Wong & Owens

Hey, another ghost. I am no longer alone.

REALLY? I have VIVID memories of "transients" laying in front of a transient hotel on Waveland, mere blocks away from the Friendly Confines, and people constantly "advising" me not to go north of Irving Park after nightfall. This was in the mid-80's, and that's why I said "was". And I saw a few "transactions" going on where my sister and brother-in-law decided to park for a recent night game, a couple miles west of the park. That's why I said "STILL IS". Sorry if you disagree, but your disagreement doesn't necessarily make the point incorrect. Critic-- You're absolutely right about the WAS part--Lincoln Park and Wrigleyville were slums 20 years ago, some of the worst neighborhoods in the city. I disagreed with the IS part--seeing "transactions" doesn't make a neighborhood sketchy, drug deals go down in Bannockburn every day. I am at work, hung-over after watching the Sox at a local watering hole last night, grumpy as hell, and more than willing to lash out at anything I disagreed with. You're right, it doesn't make it incorrect, and I shouldn't have put it that way, but I am in need of a Coca-Cola/Aspirin cocktail stat, and cannot be held responible for my irritating posts today.

"...Wrigleyville was ( and the immediate surrounding area still IS ) a pretty sketchy area, with the exception of Clark Street and Broadway Avenue." This might be the most incorrect post I have ever read on this board.

to me for sounding like a broken record, but Dan Wright cannot be an effective starter with only 2 pitches, unless one of them is a 99 mph fastball. He will be much more effective out of the bullpen. Might be better for him mentally as well. He sure seemed more confident last night than he did in any of his starts.

Gary Coleman has no time for baseball as he is busy planning his strategy for his campaign to be the next governor of California. So much for my hunch that Billy Elbow finds the century mark by August 31. I give myself one of these

Just remember that I said a week ago that he will hit 100mph in a game before the end of August.

Danny Wright runs into problems becuase he only has two pitches. Early in games-- when he, like many pitchers, aren't in the groove location-wise--he gets hit hard because it's not difficult for a mlb hitter to sit and wait on a fastball on a guy who isn't hitting his spots and only throws two different balls. By all means, bring up Cotts. Let's see what he's got.

I'm not exactly a supporter of how JM uses our relief pitchers, but I also am not one who believes in pampering major league pitchers to the tune of a 40 inning season. Here's an article that points out some interesting stats about our relievers, specifically Flash and Damaso: Before getting released by the White Sox and picked up by Houston, Rick White said the Sox would be in trouble down the stretch if manager Jerry Manuel didn't cut back on the workload of Damaso Marte and Tom Gordon. Truth be told, neither Marte nor Gordon ranks in the top 10 among innings for American League relievers. Marte is tied for sixth with 52 appearances, nine fewer than Toronto's Trever Miller and eight fewer than Kansas City's Jason Grimsley. But Marte has been used extensively since July 1, appearing in 16 games for 212/3 innings. He has a 0.83 ERA during that span. Gordon has worked 16 innings in 13 games since July 1, posting a 3.94 ERA. After 10 scoreless outings, he has allowed seven runs in his last three appearances. Overall the Sox's bullpen has worked 2931/3 innings, fourth fewest in the American League.

I don't think Minnesota is currently over .500, are they? Forgot abouth the Scrubs and Dodgers, I feel a little more confident now. They should also have taken 2 of 3 from the Giants.

Going by their present records, have the Sox won a series against ANY team with a record over .500 except the Royals?

Oh he didn't mention the fact that NO TEAM HAS EVER lost 100 games and won their division next year? Once again it brings to mind the old saying there are 3 kinds of lies... Lies, Damned Lies, and Stats. good point, fellow southsider.

That one stat he threw out about the number of teams with a lead of at least 7 games at the All-Star break that DIDN"T go on to win their division. Wasn't it like 2 out of 50? Not good odds. For us, that is.

First, I need to preface this by saying I hate Jim Caple. His columns are not funny, insightful, informative, provocative, etc. And I've been waiting for a time to rip his stadium reviews, but as I've never been to any stadium he's wrote about, I had to wait until he came to Chicago. Now, I will slam him: Access--4. A 4 out of 5, even though he mentions that parking his limited and expensive, and that one should "not even think about driving to Wrigley." How then, can this possibly rate just 1 point short of the maximum rating? Yes, the el is quick and convenient, but there's a lot of Cubs fans that don't live along the Red Line, and driving access is just as important to a stadium as public transportation is. Access to Wrigley should get no higher than a 2.5 rating, Caple, you drillrod. Ticket price/availability/location--4. Caple again shows his ability to completely disregard objectivity and logic with this ridiculous assessment. A bleacher seat can go for $24 or $30? An Obs View seat can sell for $40? No more than a 3 there, Jim. And availability is no gimme either, jackass. Any kind of good seat plus the bleachers are VERY difficult to get unless it's an April night game against the Padres ort something. Again, can't rate this higher than a 3, and Receptacle-for-a-Tribune Co.-Bukkake, Jim Caple, gives it one point short of perfect. Quality of hot dogs--4. I am speechless. Those hot dogs are stale and the buns are soggy. Jim Caple is almost as bad at critiquing hot dogs as he is at being funny. Signature Concession Item--3. He says the kosher dogs and italian beefs "aren't bad." Well, if the dogs only rate as "not bad," the how the hell does that warrant a 4 on the hot dog scale?!?!?!?!. And you can get italian beefs and hot dogs at every stadium in the country, so how can either of them be a "signature" item? Geez, if this is what Wrigley does to an out-of-town fan, I can understand why the Chicago fans act like Stepford Wives. Seat Comfort--3.5. The seats at Wrigley are better than average? I need electroshock therapy. Knowledge of Fans--3.5. Even though he mentions that throwing opposing teams home run balls back on the field is, "the worst tradition in sports," he goes on and gives them a better than average 3.5 rating. Apparently standing up and cheering every time Sammy Sosa flies out to short right-center counts as knowledge to Jim "I am the World's Biggest Douchebag" Caple. I feel better now, thank you.

I'm not happy he got hurt, but I have to admit I'm somewhat relieved that Olivo isn't playing. Outside of his arm, I don't see any other advantage to having him in there over Sandy. Sandy can actually hit a breaking ball, and Sandy doesn't twice call for high inside 0-2 pitches. I realize Sandy's old and can't play every day, but every game from here on out is big, and I'd rather see Sandy's bat and experience in the lineup than Olivo's arm.

The Sox are a combined 17-15 vs Detroit and Cleveland this season. Pathetic.

I think they said on the postgame show yesterday that it was Buerhle vs Mulder on Friday, Garland vs Lilly saturday, and Loaiza vs Harden on Sunday.

Sorry to rain on the proverbial parade, but I still see the Sox finishing at 82-80, and out of the playoffs.

He'll hit 100mph in a game by August 31st. It might only be for one pitch...... And his arm may fall off immediately afterwards......

True, but if they're planning on trading him, he HAS to go through waivers first.

Gammons said on the radio this morning that there's a "good chance" that Giles and Kendall wind up in K.C.

If it was only 95, then I'm less confident--I was only going by somebody telling me he hit 97. But I do think he can get his velocity back, "magically." If it's some kind of extended dead-arm period, then that's usually what happens--you pitch through it or rest a bit, and the arm kind of snaps back. If something else is wrong though, then 100mph might not be realistic this season. I don't think a pennant race is the time to experiment with new pitches. Until I hear of an injury, I'm sticking with 100 by the end of August. He'll find it if it can be found.

I disagree with the huge part. He hit 97 a couple times the other night, and a few more 95's and 96's from what I heard. A few more ticks, and hitters start to get nervous. Then his breaking stuff becomes more effective, and he's an entirely different pitcher. He'll hit 100 in a game before the end of August. Call it a hunch.

He's going to come up huge in Sept. and late Aug. I can feel it. A few more mph, William, a few more mph.

Going into the Seattle series.... -Will the White Sox continue streaking and put the bad West Coast record in the past, just like they put KC in the past?**YES, THEY ARE WAY OVERDUE TO TAKE A SERIES OUT WEST. SEATTLE IS ALSO DISTRACTED BY PLAYERS BERATING MGMT FOR MAKING ZERO MOVES TO HELP THE CLUB. -Will Billy Koch pitch?**YES, AND IT WILL BE IN AN IMPORTANT SITUATION. EITHER A HOLD OR SAVE. -Will we see the bad Freddy Garcia tonight?**YES, UNLESS WE ALSO SEE THE JUNE WS OFFENSE. -Can we beat Gil Meche on Sunday?**YES, HE'S DUE TO HIT THE WALL FOR PITCHERS COMING OFF MAJOR SURGERY. -Will Dan Wright start on Saturday vs. Ryan Franklin?**UNLESS KW MAKES A TRADE FOR A STARTER, YES. -Can we win this series if we continue to play hard?**AND THE BULLPEN HOLDS TOGETHER, YES. -Will the offensive surge stay alive?**ON A SMALLER SCALE. WE'RE COMING UP AGAINST MUCH BETTER PITCHERS NOW. -Is Manuel going to jumble up the lineup tonight?**YES, AND THE SUN WILL RISE IN THE EAST TOMORROW MORNING. -Will Marte,Gordon,Wunsch, and Schoeneweis all be needed and used in this series? **I'LL GO OUT ON A LONG LIMB HERE AND SAY YES.

95's not enough for him. Let's hope it's a sign that he's getting stronger and will be at triple-digits before the end of August.