LVSoxFan

This pains me as much as anybody here, how much we suck right now. But sorry, we just cleared the ASB for frack's sake. I am not about to step out onto the ledge just yet.

I don't mean to be naive but I'll say it again: yes, we stink right now, but if we're going to slump, I'd rather have it now and then go on a tear through August/September. Yeah, it's a setback, but we'll see how much this team really wants it from this point on. They had a chance to make a statement and that statement apparently was: the Tigers are way better than us. But really, people, the hitting slump? Vasquez's meltdown last night? Stranding all these guys today? This screams to me "ROUGH PATCH." In other words: TEMPORARY.

What is the point of "spiff"? I agree it can go anytime now...

Yeah I'm not sure how this is all Widger's fault. I realize he's ice cold at the plate and seems to always be in games we lose, but when you strand as many men on base as we have today and so far have mustered ONE run to back up your starter's two-run effort, I'd say there's plenty of blame to go around. And yes, while I never second-guess Ozzie, I cannot fathom why in a game this important you wouldn't have your "A" team in.

I was watching at lunch and I think another huge factor that's killing us is how many men we leave on base. OMG bases loaded with either one or no outs and NOBODY gets in? And WTF with scoring only one run thus far? We should be up 5, 6 runs.

QUOTE(Kalapse @ Jul 20, 2006 -> 11:48 AM) That's pretty much my dream scenerio, if that were to go down I'd feel so much better about this team's chances down the stretch and in the playoffs. Sounds good to me!

I realize it's a simplistic idea but thought I'd throw it out there. Because this is just getting painful. Think about it, our ace staff this year, this is their status: Buehrle: has gotten shelled the last THREE outings and has been spotty all year Garcia: who knows WTF is going on with him this year? I don't. Contreras: Has been solid, but showing signs that his back injury is throwing his game off Garland: Actually the one bright spot as of late Vasquez: I, like Bill Melton last night post-game, don't even know what to say anymore. I was just thinking of some sort of shakeup that might re-energize everybody. On paper, that looks good. On paper, I know. QUOTE(Kalapse @ Jul 20, 2006 -> 11:24 AM) How will this fix Garcia? For as bad as Vazquez has been, Garcia has been even worse. If the Sox are going to only replace one starter I would much rather it be Freddy, the guy has no chance of succeeding with no out pitch. Atleast Vazquez has his stuff so there's a chance he can go out there and give you 5 innings of pretty good ball. Garcia, I don't think is even capable of that. I know what you mean. When the trade rumors started last week, my logic was: well at least Vasquez has "stuff," whereas Freddy has... I don't know what Freddy has right now. The same was said of a certain pitcher last year first half: Contreras. Seemed like sort of a head case, but Ozzie would always talk about how great his stuff was. I keep waiting for that to happen with Javy.

I agree. I've heard of "closer by committee" but never starter by committee. There is a precedent for my (admittedly naive) idea: El Duque, last year. Wasn't doing well as a starter but damn if he didn't give us one of the finest relief innings--no make that THE finest--in White Sox history.

I realize I may get crucified by the ton of more baseball-knowledgeable people here, but I had this crazy idea last night after Javy tanked yet another game with the Big Inning. I think we can all agree that Javy has the "stuff," but is just mentally askew. He looked damn good for five innings last night and then bam, bam, bam! Next thing we know, a grand-slam later, we're down 5-2. BTW, who thought we would come back after that? Me neither. So in a nutshell: Javy's good for a few innings, can even be lights-out, but just can't pull off entire games. Sooo... Why not move Javy to the pen for middle relief and make McCarthy the fifth starter? A switcheroo. It's either really brilliant or really flawed as an idea. I'm sure you're going to tell me which one, LOL. Discuss!

Do you really think he's careless, though, or is that just how he comes off with his demeanor? Either way, yes: I saw him hit 90 a few times this weekend. It was too little, too late, but he did hit it. Can somebody explain to me how a guy still as young as he is goes from power pitcher (more or less) to trying to be a Maddux-type finesse pitcher? I mean, by contrast, Buehrle never had power. I've never seen that guy throw over 88, ever. Jose has it, Garland is right up around 90 and Vasquez seems like he can use power or movement (when he's on). But Freddy just doesn't seem that old or physically deteriorated to be all of a sudden losing his velocity like that. Jenks got it back after a month or two; why not Freddy? I am no pitching expert, so go easy on me for the naive question.

Blanco, though? Last time I saw him at the Cell, wasn't his batting average .059? :0

Can somebody explain to me why everyone is down on Widger? Seriously, I'm not being facetious. Is it because his bat sucks? I know that people here have commented on how he calls pitches. I just haven't paid attention. But maybe some bullet points on why we need to get rid of Widge?

I guess my hesitation about Detroit, as good as they are, is that they seem poised for a big fall. Maybe not, but that's been the sense at least on this board. Cleveland I would never count out after last year; they're weird. Either we totally own them in a series or they own us; it goes back and forth. I still stick with Minnesota because of the killer 1-2 punch of Santana/Liriano and they have tons of experience winning the central. Plus they're on a roll. But you're right; no longer are we the Comedy Central.

QUOTE(Jordan4life_2006 @ Jul 17, 2006 -> 04:30 AM) This little s***ty 6-game streak we're on is nothing compared to what I went through last year during the September slide. This team deserves every benefit of the doubt until further notice. You got that right, Jordan. I'll take a slump now, thank you, rather than ever go through that again. That was brutal. Finally winning in Detroit (clinching) last year wasn't so much enjoyable as it was a RELIEF. Whew. Never again.

FWIW, the Trib had a story on Friday where they interviewed two scouts (anonymously) about the Sox' chances. Overall their outlook was very positive, but when Buehrle's name was mentioned the first thing one scout said was: "Buehrle looks tired." Now whether this is just a dead stretch, dead arm, the result of too many innings pitched or a hangover from going into October last year, I'm no expert. But that jumped right out at me, that the guy was so blunt about it.

Well the one bright side as one poster above noted is that he did go through a stretch like this last year (maybe not as severe), then pulled it together at the end and for the playoffs. But yes it's disconcerting when your horse is slumping, because our starters are so hot/cold this year (or just plain cold).

QUOTE(Milkman delivers @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 12:31 PM) Also, I think Hawk and DJ could get a younger audience to root for the Sox. Think about it. If you're a little kid, you want to get into the game. You get that with Hawk and DJ because they are completely biased. When I think about it, Hawk is probably a huge reason I enjoy the Sox so much. And I do like being the Oakland Raiders of the MLB. What you said! Here's another thing: because they're such homers, have you ever had the experience where you're just tuning in and you can tell just by the sound of their voices whether we're winning or losing? I had that again last week. The moment DJ opened his mouth I was like: s***. We must be behind.

Is anybody else just totally jazzed that we're kicking off the home stretch, the big tamale, the final countdown (doo doo doo, doo... doo doo doo doo-doo!)... against the Yankees? Kickass. Couldn't have scripted it better myself. Taking a series in NYC should provide us with some nice swagger heading into Detroit. GO SOX!

Agreed. I'm not seeing where center field is an issue for us. Speaking of the above, correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't the plan for 2006 originally that B-Mac was going to be our fifth starter? Or am I hallucinating?

QUOTE(southsideirish71 @ Jul 12, 2006 -> 10:16 AM) Sweet mother of God. Another f***ing Rowand rumor. Too much manlove for a player that a lot of people on this site wanted gone 2 years ago because he couldnt hit a slider, and crashed his dirtbike in the offseason. ROTFLMFAO!

I guess if I were to concede criticism of Hawk it would be: a) He's old, and it shows. Even moreso when he launches into his back-in-my-day stories, which can wear after a while B) He's a redneck c) Everybody loves to nail him for yelling "STRETCH! STRETCH!" on any ball anywhere near the warning track. I could go on, but it's still not enough for me to dislike him. I was at the game last week and sat pretty much under the booth behind home plate. I don't know if they do it every game (I'm usually in the outfield) but during the 7th him and DJ were hurling t-shirts out into the crowd. Hawk was having a great time. So I really can't get that worked up about him. Other teams are perfectly entitled to have whomever they want. We have Hawk and DJ, and we'll keep 'em, thanks. Can you imagine what the World Series calls would have been like if it had been Hawk and DJ? OMG Hawk would have blown an o-ring when Pods hit that homer...

QUOTE(Balance @ Jul 14, 2006 -> 11:12 AM) You're not the only one. That proposed deal sounds like a significant downgrade for the ChiSox. I second that. I'm seeing starting pitching as the issue, not the bullpen.

I don't understand when people slam Hawk/DJ what it is they're supposed to be doing that they're not. Never at any time am I watching a broadcast and thinking: I need more statistical analysis here. Granted, Hawk obviously loves to talk about himself and his days in the game, which I understand can be annoying to some. DJ, however, has shown when he co-hosts on FOX that he can be very lively and informed (even if that's not his role with Hawk). But to whom, exactly, are we supposed to be comparing them? Yes, Hawk is obviously a homer but what do you want in your local TV guy? Sterile, third-person unbiased perspective? The Cubs guys are just as much homers as Hawk and DJ are. And for all the talk about blaming the umps, I was watching that Red Sox game last Sunday and yes: it appeared that Schilling's strike zone was MUCH wider than ours. Whatever. I like Hawk and DJ. They're not perfect, but they're good enough for me. And to me, nothing compares to "You can put it on the boooooooooooard..... YYYYYES!" So there.

WOW. Garcia on the block? I'm trying to get used to that. As far as Flash, correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't he on the Sox in '03 or '04? Me personally, I am NOT worried about a reliever. I am worried about a STARTER.

I was gonna say the same thing: I think you mean Boston. Although, that was the "old" Contreras.