Thomas, Everett in the lineup

CHICAGO -- The big question surrounding the White Sox of whether Frank Thomas or Carl Everett would be in the lineup on Monday night with the return of the designated hitter was answered quite easily.
Wanting to get Thomas the opportunity for more at-bats and still keep Everett's hot bat in the lineup, manager Ozzie Guillen decided to start Everett in left field and give Thomas the designated hitter spot.

"The reason I did it is because I want to see what Frank can do for us, how he can help us," Guillen said of his lineup. "Right now, the way I see Carl playing the outfield, it gives me a better chance to put both those guys in the lineup. I'm going to try to give Frank the most at-bats I can."

After the six-game road trip to National League parks where Thomas only got a total of three at-bats, Guillen is planning to use the slugger a lot more this week to see what he can bring to the club while playing on a more consistent basis.

In his three appearances as a pinch-hitter on the trip, Thomas went 1-for-2 with a home run and a strikeout. Not being able to play consistently after making his return was not easy for Thomas and something that he hopes won't become a trend.

"It was a tough week, because I'd start feeling like something was clicking and then I had to sit down those days -- it was tough," Thomas said. "But this team's winning and I've just got to do my part when called upon."

Guillen said that the likelihood of the two both playing on the same day is not very great and he will take a wait-and-see approach on what will happen in the future.

"Today you will see it but tomorrow I don't know," Guillen said about having both in the lineup. "I'm not going to promise anybody how often I am going to play them because as I promise the thing, I put myself in a tough position."

Having to tell either Everett or Thomas to sit down will not be an easy thing for a manager to do, but Guillen said that communication is a key. He tries to make sure that his players know the night before if they will be in the lineup.

"You have to respect the players, especially a guy like Frank, who has been here so many years," Guillen said. "I hope he respects our decision but it's not just Frank, it's everybody. I think everybody knows I am a real players' manager. I am going to stick up for my players every day. I'm going to fight for them but my job is to put the best guy I think should be there in the lineup every single day."

Bullpen questions: The White Sox bullpen was called on for quite a bit of action during the team's six-game road trip and not having Damaso Marte available for the fifth straight day had Guillen a bit concerned.

The lefty has not been available since he left Wednesday night's game against the Rockies, and missing an extra arm in the bullpen for so many days was beginning to look like a huge issue.

There had been questions of the whether the Sox would put Marte on the disabled list, but after a side session Monday, pitching coach Don Cooper is confident the southpaw will be ready to go this week.

"Everything went well," Cooper said of the throwing session. "He felt good before, during and after. [Tuesday] is going to be the key, but I am not anticipating anything but good stuff tomorrow. It's a pretty good bet that he's going to be available for us tomorrow."

Hearing that must have been good news to Guillen, who was a tad concerned about having only one left-hander to go to in the late innings. Although Neal Cotts has done well in his previous outings, Guillen is worried about burning the young hurler out too early in the season.

"I cannot go there right now without lefties because we only have one right now and the one we have right now is throwing the ball real well," Guillen said. "I don't want to use this kid like I did last year and all of a sudden he runs out of gas. Hopefully, Marte is getting ready for the next couple days."

New look leadoff: The lineup for the Sox took on a bit of a different look Monday night with Aaron Rowand making his first start in the leadoff slot this season.

With Everett getting the start for Scott Podsednik in left field and Pablo Ozuna, one of Guillen's other "speed" guys, not starting, Guillen found himself in a bit of a dilemma as to who should get things started for the Sox.

"I need a speed guy up front at the top of the lineup, that's the only reason I did it," Guillen said of Rowand's spot in the order. "I try to find a space for him to hit and all of a sudden it's the No. 7 spot. I'd rather have him hit in the top of the lineup and make things happen."

Home sweet home: Monday night's game marked the beginning of a 14-day, 12-game home stand for the White Sox, their longest of the season.

The team has a 19-8 record at home so far this season and should be happy to be enjoying those comforts for a little while longer.

But for Guillen, the relaxation of being home isn't exactly a welcome sight, not at least with the attention that he gets from the media.

"It's great because we playing good baseball here," Guillen said. "It's not good for me because I have to deal with [the media] everyday. At least I get a couple of days off on the road. (laughs)."

Down on the farm: Leo Daigle continued his hot hitting streak on Sunday, going 2-for-3 with his 20th home run of the year in Class A Winston Salem's 4-2 victory over Wilmington. Daigle has now hit home runs in four straight games with a total of six bombs in that stretch.

Right-hander Bobby Jenks picked up save No. 15 in Game 2 of a doubleheader for Double-A Birmingham. Jenks held on for the 1-0 victory, as Birmingham made it a sweep after winning Game 1, 8-3. Joe Borchard hit his 10th home run of the year but it was not enough to help Triple-A Charlotte ,as the team fell, 10-4, to Norfolk.

On deck: Orlando Hernandez's winning streak is on the line Tuesday as the right-hander attempts to win his seventh in a row in the middle game against the Diamondbacks. Hernandez has been quite successful in Interleague games, going 7-2 with a 3.40 ERA in 12 appearances.

Source: http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/