Sox go as far as they can, and now it's on to next season
When the White Sox' 2007 season ended with a lopsided home loss to the Detroit Tigers, manager Ozzie Guillen didn't mince words.
"Thank God that nightmare's over," Guillen said.
Considering the Sox lost 90 games and finished 24 games out of first place in the AL Central, Guillen could have gotten real nasty. Instead he stated the obvious and headed for home.
Just more than a year later, the White Sox were packing up and hitting the streets again, only this time after bowing out to the upstart Tampa Bay Rays in the American League division series.
Widely picked to finish third or fourth in the Central, the Sox won the division with an 89-74 record after edging the Minnesota Twins in the tiebreaker game last Tuesday.
Following Monday's 6-2 loss, Guillen said the White Sox deserve to walk with their heads held high instead of burying them in the sand.
"We played hard," Guillen said. "I feel proud of my ballplayers. We went through a lot of tough times. One thing nobody can take away from us, we fight every day. We fight every day."
But just like an aging fighter who's gone one too many rounds, the Sox finally hit the canvas while dropping three of four to the younger, scrappier Rays.
After hugging Guillen and most White Sox players in the postgame clubhouse, general manager Kenny Williams said he was not satisfied just getting to the playoffs.
"To me, it's kind of absolute," Williams said. "You either win it or you don't."
Williams vowed to make some significant changes this winter, and he likely will be looking for more speed at the top and bottom of the lineup. The GM also wants some defensive upgrades.
Having a healthy roster would bode well, too.
Simply put, the Sox bowed out of the postseason early because they didn't have key contributors such as left fielder Carlos Quentin (fractured right wrist), veteran starter Jose Contreras (torn Achilles' tendon) and third baseman Joe Crede (back).
"Look at the injuries we had to overcome," said White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf. "If Quentin doesn't go down, we win the division earlier; we get a chance to set up our pitching the way we want to. The injuries we had just killed us.
"They had nothing left in the tank after that last week of the season. But I'm not down about it, I'm really not. And I get down very easy. We gave it everything we had and we'll be back next year."
Williams sounded like he's ready to make some major changes instead of just tinkering with the roster.
"I know what I want to do," Williams said. "I know what I've wanted to do for three months. You know I've got ideas. You know I've got a plan. We've got to do some things to balance us out more offensively and defensively."
Who knows? If Williams makes the right moves this winter, maybe the White Sox advance deeper into next October.
As for this year, captain Paul Konerko said the timing of the exit was just about right.
"All in all, I think we went exactly how far we were supposed to go, with the injuries we had at the end," Konerko said. "If we didn't have those, I think we would have made more noise just because I think we would have won the division easier."