Needs More Ditka

Josh Fields has all the potential in the world. He beat out another player with all the potential in the world, thus putting more pressure on himself than he can possibly imagine.

Fields has quelled the critics, mainly Ozzie, when it comes to his defense. He has swung a mean stick in spring training and Joe Crede is a Twin. What the hell is going on here?

So when The Cheat over at Southside Sox handed out the idea of Josh Fields possibly being the leadoff hitter earlier this month, the bizarro world the White Sox are inhabiting seemed to be in full, concontrolable spiral.

But Fields would in fact, be the best option for the White Sox to bat first.

Why? Because Jerry Owens leaves us no choice. Speed be damned, he can’t hit, is not the number one defensive option in centerfield, and make Dewayne Wise look like a legitiamate option. Neither Wise, nor Owens deserve to make this team in the meritocracy that is Ozzie’s lineup card.

The reality is that the Chicago White Sox will not be a smallball team. They will not be remotely close. They hae power to burn and as Jim over at Sox Machine says, it’s time to stop being Public Enemy, and embrace the power.

Why Fields? He sure as hell isn’t fast, and that wicked awesome .156 batting average he posted last year before being replaced by Juan Uribe, that isn’t getting Sox fans too excited. This is a fact: in 2008 Juan Uribe>Josh Fields. That’s the sound of fear emminating from the south side.

When Fields has played well, see 2007, he is a typical 6 or 7 hitter. Good power, high strikeout, mediocre average. If Ozzie wants Fields to lead off, they might as well put Thome or Quentin up first. (The latter might not be the worst idea, if I can say so myself.)

So what the hell is Ozzie thinking? Ozzie is thinking lefties. Juicy, juicy lefties.

When Josh Fields goes up against lefties, he crushes them. He bats .316 and has the all important OBP of .367. Josh Fields loves lefties, and in a bizarre statistical byline, his power stays consistent, his average jumps over 100 points though.

Fields is a lock to get on base against lefthanders, and while he might not be stealing bases, the White Sox will be playing station to station baseball. Fields does have enough giddyup to get from 1st to 3rd on a single, and score from second. In station to station baseball, that’s all you need.

The question will still hold for who will lead off against righties, as Fields has no business leading off against righties, (some would argue that Fields has no business playing against them.) But the Sox could do way worse against lefties, and when you factor in Fields’ numbers leading off an inning, which are higher than his normal batting average, coming in at .264 and .312 obp, Fields has shown that he can fill that role, and with the White Sox out of prototypical options to lead off, Fields will do.