Sources are reporting that Adam Dunn has agreed to a four year deal with the Chicago White Sox for a reported $56 million a year. The White Sox had little production last year from the DH position and Dunn should give them an honest to goodness slugger for the next few years. The deal is probably one year too long, but the money (if averaged to $14 a year) is very close to his projected worth according to Baseball Prospectus. Since the White Sox will not put a glove on Dunn, the deal is even sweeter for Chicago's American League team.
The White Sox made a mistake last year when they allowed Jim Thome to walk and it probably cost them the division. That's probably too easy to say at face value, but Thome mashed for the Twins who did win the division while the White Sox languished all year in that spot. Manny Ramirez was acquired late in the season because of their lack of production, but Ramirez couldn't drive the ball and wasn't much help.
As written in this spot last week, Dunn is about as consistent a producer as there is. He should give the White Sox 35 to 40 homers, drive in 100 runs and walk nearly 100 times. If the White Sox keep Konerko too, the team will certainly score more runs in 2011. With their rotation, that could be enough to give them the edge over the Twins, a team where a lot has to go right next year, particularly if they stand pat.
There are only two concerns this Fan can think of. First, Dunn has never played in the American League. It is unknown if he will be able to maintain his numbers facing different pitchers in a different league. He hit his share of homers in last year's interleague match ups, but only batted .222 in a small sample size. The other concern is facing left handed pitching. He only had a .719 OPS against lefties last year and his batting average against them was under .200.
Kenny Williams did well on this one. He probably went a year too long, but again, according to BP, his numbers should hold up for the duration of the deal. Ozzie might be only a tad disappointed that his new DH doesn't steal bases.
1 comment:
The Ozzie Ball experiment failed at DH. Just like closer by committee, DH by committee is not a good idea. Dunn was a great pickup. I know he's a little past his prime, but I think he could hit 45-50 at The Cell.
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