Tag / Carlos Lee

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Crosstown Competitors

cws-chiLast Saturday, Geovany Soto and Jeff Samardzija became the 25th and 26th people I’ve seen play in person for both the Cubs and the White Sox.  Here’s a look at those players, in alphabetical order.

DavidAardsma2David Aardsma

After posting a decent season with the Cubs in 2006, Aardsma was traded to the White Sox for Neal Cotts.  Aardsma lasted one season with the Sox, where he was unable to duplicate his success from the year before.

Jason Bere

Drafted by the White Sox in the 36th round in 1990, Bere debuted with the big league club in 1993, finishing 2nd in Rookie of the Year voting.  After an All Star selection in 1994, injuries marred the remainder of his tenure on the South Side, which ended in 1998.  He resurfaced with the Cubs in 2001 and had a decent season, but he went 1-10 in 2002 before being let go.

Neal Cotts

Acquired by the White Sox in the Billy Koch trade, he debuted with the team in 2003.  He was a key contributor in the bullpen during the 2005 championship season, and was the only relief pitcher to appear in all 3 rounds of the playoffs that season.  Following the 2006 season, he was traded to the Cubs for David Aardsma, and he spent the next 3 injury filled seasons on the North Side.

scott_eyre_autographScott Eyre

Joining the White Sox organization in a 1994 trade with the Rangers, he debuted with the big league team in 1997.  He split the next 4 seasons between the rotation and the bullpen, not to mention between Chicago and Charlotte, before being moved to the Blue Jays following the 2000 ALDS loss to the Mariners.  He joined the Cubs as a free agent for the 2006 season and enjoyed 2 seasons of relative success, before falling apart in 2008, when he was traded to the Phillies.

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#178 – Luis Vizcaino

Name: Luis Vizcaino

Rank: 178

Position: P

Year With White Sox: 2005

On December 13, 2004, Luis Vizcaino, along with Scott Podsednik and a player to be named later, was traded to the White Sox from the Brewers in exchange for Carlos Lee.  Vizcaino had a decent year in the bullpen, appearing in 65 games and putting up a 6-5 record with a 3.73 ERA for the AL Central champions.

Vizcaino sat out the ALDS and ALCS, and made one appearance during the World Series.  He pitched 1 inning of scoreless relief during the 14 inning marathon that was Game 3.

Following the season, nearly a year to the day that he was acquired, Vizcaino was packaged along with Orlando Hernandez and Chris Young in a deal with the Diamondbacks for Javier Vazquez.

Vizcaino’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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by jim

Transaction Tree

WhiteSox-rosterA few weeks back, when Corey Kluber won the Cy Young award, a New York time reporter tweeted how the Indians had, through multiple trades, turned Eddie Taubensee’s 1991 roster spot in to Kluber.  The fine folks at Grantland took it a step farther, and looked at the longest such chain for all 30 teams.

The White Sox fall smack dab in the middle of the league, having the 15th longest chain, dating back to the February 8, 1994 signing of amateur free agent Carlos Lee.  Lee made his major league debut on May 7, 1999, and quickly became a mainstay of the White Sox lineup, holding down left field through the 2004 season.  New manager Ozzie Guillen had tired of the station to station team he inherited, and was looking to implement some small ball, so Lee was shipped to the Brewers for a package that included Scott Podsednik and Luis Vizcaino.

Vizcaino spent just the one season with the White Sox, earning a World Series championship ring for his troubles.  With general manager Kenny Williams looking to repeat, he packaged Vizcaino with Orlando Hernandez and outfielder Chris Young in a trade to the Diamondbacks for starting pitcher Javier Vazquez.

Vazquez lasted 3 seasons with the White Sox, up to and including their 2008 AL Central title-winning year.  As the White Sox battled the Twins for the title, Vazquez turned out to be the one weak link in the rotation.  With the season stretching to a 163rd game, Guillen was forced to turn to Vazquez to start the first game of the division series against the Rays.  Vazquez responded to the challenge by giving up 6 runs in 4 1/3 innings, putting his team in an early hole in the best of 5 series.

Feeling that he couldn’t open the 2009 season with Vazquez still on the roster, Kenny Williams moved him, along with Boone Logan, to the Braves for, among others, Brent Lillibridge and Tyler Flowers.  Flowers made his debut in 2009 and became the full time starting catcher in 2013.  His production has been lacking over the course of his major league career, and, should an opportunity to upgrade arise, this chain may come to an end.

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#205 – Chris Singleton

1384-174FrName: Chris Singleton

Rank: 205

Position: CF

Years With White Sox: 1999-2001

Chris Singleton joined the White Sox after a December, 1998 trade with the Yankees for a player to be named later.  He made the big league club during spring training of 1999 and made his major league debut on April 10, pinch hitting in a White Sox loss to the Royals.  Later that season, on July 6, Singleton became the first White Sox player in 15 years to hit for the cycle, again in a loss to the Royals.  He finished the year with a .300 average and 17 home runs, which earned him 6th place in Rookie of the Year voting, ahead of teammate Carlos Lee.

Singleton had earned the starting job in center field entering the 2000 season, but, while the team caught fire and went on to win their first division title since 1993, Singleton’s numbers regressed.  His average dropped to .254 and he fell to 11 home runs.  His struggles intensified during the Division Series loss against the Mariners, as he went 1 for 9 in the 3 games.

2001 saw Singleton’s playing time reduced, although his average rebounded back to .298.  He appeared in only 7 fewer games as the year before, but his at bats dropped by over 100.  For the second year in a row, his power numbers fell, now down to 7.

A few weeks before spring training was set to begin in 2002, Singleton was dealt to the Orioles, in exchange for Willie Harris.  Singleton would rejoin the organization in 2006 as the new color analyst on the radio broadcasts.  He lasted for two painful seasons, teamed with fellow color man Ed Farmer, before leaving to become an analyst for ESPN on Baseball Tonight.

Singleton’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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Single Game Batting Leaders

We’ve looked at the single season and career leaders for games I have attended, and I thought it would be interesting to take a look at the single game leaders.

Home Runs

Name Total Date
Sammy Sosa 3 6/5/1996
Moises Alou 3 7/4/2003
97 with 2 Most rcently on 8/4/2012

Hits

Name Total Date
Scott Rolen 5 4/22/2007
Mike Fontenot 5 6/25/2007
Mark DeRosa 5 9/17/2007
Alfonso Soriano 5 5/17/2008
Derrek Lee 5 6/28/2008
Ryan Braun 5 8/2/2010
Prince Fielder 5 8/2/2010

Runs

Name Total Date
Chris Burke 5 6/13/2006
Gary Ward 4 8/14/1984
Paul Konerko 4 6/28/2002
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#382 – Jamie Burke

Name: Jamie Burke

Rank: 382

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 2002-2005

Jamie Burke appeared in only 64 games with the White Sox spread over three seasons, including just one during the 2005 season, but an argument can be made that he played a large role in bringing a World Series title to the south side.

Burke was acquired as a free agent following the 2002 season, and he was brought up for a brief cup of coffee in 2003, hitting .375 in only 6 games.

In 2004, Burke spent more time with the big league club, appearing in 57 games and hitting a respectable .333 in 133 at bats.  His defining moment, however, came behind the plate.  In September, the White Sox and the Twins were locked in a tight race for the AL Central crown when the Twins came to town for a three game series.  Late in the game, Burke was bowled over by Torii Hunter, enraging the crowd and giving the Twins a win in game one of the pivotal series.  Later in the series, Carlos Lee had an opportunity to give the Twins some payback going in to second base on a double play attempt.  Rather than go in hard, Lee pulled up, infuriating rookie manager Ozzie Guillen and, rumor has it, leading to the off-season trade that sent Scott Podsednik to the Sox and freed up the money to allow for the signing of AJ Pierzynski.  And that is how Jamie Burke played a pivotal role in the 2005 World Championship.

Burke himself appeared in only 1 game for the eventual world champs and was granted free agency following the season.

Burke’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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