Carlos Quentin, the outfielder Ken Williams targeted "specifically" this off season, is showing effects of shoulder surgery and may not be ready for Opening Day.

Manager Ozzie Guillen commented about "bad habits" and "soreness" creeping into Quentin's play, and soon after the former Diamondbacks prospect was given the next few days off.

Lingering injuries are never a good thing in spring training, but in this case it's not a big deal and there is no need to rush Quentin.

With some depth to play with in the outfield, the Sox could go open the season with Nick Swisher in left, Jerry Owens in center and Jermaine Dye in right, provided all three stay healthy and/or productive between now and March 30. Owens is dealing with some nagging pain himself-if he comes back 100% and continues to hit at a decent clip, the starting job and likely lead off role is his. Even if Quentin was healthy there's good chance Owens would get the Opening Day nod anyway.

Quentin is destined to be an everyday outfielder in Chicago, but it would be foolish for the Sox to hustle him into the starting line up just to justify the hype. Last year, while similarly semi-injured in Arizona, Quentin suffered through a long slump at the major league level that I'd rather avoid this time around. Soreness is one thing, but bad habits from over compensation could linger for quite a while and be a real pain in the butt to deal with mentally.

When he's 100%, he'll find his way into the line up. Besides, Quentin becomes the most valuable when Dye and/or Jim Thome incur their annual DL time. That's when the Sox will truly need Q to be up and running at full speed.

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One guy who is hitting and fielding at full strength is Brian "Honeys Come First" Anderson, who has powered three doubles, a triple and a homer in his handful of at bats in Cactus League play to go along with his graceful defense in left and center. Could this new and rededicated Anderson seize a starting spot if Quentin and Owens falter?

Don't let his golden hair and to-die-for blue eyes weaken your skepticism! More than likely it's the same Anderson. The truth is, he has always hit will in spring training. In 241 at bats over four seasons, Anderson has batted .299 with 26 extra base hits in his hometown Tucson air. He's hit over .300 with an OBP of .360 of better in each of the last three springs.

…Off a guy who'll be bagging groceries in a couple weeks.

Anderson's struggles come in cold Chicago air, against breaking balls thrown by major league pitchers with scouting reports. Until he makes major adjustments in that department, his spring success is just a mirage. Still, it is nice to see.

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Noah Lowry, everyone's idea of a great return for a "valueless" Joe Crede, has started his spring about as well as an Ashlee Simpson Saturday Night Live performance. In his first outing, he walked three, hit a batter and threw three pitches to the backstop for the Giants.

Just a fluke? In his second start on Monday, he walked nine batters, threw two more wild pitches and air mailed a pick off attempt to the stands all in 1+ innings of work.

Not surprisingly, the Giants are now reporting he has tendonitis in his left (throwing) wrist and will sit out a week while he takes anti-inflammatories.

Do you still want the Sox to give Crede away for this kind of return?

The Giants are desperate for a bat, but their unwillingness to part with even Jonathan Sanchez makes a trade that improves the White Sox unlikely in the short term.

Repeat: the Sox are better off keeping Crede around for now. That is, unless the Mariners or Dodgers come into the picture.