Meet the Sox

Pablo Ozuna

Jack of all trades, master of none, but a valuable part of the World Champions nevertheless.

Overview:  Pablo Ozuna signed a minor-league contract in January, but started the year on the major-league roster when he hit over .500 in Spring Training.  It would be the first time Ozuna would start a year with a big-league club.  Before last season, he was best known for being part of Age-gate, when officials discovered he was four year older than his listed age.

Ozuna supplanted Willie Harris as the team’s backup utility infielder, playing all four positions, as well as both corner outfield positions.  He also carried a solid batting average despite rarely hitting the ball out of the infield, and his speed came in handy in pinch-running situations.  He made his presence felt when he pinch-ran for A.J. Pierzynski after he reached first on that controversial strikeout in Game 2 of the ALCS.  Ozuna stole second and scored on Joe Crede’s double, and the Sox wouldn’t lose another game for the rest of the season.

Hitting:  John Rooney and Ed Farmer once referred to Ozuna as a secret weapon, because good things seemed to happen when he entered the game.  I took to calling Ozuna that for the rest of the season.  His secret was his ability to hit around .300 for most of the season without ever driving the ball.  

If there were a statistical category for fewest feet per hit, Ozuna would have led the league.  The one time he got a hold of a ball, Minnesota’s Lew Ford made a beautiful running grab on the warning track.  He did manage to hit one more triple than Scott Podsednik did during the regular season despite receiving 300 fewer at-bats, so it’s not like he’s the only one who was guilty of banjo-hitting.

He didn’t walk much, but for a role player, that’s not a huge deal.  He did what he was supposed to do.

Baserunning:  Remember when he stole home against the Royals?  That was awesome.

Defense:  Ozuna played six positions, but he became exposed at third base when Joe Crede had to take some time off to get over a sore back.  He posted a .941 fielding percentage at the hot corner, and his shakiness sparked Kenny Williams to find a better glove there.  Williams acquired Geoff Blum at the trade deadline, so it worked out for the better.

Otherwise, he played shortstop pretty well, and didn’t embarrass himself at second, left field or right field either.  I remember wanting him to play the outfield more instead of Timo Perez, but his arm may have been suspect.

2006 Outlook:  The Sox re-signed the Secret Weapon to a 1-year, $500,000 deal, and he’ll receive $350,000 if he’s sent down to the minors.  It’s a no-risk, fair-reward deal for the Sox, because Ozuna was a useful piece in 2005.

With the addition of Rob Mackowiak, Ozuna will see less playing time.  Mackowiak has a much better bat, is about an equal defender, and since he hits lefty, he’ll see more platoon match-ups.  If Ozuna stays on the big-league roster – and since Willie Harris is gone, I don’t see why he wouldn’t – he’ll be used against lefties and in pinch-running situations.

If anything, Ozuna was another case of the White Sox finding a valuable middle infielder for nothing.  Ron Schueler grabbed Jose Valentin for either Jamie Navarro or John Snyder, and Kenny Williams has pulled off Juan Uribe for Aaron Miles, and Tadahito Iguchi for a couple million.  For just over the league minimum, Williams got more production pound-for-pound out of Ozuna than he did from Royce Clayton and Roberto Alomar.