Meet the Sox

Willie Harris

It isn’t hard to root for a guy named Willie.  That’s Reason No. 1 why I rooted for Willie Harris.  It’s just a good baseball name, especially for a guy who is fast, which Willie was.

It also isn’t hard to like a guy who scored the winning run in the clinching game of your team’s first title in 88 years, which Willie did.

Not only is that great baseball name tied to that great moment in the history of America – nay, the world – but I’ve also linked it with Ozzie Guillen’s Midas touch during the playoffs.  Against one of the top closers in the game and with his whole bench to choose from, Oz picks Willie, a guy who barely registered on his radar screen during the regular season.  Sure enough, Willie delivered a single to left off Brad Lidge and came home three batters later.

It was a nice send-off for a decent player who just couldn’t find a spot with the Sox, though it wasn’t necessarily his fault.

Willie was a fleet-of-foot baserunner who could use his speed smartly, and he also possessed excellent defensive range at second base.  His arm made him an ill fit for center field, but he gave it a shot anyway.  Despite little power befitting of his small frame, he drew a fair amount of walks for an above-average OBP.  He also seemed to get along well with Frank Thomas, no small feat – probably because even Frank couldn’t keep Willie from running his mouth.

On a lot of teams, this might be good enough to bat him eighth or ninth.  But when Tadahito Iguchi fell into Kenny Williams lap, the GM had no choice but to take a chance on the import.  Harris didn’t help his own cause with a poor spring in 2005, and he was relegated to backup infielder/Triple-A starter for the rest of the season.

Willie had some nice moments with the Sox, and he certainly came to Chicago at a fair price.  All he cost was the services of Chris Singleton, whose career promptly fell off the table after leaving the South Side.  Now Willie’s donning different Sox – the Boston variety – and he may not find a lot of playing time there either.  He’s behind Mark Loretta and Tony Graffanino at second and Coco Crisp in center, though he automatically becomes Red Sox’s top pinch-runner.

Meanwhile, it seems as though that 2002 transaction that brought Willie to Chicago has come full circle.  While Willie departs, Singleton comes back to serve as the team’s new radio color commentator, and he’s under contract for the next five years.

Then again, if you watch the World Series DVD, there’s Willie, giving a play-by-play account of the pitching duel between Brandon Backe and Freddy Garcia.  So it can’t be ruled out that when Singleton’s contract expires, Willie may come back to replace him once again.