Sox Grow Players Better Than the Cubs Do
nytimes.com
By DAN McGRATH
March 12, 2010
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- North Sea-like weather conditions invaded the Valley of the Sun this week, skewing the viewing of Cactus League baseball. While dodging blustery rainstorms, both local nines have shown enough in their on- and off-field maneuvering to offer hints of what lies ahead this season, which is why spring training is so captivating to the fogged-in, winter-weary folks back home.
The White Sox have the look of a serious contender. Maybe they aren’t New York/Boston/Tampa Bay-strong, but none of those three are in the less-imposing American League Central Division. The White Sox are a deep, versatile team with a pitching rotation that could be the best in baseball. Freddy Garcia, the fifth starter, owns 121 major league victories.
The Cubs have some question marks if you’re a glass-half-full type, some holes if you’re half-empty, beginning with second base and including a bullpen full of untested arms. It speaks to the state of the team that its most intriguing player is one who will not open the season in Chicago.
The team is being purposefully low-key about Starlin Castro, the 19-year-old shortstop, barely acknowledging his presence in camp and issuing him a nonperson jersey, No. 67. He’s regarded throughout baseball as the Cubs’ top prospect after a bravura performance in the Arizona Fall League, and if appearance alone could divine a ballplayer, Castro would be house-hunting in Wrigleyville. He has a Hanley Ramirez-type body — lean, long and wiry-strong — with more range and a better arm than the incumbent, Ryan Theriot.
But it’s wise not to rush him. Playing shortstop for a contending team requires a layer or more of major-league polish, and it’s a rare 19-year-old who brings the requisite skills and nuanced savvy. Lou Piniella, remember, was the Seattle Mariners’ manager when Alex Rodriguez arrived in the big leagues at 19, and amid calls to see what the heralded kid could do, Piniella took his time with him. It worked out pretty well.
If the Cubs get off to a poor start, General Manager Jim Hendry might be tempted to summon Castro to Chicago. Tom Ricketts would probably share his curiosity. The new chairman has made it clear that grow-your-own will be the Cubs’ preferred approach to team building, so Hendry might be on notice in his ninth season as general manager.
In years past, Hendry made shrewd trades for Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez, and he can’t be blamed for Corey Patterson’s puzzling deterioration or the injuries that sabotaged Mark Prior’s career. But the fact is that a Cubs home-grown position player has not made a truly lasting impact since Mark Grace, who broke in 22 years ago. Theriot and catcher Geovany Soto will be the only home-grown starters in this season’s opening-day lineup.
The team has done better with pitchers — Carlos Zambrano, Sean Marshall and Carlos Marmol are assured regular work — but you don’t look at the Cubs’ roster and see the home-grown nucleus of a contending team.
Under Tribune Co. ownership, the Cubs could indulge in the occasional spending spree, adding Alfonso Soriano, Ted Lilly, Jason Marquis and Mark DeRosa before the 2007 season and winning two division titles. But that shop-till-you-drop approach seldom works, even for the Yankees. They’re first in line with a checkbook when Mark Texeiera or CC Sabathia hits the market, but the core of the dynasty that produced four World Series titles in five years consisted of career Yankees: Derek Jeter, Bernie Williams, Jorge Posada, Mariano Rivera.
The Red Sox can outbid the world for John Lackey or Daisuke Matsuzaka, but they’re also adept at growing their own: Dustin Pedroia, Jacoby Ellsbury, Jon Lester, Jonathan Papplebon. The Dodgers got good when Matt Kemp, James Loney, Chad Billingsley and Jonathan Broxton arrived. The Phillies won the last two N.L. pennants with a home-grown nucleus of Jimmy Rollins, Ryan Howard, Chase Utley and Cole Hamels.
The Cubs? Their drafts have produced one unmemorable Ozzie Timmons after another. If I’m Tom Ricketts, my first question to Jim Hendry is, “Where are the players?”
That hasn’t been a concern for the White Sox. Gordon Beckham is here, strong prospects Jared Mitchell and Jordan Danks are on the way, and the system is deep enough that youngsters can be dealt when the need arises at the major-league level: Jake Peavy, Juan Pierre, Mark Teahen. And General Manager Ken Williams is rarely wrong about the talent he surrenders. Anyone still prefer Brandon McCarthy to John Danks? Chris Carter to Carlos Quentin?
Williams calls it “retooling on the fly,” but he won’t endorse the process until it produces another World Series winner.
“Earlier in my career I was as guilty as anyone of throwing a bunch of talent at the wall to see what sticks,” Williams said, referring to brief, unpleasant visits by David Wells, Royce Clayton and Nick Swisher. “I’ve since learned the value of everyone pulling the rope in the same direction.”
That made it harder to part with Jim Thome and Jermaine Dye, team-comes-first clubhouse statesmen, but the Sox had to get younger. And baseball is moving toward a leaner, more athletic look in the post-steroid era. “That’s been our scouting model for the last three years,” Williams said.
You’ll recognize it on the South Side this year. It ought to hold your attention until Starlin Castro arrives. |
