John Danks earned 12 victories last season despite the fourth-lowest run support in the American League.
Perhaps more remarkable is that Danks posted a 3.32 ERA without the command of his curve, a pitch he hopes to resurrect successfully this season.
“It was a big focus of mine this spring and I feel more comfortable with it, especially early in the count,” said Danks, who will make his first start this year Thursday against Kansas City.
“I can flip it over for a quick strike. My last game in Arizona, I used it as an out pitch and got comfortable with it.
“It feels good to have a backup plan now.”
Danks compensated for the lack of a curve with a cut fastball that he relied on heavily. But after reviewing his season with pitching coach Don Cooper, Danks sensed he had to expand his repertoire.
“Look at all the good games I had,” Danks said. “Those were the ones I was able to throw a curve early in the count.”
Money matters: Despite a cut of more than $25 million, the Sox still rank 12th in the majors with a player payroll of $96,068,500.
The cut was the second biggest from 2008, as San Diego trimmed $30.9 million.
Pitcher Mark Buehrle, at $14 million, is the highest-paid Sox.
The payroll doesn’t include Double-A Birmingham third baseman Dayan Viciedo, who will earn $1 million in the first year of a four-year, $10 million contract.
Rave ratings for Sox: Tuesday’s White Sox’s regular-season opener with Kansas City attracted about 113,000 households, including a 4.24 peak rating during the 3:15 p.m. quarter-hour (more than 148,000 households) on Comcast SportsNet.
The telecast drew a 3.23 household rating, the highest Sox season-opener rating in Chicago regional sports network TV history.
Extra innings: Double-A Birmingham, which features top prospects Gordon Beckham, Aaron Poreda, Tyler Flowers, Brandon Allen and Viciedo, will open its 2009 season Thursday night against Chattanooga.
