Sox move on after trying to land Peavy
Even though San Diego Padres ace Jake Peavy has a no-trade clause and has consistently expressed a desire to remain in the National League, White Sox general manager Kenny Williams tried landing the right-hander last week.
"I had a girl in high school that always said she wasn't going to go out with me, either," Williams said Friday. "I ended up taking her to the prom. I don't much care about odds. People say the odds are this and the odds are that. I've been kicking odds in the (butt) my whole life to accomplish things."
While Peavy didn't completely slam the door on approving the deal to the Sox, the odds still appear to be too high for even Williams to hurdle.
Speaking with Chuck Swirsky on WMVP AM-1000 Monday, White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf all but declared the splashy trade dead.
"I think we've moved on," Reinsdorf said. "I think we were ready to do it last week, but we have to move on. We just can't keep everybody in limbo."
That includes Sox players such as starting pitcher Clayton Richard, who was rumored to be heading to San Diego had Peavy accepted the deal.
Williams said he has no "Plan B" at the moment, but he always seems to have some kind of trade brewing.
"Pitchers are hard to find; quality pitchers are always hard to find," Reinsdorf said. "You never want to underestimate Kenny. He's always thinking. But maybe it was a good wake-up call for Clayton Richard. He came out and pitched a heck of a game (Saturday) night. So maybe we don't need Jake Peavy."
Maybe not, but the White Sox are going to need some new hitters if they don't start swinging the bats.
Heading into Monday night's game against the Angels, the Sox ranked last in the American League in batting average (.244) and runs scored (167). Through 43 games last season, the White Sox were batting .242, but they scored 190 runs.
"Obviously, we haven't hit," Reinsdorf said. "The starting pitching has been less than we would have hoped for. The bullpen's been excellent. But I think the thing that has held us back is we haven't hit and I'm sure we will. We're looking at a bunch of guys who have hit in the past; there's no reason why they won't again."