Chicago White Sox

Mark Buehrle was jovial after the sixth inning.

He was content enough with his situation in the game that when a fellow player asked how he was feeling in the dugout, he simply replied, "I've got a no-hitter."

Most pitchers treat talking about a no-hitter during a game the same as saying Macbeth before actors put on the play, but Buehrle didn't seem to have a care in the world. He was acting invincible, and he certainly looked like it, until the seventh inning.

The White Sox are 11-10 after a win over the Seattle Mariners today, to take another series at home.

Just to clear the air, I am a die-hard White Sox fan and have been for life—not one of those 2005 bandwagon fans—as many accuse me of being.

The team's question marks going into the season revolved around center field and second base. Some argued that losing Joe Crede made third a problem as well, so Josh Fields was under the microscope, too.

The recovery of Jose Contreras and the effective return of Bartolo "Big Man" Colon were also question marks.

Just a week ago, I discussed the fact that the White Sox rotation was in disarray. With Buehrle, Floyd, and Danks firing on all cylinders, Contreras and Colon were way behind, looking as if they had one more start, one more chance to prove themselves as starters.

A week ago, the break down of these five pitchers looked like this:

Buehrle/Floyd/Danks - 6-1, 2.89 ERA

Contreras/Colon - 1-4, 7.47 ERA

What a difference a week can make. For the last seven days, the same setup looks like this:

Buehrle/Floyd/Danks - 1-2, 6.56 ERA

After a heavy loss to Baltimore at Camden Park, the White Sox return to Chicago, licking their rotation wounds.

The top three guys are off to a superb start, Mark Buehrle looks as good as ever, starting the year 2-0 with an ERA of 3.00 in three starts, John Danks is lights-out at 2-0 with a 0.95 ERA and Gavin Floyd is looking solid at 2-1 4.74 ERA.

Welcome to the first edition of my new weekly section, South Sidings—my own views and opinions on the previous week's White Sox action. I hope you enjoy!

So, we're 14 games into the season and at 8-6, the Chicago White Sox are off to a decent start, with the positives greatly outweighing the negatives.

Let's take a closer look at this on a player by player basis:

Starters

I always wonder about how managers deal with the various attitudes and personalities on a roster. Baseball is a marathon, not a sprint; which means there are going to be lots of ups and downs.

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Certainly exceeding utility status, yet short of earning a starting spot in the last three years, Brian Anderson’s position with the Chicago White Sox has been frustratingly undefined.

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When it rains, it pours, and when the White Sox offense is on fire, it's an inferno.

In all fairness to the White Sox pitching staff, Gavin Floyd did his best not to be outdone by the great starts of Mark Buehrle and John Danks, or the suddenly explosive offense.

Floyd threw seven strong innings, keeping a shutout all the way into the seventh inning. His control was back in a big way, striking out seven and not walking a single batter. He did give up six hits, but he spread them out well, and only yielded two earned runs.

In Honor of Bartolo Colon's game against the Tampa Bay Rays tonight, I would like to present "The All Fat All-Stars:"

C: Dioner "Fast As a Brick Wall" Navarro (5'9"and 210 pounds) and Brayan "Why Can't I be called Pudge?" Pena (5'11"and 245 pounds)

1B: Dmitri "Bigger Than Your Nose Tackle" Young (6'2" and 300 pounds) and Prince "Maybe if I Go Vegan, No One Will Notice I'm So Fat" Fielder (5'11" and 270 pounds)

2B: Ronnie "Fatty McButterpants" Belliard (5'10" and 215 pounds)

SS: This is where I need your help, any suggestions?