Will Chicago kick dirt on the Big Hurt?

Unique clause may end Frank Thomas' days with White Sox

It's that time of year -- the beaches are empty, kids are back in school and the White Sox, hopelessly distant from the playoff race, have once again given over their lineup to young players. Chicago was expected to win the American League Central this season. Instead, the Sox have been a bigger bust than any team west of the Mets. Even after winning nine of its last 11 games, Chicago was three games under .500 heading into a weekend series with the Indians, and 12 1/2 games behind the division-leading Twins.

The last week or so has brought some hope for the White Sox, however. Outfielder Joe Borchard, the prize of the farm system, made his debut Monday and homered in his second major league at-bat. Infield prospect Joe Crede, outfielder Aaron Rowand and young right-hander Jon Garland have all played well at times. But a surge during the garbage time of late August and September doesn't mask how bad things have been in Chicago this year.

Last week, prior to the team's final game before the strike deadline, White Sox chairman Jerry Reinsdorf convened a players-only meeting in the Comiskey Park clubhouse and proceeded to rip them for everything from a lack of effort and discipline to their failure to stand on the top step of the dugout during the National Anthem. Reinsdorf promised that changes would be made next season, beginning with a more boot-camp-like spring training in which star players wouldn't be allowed to skip bus rides to away games.

"I'm very much in agreement with everything [Reinsdorf] said, and more," general manager Ken Williams says. "He probably went as far as he wanted to go. I could've probably gone further."

The reaction from manager Jerry Manuel, who had to feel the sting of the boss' swipe at the way the team is run? "He's the owner," Chicago's skipper says. "When he backhands you, you have to stand up and take it."

Manuel defended his spring training program and the effort put forth by his players, but he did identify two problem areas that need to be addressed. One is the pitching staff, which has the AL's fourth-highest starters' ERA (5.08). The other is a more delicate matter: the poor performance of former All-Star Frank Thomas. Though the Big Hurt's power numbers (22 home runs, 76 RBIs) are respectable, his average is a lowly .242. His on-base percentage, once routinely above .400, is down to .348, and his swing has looked slow and discombobulated all season. He hit .183 in August and was subsequently benched for several games by Manuel.

Thomas, who is making $9.9 million this season, has four years and $40 million left on the contract he signed in 1999. Those terms will make will make the 34-year-old, two-time MVP difficult to trade, but the White Sox could do what was once unthinkable: invoke the so-called diminished skills clause included in Thomas' deal. The stipulation gives the team the right to defer most of what Thomas is owed, and reduce his current salary to $250,000 if he fails to make the All-Star team, finish in the top 10 in MVP voting or win the Silver Slugger award -- none of which will happen this year. If Chicago were to utilize the provision, Thomas would have the option of becoming a free agent -- or returning to Chicago with egg on his face.

Reinsdorf gave Thomas a pass on the clause last year because a torn triceps muscle limited the slugger to just 20 games. The team chairman might not be so forgiving this time around. In an indication of how frustrated the White Sox are with their star, Williams refused to discuss Thomas when asked about him last week. (Thomas isn't answering questions either.) The GM said he looked forward using the season's final month as an "evaluation period" for the team's young players. He may have already made up his mind on Thomas.

Sports Illustrated staff writer Stephen Cannella covers the baseball beat for the magazine. Touching Base appears every week on CNNSI.com.

 

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