The White Sox were only 79-83 (48.8%) on the year and that is just not good enough. Guillen led the team know about it repeatedly in 2009. The White Sox will be built around pitching in 2010 as they will have one of the deepest, most talented pitching staffs in all of baseball. The question is: Will they score enough runs to make the playoffs. Guillen is now 512-461 (52.6%) in his 6 years with the White Sox in which he has won a American League Pennant and a World Series Championship. Guillen is one of the better motivators around and I think that he has a team that he likes going into the year.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE MANAGER IN 2010: A

The Chicago White Sox have probably the best bullpen in the American League for this season. 29-year old righty closer Bobby Jenks was rumored to be traded all winter but the White Sox were smart to keep him. Jenks pitched in 52 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last season and he was 3-4 with 29 saves, a 3.71 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. In his five years with the White Sox, Jenks has pitched in 274 games (0 starts) in which he is 13-15 with 146 saves, a 3.21 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Jenks has wicked stuff and I see him improving his bottom line numbers in 2010 for the White Sox.

33-year old lefty Matt Thornton would be a closer on most teams but he is the set up man for the Pale Hose. Thornton pitched in 70 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 6-3 with 4 saves, a 2.74 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He only gave up 58 hits in 72 1/3 innings last season while whiffing 87 batters showing just how nasty he can be. Thornton has pitched four years for the White Sox working in 275 games (0 starts) in which he is 20-13 with 9 saves, a 3.31 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP. Thornton brings the easy heat from the left side for the White Sox as he is one of the nastiest lefty relievers in the game.

33-year old righty J.J. Putz was talked into joining the White Sox by his buddy from their days in Seattle together (Matt Thornton). Putz pitched in 29 games (0 starts) for the Mets last season in which he was 1-4 with 2 saves, a 5.22 ERA and a 1.64 WHIP. He has now pitched in 337 games (0 starts) in his major league career and he is 23-19 with 103 saves, a 3.24 ERA and a 1.20 WHIP. Putz, like Thornton, could close if something were to happen to Bobby Jenks in 2010.

33-year old righty Scott Linebrink was hurting all of last season and it showed in his numbers. Linebrink pitched in 57 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last season in which he was 3-7 with 2 saves, a 4.66 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. In his two years with the White Sox, Linebrink has pitched in 107 games (0 starts) in which he is 6-5 with 2 saves, a 3.99 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. Linebrink is a much better pitcher than he showed in 2009 and he will prove it if healthy in 2010.

28-year old righty fireballer Tony Pena came over from the D-Backs in a trade last summer. Pena pitched in 35 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last season and he was 1-2 with 1 save, a 3.75 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. He pitched in 72 games (0 starts) overall last season for the White Sox in which he was 6-5 with 2 saves, a 3.99 ERA and a 1.44 WHIP. He has a big time arm giving the White Sox a very deep pen in 2010.

34-year old lefty Randy Williams will likely be the White Sox #2 lefty out of the pen in 2010. Williams pitched in 25 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 0-1 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. He whiffed 22 batters in only 17 2/3 innings last season showing that he might be ready for his new role in 2010.

27-year old righty Freddy Dolsi will battle for one of the last spots in the pen in 2010 for the White Sox. Dolsi pitched in 6 games (0 starts) for the Tigers last season and he was 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA and a 1.59 WHIP. He also pitched in 39 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last year in which he was 4-3 with 10 saves, a 3.83 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP.

24-year old righty Jhonny Nunez also has the potential to help the White Sox’ pen in 2010. Nunez pitched in 7 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last season and he was 0-0 with a 9.53 ERA and a 2.12 WHIP. He also pitched in 42 games (0 starts) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 5-0 with 4 saves, a 2.55 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP. Nunez only gave up 57 hits in 70 2/3 innings last season in the minors while whiffing 79 batters showing that he probably has the stuff to succeed in the majors.

32-year old righty Greg Aquino has always had a good arm but he has never really converted it into success at the major league level. Aquino pitched in 10 games (0 starts) for the Indians last season and he was 1-2 with a 4.50 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP. He also pitched in 30 games (1 start) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 1-2 with 16 saves, a 3.13 ERA and a 1.30 WHIP.

25-year old righty Jeff Marquez was one of the players the White Sox got from the Yankees for Nick Swisher and he is no closer to the majors. He pitched in 11 games (all starts) in AAA-ball last season in which he was 2-8 with a 9.85 ERA and a 2.06 WHIP. He gave up 72 hits (12 of which were homers) as he didn’t miss many bats last season.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE BULLPEN IN 2010: A

The White Sox have signed 34-year old righty starting pitcher Scott Elarton to a minor league deal. Elarton last pitched in the majors in 2008 with the Cleveland Indians. He has pitched in 232 games (170 starts) in his 10 years in the majors in which he is 56-61 with 3 saves, a 5.29 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP. This was a depth signing and little more for the White Sox as Elarton doesn’t have much of an upside.

The White Sox have a solid starting rotation set up for the 2010 season. It all starts with 28-year old righty Jake Peavy who is just entering his prime. Peavy started 3 games for the White Sox last September in which he was 3-0 with a 1.35 ERA and a 0.85 WHIP. Overall, he started 16 games for the Padres & White Sox last season in which he was 9-6 with a 3.45 ERA and a 1.12 WHIP. He only gave up 80 hits in 101 2/3 innings last season while whiffing 110 batters showing that his stuff was still sharp despite pitching hurt most of 2009. The sky is the limit for Peavy in 2010 as long as he can stay healthy all year long.

30-year old lefty Mark Buehrle is back for another season for the Pale Hose in 2010. He started 33 games for the White Sox last season in which he was 13-10 with a 3.84 ERA and a 1.25 WHIP. Buehrle threw a perfect game against the Rays last season. He has now had 9 straight years of double digit wins with 200+ innings pitched. Look for him to make it 10 in a row in 2010.

24-year old lefty John Danks gives the White Sox great balance as the rotation is 2/5 left-handed. Danks started 32 games for the White Sox last year in which he was 13-11 with a 3.77 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. He only allowed 184 hits in 200 1/3 innings for the Pale Hose last season but he walked 73 batters and that is way too many. Look for Danks to have another solid year for the White Sox in 2010.

27-year old Gavin Floyd got off to a terrible start to the 2010 season before finishing very strongly. Floyd started 30 games for the White Sox last season and he was 11-11 with a 4.06 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP. He only allowed 178 hits in 193 innings pitched while whiffing 163 batters. The White Sox hope he can be focused and motivated from April-October in 2010.

34-year old righty Freddy Garcia will start the year as the White Sox’ #5 starter. Garcia started 9 games for the White Sox last season in which he was 3-4 with a 4.34 ERA and a 1.21 WHIP. He also started 6 games in Rookie+A+AAA-ball last season in which he was 0-3 with a 4.06 ERA and a 1.10 WHIP. 7 out of his 11 years Garcia has won at least 12 games in a season in the majors. If he can stay healthy in 2010 the White Sox will have one of the better fifth starters in baseball.

23-year old righty Dan Hudson is on the way for the White Sox. He is the Pale Hose’ #3 rated prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. Hudson pitched in 6 games (2 starts) for the White Sox at the end of the 2009 season and he was 1-1 with a 3.38 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. He also started 26 games in A+AA+AAA-ball last year in which he was 14-5 with a 2.32 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. Hudson only gave up 105 hits while whiffing 166 batters in only 147 1/3 innings in the minors last year.

27-year old righty Carlos Torres is the White Sox’ #16 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. Torres pitched in 8 games (5 starts) for the White Sox last season and he was 1-2 with a 6.04 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP. He also pitched in 23 games (20 starts) in AAA-ball last year in which he was 10-4 with 1 save, a 2.39 ERA and a 1.19 WHIP.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE ROTATION IN 2010: A

The White Sox have released righty pitcher Daniel Cabrera and OF/DH Jason Botts. Cabrera pitched in 3 games for the White Sox this spring in which he was 0-1 with a 21.00 ERA and a 4.00 WHIP. He gave up 8 hits and walked 4 batters in only 3 innings for the Pale Hose and that was more than enough for the White Sox to decide to jettison him. Botts played in 5 games for the White Sox this spring and he was 1 of 12 (.083 avg, .297 OPS). The White Sox won’t miss either of these guys in 2010.

The White Sox have lost 21-year old lefty swinging outfielder Jared Mitchell for the 2010 season due to surgery he needed to repair a torn left ankle tendon. Mitchell was the #1 rated prospect of the White Sox heading into this season according to Baseball America. Mitchell played in 34 games in A-Ball last season in which he was 34 of 115 (.296 avg, .852 OPS) with 13 runs scored, 0 homers, 10 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. This will set back Mitchell’s estimated time of arrival by one year for the White Sox.

The White Sox are banking on 27-year old righty swinging Carlos Quentin staying healthy in 2010 as the starting right fielder. Quentin played in only 99 games last season for the White Sox and he was 83 of 351 (.236 avg, .779 OPS) with 47 runs scored, 21 homers, 56 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. The White Sox think that a return to health will help Quentin hit more to his career norms of a .254 batting average with a .840 OPS. Quentin didn’t play in any games in RF last season but that is his natural position so the White Sox hope he feels more at home there in 2010.

34-year old lefty swinging Mark Kotsay played in 12 error-free games in LF last season while showing average range. Kotsay also had 1 assist from RF as he has a decent throwing arm.

27-year old righty swinging Jayson Nix can also handle RF if the need arises for the White Sox. Nix played 4 error-free games in RF for the White Sox last season and he showed outstanding range there.

PROJECTED GRADE IN RF FOR 2010: B

29-year old righty swinging Alex Rios is looking to get his career back on the right path in 2010. He played in 41 games for the White Sox after being claimed off waivers from the Blue Jays last season and he was 29 of 146 (.199 avg, .530 OPS) with 11 runs scored, 3 homers, 9 RBIs and 5 stolen bases. Overall with the White Sox & Blue Jays, Rios played in 149 games in which he was 144 of 582 (.247 avg, .691 OPS) with 63 runs scored, 17 homers, 71 RBIs and 24 stolen bases. Rios has a career batting average of .281 with a .775 OPS in 850 games in his major league career so the White Sox hope he can hit those numbers in 2010. Rios played in 42 games in CF last season and he made 2 errors while showing good range.

34-year old lefty swinging Mark Kotsay played in 67 games for the Red Sox & White Sox last season in which he was 52 of 187 (.278 avg, .717 OPS) with 16 runs scored, 4 homers, 23 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Kotsay played in 5 error-free games in CF last season while showing poor range. But, Kotsay has always been a decent defender.

32-year old righty swinging Andruw Jones was once one of the best all-around CF in all of baseball when he played with the Braves. He played in 82 games for the Rangers last season and he was 60 of 281 (.214 avg, .782 OPS) with 43 runs scored, 17 homers, 43 RBIs and 5 stolen bases.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR THE CF IN 2010: B-

32-year old lefty swinging Juan Pierre came over from the Dodgers in a trade over the winter and he will be the White Sox’ new starting LF. He played in 145 games for the Dodgers last season and he was 117 of 380 (.308 avg, .757 OPS) with 57 runs scored, 0 homers, 31 RBIs and 30 stolen bases. Pierre has the ability to hit over .300 with 100+ runs scored and 50+ stolen bases if he can stay healthy in 2010. Pierre didn’t make any errors in 94 games in LF last season while showing below average range. He only had 1 assist from LF last season as he has one of the weakest throwing arms in all of baseball. Pierre is a winner and he will fit right in with the White Sox.

27-year old Carlos Quentin can play LF if needed in 2010 but he will be the starting RF for the White Sox. He played in 88 games in LF last season while making 2 errors. Quentin also showed off a rocket arm in LF with 6 assists there in 2009.

32-year old righty swinging Andruw Jones played in 12 error-free games in LF for the Rangers last season while showing good range. Jones has always been a good defensive player and he would excel if needed in LF in 2010.

34-year old lefty swinging Mark Kotsay played in 4 error-free games in LF last season while showing average range. He will likely play a few games in LF in 2010 for the White Sox.

PROJECTED GRADE FOR LF IN 2010: B