Sale, Samardzija, Quintana are star starters for Sox
GLENDALE, Ariz. — The White Sox were World Series good 10 years ago when they had Mark Buehrle, Jose Contreras and Freddy Garcia leading the rotation.
And 20 years ago or so, they were perennially good with Jack McDowell, Alex Fernandez and Wilson Alvarez as their top three starters.
If the fairly recent past is an accurate indicator, the Sox are going to be a difficult draw again this season with arguably the top 1-2-3 starting punch in the American League: Chris Sale, newcomer Jeff Samardzija and Jose Quintana.
Sale and Quintana are holdovers, and the right-handed Samardzija is an ideal fit to pitch between the two established left-handers after coming over in a Dec. 9 trade from Oakland.
“We think it begins and ends with pitching,” general manager Rick Hahn said. “So, obviously, it's important to us to get a guy in Jeff who not only has the ability to be a front-end starter but also log quality inning after quality inning. We feel around here and those who have been around the club understand that Jose Quintana is one of the best kept secrets around the AL. And Chris is an annual Cy Young contender.
“You start with those first three, one of whom is going to be pitching in every series, and that puts you in a very good position in our opinion.”
Pay little attention to the trio's win/loss record from last season. The White Sox were a subpar team and Sale and Quintana combined to go 21-15 while Samardzija (7-13) spent the first half of 2014 with the rebuilding Cubs before being dealt to the A's on July 5.
Pay much attention to the ERAs. Sale was third among major-league starters at 2.17, Samardzija was 22nd with a 2.99 ERA and Quintana was 30th at 3.32.
Despite missing 6 starts with a flexor muscle strain in his forearm, Sale was 10th in the majors with 208 strikeouts (in only 174 innings), Samardzija was 13th with 202 and Quintana ranked 29th with 178 strikeouts.
“When you're not mismatched before the first pitch is thrown, that's important,” Samardzija said. “Any time one of our starters has the ball, from top to bottom, each one has a chance to win that game. When you have a Cy Young type guy (Sale), it adds a little more excitement to the team and you see guys play behind him.
“It's your job to bring that level up and keep that level up and always bring it like that every day so these guys know what to expect from you. That's how you show you're a leader and you want to be a part of this team.”
Sale gets the start on Opening Day, an April 6 game at Kansas City. Samardzija pitches the second game, and when Quintana follows for Game 3, the Sox are hoping they're positioned to sweep Kansas City.
“When I think of Samardzija, when I think of Sale, when I think of Quintana and some others, the next thing that I would like to see if we can put on the resume is playoffs,” pitching coach Don Cooper said. “What's the next thing for Sale and these guys? Getting into the playoffs, showing the world what they can do. I'm extremely happy to have Jeff Samardzija. He makes us stronger, and anytime we get stronger, I'm all for it.”
Sale, Samardzija and Quintana are expected to set the pace at the top, but John Danks and either Carlos Rodon or Hector Noesi will have to step it up at No. 4 and 5 if the White Sox hope to snap a six-year playoff drought.
“We have as good a top of the rotation as anybody in baseball,” said Danks, who was 11-11 with a 4.74 ERA last season. “I'd put those guys up against anybody and it falls on myself and Hector to do our job on the back end. I know we're both ready for that and kind of take it as a challenge to keep up with those guys.”
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