Owens Catches A Break (Sort Of)

-
So Jerry Owens career with the Sox isn't over yet. Wise going down for 4-8 weeks with a shoulder injury has allowed the speedster his final shot with the big league club. But will he be given a true shot while up? Sounds like this guy is not a Williams/Guillen favorite, which generally means your days in a Sox uni are numbered, no matter how you produce.

Guillen is already making it sound like Owens won't be given the starting CF job and leadoff spot, but instead will have to be content with backing up BA and slipping into the #9 hole when he does sneak his way into the lineup.

Getz will remain at leadoff against righties, while Lillibridge will get his shot against lefties. Makes perfect sense that Owens, who hit about .280 with a .340 OBA and 25+ steals in the second half of 2007, would be buried behind two guys who have a whopping 4 hits and 3 walks in over 30 combine plate appearances this season.

You see Swisher and the OC lighting it up for other teams, and you wonder if Kenny and Ozzie don't let their egos get in the way sometimes. I like both these guys and respect their track record (tho I still think Ozzie is over-rated as a manager for his inability to commit to small ball), but that doesn't mean they don't have flaws. And I think favoring "their guys" over more productive guys who they don't take to is a significant flaw.

Look, Owens has been a pansy who gets hurt too much and hasn't stepped it up when they've asked him to. And I generally agree that on the professional level, everyone is physically gifted, so going with the hardest workers and guys who fit the chemistry the best is a solid guideline. Lord knows nothing pisses me off more than seeing the Sox struggle without any intensity and/or due to selfish or fundamentally poor play.

But it seems like Kenny and Ozzie do more than just run out clubhouse cancer-types - they appear to run out anyone who doesn't quite fit their fancy. Since jettisoning Rowand, Everett, and Willie Harris in 2005, the Sox have struggled in part because the team lacked any real fire outside of AJ. Last season the OC and Swisher brought that spark back - returned the energy and intensity that had been missing since the title run, and even took the edge off and kept everyone loose.

The result? A clubhouse everyone admitted was one of the more fun in baseball, and a team that defied expectations, overcome significant injuries to three All-Stars (Quentin, Crede, and Contreras), and won a division title in the most dramatic fashion.

Yet the Sox couldn't wait to get rid of Swisher and the OC because they didn't quite fit with the personalities of Ozzie and Kenny. Similarly, the Sox have been loathe to give Owens a shot to build off that great second half in 2007 and become the leadoff hitter the Sox desperately need, because he hasn't endeared himself to them.

I think the Sox need to quit demanding that he "earn" it and just give him the job. I'd be fine with not letting Owens just have the spot over a more capable leadoff hitter, but what the hell did Wise or Getz do to earn it? What has either of them ever accomplished? Last year, both Guillen and the OC would have far preferred to hit him #2 - so why wasn't Owens given a shot then? Why was it OK for Grif Jr. to hit like a limp-wristed chick while he limped around CF and yet never lose his spot?

Look, I do believe in Getz and I'm happy to see Lillibridge gets some ABs. And I'm pleased that BA stands to get more time to prove himself offensively, because there are few better defensive CFs in the game. But especially with the way the middle of the order (excepting Thome) is performing, the leadoff spot is looking like the Sox biggest offensive concern.

Owens by far has the most potential to become a true leadoff threat - hitting for average, bunting himself on, working counts, drawing walks, and running wild when on the bases. For that reason alone he should be given every opportunity to fail, rather than being demanded to succeed at every turn before given his shot.

So I'm very interested to see if Owens will be given much of a shot, and if so, what he does with it. But I'm gonna be pulling hard for his success, and not just because my sister's boyfriend is good buds with the guy. I'm gonna be driving the Owens bandwagon because few things could help the Sox more than a guy hitting .280+ with a .340+ OBA and stealing bases at a 50+ clip.

If at the end of the year Owens has achieved those things and both the starting rotation and bullpen holds up, I guarantee 90+ wins for the Sox.