When 33-year old righty swinging OF/DH Andruw Jones signed with the White Sox they weren’t expecting much out of him. At best, they saw him as a platoon DH with lefty swinging Mark Kotsay. But Jones is swinging such a hot stick right now that he has not been platooning anymore. Ozzie Guillen has been getting him full time at bats between the OF and DH lately and the manager’s faith in him is paying off big time so far. Jones has played in 15 games for the Pale Hose so far this season and he is 14 of 48 (.292 avg, 1.112 OPS) with 9 runs scored, 6 homers, 9 RBIs and 3 stolen bases. Jones is still whiffing a lot (15) but he is also getting his share of walks (8) showing improving discipline at the plate. The White Sox need Jones’ power and they are going to ride his bat as long as they can.

Paul Konerko is one of the few Chicago White Sox players who is actually hitting the ball early in this 2010 season.  The White Sox have started the season off with an offensively challenged 5-9 start.  They need to start hitting the ball or they are going to dig themselves into too deep of a whole in the AL Central, where their rival Minnesota Twins are off to a hot 10-4 start.  Without Konerko’s strong bat, the White Sox would be in even bigger trouble than they are now.  Konerko has a .261 BA (12/46), but it is his power numbers that are making the difference.  Of his 12 hits, 5 of them have left the ballpark and he has 10 RBIs with a .630 SLG.  He has drawn 8 walks, helping his OBP get up over 100 points higher than his BA at .364 OBP.  This is a great sign for the White Sox since Konerko is known for getting off to very slow starts in years past.  Now only if some other White Sox players could start hitting the ball and driving in some runs.  There is only so much Konerko can do, so some other guys on that roster really need to step up.

The White Sox are in last place in the A.L. Central with a 4-9 record which has them 5 games behind the Twins already. The White Sox got swept in Cleveland by a Tribe team that will likely be lucky to win more than 70 games this season. The Pale Hose have been outscored 55-53 on the season as they continue to waste solid pitching because they just have not been hitting the ball well. The White Sox will have to pitch good this week to have any chance of success against the Rays (3 games) and Mariners (3 games) who each are coming to the Windy City.

25-year old lefty starting pitcher John Danks could have a breakthrough year in 2010 for the White Sox. He has the stuff to put up even better numbers than he has the last couple of seasons. Danks has started 2 games this season for the White Sox and he is 1-0 with a 1.38 ERA and a 1.08 WHIP. He has only given up 10 hits in 13 innings pitched while whiffing 12 batters showing that his stuff is right on so far this season. As long as Danks stays aggressive in the strike zone I think he will win at least 15 games this season.

Starting shortstop Alexei Ramirez has been downright awful for the White Sox so far this season. He has played in 8 games for the White Sox so far this year and he is 4 for 29 (.138 avg, .310 OPS) with 1 run scored. Ramirez is a very talented player but the ball must be looking the size of a pea right now to him. The White Sox can’t afford to wait on him as long as they did last season because the team is really having trouble scoring right now.