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CHICAGO -- Paul Konerko gave a nod toward the future Tuesday, as long as the conversation did not center on him personally.

Declining to talk about what could happen once his contract expires in a few weeks, Konerko did talk about the organization's farm system and the young players that are potential impact guys or players who have taken advantage of an opportunity.

"There's definitely guys who have made strides like Jordan [Danks] now that he's gotten to play," Konerko said. "He'd been up here a lot but never had played a whole bunch in a row. So it's nice to see him -- great guy, great hitter -- kind of hitting his stride and starting to feel comfortable because it's tough to feel comfortable when you're not in there all the time."

Another position player who has caught Konerko's eye is Marcus Semien. The two first played together at Double-A Birmingham, back when Konerko was on a rehab assignment for a lower back injury. Konerko eventually returned to the major leagues, Semien was promoted to Triple-A Charlotte and Birmingham went on to win the Southern League championship anyway.

"I should get a [championship] ring," Konerko joked.

Semien, who turned 23 on Tuesday, would be more deserving in that department. He batted .290 with a .420 on-base percentage at Birmingham. His 110 runs led the minor leagues, and he was even named Southern League MVP despite playing at Birmingham only until the end of July.

Adding his time at Charlotte, Semien finished the year with a .401 on-base percentage in the minor leagues.

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CHICAGO -- Chicago White Sox general manager Rick Hahn did not see the disaster of 2013 coming when he signed a three-year contract to run the team last October. Nonetheless, the 39-year-old Chicago area native is ready to roll up his sleeves and start to rebuild his ballclub for next season and beyond.

A total collapse of the offense was certainly a shock to Hahn & Co. as the team muddled its way through one of the franchise's worst seasons since 1976.

"I think our most glaring issues have been our offense, our defense and our baserunning," Hahn said. "All of which calls for improvement on the position-player side of things. I think it is safe to say we are very aware of where we fell short. We are also very aware of where we need to get better. All of that would entail significant improvement among the players we have or new faces."

The White Sox have more than $50 million coming off the payroll heading into 2014, with the trades of veterans and other contracts such as Paul Konerko's coming off of the books. It's unclear what the payroll for next season will be. Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf usually gives his department heads their budgets in early November. The club will have to investigate the free-agent market as part of the formula for improvement. Atlanta catcher Brian McCann may be the perfect fit for Chicago. McCann has outstanding power, to go along with his leadership skills and game-calling acumen.

"You have to be real careful," Hahn said, speaking generally about the free-agent market and aging players in the mix. "We do have the benefit in the American League of the DH. If whoever you are buying is a bat, at least you have a spot to move him to if his defensive skills start to erode, which is usually first to go. You do have to be careful but you also want to look at each guy individually."

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ESPNChicago.com's Bruce Levine takes your Cubs and White Sox questions during a live chat at noon CT Tuesday. Click here to submit your questions.

CHICAGO -- After committing five errors in Erik Johnson’s first two starts, both losses, this time out the Chicago White Sox scored a season high in runs. Johnson tossed six shutout innings, striking out eight in the 12-1 blowout of the Minnesota Twins.

Chicago snapped a six-game losing streak by hitting four home runs in support of the young starter’s first major league victory.

“He pitched well “ said White Sox manager Robin Ventura. “You are seeing him pitch for the third time; when you don’t give up any runs, you are kind of making your way through the lineup.

“That is real improvement. That is good stuff here, getting pitches when he needs them.”

Johnson was named to Baseball America’s 2013 Minor League All-Star Team late last week. With a youth movement gearing up for next season, Chicago is looking at youngsters like Johnson as possible rotation pitchers in 2014.

Due to a high pitch count (112), Ventura removed Johnson after six innings.

“He was getting up there,” Ventura explained. “You have to start attacking the zone. With a lead like that you have to be aggressive and not pick around the zone.”
Chicago scored seven times in the first inning, giving the pitcher wiggle room when he went out to pitch the second inning.

“This is where I want to be,” Johnson said. “It is another start to build off of. Each time I go out there I try to learn something new and build off of your last start.”

The White Sox had struggled to score as of late. Over the previous seven games on the homestand, they had scored a total of 12 runs in losing six of seven.


Alexei Ramirez tied his career high, chipping in with four hits, including his seventh home run of the season. The Sox scored more than six runs for the first time since an Aug. 26 loss to the Houston Astros.

Home at U.S. Cellular Field, the Chicago White Sox were hoping to break a horrendous slump that had them reeling in a six-game losing skid.

How it happened: Rookie Erik Johnson was making his third major league start. RHP Liam Hendricks was on the hill for the Minnesota Twins. Hendricks was in a purple haze, allowing seven runs and five hits while walking four in the two-thirds of an inning he lasted. Chicago sent 12 men to the plate scoring seven runs in the first inning. Alexei Ramirez drove in two with a base hit. Adam Dunn (32) and Dayan Viciedo (13) hit back-to-back home runs in the fourth inning. Jordan Danks hit a two-run homer in the sixth. Ramirez hit a solo home run in the seventh.

What it means: Johnson won his first major league game, shutting out the Twins for six innings. The seven runs in the first inning tied a season high for Chicago, also accomplished against the Detroit Tigers on July 9 in the eighth inning. Chicago had lost 15 of their previous 17 contests, entering play with the third worst record in baseball. Ramirez tied his career high with four hits.

Outside of the box: Gordon Beckham broke out of a 0-15 slump with an RBI single in the first inning, appropriately enough on his 26th birthday. … OF Avisail Garcia and his wife, Anakarina, welcomed daughter Annarella into the world on Sunday. Garcia will return to the team on Tuesday after missing two games. … The Sox announced a total of 960 dogs in attendance for their annual dog day promotion. … The Sox totaled 12 runs total in the previous seven games on this homestand.

Up next: Game 2 of the series will be at 7:10 p.m. CT, featuring LHP Jose Quintana (7-6,.3.56) facing RHP Mike Pelfrey (5-12,5.31).

Back in March, Goose Gossage said he thinks Mariano Rivera is pretty great, but also added, "I think that these guys are so dominant in that one-inning role that they've forgotten what we used to do. It takes three guys to do what we used to do."

He's right, of course. I wrote about Gossage versus Rivera at the time, so I'm not going to revisit that debate. But in writing earlier about Koji Uehara's terrific season, I pointed out that Gossage's 1975 season with the White Sox rates as the most valuable relief season ever, at least by Baseball-Reference WAR.

Gossage was 23 years old that year, turned 24 in July. It was his second full season in the majors and he went 9-8 with a 1.84 ERA and league-leading 26 saves. More impressively, he pitched 141.2 innings, held batters to a .201 average and allowed just three home runs.

I thought it would be fun to take a quick look at Gossage's season. Let's compare it to Craig Kimbrel's 2012 season, certainly one of the greatest seasons ever by a modern closer.

Appearances
Gossage: 62
Kimbrel: 63

One concept of the modern closer is that using him for one inning supposedly means he is available to pitch in more games, but that wasn't the case with Gossage's season.

Innings
Gossage: 141.2
Kimbrel: 62.2

Gossage threw more innings than Kimbrel has in two seasons.

Inning of entry
Gossage: 3rd (1 time), 5th (6), 6th (8), 7th (20), 8th (13), 9th (12), extra (2)
Kimbrel: 8th (1), 9th (60), extra (2)

Obviously, the modern closer is used only in the ninth to protect a lead, or in home games when the game is tied. Gossage was used any time the game was close, usually in the seventh inning on, but sometimes in the fifth or sixth.

Times pitched more than one inning
Gossage: 41
Kimbrel: 1

Here's an interesting nugget: Gossage pitched exactly one inning just three times. So even when he entered in the ninth, it was often after the starter or another reliever had run into trouble, not to start the inning.

Longest outing
Gossage: 7.2 innings
Kimbrel: 1.1 innings

Gossage pitched five-plus innings six times and three-plus 22 times. On this account, he's absolutely right about the modern closers. Imagine if managers stretched out the bullpens even a little bit, cut down on a reliever or two, and added another bat or pinch-runner to the bench. Would teams be better off? Gossage's 7.2-inning stint came on June 11 against Boston. He entered in the seventh inning and pitched through the 14th -- finally faltering in the 14th, giving up two runs on a Carl Yastrzemski home run and taking the loss. At least he was given three days of rest before his next appearance.

Inherited runners
Gossage: 99
Kimbrel: 4

Another huge difference between generations. Modern closers, even with their sky-high strikeout rates, are rarely brought in to actually put out fires. That's left to the middle relievers. Gossage had to escape jams and pitch the rest of the game.

So, yes, modern closers like Kimbrel and Uehara and Rivera are harder to hit and more dominant than ever. But, as Gossage said, don't forget what he used to do.

By the way, in 1976 the White Sox hired Paul Richards as manager. He was 67 and hadn't managed since 1961. That was a different and he thought it made sense to put your best arms in the rotation, so he mad Gossage a starter. He went 9-17 with a 3.94 ERA ... although did throw 15 complete games. Chuck Tanner, who managed him in 1975, got him in trade for the Pirates and returned him to the bullpen. From 1977 through 1985, Gossage posted a 2.10 ERA while averaging 93 innings per season.

CHICAGO -- When Adam Dunn made the commitment to come to Chicago and play for the White Sox, the assumption was he would contend for the playoffs that have always eluded him.

Signing a four-year, $56 million contract seemed just the right fit for Dunn and the White Sox, who were desperate for left-handed power.

Three years down the line, the result of his time on the South Side is up for debate.

Dunn has come close to or surpassed his career power statistics and walk totals (with the exception of his out-of-character disaster of 2011 -- .156/11/44).

Dunn characterized his three seasons with Chicago.

“The first thing that comes to mind is disappointing,” he said. “The way that I have done personally and more importantly the way we have finished last three years now. Most of that is on me.”

Dunn may be right about his 2011 season. However, the past two years he has enjoyed his usual power totals.

“I take a lot of pride in getting things done,” Dunn said. “The last three years have been frustrating and very tough. I am capable of doing more and I have had opportunities to do more. I feel I personally have not been able to get over the hump.

“Even when I have done well offensively, something weird has happened and set me back a couple of weeks.”

The endless losing of 2013 has replaced the nosedive of 2012 -- when the White Sox blew a three-game lead with three weeks left in the season -- as a focal point for frustration.

“When you are in a situation like we are in, all you can do is forget what happened the night before, good or bad, and move on,” Dunn said. “The good news is that baseball doesn’t define me as a person.

“I would rather have someone refer to me as a good person, good teammate, than a good baseball player. If you are able to do both then you can say you have had a pretty successful run.”

Dunn does not know how much longer he will play after his White Sox contract expires following the 2014 season. He is, however, tired of stories that insist he is going to quit baseball.

“I have honestly not thought about it, but I do know what I will do when baseball stops being fun. I have said that before, but somehow that gets turned around into I am retiring. As long as the competitive juices are still flowing, I will play as long as I can.”

Individual statistics do not drive Dunn, who is 63 home runs shy of 500 career homers.

“Bottom line is that numbers do matter; the ones that count are wins,” he said. “Those totals are what we concentrate on.”

CHICAGO -- The White Sox's lost season has had a few positive twists despite the disappointment of one of the worst records in baseball. The ascension of closer Addison Reed toward elite status has gone under the radar for most of the season.

Reed has 66 saves since the beginning of 2012, which ranks him fourth in the American League behind Jim Johnson, Fernando Rodney and Joe Nathan. His save-percentage success ratio is near the top of the statistical leaders at 86.8.

White Sox manager Robin Ventura believes Reed is getting close to being mentioned with the best closers in the game.

“He is adding another pitch,” Ventura said. “He had been surviving mostly with a fastball and slider. He has started to use a changeup that has gotten better. Just the feel for having more than one thing is important.”

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CHICAGO -- The joke is that the Chicago White Sox are so bad that they make everybody else look like a playoff contender.

The reality is that they actually have made a contender out of the Cleveland Indians.

With an 8-1 victory Saturday, the Indians improved to 81-68 on the season and a whopping 14-2 against the White Sox. That means when you take out Cleveland’s games against the White Sox, the Indians are a pedestrian 67-66 against the rest of the league.

“We’ve single-handedly put them in the playoff race, basically,” White Sox rookie catcher Josh Phegley said. “I don’t know, they’ve got our number and it’s either a close game or a big game. But we’ve got more shots at them and we are going to try to get them.”

The victory means the Indians continue to breathe down the necks of the American League wild-card leaders Tampa Bay Rays and the Texas Rangers. And the Indians are five games behind the Detroit Tigers in the American League Central standings with two weeks left in the season.

More bad news for the wild-card leaders is that the Indians still have three more games remaining against the White Sox, one on Sunday and then Sept. 24-25 in Cleveland.

Despite not yet playing the full season series, the White Sox’s 14 defeats are their most against the Indians since 1952, when they were 8-14.

And by losing 14 of their last 16 games overall, the White Sox are 58-90, the first time they have been 32 games under .500 since they finished the 1976 season with a 64-97 record.

On Saturday they tried stopping the Indians with rookie pitcher Andre Rienzo, who was little more than a speed bump with shaky control.

“He’s pitching at 1-0, 2-0, all the time, and so it seems like every hitter is in a good hitter’s count pretty much the whole night,” White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. “He’s walking leadoff guys, and you can’t do that without getting punished for it. And that’s what that team does. They can whittle you down and make you throw strikes and make you pay for it when you put guys on.”

After pitching in the World Baseball Classic this spring for his native Brazil and then throwing 113 innings at Triple-A Charlotte before his 50 with the White Sox, the 25-year-old pitching prospect appears to have little left in the tank.

“It’s the first time I play ball in September; I never play September before,” Rienzo said. “But I don’t feel tired. I feel good. I need to figure out little things to help me. If I can figure them out, I know I’ll make the ballclub next year. It’s simple.”

What isn’t so simple is getting the White Sox out of their funk. And having the Indians in town sure isn’t doing anything for their self-esteem.

“It becomes difficult,” Ventura said. “It’s about winning games and right now we’re not going to the playoffs. That’s not the fun part. However, there are worse jobs you could be doing right now. There’s a lot worse things that could be going on.”

“I think in everything you have to have the ability to overcome that kind of stuff and realize you’re lucky and fortunate to be doing what you’re doing and find a way to enjoy it,” he said. “I think everybody has that in their own personality.”

CHICAGO -- The White Sox made it five consecutive defeats on the homestand, falling 8-1 to the Cleveland Indians on Saturday.

How it happened: More offensive struggles combined with a rough start from Andre Rienzo added up to the White Sox’s 14th defeat in their past 16 games. Rienzo lasted just four innings, giving up five runs on seven hits with four walks. The White Sox managed just six hits over the first eight innings against Indians starter Ubaldo Jimenez and did not advance a runner past second base. They finally scored in the ninth inning on a Josh Phegley sacrifice fly.

What it means: At 58-90, the White Sox are 32 games under .500 for the first time since ending the 1976 season with a 64-97 record. To avoid the club’s first 100-loss season since 1970, the White Sox need to win five of their last 14 games.

Outside the box: The White Sox fell to 2-14 against the Indians this season, with three more games remaining between the teams. It is the first time the White Sox have lost 14 games in a season to the Indians since 1952, when they went 8-14 in the season series.

Offbeat: The White Sox went green Saturday, wearing green caps and green uniform accents for the team’s annual Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day celebration. Curiously, when it is actually St. Patrick’s Day during spring training, the White Sox celebrate the day with only green caps and regular uniforms. The promotion helped the White Sox draw a crowd of 28,024, their largest home crowd since Aug. 23, which was the day former White Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski returned to U.S. Cellular Field as a member of the Texas Rangers.

Up next: The White Sox will send left-hander Chris Sale (11-12, 2.90 ERA) to the mound Sunday in the series finale. The Indians will counter with right-hander Zach McAllister (7-9, 4.11) in the 1:10 p.m. CT start from U.S. Cellular Field.

CHICAGO -- With John Danks looking as if he has run out of gas and Jose Quintana and Hector Santiago near or beyond career highs in innings pitched for the Chicago White Sox, there is a chance somebody could get shut down before the season ends.

Danks, who missed a year of action after shoulder surgery in August 2012, would seem to be the prime candidate since his velocity is slightly down and his command hasn’t been sharp. But there could be value in building his innings moving toward next season. He is at the 131 1/3 mark after 21 starts.

As of now, Danks is penciled to start Wednesday in the Sox’s homestand finale against the Minnesota Twins.

“I think there’s a little bit of a debate there,” Chicago manager Robin Ventura said. “We could do that with pretty much all of [the starters] just because where we’re at in the season and looking forward to next year.”

Chris Sale is already at a career high 195 2/3 innings, while Quintana’s 179 2/3 is slightly behind his combined total of 185 last year. Santiago’s 142 2/3 innings is more than the combined 132 2/3 he had over three levels in 2011.

Then there is Andre Rienzo, who isn’t gaining traction at the major league level after a solid minor league season. He gave up five runs on seven hits over four innings to the Indians on Saturday and now has 50 major league innings to go along with the 113 he pitched at Charlotte. That combined total is a career high.

The White Sox are operating with a six-man starting staff, so shedding one pitcher is a possibility. The problem is that the starters who forge on will be pitching more frequently.

“We still have to have guys go out there and pitch,” Ventura said. “If it looks like it’s a better decision to keep a guy from throwing, we’ll probably do it.”

CHICAGO -- As the playing time comes for Chicago White Sox prospects, so does the losing, which makes for an awkward learning environment.

Kids like Marcus Semien and Erik Johnson have the opportunity to play, yet all around them are veterans who look sluggish and worn down from a demoralizing season.

White Sox manager Robin Ventura isn’t worried that the situation might become counterproductive. If the undesirable game results become a negative influence, then the White Sox’s top young talent isn’t as headstrong as the team thought it was.

“If we’re just sitting there handing out time, that would be one thing. But you're looking at guys, you're trying to get an evaluation of how guys play,” Ventura said. “For them, it's their future. If they want to come up and waste it, that's on them, and you move on and go to [somebody] else. This is the big leagues, and it’s about what you do and how you go about your business.”

Johnson has hit some snags trying to replicate his solid minor league season at the big league level. The former second-round draft pick, who has emerged as the top pitching prospect in the organization, has a 4.66 ERA after two starts and has been plagued by poor defense behind him.

So far, Johnson insists he is not demoralized by veterans struggling on defense behind him, and the White Sox won’t pass judgment on him at this early stage.

Semien has taken full advantage of his chances, putting up a .316 batting average and .350 on-base percentage in his first six games.

Another member of the roster taking advantage of his opportunity is reliever Jake Petricka, who came up just before rosters were expanded but is getting an extended look in September. In 10 appearances, he has allowed just two earned runs, giving him a 1.46 ERA.

Pitcher Charlie Leesman took his lumps recently, when he wasn’t able to retire any of the seven batters he faced Thursday against the Cleveland Indians. All seven came around to score.

“If you’re going to do something to make us better in the future, that’s how you evaluate it,” Ventura said. “I think a lot of guys that have played a long time, they’ve been on good teams, they’ve been on teams that were bad, they’ve been on teams that were not going to be in the hunt. The year doesn’t change how you play the game.

“There are things that are going to be different now because we’re playing some young guys, but you go out and play hard and the effort still has to be there.”

Ventura said just because the young prospects have reached the major leagues, it doesn’t mean the learning process has ended.

“I think the younger guys learn as much from the players they're around than they do from us telling them what to do,” he said. “When you see a Paul Konerko work or an Adam Dunn work, you're seeing the amount of work that goes in and how they go about their business and how they treat each other, what it takes. That doesn't change.”