Dick Allen

Ventura a genius for not starting Nieto.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 01:47 PM) Pitchers always did the same thing with Alfonso Soriano. Throw him a slider low and away, he will swing and miss EVERY time. Instead they try to sneak fastballs in there, boom home run. Ryne Sandberg as well.

Not bad. Abreu got a talking to last night from Parent and Ventura for a lack of hustle.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 11:50 AM) Is it over? One season deal? Yes, unless it's like True Detective and a totally different story with all new characters.

QUOTE (Jake @ Jun 17, 2014 -> 10:10 PM) Phegley's 8th passed ball of the season tonight. Can't believe he's still having these problems. Cannot be a MLB catcher with the passed ball rate he sports every season Phegley has problems catching strikes.

Another thing about Sizemore I read is he also is a shell of his former self defensively.

I am not a Gar/Pax hater, but if they fail to land the big one this year, it is a pattern. Trying is great, but that's for kids. Results are all that matters. If they can't land the big names, it would be time for Jerry and Michael Reinsdorf to hire someone who can. It really makes you wonder where this team would have been if they getting get crazy lucky getting DRose.

QUOTE (bmags @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 11:06 AM) They have a ton of money next year. That was the issue, they were asking Melo to wait for help in 2015-16. I am kind of convinced too that the Knicks will not do him any favors. They hired Phil because they thought they'd get the recruiting efforts for stars like Pat Riley. If his first move is to lose their only star that would be a huge blow. Assuming Love gets traded and signs an extension, and LeBron never becomes a Knick, look at the 2015 free agent list and the rest of the Knicks roster. Aldridge would be a good signing, but that team wouldn't be a title contender IMO. If they or any team can land LeBron, everything changes.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 10:57 AM) I absolutely hate this logic, but whatever. DA, why do you think it'd take a sign and trade? I think ultimately its too much money for Melo to leave on the table and the Knicks would like something back. I'm not entirely convinced Jackson really wants Melo to stay. By the time they are good again, unless they can land LeBron, Melo is going to be a little long in the tooth.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 10:56 AM) That is what could happen and backfire. Miami could just swap Melo and Wade. That is if Wade is foolish enough to opt out. I guess it might not be foolishness of Wade but unselfishness to take less realizing they won't win and keep the band together with him getting anything near what he currently makes. That is why I don't see how you sit back and not go balls to the walls for Love. I can't see how Wade could opt out without assurances they will be taking care of him.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 10:54 AM) I agree; Things have worked out well with the Heat losing too. I also don't see how you can be passive on Love. At this point, you go big or go home. Not to mention ultimately Gar/Pax failure lands on Thibs' lap. If the Bulls aren't legit title contenders, Thibs will be gone when his contract expires.

QUOTE (scs787 @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 10:44 AM) Ye have little faith...want a cookie? I'm fairly confident, for whatever reason, they'll get one of the 2. Melo probably makes the more sense since he's probably opting out so it wouldn't cost them draft picks and it wouldn't require completely gutting the team. That is KC Johnson's take. I still think it would take a sign and trade, but if Gar/Pax come up empty this offseason, I think it will be a huge blow to the franchise. Enough is enough.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 09:57 AM) But they made the playoffs like twice, right? Even though the records was good, this team hasn't been a "winner" in a long time. I'm not saying we have to win 5 WAS in a row, but a few consecutive playoff runs would do wonders, IMO. Shouldn't they at least be league average when they win 85-90 games in Chicago? Isn't 1 out of 4 years even being league average in attendance pretty much a failure signal somewhere? They haven't been that bad. A run like you described is probably what it is going to take or at least a team that is supposed to win every year for a while. Someday, it will turn around, but something needs to happen to give it a jump start.

Verlander got booed off the mound the other night in Detroit. I wonder if Scherzer did as well. I also wonder if Scherzer's insurance covers poor performance along with injury. It has to be expensive. The Tigers are going to be just as ugly as the rest of Detroit in a couple of years.

QUOTE (Brian @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 06:39 AM) Fargo Finale Fantastic I'm going to miss that show.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 09:17 AM) Its their home station. They always get layup interviews. Really, no one in Chicago challenges anyone in sports. What would you have challenged him on today?

QUOTE (bmags @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 09:22 AM) Has anyone actually asked about the loss of velocity from E. Johnson? Seems like it's just about his performance. Edit: By anyone, I mean any media to Sox front office or even media like Steve Stone. It would seem since he is still pitching, it isn't an injury. I think maybe his arm slot is off a little bit or something else mechanical. He can't even throw strikes, so it really would make zero sense the team would keep sending him out there even if they just suspected he may be injured.

QUOTE (Eminor3rd @ Jun 18, 2014 -> 08:22 AM) Coincidentally, exactly 27 teams won more games than us last year. Comparing attendance totals to the past is useless because of all the cultural and technological changes, and if you want to know the secret to high attendance compared to other teams, look at the win column. And no, I don't mean the "had a couple exciting months before falling out of it a couple years ago" column. When the Sox had Maggs, CLee, Big Hurt...their attendance wasn't even average. According to Caulfield's post, they weren't even average when they won the division in 2000 or when they won the WS in 2005. Wasn't there a 10-15 year stretch where the White Sox won more games than just about everyone except for 3 or 4 teams? I think the problem is the fanbase is stuck in the finding an excuse not to attend games mode. Not necessarily the fans fault. There have been great restaurants that didn't draw a crowd. Great TV shows that didn't draw an audience. Somehow, Brooks and his crew need to make USCF a destination, but until they start winning often, I think he has zero chance.

Cain isn't fooling many

It is always weird when Dunn gets a base hit to right with the shift on.

QUOTE (1dog @ Jun 17, 2014 -> 08:34 PM) Well yeah, but I didn't want to go too far. ha In that situation where 1 more ball scores a run, it's an absolute no-brainer. I have never seen a non pitcher in this kind of streak where he cannot put the ball in play.

QUOTE (Tmar @ Jun 17, 2014 -> 08:33 PM) When's the sixth inning Right after the 5th.

QUOTE (1dog @ Jun 17, 2014 -> 08:27 PM) Ventura should be immediately fired for not giving Tyler the take sign on 3-1. Just insane to trust that guy not to swing at ball 4. He should give him a permanent take until his fix really fixes him.

WTF was Morse doing there?

QUOTE (Soxfest @ Jun 17, 2014 -> 08:22 PM) Loaded up no DP please. De Aza granted your wish. So we get to watch Flowers strike out again.