witesoxfan

I've seen two descriptions of what happened, and both make Deion look like the bad guy. In Fisk's wiki, it says that Deion hit a flyball and didn't even run it out; if Deion's wiki, it says Deion drew a dollar sign in the dirt, then hit a flyball and loafed to 1B, and both say Fisk yelled "If you don't play it right, I'm going to kick your ass right here." Even if Fisk was an asshole, he seems like he was an asshole that appreciated the game for what it was and was the ultimate competitor.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jan 21, 2010 -> 09:37 PM) Couldn't agree more. In a very sadistic sort of manner, an injury to Kotsay or Jones in Spring Training might be the best thing for this team because it would force the team to make a move for some type of alternative DH, and unless the Sox are really, really fond of Gartrell or Kroeger, it would be from outside the organization. It's weird, because in November when the Kotsay and Jones signings were made, they were considered great moves if they were used correctly. The closer we get to Spring Training, the more and more Mark Kotsay resembles Darin Erstad, both in the baseball and literal sense. Finally, if the Sox don't want Thome, why can't they just sign Branyan? I don't trust him as much as I do Thome to put up numbers, but I trust him a hell of a lot more than Kotsay and Jones, and he can atleast play 1B and might be able to play an emergency LF or RF too. FWIW, Branyan's last 1700+ PA's has resulted in a .236/.339/.498/.838 line, and in his last two seasons with Milwaukee and Seattle, he's put up .250/.346/.535/.881, and that OPS is around .925 against RHP. A strict platoon between Jones and Branyan while also allowing time for Kotsay, Konerko, and Quentin to get time at DH would work just fine.

Looking back, I'd also say that, in some ways, JR's comments about holding Ozzie accountable are giving him an ultimatum. There have been teams in the past that start out with absolutely piss-poor 25-man rosters and find their way into the playoffs due to key acquisitions and promotions throughout the duration of the season. If after 5 starts, Freddy Garcia is tanking, the team needs to either send him down or cut him loose and give Hudson a shot; if after one month, the designated revolving door of washed-up hitters is still struggling, cut them or cut their playing time and bring in an actual player who is going to put up numbers. In the mean time, the Sox have to hope that the defense is superb. I feel just fine about every position on this team except DH, and I think that a legitimate DH could be the difference between 85-87 wins and a 2nd place finish and 88-92 wins and a division title.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jan 21, 2010 -> 07:20 PM) What's going to happen when some of these guys go on the DL? Josh Kroeger and Alejandro De Aza take their place, duh. Oh, and don't forget about Jayson Nix.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jan 21, 2010 -> 06:54 PM) Anyone have any pictures of Ozzie putting Beckham in an electrical closet last season? That might be our only hope of having an actual DH in 2010. What's even more frustrating is news that the Cubs are about to sign Gomes for a few mil to be their 4th outfielder. He'd be one of our best hitters. Which is sad in itself because he really hasn't been that good in his career outside of 2005 and 2009.

QUOTE (southsideirish71 @ Jan 21, 2010 -> 04:22 PM) Here is another quote that is more clear on the subject. Really Ozzie? Jason Kubel, from your favorite Twins team, DH'ed in 80 games; Joe Mauer DH'ed in 28 games; Justin Morneau DH'ed in 12 games. Why? Because they are GOOD. You want to DH Andruw Jones, Mark Kotsay, Omar Vizquel, and maybe giving an outfielder a rest (the only one who should ever be DH'ed in the first place is Quentin). It's like Ozzie has been given boxing gloves and now he wants to go play basketball with them on.

QUOTE (since56 @ Jan 19, 2010 -> 10:01 PM) Carrasco was one of the best long men in the game. Pena is an if. I'm tired of winter. I'm getting antsy for some baseball games. DJ Carrasco wins the tallest midget contest! Yay!

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 06:00 AM) The Atlanta Braves would be an example, the Indians in the 90's and early 00's. "Outdrawn" in the standings (overall winning percentage over that time?) or in attendance/revenues during that time? Would you put 2005 in the fluke category or can we say that we played at a consistently high enough level for the last decade to be satisfied? In many ways, the 89-94 White Sox and 05-08 White Sox are fairly similar, with '07 sticking out as the aberrational year. Braves wouldn't be because they got one in '95. The Indians are a great example, and the Bills in the 90s are another good one. Outdrawn in attendance. Sorry, didn't make that very clear. I would say that in a lot of ways, 2005 was a fluke. That's not to discredit the fact that for 6 of the 7 months during that season they were the best team in baseball, nor is it discrediting the actual structure of the team itself. But Dye putting up a .920 OPS in his final 113 games and becoming a huge part of a rather stagnant overall offense, Jon Garland, Neal Cotts, Cliff Politte, Dustin Hermanson, Bobby Jenks, and Jose Contreras coming out of absolutely nowhere and putting up the numbers they did (I was very optimistic when talking to a friend about Jose Contreras and predicted a 4.25 ERA for the year for him in spring training that season), and the overall clutch performance really does make it a fluke. People don't think about it, but Tadahito Iguchi was the 3rd best offensive player on the team that year. It doesn't change the fact that you can't consider the White Sox a fluke in the 00's though. They won 3 division titles, won 90 or more games 3 times, finished .500 or better 8 times, and averaged 85.7 wins a season. That probably makes them one of the top 10 teams in the decade. The World Series boosts them to a top 6-8 team in the decade (I have Yankees, Red Sox, Angels, Phillies, Cardinals, and Dodgers assuredly ahead, and the Twins and Athletics are both arguable), and still really doesn't change the fact that they were, for the decade, winners.

QUOTE (Princess Dye @ Jan 19, 2010 -> 08:52 PM) I suppose the one fearsome part about his lowered value would be it can open up the possibility of him agreeing to be a PH for $1M to an upper echelon contender. I would think he cares more about a potential ring than the HR totals. Thome didn't pinch hit well for the Dodgers, and, even though it's an extremely small sample size (as all pinch hitting is), he's never been good at it. The Sox also proved last year that if they don't have a shot at making it to the postseason, they'll deal Jim to a team that both wants him and has a chance at winning a World Series. I would imagine Thome's priorities when it comes to playing now involve playing everyday somewhere close to home -> playing everyday -> winning a ring. And he might value playing everyday above winning a ring. It's not early in the offseason anymore, and with Soxfest happening this weekend, I doubt that it will actually happen.

Didn't Jones drop like 20-30 pounds before his contract season at the advice of Boras because he thought it would turn him into a great player, and Jones went on to have the worst season of his career (up to that point)? Best shape doesn't do anything for me. While baseball is obviously a physical activity that necessitates being in some type of good physical condition, it's much more mechanical than most sports. I get more excited when I hear that players have been working with coaches figuring out flaws in their approach. Most want Greg Walker taken out to pasture on here, but it was after the 2005 season when he personally worked with Crede in the offseason, and Crede went on to have his only All-Star caliber season.

BADM 425 - Production/Operations Management ECON 421 - Econometrics IdEA 310 - Introduction to Liberal Learning ECON 441 - International Trade ENGL 242 - American Lit II Econometrics already feels like Business Stats II again and we've only had 2 classes. And the IdEA program - yeah, required by the university. Super.

QUOTE (danman31 @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 06:34 PM) Thank you. I had a long argument with my friend who thought that was realistic. I was crossing my fingers that they were writing Lucy off the show. Yeah, you knew writing Lucy off wasn't going to happen. That one sucked. Nothing that funny, unsurprising development, and even more over the top. On the bright side, I probably would have aced Cox's test about everything (baseball statistics, North Dakota high schools, and the geography of whatever the name of his fantasy island was)

QUOTE (Palehosefan @ Jan 18, 2010 -> 10:09 AM) If it's anything like his coaching, Tomlin will hire someone to screw her for him and he will stand there clapping and saying "Lets go!". If it means anything to you, Tomlin is probably the best coach in the league at doing that.

QUOTE (sircaffey @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 11:04 PM) You're too mindful of minor league statistics especially for a skinny teenager. Scrawny little Jeter had yet to hit for any power at age 19 as well. And Reyes' "power" numbers I am sure were a bit inflated thanks to his elite speed. I have yet to read a Hanley Ramirez comp for Castro though, so maybe your expectations are higher than mine. The best comps that I've read are Edgar Renteria and a lesser version of Jeter. I don't think I'm being too mindful because I'm looking at everything within the context of the situation. I'm not expecting an .800 OPS from him, I'm just expecting other aspects of his hitting line to be a bit better. I also trust that Jeter wasn't hitting for power at age 19, but I don't fully trust B-R's minor league statistics, consider they have him drawing 158 walks that season. I don't know how he draws more walks than hits total when he wasn't a threat to do much of anything else, so I have to consider that a typo. Looking at the following year's numbers though, his power numbers are about right where one would expect them to be. I was also going to say Edgar Renteria might be unfair, but I was just overrating Renteria in my mind. That probably would be a pretty good comparison. I am still very interested in seeing how he performs this year.

ORLY?

It's crazy to think that the White Sox have a guy like Gordon Beckham on the team.

QUOTE (Controlled Chaos @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 06:16 PM) I certainly didn't mean to spin anything, I was simply giving my honest opinion. Yeah there's paid programming on networks, but that seems different to me. If you want to tune in to that stuff, you do. Abortion was made into a political issue for votes, but to everyone else it is a grueling decision they have to make. I'm pretty dam sure when they're making it they're not thinking "What would my political party do" Maybe it is about money...I don't know...but like I said...I don't think choosing life is hot button. If the commercial was about taking away the choice, then I see the argument and hypocrisy and I wouldn't want a commercial like that on during the superbowl. But one that just says choose life????....It's sad people are against that. It seems as though when an issue such as this does not come to a personal decision, it does become political in its tendencies and people will argue about it. There's an 8 page thread on an internet message board right now. At this point in my life, I'm pro-choice. That will likely change as my life goes on with the issue, but I'm not about to argue with someone who is telling me to reconsider my choice right now. In the end, if said person came across in a polite manner, I'd probably thank them for their thoughts, shake their hand, smile politely, and walk away with a completely unchanged opinion.

QUOTE (Ozzie Ball @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 02:36 PM) The Frontier League is an independant league. They got rid of the draft and follow process a few years ago. Which still sucks

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 06:39 PM) Whoever votes for the Golden Glove awards is still years behind though... Managers and coaches from baseballalmanac.com something tells me that the gold glove voting system needs to be fixed

"My 2010 Offseason Wish List: Adrian Gonzalez, BJ Upton, Carl Crawford, Adam Dunn, Johnny Damon Avenue Current White Sox newbies Mark Teahen, Omar Vizquel, Andruw Jones, JJ Putz, Juan Pierre. . ." looks like someone was aiming a little too high

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Jan 19, 2010 -> 10:04 PM) No this is just my opinion. It's just how I FEEL that he's a tool... Like the Deion Sanders incident - I'm no Deion Sanders fan, but I wish he would have punched Fisk right in his grill and told him to mind his own damn business and worry about his own teamates. I had to look up the Sanders-Fisk incident, and I think you're f***ing crazy if you think Fisk was in the wrong there.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 04:31 PM) Don't know why it's such a big deal. Hendry will do what he usually does to an overrated prospect in his system. Fall in love with him, and hold onto him for way too long. Which would be just fine by me. Just find it funny that Castro gets a ton of love.

QUOTE (since56 @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 01:05 PM) What me worry? How many of our starting five were hurt last year? That would be all of them right? Jose Contreras was healthy all year. He was sent down in May due to ineffectiveness, and was traded at the end of August. Mark Buehrle started 33 games. That's a full season. John Danks started 32 games. That's a full season. Gavin Floyd started 30 games. That means he missed 2-3 starts, and those were at the end of the year to shut him down to [prevent any further injury/let it begin healing] because the Sox were out of the race anyways. Jake Peavy was injured in San Diego while he was running the bases, and worked his way back to make 3 starts at the end of the season. As far as I can tell, 3 starters went uninjured last year, and 2 of them finished the season with the Sox. Had the Sox been in the playoff race and Ozzie felt better going with Floyd than Hudson, it wouldn't have surprised me if Floyd could have made it through the season as well. So, to answer your question, 2 of the original 5 starting pitchers going into last year were injured. Colon was released because he sucked (1 injury), Contreras was sent down and eventually traded because he sucked, and Gavin Floyd was shut down for 3 starts due to a hip/back issue (2 injuries). Danks and Buehrle both pitched full seasons, even if they may have skipped a start or two at some point in time. Skipping starts ≠ Being injured As am I. As of right now, the Sox have one of the best starting staffs in the major leagues. If you can show me where I guaranteed that it is going to be one of the best at the end of the season, then I'll admit you were right. The most I've said is that it should be one of the best rotations in the league at the end of the season due to the quality and the depth it has. I also hate the s*** out of someone "not being optimistic or pessimistic but instead a realist." Give me a f***ing break. I'm being completely realistic with everything I've said thus far, but I say it through rose colored glasses. You also bring up realistic points of view, but look at it much more pessimistically. Don't give me this "I'm realistic" BS. In which way? That I go to the left field bleachers just to party rather than watching the game? Nah, that's not me. That I cheer for the White Sox and also like to get drunk? Sure, I'll take that. You'll have to explain to me in which way this analogy makes sense, because you've completely lost me with it.

Within the past few years, the writers have done a much better job of voting for the major award winners. The only one I would have argued at all was the 2009 NL Cy Young, but that would have been for argument's sake and I have no problem with Lincecum winning it.

QUOTE (sircaffey @ Jan 20, 2010 -> 03:19 PM) Castro's been doing this at a tall 160 lbs. Not sure why you would hold it again him that he's only shown doubles power. He's rail thin. Doubles power sounds pretty good to me for where he is physically. Not really fair to compare players solely on how they performed at the same age. But it's barely doubles power, that's what I said. 23 doubles in 509 plate appearances. At the same time, Jose Reyes's listed weight is 160 pounds, and I'm sure that was an accurate description from when he was 19. Which minor league line (both split between high-A and AA) do you find to be more impressive? Reyes - .288/.343/.444/.787 26 2B, 19 3B, 8 HR, 53 XBH (11.7 PA/XBH), 58 SB-24 CS (71%), 46 BB (13.5 PA/BB), 71 K (8.8 PA/K)in 622 PAs Castro - .299/.342/.392/.734 23 2B, 6 3B, 3 HR, 32 XBH (15.9 PA/XBH), 28 SB-11 CS (72%), 29 BB (17.6 PA/BB), 53 K (9.6 PA/K) in 509 PAs Mind you that Reyes also spent 30 more games in AA that season too. Here's another player who spent most of his age 19 season in the Florida League... .308/.337/.422/.758 28 2B, 12 3B, 3 HR, 43 XBH (13.7 PA/XBH), 32 SB-16 CS (66.7%), 22 BB (26.8 PA/BB), 58 K (10.2 PA/K) in 590 PA ...and Cesar Izturis hasn't exactly set the world on fire during his career With the love that Castro has gotten, you would just expect better numbers. Right now, it seems as though Cubs fans and experts a like are setting themselves up to be disappointed. Or they're setting themselves up to value the s*** out of Castro only to see him be traded very shortly to some poor, unfortunate franchise. It's early, but I'm not going to be surprised if he disappoints this year.