EVENTS
 Sportsman of the Year
 Heisman Trophy
 Swimsuit 2001

	CHICAGO WHITE SOX
	2000 Spring Training Schedule
	2000 Regular Season Schedule

1999 Record: 75-86 (2nd place, AL Central, 21.5 GB)

1999 Payroll: $24.5 million (25th)

1999 Team Statistics (AL rank) Batting Avg. .277 (8th)         Opp. Average .282 (9th) Runs Scored 777 (10th) ERA 4.92 (7th) Home Runs 162 (10th) Fielding Pct. .977 (14th)

1999 Recap: After losing Albert Belle and Robin Ventura, the White Sox opened the season with the youngest team in the majors. But the rebuilding effort started off strong, as the Sox flirted with .500 for much of the first half. The pitching staff was in the top five in team ERA for the first couple of months before the young staff faltered and fell back to earth. The Sox finished a very distant second.

1999 Highlight: The outfield trio of Carlos Lee (.293-16-84), Chris Singleton (.300-17-72) and Magglio Ordonez (.310-30-117) exceeded all expectations. Ordonez blossomed into an All-Star while rookies Lee and Singleton garnered Rookie of the Year votes.

1999 Lowlight: Frank Thomas suffered his second consecutive subar season -- by his lofty standards -- and appears, at age 31, to be on the downside of his career. The Big Hurt posted career lows for home runs (15) and RBIs (77) in 1999 before succumbing to season-ending ankle surgery on September 13.

Manager: Jerry Manuel (155-168 in two seasons with White Sox)

Coaches: Von Joshua (hitting), Nardi Contreras (pitching), Brian Little (first base), Wallace Johnson (third base), Art Kusnyer (bullpen), Joe Nossek (bench)

Camp Site: Tucson Electric Park, Tucson, Ariz.

Reporting dates: Pitchers and catchers Feb 18; full squad on Feb. 23

Additions: RHP Cal Eldred, SS Jose Valentin

Subtractions: RHP Jaime Navarro, RHP John Snyder

Spring Cleaning: A top priority is shoring up the left side of the infield. Third baseman Greg Norton (25) and shortstop Mike Caruso (24) combined for almost 50 errors in 1999 -- which put added pressure on the team's young pitching staff. Heading into camp, utility player Craig Wilson, 29, is the team's starter at the hot corner. Wilson isn't much of a threat at the plate (he hit .238 with 4 home runs and 26 RBIs in 252 at-bats in 1999), but he has a good glove. Another infield issue centers on whether Frank Thomas agrees to return to first base.

The Hurting Frank Thomas -- career splits   1990-97  1998-99  Games  1,076  295  Average  .330  .283  AB per HR  14.9  24.3  On Base Pct.  .452  .396  Slugging Pct.  .600  .476

If the Big Hurt decides he doesn't want to play the field and becomes the team's full time designated hitter, Paul Konerko will likely take over at first. Once a highly touted prospect for the Dodgers, Konerko finally flashed some of his long-promised potential last season, putting up good numbers (.294-24-81) for his fourth team. But the team isn't sure where to play him. The White Sox have several young pitchers ready to break into the rotation behind LHP Mike Sirotka, RHP James Baldwin and LHP Jim Parque. RHP Kip Wells has already been penciled into the rotation (4-1 with a 4.04 ERA in a late-season audition) while fellow former first-round draft pick Jon Garland, who has been compared to Kevin Brown), and Aaron Myette are likely to contend for the team's fifth starting spot. The bullpen figures to be a strength with Keith Foulke (125 K in 105 1/3 innings) setting up closer Bobby Howry (3.59 ERA, 28 saves).

Pivotal Player: The White Sox are counting on Frank Thomas to snap out of his two-year funk and provide a presence in the middle of the lineup. Thomas is recovered after surgery on his right ankle and has been working with free-lance hitting coach Walt Hriniak. The Big Hurt ranks among the top 5 active players in on base pct. (.440 - 1st), batting average (.320 - 4th), slugging pct. (.573 - 5th).

The Future is Now: Carlos Lee appears primed for a big season after hitting 16 homers and 32 doubles last season in fewer than 500 at-bats. Lee came up through the organization as a third baseman and still has much to learn in left field. His bat, however, should keep him in the lineup.

Opportunity Knocks: Cal Eldred was a solid starting pitcher for three years before he underwent "Tommy John" surgery on his elbow in 1995. Eldred, who went 2-8 with a 7.79 ERA for the Brewers last season, hasn't completely returned to form, but the right-hander threw without pain at a Comiskey Park workout a few weeks ago. The Sox think Eldred can help the team both on the mound and in the clubhouse -- and considering his $5.4-million-a-year contract, he'd better.

Prospects to Watch: RHP Kip Wells, RHP Jon Garland, RHP Aaron Myette, RHP Lorenzo Barcelo, 3B Joe Crede, SS Jason Dallero, Kevin Beirne

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