Pic of the Week

Kevin Youkilis was greeted on his return to
Fenway Park with a standing ovation.

One of the many things that has gone right for the Chicago White Sox -- the surprising leaders in the American League Central for much of the season, until they fell behind Detroit on Saturday -- was the acquisition of Kevin Youkilis.

Youkilis was a mainstay for the Red Sox for years, but he fell out of favor quickly with new manager Bobby Valentine, went on the disabled list -- not a rare event for Youkilis -- and lost playing time to rookie Will Middlebrooks. "Youk" hit .233/.315/.377 for Boston this year.

So the Sawx traded him to Chicago almost a month ago. Since changing his Sox from Red to White, Youkilis has hit (entering Saturday's play) .299/.389/.506 and has hit as many home runs (four) as he did in twice the at-bast for Boston.

Meanwhile, Middlebrooks -- who was hitting .326 the day Youkilis was traded -- has faded. Since June 24 the rookie's slash line is .203/.213/.339. And the Red Sox have already designated one of the players they got for Youkilis (Brent Lillibridge) for assignment.

It has not been a particularly good trade for Boston so far.