SpringfieldFan
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Posts posted by SpringfieldFan
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Hey, I need a little reassurance right now, so hopefully you all can set me straight. What kind of hope should I realistically be keeping for this season? I grant that they are firmly in this race right now at 2 game back (hell, as long as they are within 4 when the last week rolls around they are still in it).
However, I won't beat around the bush about it: I want the Sox in the World Series. Period. Now, what kind of evidence can I be looking at to assure me they at least have a reasonable chance at getting there. Even given their recent surge, there are still unresolved issues. So far they still cannot win out west. They also haven't shown they can create victories when the bats have off nights. Finally, they still haven't proven they can win on the road against quality opponents (except for KC, if you call them quality). Now, they still have difficult trips to make to the homes of some of the best the league has to offer, and if they manage to get the division title, it may very well mean a trip to Seattle or Oakland soon after that.
Given all this, I could really use some specific concrete reasons to be optimistic and believe that these handicaps will simply go away or at least not stand in their way. Can anyone give me any?
LT
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I am just tired of hearing people excuse him because of his young age. It may be true, but how much longer do we have to hear it?
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Let me try:
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I just thought I would check sportsline's rankings to see how our guys are faring. Such rankings are worth slightly less then a grain of salt, but what I saw was surprising, both good and bad. First the bad: The Sox team itself ranked only around 17th in MLB, behind the Cubs! The Sox rotation only ranked 11th! Also, Olivo is nowhere near the top among catchers. I guess this is all because these compilations look at the complete numbers, not just recent trends.
Now the good surprises, which are regarding the individual players: Mags is the #3 right fielder, which is good news in itself but the icing on the cake is that BEHIND him at #4 is none other than...Corky. Frank Thomas is the #1 DH, even ahead of Edgar! He has *always* been top 3, but he is numero uno right now. And finally, guess who else is #1 in his position? Would you believe its Esteban Loaiza?!! He is right there at the top, in front of Pedro, Randy, Mulder, Halliday - all of them! The "experts" may not think he is for real, but the computers sure do.
Well the game isn't played on paper or computers, but the fun thing about this is that it is saying that the best right fielder and pitcher in Chicago play for Sox, not the Cubs. Who would have thunk?
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Hey, is anyone listening to the B & B show on the score? They are discussing Hawk Harrelson and one of them ( I am not sure which) is doing his hawkism impressions. It is absolutely hilarious! What makes it so funny is that the impressions are dead-on: he's gownnn...mercy!...YES!...stay fair... etc. etc. etc. In fact, he sounds more like Hawk than Hawk himself, right down to the tone in his voice.
I think these two are kind of corny usually, but they are growing on me - especially as they continue calling Sosa out for the samME his is.
Othersise, I dunno where I'm going with this thread but I just had to remark about my laugh for the afternoon.
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Believe it or not, folks, but he has also put himself in the running for the A.L. batting crown.
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At this particular time, I would not deal Colon. His last start was dominant, but the context in which he did it is very interesting to me. I heard that before his last start, Manuel encouraged him to go back to being more of a power pitcher and trust his heat, and he evidently concurred. If that change was the reason for his strong outing -- then we could be seeing a whole new Bartolo for the rest of the season. Before dealing him for anyone, I would like to hold on to him just long enough to see if he has indeed turned a corner.
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Why not give Gload a chance?
I agree completely. If JM for some reason insists on continuing to dh Frank, then I guess you can leave it up to Sox management to let a talented hitting left handed first baseman's career fizzle while the current snail hitting .197 makes his 7 digit salary.
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Hey, I was fortunate enough to catch some of the AAA all star game last night on ESPN2 while flipping tv channels. It was actually my first chance to actally see Gload and Miles. I was impressed by both of them. Gload had a couple hits and ripped the ball every time up (of course all the IL stars were hitting last night). He has a good looking lefty swing and the ball seemed to jump off his bat stronger then you would think to look at effort in his swing. I don't hear much about him when we talk about the future of the Sox, but at the least, he should be some valuable trade bait in the near future.
Aaron Miles got into the second half of the game and the announcers remarked on how he reminded them of Fernando Vina from the other side of the plate. He is indeed scrappy, but he swung a pretty good bat also, getting on at least a couple times, including a good rip for a single to drive a guy in in the 7th. I sure hope he can wind up being acceptable defensively, because he sure looks like a gamer.
I didn't catch the whole game and didn't see the rosters, so I don't know if any other Knights were in the game. I don't think Borchard was there, as a Pawtucket speedster was manning CF the entire game. I don't think any Knight pitchers were there either (as if any deserved to be!).
BTW, has Charlotte always worn green on their uniforms? I thought used to wear red and blue.
Does anyone else have any thoughts on the game?
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All I can say is that if JM's days are numbered, the firing had better come awfully quick - none of this "see how the homestand goes" or "wait until the end of the month" stuff. If getting a new guy in there is going to salvage the season it has to happen almost immediately. I say this because although the all star break is "midseason", we are well past the halfway mark aleady. The Sox are 45-49. That is 94 games in the books. My math skills tell me that leaves only 68 games to turn it around and make up 8 games in the loss column. Sure, the all star break is happening, but we are already well into the second half...
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Honestly folks, why are you putting yourselves through all of this for the freakin' all star game? Don't you realize it essentially a popularity contest providing a showcase for those who are hip with their peers, the public, and the media? Did you honestly think the White Sox would be well served in circumstances like that? I never expect then to have more representatives then the one "token" player every team is required to have.
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Ok, back to the "knock your socks off" trade rumor. I have heard a lot of opinions on who people think would be involved in the trade. I would just like to add my own predictions FWIW (which ain't much!).
Forget about the Buehrle for Drew rumor. I don't think this will happen but I can envision a similar trade with the birds. St. Louis is starved for pitching, both in the rotation and in late relief. The Sox are much improved with Everette's bat, but face it, he is not a true center fielder. Therefore, I can see the Sox sending Buerhle to St. Louis for Jim Edmonds. Edmonds is as near a perfect center fielder as you will find and would be perfect in Chicago, allowing Everette to either play left (Lee to DH) or to DH himself. Losing him is a steep price for the Cards, but getting a 2004 Cy Young candidate with contract time left could be awfully tempting for them. If not, KW might just include a reliever as well to help the Cards' late inning woes.
Do you think such a deal would be possible and would you approve? I can picture it happening, although I don't know if I like the idea or not. Losing Buehrle this year would be tough, but the rest of the rotation has stepped up and Edmonds would be perfect in the Sox lineup. Maybe if they could acquire someone like a Ponson the deal would be worthwhile.
MB for Edmonds would be a terrible trade
better then MB for Drew though?
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Ok, back to the "knock your socks off" trade rumor. I have heard a lot of opinions on who people think would be involved in the trade. I would just like to add my own predictions FWIW (which ain't much!).
Forget about the Buehrle for Drew rumor. I don't think this will happen but I can envision a similar trade with the birds. St. Louis is starved for pitching, both in the rotation and in late relief. The Sox are much improved with Everette's bat, but face it, he is not a true center fielder. Therefore, I can see the Sox sending Buerhle to St. Louis for Jim Edmonds. Edmonds is as near a perfect center fielder as you will find and would be perfect in Chicago, allowing Everette to either play left (Lee to DH) or to DH himself. Losing him is a steep price for the Cards, but getting a 2004 Cy Young candidate with contract time left could be awfully tempting for them. If not, KW might just include a reliever as well to help the Cards' late inning woes.
Do you think such a deal would be possible and would you approve? I can picture it happening, although I don't know if I like the idea or not. Losing Buehrle this year would be tough, but the rest of the rotation has stepped up and Edmonds would be perfect in the Sox lineup. Maybe if they could acquire someone like a Ponson the deal would be worthwhile.
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Is anyone else taking note of how the starting rotation is shaping up right now? It is starting to look, dare I say, very promising for the 2nd half. Of course we have Loaisa, who may not be the best pitcher in baseball, but has the best numbers and qualifies as an ace so far. Of course Colon is Colon and is beginning to establish himself again at this point of the season. Add to that the fact that Buehrle is looking like he is his old self. That makes three bonafide stoppers on our rotation. Beyond that, Garland has been very strong for the last two months and even though his last start was shaky, I feel confident when he goes out these days. Even our maligned #5 spot is showing life now. Danny gutted it out like a vet this afternoon and some may forget what a good outing he had last time, where I believe he only gave up a run in six innings or so.
I know not every one of them can stay hot for the rest of the season, but dang, our starting staff is quietly shaping up to be something special. What do you think it portends for the rest of the season?
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How many of you would like to bet that three or four years down the road he will be wearing a red cap and be the National League Cy Young winner?
...and would you also bet that for whatever reason, he won't ever win it as long as he is in Chicago?
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Unfortunately, but my hope for the Sox this year has not returned. Had they been swept the last 6 or 7 games as some had feared, that would have signaled that this team was a 90-100 loss team that belongs in last place. Well, as disappointing as they have been, they are not that bad. They will finish the season about five or six games under .500. That means they will win a few series' here and there; and unfortunately, that won't give any cause to make dramatic changes in the makeup or management of the team.
Sorry, but I just don't know how the Sox can all of the sudden become a smart team that knows how to be intelligent in how it handles game situations in the field and on the basepaths. I also don't see anything to assure me that they will find a way to win when the bats start slumping (ok, slumping even worse) then they are now.
Hope I am wrong.
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Nice to see the 0 walks but I imagine he must have been deep into counts, or the other team was bailing him out a lot. If he only went 5 innings there must have been a reason.
Does anyone know the typical lines on their other starters? Do any of them typically go longer then 5 innings? I am just wondering if the manager has a quick hook regardless of who's pitching...
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Blame the players that don't seem to care, not the guy sitting up in the suite with his head in his hands.
Hey, I like that quote. I really do. I don't have a strong opinion one way or the other on JR, but your image sure adds some perspective to the situation.
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Definitely! Get him out of here for something before it gets too late.
Agreed. He has a good work ethic but its time we cut him loose, even if his hitting does improve. A situation in the Twins series earlier crystallized it for me. I don't remember the exact scenario but I do know he was on second and I believe the bases were full in a close game. There was a single to center and he could not advance past third on the play. It was a 1 or 2 run game at the time, and he never did score.
What it told me was that even when he gets on base, his lack of speed just gums up the basepaths. If you are as slow as Paulie, you better damn well be a home run hitter and Paulie is not - as I see it, he is a doubles hitter even when at his best. The problem is that he is so slow he is a liablility on the basepaths. If he doubles, you could almost consider it a single, since he is often to slow to score from second on a base hit, and too slow to score on a fly if he advances to third. That is bad enough but I have seen more than once when the sox have rallied and he not only has been too slow to advance the extra base, but also has prohibited the guy behind him from advancing as well.
Like I said, he gums up the basepaths and it is a detriment even when he *is* hitting.
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Well theres Ryan Wing, Bullard, Arnie Munoz and I know I'm missing a few others.
I agree we have other prospects that show a lot of promise in the organization and are on a faster track. The thing so far that separates Meaux, though, is his control. We have seen our share of hot prospects promoted to the majors, only to end up walking batters or continually falling behind on counts. I just think that the organization might do itself a favor by putting more of a premium on control, rather than just on hot arms or great curveballs, etc. I just worry the real value in such control pitchers might be getting overlooked as our management looks more at raw "potential". Does that make any sense?
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Ok, I have to add this quote from this morning directly from MLB.com:
CHICAGO -- Gary Ward was relieved of his duties as hitting coach by the White Sox late Sunday night, culminating a frustrating weekend in which the team lost all three games to Minnesota at the Metrodome. The move will not be officially announced by the club until later Monday but was confirmed by White Sox general manager Kenny Williams.
Now, I ask you, what's wrong with this picture? Well, why in the heck is Kenny Williams announcing this??? I thought the dude had resigned behind the scenes and effectively was not involved in operations anymore. What is the deal. Is he back? Did he never really leave? What the heck??
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Does anyone have any insight on Ryan Meaux, who we got in the Lofton trade? Do you think the Sox will have any serious plans for him. I wonder because he is only in A ball and is, I believe, already 25 years old.
The reason I have taken an interest in him is that so far he has a microscopic ERA (0.29) but more than that is the control he is showing. In 31 innings pitched so far, he has given up just ONE walk. Granted, 31 innings is not a large sample size, but if he continues to display this kind of control, do you think he will get a closer look? I hear a lot about Neal Cotts, and being and ISU alum, I am really pulling for him and am impressed by his ERA and K/IP. However, being a Sox fan lately has shown me the light on just how important it is to throw strikes and be able to control a count (i.e. Loiaza and pre-2003 Buehrle).
What do you all think?
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In true bravado fashion Colon smirks at Olivo, Olivo smirks at Colon Colon states, "It's hittin time."
I love it
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Hey, has anyone heard who made the decision for Bartolo to plunk Hairston? Did Bartolo and/or Olivo decide to do it themselves? Was it suggested by Cooper and/or Manuel? All I can say is if it was JM's idea, or if it wasn't his idea but he okay'ed it, then he has certainly earned some more of my respect back. That is just the attitude this teams needs and whoever came up with the idea to retaliate to protect Mags in at this moment the most valuable person on the team IMO.
LT
Need good reasons for optimism
in Pale Hose Talk
Posted
You ain't helpin' me, guys!