caulfield12

Two times now against the Tigers that YOUK has ripped balls to the left side of the diamond in key situations and ended up with nothing to show for it. Can't believe Peralta was playing so far into the hole there. Perfect positioning, because he has almost no range.

HUGE hit there by D-Weezy. Wow. That feels like an elephant has been lifted off their shoulders.

That's ONE way to score, lol. Still no hits with RISP. C'mon Wise. Game tying single would be absolutely huge here.

Solid AB from Viciedo there again. But yeah, he sucks against righties and always will for the rest of his life because 23 year old hitters don't have the ability to improve or make adjustments.

Steve, Viciedo would have been out at 3rd, and out at home. He would have run through a stop sign from McEwing and everyone would be screaming that he took the bat out of the hands of YOUK, Dunn and Konerko. He had a great jump from 2nd and Joe still stopped him right away.

QUOTE (Paint it Black @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:15 PM) Only the dumb ones want him gone. If you're tired of the strike outs without the big production that should come with them, then Viciedo is your man Gee, good comparison. A 23 year old not far from being a rookie entering 2012 versus the highest paid DH in baseball and a veteran in his 30's. I would bet they both have pretty similar numbers with RISP or 2 outs for the year. HOW ABOUT WE GET SOME PRODUCTION FROM PAUL KONERKO? Nobody wants to discuss the elephant in the room, which is that Konerko's not close to 100%, AJ is fading again and we just don't match up with Cabrera, Fielder and a clutch Delmon Young (at least against us) comparatively.

QUOTE (Paint it Black @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:15 PM) Only the dumb ones want him gone. If you're tired of the strike outs without the big production that should come with them, then Viciedo is your man Gee, good comparison. A 23 year old not far from being a rookie entering 2012 versus the highest paid DH in baseball and a veteran in his 30's. I would bet they both have pretty similar numbers with RISP or 2 outs for the year. HOW ABOUT WE GET SOME PRODUCTION FROM PAUL KONERKO? Nobody wants to discuss the elephant in the room, which is that Konerko's not close to 100%, AJ is fading again and we just don't match up with Cabrera, Fielder and a clutch Delmon Young (at least against us) comparatively.

QUOTE (Chet Kincaid @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:13 PM) I wonder how many White Sox fans would like to see Dunn in another uniform next year. I know sabermatricians say that he gets on base and he walks and hits home runs and a strike out is just another out and blah blah blah, but seeing him swing and miss or take a 3rd strike is getting really old. If we don't have Youk, AJ and a healthy Konerko in 2013, we definitely have to retain Dunn, whether we like it or not. Not unlike living and dying with Jim Thome's flaws every year.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:12 PM) I would be happy, but really, it would be truly sad if we win the division We started out 4-3 against DET. It will be a 1-10 string to finish, were we to lose.

QUOTE (Harry Chappas @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:10 PM) Trying to go the opposite way is very hard on an inside pitch, that is not rocket science. If you are ahead in the count 1-0 there is no need to swing at a pitch on the inner third to try and move the runner over. Take the pitch and try to do it with a pitch away. The chances of executing are better when you do that but I could be wrong. You get yourself out 90-95% of the time. Jam shot every time. Maybe you get lucky with a duck snort here and there if you're strong enough to muscle it out of the infield.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 01:07 PM) Dick Allen: Defender of all thing's White Sox! Gordon didn't get a hit when he had a chance there, but DA kept quiet. Just wait until he gets his next hit so DA can point out that everyone on Soxtalk trashing Beckham (and his sub .700 OPS on the season, both pre and post ASB) that they are soo wrong. LOLOLOL LOOK BECKHAM GOT A HIT YOU IDIOTS. Give it up. That was a terrible display, and this pissing themselves whenever it matters against the Tigers this year makes me want to slit my wrists. Marty and DA would be chiming in if Viciedo had K'ed or not advanced the runners, lol. "But he's the richest person under age 30 in Georgia and has a beautiful girlfriend." Harrelson fawning over his arm like he's Juan Uribe or Jose Valentin is almost equally hilarious.

Perfect synposis there of the season series, and why we're likely to be 5-13 and losers of 10/11. We just aren't executing at all or even making contact, same thing happened with YOUK and Dunn in a similar situation last series when we got swept. We had just tied the game and had bases loaded, no outs, and NOTHING. Just can't NOT SCORE there and win games usually. 10-23 vs. Det and KC after today in all likelihood.

Of course. Back to the RISP doldrums. 2-1 pitch there absolutely huge.

White Sox presented with the same situation and what happens....?

Well, the Tigers had a 3-0 lead in the early innings yesterday, too. Need to get a break somehow or another patented defensive miscue.

This game is about to be close to over soon if they add 4 and 5 runs. AJ with his typical 2nd half defense. Boesch has killed us all season long. Tigers have hit against us with RISP. We haven't returned the favor, by and large.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 12:44 PM) Alexei completely out of position. Awesome Just bad luck, that ball was in the hole and the runner (Jackson) was going to be safe anyway...maybe the bases would have still been loaded, but Alexei's never going to throw out even an injured Austin Jackson. And Jose doesn't have the kind of stuff to consistently strike out hitters, either.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ Sep 17, 2012 -> 12:44 PM) Alexei completely out of position. Awesome Just bad luck, that ball was in the hole and the runner (Jackson) was going to be safe anyway...maybe the bases would have still been loaded, but Alexei's never going to throw out even an injured Austin Jackson. And Jose doesn't have the kind of stuff to consistently strike out hitters, either.

Hawk disgusted they didn't get the out at 3rd. Just can't field his position very well or make good decisions out there on defense. Something they're going to have to try to work on with Jose. Inexperienced.

White Sox look to build on Central lead vs. Tigers By Anthony Odoardi / MLB.com | 9/16/2012 7:42 PM ET Comments (21)Tweet The rain washed away Thursday's series finale between the White Sox and Tigers. It also washed away the heavyweight matchup of Justin Verlander vs. Chris Sale. But it couldn't take away from the importance of Monday's makeup game. The White Sox lead the Tigers by two games in the American League Central. Both teams will fly in for a 1:10 p.m. CT start at U.S. Cellular Field. The Sox will be coming back from Minnesota, while the Tigers will take the short flight from Cleveland. For the Tigers, it will be Doug Fister (9-8, 3.49 ERA) getting the call. Two of Fister's last three starts have come against Chicago. He threw five innings and allowed three runs -- two earned -- on four hits in a no-decision on Aug. 31. He gave up two hits -- both solo home runs -- in seven innings to earn the win on Tuesday against Chicago. "It's definitely a step in the right direction," said Fister, who has been battling injuries for most of the season, including a recent groin strain. "I don't want to say I'm in midseason form, but I'm still trying to make as many adjustments as possible." The Sox will go with 23-year-old rookie Jose Quintana (6-4, 3.52 ERA), who was pushed back from Saturday's scheduled start and will be going on six days' rest. Quintana's first year in the big leagues has unquestionably been impressive, but his mettle will be tested as he pitches in one of the biggest games of the season. If his last outing is any indication -- he fired 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball vs. Detroit last Monday -- he should be just fine. "I don't see it as putting pressure on myself," Quintana said through an interpreter Sunday. "I see it as another game, that's kind of how I go about each outing. But I know it's an important game for us, and so I'm going to go out there and do the best I can and try to help this team get a win." Tigers: Fister has been successful at U.S. Cellular Field • Fister is 1-2 with a 3.35 ERA in six career starts against the White Sox. He is 1-0 with a 2.40 ERA in two starts at U.S. Cellular Field. • Austin Jackson was a late scratch from Sunday's lineup with a sore left ankle. Jackson was injured jumping into the center-field wall attempting to save Anibal Sanchez's no-hit bid in the seventh inning on Saturday. It's possible he could miss Monday's game. "I guess just the impact of it was what I was feeling afterwards," Jackson said. • Outfielder Quintin Berry, who was already in the lineup but moved over to center field, started his second game in a row for the Tigers on Sunday after not starting two consecutive games since Aug. 3-4 -- also against Cleveland.

By Mark Gonzales, Chicago Tribune reporter 8:32 p.m. CDT, September 16, 2012 MINNEAPOLIS — Rookie left-hander Jose Quintana didn't hide the fact that two extra days of rest made him feel better entering Monday's start against American League Central enemy Detroit. "It actually does feel good about this time of the season to get a couple of extra days," said Quintana, who will try to beat the Tigers for the second time in eight days. "It gives your arm a little bit more strength, so I'll feel good for (Monday)." But another issue facing Quintana will be his plan of attack against the Tigers, whom he had success against in the latter innings on Sept. 10 by pitching away more frequently from their right-handed hitters. Quintana said he would attack them the same way, and catcher A.J. Pierzynski added they would adjust as needed. Pierzynski said it was important for Quintana to settle into a rhythm early, especially after working out of a third-inning jam in which he induced Miguel Cabrera to ground into a double play and retired Prince Fielder on a called third strike. "It looked like the double play settled him down," Pierzynski said. "He did it in a huge situation, and it settled him down." Quintana has thrown 122 2/3 innings for the Sox and 48 2/3 innings at Double-A Birmingham. Left is all right: The Sox handled Minnesota left-hander Scott Diamond, further alleviating any concerns that the Sox don't have a right-handed hitting backup outfielder. "It's just one of those (things)," manager Robin Ventura said. "We have good outfielders. I'm not worried as much as we need another right-handed outfielder." Detroit could encounter the same problem if leadoff batter/center fielder Austin Jackson can't play Monday because of a sore left ankle. The Tigers could be forced to start two left-handed hitting outfielders against Quintana. Extra innings: The Sox limited Minnesota to 12 hits in the three-game series. ... Ventura plans to give right fielder Alex Rios a rest in one of the three games at Kansas City this week, although Rios was pulled in the middle of the sixth inning Sunday. ... Rios batted .418 against the Twins this season. ... Tom Paciorek will serve as color analyst on Monday's telecast of the Sox's game in place of Steve Stone, who will observe Rosh Hashanah. Late last week, Sox third baseman Kevin Youkilis said he would play. ... Gates to U.S. Cellular Field will open Monday at noon.

Phil Rogers On Baseball 8:52 a.m. CDT, September 17, 2012 Talking baseball while worrying about the NHL season: 1. Can Jose Quintana do it again? If the White Sox hold off the Tigers for the AL Central title, we may very well look back at his start last Monday as one of the biggest games of the season. He gave Robin Ventura 7 2/3 very strong innings and a victory over Detroit when the starting rotation was hurting. Related Extra rest has Quintana ready to go Sox sweep Twins, increase lead to 2 over Tigers Photos: Sox sweep Twins again Readers' Q&A: Mark Gonzales' White Sox mailbag Ads by Google The Declarer Floyd McWilliams' blog: Politics, baseball, bridge thedeclarer.blogspot.com/Custom Drives Development, prototypes, testing production, assembl. from one hand www.Framo-Morat.comThanks to last Thursday’s rainout, he gets an unexpected chance for an encore Monday. The 23-year-old Colombian joined the White Sox rotation in late May, when John Danks left it because of problems with his shoulder, and has been one of the most essential guys over the last four months. He’s an ongoing sneak attack, an afterthought who performs like the guys earning $10 million. Because he spent the first two months at Double-A, he won’t qualify for the earned run average title. That’s a shame, because his 3.52 would rank 12thin the AL – between Jarrod Parker and CC Sabathia – if he did. Having watched him all season, I’d consider placing him on a Rookie of the Year ballot if I was voting in that category. But it seems very unlikely that he will actually receive any consideration, as this has been a terrific year for rookies in the AL. Mike Trout will get all 28 first-place votes, along with a significant number of first places in MVP voting. The A’s Yoenis Cespedes is also having a very impressive first season in North America, and the crop of rookie pitchers is really rich. Cespedes’ teammates Parker (11-8, 3.51 in 26 starts) and Tommy Milone (13-10, 3.81) have contributed greatly in Oakland, having the second-best record in the AL, and a shot to overtake Texas for the AL West title. The Rangers’ Yu Darvish has 15 wins and 205 strikeouts. Tampa Bay lefty Matt Moore (10-11, 3.88, 169 strikeouts in 169 1-3 innings) and Orioles lefty Wei-Yin Chen (12-9, 4.00) have helped keep their teams in the playoff picture. Minnesota’s Scott Diamond, whom the White Sox beat Sunday, is a solid 11-8, 3.69. Then there are the rookie relievers. Addison Reed has 26 saves for the White Sox, and Oakland’s Ryan Cook has a 1.01 WHIP over 62 appearances. Eight players received ROY votes in the AL a year ago. If Quintana is going to put himself into the discussion among the runnersup behind Trout, he needs a strong finish. That could get him something just as nice on his permanent record – a chance to start in the postseason. 2. Jose Valverde’s costly meltdown in Cleveland on Sunday was even worse that it looks in the box score. He caught a huge break when first-base umpire Brian Knight missed a fair-foul call on Asdrubal Cabrera’s soft fly down the right-field line after Jason Kipnis’ leadoff double. Replays showed the ball clearly hit on or just inside the line but Knight called it foul, and Valverde then retired Cabrera for the first out. That could have been the type of call to turn the division race but Carlos Santana followed with a triple that bounced out of Don Kelly’s glove at the right-field wall and, after a pair of intentional walks, Lonnie Chisenhall lined a ball to deep right to score Santana with the game-winner. The loss was the Tigers’ ninth straight in one-run games. They haven’t had a one-run win since Aug. 24. 3. Wish I’d been at Wrigley Field to watch Jorge Soler and Albert Almora work out. The Cubs were smart to get their top prospects to Wrigley for batting practice and a chance to walk the park where they will play. Both look like stone-cold hitters who could arrive with the kind of impact that Starlin Castro has had. One thing is curious to me. MLB.com just ranked each club’s top 20 prospects, and listed Soler as the Cubs’ No. 5. Are they kidding? You can argue that the Cuban isn’t worth the $30 million deal he got – a losing argument, by the way, if Soler does have a long big-league career – but he might be the No. 5 prospect in the minors, not in the Cubs’ system. I’ve talked to scouts who saw him play for Cuba’s junior national team and one highly respected scout with another organization who went to the Dominican Republic to try him out. They rave about him, his ability as a power hitter in particular. I know shortstop Javier Baez had a big season this year, but if I’m ranking the Cubs’ prospects I start with Soler. [email protected]

Interesting that DeAza's sitting against a RH pitcher. Ventura must be convinced it's going to be better to try him in another game with a different type of pitcher to break that 2/21 slump.

1) All Dunn If today's makeup game had been played as scheduled Thursday, Adam Dunn wouldn't have been in the White Sox's lineup. He was recovering from an oblique injury that had plagued him for a few weeks. Dunn has returned and is 3-for-4 in his career off today's Tigers starter Doug Fister. 2) Fister factor The right-hander will make his second straight start against the White Sox (just as Chicago's Jose Quintana will make his second straight against the Tigers). Last Tuesday, Fister held the White Sox to two hits (both home runs) in seven innings. Will he have to pitch to the White Sox differently today because they just faced him? No, because of how Fister pitches. He doesn't use scouting reports. He goes on what he thinks will work best at the moment. Besides, the best pitchers often dominate the best teams for two starts in a row in a postseason series. 3) Valverde By all appearances Tigers closer Jose Valverde -- who lost Sunday's game -- will be unavailable today except for unforeseen circumstances. Manager Jim Leyland didn't name a replacement. www.freep.com/sports

CLEVELAND -- The Tigers' clubhouse was dead silent Sunday evening after a sloppy, depressing, dejecting, demoralizing, painful loss to the Indians. Jose Valverde put on a suit and buttoned his shirt, and tied his tie, and slipped on his vest, then faced the media. Pitching for the third straight game -- he swears his arm felt great and his velocity was up -- Valverde blew a save as the Indians got a dramatic, 7-6 come-from-behind victory. "I feel good," Valverde said. "Sometimes, you have to give credit to the hitter, too." And that was it. The Tigers packed their bags and jumped on a plane and headed for Chicago for a showdown today against the White Sox. One game. Winner take, well, one game. But that one game is crucial for the Tigers. Because they are now two games behind the White Sox in the American League Central. And if they fall three back, well, that might be too much to overcome. One for the books If the Tigers fail to catch the White Sox. If they fail to make the playoffs. If they break the hearts of countless fans. If they miss the playoffs by one game -- why does that seem inevitable at this point? It might come down to Sunday in Cleveland. It was the day Alex Avila collided with Prince Fielder as they tried to catch a foul ball. Quick note: Never, ever run face-first into Fielder's elbow; it's just not good for your dentures. As a general rule, a face always loses to an elbow. Avila suffered a sprained jaw. "It looked like a knockout punch," Tigers manager Jim Leyland said. It was the day Leyland was ejected for arguing the second of three close calls at first base. "I thought all three guys were out, or I wouldn't have been out there," Leyland said. "They were unbelievable, bang-bang plays. ... Emotions run high this time of year." It was the day Drew Smyly pitched fantastic in relief. It was a day the Tigers played sloppy and botched several plays. It was the day the Tigers wasted a dramatic seventh-inning home run by Miguel Cabrera. As several thousand Tigers fans chanted, "MVP! MVP!" Cabrera looked like one as he blasted a 402-foot home run to give the Tigers a 6-5 lead. And everything seemed perfect, everything seemed magical, until that disastrous ninth inning. "We were asking a lot of Valverde today, but he threw the ball well," Leyland said. "He had better velocity than he's had the last couple of nights. ... He's been fantastic." Jackson hurting And finally, it was the day Austin Jackson spent most of the game in the trainer's room, getting treatment on an injured ankle. As his teammates packed their bags, Jackson sat at his locker, wearing an ankle brace. He didn't play Sunday after suffering an injured left ankle while crashing into the wall Saturday. "It was real tight and sore," Jackson said. "We worked on it during the game, trying to get some of the swelling out. It worked pretty well with the treatment we did. Hopefully, today, we can do some more things to loosen it up before the game." He looked at his ankle. He plans to play today. Because this is just so much fun and dramatic. "Honestly, all the games matter from here on out," Jackson said. "All of the games have a lot of pressure on them, to be honest with you." Must-win game? It is almost impossible to predict what this team will do. Suddenly, the Tigers are bruised and battered, heading to Chicago for a game that is as close to must-win as it gets. It will be the last time the Tigers face the White Sox -- in the regular season, at least. The Tigers will start Doug Fister, who has looked brilliant lately. The White Sox will counter with Jose Quintana, a rookie left-hander who gave the Tigers fits in his last start, holding them to one run in 7 2/3 innings. So today means everything. A win and they still have a chance. A loss and they will need some serious help. If ever there is a day to ... hmm ... come down with a strange debilitating illness, preventing you from going to work, and forcing you to sit in front of your television right around 2 p.m. to spend some quality time with Rod and Mario -- this is it. Cough away, Detroit! Today is sick day in the Motor City. www.freep.com/sports (SIEDEL)