scenario

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Apr 29, 2009 -> 03:36 PM) We are giving last years bad defensive team a run for its money. It's tough to get better defensively when we keep making stupid mistakes. Can't fix stupid.

QUOTE (chunk23 @ Apr 29, 2009 -> 03:24 PM) Let me know if you guys want other observations. Yes!! Absolutely. Keep 'em coming. All you got!

QUOTE (soxfan3530 @ Apr 29, 2009 -> 03:29 PM) how close was that for us radio folks?? Not close enough to get really excited about. Front of the warning track.

I just noticed that Christian Marrero and his 1st round draft-pick brother are both playing in the Carolina League this year. And Christian is outhitting him by about 100 points right now. Nice. A little sibling rivalry fueling his batting surge maybe?

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 29, 2009 -> 01:32 PM) W-S: Brent Morel -5th homer. Sox prospects pounding J. Marriotti. Well, not exactly... but I just like the sound of that.

Seth "Don't Call Me Willy" Loman having a nice start to the season for W-S too. Batting .364 after getting a hit today.

Christian Marrero 2-2 so far today for the Dashhogs. That raises his season average to .403 He keeps this up we're going to have to come up with a nickname for him pretty soon.

IF Thome is DL'd, I'd bet that Nix gets recalled. He's already on the 40-man and he's been hitting very well during his rehab. And as mentioned above, Betemit would get more at-bats. That's what I'm thinking...

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Apr 29, 2009 -> 10:45 AM) I'd agree its certainly not time to give up yet. But 4 outings, all bad, is a bit worrisome. Actually, its so bad, that it seems obvious to me he's doing something odd (intentionally or not I do not know). Hopefully they are working with him. Total speculation on my part at this point... but I bet they're having him work on a cutter... and he's getting slapped around while he's trying to learn it. The reason I say this is because he needs a pitch he can throw inside to people... something with movement on it. That seems to be the weakness in his pitch repertoire.

I'm not surprised by some of the bandwagon bashing I see on Marquez because his early outings have been brutal. But he has the "stuff" to be a successful major league pitcher. His fastball is sub-par but his sinker and curve are very good. (Does Broadway have one pitch that is as good as either of those? No.) And except for last year (and the first couple games of this one), over the course of Marquez's career his control has been good. So... I don't think there is any rational reason to give up on the guy yet.

CJ Retherford making Hawk Harrelson's pick-to-click look good. CJ now leads all Birmingham hitters with a .318 batting average.

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 27, 2009 -> 05:43 PM) Might Danks be moved up to Birmingham this year? Only if someone gets promoted... and so far none of the Baron outfielders are stepping up.

The story of the night so far in the Winston-Salem game is Charlie Shirek. 7 innings... 0 runs on 4 hits... 8 K's and 1 BB. Great outing!

QUOTE (Flash Tizzle @ Apr 27, 2009 -> 12:41 PM) The entire point here is if motivation is the key to why Guillen is suggesting Anderson's role in CF may be reevaluated at a later time, why not Ramirez as well? I believe it's a mistake to think everyone should be 'handled' the same way. It's as true in the 'real world' as it is in sports. When you're trying to get the most out of people: - Some people are better motivated by having a fire held under their ***. - Some are better handled with kid gloves. So, what looks like unfair and unequal treatment to outsiders might be exactly what's needed when you take player personalities into account. (Remember how Phil Jackson used to ride Horace Grant? It's because he figured out that when he didn't, Grant tended to take games off mentally. And that to get the most out of him required constantly pushing him. Maybe the Sox approach to Brian is similar.)

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 27, 2009 -> 09:54 AM) Still bothers me hearing things like that given his past. I think it's his height that surprises people. He's 6'4". At 245 pounds he's not really bulked up for his height.

I had something like that happen to me at Union Station in St. Louis. I stayed at the hotel there, parked my car in the open lot behind it, and when I looked for it in the morning... it was about 5 rows over. Turns out they were setting up for an event and they moved all the cars that were 'in the way'. Freaked me out for about 15 minutes til I figured out what was going on though.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Apr 26, 2009 -> 07:04 PM) Eli Marrero is Cuban (I think)...does that make both the OTHER Marreros American-born/Cuban descent? Yes. Christian Marrero's parents are Cuban immigrants who now own a business in Miami.

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 26, 2009 -> 02:41 PM) Wilson Betemit... What is his point on the roster? Backs up Fields and Konerko? Have to have somebody on the roster to fill that role. I'm not sure who you would have sat today if Betemit played. Not typical that you face one of the best pitchers in baseball and start backup players unless absolutely necessary.

W-S wins 8-4. Anthony Carter with an excellent outing. Pitched 8 innings. Gave up 2 runs on 4 hits; 5 K's and 1 BB.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Apr 26, 2009 -> 02:13 PM) Linebrink has been such a disappointment! Raised his ERA to 1.29 today. What a loser that guy is.

Morel with 2 homeruns and 5 RBIs today.

Whatever problem Jose had with his release point before today seems to be corrected. Very nice to see.

Right now, Christian Marrero is THE hottest hitter in the WhiteSox organization. 2-3 today so far with a homerun... Currently batting .397 (27 for 68) on the season.

Charlotte @ Gwinnett - Whisler pitching Birmingham @ Mobile - Omogrosso pitching Wilmington @ Winston-Salem - Anthony Carter pitching Kannapolis @ Hickory - Infante pitching

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Apr 26, 2009 -> 09:35 AM) And a club foot from what I've read. Did you notice he wobbled a little bit when he walked? Isn't Tyler Flowers power scary? Was Dayan Viciedo still not being patient? Chris Ronge did a really nice interview with Flowers right after he was acquired. He asked Tyler which one player he was most often compared to by scouts, etc. The answer... Mark McGuire. And regarding Retherford... unfortunate looking? Club foot? What is this... a beauty pageant? He's batting .300, which makes him the top hitter on the team not named Beckham, Flowers, or Allen. Looks like a ballplayer to me.