caulfield12

Really don't like the looks of that last video "quick pitching" from the stretch. Looks like an injury waiting to happen, with so much stress on the arm/shoulder. Would rather he just took his time and gave up some steals and kept the proper mechanics and rhythm at this point. Holding runners on is something you can pick up later, varying the amount of time you hold the ball, utilizing a set of different pick off moves (A and B versions) to keep baserunners honest, etc. PTAC??

I'm pretty sure the Mariners have territorial rights over Vancouver and Portland, but I'd have to double-check that. Not quite the same as the A's trying to move to San Jose and being blocked by the Giants, or the internecine warfare between the Orioles and Nationals for the last decade.

Something's gotta give. Matz has won his last 7 decisions (not sure if they're consecutive) and Latos has pitched poorly five times in a row (well, one time he "only" gave up three runs, the rest were 4 or more). Team was 3-2 in those 5, on the bright side.

If they do add another starting pitcher (and Teheran's off the table since the Braves are asking for the major league equivalent in a hitter, something like Marcel Ozuna)...who would you keep in the rotation? Latos over his last five starts. 26 2/3 IP, 41 hits, 21 ER, 11 walks (WHIP nearly 2), 13 K's Must be noted team is 3-2 in those starts, fwiw. Has given up 3 or more ER's for five consecutive starts. ERA has risen from 0.74 to 4.06. 8 homers surrendered, and a 7.09 ERA across those starts. Gonzalez has pitched MUCH better recently, but, like Jose Quintana....he carries the "jinx" with him, 13 consecutive starts (individually) with a no decision or loss, going back to his time in BALT last year. The last time he won a game was JULY 25th, 2015.

Choke-lahoma. Poor Durant. You could definitely see Westbrook got a bit out of control there in the second half trying to force things driving to the basket when there was just too much traffic around the rim. Even with that incredible athleticism, you're not going to make more than 25% of those acrobatic shots...and the foul calls weren't coming unless you absolutely murdered someone OR were Mr. Curry shooting through Ibaka on the perimeter.

It was all Ventura's decision...not done on his own. http://nypost.com/2016/05/30/this-is-why-m...th-matt-harvey/ NY papers thanking Ventura for "doing a solid" for his former team by bunting with Cabrera. Lovely.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/colum...?client=safari# Haugh: The Sox Situation Cries Out for a Change They're Unlikely to Make

Some players in our division already have 8 game-winning/walk off hits already this season...to put Abreu's struggles in perspective.

I don't see any way that GSW wouldn't be favored again next year...unless they suffer a major injury. Playing two bigs, there's just no way they can stay with the Warriors when they have 4 athletic swingmen in the game at the same time that can break them down on the drive and take advantage of passing crispness on the perimeter to get open jumpers before they can close out.

Can't believe we've turned a 7 game lead over KC into a 2 game deficit. Not even September of 2012 was this much of a collapse. It was 13 and -1, it's about to be 2 and 6. We've lost 11 games to .500 and they've gained 7. And Verlander's back to throwing darts...neither he or Chacin have given up a run in LA, tied 0-0 still.

Greg? Comments? A couple of bunnies there missed by Westbrook and Speights. Westbrook kind of lost his footing a bit, the other was point blank.

Then they really don't believe in him 100% if they're waiting for him to "prove" something to them after 4+ years on the job. You either trust in your manager or you don't by that time. Shouldn't be any in-between at this point.

QUOTE (Knuckles @ May 30, 2016 -> 07:04 PM) With that logic, Hahn/KW are only allowed to spend so much, what other moves for the same money would have the Sox in 1st place right now? Desmond and Fowler would be one (keeping in mind the net cost for Desmond would actually be $6 million subtracting money they'd no longer be spending in the June draft). Desmond OR Fowler and Ryan Madson. Pearce, Fowler and Maeda (maybe too pricey). So I'll just leave it at Pearce and Fowler. Trumbo added via trade for DH along with Desmond. The Korean DH the Twins signed. There are lots of possible combinations. I'd have to go through all the relievers again that were available. We needed one more RH, as it turned out. For example, some combination of Uribe, Marlon Byrd and Napoli along with Thompson still playing CF and Montas coming up to help the bullpen.

QUOTE (elrockinMT @ May 30, 2016 -> 08:05 PM) Using that rationale Ventura throws bovine under the bus, supported his players and takes responsibilty. I think he is a leader So then do you believe he deserves an extension? Some would theorize that removing his lame duck status would help the entire team to relax instead of answering questions focusing on their manager everyday this bad streak of baseball continues.

QUOTE (Lip Man 1 @ May 30, 2016 -> 06:41 PM) You must be to young to remember 1972. Mark Yeah, my first baseball card was Topps 1979 Claudell Washington, lol. First autograph, too. Sent it off in a SASE envelope and received it back the same week. I vaguely remember hearing about the South Side Hitmen. First game was ironically enough at Wrigley (Cards/Cubs) that same year, but that was one of only two times in my life attending a Cubs' game in Chicago. Just have a general idea about Chuck Tanner, Goose Gossage, Dick Allen, Forster, Wilbur Wood...some of the bigger names of that time.

Take away that 6-0 against MN and 3-1 against the A's, we're six games under .500 now. Obviously, we beat some pretty good teams, like the Rangers (4-2 against, should have been 5-1 or 6-0) but without the advantage of those games against the two worst teams in the AL, we would have looked closer to an "average" team from the very beginning instead of sliding into that position and occupying it from the get-go.

LOL. Great, then what's the point of a messageboard? Meathead fans for one of the most forward-looking, professional, loyal, high-class, winningest organizations in the game? Maybe we don't deserve the Sox!!! It's typical that management always puts Sox fans in a position where they fight with each other instead of the addressing the real problem. Nice that they can distract us in such a fashion, as it's quite the neat parlor trick.

Btw, Ian Desmond has now proven himself capable of playing LF and now CF this season. 800+ OPS as well. But we couldn't give up that draft pick. Seems like the type of player who could help at all the places where we had the biggest issues entering the season...SS, CF (outfielder, in general), brings more speed/athleticism, could also DH and PR. Rangers bombing the hell out of the Indians, 9-0 and still only in the 4th. Yay, we're only 1/2 game behind the Indians still. Cause for a $8 MOET champagne celebration if I've ever heard one. Tomlin will take his first loss of the season. Of course, we could barely touch him when he pitched against the Sox.

Outside of 1977, there wasn't really a competitive team in there.

On the plus side, the possibility of a Puig to the White Sox trade has become more likely... Dave Roberts has to be running out of patience with him at this point. And Ventura will surely keep him in line, right? Sox were 2 1/2 games behind the Cubs three weeks ago. Now it's 9 1/2 games. Everything the Cubs do turns to gold these days...

*Melky Cabrera then bunted both runners over. Cabrera has bunted against Robin Ventura's wishes in the past, so it might not have been called from the dugout, but it didn't work. Todd Frazier popped out and J.B. Shuck grounded out to keep the game scoreless. SSS.com Margalus is right, maybe. But we'll never know in a million years if Cabrera bunted on his own, because that would mean there's an issue with Ventura...Robin won't "out" Melky. Not sure which one is worse really, the White Sox doing things on their own because they're letting the pressure get to them and making their own strategic decisions that fly in the face of reams of statistical evidence about the best ways to manufacture big innings...or Ventura's decision-making process being flawed or outdated? And yet more reason/s not to bunt. You didn't have Melky or Abreu hitting 5th. You had JB FREAKIN' SHUCK. Now all of a sudden Robin has undue confidence or misplaced loyalty because he liked having him on the team last year and Shuck came through in a few key PH situations?

It's actually a small miracle that Cabrera got it down effectively... Imagine if he bunts into a DP? Or pops it into the air? How many sacrifice bunts has he had in his entire career?

Hahn is the one who put himself in that situation of having to defend a trade that worked out poorly by holding onto the draft pick that's probably going to be meaningless while the ship is sinking right now as we speak. KW at least knew that when you have limited assets or resources available, you put all your chips in with the product on the field rather than investing in the future because 90% of those investments don't pan out (unless you're cash rich and you can throw tons of money at the problem like the Cubs, Red Sox, Yankees, Dodgers, Giants, etc.) If we miss the playoffs every season until this draft pick makes the majors (which is 50/50 in the first place, let alone being an impact player), then, unless he's Mike Trout Jr., it won't really matter. Does Hahn think he'll still have a job in 2020 or 2021 at this rate? Guess so.

And that idea of playing for one run would also have been defensible if Quintana's pitch count weren't relatively high. There's just no way that Duke/Albers/Jones/Robertson were going to hold onto a one run lead or keep extending a tie game into extras with the way things have been going. You get conservative and noose gets even tighter for the hitters who have to come through.

I'd like to think either KW or Hahn would be the one to do it in person. Possibly JR back in Chicago... Probably Hahn, though, because he's closest to Robin and has seemingly been the most sympathetic towards his plight (one which Hahn is largely responsible for creating, btw.)