Another day, another examination of a potential starter for the White Sox.
Friday, in a 12-5 loss to the Angels, it was right-hander Dan Wright. He went four innings and gave up three earned runs on five hits. Wright had a 3.12 earned-run average in three appearances entering the game in the battle for the three, four and five spots in the rotation.
“What we’re trying to get out of Wright is some consistency,” manager Jerry Manuel said. “One of his big things is to get through the first inning. Today he went out and [threw] first pitch strikes to the first three guys. If he can be that way we think he’ll be able to get through games. I’ve been happy with the way he has performed. He’s helping himself out, and he’s a guy the catchers say has some real good stuff.
“If you look back at his history, he performed well against the upper division clubs,” said Manuel. “Once he gets right, he’s a guy we feel can take off and be a solid starter. If [Jim] Parque’s process takes a little longer, he’s a guy, if he continues to throw strikes, we almost would have to consider him to face Seattle in the opening series because he had such success the time he pitched there.”
Decision time: Manuel said he’ll make his decisions March 21 on the rotation and the players’ various roles in the bullpen.
“Come that off day (21st), that’s when you have [Mark] Buehrle and [Todd] Ritchie going six innings, so you really expect not only to play well but win games,” Manuel said. “At that time I’d like to push the win button. I’ll say, `Hey guys, let’s not just get in shape, let’s win some ballgames.’ But obviously it’s not as important as when the bell rings. But we should be ready once we get our pitching in order and people know what they’ll be doing and what I expect of them.”
Parque will pitch again Sunday.
“If he doesn’t get it back, we still feel he’s going to get it back at some point,” Manuel said. “I told him [Friday] I don’t have a target date, just take your time and let the process take care of itself.”
Paul improving: Josh Paul wants to pick up where he left off last season, batting .365 in 23 games after being recalled in August from the minors. He is batting .250 in the spring, but has shown improved throwing in his bid to grab a catcher’s spot in a battle with Sandy Alomar, who has been hurt, and Mark Johnson.
“I’ve really focused a lot on improving my defense and especially my throwing,” said Paul, the Buffalo Grove product who grew up a Sox fan. “That has been kind of a weakness in the past and I’ve done some things mechanically to improve. I thrive in a team environment more than anything. Personal glory doesn’t mean anything. I like this team. I feel we have a legitimate chance.”
Going down: The Sox reduced their camp roster to 34 by optioning right-handed pitchers Mitch Wylie and Matt Guerrier.
Go-Go? Will it be the Go-Go Sox again?
“The thing I like about the Sox is their speed,” Rockies coach Rich Donnelly, who coached with Jerry Manuel for the Marlins, said earlier this week after the Sox stole three bases against Colorado. “They’re really going to play `Jerry ball.’ I wouldn’t be surprised if Jerry tries to get Jerry Reinsdorf to put AstroTurf at Comiskey.”
Thus far this spring the White Sox have stolen 20 bases compared with seven for their opponents. Kenny Lofton leads the majors with six steals, but was one of three Sox players thrown out stealing Friday.
“We have a lot of guys who can run,” Manuel said. “The acquisition of Lofton gives us a threat who can steal a base at any time. And he’ll probably entice Ray [Durham] to run even more. In that sense, we’ll steal more bases than we have in the years I’ve been here. And we have some other guys, like Magglio [Ordonez], who are not basestealers but can pick enough spots to have 20 steals. And Carlos [Lee] and Royce [Clayton] run as well.”
SPRING REPORT
White Sox recap
SCORE: Angels 12, Sox 5.
SPRING RECORD: 6-11.
AT THE PLATE: Paul Konerko had an RBI double and Willie Harris was 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI.
ON THE MOUND: Lefty Mike Porzio kept his hopes alive for a bullpen spot with a scoreless inning while Matt Guerrier said goodbye by giving up five runs in 2/3 of an inning.
IN THE FIELD: Tony Graffanino and Jose Valentin committed two of the three Sox errors.
LOSING WAYS: The White Sox lost their fourth straight game and it was the third straight day their pitchers yielded at least 11 runs.
NEXT UP: Vs. Oakland, 2:05 p.m. in Tucson. Gary Glover will start.
