Getting to know you...

2005 will have at least 8 new faces on the Southside of Chicago. While trying to get a grip on the face of the team, I was trying to find a Sox team in history to compare them to.

1983 jumped right off the history books at me. 1983 featured Rudy Law and later on, Julio Cruz at the top of the line up giving the Sox two guys who could fly and handle the bat. The 2005 edition has 2004 leading basestealer Scott Podsednik and Japanese import Tadahito Iguchi giving the Sox 100 SB potential at the top of the order for the first time since 1983.

The middle of the 1983 line up featured some quality power hitters as well. Fisk, Kittle, Walker, "The Bull" Greg Luzinski and Harold Baines put fear into pitchers all over the AL. The 2005 Sox feature future Hall of Famer Frank Thomas, Carl Everett, Jermaine Dye, and AL HR runner up Paul Konerko making pitchers quake in their stirups.

They also have Uribe, A.J. Pierzynski, and Crede to shore up the bottom of the line up in 2005. The 83 team featured guys like Vance Law, Scott Fletcher and Jerry Dybzinski at the bottom of their line up.

Pitching was also a trademark of the Winning Ugly teams. Lamar Hoyt led the way as Cy Young, and was backed up by 20 game winner Rich Dotson, Floyd Bannister, Britt Burns, and Jerry Koosman on a staff that had no pitcher less that 169 innings that year. If it got to the pen, Dennis Lamp and Salome Barajas closed things out with a solid middle relief corps. The 2005 version of the Sox features cult hero Shingo Takatsu at the back of the pen, with Damaso Marte, Hermanson, Politte, Milwaukee aquisition Luis Vizcaino, and Neal Cotts doing the dirty work.

Range and defense were spectacular in 83 and shouldn't be any different in 05. The outfield features an Aaron Rowand who plays CF like he was born doing it, and LF Scott Podsednik who is a former CF himself. In RF Dye provides a Harold Baines like no range, cannon arm presence that had burned the Sox on more than one occasion. At Catcher field general A.J. Pierzynski, will provide a presence not seen since Pudge himself called games behind the plate. The infield will be solid with Crede, Uribe, and Iguchi providing great range and arms, and Paul Konerko digging out everything thrown at him.

All in all I can't wait for April 4th, 2005. This is going to be a fun season on the Southside of Chicago.