--3B Joe Crede, fresh off winning the everyday job at third base, fouled a ball off his left foot Thursday. He left the game, and the team was awaiting X-ray results. Crede went 0-for-2 against the Diamondbacks, lowering his spring average to .179.

--RHP Nick Masset, battling RHP Ehren Wassermann for the final spot in the White Sox rotation, left a bad final impression in Cactus League play. He allowed six runs (five earned) in 4 1/3 innings Thursday against the Diamondbacks. Masset has a 7.06 ERA this spring.

--OF Jerry Owens was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday with a small tear in his right adductor. The plan is to shut Owens down for seven days, test the injury and then make a decision. "All I want to do is be out on that field," Owens said. "It's tough going two days on, then I don't feel so well, two days off, play for three days and feel good, and then I don't. ... Now I get the chance to just rest it and make sure it's 100 percent before I do anything."

What it means for the Sox roster is that the leadoff spot could come as a committee between Pablo Ozuna, Alexei Ramirez and Nick Swisher until Owens is ready to return around April 7. But even if he is ready, that doesn't mean the Sox will pull the trigger. Manager Ozzie Guillen was adamant on Tuesday that, "If he can't play every day, we got three to four who can fill out his job. I don't want to push this guy to play when he's hurt, but we got to get a guy in there to make our lineup better."

--3B Josh Fields was sent down to Class AAA Charlotte on Tuesday, meaning that the third base job on Opening Day -- to the surprise of no one -- is Joe Crede's. GM Ken Williams said the decision was not an easy one, nor was the talk he had to have with Fields. "I don't know how many times I repeated that I felt that he was a major-leaguer or he is a major-leaguer, and he deserves to be playing in the major leagues right now," Williams said. "It was a difficult conversation. How do you tell someone who clearly has shown that he can not just play in the big leagues, but can play at a high level at the big leagues ... He handled it great. He understands where we are, where he is in his career, and to his credit he said, 'Well, I'll use it as an opportunity to improve on some things not only for myself, but to you guys. I'll get better defensively, I'll get better offensively so that I can be the total package when I get back to the big leagues.' A class reaction."

--2B Juan Uribe will begin the year getting most of the starts at second base, according to manager Ozzie Guillen, but it also came with a warning from the skipper. Uribe beat out Pablo Ozuna and Alexei Ramirez, while Danny Richar went on the 15-day disabled list. "I think Uribe has people behind him who also can play," Guillen said. "If Uribe doesn't do what we think he can do, he will be replaced."

--OF Brian Anderson, who is hitting .344 this spring, has officially made the Opening Day roster. Anderson feels his maturity has finally caught up with his skill level. "I'll admit that in '06, I kind of wanted everything that came along with being a big-league player without having to actually go out there and prove myself," Anderson said. "I've kind of switched roles a little bit, and I want to go out there and show everyone what I'm capable of doing, and whatever comes along with that, so be it."

--OF Carlos Quentin has officially made the White Sox's Opening Day roster. He posted a .316 average in Cactus League play.

--2B Danny Richar is still shut down from any sort of baseball activity for at least another three weeks, but he said Wednesday that his hope is to be ready to join the big-league roster by mid-May. He will stay back in Tucson and rehab from a stress fracture of the first rib on his left side, and if there are no setbacks, he could begin a minor league rehab assignment in late April.

BY THE NUMBERS
.531 -- Ozzie Guillen's winning percentage in four seasons as the team's manager.

QUOTE TO NOTE
"It's not easy. I love it. Don't take me wrong. I love my job. But this is the worst job in baseball. I want to go on the streets, have a drink, a couple beers, 'Look at Ozzie getting drunk.' That's the way it is, but I love every morning making the lineup and compete and have fun. I always have fun, I always compete. I missed having fun last year." -- Manager Ozzie Guillen on being a major-league skipper.

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