balfanman

QUOTE (danman31 @ Apr 9, 2012 -> 12:16 PM) Dan Black is with Winston-Salem. Had a nice year for Kanny last year (18 HR). I think he's pretty likely to put up good numbers in a small park this year. Thank you for the info. Is he really considered much of a prospect?

Anyone know whatever happened to a 1st base draftee we had a few years ago by the name of Dan Black (I think). I seem to remember that he had some pretty good power. If he's still around I'll take him for a sleeper prospect, if for no other reason than that he was from Purdue if I remember correctly. Sorry, if you think that I suffer from CRS you would be correct.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Apr 4, 2012 -> 06:39 PM) I'd be stunned if Olacio starts right away. I'd be more stunned if he doesn't struggle right away. He walked more than a batter an inning in the DSL. I don't care how good your stuff is. You have to throw strikes. Don't forget Jeff Soptic in that extended ST group. I still think the Winston-Salem rotation is much better for that level. We'll see what the top level teams are throwing out. PS here's my Dash preview on FS. I plan to have the Barons' and Knights' previews up tomorrow assuming the rosters are out. Thank you for the preview, I casually follow the minors and am a far cry from an expert on the subject. Question for whoever: Is Miguel Gonzales still considered a decent catcting prospect? Now that Flowers is a major leaguer is he the best catching prospect the Sox have? or is it that (can't remeber his name, I think it was maybe Smith) guy that was drafted a year or so ago?

Oh Boy, a whole new season lies ahead! What time does Buehrle throw the first pitch of the new season? Oh yeah, never mind. I know that he wasn't a true Ace, but I'm still going to miss that guy. Go Danks!

I don't care one iota about Ozzie Guillen anymore. Joe Cowardly is a scumbag and I refuse to listen to the "Score" when he is on, especially when the hosts refer to him as a baseball "expert". I do wonder why Eddie Einhorn and Frank Thomas were on hand though for the Marlins opener or did I read that wrong? Or was Cowardly just making that up?

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Mar 29, 2012 -> 10:26 AM) Or Ron Karkovice in RF? I would of loved to have seen Dye at ss and Widger at 3rd for a whole game.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Mar 29, 2012 -> 06:51 AM) Damn. Rest in Peace. Thank you ss2k5. He actually was from your neck of the woods, LaPorte, In.

QUOTE (balfanman @ Mar 22, 2012 -> 02:38 PM) That is the era that got me hooked on the Sox as a teenager. It was a fun team, loved those Sunday afternoon doubleheaders. My cousin had season tickets with a friend of his, and when his friend couldn't make it he gave me a call to go with him. I owe my life to that man as he probably saved me from "life" as a Cub fan (now there's an oxymoron for you, emphasis on moron). Didn't really want to bump this thread, but I just had to mention how ironic it is that I mentioned this recently. I called my cousin and thanked him for those great times the other day and I'm truly thankful that I did. He was found dead in his apartment yesterday after he didn't show up for work, probably a heart attack. We have lost a tremendous Sox fan.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Mar 27, 2012 -> 03:37 PM) OK Mr. or Miss 60-65 wins, show yourself and tell us why. That was probably Mr. (or Miss) Cowardly.

QUOTE (forrestg @ Mar 27, 2012 -> 01:37 PM) My second guessing would have kept johnson for at least the first couple of weeks going with a spot 5th starter. a little more time to decide because i think johnson could help with his lh bat in the right situation. The best pitching comes later in the season. Hitting will be our #1 problem and I'm guessing it will not be our 5th starter wh in his 2 or 3 starts will not be as much of a factor as having the right person off the bench. Don't they only have like 1 off day in all of April?

I'll be optimistic and say 86 -89. Further, I'll really show how ignorant I am and say that Gavin Floyd leads the starting staff in victories, Santiago has the most saves, Dunn hits the most dingers, Konerko drives in the most runs, DeAza leads the team in batting average and steals. Alexi & Beckham both win Gold Gloves (yes, Gordon hits just enough to get his), and Robin wins Manager of the year! Book it.......I think. P.S. I forgot to add that the Marlins stink this year and Kenny trades for Buehrle, with the Marlins picking up some salary, for the stretch run.

QUOTE (klaus kinski @ Mar 22, 2012 -> 02:22 PM) Allen was such an imposing figure at the plate, like nothing I had seen since Big Klu in 1959. Yes, I'm old. That huge bat, the SI Cover, and I believe he hit one into the CF bleachers when they were 440 feet, are all pictures in my mind I don't forget. What a fun era, with Melton, Wilbur Wood, Gossage, Forster and a real competitive team with Chuck Tanner at the helm. That is the era that got me hooked on the Sox as a teenager. It was a fun team, loved those Sunday afternoon doubleheaders. My cousin had season tickets with a friend of his, and when his friend couldn't make it he gave me a call to go with him. I owe my life to that man as he probably saved me from "life" as a Cub fan (now there's an oxymoron for you, emphasis on moron).

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Mar 22, 2012 -> 02:24 PM) Great sign, Dunn's 3rd homer of the spring, goes opposite field off Bruce Chen...4-0 Sox. Guess Morel's been going through some touchy back issues.And Alex Ramirez's English hasn't improved at all since 2008. I think it's getting worse, somehow. Wow, that's the first that I've heard of this. That's all we need is another quality 3rd base glove with back problems.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ Mar 7, 2012 -> 09:28 AM) I don't care how good or bad we are in spring training. I know folks like to win and I do too but it means nothing much as far as the season is concerned. I see ST mostly as achance to see young players and what they can do and get the vets get ready for opening day. I think KW has some answering to do about his GM decisions and I am think Phil Rogers has it right in his analysis of KW's GM job. I have know idea what article you are refering to, but I doubt very much that Phil Rogers has anything right.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jan 26, 2012 -> 04:52 PM) Really, I gotta disagree, I think Mark's level of consistency over the last 4 years has just been astounding. He's basically doing exactly what he did in 2008. Mark was used cautiously at several points over the last couple of seasons to preserve his arm. The coaching staff even talked about this, trying to take it easy on him so he would be stronger for the pennant race, which subsequentily didn't matter. This was due to his wearing down in past seasons. Late season Mark Buehrle has really not been much more than average in recent seasons, if I recall correctly.

QUOTE (LVSoxFan @ Jan 26, 2012 -> 04:11 PM) It remains to be seen if Sale's going to be okay taking over the starter role once those innings start piling up.Reed is still pretty young to get excited about. Viciedo, though--you're right that guy is somebody to get excited about. In all fairness though, and I'm a big fan of Mark Buehrle, some of Marks performances after piling up all those innings the last few seasons have been less than spectacular. I would take everything that Chris Sale has to offer this season, and if he runs out of gas in August and September, hopefully one of the minor league guys will be ready for an audition.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Oct 21, 2011 -> 10:12 AM) Yes.. defensively. You could be bad in one area of the game, and be solid at the other to help stay in the league. Of course they are better than most. They are in the MLB (and 80% of them hit in the minors to earn their keep). Punto is starting because of his + UZR defense. If he hits, it's a bonus. You can't have a bunch of Dan Ugglas (08, 10 version) out there and expect to dominate. True, and personally I don't care much for offense only players, except for DH's. I enjoy watching good defense being played. But players like Punto obviously have more going for them than this board as a whole give them credit for or good managers like Tony LaRussa (love him or hate him) wouldn't have him on the team and place them in positions to win or lose big games. I just think that the "turd" reference was much to harsh. Sure, guys like Punto aren't as talented as most starters in MLB; but they still offer quality in some areas of their play.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Oct 21, 2011 -> 09:55 AM) He covers up about 2-3 starter players problems. I'll steal a south park quote, there is always a "turd in the punch bowl" in the W.S. (possibly two) Or could it be that they are actually better at baseball than we are willing to give them credit for? We hate on a guy like Nic Punto because he beat us a few times as a Twin, but then admire how the Twins "do things the right way" in their minor league system. You can't have it both ways. I would much rather force the Nick Puntos' of the world to beat us in game situations (which they will a few times) than the Mauers & Morneaus.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Oct 18, 2011 -> 09:20 AM) Call me crazy, but I am not convinced we'll have a "bad roster" in 2012. If the team trades Danks/Floyd, Quentin and Thornton... you already have replacements in Sale, Viciedo and Santiago, who are likely to at least be in the vicinity of who they are replacing performance-wise. And that's not even considering what the Sox will get back in trade for them. That also leaves enough money, probably, to re-sign MB. And look at the lineup for a moment here. One guy performed at or above what you'd expect in a typical year (PK). The rest, not so much. Ramirez was close to his averages, AJP not too far off, the rest... bad years. How likely is it that such a high percentage will blow chunks again in 2012? A rotation of say: Floyd/Danks, Buehrle, Sale, Peavy and Humber (with Axelrod in the wings) doesn't look horrible to me (though I must admit, I tend to think Peavy has a good year in 2012, because that is how these things typically go). And the bullpen, while experiencing a drop-off from Thornton to Santiago, also picks up Reed and looks decent. The Central is going to be tough next year, but I also think the Sox are likely to be better too, assuming their general plan is what I outlined above. I agree with you. Even if the Sox were to come back with the exact same roster (I know they won't), the odds of having that terrible of a season from most of them have to be pretty slim. I think the biggest factor will be the absence of Ozzie. Love him or hate him, the players for the most part were tired of all the drama and had quite obviously tuned him out. Whether Ventura is the right man to turn things around totally or not, (for the record I think that he's a great choice)at least he provides a different voice of leadership and the players are almost sure to be refreshed by his presence.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Oct 17, 2011 -> 08:35 AM) http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...0,1656477.story "Ventura and Baines, each accomplished hitters during their playing days, will work with hitters on their mental approach at the plate. This is essential, especially because Sox fans have become frustrated with Beckham swinging at high and outside pitches for called third strikes, as well as other hitters swinging at the first pitch after a previous batter draws a walk." How do you receive a called third strike when you swung at a pitch?

I thought that Mike North went to jail for fraud or something?

A team demanding accountability for a failed season.....Imagine that?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Sep 29, 2011 -> 06:56 PM) No one is taking that money on. Not for rios + Dunn. Now there's a trade for ya! Rios & Dunn for Crawford.

I think that Mark probably would be better in the National League, but you can say that about most pitchers. He strikes me as the type that does not want to stray too far from home, so other teams (Yankees, Red Sox, etc) would probably have to pony up a lot more than he is worth. If the White Sox don't offer something reasonable, and the Cardinals can't afford him, then it seems to me that teams like K.C., or maybe Milwaukee, would have the best shot at him.

I don't have anything to back this up, but I can see Kansas City as a dark horse in Buehrles' situation. K.C. is as close to his home as Chicago is, they have more of a "pitchers park" than the Sox do, and with K.C.'s up and coming offense he could pile up some wins with that kind of support. Kansas City could feel that an upgrade to their pitching staff could make them serious contenders next season, and I think that they could be right. I'm sure that Buehrle has noticed this too and if the Sox don't make him a respectable offer I think that K.C. would have a better chance than most other clubs at his services.