fathom

QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:41 AM) ?Elaborate? Hawk repeats this line very often, stating that Ozzie would have won 2 World Series championships in his first two years if these guys didn't get injured.

QUOTE(southsideirish71 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:39 AM) Here is the 2004 Starting rotation and their ERAs MB 3.89 ERA JG 4.89 ERA FG 4.46 JC 5.30/EL 4.86 Showenweis 5.59 ERA Kind of looks similiar to what we have now. One guy below 4. And then the rest. Didn't you know though that Ozzie would be 2 for 2 if Ordonez and Frank were healthy.

QUOTE(greg775 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:30 AM) --Yeah, but Scottie was DAMN GOOD last year. Cmon you cannot deny that. This year is different, I agree. But give me a break downplaying how good he was last year! He was damn good for 1/2 of the season. He was a below average MLB player the 2nd half of the year.

QUOTE(TitoMB345 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:33 AM) Hmm yeah, on 4/22 we beat up on Radke pretty bad. He had 6 ER in 5 IP, but Thome did hit a 2 run homer. No, the game in which Buehrle faced Santana ended up being a 7-1 final.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:29 AM) The fact that the Twins and KW actually discussed Torii Hunter coming to the White Sox shows how far the Twins have come to pass the White Sox. I still think the Sox will finish ahead of them if Liriano is down for any length of time, but Radke has picked it up lately and Santana is still nails. This kid they just called up, Garza, I believe,is supposed to be something, hopefully he performs like Liriano did last season. The Twins are awesome right now. Joe Nathan's the best closer in baseball, and Morneau/Mauer is just as good as any 1-2 combo in baseball now. Our best chance for the postseason might be Liriano being out for a while.

QUOTE(Felix @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:30 AM) I hope you know I was joking... right? Yes, and I was supporting what you said. I'm enjoying your posts lately. You're back to your overly optimistic views from last year, but we need that for the good of this site.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:29 AM) On 4/22 Jim Thome took Johan Santana deep in the bottom of the 6th inning with the team down 2-1, it put them up 3-2 which turned out to be the final score. So yeah, Jim's had about 6 clutch HRs this year just off the top of our collective heads but he's not clutch. Are you sure about that? I thought the homer made it 2-0, and we eventually won 7-1 in that game.

QUOTE(Felix @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:28 AM) But... they all fail 7 out of 10 times they come to the plate! Yep, and it's going to happen. Sure, you'd like to see better ABs and a guy like PK go out of his way to avoid the double play. However, that's baseball, and if it wasn't for those 4 guys, we'd be below .500 this year with our pitching.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:25 AM) Its a higher percentage than Frank Thomas' career clutch homers vs. career homers, and his stats are still updated almost daily on this site. Thome is having a great year, and has had his share of clutch hits. He didn't get Rivera tonight. Guess what? Not a lot of people do. He's going to the Hall of Fame. Up until his last few seasons with the Sox, I always thought Thomas was terrible in the clutch. The only memory I have of him being clutch during his glory years was a massive homer against Jeff Montgomery in a big game vs the Royals in the 1990s. That's one of the reasons his walkoff against Guardado was so special a few years ago...it was totally unexpected.

QUOTE(greg775 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:22 AM) I think any critical comments of Thome are stupid. I can understand being upset about that particular at bat. But cmon. It's just stupid to criticize a guy with his numbers. And how Brian Anderson and his .220 average isn't crucified more is beyond me. I know he's a good outfielder. Sure, I would like to see Thome come up with more hits against closers. However, there has to be a line you don't cross when complaining after a game. Thome, PK, Dye, and Crede have earned the right to not receive crap after every play they do.

QUOTE(champ @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:22 AM) Pssst...Riske was the guy who put the game out of reach. Surrendering two extra runs in the 7th. Riske can be good, or he can suck. Same thing with Cotts. He put the game out of reach? Are you freaking kidding me? I think I'm watching different Sox games than some people now.

QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:20 AM) I like having pitchers fear 2-6. I mean REALLY fear. But the only problem, no one fears our pitching. THey've been hit around long enough now where hitters relaxing in the box and waiting their turn. They know if they hang around for 4-5 innings, they'll get their shot more often than not. Here's what I've noticed about our starters. If you're patient enough against them, they're going to have an inning where they implode and lose their focus. Our starters don't have the greatest stuff on the planet (Vaz has above average stuff, and Contreras does sometimes), and they become very wild in the strike zone. It's one of the main reasons why I think we have 3 wins this year when we score 3 runs or less. We probably had like 20 last year.

QUOTE(greg775 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:19 AM) I agree with Fathom here. However our bullpen also can be mediocre to s***. I can't understand why the people who wanted Garland out of there can't see that the bullpen also likely would have sucked. Oz can't win either way. It's not like these bullpen guys are studs. Our bullpen, compared to our starting pitchers, is much better. The only guy who's really struggling is Cotts.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:14 AM) Last night he drew a HUGE walk in the 11th to get the game winning run into scoring position, that's pretty damn clutch in my book. I can't believe anyone would blame any of the following on the Sox this year: Thome, PK, Crede, and Dye. Those four guys are having superior years, and they've all been pretty damn consistent all season.

In regards to Pods, I've made no secret that I can't stand him on the field. However, I would love for him to shut me up and contribute to this team. The thing that sucks is he continues to get worse, and his confidence seems shot. For a slap hitter, he has no bunting ability and he strikes out way too much. QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:14 AM) I wholeheartedly agree. Its a slight upgrade on defense, big upgrade in batting and who the hell cares about base stealing? Pods hasn't been stealing bases since the ASB. While he's not your prototypical leadoff hitter, its not like Pods has been tearing the cover at all. Mackowiak is two times the base runner Pods is now.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:10 AM) Its unbelievable to me how poorly you can pitch wearing a White Sox uniform and still be praised these days. Yep, I agree. The expectations are sky high, but I've never seen people celebrate mediocrity so much (a line from "Meet the Fockers").

QUOTE(Dan Pasqua @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:11 AM) Nice numbers but can you name the last time he got a clutch hit for us at a crucial time? I watch every game and it seems like every time he comes up late in a game and we need a homer or hit, he doesnt do anything If u know a time when hes come through when needed..Please refresh my memory Thome doesn't hit righty pitchers with great stuff. The righties that he really hammers are sinker ball pitchers. You don't see a lot of closer with sinkers.

Why not give Gload a chance to play LF? There's no chance he can be worse than Pods or Ozuna out there. Those guys can only catch fly balls hit directly at them anyways. Even Pods today said his arm is awful. However, Ozzie said he's the best we have out there, so he'll keep playing.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:05 AM) If the starter has given up 3 homers, and you are going to take him out if he gives up a hit, and its the 7th inning, why bother waiting for the runner to reach? The thing is Ozzie most likely had given up on the game by that point. Well, the PFB told me that it's not a problem that Buehrle allowed 3 homers, since they were all solo.

QUOTE(southsideirish71 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:06 AM) If KW wants to get bmac in the rotation he needs to trade one of our starters. If we mosey into next year with what we have, bmac will be in the bullpen again for the year. Another year towards arbitration down the toliet. Either Buehrle, Garland, Vazquez, Garcia, or McCarthy won't be on the Sox next year. We can all pray it's Garcia that's not here. I'd take my chances with Contreras, Buehrle, Garland, Vazquez, and McCarthy.

QUOTE(Felix @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:04 AM) Because he wants to try and get out of it preserving the bullpen. I see your point, and I tentitively agree, but I can't blame Ozzie for trying to save his bullpen in the middle of this stretch without a day off. Also, keep in mind the score at the time. I understand that you play to win every game, but if you have a chance to save the bullpen an arm so they could be used the next day when the score is closer and your team has a better chance at winning, you might want to take it. I mean seriously, who wants to waste arms during a blowout? If it's a blowout, why not pull Garland after 6 innings, and get him a little more rest. We're going to need a strong Garland the rest of the way a lot more than a strong Riske (who hasn't pitched much at all). If Ozzie was going to use Riske for 2 and MacDougal for 1 tonight, then he should have just let Riske start the inning. Great news! Papelboner just blew a save, and KC beats Boston 5-4.

QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:02 AM) Its so disheartening for our 2-6 guys to do their job and get on base. Then to know that the next 4 guys are rallys killers waiting to happen. Once in a blue moon you can get something out of them offensively. At least BA can hold his own in CF usually. We're a 5 man offense. If Thome, PK, Dye, Crede, or AJP don't produce, we're likely not going to get anything. Still, having 5 players you can count on to do something good every series is pretty good.

QUOTE(southsideirish71 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:02 AM) Well I was hoping to see bmac in the rotation this year, however according to Ozzie bmac was terrible last year. I guess having a 1.59 ERA down the stretch is horrible and our current rag tag group of starters are a much better option than the super stud that we dont want to trade unless we get a kings ransom. I would love to see Ozzie call Garcia or Vazquez horrible.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 04:00 AM) That's the problem. The starters are not performing, but our manager insists on extending them game after game after game, and it almost always results in more runs scored for the opposition. And then we act surprised that they're tired. As you've mentioned numerous times, their whole rationale about how they were going to use McCarthy to help take away some of the innings from our starters was an absolute crock. These starters look so tired, but Ozzie seems to be trying to push them now as if they're fresh.

QUOTE(ceffa2000 @ Aug 10, 2006 -> 03:58 AM) Would you say that he was playing for the playoffs last night, using Jenks for 2-2/3 innings? I think he does think about it. It just comes down to our starters not performing. We can't expect to score 6-9 runs a game every game. Yes, but when your starters are giving up rockets all over the field, it might just be time to take them out after 6 innings against a great team.