Starr Gazing: Chicago's Legacy of Baseball Misery

But once futility approaches the century mark, pray tell me what difference does a decade mean? The White Sox's legacy of baseball misery arguably trumps that of every other team. The ChiSox have appeared in only two World Series since their 1917 triumph and one of those losses--the 1919 "Black Sox"--endures, even with all baseball's blemishes, as the darkest hour in the game's history. As for pathos, Bucky Dent, Bill Buckner, Bartman--none of those rise or, more accurately, sink to the level of "Say it ain't so, Joe"--the epitaph for Shoeless Joe Jackson and that scandalous 1919 team that threw the World Series.

Which is a long way to explain why I am so delighted to see a White Sox renaissance this season. So far, the team's performance--with the best record in baseball--not only defies expectations, but modern baseball fashion as well; the White Sox rank 22nd in the majors in both current statistical hotties, OBP (on-base percentage) and OPS (a combination of on-base and slugging percentages). Their success is an homage to that old-fashioned baseball notion that pitching--the White Sox top the American League in ERA (earned run average) by a wide margin--trumps everything else.

There are plenty of reasons to be skeptical about the duration of this White Sox run. They have played just one quarter of their games against winning teams. Their rotation relies on two New York Yanqui Cuban castoffs, Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez and Jose Contreras, whose durability is as suspect as their reputed ages of 35 and 33. And their lineup pales by comparison with some of the big-bash teams around the league. But Chicago's second-year manager, Ozzie Guillen, always played bigger (and smarter) than his talent. And history suggests that if a team can get off good enough for long enough, success may transform them into a genuinely good team.

Chicago's early streak puts some pressure on the fat cats in the AL East. The Yankees-Red Sox rivalry is diminished when there is an assumption that the regular season will settle just one issue: which of the two teams will enter the playoffs as a wild card. But with both the White Sox and Minnesota Twins winning in the Central (not to mention the season's other surprise team, Baltimore's OPS-crazy Orioles, off strong in the East) that Yankees-Red Sox rivalry has been invested with some new urgency. The two teams could find themselves in a chase for just one spot in the postseason.

That might disappoint some fans--not to mention the bean counters at MLB and the TV networks--who were eagerly anticipating a third act in what has been drama of epic proportions in the AL Championship Series. But there is virtue in welcoming new blood into the playoff fray. Just ask the NFL, which, while now enjoying the blessings of a "dynasty," ultimately thrives on the remarkable turnover among its playoff teams.

Baseball, with its rich team/poor team divide, is not quite so fortunate. And this 2005 season appeared to have "repeat" written all over it. Virtually every expert predicted that all four American League teams from the 2004 playoffs would return to the fray this October. And all three 2004 National League division winners moved quickly out front again this season. Baseball needs a sustained challenge from the White Sox or some other playoff newcomers to invigorate the season. While history can be baseball's greatest blessing, too much deja vu will ultimately hurt the game.