Part 2 of Grandmaster Kenny Williams' Attack

In chess, a player must think ahead; he must plan his attack many moves ahead of his current move. It is said that a great chess player can see 20 (!) moves ahead of where he wants to end up in order to account for all scenarios.

When accumulating talent in today's MLB, a GM has to have the foresight of a great chess player. With minor league options, arbitration, and the Rule 5 draft all part of the landscape of MLB economics and scouting , he has to have a plan of attack talent-wise and salary-wise. He has to think not only for today but four years down the road. And let's not forget there's talent evaluation and speculation to take into consideration as well. A GM must have more than just one eye surveying the entire playing board of running a team; that's why he's paid the big bucks.

A few weeks ago when White Sox GM traded away pitcher Freddy Garcia to the Philadelphia Phillies for Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez, most people nodded in agreement knowing a spot must be opened for stud-in-waiting Brandon McCarthy. KW's underlying strategy: do not give up MLB-level pitching without getting young pitching prospects in return.

Today, KW made another deal with that same strategy in mind; he traded the aforementioned B-Mac to the Texas Rangers for the very highly touted John Danks and less regarded Nick Masset. Unlike the Garcia deal this move has left more than a few casual fans scratching their heads and for good reason. As it stands, without B-Mac or another move the White Sox are looking at an inexperienced pitcher (knuckler Charlie Haeger, Floyd, Danks) starting every 5th day in 2007, and the even the most casual fan will remember the debacle of 2002-2003 when the Sox had the unfathomable string of games where no starting pitcher in the 5th slot recorded a win for the White Sox.

But there's a deeper method to KW's madness.

From to 2003 thru 2005, KW somewhat ravaged the minor league system to bring in players who could immediately contribute. He traded away the future for the present, and a 2005 World Series championship says he was justified in doing so. Even though the White Sox didn't repeat, last year's moves were also shrewd and well thought out adding Thome, Vazquez, Thornton and MacDougal. But with those moves the minor league system was spread thin, and in a pinch, the Sox were left without much talent to develop looking toward the closing years of the decade. So beyond opening a spot in the rotation, this off-season KW has restocked the higher-level minor league pitching talent, and no longer can the Sox' system be looked upon as being devoid of true prospects -- both Danks and Floyd were high first round draft picks.

That Danks is a lefty (and he's younger than B-Mac) also gives the White Sox some insurance should Mark Beuhrle decide to move on after this season. Remember the AL Central has the likes of left-handed hitting Grady Sizemore, Travis Hafner, Sean Casey, Joe Mauer, MVP Justin Morneau and even Sox killer Mark Teahan to deal with, and the odds of the lefty Beuhrle resigning with the Southsiders after 2007 are 50/50 at best.

As with the Garcia deal, the surprise moving of B-Mac -- once thought of as the only untradeable commodity on the Sox 40-man roster -- seems like a prelude to something bigger, some splashy move KW -- the new Jerry Krause? -- has cultivated quietly behind the scenes. Could some of the recently acquired prospects be used to pry a Rocco Baldelli or Carl Crawford from the Orlando Bay Devil Rays or maybe even an Ichiro Suzuki from the Mariners?

To many observers and fans the LF/ CF situation is still untenable. Even though he resigned with the team, Pods has worn out his welcome with the fans, game winning homerun in the World Series be damned. And as last season showed, Brian Anderson -- he of the Venezuelan stomach virus -- learning on the job doesn't give the Sox the best chance at winning right now. (Impatience with prospects like BA is now the norm, especially when playing in the shadow of World Series trophy.) An upgrade at one of the two positions is expected in light of the glaringly bad 2006 seasons those two had, and now KW has the resources to make such an upgrade.

Or could there be an even bigger fish to catch, say one season of the Rocket Roger Clemens maybe?

So while other teams are dubiously and maybe even irresponsibly spending money this off-season (the Cubs, Red Sox, and even Kansas City -- Gil Meche for chrissake?), quietly KW first strengthened his bullpen and now his minor league system in a fiscally responsible manner. Although many look at his recent moves as mostly lateral, a closer look reveals KW has his eyes on not only the here and now but on the future as well. In three years when the Cubs are crying about the albatross of Alfonso Soriano's contract, KW will still have room to maneuver, be it in free agency or through the farm system and trades. Just like a chess grandmaster, KW's attack is not limited to one approach; he sees the whole board and can go in a different direction if need be. A lot of praise was heaped upon John Paxson and the Bulls' brain trust for their stellar personnel moves inciting some people to hail, "In Pax we trust!" Maybe it's time KW receives a little of the same recognition.

When he finally picks up that outfielder maybe then he can even say, "Checkmate!"

Initial reactions to the B-Mac trade from other baseball sites-------------------

• Jim's a little confused by this move. (Sox Machine)
• Wiz says, "NOOOOOOOOOO!" as do a lot of others commenting on the trade. (South Side Sox)
• Nate Silver at BP thinks KW got the best of this trade. (Baseball Prospectus)
• Phil Rogers calls it a "...scary leap..." among other things. (Chicago Tribune)
• Update: Jake Berlin initially told Sox fans to stay off the ledge, but now calls it a lump of coal. (The Bard's Room)
• Nathan Whelan asks what else does KW has up his sleeve. (Daily Southtown)
  
• The Slobs think KW is crazy. (Snobs vs. Slobs)
• Buda says he'll miss the chance to see B-Mac as a starter. (ChiSox Daily)
  
• David Pinto at Baseball Musings likes it for both teams. (Baseball Musings)
• Texas fans are straddling the fence too. (Lone Star Ball)
• Moutz thinks the outcome won't be pretty at all. (Chicago Sports Blogs: Non Compete)
• Update: Jeeves has finally weighed in typical fashion - looking at both sides of the coin. (ChiSox Blog)
  
• Update: Dave Lozo really hates KW and all his moves. (Why Don't We Get Drunk and Blog?)
• Update: CA likes this trade for the long term needs. (Ron Karkovice Fan Club)
• Update: Yep, Cheat certainly has something to say about this trade. (South Side Sox)
  

This being Christmas weekend and the timing at which the B-Mac trade went down, there's not much in depth commentary yet posted. Fornelli's Foul Balls along with Black Sox Blog are all somewhat pissed and have reserved judgment, not unlike The Bard's Room, until they can take a closer look at deal. I expect Criminal Appeal over at Ron Karkovice Fan Club to chime in soon too and a Cheat rant can't be too far behind. But mostly the White Sox nation has expressed shock at the trade of the untradeable one; and, as I said, maybe KW should assume the old Jerry Krause moniker of "The Sleuth."