The White Sox are prepared to make lefty Matt Thornton the closer which means that they want to move Bobby Jenks. GM Kenny Williams might be in the mood to roll the dice and trade Jenks to the Rays for Pat Burrell. The only problem with this trade is that Burrell did not do well in his first season as a DH. The White Sox would probably have to play Burrell some in the outfield but that wouldn’t be a problem as Carlos Quentin needs some time off once in a while. The Rays would likely jump at this if it were offered to them as they are desperate for a closer.

The White Sox have claimed 25-year old lefty swinging outfielder Alejandro De Aza off waivers from the Florida Marlins. De Aza played in 22 games for the Marlins last season and he was 5 for 20 (.250 avg, .685 OPS) with 6 runs scored and 3 RBIs. In two years in his major league career, De Aza has played in 67 games in which he is 38 for 164 (.232 avg, .590 OPS) with 20 runs scored, 11 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. He will have a good chance of making the White Sox next season as a backup outfielder.

The Chicago White Sox should have a very interesting winter. They have 7 players elgible for free agency and they would like three of them back (Scott Podsednik, Mark Kotsay and Octavio Dotel). Of those three Dotel will be the hardest to sign as a lot of teams might want him. The White Sox are working hard to re-sign Podsednik before free agency begins so that they will have the starting outfield set. Catcher Ramon Castro, outfielder Jermaine Dye, outfielder Dewayne Wise and Bartolo Colon have all played their last games with the White Sox. The only position left open in the starting lineup assuming that the Pale Hose re-sign Podsednik is DH. That is also the only spot the White Sox will probably spend big money to sign a player. Vladimir Guerrero and Hideki Matsui will probably be the top targets for White Sox’ GM Kenny Williams. If the White Sox lose out on Big Bad Vladdy and Godzilla then they would likely turn to Jim Thome (who wants to return to the Pale Hose) or Aubrey Huff. The White Sox will be looking for at least 1 backup outfielder over the winter with Reed Johnson, Gabe Kapler, Gary Sheffield, Endy Chavez, Andruw Jones, Brian Giles and Austin Kearns all getting consideration. With Matt Thornton possibly moving to closer the Pale Hose will be in the market for a lefty reliever with Joe Beimel, Scott Eyre, John Grabow, Ron Mahay, Darren Oliver and Brandon Shouse likely under consideration.

The Chicago White Sox rookie 3B Gordon Beckham was named the Sporting News American League Rookie of the Year earlier today.  The 23-year-old Beckham was called up June 4th even though manager Ozzie Guillen said early in the season that the White Sox would be “in trouble” if they had to start the young former Georgia Bulldog.  Beckham struggled mightily in his first two weeks with the Sox, but soon became one of their best hitters.  He hit over .300 for a large chunk of the season and finished the year at .270 with 14 home runs and 28 doubles with 63 RBIs.  Beckham also took on a brand new position, playing third base for the first time in his career after being a short stop his entire life.  The award is voted on by the players, so it shows he has already gained the respect of his fellow players.

[kml_flashembed movie="http://www.youtube.com/v/EJSoQ7I0LZY" width="375" height="300" wmode="transparent" /]

Beckham’s attitude is just as good as his skills set, as the rookie was quickly accepted in the White Sox clubhouse.  He has also expressed he would like to be the leader and face of the franchise for the White Sox when the time is right.  Manager Ozzie Guillen thinks he can and will be that guy saying, “I wish that kid was a two or three-year veteran in the big leagues because he has that attitude…He has that right frame of mind. He was a leader his whole life from when he was in high school, college. I think he wants to be the face of the franchise and we need something like that.”  I’m looking forward to a long and successful career for Beckham on the South Side, and he made a great first step in his rookie year.

The White Sox have released 30-year old righty swinging infielder Andy Cannizaro. Cannizaro played in 22 games in AAA-ball for the White Sox after coming over in a trade with the Indians and he was 16 for 77 (.208 avg, .512 OPS) with 5 runs scored and 4 RBIs. Overall, Cannizaro played in 72 games in AAA-ball last season and he was 59 for 237 (.249 avg, .638 OPS) with 18 runs scored, 1 homer and 23 RBIs. The White Sox won’t miss Cannizaro at all in the future.

When the White Sox claimed Alex Rios from the Blue Jays in August it spelled the end of Jermaine Dye’s time in the Windy City (unless he signs with the Cubs). The White Sox will likely be giving him a $1 million dollar buyout rather than paying him $12 million bucks for the 2010 season. The 35-year old righty swinging Dye played in 141 games last season in which he was 126 for 503 (.250 avg, .793 OPS) with 78 runs scored, 27 homers and 81 RBIs. In his five years with the White Sox, Dye played in 724 games in which he was 742 for 2,669 (.278 avg, .869 OPS) with 419 runs scored, 164 homers and 461 RBIs. The White Sox will miss his professionalism in RF and he will hopefully find a new job that he likes over the winter.

UPDATE: The White Sox have declined Jermaine Dye’s option ending his time in Chicago.

31-year old lefty swinging outfielder DeWayne Wise has refused an outright assignment to AAA making him a unrestricted free agent. Wise played in 84 games for the White Sox this season and he was 32 for 142 (.225 avg, .628 OPS) with 17 runs scored, 2 homers, 11 RBIs and 4 stolen bases. Wise is best remembered for making the outstanding catch that preserved Mark Buehrle’s perfect game over the summer. But that wasn’t enough to keep him on the roster and that was the right decision for the White Sox to make as they can find a better backup outfielder to come off the bench over the winter. Wise played in 141 games in two years with the White Sox and he was 64 for 271 (.236 avg, .683 OPS) with 37 runs scored, 8 homers, 29 RBIs and 13 stolen bases. For all of you D-Wise lovers out there he has played in 324 games in his 7-year career in the majors and he is 132 for 610 (.216 avg, .636 OPS) with 82 runs scored, 17 homers, 61 RBIs and 25 stolen bases. He is what he is going to be at this point in his career and that is a AAA outfielder.

The White Sox exercised an option for the 2010 season on Matt Thornton for $2.25 million bucks. He pitched in 70 games out of the bullpen for the Pale Hose last season and he was 6-3 with 4 saves, a 2.74 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. In four years with the White Sox, Thornton has pitched in 275 games (0 starts) in which he is 20-13 with 9 saves, a 3.31 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Rumors abound that the White Sox will be shopping Bobby Jenks with the idea of using Thornton as the closer next season. He should be able to do a good job for the White Sox in any role they use him in next season. He only has allowed 211 hits in 250 innings with the White Sox while whiffing 268 batters which shows that he has the swing and miss stuff to be a good closer.

34-year old Freddy Garcia showed the Pale Hose enough for them to exercise his 2010 option worth $1 million bucks plus a possible $2 million dollars in incentives. Garcia started 9 games for the White Sox this season and he was 3-4 with a 4.09 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He will likely slot in as the #5 starter for the White Sox in 2010. Garcia has now pitched 4 years with the White Sox in which he has started 91 games and he is 43-25 with a 4.25 ERA and a 1.26 WHIP. Based on how he pitched at the end of the season it was worth the risk to re-sign Garcia who has always pitched pretty well when he has been healthy in his career.