A healthy Owens a threat on bases for White Sox
Fifteenth in a series
Editor's note: As the countdown continues toward the April 6 opener for the White Sox, Daily Herald Sports Writer Scot Gregor will offer his analysis of each position on the team and the key issues facing the club this season.
Q. Could you beat Paul Konerko in a foot race?
Gregor: With a foot tied behind my back.
Seriously, I could not. Konerko is admittedly slow, but he has much younger legs.
To his credit, the White Sox' captain often pokes fun at his lack of speed.
Q. If Jerry Owens wins the center field job, what's a realistic expectation for stolen bases? How about for Alexei Ramirez and Chris Getz?
Gregor: When he played in 93 games for the Sox in 2007, Owens stole 32 bases.
If he makes it through a full season in good health, it's no stretch to say the former UCLA wide receiver (two seasons) could swipe 50.
Ramirez is a smart base runner, but he isn't your prototypical stolen-base threat.
As a major-league rookie last year, Ramirez probably surprised himself with 13 steals, even though he was caught nine times.
Over seven seasons with Pinar del Rio in his native Cuba, Ramirez never stole more than 9 bases.
If he wins the starting job at second base, Getz is probably good for 10-15 steals. He had 11 in 111 games with Class AAA Charlotte last season.
Keep an eye on Brent Lillibridge, who is competing with Getz and Jayson Nix at second base. In four minor-league seasons with Pittsburgh and Atlanta, Lillibridge stole 128 bases - including 53 in 2006.
Q. Who is the fastest guy on the Sox right now?
Gregor: Jerry Owens wins that race, but Lillibridge is going to be right there at the tape. Give Dewayne Wise the bronze.
Q. Can you picture the day when the Sox switch from mainly a power team to one built around speed? Does that make sense in a park built for power?
Gregor: The White Sox are always going to try to put some mashers in the middle of the lineup, unless they decide to move the fences back at the Cell.
Ideally, they come up with two guys at top of the order that can steal bases and go from first to third. They'd also love to have a speed guy like the Twins' Carlos Gomez batting ninth.
Q. Though they haven't had great team speed over the years, how would you rate the Sox' baserunning?
Gregor: It's been painful the last three years, the epitome of station to station.
Now that they've got some fresh legs competing for playing time, the White Sox should easily exceed last season's stolen-base total (67). In the American League, only the Tigers (63) were worse.
• Got a question about the Sox for Scot Gregor? Visit his blog, Chicago's Inside Pitch, to share your questions and comments.