The White Sox will be swinging for the fences again in 2013. (Credit Kalel2007)

The White Sox have some great pieces – and for the first time in years, some of them are pitchers. There’s a lot of talk about the ascension of Chris Sale in the rotation, but the true gems of the Chicago pitching staff may be Matt Thornton and Matt Lindstrom, the lead relievers in their bullpen. Of course, the big bats help, and Paul Konerko and Adam Dunn are back for 2013…although this may be the final season of Konerko’s career.

If this is indeed Konerko’s swan song, it will be all about power. The bats swing for the fences, and the pitchers are generally fireballers. If the White Sox are going to beat their rivals (and overtake Detroit at the top of the AL Central), they’re going to muscle past them. There’s very little finesse with this team; the downside there is that applies to their interior and infield defense on a frequent basis.

Lineup

Chicago wins with its offense. This isn’t a secret to anyone; the White Sox lineup was potent in 2012, finishing 3rd in the AL in home runs and 4th in RBIs. Still, the runs came in clusters, as the team hit just .255 along the way. Alex Rios had a nice bounce-back year for Chicago, hitting .304 with 25 home runs. Adam Dunn bashed a monster 41 homers, but hit just .204 in doing so.

Paul Konerko may call it a career after the 2013 season. (Credit Keith Allison)

Although the White Sox aren’t known as a defensive team, they did have the fewest errors of any American League team in 2013 (70). Still, Jeff Keppinger and Gordon Beckham are not exactly defensive stalwarts at 2nd and 3rd, and Paul Konerko isn’t young enough to cover for his infield mates’ mistakes anymore. Expect the fielding percentage of Chicago to regress in 2013.

Pitching

The strength of Chicago’s pitching is its bullpen. Matt Thornton and Matt Lindstrom are hard-throwing relievers that can effectively carry games from the 6th-8th innings and limit damage. If Addison Reed once again struggles as closer, look to one of the “two Matts” to fill that role. Still, Reed has had a full offseason to train and develop, and will try to not be so fine with his pitch location this year.

Jake Peavy and Gavin Floyd return as veteran pitchers for the White Sox, but the story of the rotation will inevitably be the maturation of Chris Sale. Sale won 17 games for the Sox last year, striking out 192 batters over exactly 192 innings. If Chris Sale can develop into a #1 starter for Chicago, look out.

Projection

The strength and weakness of this Chicago team is one and the same. When they are hitting, the club is capable of stringing together hot streaks. When they don’t get the ball over the fence, more pressure is put on their rotation and the team’s defensive deficiencies start to show. With the overall improvement of pitching in the AL Central, Chicago may fizzle a bit more than expected. We think the White Sox will finish right around .500 and fall to 3rd in the American League Central.