scenario

QUOTE (bighurt4life @ Mar 29, 2009 -> 03:23 PM) box score counts Wise as getting a triple, no error on Young. Chris must have called the official scorer between innings.

According to the radio guys, Lillibridge made an ESPN-like highlight play to snag a ball up the middle and start a DP. Danks give up hit and a walk in the bottom of the first but no damage done.

Anderson and Getz with hits. Betemit drives in Anderson with a groundout. Wise hits a fly to CF which CYoung misplays into a 3-base error. 2-0 Sox going into the bottom of the 1st.

Anderson, B, CF Getz, 2B Fields, 3B Betemit 1B Wise, RF Miller, C Lillibridge, SS Owens, LF Danks, P Ozzie's first 2009 "Sunday Lineup"

If I was pitching like Willis has been, I'd have anxiety too.

QUOTE (kyyle23 @ Mar 29, 2009 -> 11:29 AM) The Scary part for me is that they are the Twins. Nothing seems to phase them, even in down years. I think the Verducci Effect could nab them this year. Perkins pitched 50-something innings in 2007 and 184 innings in 2008. Liriano pitched 120 innings in 2006... 0 innings in 2007... and 190+ innings in 2008. Those are stats screaming "a trip to the DL is coming in 2009".

We have a discussion in the FutureSox forum on this too. Birmingham is going to be loaded. Could be the Sox are trying to have their next 'core' come up together as a group?

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 02:33 PM) With the exception of Baker, the twins rotation is having a great spring. Scary. Baker has a 6.85 ERA in 6 starts; Liriano has a 5.18 ERA in 7 starts; Blackburn has only pitched 9 innings as he's struggling to recover from off-season knee surgery... which could result in Humber replacing him in the rotation; Humber has a 4.91 ERA this spring. So... what's the scary part?

An interesting theory... Possibly the WhiteSox are loading the deck at Birmingham because they see this as "the new core"... and they want them to: A. Bring them along as a group B. Get minor league playoff experience

I think Fields biggest challenge on D at this point is his judgment. (When to step forward or back on balls.) Most of his errors error seem to be situations where he sits back and the ball 'plays him'. As painful as it seems right now, that's not too bad because that's something that should improve with experience.

So, let's see. Birmingham's lineup is going to be... LF - Shelby CF - ?? RF - Gartrell? 3B - Viciedo SS - Beckham 2B - ?? 1B - Brandon Allen C - Flowers DH - Retherford Starting rotation includes... Poreda Ely Santeliz Harrell McCulloch The pen will have... Omogrosso Nunez Rote Lujan Brooks Wow.... they're going to be loaded. The very interesting ripple effect of this is going to be the effect on lower levels too. Because there will be quite a few players who could be promoted who won't be due to lack of spots at higher levels. Could be a big year for each of the Sox minor league clubs as a result.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Mar 29, 2009 -> 07:16 AM) Best $950 I ever spend. Wow... Poreda and Viciedo both to Birmingham. And the Southern League All-Star game is going to be in Birmingham this year too! I can just picture a roster full of WhiteSox prospects playing in the all-star game in their home ball park. Definitely would be entertaining.

Article by Scott Merkin Excerpts below... Linebrink focused on health in spring White Sox reliever wants to be sure shoulder issues are in past Scott Linebrink has given up on ever feeling absolutely 100 percent again on the mound. "Where I'm at right now, I really didn't think I'd be where I am now, starting when I started playing catch this offseason and where I ended up last year," Linebrink said. "I was a little concerned the way my shoulder felt and the last time I felt like that, I had surgery [in 1998]. "The fact we worked through this, it's given me a lot of confidence. I've seen stuff that was coming out of my hand that was a lot better than the end of last year. I'm not really thinking of anything with my shoulder when I go out there. I'm able to go out and work on hitting spots. And I've also figured out things mechanics-wise to take stress off my shoulder. When factoring in four straight seasons of at least 71 appearances, along with four straight seasons of at least 70 innings pitched, Linebrink understands that his quip about never being 100 percent is fairly accurate. Then again, the White Sox don't need Linebrink to be perfect. They just want him to play the same important setup role to closer Bobby Jenks, along with Octavio Dotel and Matt Thornton, as he did for the first half of 2008. "My concern is just having the best stuff I can and go out there and feel I can get outs. Right now, I feel like I can. The few games that have been rough have simply been a matter of location and I think a lot of that goes back to mechanics, not necessarily how my arm feels."

KW with a mild slap at my boy CJ Retherford. Hawk: "My pick to click in the minors this year is CJ Retherford." KW "He's a grinder, but if he has the best year of anybody in our minor league system, we're in serious trouble." (KW then followed up and said he meant no disrespect to CJ... just wanted to make the point that he has high expectations for a few players in the minors this year.) I think CJ will have a nice year and I'd love to see him put himself on the serious prospect list... but KW's point is well taken.

I swear our team must have the lowest baserunning IQ in baseball.

I always love how sports writers interpret what is said and try to make it sound more dramatic. Here's what 'the coaching staff' (ie. Ozzie) actually said... "Every time he (Marquez) got in trouble (Thursday), he was behind in the count. I think the key for him is to make sure he attacks the strike zone. But he threw the ball well."

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 06:49 PM) True, but he's been listed on the Barons roster since last season and Gordon Beckham is still listed on Kanny's roster. Moving Viciedo to B'ham's roster is interesting none the least. I guess we'll see. All I'm hearing now is that Poreda's coming back to B'ham to start again, as I suggested he would. If Poreda, Beckham, and Viciedo all start the year in Birmingham, then I'm coming down for several games... with my video cam.

QUOTE (Heads22 @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 05:17 PM) No Egbert? What s*** is this? The paper said he'd pitch either today or tomorrow. At least we get to see Cassell.

Watching Owens hit, there is NO question why he has no power. What a freakin' feeble looking swing. Lillibridge looks like Mark McGuire up there in comparison.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 03:20 PM) He had been listed on Charlotte's roster, now he's on B'ham's. That's all I know, but I doubt it was an accident. Could be an accident. Aaron Poreda is listed on the Baron's roster too. And I think it's a given that he's going to be in Charlotte. So... who knows? We'll find out pretty soon.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 03:11 PM) He hit .220 in AAA with an OBP under .300 last year. And the year before that he hit .281 with a .345 OBP in AA/AAA. And the year before that he hit .303 with a .417 OBP in A-ball. So... maybe 2008 turns out to be just one bad year... not an indication of his talent.

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Mar 27, 2009 -> 11:48 AM) Makes more sense IMO anyway. He is seriously raw, and needs to learn how to hit without short fences. ^^^^^^^^^ Exactly. Birmingham is a much better place for him to start. It will enforce the discipline of trying to hit line drives rather than swinging for the fences. Plus, he'll have a Spanish speaking manager there. I have a feeling JPN366 is going to be having alot of fun at games this year. We may have to take up a collection and buy him a digital video camera to catch some of the action.

The division is up for grabs and will be decided by pitching and injuries. Frankly, I think we start the year with the best rotation (and bullpen) in the division. If you don't think so, take a closer look at the others. Blackburn is struggling for Minnesota this spring (surgically repaired knee). There is talk Humber will replace him in the rotation. Glen Perkins jumped from 52 innings in 2007 to 184 in 2008? Verducci Effect this year, maybe? Carl Pavano as #3 for the Tribe? LOL. Horatio Ramirez starting for the Royals? Nate Robertson couldn't crack our top 6... and the Tigers are one pitching injury away from having Dontrelle back in their rotation. And people think we have problems? If the Sox stay reasonably healthy, I think they'll win 86-87 games. If the back end of the rotation holds up and we have no major injuries to the middle of our lineup we'll win 90.

QUOTE (Jimmywins1 @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 12:49 PM) Meant to say "didn't", but his 1 year in the majors came when his body was already filled in, expecting him to gain durability as he gets closer to thirty is just silly. Why? I was alot stronger and in better shape at 30 than I was at 25. Years don't make a difference in that age range. Exercise and nutrition does.

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Mar 26, 2009 -> 04:36 PM) Based on the pitches I've seen him throw and the coaching staff we have in place. He has a nice sinker and change. His curve will occassionaly float which hurts him and left handed hitters can take him the other way with ease. He is a few small adjustments away from being a big league pitcher IMO. ^^^^^^^^^^^^ Yes. He's been hurt by a couple of outings, but overall he's pitched pretty well in S/T. He's been keeping the ball down and has nice movement on his pitches. I'd really like to see him pitch in AAA this year and add a cutter.