If we bring up Reed, it might wake up Aaron Rowand. When I have seen him, he has not looked good this year. Swings late, looks undisciplined. Plus, it looks as if he has gained some weight. Steroids? Timo has no future with the Sox. I would send him down and bring up Reed. If not now, certainly by the end of May.

Let me clarify something here. I'm not advocating giving up on these guys yet. I was just saying that they are beginning to run out of time. As for Timo being "weak" .... He's a career .274 hitter. That's pretty solid. He's decent defensively, has some speed and hits lefty so he could very possibly hold down CF until Reed comes up.

Yancy,

As of today Rowand is a career .270 hitter.

If Rowand gets consistant playing time by the end of the year he will be recognized as one of the best centerfielders in baseball.

Most people need to realize that there are some players who don't start to heat up until after April. You need only to look at guys like AROD, Jeter, and Giambi as perfect examples of this.

Both Harris and Rowand will be solid players both offensively and defensively.

I won't go as far as saying one of the best centerfielders in baseball, but I agree with your intended sentiment.

If Rowand gets consistant playing time by the end of the year he will be recognized as one of the best centerfielders in baseball.

So you could say his name in the same breath as Carlos Beltran, Jim Edmonds, Andruw Jones, Torii Hunter, Mike Cameron, Johnny Damon, and all the rest? I don't think so.

 

I highly doubt he is considered a top 10 or top 5 OF by the end of the year.

 

Most people need to realize that there are some players who don't start to heat up until after April. You need only to look at guys like AROD, Jeter, and Giambi as perfect examples of this

 

A lot of people on here do realize that, especially older Sox fans. They have gotten to watch Frank Thomas for about the past 15 years, and Frank Thomas is probably the most notoriously slow starter in White Sox history.

 

You cannot, however, compare Aaron Rowand to guys like ARod or Giambi. Both of those players have had multiple 40 homers seasons, both have MVP's, and both are making 8-digit figures a year because they have done s*** to earn it. Rowand hasn't. He's not making a 7-figure salary, he does not have multiple double digit homer seasons(in fact, I don't think he's ever hit 10 homers in a season), he does not have an MVP.

 

Both Harris and Rowand will be solid players both offensively and defensively.

 

This may be true. But if it doesn't happen this year, it could and probably will happen with another team. Uribe is looking like a very solid ballplayer for us and Reed is waiting in the wings probably salivating at a shot to hit major league pitching. Notice that both are potential replacements for Rowand and Harris.

ARow will be fine, wait until he heats up like he was in spring training.

Some stuff I found on Reed:

 

from a pre-season ranking of top prospects

The White Sox took Jeremy Reed with the 59th pick in the 2002 draft, after he hit .339/.433/.512 during his final season at Long Beach State. Since becoming a pro, Reed has simply gotten better at each stop he's made.

 

He started at Single-A Kannapolis after being drafted and hit .319/.377/.448 with 17 stolen bases in 57 games. Then last year he moved up to Single-A Winston-Salem and hit .333/.431/.477 in 65 games, before he was promoted to Double-A.

 

Once he got to Double-A, Reed was out of control. In 66 games there, he hit .409, with 99 hits in 242 at bats. He had seven homers and a total of 27 extra-base hits, which was good for a .591 slugging percentage. And he walked 29 times on his way to a .474 on-base percentage. Just incredible numbers all the way around.

 

Beyond the obvious stuff, Reed's strikeout/walk ratio is particularly impressive. He struck out just 36 times in 464 at bats and walked 70 times. That's nearly two walks for each whiff, which is just awesome. The only two real marks against Reed that I can see are that he doesn't have a ton of home run power yet (15 homers in 674 career at bats) and may not be able to handle center fielder on an everyday basis in the majors.

 

This year he has struggled with his BB/K ratio

The was some talk that Jeremy Reed, who hit .409 at Double-A last season, would get a chance to start the year with the White Sox, but that never happened. Instead, Chicago went with Aaron Rowand in center field and started Reed at Triple-A Charlotte. From the looks of things, it's probably going to be a short stay. Reed is hitting .342 with six doubles and five stolen bases in 17 games. The one concerning thing is that his plate discipline and strike zone judgment, which were so good last year, have not been good at all this season. He has just two walks all year and has struck out 11 times, after striking out just 18 times in 66 Double-A games.

He now has three walks, as he walked once in last nights game.

 

I'd like for him to continue to work on his plate discipline at AAA, and see if he can approach the mostrous numbers he put up in his first 2 pro seasons. Only if he is starting to approach his previous numbers, and Rowand continues his struggle, do i call him up.

Yancy,

As of today Rowand is a career .270 hitter.

If Rowand gets consistant playing time by the end of the year he will be recognized as one of the best centerfielders in baseball.

Most people need to realize that there are some players who don't start to heat up until after April. You need only to look at guys like AROD, Jeter, and Giambi as perfect examples of this.

Both Harris and Rowand will be solid players both offensively and defensively.

For the record, I've long been a Rowand supporter. However, we can't have out CF'er hitting at an .071 clip (or whatever it is) with RISP. Not if we want to win this division. All I'm saying is that he has to step it up soon.

Rowand's at bat was awful. No eye, no patience, timing out of whack. Bring aggressive is one thing. Swining at heater in and chest -high is another.

 

He'll be ok, but goddamn it, I want him to be good.