Roster issues take center stage for White Sox

Since the White Sox ended the season with an 88-74 record not bad, but not good enough to overcome the first-place Twins most of the speculation has been focused on whether or not key free agents Paul Konerko and A.J. Pierzynski are coming back.

Maybe general manager Kenny Williams will shed some light on the duo's status when he talks with reporters Thursday on a conference call before heading to the winter meetings next week in Orlando, Fla.

The Sox did offer salary arbitration to Konerko, along with free-agent relief pitcher J.J. Putz.

Tuesday was the deadline for Konerko and Putz to either accept or decline, but the White Sox had not officially heard back from the Major League Baseball Players Association late in the day.

Both players were expected to decline arbitration, but that doesn't mean they won't be back with the Sox next year and beyond. Pierzynski was not offered arbitration, but the 33-year-old catcher could also return.

Another deadline is approaching Thursday, when teams have to decide whether or not to tender contracts to players that are arbitration eligible but fall short of the six-year service time needed for free agency.

The Sox have four players in that category: Bobby Jenks, Carlos Quentin, John Danks and Tony Pena.

The guess is they offer contracts to Danks and Quentin, while Pena is a 50-50 possibility.

As for Jenks, his last appearance in a White Sox uniform almost certainly came on Sept. 4, when he saved both ends of a doubleheader at Boston.

Jenks was sidelined for the rest of the season with ulnar neuritis in his right forearm, even though the big right-hander said he was healthy enough to pitch on the final homestand.

It was a rough season for Jenks, on several fronts.

The weight he dropped in the off-season after being publicly challenged by Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen didn't stay off for long, and Jenks again had trouble staying healthy.

When he was injured in September, Jenks skipped the Sox' West Coast road trip and that didn't sit well with management.

During the final weekend of the season, Williams was asked about Jenks' future. His answer all but sealed the closer's departure.

“That's something we have to evaluate strongly because I've been disappointed on a number of levels,” Williams said. “And there are certain things that ... I'm not going to talk about right now. What I will say is Bobby Jenks has been good for a long time here.”

Even pitching coach Don Cooper, a longtime supporter, bristled when asked if Jenks was going to pitch during the final weekend series against the Indians.

“What do we gain?” Cooper said. “What's the plusses; what's the minuses? The plusses are for him personally more than us. He's been out of my mind, as far as a participant, for a while.”

If the White Sox do tender Jenks a contract, it would only mean they are going to trade him to get something back in return.

If he is nontendered, Jenks simply walks away as a free agent.