Whitewashed in '05

I haven't bought nothing with it and I really don't plan to. Everything is more expensive so compared to what stuff cost last year it will be used up indirectly.

QUOTE (Nokona @ Jul 8, 2008 -> 08:28 PM) Jose is more fragile than a 9th grade girl. Jesus Christ No s***. I'm sure everyone misses good friends after they leave the club, but man grow some balls Jose.

QUOTE (Reddy @ Jul 2, 2008 -> 10:58 AM) X W-L is cool cuz it basically shows whether you're over or underperforming. ours shows we're underperforming which is great - because it means we can only go up (theoretically). Whereas the twins are vastly overperforming so the law of averages says they'll taper off. Yeah to a point that's true, but just like any other stat it doesn't tell the full story. Look at what Danks and Floyd have done so far. Can the young guns keep it up or have they overachieved?

QUOTE (Gregory Pratt @ Jul 1, 2008 -> 02:31 AM) http://baseballevolution.com/gregory/weekreview13.html On Tuesday, July first, Gregory Pratt will begin a two-week trip through the west coast. He will arrive in Los Angeles by plane and hit the road from there, with arrival in Vancouver being the goal. If you have any restaurants to recommend, any sights to see along the way, email them. The last week has been quite satisfying professionally and personally, and here's to more of the similar! Return of the Loony Toonies -- JP Ricciardi claimed last week that his feud with Adam Dunn was over after Dunn called him to talk about Ricciardi's comments, but when reporters told Dunn what the beleaguered Toronto GM said, Dunn replied: "What? Not true. One million percent." Ricciardi now believes that he was the victim of a prank phone call. The Reds' team physician defended Adam Dunn from the charge that he is not passionate about the game of baseball: "FOXSports.com's Ken Rosenthal reports Cincinnati Reds team physician Timothy Kremchek disagreed with Toronto Blue Jays general manager J.P. Ricciardi's comments about Reds OF Adam Dunn. In 2005, he played with a broken right hand for a substantial portion of the season. The injury was not revealed until the following January when Jerry Narron, then the Reds' manager, said that Dunn, 'broke his hand twice last year and wouldn't let us X-ray it because he wanted to play.' 'I could feel the bone moving in his hand,' Kremchek said. 'It wasn't something that was going to cause permanent damage, but it hurt like hell. When I pushed on it, you could tell. There is no player in this game that I've ever treated who had the things that he had and continued to play.'" "Watching Grunge Leg-drop New-Jack Through a Press-table......" -- Last Tuesday's Mets game saw a strange series of events unfold, as Carlos Beltran made a comment to the home plate umpire about the strike zone and the umpire went out in front of the plate to pick a fight with the star Met. Jerry Manuel came out to protect his player from Brian Runge, the umpire, and Runge, in turn, bumped Manuel aggressively and then threw him out of the game. Despite Manuel's recent "gangster moment" with Jose Reyes ("I told him next time he does that I'm going to get my blade out and cut him. I'm a gangster. You go gangster on me, I'm going to have to get you. You do that again, I'm going to cut you right on the field."), he is not the kind of man who goes around causing violence. Manuel is a soft-spoken Christian man who prepared for his interview with the White Sox when he became a manager by fasting and praying. If Brian Runge needs to prove that he is a tough guy, then he ought to pick a fight with someone who is more willing and able to fight him, like Delmon Young or Lou Piniella. Mets side note: It's a shame that Rick Peterson lost his job as Mets pitching coach because a) he is a great pitching coach B) they could make a lot of money teaming him with Manuel in the off-season for a reality TV show. I'd watch their bull sessions, as Peterson is a real trip. Houston Heat -- Shawn Chacon was demoted from the starting rotation to the bullpen by the Astros, and he was already unhappy about it when the General Manager, Ed Wade, approached him in the clubhouse to discuss the matter. No one but Chacon is willing to go on the record, but he claims that he was having dinner when Wade approached and started to scream and curse at him. Chacon told him to knock it off, and then shoved him to the ground and choked him before they were separated ("word coming out of Houston's clubhouse is that Chacon told the truth to the Houston Chronicle"). Obviously, Chacon is in the wrong, but so is Wade, whatever Jeff Pearlman has to say about nerd liberation. But does this incident honestly mean that Chacon should never pitch in the big leagues again? The Denver Post writes convincingly that Chacon is "not a monster" but that he needs to take responsibility for his actions, and I agree with that. I also believe that Wade is not an innocent victim here. General Managers in several organizations these days insist that their players keep themselves trim, wear suits and act as if they were representing Goldman Sachs. I think that if you expect professionalism, you should provide professionalism, and screaming at someone like they were a dog (as a friend of mine put it) is not professionalism. If Chacon never pitches for a major league team again, it should not be over this. Pitchers and Beanestalks -- Brett Myers has given up 24 homeruns in seventeen starts, and he has a 5.84 ERA with a 1.56 WHIP. I wonder if he'll ever be as good as he used to be, or as good as he was often projected to be? I can't say I'm rooting for him, but I was stunned by how bad he's been this season. Speaking of unexpected success, how about the AL ERA leader, Justin Duchscherer? And Dana Eveland has been good for Oakland, too. If it weren't for the fact that Gio Gonzalez' performance has made it appear as if he were a man whom the White Sox know how to make look good in the minors but no one else has mastered the smoke-and-mirror trick yet, while Fausto De Los Santos got injured quite seriously, Beane would be the monumental winner of last offseason. As it stands, he should be very proud of his moves. An Observation -- For half of their careers, Rich Harden and Ben Sheets have missed half of their careers. I'm really happy that they've been able to pitch this deep into the season, and I hope that Sheets, especially, can make it to the finish line in one piece. I am really happy to see Chan Ho Park's career "revitalized" because I love the comeback, as life is about pushing and fighting and scratching and working to your goals, so it's good to see someone have a few bad years and come back. Best Injury Ever -- White Sox pitching coach Don Cooper was ejected in a game against the Dodgers and he threw his balls-strikes clicker against the dugout-wall in a fit of rage. As he did this, he pulled his hamstring and then tried to walk it off like nothing happened, but everybody saw it. You can see it here. Best Injury Ever That Could've Been Much More Serious -- Felix Hernandez hit a grand slam off of Johan Santana at Shea Stadium, then had his ankle twisted when he covered the plate on a play at home. He might be back by Tuesday or Wednesday, but it was still scary to see the King go down. That's That, Mattress Man -- I had a wide grin on my face watching Bobby Jenks close out Saturday's game against the Cubs by getting Jim Edmonds to ground out to the second baseman. Last week, Guillen said that Edmonds is over the hill and that he would choose pitching to him over someone else because he's hitting ".238" and that's that. When Guillen had Jenks pitch to Edmonds, I felt as if he was doing the wise and prudent thing, but I am sure he was laughing at the Cubs, too, and proving his point that Edmonds is not good anymore, which I also approve of. Last week, I made the remark that the White Sox can't win baseball games in the pressbox and ought to come out strong before they rip another organization, and they did that this weekend against the Cubs. It was a good series to watch, even with Kerry Wood sending his love to Sox fans. Fireworks -- ESPN ran an article this week about how Frankie Rodriguez is "chasing" Bobby Thigpen's single-season mark for saves, and I just wonder what his celebration would be like if he were to break the record? I'm a big fan of K-Rod -- so big a fan, in fact, that I'm willing to call him "K-Rod" when I refuse to give Alex Rodriguez the similar nickname -- but I don't like his celebrations. I remember him getting a strikeout against the Sox earlier this season to end a ballgame and leaning his head back to scream at the sky for ten minutes. Worth Every Cent -- Barry Zito had a good outing against the Cleveland Indians this week, and the Giants are thrilled, according to Bruce Bochy: "That's the Zito we know. He has unbelievable talent. We've said all along it's a matter of time before he gets back on track." I doubt that even Zito agrees. History of the Week -- I have a few subjects that I'd like to draw attention to. The first is this page, where you can see footage of old-time great players from Babe Ruth to Joe Medwick. It is well-worth a look. The second is this book, which I highly recommend. The third is top secret but I promise you, it's really, really good. Nice job Pratt. I enjoy reading these. I usually miss a few highlights during the week.

Phew... this team needs some breathing room and JD delivers again!

God I know our bullpen is gonna have bad games, but I have no confidence in them on the road right now.

QUOTE (kyyle23 @ Jun 23, 2008 -> 08:24 AM) Chris Rongey "So Ryan, what kind of pitcher are you?" Ryan Bukvich "Well, uh.....Im right handed." LOL, I missed that one. That's pretty funny.

My prediction was correct. Javy had to shut them out to win. Get your s*** straight or you won't be sniffing first place if you lose it guys.

Javy's going to have to pitch a damn good game today to win. Dumpster keeps the ball down combined with the homer mentality... he needs to bear down and pitch a shutout. I don't give a damn about losing to the Cubs, our division is on our ass. Get it done Javy. Get it done bullpen. Get it done offense, god damnit.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Jun 22, 2008 -> 11:33 AM) If we need a reserve outfielder later this season then may Pods is worth a chance? Could be worse choices out there I am thinking. I don't think Ozzie or KW would want to bring him back. They would probably think he would get injured again. They would also say, why trade for Pods when we can fill that hole from within, (Owens). I think when ozzie said Pods was unreliable he had enough of him.

QUOTE (gosox41 @ Jun 21, 2008 -> 12:53 PM) What we should be talking about is why KW can't get design a team around a balaned offense. I know how our offense is and it sucks because we can't grind out games like yesterday (or the Tampa Bay series). This needs to be addressed or we're going to be spending a long October watchin the Cubs in the playoffs and complainin about a lack of balanced offense. No 1 our ballpark is built for the home runs so we better be able to hit home runs. Our lineup is made for hitting home runs and that's it. KW has been good at putting together some lineups afforably so in order to get more balance and more than just 1 dimensional guys its going to cost us. The farm or money, we already don't have a farm. We can't trade for CQ's every season. I agree with what you're saying and this is the position were in right now.

THIS IS OZZIE'S FAULT!!!!!!!!!!

QUOTE (BobDylan @ Jun 20, 2008 -> 11:17 PM) If the Sox started playing situational baseball at the plate, there's no doubt in my mind that they'd run away with the division. I think the offense is plenty balanced with the addition of Swisher, Cabrera and Ramirez, but the amount they strand runners in scoring position is alarming. Those lead off doubles late in the game, not only did they fail to drive him in, they failed to even move him over. If an offense is streaky, so be it. But they have to find a way to support the pitching staff. Danks deserved a W there regardless of what happened to the bullpen. They should've walked out of that game with a 7-4 win. If the Sox hitters don't want to acknowledge this by themselves, then either KW or Ozzie needs to say/do something that will get that point across. Is team LOB recorded anywhere? I would love to see where we rank in the MLB with runners left on base. That's what makes this offense so frustrating. Our situational hitting is just plain bad.

Anderson got torn to shreds for getting thrown out at third stretching a double to a triple earlier in the year now he gets it for not taking a chance on it.

QUOTE (striker62704 @ Jun 20, 2008 -> 04:37 PM) I called it when he took Danks out that the bullpen would blow it. Crede doesn't bunt, Sox don't win. Learn the basics, Baseball 101. Remember when Ozzie started he had everyone bunt when needed? What happened? They would never get the job done. They can't bunt. Crede can't bunt. Don't ask him to.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Jun 20, 2008 -> 04:22 PM) Guys didnt hit, its their fault. 3 runs with what the cubs staff gave us is pathetic. Cubs pull out a lucky win and thats that. Exactly this loss falls on the offense and Dotel and Linebrink. This offense can be so s***ty at times.

QUOTE (scenario @ Jun 19, 2008 -> 11:04 AM) Just a quick calculation and thought... If the Sox continue to win at their current rate (.563), they will finish the season with 91 wins. For the Tribe to reach 91 wins, they will have to win 58 out of their remaining 90 games (.644 winning percentage). For the Tigers to reach 91 wins, they will have to win 57 out of their remaining 90 games (.633 winning percentage). And for the Twins to reach 91 wins, they will have to win 55 out of their remaining 90 games (.611 winning percentage). Their winning percentages over their first 72 games: Tribe - .458 Tigers - .472 Twins - .500 (I didn't include the Royals above for a fairly obvious reason. They suck. They would have to win 61 out of their remaining 90 games... a .677 winning percentage. They had a .417 winning percentage in their first 72 games.) While this is a positive and all it's never good to count anyone out. All I have to do is remember my heart rate late in 05.

QUOTE (ChiSox35 @ Jun 19, 2008 -> 07:05 PM) J.P. Ricciardi rips into Adam Dunn and Adam Dunn in turn rips into Canadian currency (and Ricciardi too). "If anything happens, I ain't going to Toronto," Dunn said. "I can eliminate one team. I'm not converting my dollars to loonies and toonies just yet." Riccardi is an idiot. There's no reason whatsoever why he should talk publicly about a player like that.

Hopefully we sweep these guys to get back on track and go into the urinal with some momentum. Javy hung in there enough to not use up our bullpen so props for doing that. Great job by the offense today. Nice debut for Russel! Go get em tomorrow guys!

QUOTE (whitesoxbrian @ Jun 13, 2008 -> 02:31 PM) I meant by any one individual player. Without Pods' ability to get on, steal a base, get to 3rd by Iguchi, and score on a fly out was unbelieveable. Man, the Carlos Lee trade looked bad at the time. Not really, Lee was a salary dump and we got Pods and Vizcaino who was decent. Then with the money we saved we signed Hermy, AJ, and Gooch. Even at the time I wasn't pissed off. He wasn't staying beyond that year anyway.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jun 12, 2008 -> 10:06 PM) Well, he was also a Free Agent at the end of the year he was traded, and he'd clearly lost something if you paid attention to the first half games at all. There was plenty of reason to trade him at that point, especially if you didn't think you'd be able to sign him or if you didn't want to (and man, what a move not signing him was). The Yankees fleeced us what are you talking about... according to ESPN at the time of the trade ofcourse.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jun 11, 2008 -> 09:40 PM) The one issue I have with this is that is has really not taken too much time for Danks....and Floyd's time was on the Phillies' hands. Williams has managed to acquire and develop these two pitchers in a span of 16 months basically. If it were only that easy... Well the Yanks have some talent with Hughes and Kennedy. It just seems like Hughes is injury prone and Kennedy hasn't figured it out. I am sure NY isn't helping his confidence either.

You gotta give the Count props. He's having himself a nice little season. The bullpen is good. Nice to see Masset. It's good when CQ is not the only one supplying the runs. Hopefully the ones struggling just keep on getting some hits. :headbang :gosoxretro: Go get them Twinkies!

I know they want to give Masset a more important role, which thus far he does deserve so we need someone to take his long relief role, but Loaiza is not gonna be good and calling up anyone would just hurt them since they would rot on the bench. If Estey was getting torched with the dodgers whats gonna happen here in the AL and at the cell? We'll wait and see.

HELL YESS!!! The quality quality pitching continues!! Now if some of these guys in slumps could pick it up! :headbang :gosoxretro: