UC76

Four days till the opener. I'm stiff! Stiff, I tells ya! I'm not expecting the U.S. to advance, so I've adopted Ivory Coast as my backup team.

QUOTE(Felix @ Jun 5, 2006 -> 09:51 PM) I'm a fan of his intensity (although he does lose complete control and become moronic), but wow, you are going to get flamed for this post by all the Cub/Zambrano haters. Yeah, I figured as much. All I know is this: Damn good pitcher + Venezuelan connections + intensity Ozzie loves = makes some sense. I'm sure if he ever did come to the Sox and pitched his ass off, we would all forget where he came from. By the way, what about Howry to the Sox? He's been solid and the Sox could definitely use that at the moment with Politte wetting himself. Would you be opposed to Howry coming in and helping the bullpen? (I ask because I've heard this mentioned as a possibility.)

I think it's too early to say the Sox have become fat and lazy, but I am worried. Last year they played like they had something to prove, like they were underdogs who knew they had to do evey little thing just right to win. So most every little thing did go right. I'd love to see that edge back. I miss it.

I just saw Carlos Zambrano have a no-hitter broken up in the eighth - again! - and had this thought on my mind so I figured I'd post it: Wouldn't Zambrano switching to the South Side someday make sense? After all, he's a Venezuelan. I could see Ozzie talking to KW and persuading him to bring in one of his peeps. Personally, even though he's a Cub, I'm a big fan of Zambrano. Nobody plays with more passion and that style would fit in just fine with Ozzie's wear-it-on-your-sleeve personality. I've also seen Z at Bulls games, so he seems to be into Chicago and might be inclined to stay in town. Oh, and he's also a damn good pitcher. And young. I'm not talking about a midseason trade or anything. Hell, I don't even know his contract status off the top of my head. I just think that someday the crazy Venezuelan might be a good fit with the Pale Hose.

QUOTE(kapkomet @ May 30, 2006 -> 03:04 PM) You all are right, TOR is probably more likely to fight for a spot then CLE, but I think that CLE is going to catch fire in the second half similiar to what they did last season. I think Cleveland will heat up but I have a hard time believing they will get as hot as last year. That will be hard to do. Didn't they win like 32 of 40 at one point (or something like that)? That's hard to do two years in a row. Or ever! At least I hope they don't get as hot as last year.

Linky.

"Elevation" U2

That music is cracking me up.

I can't read the whole thread right now, but is Haeger starting on Wednesday for sure?

I was in Seattle last week and attended all three games of the White Sox-Mariners series and was pleasantly surprised at how many Sox fans I saw. I don't know if that's normal or if that was bandwagon jumpers following the World Series, but either way, it was nice to see.

With the Royals in town, I thought this was an interesting take on the owner, David Glass, who sounds like a real piece of s--t... Of course, I hope the Sox rout the Royals every time out, but that said, it's a shame that wastes of space like Glass get to ruin all the fun for people in Kansas City. I remember when the Royals used to be consistently good in the '80s.

I couldn't find links to the articles, but you might want to check out this week's SI if you don't subscribe: - Rick Reilly's column is on Ozzie. - There is a piece on Thome in the baseball section. - The diving/falling play Iguchi made on Saturday is a huge, two-page spread of a picture. Pretty funny. He's in midair and sideways. Carry on.

Cool. At least we can worry about baseball again. I was thinking, what would Reinsdorf say if the Bulls draft Adam Morrison?

Did this go down today? Anyone hear it? I thought they were getting cuts on the air, but have not heard a radio today.

QUOTE(SleepyWhiteSox @ Apr 17, 2006 -> 11:22 AM) Paulie wishes... Hahahaha! This hair thing bugs me because part of what makes this Sox team so good is that they all have personalities and have fun. They're loose. Free spirits. I do not like the fact at all that they would be told how to groom themselves. Play hard, win, and act properly on and off the field, that's all you have to do. Other than that, leave them alone and let them stay true to themselves. This is ridiculous.

This isn't really a big deal, but I wish JR wouldn't worry about this. What's the big deal what a player's hair looks like? Hell, if they're winning, they could die it pink or put it in pigtails for all I care. In fact, that might be kind of interesting. Every chick I know thinks Cotts and Crede are heartthrobs and would be disappointed to see them cut their locks.

Maybe marriage is distracting Pods? Just kidding. Yeah, I heard that. Good for him.

Yeah, but Freel doesn't date Lisa Dergan, now does he? Advantage: Podsednik.

Ivan Calderon and Melido Perez.

All I know is I love the black jerseys. They look badass. But I would think they would avoid the black on hot, sunny day games even if they are on a winning streak. Will they ever wear the 1983 unis again?

It's too early to judge Singleton. He's been doing it for nine games only.

Garland will heat up. Last year Contreras had some rough patches, but once he got hot, he was hotttt. Garland just needs to get on a roll.

When you look at what Viz, Hemanson and Marte did last year, all had varying problems with injuries and/or just struggling at one time or another. As long as this year's "rookies" stay healthy, I think they should improve as the year goes on and they grow in their roles. Hopefully, if there are growing pains, they happen early, and by August the "rooks" are solid.

Awesome. Bottled water? Smart. Crede doesn't seem like the type who would do a lot of talking. He seems like the type of dude who just sits there and acts cool.

So who's seen this comic strip? Anyone reading it? I just saw its debut today in the Southtown. Palehose Six