Dick Allen

I'd like to see the White Sox swing a deal for Kaz Matsui. He is supposed to be available, although I believe he has a no trade clause which permits him to be traded only to the Yankees, or the LA area teams. He was a little dissapointing last year, but still had decent numbers. I think with a year in the U.S. under his belt and a switch to the AL which is more a breaking ball league, like Japan, he could really bust out. He could play SS or 2B which would provide Ozzie with huge flexibility.

That's the way I saw it. To say the ground can't cause a fumble is not true in the NFL. If he isn't touched its a fumble. The referee should be fined, suspended and/or fired for that replay call in the end zone however. That was brutal.

Obviously, even KW, one of Willie's biggest backers doesn't share your optimism. He traded for a cooked Robbie Alomar twice because Willie wasn't up for the job,(Willie hit .182 in June and .188 in July and drove home 2 runs combined those 2 months last season) and made his first order of business this off season signing Omar Vizquel which would have put Willie deep on the bench or out of the organization. Dave Wills, a guy who bends over backwards giving Sox players a fair shake, said Willie has a bad attitude. Maybe he gets his head on straight and those hot streaks turn out not to be a fluke. I'm not counting on it.

What has Willie ever done on the major league level to make anyone believe he can be a regular?

If the White Sox are relying on Willie Harris doing anything, the playoffs are a pipe dream.

Timo played the entire season with a quad injury. He isn't the fastest guy in the world, but is faster than he showed last season. He's also a pretty good outfielder, and has more range than he showed. He's a decent 4th outfielder, can fill in at all 3 spots, gets some big hits, and makes less than half the average salary and less than 1/8th of a pitcher who won 9 games last year. I don't think its a bad deal.

Rush, of course. I have a couple of boots, one from their last tour this summer, and one that's been remastered from 1980. The quality of bootlegs has really risen the past 15 years. I keep my Robin Trower close by.

You're right.

I think there is a lot of radio interference if you try to pick it up in the city. I live on the gold coast and am1000 comes in, but very staticy in my home. When my friend and I go to the games we turn on the post game for the ride home, and almost always completely lose reception when we get near downtown until we get about 2 blocks north of the Chicago River.

Just wait until a huge chunk of concrete falls at the Urinal, crashing through the protective netting. Marriotti will be writing about how nobody listened to him when he was calling for the dump to be torn down.

Evidently, ARod didn't, HE has to sign the contract. If ARod absolutely didn't want to play for Texas, he wouldn't have. Give me a break. Boras doesn't have that much power over these guys. They chase the money too.

I don't think ARod was open to switching positions in 2001.

He made a boat load more money than he would have made anywhere else, and seemed to enjoy his time there.

ARod doesn't want to play for the Yankees?

Considering 60% of that rotation was with the Yankees last year, and they couldn't win with a line up that is so superior to the line up the White Sox would field in 2005, I'm really not that impressed.

I really was hoping he was signed, but there may be legitimate reasons why he wasn't. KW could have talked to the pitching staff, and they might not want to throw to him. He may have talked to some of the players who may not want him around. Maybe they have information that would scare anyone away from signing him. Maybe he talked to him and AJ told him to buzz off. I am not a fan of KW, I think he overvalues his prospects and doesn't set realistic figures for signing free agents, but I have no doubt he is trying to improve the team. This seemed like a no-brainer, but maybe Davis has a breakout season. At least at one time, he was considered among the best if not the best catching prospect in baseball. I do know the Sox are going to need another catcher. There is no way Davis and Burke will be able to handle the job for 162 games.

He wasn't going to lose Davis. I'm sure they had some sort of idea what was going to happen when KW non-tendered him. They probably couldn't get the contract done by the deadline, and if KW offered him arbitration, the players association would have skewered him if he took a 33% cut. Plus, he has a chance to play a lot here. He might not find that anywhere else. If he plays like he played when he was hot, he will make a lot of money next year and beyond. If he hits like he did the rest of the season, you can take comfort in knowing the White Sox really are taking on a National League style, even having their ninth place hitter be an automatic out.

The fact that he did get hot last year, and the pitching staff seemed to like him would be reason, if the price was right. FWIW, just like AJ Piersinski, Ben Davis hasn't always had a stellar reputation as a teammate.

Ben Davis couldn't beat out Dan f***ing Wilson last year. Except for a one hot streak, where he was unbelievable, he couldn't hit sour apples on the White Sox either. The hot streak shows he has ability, so he may be worthwhile to keep as a back up. Thinking he could or should be an everyday catcher at this point is crazy, especially if you are expecting to contend.

I don't think losing Ben Davis would make much of a difference in the quest for a championship.

I predict Ben either signs for less than he made this year, or he gets non-tendered. What would he command on the open market?

He sucks. He always has sucked. He always will suck. Good riddance. Another $2.2 million for KW to play with.

The Twins signed Jones, LeCroy and Rivas, and offered arbitration to their other eligibles including Santana.

Oswalt was tendered.

I'm sure if the espn station in South Florida had information like this, they would share it with the station here. It probably is bogus, but Tampa Bay is supposed to have serious interest in AJ.