JUGGERNAUT

As of 04/26/04: GoG: CL(2), MO(1), WH(2), AR(1), TP(1), MOL(1), JC(1) Who will have the most Glove of the Game honors by season's end?

As of 04/26/04: Bat of the Game Honors: BoG: WH(1), JU(2), JV(1), MO(1), CL(1), JC(1), FT(2)

As of 04/26/04: Arm of the Game honors: AoG: ST(1), SS(2), EL(2), JA(2), JG(1), DW(1)

As of 04/26/04 PoG: ST(1), SS(2), EL(2), MO(1), JG(1), FT(1), JU(1) AoG: ST(1), SS(2), EL(2), JA(2), JG(1), DW(1) BoG: WH(1), JU(2), JV(1), MO(1), CL(1), JC(1), FT(2) GoG: CL(2), MO(1), WH(2), AR(1), TP(1), MOL(1), JC(1) The 10 nominees come from leaders in the PoG, AoG, BoG, & GoG ranks.

The first post totals have been updated. Konerko leads all hitters. Brando there actually was a case like that: APR 22 v NYY : W4-3, Crede's the man! BoG: Joe Crede (Game winning HR) ========================================= RG(65)=65 JC(62)=10+50+2 (Game winning HR > RG's 65) Thanks for helping out

========================================= Sun APR 25 v TB : W6-5 : URIBE's the MAN! PoG: Juan Uribe (75, HR, game-winning walk) AoG: Jon Adkins (Mark did not have a good start) BoG: Juan Uribe (75, HR, game-winning walk) GoG: Crede (Brandofan) ========================================= MB(33)=75+10+0+60+12+55+17 CP(80)=80 JA(10)=10 WH(68)=22+5+20+11 JU(75)=2+7+50+16 PK(75)=10+50+15 MOL(23)=14+9 JC(09)=2+9 MO(05)=5 FT(16)=16 CL(02)=2 RG(04)=4 KD(34)=34 ========================================= TAMPA BAY 1ST -Top of the 1st inning -C Crawford doubled to center. 20 -C Crawford stole third. 15 -R Baldelli singled to shallow right, C Crawford scored. 25,4 -A Huff singled to right, R Baldelli to second. 15,2 MB=75 CHICAGO SOX 1ST -Bottom of the 1st inning -W Harris doubled to right. 20 -J Uribe sacrificed to third, W Harris to third. 2,2 WH=22 JU=2 TAMPA BAY 2ND -T Hall singled to center. 10 MB=10 CHICAGO SOX 2ND -P Konerko singled to left. 10 PK=10 TAMPA BAY 3RD MB=0 CHICAGO SOX 3RD -M Olivo walked. 5 -W Harris reached on bunt single to pitcher, M Olivo to second, M Olivo to third on throwing error by pitcher J Gonzalez. 20,7 -J Uribe grounded into double play, shortstop to second to first, M Olivo scored, W Harris out at second.7,2 MOL=14 WH=20 JU=7 TAMPA BAY 4TH -Top of the 4th inning -A Huff homered to right. 50 -J Lugo singled to center.10 MB=60 CHICAGO SOX 4TH TAMPA BAY 5TH -C Crawford singled to center. 10 -D Rolls grounded out to third, C Crawford to second. 2 -R Baldelli grounded out to second. MB=12 CHICAGO SOX 5TH TAMPA BAY 6TH -E Perez reached on infield single to third. 10 -J Cruz grounded into fielder's choice to shortstop, E Perez out at second. 2 JC=2 CHICAGO SOX 6TH -W Harris singled to right, W Harris out at second. 5 -M Ordonez walked. 5 WH=5 MO=5 TAMPA BAY 7TH -T Hall homered to left. 50 -C Crawford singled to left center. 10 -C Crawford caught stealing second, pitcher to first to shortstop.-5 MB=55 CHICAGO SOX 7TH -P Konerko homered to left. 50 PK=50 TAMPA BAY 8TH -Top of the 8th inning -R Baldelli singled to left. 10 -J Cruz walked, R Baldelli to second. 7,2 MB=17 -C Politte relieved M Buehrle. -R Baldelli stole third, J Cruz stole second. 25 -J Lugo tripled to deep center, R Baldelli and J Cruz scored. 55 CP=80 CHICAGO SOX 8TH -J Uribe homered to center. 50 JU=50 TAMPA BAY 9TH -J Adkins relieved C Politte. -C Crawford singled to right. 10 JA=10 CHICAGO SOX 9TH -F Thomas singled to right. 10 -C Lee walked, F Thomas to second.7,2 -C Lee picked off first.-5 -P Konerko singled to left, F Thomas to third. 15,2 -J Crede grounded out to shortstop, F Thomas scored, R Gload to second.9,2,2 -K Dransfeldt singled to right, R Gload scored, K Dransfeldt to second advancing on throw. 30 -M Olivo intentionally walked. 5 -W Harris walked, K Dransfeldt to third, M Olivo to second. 9,2,2 -J Uribe walked, K Dransfeldt scored, M Olivo to third, W Harris to second. 16,2,2,2 FT=16 CL=2 PK=15 JC=9 RG=4 KD=34 MOL=9 WH=11 JU=16

========================================= Sat APR 24 v TB : L4-1, Lack-luster bats PoG: Frank Thomas (64, Big HR) AoG: Danny Wright (6+ip, quality start) BoG: Frank Thomas (64, Big HR) GoG: Carlos Lee (Brandofan) ========================================= DW(27)=30+0+0+90+40+0+25 : too high for PoG honors (blame Alomar) MJ(30)=30 NC(20)=40+0 ST(5)=0+10 KD(10=10 FT(64)=50+5+9 CL(10)=10 SA(10)=10 JU(15)=15 TP(14)=14 JC(05)=5 ========================================= TAMPA BAY 1ST -Top of the 1st inning -C Crawford singled to center. 10 -C Crawford stole second, C Crawford safe at third on throwing error by catcher S Alomar Jr.20 DW=30 CHICAGO SOX 1ST TAMPA BAY 2ND DW=0 CHICAGO SOX 2ND TAMPA BAY 3RD DW=0 CHICAGO SOX 3RD -K Dransfeldt singled to right. 10 KD=10 TAMPA BAY 4TH -R Baldelli reached on infield single to shortstop. 10 -R Baldelli stole second. 10 -R Fick reached on infield single to first, R Baldelli scored on throwing error by first baseman P Konerko. 25 -T Martinez singled to right, R Fick to third. 20 -J Lugo doubled to deep left center, R Fick scored, T Martinez tagged out at home. 25 DW=90 CHICAGO SOX 4TH -F Thomas homered to left. 50 -C Lee singled to left.10 FT=50 CL=10 TAMPA BAY 5TH -C Crawford hit by pitch. 5 -C Crawford stole second. 10 -D Rolls walked, C Crawford stole third. 25 DW=40 CHICAGO SOX 5TH -S Alomar Jr singled to left. 10 SA=10 TAMPA BAY 6TH -R Baldelli singled to center. 10 -R Baldelli to second on balk by D Wright. 10 -T Martinez intentionally walked. 5 DW=25 -M Jackson relieved D Wright. -J Lugo singled to left, R Baldelli scored, T Martinez to second. 30 MJ=30 CHICAGO SOX 6TH -F Thomas hit by pitch. 5 FT=5 TAMPA BAY 7TH -N Cotts relieved M Jackson. -C Crawford walked. 5 -C Crawford stole second. 10 -D Rolls grounded out to second, C Crawford to third. 5 -A Huff singled to right, C Crawford scored. 20 NC=40 CHICAGO SOX 7TH TAMPA BAY 8TH NC=0 ST=0 CHICAGO SOX 8TH -T Perez singled to left. 10 -J Uribe reached on infield single to third, T Perez to second. 15,2 -F Thomas walked, T Perez to third, J Uribe to second. 9,2,2 JU=15 TP=14 FT=9 TAMPA BAY 9TH -B Fordyce singled to left. 10 ST=10 CHICAGO SOX 9TH -J Crede walked. 5 JC=5

========================================= Fri APR 23 v TB : W3-2 : E-LO! PoG: Estaban Loaiza (7IP, 2R) AoG: Estaban Loaiza (7IP, 2R) BoG: Frank Thomas (62, big HR) GoG: Miguel Olivo (threw out runners) ========================================= EL(19)=0+0+10+85+10+27+10 ST(00)=0 NC(00)=0 BK(10)=10 MO(34)=10+7+17 CL(32)=7+15+10 PK(19)=7+7+5 FT(62)=50+7+5 AR(40)=40 WH(10)=10 KD(04)=4 JC(10)=10 ========================================= TAMPA BAY 1ST CHICAGO SOX 1ST -M Ordonez singled to right center. 10 MO=10 TAMPA BAY 2ND EL=0 CHICAGO SOX 2ND -C Lee walked. 5 -P Konerko hit by pitch, C Lee to second. 7,2 CL=7 PK=7 TAMPA BAY 3RD -G Blum singled to left. 10 EL=10 CHICAGO SOX 3RD TAMPA BAY 4TH -Top of the 4th inning -C Crawford singled to left center. 10 -J Lugo doubled to deep center, C Crawford scored. 20+20 -R Fick singled to left, J Lugo scored, R Fick to second advancing on throw. 10+15+5 -T Martinez intentionally walked. 5 EL=85 CHICAGO SOX 4TH -F Thomas homered to left.50 -C Lee singled to right center. 10 -C Lee to second on wild pitch by V Zambrano. 5 FT=50 CL=15 TAMPA BAY 5TH -T Hall singled to center.10 EL=10 CHICAGO SOX 5TH TAMPA BAY 6TH -A Huff singled to right.10 -R Fick singled to left, A Huff to second. 15,2 EL=27 CHICAGO SOX 6TH -M Ordonez hit by pitch.5 -F Thomas walked, M Ordonez to second.7,2 MO=7 FT=7 TAMPA BAY 7TH -Top of the 7th inning -G Blum grounded out to second. -T Hall walked. 5 -T Hall picked off first.-5 -R Sanchez singled to center. 10 EL=10 CHICAGO SOX 7TH -Bottom of the 7th inning -A Rowand doubled to deep left. 20 -A Rowand stole third, A Rowand scored on throwing error by shortstop J Lugo. 20 -W Harris reached on infield single to pitcher. 10 AR=40 WH=10 TAMPA BAY 8TH -S Takatsu relieved E Loaiza. ST=0 CHICAGO SOX 8TH -Bottom of the 8th inning -F Thomas walked. 5 -K Dransfeldt ran for F Thomas. -C Lee flied out to left. -P Konerko hit by pitch, K Dransfeldt to second. 7,2 -J Crede grounded into fielder's choice to second, P Konerko out at second, K Dransfeldt to third. 2 FT=5 PK=7 KD=4 TAMPA BAY 9TH -N Cotts relieved S Takatsu. NC=0 CHICAGO SOX 9TH TAMPA BAY 10TH -B Koch relieved N Cotts. -C Crawford singled to right center. 10 BK=10 CHICAGO SOX 10TH -M Ordonez safe at first on error by shortstop J Lugo. 2 -M Ordonez to second on balk by D Baez. 5 -C Lee intentionally walked. 5 -M Ordonez to third, C Lee to second on wild pitch by D Baez. 5,5 -P Konerko intentionally walked. 5 -J Crede hit sacrifice fly to right, M Ordonez scored. 10 MO=17 CL=10 PK=5 JC=10

Bats: (Incremental hit values) Hits: 1B=10, 2B=20, 3B=30, HR=50 Hits-Ron: 5 pts for each base + BONUS 5 pts for run scored Non-Hits: 1B=5, Non-Hits-Ron: 2 pts for each base earned Runner: SB: 2B=10, 3B=15, RS=20, -5 pts for each CS FP: 2 pts for each base earned in the field of play ========================================= APR 22 v NYY : W4-3, Crede's the man! PoG: Scott Schowenies (7IP, W) AoG: Scott Schowenies (7IP) BoG: Joe Crede (Game winning HR) GoG: Timo Perez (CF web-gem) ========================================= SS(17)=0+0+60+10+5+0+42 CP(5)=0+10 DM(30) WH(19)=19 TP(02)=2 MO(14)=2+10+2 CL(24)=24 PK(21)=11+10 RG(65)=65 JU(30)=10+20 JC(62)=10+50+2 (Game winning HR > RG's 65) MOL(10)=10 ========================================= NY YANKEES 1ST SS=0 CHICAGO SOX 1ST -Bottom of the 1st inning -W Harris walked. 5 -W Harris stole second. 10 -T Perez grounded out to shortstop, W Harris to third. 2,2 -M Ordonez grounded out to second, W Harris scored. 2,2 -C Lee singled to right. 10 -C Lee stole second. 10 -P Konerko walked. 5 -R Gload doubled to deep left center, C Lee and P Konerko scored. 20+25+20,4,6 WH=19 TP=2 MO=2 CL=24 PK=11 RG=65 NY YANKEES 2ND SS=0 CHICAGO SOX 2ND -J Uribe singled to left. 10 JU=10 NY YANKEES 3RD -H Matsui doubled to deep center.20 -T Clark walked.5 -M Cairo doubled to center, H Matsui scored, T Clark to third. 20+20+5 -D Jeter grounded out to shortstop, T Clark scored. 5 -M Cairo to third on wild pitch by S Schoeneweis. 10 SS=60 CHICAGO SOX 3RD -P Konerko singled to right center. 10 PK=10 NY YANKEES 4TH -R Sierra singled to right center.10 SS=10 CHICAGO SOX 4TH -J Crede singled to left. 10 -M Olivo singled to left. 10 JC=10 MOL=10 NY YANKEES 5TH -T Clark walked.5 SS=5 CHICAGO SOX 5TH -M Ordonez singled to left.10 MO=10 NY YANKEES 6TH SS=0 CHICAGO SOX 6TH -J Crede homered to left. 50 -J Uribe singled to center. 10 -J Uribe stole second.10 JC=50 JU=20 NY YANKEES 7TH -J Posada doubled to deep right. 20 -H Matsui grounded out to first, J Posada scored. 10 -T Clark walked.5 -M Cairo hit by pitch, T Clark to second.7 -C Politte relieved S Schoeneweis. SS=42 CP=0 CHICAGO SOX 7TH -M Ordonez safe at first on error by third baseman A Rodriguez. 2 MO=2 NY YANKEES 8TH -A Rodriguez reached on infield single to shortstop.10 CP=10 CHICAGO SOX 8TH -P Konerko walked. 5 -J Crede safe at first on error by second baseman M Cairo. 2 JC=2 NY YANKEES 9TH -D Marte relieved C Politte. -Top of the 9th inning -J Posada singled to left. 10 -H Matsui singled to right, E Wilson to third. 10+10 DM=30

I'll update it after Sun's game, but I agree with you on Alomar. I doubt if he can throw out Koney this year. Olivo needs to play more.

APR 21 v NYY$ Garland good, Sox bad. L3-1 It was basically a repeat of the last time the SOX faced Vasquez. The better figure him out before the post. PoG: Jon Garland (A quality start beats a HR NON) AoG: Jon Garland (7IP, 3R, 3 ER) BoG: Carlos Lee (50) GoG: Aaron Rowand (I concur w Brandofan. No web gems, but good hustle). =============================================== JG=12+10+0+15+0+50+80 CP=0 DM=0 AR=9+20 WH=7 JU=14 CL=50 RG=14+5 MO=10 =============================================== NY YANKEES 1ST -B Crosby reached on bunt single to second. 10 -A Rodriguez grounded out to third, B Crosby to second. 2,2 JG=12 CHICAGO SOX 1ST NY YANKEES 2ND -G Sheffield singled to center. 10 JG=10 CHICAGO SOX 2ND NY YANKEES 3RD JG=0 CHICAGO SOX 3RD -A Rowand walked. 5 -M Olivo sacrificed to pitcher, A Rowand to second. 2,2 -W Harris walked. 5 -J Uribe reached on infield single to shortstop, A Rowand to third, W Harris to second. 14,2,2 AR=9 WH=7 JU=14 NY YANKEES 4TH -A Rodriguez walked. 5 -A Rodriguez to second on passed ball by M Olivo. 5 -G Sheffield walked. 5 JG=15 CHICAGO SOX 4TH -C Lee homered to left. 50 -R Gload singled to right center. 10 -A Rowand singled to right, R Gload to third. 20,4 CL=50 RG=14 AR=20 NY YANKEES 5TH JG=0 CHICAGO SOX 5TH -M Ordonez reached on infield single to third. 10 MO=10 NY YANKEES 6TH -A Rodriguez homered to right. 50 JG=50 CHICAGO SOX 6TH NY YANKEES 7TH -Top of the 7th inning -G Sheffield singled to center. 10 -J Posada homered to center, G Sheffield scored. 70,4 JG=80 (bummer) CHICAGO SOX 7TH NY YANKEES 8TH -C Politte relieved J Garland. CP=0 CHICAGO SOX 8TH NY YANKEES 9TH -D Marte relieved C Politte. DM=0 CHICAGO SOX 9TH -R Gload walked. 5

APR 20 v NYY$ : Buehrle comes up lame L11-8 The entire momentum changed early when Buerhle failed to husttle to 1B to get a crucial out. If he sprints to 1st to get that out, the SOX probably win this game. Instead it led to an avalanche of runs (7) by the NNY$. PoG: Magglio Ordonez AoG: Jon Adkins (3IP, 0R, 0 ER) BoG: Magglio Ordonez (107!) GoG: Wille Harris (I concur w Brandofan. No web gems, but good hustle). =============================================== MB=187+55 JA=0+20+16 ST=17 NC=30 (HORRIBLE!) MJ=32+80 (HORRIBLE!) BK=0+20 JU=10+24 MO=40+32+5+30 CL=5 RG=16+44 JC=15+5+10 AR=2+39+50 SA=2 PK=26+50 =============================================== NY YANKEES 1ST -Top of the 1st inning -D Jeter reached on infield single to first. 10 (Mark's lazy play) -B Williams singled to left center, D Jeter to second. 15 -A Rodriguez reached on bunt single to third, D Jeter to third, B Williams to second, D Jeter scored on throwing error by third baseman J Crede. 22 If Mark makes the play on Jeter, then A Rod is NOT bunting! -G Sheffield walked, B Williams to third, A Rodriguez to second. 9 -J Posada singled to right, B Williams and A Rodriguez scored, G Sheffield to second. 30 -H Matsui hit by pitch, G Sheffield to third, J Posada to second. 9 -R Sierra reached on infield single to second, G Sheffield scored, J Posada to third, H Matsui to second. 30 We are giving up TOO MANY damn! infield singles this year! -M Cairo doubled to left, J Posada, H Matsui and R Sierra scored, M Cairo to third on throwing error by shortstop J Uribe. 67 -B Williams walked. 5 MB=187 (MEGA OUUUUUUUUUUUUCHHHHHHHHH!) CHICAGO SOX 1ST -Bottom of the 1st inning -J Uribe reached on infield single to third. 10 -M Ordonez doubled to deep left center, J Uribe scored. 40 -C Lee walked. 5 JU=10 MO=40 CL=5 NY YANKEES 2ND -J Giambi doubled to deep right center. 20 -J Posada doubled to deep right center, J Giambi scored. 35 MB=55 (bad) CHICAGO SOX 2ND -R Gload singled to center. 10 -J Crede singled to left, R Gload to second. 15,2 -A Rowand flied out to center, R Gload to third. 2,2 -S Alomar Jr hit sacrifice fly to center, R Gload scored. 2,2 RG=16 JC=15 AR=2 SA=2 NY YANKEES 3RD JA=0 CHICAGO SOX 3RD -M Ordonez tripled to deep center. 30 -P Konerko singled to left center, M Ordonez scored. 20,2 -R Gload doubled to deep right, P Konerko scored. 40,6 -J Crede walked. 5 -A Rowand doubled to left, R Gload scored, J Crede to third. 39,4,4 MO=32 PK=26 RG=44 AR=39 JC=5 NY YANKEES 4TH -A Rodriguez singled to center. 10 -J Giambi grounded out to, A Rodriguez out at second, J Giambi to first. -G Sheffield singled to right. 10 JA=20 (nice) CHICAGO SOX 4TH -M Ordonez walked. 5 MO=5 NY YANKEES 5TH -H Matsui walked. 5 -R Sierra walked, H Matsui to second. 7,2 -M Cairo sacrificed to pitcher, H Matsui to third, R Sierra to second. 4,2,2 JA=16 (nice again) CHICAGO SOX 5TH -P Konerko homered to left. 50 -A Rowand homered to left center. 50 PK=50 AR=50 NY YANKEES 6TH -J Giambi singled to center. 10 -G Sheffield walked, J Giambi to second. 7,2 -N Cotts relieved S Takatsu. -J Posada walked, J Giambi to third, G Sheffield to second. 9,2,2 -H Matsui walked, J Giambi scored, G Sheffield to third, J Posada to second. 11,2,2,2 ST=17 NC=20+10 (I'm charging him 10 pts for walking in a run!) CHICAGO SOX 6TH -J Uribe doubled to deep center. 20 -M Ordonez singled to right center, J Uribe scored. 35, 4 -M Ordonez caught stealing second, catcher to second. -5 MO=30 JU=24 NY YANKEES 7TH -M Jackson relieved N Cotts. -M Cairo doubled to left center. 20 -D Jeter sacrificed to pitcher, M Cairo to third. 2,2 -M Cairo scored on M Jackson's wild pitch. 10! MJ=32 (10 pts for throwing a wild pitch w a runner on 3rd!) CHICAGO SOX 7TH -Bottom of the 7th inning -J Crede singled to center. 10 JC=10 NY YANKEES 8TH -J Posada homered to center. 50 -H Matsui reached on infield single to second. 10 -R Sierra singled to center, H Matsui to third. 20,4 -B Koch relieved M Jackson. MJ=80 (bad) BK=0 CHICAGO SOX 8TH NY YANKEES 9TH -A Rodriguez singled to center. 10 -A Rodriguez stole second. 10 BK=20 CHICAGO SOX 9TH

UNTIL N F'g COTTS can get through a pressure situation w/out WALKING in a F'g run he's NOT getting another F'g start on my team! He should be embarrassed to call himself a major leaguer. What's more his performance on Tues shows again why Manuel's decision to start him in the 3rd game in NY was horrible. He wasn't ready then, & he certainly isn' t ready now. I want to literally beat the crap out of him when he did that! He singled-handedly killed the F'g comeback!

I don't deny that Anderson played a major role in the WS run for ANA, but this contract is about his future potential & not his past accolades. When you are paying that much $$$ you need to look at their monthly performance to avoid the Koney syndrome. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/spli...89&type=batting Take a look at the monthly's. Those are not numbers worth 48/4. So to use Anderson as an example for Maggs is just burning $ the SOX don't have. Why don't you look at Sosa, Vlad, Giles, Sheffield, Walker, Abreu, Jones, Beltran, Sweeney, Hidalgo, & Dye for comparison. Maggs is about #6 in production in that lofty group yet #2 in 2004 pay. If you compare his production against the others it says Maggs is legitimately worth 60/5. But then you have to argue whether it would be more beneficial to go after Jones or Beltran for less. Right now they are a bargain.

I'll get back to you on the greatest SOX player ever. That's a lot of years I have to consider amongst current HOFers & those that never made the HOF due to political reasons. Some things to think about when deciding to spend 70/5 on Maggs: 1) Maggs is NOT the only FA OF avail in 2004. Delgado, Beltran are amongst that crowd. TOR is on record as saying 10 MIL/yr for Delgado. There is no way all 3 of them will command 15 MIL/yr deals. The SOX need Beltran more than any one else. They have played musical chairs at CF since they dealt Cameron for Koney. Beltran solves that. If you trade for Griffey he can move to RF. An OF of Lee, Beltran, & Griffey could be the best in the Majors. That allows the SOX to trade some of the young OF talent for a solid 5th starter to become UNBEATABLE. Keep Reed, trade Borchard. This team is so close to domination it must scare Cub fans. We are 8-4 & yet 2 of those loses are on Danny Wright's shoulders. With a solid 5th starter & are offense we could have the best team in the majors right now & that ain't crapping! There is no question that ANA overpaid for Anderson w 48/4. But they've overpaid for everybody this year so it's not surprising. There is no way the new owner can keep this up. If they don't win the division & get back to the dance this year he's going to be in a mess of hurt next year. It's another franchise that needs to win BIG to keep the fans coming. I simply can not see how ANA will have $ left in 2005 to go after Delgado, Beltran, or Maggs. If I'm Kenny I call Maggs bluff & get him to sign a 60/5 or compete for him in FA. I'm sure Delgado, Beltran, & Maggs are not the only big OF FA's avail in 2005.

One more thing to add: don't blame the Cell. Wrigley Field is an enigma. Take a look at 2004 attendance. Despite some quality players on CLE they are behind the SOX in attendance this year. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/attendance This is proof positive that attendance is more a factor of marquee players & winning than anything else. In the absence of marquee players you have to use promotions. Lots of them. If you're trying to home grow your own marquee players it takes a min of 3 consistent yrs of winning. Notice where MIN is: #19 26,463 Minnesota #24 23,289 Kansas City #25 22,196 Toronto #26 21,540 Chicago SOX #27 21,411 Cleveland #28 20,172 Pittsburgh #29 19,862 Detroit #30 12,268 Montreal KC's attendance is amazing. The team has not won a div is so long & yet having one decent exciting year has boosted the numbers. For those who think the SOX play in a mid market consider this: If they had won the division the last couple of years instead of Minn what do you think their attendance would be this year? The team is 8-4 with a BIG series vs NYY that just played Friday night in prime time on FOX. If the SOX win that series the front office better crank up the promotion machine to build on this momentum. If KC can do it in one year so can the SOX.

What it means is that the established SOX fan base per year is now about 1.6 MIL fans (< 20K/gm). These are the die-hards that show up every year. In comparison the established Cub fan base is about 2.5 MIL fans (< 31K/gm). When you consider that the fan base grew to nearly 3 MIL when the new park opened & then dropped less than 10% each yr after that you would have to say the new park ignited or re-established a new fan base. But then the strike came with the SOX up by 1 gm in the div & seemingly looking like the best team in baseball after losing to the WS champs the Blue Jays a year ago. Everyone in Chicago directed most of the blame of the strike to JR. When baseball resumed the SOX lost nearly 1 MIL fans due to the strike & that group has never come back. So now the SOX have to compete not just with the N Siders but also all the other entertainment venues in 2004. That's not an easy thing to do without marquee players. It's a simple fact that Kerry Wood & Sosa will sell more tickets than Thomas & Buehrle. Way more. Add Cy Maddux and the interest in the team has never been higher. That's not something that happens over night. That's why the SOX need to do even more to promote the team. Much more. They need to attract the casual fan who chooses between bowling, a movie, arcades, or amusements. Advertise more. The TV advertising doesn't seem to help much so maybe try newspapers or radio ads on mainstream FM stations. Maybe advertise more on kids networks. I don't know what the answer is exactly but the team alone will not sell tickets to the park. Winning or not it's not going to pull another 500K fans to the park.

One good thing about your thread is this ... If E-LO wins 15-18 games the SOX better move heaven & earth to re-sign him. There is no signing more important to the SOX fan base right now than E-LO. Say sayonara to Koney, Maggs, Lee & even Frank before saying goodbye to E-LO.

Oh woe is us ....terms of Koney's contract: $6.25 million in 2003 $8.00 million in 2004 +500K if traded $8.75 million in 2005 +500K if traded The worst contract negotiation in Kenny's young career. Koney would be lucky to get 1/2 that from any other team.

SOSA is NOT the greatest CUB of all time. Look, I hate the N Siders with a vengenance but that's simply pissing all over their heritage. Just as Frank being the greatest SOX of all time. But these organizations have a very long & rich history. Even swapping team names at one point. So in terms of that long history neither of these guys are the greatest of all time. Frank is the best SOX player since free agency came into the league. I think I'd agree with that. SOSA? Please with the exception of HR's what makes him the greatest cub in the free agency era?

Thanks SS. http://www.baseball-reference.com/leaders/BB_leagues.shtml This list really shows Bonds dominance. It reads almost like an MVP award list. The Babe appears on the list 11 times & Barry appears 9 times. No one else compares to these 2.

Please remember to post a link to the places on the Net you quote an article from. Otherwise it's plagarizing & in violation of copy right. It is not enough to simply quote the author of the article because the writer works for a company & it's the company that owns the right to the content.

Damn good article & I'm glad Rogers has mentioned something I didn't consider: The Griffey factor. http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sp...l=cs-columnists He could trade for Griffey, try to win with Griffey and Ordonez playing together and then hang onto Griffey, who has agreed to defer $6.5 million of his $12.5 million salary, which runs through 2008. He could trade for Griffey, then deal Ordonez and open an outfield spot up for the left-handed-hitting Jeremy Reed, who has been compared to Darin Erstad. Reed hit .409 in 66 games at Double-A last year and is currently batting .364 for Triple-A Charlotte. That is a HUGE deferral & Griffey is definitely a better draw that Magglio. There is no disputing that. What it doesn't mention is what do we have to give the Reds for Griffey? I like Maggs but he is NOT worth 14 MIL a year. He is the highest paid position player in the AL right now to have never won an MVP. At best he's worth betw 12-13 MIL a year. Hidalgo, Dye, Normar, Thome, Andruw Jones are in that range. That's the range & expectation for Maggs talent. If I can get Griffey for about 7/5 a yr (7 cost, 5 deferred) then I can make the following changes without going green: 1) Replace Koney with Gload 2) Still cheap at 2B with Harris/Uribe 3) Still good cost/performance for an aging Valentin 4) Still cheap at 3B with Crede 5) Move Griffey to Right field to cut down on his injuries 6) Buy Beltran & put him in CF with Aaron has backup 7) Lee stays in LF with a good cost/performance contract 8) Thomas stays for 8MIL The cost of Maggs+Koney (22 MIL) is split betw Griffey & Beltran. Assuming there's enough to pay Garland, E-LO, Schow the SOX would be both lethal & a crowd DRAW. If you don't think Griffey on the SOX would mean a boost in both season ticket holders & package buyers you don't know Jack.

Can someone find this out for me? I believe Frank Thomas is on pace to be the all-time walks leader. Is that true? Does the Babe currently hold the record?

If I'm happy with the results of this after April then I might open in up to a contest if you guys want it. I would hate to have separate threads for each category so I was thinking that if you wanted to play you could just add a line for PoG, AoG, BoG, & GoG in your PTC post. But I'll only do it if I'm happy with the results.