Acquired veterans failed to put you to the top? Time to go young!

Chris Jaffe at The Hardball Times writes about the 1961 trade of lefty Billy pierce to the Giants and tells us the happenings on the Sox at the time:

The 1961 season placed the South Siders at a crossroads. Beginning in 1951, the team rattled off a series of winning seasons that culminated in the 1959 pennant winning Go-Go White Sox. Hoping to seize the moment and create a dynasty for himself, then-team owner Bill Veeck spent the 1959-60 off-season trading away his best prospects for established veterans.

… Worse yet, the veterans did not quite pan out as expected. The 1960 Sox fell from first to third place. In 1961, they fell further still, finishing in fourth place with an 86-76 record.

… So in the 1961-62 off-season, the Sox engaged in a series of trades in hopes of undoing the 1959-60 offseason. …

So, how did those off-season moves turn out?

The Sox actually won one fewer game in 1962 than the year before, but moving out some of their older players helped them out down the road. In 1963, they began a series of three straight 90-win seasons and remained competitive through 1967.

Will Kenny clean house or go for it again? We could know by this time next week!

Other White Sox links:

• What would J.J. do if he were in Mark Buehrle’s shoes? J.J, also, looks on why the Sox expect an offensive rebound from Gordon Beckham next season.
• James looks at a hypothetical Sergio Santos trade, and the latest around Mark Buehrle.