Tag / Draft

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And The Enshrinees Are

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The BBWAA ballots have been counted and Greg Maddux, Frank Thomas, and Tom Glavine have been elected as to the Hall of Fame. Maddux lead the pack with 97.2% of the vote, followed by his former Braves teammate Glavine with 91.9%. Thomas finished third with 83.7% of the vote. Narrowly missing induction, with 74.8% of the vote (the Hall of Fame does not round up) was Craig Biggio.

Maddux, of course, got his start with the Cubs, whom he helped lead to the 1989 NL East title.  He won the first of his 4 consecutive NL Cy Young awards with the North Siders in 1992 before being allowed to leave as a free agent by GM Larry Himes.  Maddux signed with the Braves, where he continued to dominate and helped lead Atlanta to the 1995 World Series championship.  After 11 seasons, he returned to the Cubs in 2004.  He defeated the Giants in August of that year to win his 300th game and, in July of 2005, he struck out his 3000th batter.  In 2006, with the Cubs far out of contention, he was traded to the Dodgers for their stretch run.  For 2007, Maddux signed with the Padres, where he spent the next year and a half before being traded back to the Dodgers for another stretch run.  After the Dodgers were bounced from the playoffs, Maddux announced his retirement.

Frank Thomas was the first round draft pick of the White Sox in the 1989 draft, and made his debut for the White Sox the following year.  Thomas won the AL MVP award in 1993 while leading the White Sox to their final AL West title.  Thomas repeated as MVP in 1994, putting up a .353 average with 38 homers and 101 RBIs in the strike-shortened season.  In 1997, Thomas won the AL batting title and finished third in the MVP race.  After two substandard seasons, at least for him, Thomas rebounded in 2000, leading the White Sox to the AL Central title and narrowly losing the MVP award to a juiced-up Jason Giambi.  Thomas struggled with injuries after that, appearing in only 20 games in 2001, 74 games in 2004, and 34 games in 2005.  He spent the entire post-season on the disabled list as the White Sox won their first World Series in 88 years.  Following that year, the White Sox cut ties with Thomas and he headed out west to play for the A’s.  In his first game back in Chicago as a visiting player, Thomas homered twice.  Thomas spent 2007 and the start of 2008 with the Blue Jays, before finishing the season, and his career, back with the A’s.

I have been witness to milestones for all 3 enshrined players.  I was at Wrigley Field when Greg Maddux made his first attempt at winning his 300th game against the Phillies, the start before he won it on the road against the GIants.  I was there the next season for the rain delayed night game where he would strike out his 3000th batter, again against the Giants.  I was in Shea Stadium for Tom Glavine’s first appearance as a New York Met, which did not turn out well for him.  4 years later, I was at Wrigley Field for a Sunday night matchup where things worked out better for him as he defeated the Cubs for his 300th victory.

Thomas is now the Hall of Famer I have seen in action more than any other.  I was at his first return appearance as a member of the A’s, where, before the first of his 2 home runs, he was treated to a standing ovation.  An ovation which panned the crowd and found me amongst the masses, which I happened to notice that night on Baseball Tonight and now lives on as part of the White Sox Memories DVD.  I first saw Thomas play in his rookie year of 1990 and caught 66 of his games over the years.  I was there when he threw out the first pitch before the 2005 ALDS Game 1 against the Red Sox and in 2010 when his number 35 was retired.

Maddux, Thomas, and Glavine’s numbers in games I attended were:

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#263 – Chris Snopek

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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 →

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#269 – Matt Ginter

1628-156FrName: Matt Ginter

Rank: 269

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2000-2003

Matt Ginter was selected by the White Sox in the first round of the 1999 draft and made his major league debut the following September, throwing a scoreless inning and picking up the victory in the White Sox 9-8 win against the Angels.  The rest of his September call-up did not go as well, as he finished with a 13.50 ERA in 7 games.

Ginter split the next 3 seasons between Triple A Charlotte and Chicago, always performing much better in the minor leagues than in the majors.  In 2003, he put up a “nice” bookend to his White Sox career, matching the 13.50 ERA he put up in his rookie season of 2000.

As spring training of 2004 was winding down, Ginter was shipped to the Mets in exchange for Timo Perez.

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

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#276 – Jon Rauch

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Name: Jon Rauch

Rank: 276

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2002. 2004

Jon Rauch was selected in the 3rd round of the 1999 draft by the White Sox.  Rauch worked his way through the minor league system and made his major league debut on April 2, 2002, closing out the White Sox loss against the Mariners.  Rauch, who remains the tallest player in major leage history, struggled against major league hitters and was quickly demoted back to Triple A.

Rauch returned to the major leagues in 2004, but again had difficulty getting batters out.  On July 18, he was sent to the Expos along with Gary Majewski in exchange for Carl Everett.

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

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#288 – Shawn Abner

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Name: Shawn Abner

Rank: 288

Position: RF

Year With White Sox: 1992

Shawn Abner, the overall number one pick in the 1984 draft, joined the White Sox as a free agent on April 3, 1992.  He enjoyed his finest season as a major leaguer with the White Sox, batting .279 in a career high 97 games.  After the season, he was released by the Sox and, thanks to knee injury suffered the following year in the minor leagues, he never played in the major leagues again.

Abner’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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#291 – Carlos Castillo

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Name: Carlos Castillo

Rank: 291

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1997-1999

Carlos Castillo joined the White Sox organization after being drafted in the 3rd round of the 1994 draft.  Castillo worked mostly as a starter in the minor leagues, but joined the bullpen when he made the jump to the major leagues after impressing everyone during spring training in 1997.  Castillo spent the majority of the year in the majors, putting up a 2-1 record with a 4.48 ERA in 37 games.

Castillo again spent the most of 1998 in the White Sox bullpen, appearing in 54 games, but saw his ERA jump up to 5.11.  In 1999, Castillo’s troubles continued as his ERA continued to rise, up to 5.71, and he split the season between Chicago and Triple A Charlotte.  Things boiled over after a double-header loss August 30 at Comiskey Park, when Castillo lashed out at the fans, blaming them for booing Frank Thomas and Greg Norton.

The next spring, Castillo competed for a spot in the rotation, but his struggles continued and, on March 29, 2000, he was released and his time with the White Sox came to an end.

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

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#296 – Andy Gonzalez

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Name: Andy Gonzalez

Rank: 296

Position: 3B/OF

Year With White Sox: 2007

Andy Gonzalez joined the White Sox organization as their 5th round draft choice in 2001.  He worked his way up through the system and eventually made his major league debut on April 25, 2007 against the Tigers.  Gonzalez found his way into 67 games over the course of the lost 2007 season, hitting a meager .185.  Following the season, the White Sox declined to tender a contract for 2008 to Gonzalez, making him a free agent.

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

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#323 – Aaron Myette

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Name: Aaron Myette

Rank: 323

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1999-2000

Aaron Myette was the White Sox first round pick in the 1997 draft.  He moved quickly through the White Sox system and made his major league debut in September of 1999, appearing in 4 games with the big league club.  He spent most of the 2000 season in Charlotte, making only 2 appearances with the White Sox.

Following the 2000 season, he was packaged with Brian Schmack in a trade with the Rangers for the immortal Royce Clayton.

Myette’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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#329 – Brian Simmons

brian_simmons_autographName: Brian Simmons

Rank: 329

Position: LF

Years With White Sox: 1998-1999

Brian Simmons joined the White Sox organization as their second round pick in the 1995 draft.  He worked his way through the system, making his major league debut on September 21, 1998 as a defensive replacement against the Twins.  5 days later, against the Royals, Simmons set a major league record, needing the fewest career at bats to homer from both sides of the plate.

Simmons won the 1999 starting center field job in spring training, but a cut hand, thanks to Alex Rodriguez’s spike, late in spring training forced him to start the year in Triple A Charlotte instead of Chicago.  In 2000, Simmons again had won a spot on the opening day roster, but he ruptured his Achilles’ tendon on the day the White Sox broke camp.

Following the White Sox disappointing loss to the Mariners in the 2000 ALDS, Simmons was packaged with Mike Sirotka, Kevin Beirne, and minor leaguer Mike Williams to the Blue Jays in exchange for David Wells and Matt DeWitt.

Simmons rejoined the White Sox following the 2001 season, but was released during spring training after still showing the effects of his 2000 injury.

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

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#347 – Joel McKeon

Name: Joel McKeon

Rank: 347

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1986-1987

Joel McKeon was the White Sox first round pick in the 1982 draft and made his debut in 1986, where he appeared in 30 games out of the bullpen and had a rather successful 2.45 ERA.  His 1987 season, however, was much less successful, with his ERA jumping to 9.43.  The following February, McKeon was shipped off to the Padres to complete an earlier trade for Ed Wojna, but he had already made his last major league appearance.

While McKeon did little to make himself memorable on a real baseball diamond, his 1986 appearance with Buffalo, the then Triple A affiliate of the White Sox, made him a superstar of our Micro League Baseball league, where he was a stalwart of the team belonging to my friend Dave.

McKeon’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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