AirScott

the benches cleared last night in a game vs. the Texas Rangers, and maybe it's just because it was something with the Sox, but it seems like Sciosia or his team is always getting themselves into this type of thing, with us, the Rangers, or the Nationals from last season. isn't it about time someone from Major League Baseball stepped in here?

QUOTE(Drew @ Aug 17, 2006 -> 02:25 AM) That's fine and dandy if the season ended today. But if we don't stop dropping games we should win, we'll be playing golf instead of baseball come October. well I'm saying that's how it seems, but when you're paid to play baseball for a living, your concentration should be there all 162 games.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Aug 17, 2006 -> 01:50 AM) See my sig. See Jermaine Dye dropping a routine fly ball in Tuesday's loss vs. the Royals.

I loved those, the majority of games I went to that year were Sunday games, when they always wore those. they wore the white hats with them too, I thought it looked damn good.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Aug 16, 2006 -> 06:07 PM) It's worked better than what Vazquez has been throwing lately. I was at the game yesterday, and according to the stadium radar, he didn't top 91 that I remember. I am no longer even a slight fan of the WBC. get rid of it.

the Sox are like the Lakers from early this decade, taking the games they want to seriously. I saw a graphic that said we're the best in the MLB or AL (can't remember which, I think MLB) vs. .500+ opponents. I was discussing this early today, and I think if we make the playoffs, we have a great chance of winning it all again, because of our lineup and bullpen (which is more reliable, but not as good as the 2005 version).

QUOTE(Chisoxfn @ Aug 12, 2006 -> 08:48 PM) I just call it like I see it. All season long I waited and waited for the pitching to do what it was supposed to and now I'm at the point where they are going to have to prove to me (and the league) that they have made strides and are getting better. Too many people just assume our pitchers can turn on a magic switch and while I hate being a pessimist, I see myself more as a realist and the bottom line is unless our pitching continues to improve and gets things turned around (which I've long said is very possible, especially since I've been the guy preaching Javier Vazquez as of late) its all going to be a moot point (even if we do get in the playoffs). Of course, I'd be the first to admit that this year (sans the Angels who may not get in) no team really has a dominate rotation (I do not think the Tigers have one, especially since I expect Verlander to wear down and I'm not a fan of Roberson or the last man in there pen). well every pessimist sees themself as a realist, that's evidence that they do have an optimistic side. and all along I've been eyeing a Tigers collapse in the second half, Rogers always gets rocked and Todd Jones is awful, that's bound to bite them in their collective asses.

well the pitching has been inconsistent, and I can't imagine our bullpen (or any bullpen, really) matching the success of our 2005 pen, but there's no reason our starters can't become better than dependable.

QUOTE(The Critic @ Aug 12, 2006 -> 09:28 AM) Absolutely. JD's been everything we could have asked for, and more. no time on the DL either? not only that, but he's playing the best baseball of his career, and for our Sox!who was Dye's previous team, the Angels? HA! HAHA! (note: I'm just kidding. I know Dye last played for the A's, and I know that joke was absurdly lame, I could've just said he's been a God send. I apologize for the nerdy post, though intended.)

I hope this week wasn't just a taste of last year, because now this team is really starting to play like they had last year. we had the see-saw win vs. the Yankees, and even in the loss we were 90 feet from tying the game...after being down 7-0 and no-hit through 6. then in today's game vs. the Tigers, we took advantage of every mistake and won one we shouldn't have. it may be too early to say, but this team seems to be coming together and playing the way we did en route to our 2005 World Series win.

I'd like to see us make a 3-way trade, just to keep Soriano away from Detroit. I keep telling myself the Tigers will collapse (Rogers hasn't pitched well in the 2nd half after these great 1st halves for 4 years, Todd Jones is terrible), remember everyone else was saying the Sox would collapse last year. their lineup is pretty good, and Soriano would make them downright scary, especially if they decide to pitch Zumaya in the 9th. there's no doubt we can still compete with them and make a serious run for the division either way, but that's less likely if they pick up Soriano.

QUOTE(SoxPride56 @ Jul 24, 2006 -> 10:50 AM) Sandy will be wearing # 18... thats my guess. it was a helluva run, Cliff.

I saw this rumor on ESPN.com, and it said B-Mac and Anderson for Schmidt. that seems like a bit much to me, I'd rather hope Vazquez can keep it together for more than two starts in a row.

ok, this was on TV, so don't worry about spoilers. if you want to avoid it so badly, avoid watching SportsCenter and reading this thread. but seriously, how does a 100-win team that was first place wire-to-wire, and not only held off a ridiculous push from a team playing .800 ball (the Indians), but swept them to eliminate them from the playoffs NOT win team of the year? I'd like to know who votes on this...my guess is the same people who chose Lance Armstrong (not a comedian) to host.

he gets on base pretty regularly (he's walking more this year and making up for a somewhat low batting average), and throws off a pitcher when he gets on base (although that can be debated whether or not it makes a difference, I think it does). what worries me though is the low success rate. something seems wrong, before he injured his groin last year he was always up around 80%, and in 2004 he was 70-for-83 in stolen bases. I'm starting to think his groin is still a little tweaked.

since Bill Simmons got his own page on ESPN and isn't really considered as Page 2 and Ralph Wiley died, I don't read Page 2 at all. if something interesting is pointed out to me by someone I'll read it, but otherwise I steer clear.

QUOTE(Sox1422 @ May 25, 2006 -> 12:02 PM) I can't stand the little b****, but I enjoy reading his column. it's kind of a shame, his columns are well-written, but I can't stand him either.

if Baines just signed a 3-year extension, and Raines' contract is up after the season, wouldn't it have made sense that Ozzie make Raines his bench coach to help Raines in finding a better coaching position after the season? I'd think being on the bench the entire game with the reigning AL Manager of Year and discussing strategy with him would be something good to put on a resume.

yeesh. Kenny Rogers is 7-2 now. last year he was 10-4 before the break, in 2004 he was 12-3, in 2003 he was 7-5, and in 2002 he was 9-5. I had to look it up really quickly on espn.com because it seems like he's unbeatable before the break every year before dropping off in July-August-September. this may be encouraging, but I just had to post it, it piqued my interest.

a couple of my somewhat obscure favorites from the 00's: Jeff Leifer for his power, and Jose Canseco for the same reason. and I always liked Greg Naw-ton, mainly because it was fun to say his name. and what about Tony Graffanino, James Baldwin, David Wells, Roberto Alomar, and Kenny Lofton?

80's - I wasn't really around for the 80's, but I'd have to go with Baines, mainly because he was still around when I really started following this team. 90's - Robin Ventura. Big Frank was a close second, but I've always been a sucker for fielding. 00's - it's so hard to decide with the World Series win and all, but I have to say Buehrle, for obvious reasons. but Konerko and Uribe are a very close 2-3 (Uribe because of his Gold Glove caliber fielding and cannon arm).

QUOTE(BigSqwert @ May 17, 2006 -> 08:34 AM) Of the top 5 things that bother me about the Sox this year, he doesn't even make the list. My list in no particular order: - Boone Logan's suckiness - Jon Garland's woes - Ross Gload's uselessness for this team - Jenk's shaky outings - The incomplete green seats how about the entire middle relief's suckiness in general? the only pitcher with a sub-5.00 ERA is Cotts' 2.65. Logan's on par with everyone else in our pen, so why single him out? my only hope for him was that he'd be a serviceable stop-gap, it's not like he was never touted as the next Billy Wagner, or really even the another Neal Cotts, so don't single him out without mentioning Politte, Thornton (who looked good Tuesday), and McCarthy.

um, probably not. but that play he made yesterday is why we loved him here, and why they're going to begin to love him in Philly. Rowand was an integral part in our 2005 WORLD SERIES(!!) team, and we'll never forget what he did for us.

QUOTE(WCSox @ Apr 23, 2006 -> 04:49 PM) I'm not worried about Cotts. However, Politte's track record strongly suggests that he won't put up anything in the vicinity of last year's numbers. KW's going to have to make a trade for bullpen help before the deadline. Not necessarily one that involves big names, but we're going to need somebody better than Cliff, Logan, and Thornton. Politte's numbers were so good last year, I wouldn't even begin to expect him to match those, but what would you say the vicinity would be? an ERA in the 2.60-3.00 range would do us a lot of good.

QUOTE(Felix @ Apr 16, 2006 -> 10:04 PM) Molina is one of the slowest players in the MLB, thats why he was out by so much at first. Iguchi had plenty of time to get himself back up, tie his shoe, eat some lunch, then throw the ball to first. oh yeah, it's the same Molina that grounded into the 5-4-3 triple play against us during that 10-0 blowout vs. the Angels (at least I think it was Bengie, it's hard to keep them all straight). QUOTE(My Dixie Normus @ Apr 16, 2006 -> 10:08 PM) Jeter went into the stands hard and came up bloody. I don't think you can take much away from that play but your point is well taken. The rest of MLB is just what happens between Boston and Yankee games for most of ESPN. QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Apr 16, 2006 -> 10:33 PM) There, I took something away from that play. like Jeter had time to stop himself before going into the stands. still, Uribe's catch in the 9th in Game 4 of the World Series was a much better catch and in a bigger situation. that picture is still set as the background on my computer.