Josh Fields Wastes No Time Making Impression

Former major leaguer Josh Fields -- best remembered for hitting 23 homers in 373 at-bats as a surprise replacement for the 2007 White Sox -- wasted no time making an impression in his debut with Triple A Colorado Springs, going 1-3 with a walk, three RBI and a towering homer in an 18-14 loss to Tucson.

Heading a cast of 11 former major leaguers vieing for callups to the parent club -- Fields, 26, finds himself in a strong comeback position as he has been cast as a deep reserve for struggling Rockies third baseman Ian Stewart, 26, who has yet to play this year coming off knee and hamstring injuries. Fields is also backing up super utility man Ty Wigginton, 33, who is seeing reps at third, first and the outfield in Denver. Fields' homer came off former Padres major leaguer Wade LeBlanc, 26,, who gave up 10 hits and eight earned runs in 4.33 innings.

LeBlanc, who won eight games against 12 losses in 26 major league starts last year, is making a bid to return to San Diego. Another Colorado Springs standout was former major league speedster Willy Taveras, 27, master of the bunt single, who went 3-5 with a bag. Fields and Taveras could turn out to be useful spare parts at the major league level before the year is out.

Another interesting puzzle piece is former Mets first baseman Mike Jacobs, 30, who hit at a .300 clip with power when originally called up in New York six years ago, and cannot be ruled out as a potential backup to aging All Star first baseman Todd Helton, 36. Eric Young Jr., 25 -- son of original Colorado Rockies outfielder Eric Sr. -- has been up and down between Triple A and Denver over the past two years, and likely as not will supplant Jose Lopez, who is keeping second base open for him in Denver. Former Rockies infielder Chris Nelson is also with the Sky Sox.

Other ex-big leaguers at Colorado Springs include catcher Mike Pagnozzi formerly of the Cardinals and pitchers Billy Buckner formerly of the Diamondbacks, Clay Mortensen formerly of the Athletics and Sean White formerly of the Mariners.

Where Is Josh Fields When You Really Need Him?

Rookie third baseman Josh Fields of the White Sox was one of the more pleasant surprises of the 2007 season, stepping up to knock in 23 homers in 375 at-bats as a replacement for injured Joe Crede.

But with Crede down with recurring back trouble again, Fields is nowhere to be found this year, having been banished to Triple A Charlotte where he is hitting just .251. Worse is that even though Fields is a right-handed hitter, he has been unable to hit lefties for any better than a .245 clip, and hardly can be expected to be promoted even though he has eight homers.

Fields is only 25, with plenty of time to improve, but the season is beginning to get old and he looks more each day like the White Sox might have done well last winter to consider him a sell-high candidate.

Meanwhile, Crede once again shows why no team was willing to trade much for him last spring, even though the team claimed his back troubles were -- er -- behind him. Preliminary indications are that the latest soreness in his lower back may not be especially serious, but having undergone spinal surgery, one cannot help but wonder whether he may be a time bomb waiting to self-destruct. Statistically, he has a 33 percent chance that the surgery could eventually be considered a failure.

Look for Pablo Ozuna to pick up most of Crede's at-bats for now.

Dwayne Wise Takes Paul Konerko's Roster Spot

The only good thing about first baseman Paul Konerko being placed on the disabled list is that the White Sox will finally get a look at prospect Dwayne Wise, an outfielder who will take Konerko's roster spot.

Wise arrived in Chicago this morning even before Konerko was evaluated, as trainers already had feared the worst, WSEC Radio said.

Wise, hitting at a better than .300 clip with nine homers for Triple A Charlotte, will likely be used sparingly at first but if he proves worthy should get plenty of opportunities as Konerko's injured oblique muscle is sure to keep him down for a good month or more.

Nick Swisher will move to first base with Wise being mixed and matched with other hitters as circumstances dictate.

Wise reportedly runs well but is not the type of burner who steals a lot of bags, yet his athleticism punched his ticket to Chicago ahead of third baseman Josh Fields who presumably might have been able to cross the diamond to first base but has done nothing special at the plate this year.

Former Pittsburgh prospect Brad Eldred, like Konerko a lumbering first baseman, has been left to languish in the minors as well.