The Chicago White Sox are redefining themselves this season after sluggers Jim Thome and Jermaine Dye left town. Manager Ozzie Guillen has transformed his lineup into one with an emphasis on speed, versatility and fundamentals. Enter second-year second baseman Gordon Beckham, who has all the skills to perfectly set the table and make the offense go.

Beckham, a college and minor league shortstop, is making his second defensive transition in as many seasons. All of his Major League action came at third base last season, when he hit .270 with 14 HRs, 63 RBIs and 7 SBs in 103 games. The move to the middle infield is perfect for his fantasy game, which is heavy on contact and run production and light on power.

Beckham, during his first career road series against the New York Yankees last season, drew some comparisons to New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter. Following the August series, Jeter told the Chicago Sun-Times:

“He’s got a great approach at the plate,” Jeter said. “He’s a guy that hits the ball all over the field. He can pull it, he can hit it the other way. He hits off-speed, he hits fastballs. He hasn’t been playing third base long from what I understand and he’s doing a great job. So he has a real bright future.”

All of those skills and the special ability to blend into any situation justify lofty expectations for Beckham and make him the key cog in Chicago’s lineup. The same skill set will work quite nicely in a fantasy team’s lineup.

Beckham will hit for some power — we think in the 20-home run range this season — and steal a few bases, but really, run production will set him apart from other second basemen. Think along the lines of a lighter-hitting, right-handed Chase Utley, who breaks the mold for second basemen in the way he drives in runs like a corner infielder.

Jeter is also a fair comparison, because Beckham is a jack-of-all-trades at the plate and a heady, mature player in the clubhouse. Just like Jeter commanded the respect of his teammates at an early age, Beckham has done the same in Chicago.

And, any time a player has a combination of legit talent and wisdom beyond his years, good things happen. We think that will be the case for Beckham in 2010.