fathom

So the wife rented "Dan in Real Life" for some reason last night. We turned it off after 30 minutes, as it was just about the worst movie I've seen in a while. Please tell me it gets better as it goes along?

QUOTE (iamshack @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 05:04 PM) If the Jays would have come out and admitted they didn't want the option to vest, so they were going to bench him, fine. But don't make a bs excuse and say they are benching him because they feel they have a better lineup without him. Matt Stairs was better than Frank Thomas last year, and he's off to a better start this year.

QUOTE (max power @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 05:02 PM) Who thinks he is getting screwed? Why do you keep saying that? I think the blue jays are screwing themselves, both with frank, and in the future by damaging their image to potential free agents. Did you read some of the earlier posts in this thread?

Anderson in CF batting 8th, Uribe's playing, and Konerko is benched today.

QUOTE (max power @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 05:56 PM) I know. It makes so much more sense to pay him not to play on their team. Who are they going to use that roster spot on that is better than frank? Addition by subtraction....sometimes it's better to get rid of that negative attitude in the clubhouse. They also have some stud offensive players in the minors, so I wonder if they'll call up Snider.

QUOTE (Greg The Bull Luzinski @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 05:53 PM) Since I suspect Franks is done, I wonder if the Sox would sign him to a one day contract and let him retire a White Sox. If he does it on a day where we bench AJP and Dye, at least he won't have to worry about shaking hands.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 04:48 PM) The Rays would be a perfect fit. They could use a vet power slugger in the middle of their lineup. He would help with attendance. With the way they've been going about trying to unload players with character issues, I don't think there's a chance in hell.

QUOTE (EvilJester99 @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 04:46 PM) Wonder if the Royals would look at getting him? They might have the best DH in the American League already.

I bet you the Mariners go after him.

QUOTE (BearSox @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 07:31 AM) see, this is the attitude of Thomas that led to me not being a big fan of his. He's a great guy, no doubt, but he always puts himself over the good of the team... IMO. Well said. When he said he would have never thrown out the first pitch during the 2005 playoffs if he had known the Sox wouldn't bring him back, he lost me as a fan forever.

QUOTE (DBAH0 @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 03:57 AM) Well before today Swisher had a .280/.448/.420 line while Joe Crede had a .304/.355/.625 line. Who would you argue has been the better offensive player so far? GPA wise, Swisher's is .298, Crede's is .307. So despite there being at least a +.100 difference in OPS, the difference in GPA is less than 0.1. Swisher's been better. Besides for the intangibles, he's seen an insane amount of pitches.

Here's what I heard about Ely tonight. He was in the 90-92 mph range in his first 60 or so pitches. My brother said the umpire had the biggest strike zone he's ever seen, so it was hard to really judge. He struck out Wieters on a nice sequence. However, my brother told me that the last few innings Ely pitched, his fastball was being clocked at 83 mph. Overall, he was pretty satisfied with what he saw, as our family has known Ely for 10 years now.

I've heard Richar won't be available until June.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 02:44 AM) I read a couple of weeks ago the White Sox were actually above .500 last April. I didn't remember it like that, but it pretty much fell apart quickly after that. It is early, but this team does have a lot more life than last year's version. They might not win 95 games, but at least they will be worth watching this summer. 24-20 after 44 games last year. I agree that this year's team is better, considering the energy and the relief corps. Also, the Indians, Tigers, and Twins are not as good as they were in 2007.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 01:21 AM) What did Uribe have to do with the loss tonight? It wasn't like everyone else was tearing it up. Just one of about 4 changes that hopefully will be made in the next month or so to improve this team.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 02:09 AM) We are playing 500 ball this week so far. How many hits are the Sox averaging per game this week?

His command is back to where it was in 2006, where hitters could just lean on pitches over the plate. His innings to hit ratio is brutal so far. His fastball is better than it was two years ago, so there's cause for optimism. His ERA would probably be cut in half though if Cabrera had made defensive plays in his two bad starts.

QUOTE (Brian @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 01:06 AM) Ok, now the botched rundown is irrelevant. I'm sure Hawk will still bring it up. This team isn't talented enough to just show up and win without any energy. Hopefully this teaches them a lesson.

Toby has that pop up to left swing down to a science this season.

We're really going to let Toby Hall bat in the 9th inning? Shows me how much Ozzie cared about this game.

Fastest inning MacDougal has had in 2 years.

That catch deserved a replay?

QUOTE (joesaiditstrue @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 01:55 AM) no reason mark should be throwing like he's got deadarm, wonder if those spring training tidbits about his shoulder or elbow or whatever it was, is bothering him You'd have to be naive to think there wasn't more to the story. I don't think it's as much about his fastball as it is his ability to finish off his offspeed stuff. That would explain why his pitches have been up.

Have we had anyone try to hit the ball to the opposite field tonight? I can't even recall any outs recorded the opposite way after Swisher's first AB.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Apr 20, 2008 -> 01:49 AM) The left side of the infield for the Rays will have to rest their arms from all the pullouts tonight. Good thing this team can walk, as they might end up with the lowest batting average in the AL this season.