December 11, 2009

Sox could non-tender D.J. Carrasco

An 11 p.m. CT deadline sits this Saturday for 2010 contracts to be tendered to unsigned players on the 40-man roster. Carrasco contractually falls into the arbitration-eligible category, along with White Sox closer Bobby Jenks, starting pitcher John Danks, reliever Tony Pena and outfielder Carlos Quentin, meaning Carrasco will get a nice bump from his $440,000 salary in 2009.

With the White Sox at their payroll limit and still looking to add another impact player or two, including a possible frontline reliever such as J.J. Putz, Carrasco might be the odd-man out. The White Sox approach the 2010 campaign with one of the top starting rotations in all of baseball, the ‘Fab Five,’ as Carrasco mentioned, and might choose to go with a cheaper route such as rookie Daniel Hudson in what shapes up as the lesser-used category of middle relief.

… According to Carrasco, one contract offer has been exchanged between the White Sox and his agent, but nothing more. He’ll simply wait and see how the final decision plays out on Saturday, ultimately thankful the Sox gave his career a second chance to which he thoroughly responded as a non-roster invitee in Spring Training 2008.