Fresh start or more of the same for White Sox?
The White Sox couldn’t get out of the U.S. Cellular clubhouse fast enough Sunday after losing to the Minnesota Twins again while dropping two of three overall to their AL Central rivals.
True, many of them had flights to catch for the all-star break, but the scene was equally comparable to a group quickly fleeing from a bad accident.
So off the Sox went to lick their wounds from a 44-48 first half.
The important question now is, have the White Sox recovered and reflected enough to finally put it all together in the second half?
Here are come important things to watch as the Sox come out of the break Friday night with the first of three games against the first-place Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park:
Dunn and Rios:Admitting you have a problem is the first step in getting it fixed, so maybe that#146;s good news for the White Sox.
Simply put, designated hitter Adam Dunn (.160, 117 strikeouts) and Alex Rios (.213, .262 on-base percentage) killed the Sox over the first half.
For the White Sox to have any chance the rest of the way, that has got to change.
#147;I feel like me and Alex, we#146;ve been as bad as you could possibly be and if we#146;re doing half of what we normally do we#146;re not even talking about this,#148; Dunn said. #147;Me and Alex talked about it, and we#146;re putting it all on us in the second half, basically.#148;
Peavy problem:Since coming over in a trade from the San Diego Padres two years ago, Jake Peavy has dealt with ankle, elbow, shoulder, lat and groin injuries.
Credit the 2007 Cy Young Award winner for continually fighting his way back, but Peavy looked like a beaten man after taking a beating (5 runs on 10 hits and 2 walks in 4#8531; innings) from the Twins on Sunday.
Afterward, Peavy said he was going to spend the break with his physical therapist back home in Alabama, but that#146;s not much time to heal a broken-down body.
Viciedo watch:Getting Dayan Viciedo#146;s potent bat into an offense that ranks ninth in the American League in runs (366), ninth in batting average (.252) and 10th in on-base percentage (.318) should be an easy task, but general manager Kenny Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen have not yet been able to come up with a suitable solution.
Batting .325 with 16 home runs and 62 RBI for Class AAA Charlotte, Viciedo should be getting a quick call if the Sox#146; offense still is sputtering coming out of the all-star break.
Six-man band:Assuming John Danks fares well in Friday night#146;s rehab start, he will come off the disabled list and face the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday.That means the White Sox will return to a six-man rotation, and pitching coach Don Cooper said the crowded group would stay together as long as every starter produces.We#146;ll assume that#146;s a warning to Jake Peavy, Gavin Floyd and Edwin Jackson to start pitching better or be demoted to the bullpen.Divisional doldrums:The Sox opened a stretch of 19 straight games against teams in the AL Central last week and went 2-5 against the Royals and Twins at home.Next up are road games against the Tigers, Royals and Cleveland Indians to open the second half.The White Sox are 8-16 against divisional opponents, and they could be out of the race by the end of the month if they don#146;t hit the brakes on their poor play against the AL Central.No bull:The Sox#146; bullpen couldn#146;t do anything right during the first month of the season, but the group has been the strength of the team since Sergio Santos took over as the regular closer and Brian Bruney came up from Charlotte after Tony Pena went on the disabled list with a sore elbow.White Sox relievers have allowed only 3 earned runs in their last 35#8531; innings. If the six-man rotation sticks, the bullpen needs to keep producing.sgregor@dailyherald.com