caulfield12

Hicks narrowly missed a triple there...solid play by Abreu.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2015 -> 07:49 PM) Much like Micah Johnson, Sanchez has got to be able to turn on an occasional big league fastball. He looks flat out overmatched at this level. .458 Ops entering tonight. Leury numbers. Cabrera totally guessing there....looking curve and got the local express. This better not be the second night in a row all four AL Central teams win and the Sox somehow lose. 2-6 against the 5th best team in the division isn't redeemable without a minor miracle.

Poor Dan Jennings.

Poor Fathom. Morales/VMart strikes again.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ May 22, 2015 -> 06:40 PM) Talking about in the bottom of the first with a answer DA! Hey, that was my research, lol.

QUOTE (OmarComing25 @ May 22, 2015 -> 06:23 PM) Why does Jeff suck so much early in the game? Has he always been like this? Why do the White Sox only score first 20% of the time? Not prepared to play? That second run was inexcusable. Things you can control...White Six will make mistakes and give you opportunities to take advantage of...that simple.

"Every organization in baseball is giving the green light to run at will on the White Sox until they gameplan a counter against it." From batting practice conversations..... DJ But it's not on the coaching staff. It's all on Hahn for Flowers and Soto.

"D.J. is a born leader," Goff said. "There's no question about it. It's going to take a little bit of time for these guys to adjust to him. He's always had the ability to make people feel and perform better than what they are, which is what it takes in a great manager. It takes that mentality to get people to play above their ability." Marlins.com This is the exact same thing we heard repeatedly about Ventura. Let's see it!!!

How they expect him to get into any sort of rhythm or comfort zone is beyond me at this point.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ May 22, 2015 -> 03:48 PM) Makes sense, we all knew this would be happening during the year. Better than just shutting him down in August On the other hand, it's another May or June game likelier to be a loss...leading to no opportunity for meaningful games in August or September.

QUOTE (South Sider @ May 22, 2015 -> 03:36 PM) Frankly, and I know this is going to seem blasphemous to some, but I think Sox fans overall are watching the transformation of the franchise on the north side and wishing it was us. I haven't completely given up hope on the Reinsdorf regime or this team and its future, but our tanking of the last couple of seasons would sure seem a lot tolerable if it was overseen by Epstein/Hoyer. I know I wanted Theo on the south side but knew it wouldn't happen because of JRs loyalty to KW. Why didn't we make a push for Maddon? Because of JR/KWs loyalty to RV. Maddon, if given the choice, would have taken the Cubs job anyway. Their tanking has produced what appears to be a team that is going to be playing an exciting brand of baseball, much more so then the White Sox have been. I hate to pile the pressure on the Sox even more, but they REALLY need to start finding a way to consistently play exciting baseball. Exciting, but not necessarily dominating baseball. Because, and again this is going to sound blasphemous to some (I'm not a Cub hater like I used to be pre-2005), but I won't fault the casual fan for opting to watch Cubs baseball instead of the Sox. I won't ever switch sides but if it gets to the point where the Sox keep playing like we're used to, and the Cubs keep getting better and better, you better believe I'd rather spend the little time I have to watch baseball games watching an invigorating brand of baseball then the same lethargic baseball that we're getting used to. I'll always be a Sox fan first and foremost. If the teams met in the World Series, it's Sox all the way. But this is just the harsh reality for some. The Cubs represent the city I am from too, and they have done literally everything with their baseball operations that I wish the Sox had done. It's hard for me to not respect what they've done up to this point. Agree 100% Last night, Bryant and Russell homered. Today we're deciding to sit Rodon out for his next start. Next, we will return to Samardzija trade talk. Meanwhile, the Cubs have about 5-6 guys they could trade to improve their team's chances THIS year (ahead of schedule) by improving their rotation and/or back end of the bullpen One step forward for Cubs, one step backwards for White Sox. It's also the ongoing issues with Ventura, whereas the Cubs lured one of the brightest baseball minds and best media manipulators this side of Buck Showalter in Joe Maddon. Let's not even get started on comparing Schwarber with Anderson or Hawkins.

Lovely...more Noesi or Carroll starts. Oh, well. They need to get that fastball control and his change-up going. There's no argument about that. Maybe taking a breather and step back for a week will help, but he's such a competitor I'm sure it won't be easy for him to watch from the sidelines. One concern...not having any type of regular routine or structure/defined role might be counter-productive when all is said and done.

http://www.miamiherald.com/sports/nba/miam...le21533949.html You will be hearing the term 3 p-d players (Curry/Klay Thompson) over and over again if the Warriors win it all. Shoot threes well, be a playmaker and defend exceptionally well.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ May 22, 2015 -> 03:10 PM) You are the one throwing a 40% drop off in soxtalk membership compared to 05-08. Why don't you go ahead and prove it. This site is thriving despite a huge drop in messageboard usage everywhere. Not only thriving, expanding, growing, and evolving. The minor league coverage and interviews, definitely. That said, there's so much more information out there than 10-15 years ago when Baseball America was it. There's a ton of competition, with the proliferation of scouting sites and places like Bleacher Report, twitter, the more sabr-oriented sites like baseball prospectus, baseball reference and fangraphs...those who refuse to change or evolve with the times will die a quick death.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:59 PM) Yea this is wrong If you were to compare gamethreads from 2011-2015 with 2005-2008, you're telling me the sheer numbers and quality are higher right now? I don't mean one or two day blips when there's a major trade or injury. If the numbers are improving, how can that be true running directlyin the face of tv ratings and attendance trends, unless the growth is directly related to the implosion of WSI and absorbing new members and guests from over there? Is Sox fandom shrinking/contracting or simply relocating/migrating/hibernating?

On the other hand, seven years is a long time to wait for things to turn around with no or little reward as a fan. Casual fans, they fall to the wayside. Just look at SoxTalk and WSI from 2005-2008 and compare with today. There's been the same 40% or higher dropoff as evidenced by the attendance downtrend. Not rocket science. If you're born a White Sox fan...and hardwired for it, there's never a thought of changing allegiances, any more than you change your biological family. I'm sure someone eventually in this thread will say "good riddance, don't let the door hit you on the way out." Don't take that to heart. People are just starting to reach their breaking point with this organization. And, with the experience of 2005 in the rearview mirror, it's surely easier to bail than for Cubs fans who have been patiently waiting a lifetime for the ultimate payoff.

QUOTE (oldsox @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:41 PM) Could be worse........Dodgers shut out 3 games in a row. And still in first by 1.5 games without Ryu and Puig. They also did that against the Giants, on the road...not the Twins or Indians at home.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:37 PM) Hence the "Bandwagon Fans" part. And, other than the Tigers and Red Sox, which teams don't experience that? Is anyone surprised at all that the Royals are averaging 30,000 this year in one of the smallest markets in baseball despite not winning the World Series last season? Or that the Twins aren't very far ahead of the White Sox with a winning team and lovely new outdoor stadium?

All of our starters are great except in those innings they or the defense give up runs. Hmmmm...I think we might have arrived at a solution. Pitch, defend and hit better.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:16 PM) The stadium is fine. The seats are a few years old. They do concrete work every year, sometimes even during the season. They are due a couple new boards soon, but they are going to be there for a while. JR's deal is too sweet. In other words, despite fickle fans, their current sweetheart deal is way too profitable not to exploit in baseball's current economic environment. They have no incentive to sell or move the team. Great.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:16 PM) Even before that, fans were going to games in Boston. Long before they made three straight playoff appearances, fans were going to games. As balta noted, if the ownership groups in Chicago (and Cleveland, and Miami, and Oakland, and TB) can't succeed and continue to blame the fans instead of the product/stadium, better to sell to someone who can or move the team to a more promising market or a better facility. Common sense.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 22, 2015 -> 02:14 PM) QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 18, 2015 -> 10:09 PM) * Finally, how can the White Sox, after winning five in a row on the road, and having Kluber AND Sale on the mound, only draw 17,712 fans? What was wrong with the weather? Blackhawks again? Did the White Sox begin the season in a fashion that demonstrated to anyone they were prepared to play...or even competitive? No, they got blown out by the Twins and Royals. And, as we ALL know, 1983 is the only season we've improved in the second half of a season and sustained it into the playoffs. And actually, those numbers were still a 25% improvement on similar dates last April and May. Progress!

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2015 -> 01:56 PM) The Red Sox haven't had a year under 30k since 1998. So it isn't like this is a new phenomenon that corresponds with them making three playoff appearances in a row for the first time in their history in 2003 to 2005, which is apparently the bare minimum for White Sox fans to show up according to this thread. In fact they have only made the playoffs once in the 2010's. Despite that, they are still averaging 36.5K a night with a team that has a record pretty much the same as ours. As soon as we have a top 3 payroll, are the only team in a major media market with an RSN that generates revenues greater than most Central American nations, three World Series winners within a decade and the most historic baseball palace in the entire world....then your example can begin to be relevant. It's like saying we might as well wish for Illitch, Moreno or Mark Cuban to buy the franchise and operate it like a hobby/passion instead of pure business/return on investment play.

We keep hearing two lousy examples. 2008 had a huge falloff in attendance for two obvious reasons. The complete debacle that was 2007 paired with the total demise that was the second half of 2006. Every study has shown the positive effects of winning a World Series wear off in 4-5 years. Exactly what happened. Not to mention the fact that sales are usually 80% a reflection of the previous season...not "in season" walk ups. That's also a huge reason 2012 was disappointing....what happened in 2011? Another complete meltdown of historic proportions where Dunn was regularly earning column space in the NY Times. Other than that, we have some evidence (but not definitive proof because of a one-team market and the Illitch ownersip anomaly that Tigers fans are "better" somehow). Meanwhile, we can point to teams like Colorado, Arizona, Seattle, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Cincy, KC, the Mets until this season despite a new stadium, Toronto, Baltimore and Minnesota (look at their attendance this year after four losing seasons despite being a "winner" so far). And Braves fans were notorious for not showing up in the regular season or even during the playoffs because they didn't truly believe their teams could win it all. The main outliers are TB (stadium), Cubs, Cardinals, Brewers, A's, Marlins and Tigers. (There's also zero relevance comparing us to the Yankees, Red Sox, Giants, Dodgers or even the Angels). So i just named 13 franchises that are very similar to us in responding to winners. On the other side of the ledger is the Brewers, Cubs, Cards and Tigers. Maybe we should hire the Brewers' entire staff, steal their stadium and move it to a more optimal location...that seems to be the only conclusion to draw. There's certainly no debating we got the very worst of all the new stadiums built in the last 25 years, unless younwant to argue Citi Field in NY.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2015 -> 11:17 AM) Apparently you don't read anything that doesn't fit your pre-set agenda. I have even compared our attendance to other teams, including Detroit, to make the point. Even after two of the worst seasons in the entire franchises history, their attendance went up after a 72 win season. Ours goes down after a playoff run. We have a small and bandwagon fan base. Nothing you have said disproves any of that. In fact much of what you say about what it takes to get fans to actually show up only reinforces that. And no, I don't listen to sports talk radio. The last thing I need is to listen to hours of meatball fans complaining about everything under the sun. Then how do you explain the White Soc and Cubs having the exact same number of local Chicago m.s.a./local fans attending games in the 2010 season....with the only difference the 25% uptick for tourism/regional/historic site traffic that no other team other than maybe the Red Sox can count on?