Chicago White Sox 2009 season summary

The Chicago White Sox had a very inconsistent season finishing 79-83, thus ending their hopes of an AL Central title. The Chi-Sox were probably better than their record would indicate and appeared to give up late in the season when they were very close to catching the Detroit Tigers for the division lead.

The White Sox had a very good mix of young talent and veteran players, but were unable to build momentum for long stretches of the season. Jermaine Dye had another good season with 27 home runs and 81 RBI, Paul Konerko had 28 home runs with 88 RBI, and Jim Thome at 39 years old hit 23 home runs with 77 RBI in 107 games played. The Sox failed to have a 100-RBI man in 2009 for the first time quietly for some time.

Carlos Quentin had a down year since 2008 due to injury. In 2008, Quentin hit .288 with 36 home runs and 100 RBIs. In 2009, Quentin hit .236 with 21 home runs and 56 RBIs. The team’s youngest talent includes Alexei Ramírez and Gordon Beckham.

The team may have had a disappointing season overall, but one highlight that will forever stand apart from White Sox and baseball lore is the perfect game pitched by Mark Buehrle against the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays at the time had one of the best offenses in the American League, which makes the perfect game all the more impressive. This was the first perfect game in baseball since Randy Johnson pitched one in 2004.

The White Sox, like their cross-town rival Chicago Cubs, underperformed and lacked luster in the second half of the season. White Sox manager Ozzie Guillén was visibly upset with his team and his lack of desire late in the 2009 season.