By Jim Callis
December 2, 2003

The Rockies once considered Juan Uribe their long-term shortstop, but on Tuesday they decided they'd rather go in a different direction. Colorado traded him to the White Sox for veteran minor leaguer Aaron Miles.

Uribe, 24, has Gold Glove skills at shortstop but has yet to prove he can hit major league pitching. He batted .253/.297/.427 with 10 homers and 33 RBIs in 87 games this season, missing the first two months with a stress fracture in his right foot. He does have some pop—though that was enhanced by Coors Field—but he has poor plate discipline and a less-than-smooth swing. Uribe, who made $300,000 in 2003 and won't be eligible for arbitration until after 2004, is a career .258/.298/.408 hitter (.227/.271/.345 away from Coors) with 24 homers and 135 RBIs in 314 games. Chicago may use him as a regular second baseman or utilityman in 2004, and views him as the possible successor to Jose Valentin at shortstop.

Miles, 26, signed with the Astros as a 19th-round pick in 1995 out of a California high school and joined the White Sox via the 2000 Triple-A Rule 5 draft. He's the opposite of Uribe: a proven hitter with questionable defensive skills. He was the Double-A Southern League MVP and batting champion (.322) in 2002, and followed up by batting .304/.351/.445 with 11 homers and 50 RBIs in 133 games at Triple-A Charlotte. He also got his first big league callup in September, going 4-for-12 with three doubles in eight games. Though managers rated him the best defensive second baseman in the International League this year, he doesn't have much range at second base.