The Boys of Summer are back in action and Spring Training is well underway in both Arizona and Florida. Sox and the City members have responded to some key questions surrounding the 2008 Chicago White Sox as they look to rebound from a sub-par season.

During the 2007-2008 off season, the White Sox made several roster moves. Which one was your favorite? Which did you not like?

SABRSox: Favorite: Parting ways with Erstad and Podsednik. It was small and obvious, but it needed to be done. It was also symbolic. They represented the complete failure that was grinderball. You can't expect to win with inferior players, and it was encouraging that management finally realized this method would not sustain success in both the near or long-term. Now if only they'd do the same with Jerry Owens.

Least Favorite: Depleting the farm system. Going into this off-season, our top 3 prospects were Gio, DLS and Carter. Those guys were all traded this off-season, and our farm system is now barren. The Quentin deal is particularly bad at the moment because he's likely to now start the season in Charlotte. If he stays there for any significant amount of time, time not related to his recovery from the shoulder injury, the trade becomes rather pointless.

The Swisher trade stings simply because it was such a high price to pay. Don't get me wrong, I love Nick Swisher, and both he and Quentin are the exact types of players the Sox should be targeting (high OBP players), but they've got to show some restraint in trading away prospects. The inclusion of DLS in the Swisher trade still leaves a bad taste in my mouth.

BFC: Trading Jon Garland for Orlando Cabrera. We got a shortstop (albeit, a possible rental), but Garland is a Type B free agent while Cabrera is a Type A, so if we lose Cabrera, we'll get a better supplemental draft pick than we would have with Garland.

My least favorite would be the Swisher trade. I'm a big fan of Swisher's and think he can bring a lot to the lineup, but trading Gio Gonzalez AND Fautino de los Santos leaves our farm system bone-dry.

Fquaye14ten: I liked the vast majority of the moves the White Sox made this offseason but my favorite might be a sleeper--I like getting Alexei Ramirez. We gave up very little to get a guy who played excellent ball for Cuba and who can come along and help our team cheaply in future seasons (and perhaps this one).

My two "least favorite" moves? I wasn't crazy about the Dotel or Linebrink signings, though I liked the personnel acquisitions. The dollar values seemed ridiculous. Also the Swisher deal had me scratching my head. It's not even so much how much we gave up for Swisher, which I think is an appropriate price to pay, it's the timing--if one of Kenny's priorities in the offseason was acquiring Carlos Quentin, where does Swisher fit in? I don't like him at CF and Konerko's clogging up 1B. Also there's the timing of our farm system. Already bordering on empty (as made evident by the Miguel Cabrera debacle) we give up 3 of our top 10 prospects, including our 2 best? Ouch.

That said, I like those deals for who they brought us, which is why "least favorite" is in quotes.

Chips: Signing Dotel was my favorite; you get a good bullpen arm for not a lot of money and not a crazy long deal like Linebrink. I didn't like the Linebrink signing because of that contract. Way too much money and bullpen guys don't always last 4 straight seasons. See Politte, Koch, Cotts, etc. etc.

SouthSiderSince84: I would have to say the move that I liked would be Orlando Cabrera. He will fill in nicely in the #2 spot and is coming off a career year. He has always been solid at shortstop and I like what I see so far from Uribe at second.

The move that I’m not to sure about is Linebrink. He is up there in age and it doesn’t make me comfortable that his forkball isn’t moving like it used to therefore it is just a meaty change-up. Prove me wrong, Scott, prove me wrong.

IWMB: Favorite: Swisher - Alot of people didn't seem to like this deal because of all the prospects given up. Well half the time our prospects go to crap anyways, so I don't feel as if we gave up all that much to get him (Gio and Sweeney will probably prove me wrong about this, but oh well). But I feel this deal helps us out tremendously offensively, and he should be able to play center well enough.

Didn't Like: Cabrera for Garland - I really like the addition of Orlando Cabrera, but this deal sucks because Kenny failed to acquire another starter for us, whether it be via free agency, or trading Crede or someone. Garland has proved over the last 3 seasons that he can be a stud (his 10-13 record from last year is deceiving, as his ERA and WHIP each went down from his 18-7 '06 season). But now we go into this year trying to rely on Danks and Floyd both not sucking.

Dan Mega: The first thought that pops into my head is that the Sox did not bring back the bums like Darin Erstad or Alex Cintron. As far as trades go, I like the Garland for Cabrera deal. They really needed a new SS that could actually hit, and now they finally have one. His OBP of .345 is nearly 60 points higher than Juan's and he had half the strikeouts from 2007.

If Brian Anderson starts the year as the everyday CF, this will become my favorite roster move.

I'm not sold on the prospects for Swisher move. I think Nick will have a great year in the hitter's park the Sox play in, however the Sox may have given up too much with DLS and Gio. Only time will tell at this point.

SectionBNole: I really have a tough time with this one. I believe the best decision that was made was to not re-sign Podsednik. He did very well for us while he was here, but it was definitely time to move on. His 2005 World Series contribution won’t ever be forgotten, but we need someone that is going to help us in 2008.

I have a lot of trouble justifying the Nick Swisher trade. With that being said, let me first concede my bias towards Gio Gonzalez. While Swisher will probably put up some big time numbers in the hitter friendly U.S. Cellular Field, our minor league system for all intents and purposes is dead. That is a scary place to be for any organization.

Obviously, other teams in the AL Central have gone through roster changes of their own. Was their any one move in particular that really caught your eye? How will it affect the Sox this year or in seasons to come?

SABRSox: Obviously, what Detroit did changes the division. Miguel Cabrera is an elite talent, and now he's giving the Sox fits for a long time. By the same token, with Johan Santana leaving for New York, there's a handful more wins every year right there. Still, the Sox are not realistically going to be challenging Detroit for the division title anytime soon, not with that offense to contend with.

BFC: Of course, the Miguel Cabrera/Dontrelle Willis trade was huge. Detroit really cleaned up with that trade, but I don't think Willis is going to be anything special now that he's in the AL. Cabrera will continue to be an excellent hitter and with him in the lineup, Detroit may have the best batting order in the history of the game...on paper.

Fquaye14ten: The obvious one that comes to mind is the Cabrera trade (and don't forget that Willis is only 2 years removed from being a Cy Young candidate) but I think the 2 trades the Twins made for Young and Gomez (among others) are going to be the ones to hurt us in years to come. Although the Sox have a good crop of young talent in the field and on the mound, the Twins seemed poised to come back strong in 2010 or so...

Chips: The Tigers getting Cabrera seemed to be the best move by the other Central teams. Good thing their pitching staff isn't anything spectacular. I think the Sox can finish in second in this division behind the Indians if they pitch well. I'm too worried about the offense, but our pitching staff has me worried.

SouthSiderSince84: Well I’d be lying if I didn’t say Detroit. Miguel and Dontrelle are two huge additions to that already potent line-up. It’s definitely going to be a goodtime watching the Sox/Tigers games this year.

IWMB: Santana leaving the Twins. There are 4-5 losses each year that can't be counted yet.

Dan Mega: The move that caught my eye (and everyone else's) is when Detroit gave up the farm for Miguel Cabrera and Dontrelle Willis. Cabrera is already one of the leagues best hitters and he is joining an already loaded Tiger lineup. Willis had a down year but he is still a lefty capable of giving them a ton of innings. This will impact the Sox now as Detroit on paper is a far superior team from top to bottom. As for the future, we'll have to see how Detroit re-stocks their farm.

SectionBNole: Obviously, Detroit nabbing Miguel Cabrera was a colossal acquisition.

However, one move that is getting over looked is Minnesota’s trade with Tampa Bay. The Twins gave up Matt Garza and Jason Bartlett for one of the top young hitting prospects in baseball, Delmon Young. If this guy develops as he should as well as gets a better attitude (all of which are fully possible in Minnesota), look out AL Central, we could be looking at a steal.

Who is a player that has really impressed you early in spring ball?

SABRSox: Brian Anderson impresses me every year. He should be the starting CF for his defense alone. But Ozzie's got a hard-on for speed, and he's going to put Owens in the leadoff spot, not only sacrificing OBP at the top of the order, and not only defense in CF, but also wasting Nick Swisher's value by batting him 6th in the order.

BFC: John Danks. He's looked very good in his three starts so far and seems to have put his horrendous finish to 2007 behind him. I like what he's doing with his cutter to get out of jams, and that could be the difference between him being a bad-to-mediocre pitcher in 2007 to him being a good pitcher in 2008.

Fquaye14ten: Brian Anderson 

Chips: Brian Anderson. This kid should make the roster and start everyday in Center.

SouthSiderSince84: As much as it pains me to say it, Brian Anderson is having a good spring. He definitely had something to prove to the Sox and Sox fans. He is hitting the ball well and we all already know he is a good fielder. I’m also liking Wasserman, that boy can pitch.

IWMB: 've been pleasantly surprized with Brian Anderson in particular. He's hitting .351 with 13 hits in 12 games played.

Dan Mega: Anderson. He is currently hitting .359 with a few dingers. He is also taking pitches and working the count much better than he has in seasons' past. Hopefully this will translate into a stellar season. His glove will be needed out there with this pitching staff.

SectionBNole: Has to be Brian Anderson. He is putting up solid numbers at the plate with many at-bats so you know that his high average is as legit as it can be for spring training. We have all seen this kids ability with the glove, and today, against the Rockies, witnessed a strike from Left Field nailing a base runner at the plate. Defense, in my opinion, is the most important attribute for a Center Fielder. Guess what Anderson brings to the table?

Do you expect Crede to be shipped out soon? If so, play the role of Kenny Williams. Where do you send him and for who?

SABRSox: I think he will be traded to SF for a pair of prospects, neither of which will be elite but maybe one will can end up being serviceable. I'd prefer some position prospects, considering our complete lack of them in the farm system, but we also need starting pitching help. Shit, we need a little of everything at this point, except for Single-A relief pitchers. We seem to have a surplus of them.

BFC: In a perfect world, we ship Crede off to San Fransisco for Jonathan Sanchez, but with Noah Lowry out with an injury, that seems to be very unlikely. At this point, I'm not even sure KW will unload him before March 31. It really would disappoint me if Crede was starting at third and Fields was in AAA to begin the year. I understand not wanting to trade Crede for a few low-level prospects, but when you have a guy like Fields, it'd be a shame if Crede blocked him in 2008.

Fquaye14ten: Do I expect it? I'd say I'm about 50/50 right now. Do I HOPE so? Absolutely. There's no way I want to see Fields in Charlotte or on the bench. I hate playing Bckthr and making trade propositions about deals that aren't even in talks but I've heard someone like Bill Hall mentioned. I'm not sure if that's realistic (I'd lean towards probably not) but if in fact Crede shows the Brewers something this spring in terms of back-health, that's a deal I'd love to see happen.

Chips: I'd like to expect it, but I'm not sure where we're going to send him or for who. I don't like the idea of trading for a bunch of prospects, but we need to rebuild the farm system. It'd be nice to get another starter for him.

SouthSiderSince84: Crede will get dealt. I would like to see the Sox work out a trade with the Dodgers. The Dodgers have a lot of young stud pitchers and that is something that the Sox could definitely use.

IWMB: I think he's going to stay for now probably until around the ASB.

Dan Mega: Tough question. Most of the time, the deals that Kenny Williams makes are out of no where, so that makes me think the Crede to the Giants talk to not be realistic. However, San Fran is desperate for hitting (their cleanup is Molina!) and Crede can give them a solid glove at 3rd provided his back is healthy. I wouldn't be shocked if KW gets a few B+ prospects for him. Personally, I would find any incriminating evidence I could of Brian Sabean and use it to swing a Crede for Matt Cain deal.

SectionBNole: Its time for the Fields era on the south side of Chicago. Not allowing Josh to get ample plate appearances may prove to be a tragedy of epic proportions. Crede’s likely destination looks to be somewhere in the National League West, probably the Dodgers or Giants. Preferably, I would like to see Kenny grab a 5^th starter or at least some quality position prospects for Joe.

 
SABRSox: Buehrle, Vazquez, Contreras, Danks, Floyd

Danks and Floyd will both be terrible this year, and I'd replace them if I could, but there simply isn't anybody available. I like Jack Egbert a lot, but he's been injured. Broadway is another option, but I think he needs some time in AAA still. Suffice it to say, I have serious concerns with the back end of the rotation as it currently stands.

BFC: Easy. 1. Buehrle 2. Vazquez 3. Danks 4. Contreras 5. Floyd

Nobody else has shown they deserve to unseat one of these five. Broadway, Haeger, and Egbert need more time at AAA if they want to be in this rotation someday.

Fquaye14ten: I guess it would probably be what I've expected it to be. I can't put too much stock in ST stats, but everyone but Vazquez is pitching well and he's only had one outing. I guess I'd still have it slotted: Buehrle, Vazquez, Danks, Contreras, Floyd

With the back 3 pretty fluid--I don't think that sort of order matters too much anyway.

Chips: Buerhle, Vazquez, Contreras (unless we somehow trade him), Danks and hopefully whoever we trade Crede for. I don't think Floyd has it yet if he'll ever have it.

SouthSiderSince84: 1.Buerhle 2. Vazquez 3. Danks 4. Jose 5. Floyd

Just so Danks and Floyd would not start right after each other.

SectionBNole: Buerhle, Vazquez, Danks, Contreras, and Floyd.