Start by assuming Jack McDowell and Frank Thomas will again have outstanding seasons, and that shortstop Ozzie Guillen returns to All-Star form.
If all that is true, the player who probably makes the biggest difference between winning and losing for the White Sox this season is Ellis Burks.
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Burks was signed as a free agent last winter after two consecutive injury-plagued seasons in Boston.
Before he was hurt, Burks was one of the most dominant players in the American League. A first-round draft choice in 1983, Burks hit 20 home runs and stole 27 bases in his rookie season. By 1990, he ranked among the top 10 in the American League in seven offensive categories.
The White Sox offered him a contract rich in incentives if he can return to form.
They need him.
Last year, Sox right-fielders drove in just 47 runs, lowest in the majors. Burks can have at least that many by the All-Star break if he is healthy.