Chicago Tribune from Chicago, Illinois • Page 3-3

BBB 3 CHICAGO TRIBUNE SPORTS SECTION3 By Phil Rogers TRIBUNE REPORTER MEMPHIS To understand the rise and subsequent fall of the White Sox in recent years, no better place to start than with the performance of Jose Contreras. A monster on the mound in 2005 and the first half of Contreras has been a mess since then. Ditto the team around him, unraveling in startling fashion after 1 1 2 seasons alongside the Boston Red Sox at the top of the baseball world. There may be no more important player on the 2008 roster than Contreras. might be the manager Ozzie Guillen said Saturday.

will have a lot to say about the performance of our pitching Guillen feels good about spring, which ended with 5 2 3 strong innings in a 3-2 loss to the New York Mets in the Civil Rights Game on a chilly, damp day at AutoZone Park. He gave up a two-run homer to Carlos Beltran but little else, striking out six and walking none. Contreras also was given an assist afterward. Alexei Ramirez, who will start in center field for the Sox in season opener at Cleveland, discussed the role Contreras has played in his smooth transition from Cuba. when I was in the Dominican, trying to get signed, I was talking to Ramirez said, with coach Joey Cora interpreting.

told me baseball in America is the have to concentrate a little harder, pitch by pitch, make adjustments a little quicker, but baseball is the Ramirez has made that appear true. He struck out in his only at-bat on Saturday, swinging mightily with the bases loaded and two outs. He finished the spring with a .358 batting average and a new nickname, the Cuban Missile. That is moniker for the 26-year-old, who until last summer was a member of national team. hope he will still be the in Guillen said.

the BB Ramirez is taking it all in stride. very proud, very sat- isfied with what he said. just going to go out and try to keep doing the things that done well in spring training, then see what happens. not surprised at how well The Sox picked Nick Masset for the one vacancy on the pitching staff. Guillen said Ehren Wasserman had out- pitched Masset but will start at Triple-A Charlotte because he has minor-league options left.

Joe Crede, who is bothered by a bruised left ankle, played four innings in the field on Saturday and is expected to be available on Monday. Guillen listed the lineup for the game against lefty C.C. Sabathia: left fielder Nick Swisher, shortstop Orlando Cabrera, designated hitter Jim Thome, first baseman Paul Konerko, right fielder Jermaine Dye, catcher A.J. Pierzynski, center fielder Ramirez, third baseman Crede and second baseman Juan Uribe. AP photo by Bill Waugh White Carlos Quentin slides safely into third base as New York David Wright awaits the throw in the fifth inning.

METS 3, WHITE SOX 2 Guillen: Contreras holds the key Sox may pivot on results By Phil Rogers TRIBUNE REPORTER one of Major League two African-American general managers, Ken Williams was happy to end spring training with the White Sox playing in the second Civil Rights Game, which MLB is staging to salute the ethnic heritage and to consider remaining issues of race. Jimmie Lee Solomon, executive vice president of baseball operations, said the White Sox and Mets were ideal choices because of their management teams. Both have an African-American and a Latin American in charge, with Ozzie Guillen joining Williams and Willie Randolph answering to Mets GM Omar Minaya. Williams and Minaya came to Memphis early to participate in a panel discussion Friday. Henry Aaron, Sharon Robinson, the daughter of Jackie Robinson, Martin Luther King III and Ambassador Shabazz, the daughter of Malcolm and Betty Shabazz, joined Williams and Minaya.

was the most enlightening panel discussion ever been involved with in Solomon said. While MLB is making a concerted effort to attract more inner-city athletes to baseball, Williams sees sports as only the tip of the iceberg. His father was the first black captain in the Sac- ramento Fire Department and bypassed a chance to compete with John Carlos and Tommie Smith in the 1968 Olympics, where that duo raised black-gloved fists atop the victory stand. less concerned about young, inner-city, African- American kids playing baseball than I am about the murder rate or the lack of high school Williams said during the discussion. With so many Latin Americans in baseball, Minaya believes there will be more in positions of authority soon.

have a responsibility to make sure that door of opportunity is open for those coming behind Minaya said. Baseball salutes heritage Score: Mets 3, White Sox 2. Spring record: 11-19-3 At the plate: Jermaine Dye, finishing a spring in which he hit .186, was 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. On the mound: Boone Logan followed up his strong outing Friday night by getting Jose Contreras out of a sixth-inning jam. In the field: Mets right fielder Ryan Church had a ball hit by Carlos Quentin bounce off his glove and over the fence for an apparent three-run homer.

But the ball caromed off a fan back onto the field, and the umpires missed the call. Quentin was ruled to have reached on a one-base error. Next up: At Cleveland, 2:05 p.m. Monday. Mark Buehrle vs.

C.C. Sabathia. White Sox recap Sox at Indians 2:05 p.m. Monday, CSN Tom forecast Mostly cloudy, windy and mild. Chance of showers and thunderstorms.

Temperatures top out around 60 degrees. South winds 15-25 m.p.h. and gusty. Opening Day WHITE SOX ABRHBI N.Y. METS ABRHBI Swisher cf5000JReyes ss3000 Uribe ss4000Machado ss0000 Thome dh3010Castillo 2b3010 Konerko 1b3010AReyes 2b1000 Ramirez 2b1000Wright 3b3110 Dye rf4000Tatis 3b1000 Pierzynski c2010Beltran cf3112 Hall c1100Easley lf1000 Crede 3b2000Delgado 1b3010 Hffmn 3b-1b2000Andrson 1b1010 Quentin lf4010Church rf3120 Ozuna 2b-3b4032Chavez rf1000 Pagan lf-cf3010 Schneider c2000 Casanova c1001 Clark dh3000 TOTALS34272TOTALS32383 WHITE N.Y.

Church. LOB: WHITE SOX 8, N.Y. Mets 6. 2B: Thome, Delgado. HR: Beltran.

CS: Ozuna WHITE SOX IPHRERBBSO Contreras5 2 3 52206 Logan 1 3 00000 Linebrink 1 3 21100 Thornton 2 3 00010 Dotel110001 N.Y. METS IPHRERBBSO Maine430005 Feliciano120002 Heilman110002 Schoeneweis 2 3 12231 Smith 1 1 3 00001 Rincon 100001 Time: 2:55. 7,717. Product: CTSPTS PubDate: 03-30-2008 Zone: ALL Edition: SHD Page: 3-3 User: ecavanaugh Time: Color:.