Carlos Quentin News

"White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen says his left fielder is a different kind of guy. Catcher A.J. Pierzynski says he's pretty quiet. First baseman Paul Konerko can't recall ever seeing him smile at the ballpark. But they all agree that Carlos Quentin is having a terrific season. ''If he's not the MVP, then I don't know who's better,'' Pierzynski said. ''I mean, I know there are other candidates, but if he's not the MVP I don't know who is.'' People talk, with good reason, about Josh Hamilton's remarkable comeback from drug addiction. People talk, with equally good reason, about the Twins' Justin Morneau. And you can't discount the season Angels closer Francisco Rodriguez is having. But ..."

"After missing two games with pain from being hit by pitches in a modern-era-record five straight games, White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin, in his first at-bat Thursday … was hit by a pitch. The six straight games may be an all-time mark, although records are sketchy before 1920. Modern-era hit-by-pitch leader Craig Biggio never was hit in more than three straight. The players in second and third place, Don Baylor and Ron Hunt, were hit in only four straight. "I don't want to talk about that too much," Quentin said. "It's not really that funny." Obviously, it isn't funny when you have to miss games because of it. But the Sox aren't complaining — yet — that Quentin is being singled out, ..."

"MVP ballots were mailed out last week, and though White Sox slugger Jim Thome doesn't have a vote, he was willing to do some campaigning Sunday. The quiet man he was stumping for -- left fielder Carlos Quentin -- has done plenty of his own campaigning with his bat. Quentin blasted his league-leading 32nd home run and leads the White Sox with 90 RBI. Even in mid-August, that's MVP material to a future Hall of Famer such as Thome. ''Absolutely,'' said Thome, who added a two-run homer in the White Sox' 6-5 victory over the Boston Red Sox. ''You look at not only the year, but the big hits in key situations. You could count numerous times we needed a big hit from him, and he's done a terrific ..."

"Carlos Quentin has become a master at maintaining his hard veneer. He's the unknown White Sox star who almost seems to be making a game out of concealing his true identity. Then you ask him about the ''Animal House'' atmosphere of the Sox' clubhouse, and Quentin does something completely out of character -- so bizarre a reaction, it's shocking. Carlos Quentin laughed."

"Joe Crede and Carlos Quentin have no idea what they're in for. They've heard all the stories from All-Star Game veterans Jim Thome and Paul Konerko, but this year's Midsummer Classic is a bit different. The stage is New York, the media glare intense. Crede is a small-town kid who lives in a place called Westphalia, Mo., where he knows most of the residents by name and his cell-phone reception is one bar on a good day. Quentin is a soft-talking Stanford graduate who basically finds the media to be more hindrance than necessity. The Big Apple awaits -- good luck, boys."

"An All-Star Game patch was sewn on the sleeve of one of outfielder Carlos Quentin's jerseys. That was one of the first signs that finally made Quentin realize he is an All-Star after setting up tickets, hotel rooms and flight reservations for family members and friends for the game in New York. "I just want to relax and take it all in," Quentin said Sunday. "As much as I've heard that there are a lot of different things that go on, I just want to enjoy it. It's still the All-Star break, so I'm looking forward to just enjoying it, and when the game comes put some good at-bats together.""

"In the latest chapter of the White Sox's roller-coaster season, tensions heightened Wednesday night en route to one of their biggest comeback victories of the year. Teammate Jose Contreras had to restrain Orlando Cabrera in the dugout after he charged Jermaine Dye during the celebration following Cabrera scoring the tying run in the eighth inning of the Sox's 7-6 victory over the Royals. Cabrera and Dye quickly settled their differences, but the emotions were quite peculiar for teammates of a club that rallied from a five-run deficit to win and expand their lead over Minnesota to 31/2 games in the American League Central."

"If not for a casual glance through the window of her son's car one day seven years ago, Queta Quentin is reasonably sure she never would have known he was named co-MVP of his high school football team. "It looked like the Heisman Trophy," she recalls. "So I dragged it out of the back seat and said, 'Carlos, what is this?' And he said, 'Oh yeah, I forgot. I won.' " It was the same thing with his San Diego County Athlete of the Year Award and the story about it in the San Diego Union-Tribune."

"The Cubs put the White Sox on the defensive in two key situations Saturday, and both times the Sox responded in dramatic style. After barely fouling off an 0-2 pitch with a feeble swing, Carlos Quentin whacked a high-and-outside fastball from Carlos Marmol over the right-field fence in the seventh inning to give the Sox a zany 6-5 victory before 39,143 fans at U.S. Cellular Field."

"Left fielder Carlos Quentin has a good chance to represent the White Sox in the All-Star Game, thanks to his 16 home runs (third in the American League) and 54 RBI (second in the AL). But he has been without a homer in his last 33 at-bats and has only one hit in his last 14 at-bats (.071). That was part of the reason manager Ozzie Guillen gave Quentin the day off Sunday. Quentin had played in all but two games this season."

"After playing in 66 of the first 69 games, hyper-intense Carlos Quentin received a "mental break" Sunday that will spill over into Monday's day off. "He deserved two days off," manager Ozzie Guillen said. "This kid's been playing every day. The way he plays, once in a while you need a break mentally more than physically. He's [physically] strong enough. He'll be fine. But I think this will help him have the same season he's been having.""

"I know trades are too hypothetical to ask about effectively, but if Ken Williams truly thought Carlos Quentin was going to blossom, why did we trade for Nick Swisher, especially if moving Paul Konerko before he earned 5-and-10 rights wasn't going to be the next step? Going into the season - we didn't get Swish to hit leadoff or play CF, and Paulie was our most marketable chip to trade away if Contreras didn't return to form. --Al Bloom, Montgomery, Ala."

"Carlos Quentin always has been ready for a breakout season. Dealing with the attention that comes from it, well, he's still learning that part. With two more hits Monday, Quentin remained the triple-crown leader among the regulars in the White Sox' lineup, hitting .302 with 14 home runs and 44 RBI. But the latest question he had to answer was whether he needed the trade from Arizona to establish his career, or was it simply his time to explode no matter where he was?"

"When the Arizona Diamondbacks moved on last summer with their outfield of the future, it was only then that Carlos Quentin felt he was better served going elsewhere. "The only need for me to leave there was the feeling that the team had moved on," said Quentin, who has 14 home runs in a breakout season with the White Sox after being dealt from Arizona in December. "And that was the feeling there because they had other plans. "They made those decisions in their best interests and the only sense I had received there toward the end of that last year, as when I did get a chance to get on the field, things were going the other way."

"Manager Ozzie Guillen said before Sunday's game that left fielder Carlos Quentin's statistics were worthy of all-star consideration. "He should be in the All-Star Game, but you don't know how they're going to pick," Guillen said. "I was involved once (as manager in 2006) and that was the biggest headache ever because you have so many players in the outfield and you have so many people." Quentin entered Sunday's game tied for the American League lead in home runs (12) and was second in RBI (40). He then launched his 13th and 14th home runs, against 2007 American League ERA leader John Lackey, including a game-winning solo shot to lead off the ninth."

"Only one of his position players comes close to rating All-Star consideration, but White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen knows the odds might not favor left fielder Carlos Quentin. ''He should be in the All-Star Game, but you don't know how they're going to pick,'' Guillen said. ''I was involved once [in 2006, when he managed the American League team], and it was a big headache.''"

"The Sox have had one consistent hitter of late: Carlos Quentin. He was the hero Sunday night with two home runs, including a walk-off blast off starter John Lackey that gave the Sox a 3-2 victory, preventing a three-game sweep by the Angels and concluding a 4-2 homestand."

"Carlos Quentin hit a pair of home runs Sunday night, including the game-winner to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning, as the White Sox avoided a sweep and finished a short homestand by winning four of six games.Quentin's second shot gave the Sox a 3-2 victory over the Angels in a game that took only 2 hours 5 minutes and made them winners for the ninth time in 11 games."

"The Arizona Diamondbacks saw enough potential in Quentin to make him the 29th overall pick in the 2003 draft. But after the outfielder battled injuries last season, the Diamondbacks traded him to the Sox in exchange for a Class A prospect. It's still early, but Sox general manager Ken Williams appears to have gotten a steal. Quentin, 25, is among the league leaders in home runs and on-base and slugging percentage."

"Quentin came to the Sox in a trade with Arizona in the off-season. He might be a bit of surprise, but what is happening is not out of the blue. The Diamondbacks made him a first-round draft pick in 2003. He was a big star at Stanford. Injuries and a talent-rich Diamondbacks organization impeded his progress. When he could play last season, he played hurt. He underwent surgery to repair a torn labrum and a torn rotator cuff in October. Two months later, Arizona traded him to the Sox."

"Pitching and power have carried the bulk of the burden during the White Sox's eight-game winning streak, but a few more ingredients were added to their success Thursday night. Backup catcher Toby Hall's mastery of left-handed pitching, Brian Anderson's astute baserunning and Carlos Quentin's clutch hitting enabled the Sox to push across two runs in the eighth inning as they completed a three-game sweep of American League Central rival Cleveland with a 3-1 victory."

"Ryan Garko made a quick jump to the major leagues, but he's not surprised by the sudden ascent of former Stanford teammate Carlos Quentin. "You can't hide the talent that's there," Garko said Wednesday night of Quentin, the White Sox's leading run producer. "He has got a good approach in the batter's box and a short swing that hits to all fields. It's stuff you can't teach, just a natural hitter's thought process. He's just a guy who can hit." Although Quentin was drafted two rounds ahead of Garko in the 2003 draft, Garko reached the majors in two years and hit 21 home runs with Cleveland in 2007 while Quentin coped with injuries in the Arizona organization."