Fantasy Baseball: The Hook -- AL Central Breakdown (Part 1) - Division Overview/White Sox

By James Meyerriecks FantasyInfoCentral.com Cardinals Correspondent

Spring Training is right around the corner and baseball fans are getting set for another great season. In the next few weeks, we'll preview the pitching staffs for the 2003 MLB season. Today, we'll begin our look at the American League Central with a divisional overview and a look at the Chicago White Sox.

For previous division previews, click the following links:

* AL East Part 1 - Division overview/Baltimore Orioles * AL East Part 2 - Boston Red Sox/New York Yankees * AL East Part 3 - Tampa Bay Devil Rays/Toronto Blue Jays * NL East Part 1 - Division overview/Atlanta Braves * NL East Part 2 - Florida Marlins/Montreal Expos * NL East Part 3 - New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies

During our season previews, we will be accompanying players with ratings as to where they belong in a typical twelve team 5X5 rotisserie league draft with 25 rounds. The breakdowns will be as follows...

******, Rounds 1-3 *****, Rounds 4-6 ****, Rounds 7-10 ***, Rounds 11-15 **, Rounds 16-20 *, Rounds 21-25

No stars will be for players who are likely to (and should, in my opinion) go undrafted

Starters

Bartolo Colon ***** Mark Buehrle **** C.C. Sabathia **** Eric Milton *** Rick Reed *** Brad Radke *** Joe Mays *** Jon Garland *** Kyle Lohse ** Runelvys Hernandez ** Steve Sparks ** Mike Maroth ** Dan Wright * Jon Rauch Ricardo Rodriguez Cliff Lee Jeremy Affeldt Andy Van Hekken Nate Cornejo Miguel Ascensio Shawn Sedlacek James Baldwin Brian Anderson Jason Bere Adam Bernero

Closers

Billy Koch **** Eddie Guardado **** Danys Baez *** Matt Anderson ** Franklyn German ** Mike MacDougal ** Jason Grimsley *

Sleepers

Johan Santana ** Damaso Marte ** J.C. Romero ** Billy Traber Jason Davis Brian Tallet

The youth movement is afoot in the AL Central. With only one true ace in the division, the pickings are pretty slim, and are mainly focused in Chicago and Minnesota. The Tigers and Royals both only boast one starter with more than one full season in the majors, and the Indians are in a rebuilding mode themselves.

Bartolo Colon and Mark Buehrle are clearly the class of the division, but Jon Garland, Dan Wright, or Jon Rauch will have to finally break through for the Sox to take over the top spot. Colon and Buehrle could both challenge twenty wins this season. Youth is even an issue here, though, as Colon is the only starter over 25.

On the other hand, the Twins rotation goes six deep with solid major league caliber starters, and could very well end up with five double-digit winners in their rotation this year. While Radke, Milton, Mays, Reed, and Lohse won't likely win twenty games individually, they could easily post over seventy combined. With a solid bullpen aiding them, the Twins should have everything they need to battle it out with the Sox again this season.

The Indians, Royals, and Tigers may combine to have two starters who should be drafted in standard leagues if they're lucky. C.C. Sabathia still has all the talent in the world, and Runelvys Hernandez could become a top 20 starter in time. Matt Anderson and Danys Baez have each spent parts of seasons closing, while the Royals will probably go with another youngster, Mike MacDougal, to try and close the door on the few save opportunities that they'll create.

Chicago White Sox

Projected Rotation

Bartolo Colon ***** Mark Buehrle **** Jon Garland *** Dan Wright * Jon Rauch

Closer

Billy Koch ****

Sleepers

Damaso Marte *

Starters

After a three-team deal, Bartolo Colon will return to the AL Central after spending the last half of last season in the National League with the Expos. Despite an alarming dropoff in his strikeout numbers last season, Colon turned in his best year, going 20-8 with a 2.94 ERA between both leagues. At just 29, he should be in for a few more consistent years of producing similar numbers.

The Hook: Colon is the division's only true fantasy ace, and he could actually see his win total rise with the superior support that he'll see on the South Side. Expect his strikeout numbers to improve over last year's disappointing 149, and grab him anywhere from the third to fifth round.

Although he'll be just 24 when the season starts, Mark Buehrle already has almost two seasons as the White Sox ace behind him. Inconsistency was a problem for the third year hurler last season, as he allowed five or more runs in nine of his thirty-four starts. However, he did battle through those rough starts enough to compile a 3.58 ERA and 19 wins last season. Expect more of the same this year, as he'll actually see some pressure removed from him with the addition of Colon as the staff's new ace. They should be a lethal one-two punch.

The Hook: His fantasy Achilles Heel will always be his strikeout totals, as he's more of a finesse pitcher. Another year of experience, as well as the addition of Colon, should do wonders for his confidence this season, though. Buehrle won't last much longer than the first seven or eight rounds in most drafts.

Jon Garland, the 23-year-old right-hander, finally took his spot in the rotation and held onto it for a full season in 2002. Garland features heat that can approach the high 90's and a powerful sinker that's been compared to Kevin Brown's at times. While his control has always given him fits, he's a good bet to build on a strong finish last season if he can just improve his command. Unfortunately, despite filthy stuff, he's never really been an accomplished pitcher in the strikeout department.

The Hook: Garland finally seemed to be getting it towards the end of last season, and could be a good bet to eventually develop into a big winner. Expect his ERA to drop near four this season, and expect his win total to rise accordingly. Garland's a nice sleeper who will probably go in the mid-teens.

Dan Wright is usually described as the top pitching prospect in a deep organization. With high 90's heat and a wicked curve, he could certainly emerge as a bigtime starter in the next couple of seasons. Still, his brief attempts at being a big-league starter should scare you away for the 2003 season. Wright has posted an ERA over five in each of the last two seasons. While he seemed to improve over the second half of last season, he still looks to be a year or two away.

The Hook: Keeper leaguers should think of grabbing Wright and stashing him on your bench. He's worth a shot late in deep or AL-Only leagues, but shouldn't really be drafted in a standard league.

Jon Rauch was considered the top prospect in the organization until shoulder surgery in 2001 set him back. He may have rushed back from the surgery a bit, and was lit up like a candle last season in the majors after posting solid but unspectacular numbers in AAA ball. With Rocky Biddle gone to the Expos, there's little standing in Rauch's way, and he should win the number five job.

The Hook: Rauch is still intriguing in keeper leagues, but he's not worth a look for this season.

Closer

Billy Koch left one great situation in Oakland and heads into another one in Chicago. He's as durable as a closer can get, and should continue to rack up the 35+ save, 80+ strikeout seasons for at least five more years. With an offense like he has in front of him and a strong middle-relief corps, Koch should see the Sox give him plenty of opportunities. He gets into trouble too much, but almost always finds his way out.

The Hook: Koch should go towards the end of the first true closer run in your draft. He's a lock for over 30 saves with a decent ERA.

Sleepers

Should anything happen to Koch at some point, Damaso Marte will be waiting in the wings. After winning the closer's job late last season, Marte proved that he has the makeup to close at the big league level, converting his last nine chances. Marte will post solid secondary numbers and over a strikeout an inning, and could fit well on teams even in leagues that don't count holds.

Be sure to check back tomorrow when we continue our look at the AL Central with an in-depth look at the staffs of the Cleveland Indians and Detroit Tigers!

Do you have any questions or comments about the column or the upcoming Major League Baseball Season? Want to know exactly when there's a new edition of "The Hook" posted throughout the season? Please e-mail me at royalcards@fantasyinfocentral.com.

Article courtesy of Fantasy Information Central.