The White Sox's wish for one of the other 29 teams to claim Juan Uribe and thus pick up Uribe's entire $4.5 million salary is a long shot at best. But the move to put him on waivers left little doubt Chicago would like to be rid of its former starting shortstop who's logged a lot of time at second base this spring. Whether they'd take the drastic step to release Uribe isn't known, but the hope appears to be that they can still work out a trade, even if they have to pay half or more of Uribe's salary. Uribe's placement on the waivers was first reported by 620, The Score, the White Sox' flagship station.

One White Sox-connected person insisted they could still wind up using Uribe as their starter at second, but others believe the White Sox have determined he doesn't really fit. Cuban import Alexei Ramirez (.366 this spring) has won fans in the organization this spring with a strong offensive showing and obvious athleticism, but a scout on another team said he believes Ramirez isn't quite ready. That scout said, "He needs to go down to the minors to learn how to play.''