We need more relievers. We need a starter. We need a third baseman.
Those are all statements we’ve heard many times this year about the White Sox, and even though a couple of them have been addressed, not much attention has shifted to another hole on the team, the bench.
It’s hard to say that the bench will be a major factor in how the Sox fair the rest of the regular season, but it is something that has been lacking all throughout, and could be addressed with some ease. So first, let’s take a look at each of the 4 hitters sitting on the Sox’ bench before delving into what the team could add.

Tyler Flowers

Probably the bench player that sees the most playing time is our young catcher, Tyler Flowers. While A.J. Pierzynski has been blessed with great health throughout his long major league career, every back stop needs days off, so it’s understandable why Flowers sees the field usually at least once a week.

Hitting .174 with 2 HR and 2 RBI, Flowers simply has not been getting the job done. I mean, 2 long balls and 2 RBI’s? Come on now. The luxury with having him as your backup is that he’s pretty solid defensively and has a nice arm, and while he has done a good job behind the plate, he has been as anemic at the plate as his stats suggest.
If you’ve watched any of his at bats, you know he hasn’t looked good at the plate…it’s not a “hard .174.” You can count on him getting down 0-2 or 1-2 in every count and striking out in just under half of his at bats.
He’s still young and talented, though, so I’d say the 26 year-old does serve as an asset to the team. But we’ll get back to that.

Eduardo Escobar

Hitting .203 with just 2 RBI, the 23 year-old has not done much on paper for the Sox in 2012, but I personally am a fan of the rookie utility man.
He can play all over the infield and even step into the outfield, if needed. You need to have one of those players on your roster, and I’m fine with it being Escobar. He’s extremely young and has a lot of time to grow and evolve into his role. The organization thinks he can be an every-day big leaguer one day, and after impressing in Spring Training, his potential is not the question.

For someone so young and inexperienced, it’s got to be hard to get in a groove when you rarely play. Still, he gives the team good, hard fought at bats (as opposed to Tyler Flowers’ quick strikeouts) and can bunt, handle the bat, and run well.
He, like Flowers, is an asset for the organization to have. And when he gets on the field, he can be an instant spark plug. While he’ll never light up a stat sheet, I’m sure his offense will slowly but surely improve.

Orlando Hudson

Staying in the infield, we’ve got the “O-Dog,” Orlando Hudson, who we saw quite a bit of at 3rd base before the Youkilis era began.

In 2012 the career .274 hitter is down at .196 with 22 RBI’s. He’s the only veteran on the bench, which is pretty much the only thing he’s got going for him. While he does see a lot of pitches and possesses adequate speed, he simply can’t get on base at a solid clip anymore. Pairing that with the fact that he’ll play almost solely at 2nd base from here on out, suddenly his value isn’t very high for the team.
But like I said, you need to have at least 1 veteran to call on from your bench, and right now Hudson is their that 1 guy. The only way he’ll get moved is if another veteran comes in, which again, we’ll get to later.

Jordan Danks

Back to the youngsters, specifically another rookie in the Sox’ 4th outfielder, John Danks’ little brother, Jordan.

While he’s only seen very limited action since being called up earlier in the year, he has been fine at the plate. Hitting at .296 with a .286 OBP…yep, that’s right (according to ESPN), I think he’s been what Sox management hoped he’d be as a bench player. He has a nice, smooth swing, and when he keeps it short, possesses very good extra-base hit power.
Hitting from the left side, playing great defense at every outfield spot, and having a little bit of pop is pretty much all you can ask for from your young 4th outfielder who rarely gets on the field. So as far as Jordan Danks goes, I’m not concerned.

Who To Go After

If I were Kenny Williams, my approach would be simple: get a cheap veteran in one of the couple days right before the July 31st deadline. Specifying from that, I think they should go after either a utility man (that first and foremost is comfortable in the infield) or a catcher.
A catcher would be ideal, I suppose, since he’d play the most. And I still think the best place to look would be with the Cubs, who have a few guys that would fit nicely as bench players on the south side of town. There’s options on Theo’s Cubbies such as catcher Geovanny Soto or utility men Joe Mather or Jeff Baker.

If you get a catcher, though, Flowers is gone (he does have trade value). If you get a veteran utility man, Orlando Hudson is probably gone (due to Escobar’s versatility). But whatever way you look at it, it’d certainly be nice to improve the bench.
Now, is this whole discussion about more minor holes on the Sox? Yes, certainly. Nonetheless, it’s still an area that the team could improve, and Kenny Williams may want to explore some options if no big-time deal presents itself.