Name: Marvin Freeman
Rank: 258
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 1996
Marvin Freeman joined the White Sox after being claimed on waivers from the Rockies on August 31, 1996. He appeared in 1 game for the White Sox, starting and giving up 3 runs in 2 plus innings in a game the White Sox eventually won 13-5 over the Red Sox. It wound up being his final major league appearance. He left the team as a free agent following the season.
Freeman’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
Name: Scott Bradley
Rank: 259
Position: C
Year With White Sox: 1986
Scott Bradley joined the White Sox on February 13, 1986 along with Neil Allen and a minor leaguer who never sniffed the big leagues from the Yankees in exchange for Ron Hassey, Matt Winters, and two additional minor leaguers who would never again heard from. Bradley spent the majority of his time with the White Sox in Triple A, earning a promotion to the big league club on May 28th after the release of Marc Hill. With Carlton Fisk and Joel Skinner also on the roster, Bradley wasn’t going to be limited to catching. “Wherever they want to play me is fine with me,” Bradley said. “The whole key is being here.”
He wasn’t there for long, though. On June 26, his short stay in Chicago came to an end when he was traded to the Mariners for a player to be named later, which, 5 days later, became Ivan Calderon.
Bradley’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
Name: Mike Devereaux
Rank: 260
Position: RF
Year With White Sox: 1995
Following the end of the work stoppage that wiped out the 1994 post season, Mike Devereaux signed a one-year deal with the White Sox during the abbreviated spring training prior to the delayed 1995 season. He was impressive, putting up a .306 average for the South Siders in 92 games.
On August 26, he was sent to the Braves for prospect Andre King. “We’re not going to the playoffs likely,” manager Terry Bevington said. “We’d need 20 wins in a row. I’m a guy that doesn’t give up ’til we’re mathematically eliminated, but the odds are very low. So here’s a chance for to go to the playoffs. I’m sorry to lose him, but I’m happy for him.”
Devereaux’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
Name: Roy Smalley
Rank: 261
Position: 3B
Year With White Sox: 1984
Roy Smalley came to the White Sox on July 18, 1984 from the Yankees in exchange for Kevin Hickey and future Cy Young award winner Doug Drabek. The Sox took a chance that Smalley could help wake up their struggling club and help them to repeat as champions of the American League West. He hit .239 with the Yankees, but the change of scenery didn’t end his struggles. Smalley appeared hesitant defensively at third base and out of sync at the plate, hitting an anemic .170 in 48 games with the Sox.
The next February, the White Sox sent Smalley to the Twins, in exchange for minor leaguers Ron Scheer and Randy Johnson (no, not that Randy Johnson). Under an unusual arrangement, the Twins had to keep Smalley for at least two years, at which point they had the option of returning him to the Sox. Smalley ended up playing three years with the Twins before he, and the 3 years and $1.6 remaining on his contract, was shipped back to Chicago.
After adjusting things to make room for him during spring training, the White Sox made Smalley their final cut coming out of spring training. “They’ve got a direction they are going in,” Smalley said. “It was obvious from the beginning that the direction didn’t include me.” Despite not making the team, Smalley impressed the Sox brass. “He’s a fine young man,” said Sox manager Jim Fregosi. “He handled himself very well.” The 35-year old Smalley never played in the major leagues again.
Smalley’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Name: Ben Davis
Rank: 262
Position: C
Year With White Sox: 2004
Ben Davis was acquired by the White Sox along side Freddy Garcia in the June 27, 2004 trade that sent Mike Morse, Miguel Olivo, and Jeremy Reed to the Mariners. Davis appeared in 54 games for the White Sox after the trade, putting up an anemic .231 batting average.
He re-signed with the White Sox for the 2005 campaign, but the arrival of A.J. Pierzynski meant Davis started the year in Triple A Charlotte. He only appeared in 10 games before a fractured finger and a right elbow injury ended his season. He underwent Tommy John surgery, was released at the end of the season, and never played in the major leagues again.
Davis’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Name: Chris Snopek
Rank: 263
Position: 3B
Years With White Sox: 1995-1998
Chris Snopek joined the White Sox organization in 1992 when he was drafted in the 6th round. He worked his way up through the system and made his major league debut on July 31, 1995, going 2 for 3 in the White Sox 6-4 win over the Royals. Snopek bounced up and down over the next 2 seasons and had already made the club as a backup infielder in spring training in 1997, when something horrible happened.
On March 21, 1997, in an exhibition contest against the Red Sox, third baseman Robin Ventura broke and dislocated his right ankle in an awkward slide into home. Suddenly, Chis Snopek found himself as the starting third baseman, at least until Ventura returned sometime after the All Star break. “We have to find out if Snopek can play,” GM Ron Schueler said at the time. “Our people really like him. This is the time to find out if they’re right.” However, it took less than three weeks for manager Terry Bevington to begin playing Tony Phillips at third against right-handed pitchers, leaving Snopek to rot on the bench.
Snopek got back in the lineup when Phillips was traded and kept it until Ventura returned in late July, having hit .223 with five home runs and 35 runs batted in and committing 15 errors. He was sent back to Triple A on August 8th. “Every day he got a question about replacing Robin, and that was tough on him,” said Schueler. “He was trying to hit home runs like they expected Robin to hit and that frustration carried over to his defense.”
After the season, Snopek went to Venezuela to play winter ball and, hopefully, rediscover his stroke. After hitting .380, he returned to the White Sox in spring training of 1998 hoping to get another crack at replacing a White Sox legend, this time shortstop Ozzie Guillen. While he lost out to rookie Mike Caruso for the starting role, Snopek did make the team as a reserve and, despite struggling at the plate once again, he stayed with the big league club until August 31, when he was traded to the Red Sox for a minor leaguer. “It was a total shock,” Snopek said. “But it’s an opportunity for me to go to Boston and show them what I can do.”
Snopek’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: Continue reading →
Less than a week after acquiring center fielder Adam Eaton from the Diamondbacks in a three team trade that sent Hector Santiago to the Angels, White Sox GM Rick Hahn struck again, this time getting third baseman Matt Davidson from the Diamondbacks in exchange for closer Addison Reed. Add in Avisail Garcia, acquired in the Jake Peavy trade in July, and the signing of Cuban refugee Jose Abreu and the White Sox have added 4 players under the age of 27 who should form the foundation of the team going forward.
Davidson is ranked 64th on MLB.com’s Top 100 prospect list and was the Diamondback’s 2nd best prospect. He hit .280 with 32 doubles, 17 home runs, 74 RBIs, 55 runs scored, a .350 on-base percentage and a .481 slugging percentage in 115 games at Triple-A in 2013. He also took home MVP honors at the Futures Game during All Star weekend at Citi Field.
The closer role will likely fall to Nate Jones, barring any new acquisitions between now and opening day. An opening day that could have the White Soc fielding 4 different starters from a year ago, hopefully leading them to future glory.
Name: Ron Reed
Rank: 264
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 1984
After 18 seasons in the National League, Ron Reed moved to the American League for the first time when he was traded from the Phillies to the White Sox on December 5, 1983 for Jerry Koosman. Reed was supposed to be a stabilizing factor at the back end of the bullpen as the White Sox looked to repeat as AL West champs. The 41 year old Reed pitched well enough, but the White Sox fell apart, finishing 5th in their division.
Following spring training in 1985, Reed was released and he decided to retire.
Reed’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were: Continue reading →
Name: Ehren Wassermann
Rank: 265
Position: P
Years With White Sox: 2007-2008
Ehren Wassermann joined the White Sox organization when he signed as an amateur free agent on July 16, 2003. He finally made his way to the big leagues during the lost season of 2007, making his major league debut on July 20 in a loss to the Red Sox after being called up to replace the injured Nick Masset. Wasermann pitched well out of the bullpen for the disappointing 2007 squad, putting up a 2.74 ERA in 33 games.
While the White Sox bounced back into contention in 2008, Wassermann’s game fell apart. His ERA jumped over 5 runs to 7.78 in 24 games. This earned him a return trip to Triple A Charlotte, where he also spent the entire 2009 season. Following that season, Wassermann was granted free agency, but he never pitched in the major leagues again.
Wassermann’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
7 seasons after his last major league appearance, former Cub phenom Mark Prior called it a career on Monday. The second overall pick in the 2001 draft, Prior quickly rose to the major leagues, making his debut on May 22, 2002, earning the victory against the Pirates. He excelled the following year, as a surprising Cubs team won their division and came within 5 outs of making their first World Series since 1945. Prior finished the year 18-6, was named to the All Star team, finished third in Cy Young award voting and was ninth in voting for the MVP award.
2003 was also the start of Prior’s injury issues. He hit the disabled list after colliding with Marcus Giles in a game in early July. Thanks to the All Star break, he only missed 3 starts, but he never pitched a full season after that point. He missed the first 2 months of the 2004 season due to an achilles injury. In 2005, he again started the season on the disabled list and went back on after suffering a broken elbow after getting hit by a line drive off the bat of Brad Hawpe. 2006 marked the third straight season that Prior would start the season on the DL, where he would stay until June 18. Less than a month later, he would return to the DL with a strained oblique suffered during batting practice. On August 10, Prior made his final start of the season, going 3 innings and picking up the loss to the Brewers. Four days later, he was placed on the DL for the third and final time that season, due to tendinitis. He would never pitch in the major leagues again.
Prior left the Cubs following the 2007 season, and, since then, he has attempted comebacks with the Padres, Rangers, Yankees, Red Sox, and, most recently, the Reds, where he had to be shut down as a result of continuing shoulder problems after just 7 relief appearances in Triple A. You couldn’t help but feel for him, a once in a lifetime stud pitcher who should have led the Cubs rotation for years and, instead, flamed out after 5 seasons. Entire books could be written on what might have been, and now Mark Prior will have his summers free to read them.
Prior’s numbers in a Cub uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: Continue reading →