Griffey Jr. To Sox; Good Move? **UPDATE**

After flirting with the idea of bringing a man with one of the sweetest swings in the history of baseball for a few years, Kenny Williams has finally landed Ken Griffey Jr., pending his approval. While the deal awaits a thumbs up or down from Jr., a few things can already be concluded from this unexpected move.

A: Enjoy your vacation, Paulie.
B: Aaron Poreda, Jack Egbert or Lance Broadway will be leaving the system.
C: Kenny is convinced Jose Contreras will be able to regain his form for the playoff push and thereafter.

Contreras threw off the mound for the second day in a row on Wednesday, and Sun-Times beat reporter Joe Cowley said he's heard Contreras has been able to throw all of his pitches well.

Are you stunned as I am with this move? It's been pretty obvious that Konerko is thinking way too much in his at-bats, and the weight of the whole situation for him is negating what progress he has been able to make at the plate. Paulie has been hitting the ball pretty hard as of late, but unfortunately right at the defense.

Contreras' health is going to be a major cog in the White Sox wheel if they are to hold off Minnesota and win their third division title in eight years. The starting rotation has not been as reliable recently as they were in the first couple months, and the same can be said for the bullpen.

Boone Logan has had some issues, and Linebrink doesn't appear to be heading back to the squad until mid-August. That leaves alot of responsibility on Matt Thornton, D.J. Carrasco, and Octavio Dotel to get the job done.

As for Griffey, there's no way he can be expected to play everyday centerfield. Not a chance. Could you imagine how horrible it would be to have Griffey blow out his knee two weeks in? This move will undoubtedly lead to even more playing time for BA. In Konerko's vacated position, it looks like it will be split between Nick Swisher and...Jim Thome. Yikes.

Jimmy has played first base 4 times since arriving in 06', and has yet to this year.

That will change.

This move is definitely an upgrade over Konerko. While Griffey is only batting .245, he has 15 HR's, 53 RBI's, and would be bringing along a 12 game hitting streak. Two things that worry me: his durability at 38 years of age, and who the Sox will be giving up.

UPDATE: The Sox will be trading 2B Danny Richar and LRP Nick Masset, and will not have to touch any of the pitching prospects I listed.

This is an even better trade for the Sox. Richar wasn't going to be coming up anytime soon with Alexei playing the he has, and Masset hasn't been doing much of anything lately.