hogan873

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 01:30 PM) And secondly, let me ask you this...who do you think has a better chance to sustain their current production for the remainder of the year, Dunn or Konerko? Dunn.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 12:59 PM) Single is more valuable than a walk, at least from a linear weight perspective. Not by much though. Either way, Dunn doesn't get out that much and when he does get hits, they go a long way. I don't see how Dunn isn't at least a B after what he went through last year. I think this is where a lot of the discussion/argument is happening. I wouldn't give the guy an A so far in 2012 because he performed at an F level in 2011. I would give him an A (I gave him an A-) based on the fact that he is doing EXACTLY what he is expected to do. He's a three outcome hitter: strikeout, walk, HR. His strikeouts are high, but he's walking a lot and he's on pace for 45+ HRs. If the guy was hitting .290, you'd have to invent a new grading scale because an A+ wouldn't be high enough.

Just have Konerko pitch a game or two.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 10:13 AM) I'd say the guys carrying the White Sox offensively during this hot streak are Konerko, Viciedo and Beckham. De Aza and Dunn have definitely contributed a lot, but I think the view on Dunn is skewed. Compared to last year, he's outstanding. Compared to what was expected when he signed and the rest of his career, he's average. Average as in "this is what we expected" or average as in "okay, but we expected more"?

QUOTE (Jenksismyb**** @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 08:56 AM) Hmm, I must be in the minority. I thought this episode of Mad Men was one of the "worst" of the season. The Lane portion of the episode was good - a bit sudden, but good. Perfect way to tie up the embezzlement angle. The Sallie stuff was a bore, and borderline inappropriate. Why did we need to see that? Gross. I guess we'll see about the Dow pitch, but that seemed way too preachy to me. Are 3-4 incredibly rich guys leading one of the world's biggest companies going to be impressed with someone that scolds them for being too complacent? Seems like a stretch. Also, can anyone tell if Sallie's friend is supposed to be weird or does the actor just suck? So stiff with every line. I've noticed a couple times this season where Don got fired up over something, and we saw the old Don coming out. Then something happens to temper it. Last night, it was old Don going after Dow and then the Lane thing tempers it. It's interesting. I just foresee a major eruption with him, but with only one episode left who knows. The Sally/Betty storyline made sense, but it just didn't seem to have anything to do with anything else. She hates her mother, but her mother is the only person she wants after "the incident". I half expected her to run back to the aprtmant to Megan, but no.

QUOTE (Jose Paniagua @ Jun 4, 2012 -> 10:02 AM) southsider2k - batting average is just one slice of the pie. focusing way too much on that. in the important categories, he is somewhere between 'very good' and absolutely carrying us Another thing about Dunn. He's walking a ton, pitchers are pitching around him, and the guy behind him (Konerko) is getting better pitches because of that. The guy has a ton of value for this team.

I always like these types of threads. Great reading for an off day. Without grading everyone, I would say: Konerko - A (Like a fine wine...) Beckham - C (His recent improved hitting and plus defense gets him to a C) Morel - D (Good defense, terrible bat. Hopefully he comes back from AAA improved) Alexei - C- (Great defense, offense has been pretty bad) Tank - B- (Slow start followed by an incredible hot streak, meh defense) De Aza - A (The lead-off guy and CFer this team has needed) Rios - B (I think we might have to actually say Rios is...good) AJ - A (Surprise all around. Great bat, good game calling, much improved throwing out runners) Dunn - A- (He is truly that three outcome hitter this year. Would like to see fewer K's, though) Peavy - A (This is the guy we wanted to see) Humber - C- (Perfect then not so perfect then pretty good...I'll take pretty good the rest of the way) Floyd - D (Inconsistent and seems to fold under pressure too easily) Danks - D (Not good so far...hopefully injury-related) Sale - A+ (Is there a grade higher than A+?)

You can't help but be impressed by this kid. At 23, he could have quite a career ahead of him. I hope his arms holds out. His motion is funky, but as I've learned from a pitching instructor that's helping my son, if a pitcher keeps his head straight and has an equal and opposite motion with his glove arm, that'll go a long way to prevent injury. It was neat to see him throwing 95 in the 9th inning yesterday, and that slider...damn.

Although I like Youkilis, and would have liked to seen him as a White Sox, it doesn't make sense right now. Hudson is doing fine. If the Sox were to trade for Youkilis, what becomes of Hudson?

Holy crap, another great episode of Mad Men. I suppose we all saw what was going to happen to Lane. I wonder how that will affect Don.

I turned the game on in the bottom of the ninth, and I was like, WTF, why is Sale closing again. Then I realized he had started the game. Damn the guy can pitch.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jun 1, 2012 -> 03:02 PM) Especially that umpire who got suspended a few weeks ago. Joe West was fined for those shenanigans he, Ozzie, and Buehrle were involved in.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.

QUOTE (HickoryHuskers @ May 31, 2012 -> 03:42 PM) I guess it's a good thing the Sox don't play tonight, since I wouldn't be able to watch while in my closet dodging another round of tornadoes. Take your smartphone in the closet with you. I'd say drag a TV in there, but you might lose power.

I saw during the game thread that Farmer was ranting a bit, too. Did anyone hear what he was said? I'm sure it was nothing compared to Hawk's, though.

Crede was a clucth hitter, and I believe many of us remember him as a better hitter than he actually was. Beckham hasn't shown to be a clutch hitter, yet. Aside from that difference, I would believe it's probably just the HRs that standout.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ May 31, 2012 -> 12:19 PM) 1. Everyone knew Rios was a bum and that he would likely be a bum again this year. 2. Ozzie will be the NL manager of the year. If the season ended today, he would be NL manager of the year. As a matter of fact, he'll get ML manager of the year as the AL nominee will forfeit the award.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ May 31, 2012 -> 11:26 AM) Not in Jan/Feb .... There were enough posters saying the Sox could contend. You may have been in the minority (by a small margin), but you certainly weren't the first to say they could contend. I will say this. I think that most of us who thought the Sox could contend thought so in part due to the AL Central being a weak division. The way this team is playing right now, they could contend in any division. Whether they continue is another story.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ May 31, 2012 -> 09:12 AM) “It was pretty obvious he was trying to throw at me,’’ Zobrist said. “I think the umpire knew that too … it was smart [of Wegner] to make that call without having any warnings to either bench.’’ F*ck yourself, dude. You didn't even get hit. These are Major League players and if Quintana wanted to hit you, he would have. It was simply a warning and should have been simply followed by a warning from that dolt Wegner. This same guy would have been b****ing about the umpires if his pitcher had got thrown out of the game without a warning. Same goes for Maddon. No one is going to say their own player deserved to be thrown out. I hope someone gets plunked when they come to the Cell.

The team is playing well. The Dunn signing is looking like it's paying off, finally. Rios is performing. Peavy is the Peavy we thought he could be. Sale is an upgrade over Buehrle (minus the potential loss of innings). Viciedo is awesome. The Orlando Hudson pick-up seems to be a no brainer. Okay, so what can we complain about? I know, let's talk AGAIN about "what if" the Sox sill had Gio Gonzalez. It doesn't matter. You can't play what if about something like this because so much has happened since then. The team would not look like it does now had the Sox not traded him (the first or second time). It's not as simple as the team would have Gonzalez instead of Danks or Floyd. Let's just enjoy this team as it is. It's a team that costs a lot less than 2011 and is playing a lot better.

Maybe it's because we're in the moment, but team seems genuine right now. During the couple streaks that happened last year, it seemed like we were all waiting for it to fall apart in dramatic fashion. I think the success of Dunn, Rios, and Peavy have a lot to do with it, but the whole team seems to be loose and having fun.

Who are these guys?

Damn!

I still say the only response here is to win the game, sweep the series. Maybe when the Rays come to the Cell they can plunk a guy.

I'd be surprised to see anymore batters thrown at.