The Chicago White Sox had a manager with no experience and some stars coming off awful seasons (Jake Peavy, Alex Rios and Adam Dunn), so expectations were not to high for the Pale Hose at the start of the 2012 season. But, they played well through August, before fading and just missing the playoffs. They finished in 2nd place in the A.L. Central with a 85-77 record, 3 games behind the Tigers. Here is a look at the players that made the biggest impacts in my opinion in 2012:

TEAM MVP: Alex Rios: 31-year old righty swinging Alex Rios did it all for the White Sox in 2012. He ran the bases well, played good defense and he ripped the ball with his bat. Rios played in 157 games for the White Sox last year and he was 184 of 605 (.304 avg, .850 OPS) with 93 runs scored, 25 homers, 91 RBIs and 23 stolen bases.

BEST PITCHER: Chris Sale: 23-year old lefty starting pitcher Chris Sale was outstanding for the most part in 2012. He pitched in 30 games (29 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 17-8 with a 3.05 ERA and a 1.14 WHIP. Sale only gave up 167 hits and 51 walks while whiffing 192 batters in 192 innings for the White Sox and those are pretty impressive numbers.

BIGGEST SURPRISE: A.J. Pierzynski : 35-year old lefty swinging catcher A.J. Pierzynski had another good season, but what was surprising was his new found power stroke. He played in 135 games last year for the White Sox and he was 133 of 479 (.278 avg, .827 OPS) with 68 runs scored, 27 homers and 77 RBIs.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: Philip Humber: 29-year old righty threw a perfect game on April 21st against the Mariners, giving the White Sox high hopes. But the roof caved in for him then. Humber pitched in 26 games (16 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 5-5 with a 6.44 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP. Humber gave up 113 hits (23 homers) and 44 walks while whiffing 85 batters in only 102 innings. He is going to have a hard time winning a spot in the White Sox’ rotation next spring.

The Chicago White Sox were big spenders in free agency last winter and the result was a 79-83 record, which had them in 3rd place in the A.L. Central, 16 games behind the Tigers. Here is a look at the things that stuck out most to me in 2011:

TEAM MVP: 35-year old righty swinging 1B Paul Konerko didn’t let a team wide slump slow him down. He played in 149 games for the Pale Hose last year and he was 163 for 543 (.300 avg, .906 OPS) with 69 runs scored, 31 homers, 105 RBIs and 1 stolen base. Konerko is one of he best players in White Sox’ history and he still appears to have a lot left in the gas tank.

BEST PITCHER: 22-year old lefty reliever Chris Sale is just plain nasty! He pitched in 58 games (0 starts) for the White Sox last year and he was 2-2 with 8 saves, a 2.79 ERA and a 1.11 WHIP. Sale only gave up 52 hits while whiffing 79 batters in 71 innings last year, and those are very impressive numbers. The White Sox are planning to move Sale into the starting rotation for 2012.

PLEASANT SURPRISE: 28-year old righty starting pitcher Philip Humber came out of nowhere to win a spot in the rotation when Jake Peavy wasn’t healthy enough to start the year. He never gave the job back. Humber pitched in 28 games (26 starts) for the Pale Hose in 2011 and he was 9-9 with a 3.75 ERA and a 1.18 WHIP.

BIGGEST DISAPPOINTMENT: This is a very easy pick. 31-year old lefty swinging DH Adam Dunn got a huge deal over the winter and he was pathetic. Dunn played in 122 games for the White Sox in 2011 and he was 66 for 415 (.159 avg, .569 OPS) with 36 runs scored, 11 homers and 42 RBIs. Dunn walked 75 times but that was negated by the 177 times he whiffed!