For those Orioles fans who are secretly holding on to the hope that the Orioles get off to a surprising start and then go shopping for a marquee power hitter at midseason, you probably should take note of a story by my friend Danny Knobler of CBSSports.com out of the Chicago White Sox camp..
According to Knobler, the White Sox are very keen on Gonzalez and might be willing to put together a package for him that includes terrific young infielder Gordon Beckham. That's based on speculation by a White Sox insider and I'm not sure I'm buying it, but it is -- at the very least -- an indication of what it might take to get someone like Gonzalez, who would make a huge difference in the White Sox lineup and a similar impact on the Orioles.
Of course, whether the Orioles would be involved in a midseason market for Gonzalez might depend on whether Garrett Atkins is able to bounce back from last year's disappointing offensive performance.