to fortify the rotation this offseason? They've got four guys in place now, but they still need a fifth. Right now, they'd be choosing from uninspiring options such as Dylan Covey and Jordan Stephens for the remaining spot.

I'd like to see something else done.

Slow start to the offseason, huh?

Josh Donaldson

It's only Nov. 29. The winter meetings haven't happened yet, but still, I'd say the free agent market is off to a slow start this year.

I was looking at the recent transactions on mlb.com, and there are only three of them that I would say are significant or even somewhat notable:

• Josh Donaldson signed a one-year, $23 million contract with the Atlanta Braves.
• Brian McCann signed a one-year, $2 million contract with the Braves.
• Lonnie Chisenhall signed a one-year, $2.75 million contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Yeah, that's about it. Two of these three are not even that interesting.

McCann is 34 years old and coming off an injury-plagued season in which he batted .212. He lost his starting job with the Houston Astros, and as far as I can tell, he's going back to the place where he had his best seasons -- Atlanta -- to finish up what has been a respectable career.

Chisenhall is a platoon corner outfielder who likely will have some utility for the Pirates as a left-handed bat off the bench. He's not a bad role player, but not a huge difference-maker, either.

Donaldson's signing easily is the most interesting of the three. He's three years removed from his MVP season of 2015, and he had a three-year stretch of brilliance from 2015-17 in which he hit 33 or more home runs in each season and posted an OPS of .939, .953 and .944, respectively.

However, injuries hit hard for Donaldson in 2018. He was limited to 52 games, and the Toronto Blue Jays traded his expiring contract midseason to the Cleveland Indians. Finally healthy down the stretch, Donaldson appeared in 16 games for Cleveland, posting a .280/.400/.520 slash line with three home runs and seven RBIs.

Donaldson will turn 33 years old in about a week, so that combined with his injury history depressed his market to where he was willing to take a one-year deal. It's a very lucrative one-year deal with the defending NL East champion Braves, mind you, but a one-year deal nonetheless.

The Braves are getting a great hitter if Donaldson is healthy, but there's an increased risk of injury with this player going to the National League. The DH is not an option in Atlanta, so Donaldson will need to play third base every day.

I have no doubt the guy still can play. It's just a question of whether he can stay on the field.

Andrew McCutchen trade makes little sense for Pittsburgh or San Francisco

Andrew McCutchen

Is anyone else confused by this trade between the Pittsburgh Pirates and the San Francisco Giants?

San Francisco acquired former league MVP Andrew McCutchen from the Pirates in exchange for right-hander Kyle Crick, outfield prospect Bryan Reynolds and $500,000 of international money.

Do the Giants really believe they can win this year with this move? They are coming off a 98-loss season. They finished 40 games behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West, and oh yeah, that division produced three playoff teams last season -- the Arizona Diamondbacks and the Colorado Rockies were the NL wild-card teams.

I know the Giants added Evan Longoria this offseason, too, but he's similar to McCutchen -- still a good player, but a veteran on the downside of his career. McCutchen will be a free agent after the 2018 season, so this is very much a win-now move. But to me, San Francisco is going to have to hope other clubs in its division take big steps backward. The Giants look like a 75-win team to me, at best.

And what about the Pirates? That isn't a very good return for McCutchen. I had never heard Reynolds' name until he was included in this deal. Apparently, he's a switch-hitting outfielder who was drafted 59th overall in the 2016 draft. Good for him.

Crick is entering his age-25 season. He broke into the big leagues last year and compiled a 3.06 ERA in 30 relief appearances for the Giants.

Good for him, too, I guess, but if I'm a Pirates fan, I'm saying, "That's all we got for the player who has been the face of the franchise for the past five or six years?"

Yuck, all the way around.

Pittsburgh obviously is entering a rebuild phase. The Pirates traded Gerrit Cole to the Astros, too, in a move that makes a lot of sense for Houston.

The Astros are the defending champs, and they just added another guy who is top-of-the-rotation material in an effort to boost their chances of repeating. Unlike the Giants, the Astros have legitimate hopes of "winning now."

What did that cost Houston? Its fifth-best prospect in infielder Colin Moran, plus pitchers Joe Musgrove and Michael Feliz and an outfield prospect named Jason Martin.

You make that deal in a second if you are the Astros. If you are the Pirates, well, you got some guys in exchange for Cole and McCutchen, but I'm struggling to find any names in those trades that project as future franchise cornerstones. And make no mistake about it, Cole and McCutchen were franchise cornerstones for the Pirates.

There might be some tough years ahead in Pittsburgh, and in San Francisco, too, for that matter.

Orioles add Pedro Alvarez to a lineup that already has a DH

Pedro Alvarez

Former Pittsburgh Pirates 1B/3B Pedro Alvarez agreed Monday to a one-year, $5.75 million contract with the Baltimore Orioles.

Alvarez was No. 2 on our list of top 5 remaining free agents going into March (posted earlier this week), and he figures to add power to an already-potent Baltimore lineup. Alvarez has clubbed 101 home runs over the past four seasons. Last year, he hit .243/.318/.469 with 27 home runs and 77 RBIs in 150 games with the Pirates. He also struck out 131 times.

Pittsburgh, being a National League team, most likely parted ways with Alvarez because he is a defensive liability at both first base and third base. The Orioles have Chris Davis at first base and Manny Machado at third base, which means they can have Alvarez serve as designated hitter and hide his deficiencies with the glove.

There's just one problem with that: Where does that leave Mark Trumbo? I would have projected Trumbo as Baltimore's DH before this Alvarez move. Now, Trumbo is probably going to play right field, where he's just as big of a defensive problem as Alvarez would be at first base.

I wonder if the Orioles will try Davis in right field and have Trumbo play first. I'm not sure that's any better, but I won't be surprised if Baltimore manager Buck Showalter at least experiments with that defensive look during spring ball.

Baltimore is going to score some runs this season. Adam Jones, Davis, Machado, Trumbo, Alvarez, Matt Wieters, J.J. Hardy; they have a deep lineup with plenty of guys who can hit the ball off the wall and over it.

I question whether the Orioles have enough starting pitching to contend in the AL East. With a projected rotation of Chris Tillman, Ubaldo Jimenez, Yovani Gallardo, Miguel Gonzalez and Kevin Gausman, there isn't an ace in that group -- unless the 25-year-old Gausman, a former first-round draft pick, takes a giant leap forward.

I think Baltimore is going to need to play good defense behind that questionable rotation, but it looks to me like there are too many weak gloves in its projected lineup. That's going to drive Showalter crazy, as he is known as a manager who values good defense.

If the Orioles are to be a playoff team in 2016, they are going to have to outslug the opposition on most nights.

Madison Bumgarner turns NL wild-card game into a snooze

All the drama in the wild-card round this season got packed into Tuesday's marathon American League game. If you went to bed early Wednesday and missed the end of the National League wild-card game, you didn't miss a thing.

Madison Bumgarner and the San Francisco Giants made it look easy, as they dispatched the Pittsburgh Pirates, 8-0. With the win, the Giants advance to take on the Washington Nationals in the NLDS. That series will start Friday.

Bumgarner entered his seventh career postseason start with a couple factors working in his favor. First off, he's been good on the road all season -- 11-4 with a 2.22 ERA. Secondly, he pitched well down the stretch, going 7-3 with 2.12 ERA over his last 10 starts.

When the Giants won the World Series in 2010 and again in 2012, Bumgarner was a member of the supporting cast. Now, he's the San Francisco ace, and he proved it Wednesday night with a dominant, efficient performance.

The left-hander needed just 109 pitches in his four-hit, complete-game shutout. He struck out 10 Pittsburgh batters and walked just one.

Believe it or not, Pirates starting pitcher Edinson Volquez also entered this game with reasons to feel good about himself. After a disastrous 2013 that saw him record the highest ERA among qualifying pitchers in the National League, the right-hander enjoyed a comeback season this year.

He posted a 1.85 ERA over his last 17 starts, and he had allowed just four earned runs in his last 34.2 innings pitched at home. Unfortunately for Volquez, he allowed four runs on one pitch in the fourth inning Wednesday night.

Brandon Crawford became the first shortstop ever to hit a postseason grand slam when he picked on a 1-2 hanging breaking ball from Volquez and knocked it over the right-field wall to give the Giants a 4-0 lead.

That was your ballgame. There was no drama from that point on. San Francisco added four more runs, and Pittsburgh had no chance against the masterful Bumgarner.

Maybe we'll have something more interesting to talk about after tomorrow's action. Tonight's game was one-sided. It was all Giants.

White Sox release 2015 schedule

The White Sox have struggled to a 9-23 record over their past 32 games, so it's clearly time to start thinking about next year. Major League Baseball on Monday released its 2015 schedule, allowing fans of losing clubs like the Sox to put aside the current misery and take a look toward what will hopefully be brighter days ahead.

The first question I always ask myself when the schedule comes out: When is the Sox home opener? The answer is Friday, April 10. For the second straight year, the Sox will host the Minnesota Twins in their first home game. But, it won't be the first game of the year this time. The South Siders will start the season on the road Monday, April 6, in Kansas City against the Royals.

The other thing I always look for are possible road trips to take with the team. Those opportunities will be aplenty in 2015, as the Sox take on NL Central opponents in interleague play next season. They'll be at Milwaukee (May 11-13), Pittsburgh (June 15-16) and St. Louis (June 30-July 1).

I'll probably look into making the trip down to St. Louis. It's a nice ballpark. The Cardinals are always a good team, and it's refreshing to be in a city where baseball in the most important sport.

Naturally, the Chicago media is always quick to mention the crosstown series dates when the schedule comes out. For the record, the Sox will play the Cubs six times next season instead of four, and the series is moving back to weekend dates. The two teams will play at Wrigley Field from July 10-12. The series at U.S. Cellular Field will be from Aug. 14-16.

It's no secret I hate the crosstown series. I haven't attended one of those games since 2008. It's overpriced. It's not fun to go. There are too many drunk people. There are too many fights. The rivalry brings out the worst in both fan bases. If the crosstown series were outlawed, I wouldn't shed one tear. I'll be selling my tickets to those games.

San Francisco Giants become first team to win protest in 28 years

The San Francisco Giants on Wednesday became the first team in 28 years to win a protest filed with Major League Baseball.

On Tuesday night, the Cubs were leading the Giants 2-0 in the bottom of the fifth inning when a localized downpour caused the game to be delayed for more than four hours after the Wrigley Field grounds crew could not get the tarp on the field quickly enough.

The rain stopped, but the game could not be completed after umpires deemed the field conditions unplayable. The game was official, so the Cubs were awarded a rain-shortened victory.

The Giants, who are in playoff contention, were understandably unhappy and protested under the provisions of Rule 4.12 (a) (3), which states a game can be suspended due to a "malfunction of a mechanical field device under the control of the home club."

In this case, the "mechanical field device" is the tarp, which MLB determined had not been put away properly after its previous use. That's the home club's fault.

Therefore, the protest was upheld, and the game will resume at 4 p.m. Thursday with the Cubs batting in the bottom of the fifth inning and leading 2-0. The two teams have a regularly scheduled game at 7 p.m.

How rare is it for a protest to be upheld? The last time it happened was June 16, 1986.

The Pittsburgh Pirates were trailing the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-1, in the top of the sixth inning when umpires called the game after a pair of rain delays that spanned 17 and 22 minutes, respectively.

National League regulations required that umpires wait at least 75 minutes during an initial weather delay and 45 minutes during a second one before calling a game.

The umpires didn't do that, so the Pirates protested. The complaint was upheld. The game was resumed, and the Pirates lost anyway, 4-2.

The most famous upheld protest, of course, was the "Pine Tar Game," which was played on July 24, 1983, at Yankee Stadium.

The Kansas City Royals were trailing the New York Yankees, 4-3, with two outs in the top of the ninth inning when George Brett connected for a two-run home run to put Kansas City ahead, 5-4.

New York manager Billy Martin argued that Brett had too much pine tar on his bat. Umpires agreed and called Brett out. That was the third out of the top of the ninth, so the game ended with a Yankees win and a Brett tirade for the ages.

The Royals protested. The league office reversed the call, declaring that Brett's home run should count and ordering the game to be restarted from that point. Nearly a month later, on Aug. 18, Kansas City finished off a 5-4 victory.

If any pitcher deserves some run support, it's Jose Quintana

White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana leads the league in only one category: no-decisions. He had a league-high 17 of them in 2013. He's had 28 of them since the start of the 2012 season, more than any other pitcher in baseball. Heck, his first start of 2014 ended in a no-decision after the Sox bullpen spit out a three-run lead.

I've lost track of how many times Quintana has pitched well enough to win, only to walk away with nothing. Lack of run support? That would be an understatement. The Sox scored three runs or less in 16 of Quintana's 33 starts last year. Seven times, they were limited to one run or less. They were shutout on three occasions.

So if there's any pitcher who deserved to be the beneficiary of a 15-run outburst, it's Quintana. The left-hander turned in another solid, consistent outing on Tuesday night, firing seven innings of two-run ball in the Sox' 15-3 win over the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field.

The environment is hitter-friendly in Denver, and this game saw the Sox pound out six home runs and 19 hits. First baseman Jose Abreu hit the first two home runs of his major league career. Avisail Garcia also went deep twice, and Alexei Ramirez and Tyler Flowers hit home runs as well.

Abreu's first home run was perhaps the big blow of the game. On the 12th pitch of his at-bat in the seventh inning against Colorado reliever Chad Bettis, the Cuban slugger hit a three-run homer to extend a tenuous 4-2 Sox lead to 7-2. From there, the rout was on. Abreu homered in the eighth inning, as well, and is now tied with Minnesota's Chris Colabello for the American League lead in RBIs with 11.

Speaking of leading the league, Flowers leads all American League hitters with a .478 batting average entering Wednesday's action. That's funny to me. Should I pick him up in my fantasy league?

Cubs waste big night for Castro

Cubs shortstop Starlin Castro missed a good chunk of spring training due to injury, and not surprisingly, he got off to a slow start the first few games of the season. It looks like he's back on track, though, after going 3-for-4 with two home runs and four RBIs on Tuesday night.

But Castro's effort went for naught, as the Cubs lost 7-6 to the Pittsburgh Pirates at Wrigley Field. I bring up his performance, though, to note he is still clearly the best shortstop in the Cubs' organization.

While I agree with Cubs fans that Castro is a frustrating player to watch at times, I disagree with those who want him traded immediately to make room for uber-prospect Javier Baez.

In case you were wondering, Baez is 1-for-18 with eight strikeouts and three errors at shortstop in six games at Triple-A Iowa so far this year. The 21-year-old also was ejected from a game for an angry outburst over the weekend. There's a good probability we'll see Baez in Chicago before the year is over, but his slow start is a reminder that he is still very much a work in progress. He needs to refine his game, especially defensively, before he's worthy of being a big-league shortstop.

The Cubs need not be in any hurry to trade Castro, who for all his faults remains the most accomplished hitter in the North Siders' lineup. The Cubs need to be adding good hitters to their roster, not subtracting the scant few they have.

Bunting with two strikes ... sometimes that works

I was watching a White Sox-Reds spring training game last week when I saw Sox center fielder Adam Eaton bunt for a base hit on an 0-2 pitch. The Cincinnati third baseman was so stunned that he threw the ball away on the play. Even with an accurate throw, Eaton would have been safe.  

I thought to myself, "I haven't seen a Sox player try something like that in quite a few years."  

Fast-forward to Wednesday afternoon: With the score tied 6-6 in the bottom of the 11th inning, Sox infielder Leury Garcia lays down a perfect bunt on an 0-2 pitch. He beats the play out without a throw.  Later in the inning, he scores the game-winning run on a wild pitch as the Sox defeat the Minnesota Twins, 7-6.  

It would be a refreshing change if the Sox can find a way to score some runs this season without the benefit of the long ball. On Wednesday, only one of their seven tallies came on a home run -- a solo shot by Adam Dunn in the eighth inning.  

The Sox scored three runs in the second inning on three singles, a double and two sacrifice hits. They rallied to tie the game with two runs in the ninth on three singles and a fielder's choice. It was encouraging to see some manufactured runs with the game on the line.

Speaking of that ninth-inning rally, Paul Konerko got off to a good start in his new bench role. He led off the inning with a pinch-hit single off Minnesota closer Glen Perkins, who is left-handed. Konerko, for all his struggles in 2013, hit .313 against left-handed pitchers a year ago. He can still be effective for the Sox if he is spotted in matchups that are favorable for him.

'Don't want to get picked off here in this situation'

Good news for the Cubs: Their new leadoff man, Emilio Bonifacio, is swinging the bat exceptionally well out of the gate. He's 9 for 12 through the first two games of the season.  

Bad news for the Cubs: Bonifacio has been picked off base two of the nine times he's reached, and he would have been picked off a third time if the Pittsburgh first baseman had not dropped the ball.

I don't know if I've ever seen a guy get picked off three times the first two days of the season. Would that be some kind of record? It's hard to come down too hard on Bonifacio, though, because he's one of the few Cub hitters off to a good start. The North Siders are 0-2, having lost a pair of extra-inning contests in Pittsburgh. They've scored only three runs in 26 innings against the Pirates pitching staff.

On Wednesday, the Cubs rallied from a 2-0 deficit with a run in the eighth and another run in the ninth. They even took a short-lived 3-2 lead on Anthony Rizzo's solo home run in the top of the 12th. But new closer Jose Veras failed in his first save situation. He gave up the lead and was fortunate to escape a bases-loaded jam and with only one run allowed in the bottom of the 12th. Veras was taking forever in between pitches and seemed to have no confidence in his stuff. It's only one outing, but that performance cannot be encouraging for the Cubs, who went on to lose 4-3 in 16 innings.  

Buerhle turns back clock in first start of season  

Former White Sox left-hander Mark Buehrle had an up-and down year in his first season in Toronto in 2013, but on Wednesday, he looked like the pitcher he was five or six years ago.

Buehrle allowed only four hits over 8.2 innings and picked up the win as the Blue Jays defeated Tampa Bay, 3-0. The southpaw struck out 11 and walked just one.

It was just the second double-digit strikeout game of Buehrle's career. The other came during the Sox' World Series year. He fanned a career-high 12 in a 2-1 win over Seattle on April 16, 2005.

I still root for Buehrle, as long as he isn't pitching against the Sox.  

Chris Sale's strong outing alleviates bogus 'concerns'

I had to laugh Monday when I read news stories about the White Sox naming Chris Sale their starting pitcher for Opening Day. As if there were another pitcher on the roster under consideration.

That decision might be the easiest one Sox manager Robin Ventura has to make all season. Thank you, Captain Obvious.

Sale made his third start of the spring Monday against the Milwaukee Brewers and turned in 4.1 dominant innings. He retired 13 of the 15 hitters he faced and allowed just a pair of two-out singles. He struck out three and walked none.

I was relieved to hear Sale pitched well, not because I was worried about him, but because it was obnoxious to hear the bogus "concerns" other people had when Sale got knocked around in his second outing against the San Diego Padres last week.

In that game, Sale allowed six earned runs over 2.2 innings and struggled to get command of his breaking ball. Sale hadn't thrown his slider at all in his first outing of the spring, so it stands to reason he had difficulty with that pitch the first time he threw it in game situations this year.

It was yet another example of spring training being about getting ready for the season, as opposed to being about achieving optimal results. Established guys who already know they are coming north with the team don't need to concern themselves with statistics. A pitcher can work on a specific pitch during a given outing, and if he happens to get shelled, then so be it. It's a means to an end in terms of refining that pitch so it will be effective when the results begin to matter in three weeks.

A pitcher who will not be missed

Even as pitcher Zach Stewart languished through a miserable 6-14 season last year at Triple-A Charlotte, I was always somewhat (irrationally) fearful the White Sox would recall him and and give him a few starts at the big league level at the end of the season.

That fear is gone now after the Sox on Monday traded Stewart to the Atlanta Braves for cash considerations. Thank goodness that guy is gone -- hopefully for good.

Stewart went 3-7 with a 6.14 ERA in 28 appearances (9 starts) with the Sox over a two-year period. He was last seen in a White Sox uniform on June 18, 2012, when he gave up six runs, nine hits and four home runs in a 12-3 loss to a Cubs team that would go on to lose 101 games.

Six days later, Stewart and Brent Lillibridge were traded to the Boston Red Sox for third baseman Kevin Youkilis. Naturally, Stewart did nothing to impress in Boston. He was traded to Pittsburgh in November 2012, placed on waivers and later picked up by the Sox once more in January of 2013.

Ugh. I guess somebody had to pitch at Charlotte last year. At least Stewart never got back to the bigs in Chicago. This is one pitcher I hope we never see in the Sox organization again.