Dick Allen

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 09:41 PM) The outfield there is expansive, it feels alot like Oakland. I've been to the park and I really didnt like it much, it wasnt very intimate. I went last series, and it was really nice, but seemed huge. The upper deck I didn't go up to but didn't it seem about 50 feet higher than USCF? I didn't know what its capacity was, so I assumed it had to be at least 45,000. I was shocked the sellout was only about 40k.

The ball doesn't fly out of there very much. I wonder with Mauer hitting his first homer in that park tonight, if they will consider moving in the fences next year.

Jesse Crain is thought about in Minneapolis the exact same way Scott Linebrink is on this board, but he's having a pretty good season. Their fans assume nothing but bad is going to happen right now.

They are only chasing 2 so maybe they can come back. If not, they have to win tomorrow. 6 games back would be tough to make up vs. Minnesota, especially if Mourneau ever returns this year.

QUOTE (Cerbaho-WG @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 09:25 PM) Man, Sale is so skinny. Like twelve-year-old kid skinny. Do you think he's skinnier than Anorexei? Ramirez actually lost 5 lbs in the offseason.

QUOTE (Friend of Nordhagen @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 09:23 PM) I think it has something to do with the Twins having a better team than us. Maybe that wasn't true in other years, but that's certainly the case this year, and -- c'mon guys -- it's not really close. They were better than us last year, and made good offseason acquisitions (Hardy, Hudson and, yes, Thome), so it's not really all that surprising, I guess. It's frustrating, but it's not like this is about much more than that. They ARE BETTER THIS YEAR. (Go around the diamond, even without Morneau, and ask if you'd rather have their guy or our guy). The only quibble I have is with our pitching in these series against them but, hey, the Twins have a good lineup. I was told the Twins couldn't win outside. Miraculously, they have the best home record in the AL.

Sale for Span Steve Stone? Ozzie says f*** off if you don't like Floyd pitching against him here, and quit watching the White Sox.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 09:18 PM) Coop and Jenks come from the same place in terms of being unable to accept criticism. Yeah but Ozzie throws a few thousand f bombs and has the nerve to say he doesn't care what people think.

QUOTE (bucket-of-suck @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 09:16 PM) OMFG> That was the dumbest SS play I have ever seen. Mental meltdown time! KW says he should win the GG. Has he watched how many stupid plays he makes?

Alexei Ramirez is a talented but dumb SS.

He's lucky that one didn't go about 450

I know it gives the guy at second a huge jump, but Floyd needs to go to the wind up right now. He's a minor leaguer from the stretch tonight.

Its a good thing the ump blew the call at first or this game would be tied. Amazing Hawk doesn't bring it up.

QUOTE (bucket-of-suck @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 08:56 PM) WHY WHY WHY WHY are you pitching Mauer away? Unreal. He should drill him and then stare at Delmon Young.

QUOTE (bighurt574 @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 06:44 PM) Ozzie is an idiot. No need to throw Thome under the bus... http://www.chicagobreakingsports.com/2010/...-departure.html "I'm not afraid," Guillen said. "I can care less what people think. We're in second place. When Jim Thome was here, we finished third three times out of four years (actually two third-place finishes and one fourth-place ending). We went to one playoff because he hit a home run to go to the playoffs. I think he mean's couldn't care less, but if that's really the case, how come Ozzie gets so upset when people have a different view than he does? The I really don't care what you think but I'm going to go off and tell everyone that that view is wrong with no valid points and get pissed off every time someone disagrees with me act is stale. Thome is a Twin now, so I couldn't care less and actually applaud Ozzie for not kissing his ass today, but you know the organization is very sensitive to the Thome situation. On telecasts and now in print, they really don't make much of his successes. Hawk last night kept saying "a whole lot of guys are going to hit that pitch hard" each time Thome did something positive. They need to get over it. Realize Thome would have helped the Sox and move on. Quit trying to spin the situation. You want a LH bat. In his last 640 plate appearances Thome has 40 HR 120 RBI over 100 walks. To say he wouldn't help is sour grapes.

QUOTE (jhonnydanks @ Aug 18, 2010 -> 07:28 AM) why would we hit mauer? clearly delmon young is the one who deserves a fastball to the face. anything less and i will be ashamed. Go after their best. If anything will deter their BS, its the prospect that Joe Mauer will pay.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 04:29 PM) I don't think anybody fears the Twins, but I do think many of us expect them to not only beat us, but blow us out in games. I fully expect us to lose all 3 games. I would be shocked if we win two. I wouldn't be totally surprised if we win one. I dont fear Minnesota. I'm a realist. This is another season where they again have our number. They have no pressure on them going into this series and frankly figure to bury our ass. That's all right though. The Sox had a chance to kick their ass in Chicago and promptly lost 2 of 3. And I do expect a fight this series, which may turn out the way it did when Robin Ventura charged Nolan Ryan. Bad timing for a fight/beanball war. But I sense it is coming tonight in game one, to try to set the cliche-like "tone" to the series. After the Toriiiiiii Hunter-esque move Young pulled on AJ last night, its time for some retaliation. If they get the first couple guys out in the first inning tonight, its time for Mauer to feel some pain, and if you miss the first time, try try again.The fact that there really was never any retaliation for Hunter, in fact, Ozzie praised him, Quentin getting thrown at, nothing, and the reaction like the Young BS was just another play last night, is ridiculous. Exorcise the demons, show the Twins enough is enough.

Look at Thome's numbers between last year and this season. If you add them together they are about equal or maybe even better than Adam Dunn's numbers for 2009. 640 plate appearances, 40 homers 120 RBI, 170 k, 100+ BB.............. What would you have been willing to give up last winter in order to pay Dunn $10 million to do it again? Thome would have cost a fraction of the cash and no players. There is no argument it wasn't a mistake letting him go. He wanted to be a White Sox.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 11:20 PM) BTW, what were the options in FA for acquiring another DH? It really didn't matter. If the Sox need another bat, KW will just get Gonzalez or Dunn at the deadline. Oh wait.................... Offense was not the reason the Sox lost tonight however.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 11:18 PM) He also had a great game tonight and isn't the reason we lost. We couldn't hold a lead ... again. In a way he could be the reason the Sox lost. If they didn't have him, maybe they have Thome and the Twins don't. Of course maybe the Twins score a couple in the 10th anyway.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 11:08 PM) Who the hell is going to be the closer next year? Santos? I just don't think Thornton's cut out to be the closer...obviously tonight wasn't really his fault, he's been overpitched all season. I just think it would be better to have a closer with at least two consistent pitches, as good as Matt's fastball can be, it's not unhittable, especially when he gets behind in the count. Hello Liriano and Pavano. Great timing to see those two guys. One inning and he's fine. It will be interesting to see how they piece the bullpen together next season. The Sun Times ran something today implying the Sox bullpen was worn down. That can't be good. They are used less than every other bullpen except two.

I would think by now, even Thome's biggest critics would have to admit not bringing Thome back for $1.5 million was a mistake. He has just as much production in half the ABs as White Sox DHs.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 11:01 PM) I'm not even going to blame Ozzie for that final inning, he really doesn't have any good options right now, anything he does could have blown up in his face there. I am still going to blame him for not having a real f***in dh though and no I wont ever get over that bulls***. The Sox did get some DH production tonight, however, if they had signed Thome, the Twins wouldn't have him, and maybe this game is a different story. Maybe a lot of things are different. All I know is the Sox better start winning quickly or their nice comeback will be long forgotten with tumbleweeds returning to USCF in September.

QUOTE (J.Reedfan8 @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 10:59 PM) I agree with you except this part which is false. Other than Badger, few of the posters were surprised that Thornton was back out there for that inning in the game thread. Not saying I didn't agree with it or did (other than Matt's low velocity I thought they still would have pitched Thome better and BTW we have poorly scouted Jim whom we should know his weaknesses that game) but just throwing that out there. High fastball, Thome doesn't touch. Low fastball, Thome touches. Simple. The Sox know Thome's weaknesses as well as or better than every team. Just because you want to throw a high fastball doesn't mean you will, especially if you may be a bit gassed.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ Aug 17, 2010 -> 10:55 PM) I don’t have a problem with Thornton being in the game. I have a problem with him throwing Thome’s kind of pitch in Thome’s wheelhouse. That’s a troubling piece of pitch sequencing. He was probably in too long, and you lose some command and some stuff, but the other options were just as ugly.