The Chicago White Sox rookie 3B Gordon Beckham was named the Sporting News American League Rookie of the Year earlier today.  The 23-year-old Beckham was called up June 4th even though manager Ozzie Guillen said early in the season that the White Sox would be “in trouble” if they had to start the young former Georgia Bulldog.  Beckham struggled mightily in his first two weeks with the Sox, but soon became one of their best hitters.  He hit over .300 for a large chunk of the season and finished the year at .270 with 14 home runs and 28 doubles with 63 RBIs.  Beckham also took on a brand new position, playing third base for the first time in his career after being a short stop his entire life.  The award is voted on by the players, so it shows he has already gained the respect of his fellow players.

Beckham’s attitude is just as good as his skills set, as the rookie was quickly accepted in the White Sox clubhouse.  He has also expressed he would like to be the leader and face of the franchise for the White Sox when the time is right.  Manager Ozzie Guillen thinks he can and will be that guy saying, “I wish that kid was a two or three-year veteran in the big leagues because he has that attitude…He has that right frame of mind. He was a leader his whole life from when he was in high school, college. I think he wants to be the face of the franchise and we need something like that.”  I’m looking forward to a long and successful career for Beckham on the South Side, and he made a great first step in his rookie year.

23-year old righty swinging 3B Gordan Beckham has been a huge bright spot for the White Sox this season. He started the year in the minors as the White Sox’ #1 prospect heading into this season according to Baseball America. Beckham played in 45 games in AA+AAA ball this season and he was 57 for 175 (.326 avg, .904 OPS) with 29 runs scored, 4 homers, 25 RBIs and 2 stolen bases. With his performance in the minors he forced himself to the majors with the White Sox to fill the black hole they had at 3B. He has played in 96 games for the Pale Hose this season and he is 94 for 352 (.267 avg, 808 OPS) with 53 runs scored, 14 homers, 58 RBIs and 7 stolen bases. Look for Beckham to be a big part of the White Sox future.

33-year old righty swinging 1B Paul Konerko had the worst season of his career with the White Sox last year. Whispers were being heard that he was about to start a downslope to his career. But, he has rebounded in a big way for the White Sox in 2009. Konerko has played in 138 games for the White Sox this season and he is 141 for 496 (.284 avg, .857 OPS) with 68 runs scored, 26 homers and 83 RBIs. It’s looks like the good Paul Konerko is here to stay.

The Chicago White Sox gained bragging rights this year as they topped the Chicago Cubs 5-0 today at Wrigley Field and won the season series 4-2.  White Sox rookie pitcher Carlos Torres gained his first major league win by going seven strong innings while giving up five hits, with six strikeouts, and no walks.  Torres showed great poise and control while pitching from the stretch the whole game, a rare thing to see from a starting pitcher.

Torres got some help from the White Sox offense as they had 13 hits with A.J. Pierzynski, Paul Konerko, Carlos Quentin, and Alexei Ramirez each getting an RBI for the White Sox.  Torres also got help from the Cubs defense, or lack-there-of, as the Cubs recorded two errors.  Jake Fox flat out missed a pick off attempt to first by pitcher Ryan Dempster which moved Chris Getz into scoring position who then scored on a Ramirez single.  Alfonso Soriano’s error in the 8^th cost the Cubs a run as well.  Soriano turned an everyday fly ball from Pierzynski into a three base error allowing Gordon Beckham to score from first.

The White Sox have now won two in a row after today’s victory and a rare win at their final game ever in the Minnesota Twins’ Metrodome on Wednesday.  This seems to be too little too late for the White Sox, as they went 3-8 on this road trip and are now 7 games back of the Detroit Tigers and 2 games back of the second place Twins.  With 27 games left to play, it seems as if the White Sox have played their way out of contention.

White Sox fans have to wonder why manager Ozzie Guillen had not gone to Torres earlier in the season, as he was 10-4 with a 2.39 ERA in 23 games for AAA Charlotte.  The recently traded Jose Contreras was a disaster this year and with Torres showing such strong numbers in AAA, it couldn’t have hurt to get him a few starts earlier this season.

32-year old lefty swinging catcher A.J. Pierzynski might be one of the most hated players outside the White Sox’ clubhouse but they are glad they have him behind the plate. Pierzynski has played in 113 games for the White Sox this season and he is 128 for 410 (.312 avg, .804 OPS) with 49 runs scored, 13 homers and 38 RBIs. Pierzynski doesn’t miss the ball much with his bat as he has only whiffed 38 times this season. He might not be able to stop opposing running games with his arm but White Sox’ pitchers like throwing the ball to him.