YASNY

With this bullpen, I'm gonna need a new heart.

Alvarez would be a band-aid on a chain saw wound. He would help, but not all that much.

If Koch's problem today was due to back to back appearances, then we have a problem there. We need a guy that can go back to back in that role and be effective. If he just lost his mechanics, then maybe it's just a bump in the road. That remains to be seen. But we need Koch to be the Koch of 2002. We can't turn it over to Shingo, that's for sure. Politte would be awesome if he could get his head screwed on straight, but that may not be in the cards. Marte may or may not be closer material, he's basically untested in the role. Mike Jackson might be able to hold down the fort, temporarily, while we sort out our options. But I wouldn't think we could count on him there all year. Now, Danny Wright is an interesting option, but one that has potentially devastating risks for this years chances. You would be taking the guy that won the #5 starter's spot in spring training, and he's done nothing to lose it yet, and putting him in a crucial position while being totally untested. That means you are also eliminating what appears to be your best option as a number #5 starter from that role. Can Wright close? Maybe. Can Cotts hold down #5? Maybe. It may work great, but the potential is there for this to blow up in our faces.

There's a calender on this board?

You said Karchner. I was thinking Navarro. Damn I despised seeing that jerk take the mound in a Sox uni.

I'm with Capn12 on this one. It's too soon to give up on Koch. My main reasoning for that is that we NEED him to be the Billy Koch of old. We don't know if Marte has a closer's mentality, and it appears that Politte does not, which is a shame because he can bring it. As for Shingo, well, I'm not even going to go there. So, if Koch fails, who's our closer?

This is such a non-issue. :headshake

Rowand will get his stick going, I believe. I think he'll get every chance to hold that position, but Timo could be a viable option out there.

I'd love to see the Sox resign Magglio, but I hope it doesn't come back to haunt the team down the road. It's a gamble, either way this goes. By trying to limit the contract to 4 years, the Sox are trying to minimize the risk.

Marte? ... Oh right. He's the guy that blew the opening day save.

Well, now we know. It was such a good day for the Sox, after the Cubs opening day debacle, that Mariotti had to take the day off. He's in mourning.

But, but, but ... that was different.

Why do I have a feeling that whoever wins the bid will send a Christmas fruitcake?

There are 35 more loathsome people in New York? Hmmmm ... Must be the Yankees front office, coaching staff and team.

I hope the Preds kick their collective asses. Re the Boston/Montreal game ... I have never seen such a bizarre ending to a game. Ya gotta love playoff hockey.

... or this. :fthecubs

It wasn't owned by a Comiskey any more. I grew up with it being White Sox Park and still think of it that way.

It sounds like it was an all around fun and successful opening day at the Cell. It was cool that they brought Pudge in to catch the first pitch. Ozzie got the big hand. PK with the curtain call. Lotsa runs, lotsa fun. Wish I could have been there.

I never liked the idea of this trade. Even last winter when everyone wanted to give Konerko away. I have never been impressed with Perez, too much. I do think the Sox need to move PK. They need another starter and a LH RBI man. Including Paulie in deal like that, or Magglio, if they can't re-sign him, would be the ticket. But not Paul Konerko for Odalis Perez.

That allows them to sell new uni's and hats. It's all about the the not-so-almighty Canadian dollar.

JM had pretty much abandoned the idea of aggresive, situational baseball after the Sox powered their way to the 2000 division crown. The made for a flat, uninspired team that, profesional or not, went through the motions. Even though they are highly paid to play a game, it still is their profession and it can become a daily grind. There has to be a way to keep a spark, and JM couldn't seem to do it. I'm not making excuses for the players, as I do agree that should have been able to do this themselves. But, the fact is, they didn't for 3 years running. Inserting Ozzie into the mix was a good move. JM had overstayed his usefulness.

LMAO. I don't think that would have been a very wise marketing move on opening day. Just saying.

The Trib really gave the Sox their due props today. Several good, upbeat articles and a photo section from today's game.

I can't imagine the Sox having an owner that shows he wants to win .... more so than just saying he wants to win. That would be too good to be true.

I had to go with the Graf selection. But something like "KC rocks Sox ace with 4 homers" would not shock me.