hogan873

QUOTE (greg775 @ May 9, 2012 -> 01:17 AM) He wants to be a starter. He's been a success as a starter so far. He knows his arm better than anybody. START HIM!! If he's not ready to start in the big leagues, start him in the minors. Is it THAT difficult White Sox?? He's obviosly able to start in the majors, talent-wise anyway. If it's his arm causing the trouble, starting in the minors won't change anything. We still don't know everything, but there is definitely some concern for his health (arm) if they moved him to the bullpen, even temporarily. Maybe a DL stint is needed instead of flip flopping him from starter to bullpen back to starter.

Rios really came through. Three hits including the game winning triple. And he has looked quite enthused this season. He was quite animated last night, and rightfully so. I wasn't following the game thread, but was anyone else as pissed off at Viciedo as I was? He completely gave up on that pop up. There's no excuse for playing like that. That play and Ramirez's error led to that 3-run inning for the Indians.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 9, 2012 -> 12:40 AM) Good idea. Could include Chris Sale/Addison Reed controversy, Ozzie Guillen, Joe Cowley, Greg Walker vs. Don Cooper, Marty34 special guest appearances and a special podcast featuring random Applebees' customers in Lawrence being interviewed about the Sox. Greg can even have his own 2 minute section of the show dedicated to the Royals beating up the White Sox and why we're playing so poorly at USCF. Special Mark Liptak (WSI) style in-depth interviews with Pierre, Wise, Jenks, Ozzie, etc. That's hilarious. You could also have a special "deep" segment where banned posters can have their say.

QUOTE (2nd_city_saint787 @ May 8, 2012 -> 12:11 PM) Yup we've finally got that DH/LH power bat we've been missing the last few years. If the Cubans get hot and Rios is not the worst hitter in baseball this lineups gonna be very good IMO. There were a lot of question marks with this team, and the offense was one of them. So far it seems like Rios is better (not great, but better) and Dunn is what we expected him to be when signed. Now there are more concerns about the starting pitching and parts of the bullpen. It seems like we just can't have everything go right for a while.

On a positive note, Dunn is on pace for 46 HRs and 119 RBIs, based on 550 ABs. I think that's a bit high, but it looks like he's returned to form.

I don't know if I've ever heard Hawk so pissed about that last inning.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 7, 2012 -> 09:21 AM) The only movement its been getting since the games started counting is its moving into the bleachers. And that movement is very fast.

I would argue that a very effective closer is as important as a starter. Neither are a dime a dozen by any means, and both are hard to find. I'm upset about Sale not being a starter, as he has looked great, but the Sox are doing this for a reason. If, however, even after this move he needs sugery or blows his elbow out, it's going to look really bad. I hope Sale can step in and be the closer this team has needed for quite a while. What happens with the fifth starter spot, though?

I just watched the replay of Dunn's homerun. That was easily 450 feet. I like how the announcers said it took two relays to get it back on the field.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 4, 2012 -> 07:59 AM) Robin wears his hat too low on his head and doesn't bend the bill enough. And he's boring, like Joe C's twitter account now. Fire KW! Yeah! How about a facial expression or two!? I yawn every time I see him.

I'm just wondering what else we can find to complain about. "I don't like the angle at which Robin wears his hat." "Don Cooper's accent is terrible." "Adam Dunn needs to chew less gum." "De Aza's face is too round."

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 2, 2012 -> 02:55 PM) ADA - CF Alexei - SS Dunn - 1B Paulie - DH AJP - C Rios - RF Viciedo - LF Brent M. - 3B Gordo - 2B Is Konerko still hurting a bit, or is Dunn going to be seeing a lot more time in the field this year?

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 2, 2012 -> 10:16 AM) Considering the posts when the news broke ATL named Walker their hitting coach, you would have thought it was impossible their offense be anywhere near what it has been. People thought Walker was bad. They were wrong. They don't want to admit it. That's all it is. I think you're right that some people thought Walker was bad, but I would hazard to say that more people thought Walker was not right for the Sox or vice versa. So far it seems like he's a great fit for Atlanta. Good for him and the Braves. So far, Manto seems like a good fit with the Sox. But, whether we're talking about Manto or Walker, we have to remember that we're one month into their first seasons with these teams. A year from now, Braves fans could be calling for Walker's head or we could be screaming and crying about Manto. That's why I'm saying it's premature to start gloating and say "I told you Walker was a good hitting coach!" Maybe he is, but one thing was certain, he was not the right hitting coach for the Sox.

QUOTE (greg775 @ May 1, 2012 -> 11:08 PM) Thanks. How then do you explain the success of the Braves' hitters under Walker if he's such a dog? I say congratulations to Walker for getting the credit he deserves and you blast me? From what I can tell of a hitting coach, Walker is as good as any in putting in the time and effort it takes to help ego-ridden big leaguers improve. Greg, this is why you sometimes get picked on. A blurb comes out about the Braves hitters doing well and you write a post basically saying all of the hate directed towards Walker was misguided and anyone who thought Walker wasn't doing a good job with the Sox is dumb. If you'll go back and look at quite a few of the posts after the blubr about the Braves, you'll see that the consensus was that Walker just wasn't cutting it with the Sox, not that he sucks at being a hitting coach. Maybe he is making a difference in Atlanta, or maybe it's just a change that's making the difference. The change from Walker to Manto seems to be positive with the Sox, but that's not necessarily saying Manto is so much better than Walker.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 2, 2012 -> 08:33 AM) He's clearly been adjusting his stance the last week or so. He has more motion in the bat than he used to, the bat is more horizontal, and last night he was quite a bit lower with more bend in his knees. Right before be blasted that homerun, Hawk was saying that Manto has been working with Gordon to "stand taller" in the box. Not quite sure what that means, but he looked a lot better at the plate last night. He absolutely destroyed that ball on the homerun.

Dunn has been getting a lot of position playing time this season.

I feel pretty good about the starting pitching. My only concern there is Danks, but I'm hoping he comes around. I like the bullpen, but I have big concerns about the closer. Thornton closing out yesterday made me feel better, but I have a feeling we'll see Santiago again. Offense has been okay, thanks to Konerko, Dunn, Rios and AJ. Two of those names I didn't expect to see included there, and I'm beginning to think that they are both for real. Even if Rios' average slips down to around .300, that's huge for this team. I think it goes without saying that I'm worried about Beckham and Morel. Actually, I have concerns about the bottom half of the order. That being said, if nothing changes in a big way, I could see this team being around .500 at the end of May. If Danks turns it around AND one or both of Beckham and Morel start hitting, I would feel a lot better.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Apr 30, 2012 -> 09:58 AM) Yep. very good. I'm also getting into Grimm now. Grimm is a surprisingly good show. I way behind on it (I think I have about 6 on my DVR), but I've enjoyed every episode. The reformed Big Bad Wolf that helps out is great. Always good comic relief.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 30, 2012 -> 08:32 AM) If the Sox could save $5 million on moving him, that's $5 million more that could be put towards payroll in a year that we're not playing 3 sub-.200 , 26 or younger hitters in April. Even better if we could get someone to throw in a talented A-baller while we're at it. But...Saving $5 million would require the Sox still eating $7 million or so...and I just don't know they'd be willing to do that even if it's the right move. So you're saying put the money towards next year? Question: Peavy has a buyout, correct? So if the Sox hold on to him for the whole year, they MUST either pick up the option or pay the buyout? Am I correct about that?

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 30, 2012 -> 08:20 AM) I disagree...I think it's more like when we score runs we win, when we don't, we lose. At first glance, that seems like a "no duh" statement, but you're right. I think there was only one game where the Sox were out of it early. Otherwise, they've lost by a few runs. Peavy's gem the other day was a perfect example. One run would have at least given the Sox a chance in extras. The pitching has been pretty good minus a few mis-steps. If any part of this team is streaky, it's the offense.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 30, 2012 -> 07:48 AM) If they continue hitting, Rios and Dunn might be moveable at the deadline or even afterwards on the waiver wire line if someone is appropriately desperate and has room to add salary. People have overlooked bad seasons to focus on current numbers before. Peavy keeps this up, he's probably going to be moveable...but yes the Sox will have to send along some money, because Peavy would effectively be owed about $11 million for the final 2 months. If the Sox just accept that his salary is a sunk cost and chip in a portion of it, then Peavy might be the easiest one to actually trade because people will be beating down the door to get him if he can be had for $5 million for the last 2 months. But...that requires the White Sox franchise to overcome their mental block about sending salary along in a trade. I could possibly see Peavy being moved if he continues pitching like he has. But, what do you think the Sox could get for half a season of the guy? Unless a team takes all or most of the remaining salary, the Sox would need something decent in return. If they just trade him for junk AND eat the cost, what's the point?

QUOTE (black jack @ Apr 29, 2012 -> 12:05 AM) They peaked last week. It's .500 or below from here out. Try to move Dunn, Rios, and Peavy while/if they can. Dunn...Rios...and Peavy are not going anywhere unless the Sox eat a ton of money. And I don't see that happening. Why are we constantly seeing these suggestions?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 27, 2012 -> 09:03 PM) The problem is, this year, Danks has been bad in a lot of innings, not just the 6th (although today will pile on). ERA by inning: 4.5 0 6.75 6.75 4.5 9.82 You can't pull your starter in the 2nd. He's just been bad this year. Not much else to say. He'll snap into one of those multi game grooves at some point. Those are some ugly numbers there.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Apr 27, 2012 -> 09:01 PM) Web gem by their second baseman. Like I said, one out of four will be about right this series if we can get the one. This is a mismatch payroll wise and shows up on the scoreboard. Why can't this team win at home? But, yeah, Boston is a better team...at least comparing offenses.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 27, 2012 -> 08:57 PM) Yeah, Greg's right here...The guy had retired 8 in a row to start the inning and then retired the first guy as well, and had thrown ~80 pitches. There was no reason to even have the pen up there. Absolutely, Greg is right. But, this seems to be Danks' routine now.