Read More: Carlos Quentin (RF – CWS), Alex Rios (CF – CWS), Juan Pierre (LF – CWS), Sergio Santos (P – TOR), Alexei Ramirez (SS – CWS), Dayan Viciedo (RF – CWS), Aroldis Chapman (P – CIN), Chicago White Sox

The Chicago White Sox have had a relatively quiet offseason so far outside of trading Sergio Santos to the Toronto Blue Jays, but they’re showing some interest in Cuban outfielder Yoenis Cespedes. According to Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, the White Sox recently held a private workout with Cespedes in order to get a closer look at the hyped center fielder.

Cespedes, reportedly 26, defected from Cuba recently in order to gain residency in another country and sign a contract to play in the United States. He’s considered an elite prospect in the international community, and the rumors have him potentially landing a deal worth more than the $30.25 million that the Cincinnati Reds spent to sign lefty pitcher Aroldis Chapman in January 2010.  

For the White Sox, interest is fairly understandable. They’ve spent big in the past on Cuban defectors like Alexei Ramirez and Dayan Viciedo, they could use some outfield help with Juan Pierre departing and that’s before factoring in a possible trade of Carlos Quentin. Signing Cespedes could allow Chicago to trade Quentin and slide Alex Rios over to right field, improving outfield defense and giving the team some upside. 

Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more information, and for in-depth analysis on theChicago White Sox be sure to visit South Side Sox. Visit Baseball Nation for more news and notes around the league, and check out MLB Daily Dish for off-season rumors and reports.

December 15, 2011 – South Atlantic League (SAL) Kannapolis Intimidators
KANNAPOLIS, N.C. (December 15, 2011) – Former Chicago White Sox draft pick Julio Vinas has been named manager of the Kannapolis Intimidators, Class A Affiliate of the Chicago White Sox, for the 2012 season. Vinas joins pitching coach Jose Bautista, hitting coach Robert Sasser, athletic trainer Scott Johnson and strength and conditioning coach Tim Rodmaker as the field staff for the 18th season of baseball in Kannapolis.

Julio Vinas Vinas, 38, returns for his second season as a minor league manager for the White Sox. The Florida native managed the Class A-Advanced Winston-Salem Dash to a 69-71 record in 2011. Prior to joining Chicago’s minor league staff, Vinas spent 10 years with the Baltimore Orioles, including six years as the team’s minor-league hitting coordinator from 2005-2010.

The White Sox drafted Vinas in the 33rd round of the 1991 free agent draft, and he played 11 minor-league seasons with the White Sox, Orioles, Red Sox and Indians organizations, hitting .264 with 84 home runs and 504 RBI over 896 career games.

Jose Bautista Pitching coach Jose Bautista returns to Kannapolis for his second year on the Intimidators coaching staff. Bautista guided Intimidators pitchers to the third-lowest ERA (3.67) and fifth-lowest walk total (399) in the South Atlantic League in 2011. Bautista, 47, enters his fifth season with the White Sox organization, having served as the Latin Roving Instructor from 2009-2010 and the pitching coach for the Advanced Rookie Bristol White Sox in 2008. Before joining Chicago’s minor-league staff, Bautista was a minor-league pitching coach for the Kansas City Royals for seven years (2001-2007).

Robert Sasser With six seasons as a hitting coach in the White Sox system already under his belt, Robert Sasser joins the Kannapolis Intimidators staff in 2012. A 13-year veteran of minor league baseball, Sasser began his coaching career as the hitting coach of Double-A Birmingham in 2006. He also served as hitting coach for Great Falls in 2007 and 2011 and for Winston-Salem from 2008-2010. Sasser enjoyed a cup of coffee in the Major Leagues, appearing as a pinch-hitter for Texas against the White Sox in 1998.

Scott Johnson Scott Johnson returns for his second season as the Kannapolis head trainer and his 24th with the White Sox. Prior to joining the Intimidators in 2011, Johnson spent the previous 13 seasons with Chicago’s Triple-A affiliate – 12 years with Charlotte and one at Calgary.

Tim Rodmaker Tim Rodmaker returns to the Intimidators as the Conditioning Coach after spending the last two seasons with Advanced Rookie Great Falls. Rodmaker, 29, enters his seventh year as a conditioning coach with the White Sox organization. He served as Kannapolis’ Conditioning Coach from 2007-2009.

The Intimidators open the 2012 season – the 18th year of professional baseball in Kannapolis – at home on Thursday, April 5, 2012 against the Hickory Crawdads. The Intimidators drew 138,487 fans in 2011, setting a new franchise attendance record. For 2012 ticket information, please call the box office at (704) 932-3267 or visit www.IntimidatorsBaseball.com .

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The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

SEATTLE (AP) — Former Quincy University pitcher Josh Kinney is one of 11 players to signed a minor-league contract with the Seattle Mariners and will receive a non-roster invitation to spring training.

Last year, the 32-year-old Kinney went 6-3 with 14 saves and a 2.77 ERA in 49 appearances for Triple-A Charlotte , as well as 0-0 with a 6.62 ERA in 13 games with the White Sox. The 32-year-old right-hander pitched in 45 games in relief for the St. Louis Cardinals from 2006-09, including seven postseason appearances during 2006 when St. Louis won the World Series.

The Mariners announced their first wave of minor league contracts on Tuesday. Along with infielder Luis Rodriguez and former San Francisco outfielder Darren Ford, Seattle signed eight pitchers: Matt Fox, Steve Garrison, Jarrett Grube, Sean Henn, Jeff Marquez, Scott Patterson and Phillippe Valiquette. The Mariners also signed catcher Guillermo Quiroz.

Rodriguez played in 44 games at four positions last season for the Mariners. Ford played in 26 games with San Francisco. Garrison and Marquez got limited major league experience as well.

 

Read More: John Danks (P – CWS), Chicago White Sox

White Sox lefthander John Danks’ name has come up a lot in various trade rumors this offseason as general manager Ken Williams is actively shopping a number of players on his roster in an effort to remake the team. But Danks hasn’t been sent anywhere yet, and he told the Sun-Times‘ Joe Cowley in an interview that he’s “not losing an ounce of sleep” over the situation. He’s also heard about the king’s ransom Williams has been asking teams in return for Danks:

“More than anything, this is the business of baseball,’’ Danks said. “I don’t blame Kenny for trying to get as much as he can. I took that as him being early in the process. I took it as him throwing feelers out there.’’

It’s still possible for Danks to stay in Chicago for the long term, though he says the White Sox have yet to get serious about a contract extension.

Stay tuned to SB Nation Chicago for more information, and for in-depth analysis on the Chicago White Sox be sure to visit South Side Sox. Visit Baseball Nation for more news and notes around the league, and check out MLB Daily Dish for off-season rumors and reports.

The new look Miami Marlins have made flashier moves this off-season, but one minor signing the club made today is sure to make White Sox fans nostalgic for the recent past. Fox Sports’ Ken Rosenthal reported that Aaron Rowand will (possibly) be rejoining his former manager Ozzie Guillen in Miami after signing a minor league deal.

Rowand and Guillen, of course, helped the White Sox to a World Series title in 2005.

It’s a shock that Rowand would even sign with the Marlins given this little nugget:

If Rowand is added to the 40-man roster, he’ll receive the major league minimum $480,000, which would be offset from the $12 million owed in the final season of $60 million, five-year deal the Giants released him from in September.

The White Sox reportedly had interest in bringing Rowand back, too. As the Sox have showed this offseason, if you aren’t going to contend, at least make the fans happy.

For more on the White Sox, keep it locked to SB Nation Chicago and our team blog, South Side Sox.

Qualifiers: players will be classified under one position even if they played at more than one. They must also have at least two seasons as the team’s primary starter at the position.

Eddie Collins:

One of the greatest offensive second basemen in Major League history, Hall of Famer Eddie Collins starred for the Chicago White Sox from 1915 to 1930. Collins demonstrated phenomenal contact skills, plate patience and speed en route to career totals of 3,315 hits, 741 stolen bases, 1,821 runs scored and 1,499 walks in 25 Major League seasons. He remains one of three White Sox position players with more than 60 WAR (wins above replacement) and totaled 126.7 WAR in his career, the tenth highest of all-time. Collins, who led the White Sox to the 1917 World Series Championship and won two others with the Philadelphia Athletics, ranks second in both batting average (.331) and on-base percentage (.426) in White Sox history.

Nellie Fox:

Hall of Fame second baseman Nellie Fox was an elite contact hitter and defensive great for the White Sox from 1950 to 1963. Fox stepped to the plate more than 10,000 times in his career and struck out only 216 times; he owns the sixth lowest strikeout rate in MLB history with just one in every 42.7 at-bats. He sits second in White Sox history with 2,470 hits, shares the team record with 104 triples and ranks fourth with 42.7 WAR. Fox won the 1959 AL MVP while leading the White Sox to the World Series. He went to a dozen All-Star Games and earned three Gold Gloves.

Ray Durham:

Two-time All-Star Ray Durham gave the White Sox great production from the leadoff spot for eight years. After his 1995 rookie season, Durham batted .280 with a .356 OBP, 105 OPS+ (league average is 100) and averages of 15 homers and 30 steals per year for the White Sox. He racked up 1,246 hits with the Sox and 2,054 in his 14-year career. His impressive output from a typically light-hitting position netted him an average of 3.2 offensive WAR per year in Chicago.

Jorge Orta:

Former All-Star second baseman Jorge Orta spent the first-half of his career in Chicago’s infield in the 1970s. Orta was an above-average all-around hitter for 990 games with the White Sox. He batted .281 with a .338 OBP, .418 slugging percentage and 112 OPS+. His bat averaged 2.5 WAR per year and peaked at 4.2 in 1974. Orta twice batted over .300 and totaled 1,002 hits over eight seasons in Chicago.

Jackie Hayes:

Jackie Hayes played out the prime of his career in the White Sox’s infield in the 1930s. Hayes was a well regarded defensive player at second and a pure contact hitter with little pop. He batted as high as .312 in 1936 and regularly walked more than he struck out, drawing 266 walks against only 188 strikeouts in 809 games. He maintained a .264 average and .324 OBP in Chicago.

Sources:

Chicago White Sox Team History & Encyclopedia, Baseball-Reference.com

More from this contributor:

Chicago White Sox top five first basemen

Chicago White Sox top five catchers

Chicago Cubs top five second basemen

Boston Red Sox top five second basemen

Baltimore Orioles top five first basemen

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