If Sox had been grinders, Central was there to take
And now, introducing grinder reason No. 573 why the White Sox are kicking themselves in the backside this season.
The Central division is the worst in the American League, and it's not much better than the NL Central, far and away the laughingstock of major-league baseball.
Had the Sox simply played a little over their heads after the all-star break, they'd be in the thick of the playoff race instead of exchanging jabs with the Kansas City Royals in the battle for last place.
In 2006, the AL Central was far and away the best division in either league, producing three teams (Twins, Tigers, White Sox) with 90 or more wins.
A furious charge in September landed the Twins in first place with 96 wins, and the Tigers settled for the wild-card spot with 95. The Sox won 90, but were left on the outside looking in.
It took years - and years - but the Central finally stole the spotlight from the Yankees, Red Sox and rest of the AL East.
The Central was set up for another dominating season, but it has gradually deteriorated into near mediocrity.
The White Sox were the first to fade, as a lack of offense and faulty bullpen combined to drag them down and out by mid-June.
The Twins, who have finished first in four of the last five years, have a shot to win again, but there has been some surprise sniping coming out of the Land of 10,000 Lakes. Much of it came from ace starter Johan Santana after Minnesota subtracted (second baseman Luis Castillo was sent to the Mets) rather than added before the July 31 nonwaiver trade deadline.
The Twins have hovered around the .500 mark all season, and manager Ron Gardenhire is surprised they are still in contention.
"The way everyone thought our division would go, it would take 95 or 100 wins to win our division,'' Gardenhire told reporters on Tuesday. "Somebody's going to have to get real hot to get there, I know that. So that surprises me that we still have a shot and we're .500.''
After going to the World Series last year and picking up slugger Gary Sheffield in the off-season, the Tigers looked to be the class of the AL Central. But as Detroit showed while being swept by the White Sox in a three-game series at Comerica Park in early August, there are some worrisome holes in the starting rotation and bullpen. Add in a sporadic offense and shaky defense and it's easy to see why Detroit was 16-23 after the all-star break heading into Wednesday night's game against Cleveland.
Speaking of the Indians, they were just 16-20 after the break before heading into the Tigers' game.
The popular darkhorse pick to reach the postseason at the start of the year, Cleveland has somewhat lived up to the rating. But a disappointing offense (what's up with Travis Hafner?), a shaky closer (Joe Borowski) and holes in the rotation have taken a toll.
So, in retrospect, the White Sox are left kicking themselves because they could have won this division, or at least made a run at it.
As Sox general manager Kenny Williams begins putting together the pieces for next year, maybe he spends a little more since a return to the top of the AL Central doesn't seem as daunting as it did a few months ago.
Central slide
Here's a look at how the teams in the AL Central have fared since the all-star break (through Tuesday):
Cleveland Indians 16-20
Detroit Tigers 16-23
Minnesota Twins 17-20
WHITE SOX 17-22
Kansas City Royals 17-20
On the run
Most stolen bases by a White Sox rookie since 1980:
John Cangelosi, 1986 50
Mike Cameron, 1997 23
Mike Caruso, 1998 22
Kenny Williams, 1987 21
Chris Singleton, 1999 20
Jerry Owens, 2007 19
At a loss
Most losses by a White Sox pitcher in a single season since 1980:
LaMarr Hoyt, 1984 13-18
Richard Dotson, 1986 10-17
Jaime Navarro, 1998 18-16
Steve Trout, 1980 19-16
Jose Contreras, 2007 6-16