Mr.Awesome said:
2006: second-half collapse
2007: 90 losses
2008: barely won the division; dismissed with ease by Tampa.
2009: sub-.500 record
2010: another second-half choke
2011: team-record payroll; 15 games out.
That's a whole lot of fail with 100+ million dollar payrolls since the greatness of 2005. Especially when the top 3 AL powerhouses are in the AL east.
You're associating payroll with having good rosters. The two are not that strongly correlated.
Ozzie Guillen is a manager. He doesn't hit, he doesn't pitch, he doesn't take the field, he doesn't control the 25 guys on the roster. Kenny Williams incompetence is the biggest reason for the White Sox failures since winning a WS.
Also, Jacoby Ellsbury MVP!