caulfield12

Well, as "bad" as Santiago has been pitching, his WHIP is still nearly 0.10 better than Verlander this season. So if we can afford to send pitchers to the minors who look better (ERA, too) statistically than Justin Verlander, more power to them. It's only natural there was going to be some carryover effect in the control department...sigh. Miguel Cabrera only has 50 RBI's so far. Looks like he'll get a shot at a couple of more. Pouring it on against CLE now.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:48 PM) Santiago really needs work on that change-up. He should really concentrate on the change or screwball, one or the other. The likes of Johan Santana or Jose Contreras have proven you can get by with just a couple of very good pitches at the major league level...and maybe a 3rd pitch you throw 10% of the time, just to keep them honest. Sometimes, it seems young pitchers want to have 4-5 to demonstrate their full repertoire to scouts.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:44 PM) You think this sounds like someone who's confident? "It kind of sucks that I found out after I threw my bullpen," Santiago said. "For the most part, I think I'll be fine." Actually from everything you read about this kid, he's the anti-Floyd. Came up from a pretty rough area of New Jersey, via Puerto Rico heritage. To make it to the majors as a 30th round draft pick, you have to have some cojones. I never meant to suggest he's feeble-minded...just have always been a big fan and proponent of his starting and don't like to see him being treated (some will say mistreated) this way on a consistent basis. No more than I enjoyed watching Viciedo being moved from 3B to 1B to RF to LF. ETC. Or even Beckham being moved all over the field.

He pitched well today. I listened for most of the game. The announcers mentioned the game 3 weeks or so ago where he gave up 7 runs to the Rays in a single inning and came back to get 11 of the next 12 outs and kept the team in the game, as they rallied to win 8-7. Those two runs were questionable. Originally, they were unearned, as Izturis made a foolhardy try at a grounder that he should have just put in his pocket and it ended up rolling into the outfield.

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:40 PM) f***. stupid stupid stupid play making the 1st out at 3rd. DeAza was out stealing 2nd, was he not?

QUOTE (Soxfest @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:37 PM) PK has hit Clay well in the past. Different Konerko.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:26 PM) What other business would dump all of their quality products if customers weren't using their company, and tell their customers it would be 3-5 years before their product was decent again? American automakers/designers. Essentially, that's what happened over the 70's, 80's and 90's as they finally responded to foreign competition and improved their products and went bankrupt in the process, with the exception of Ford. Nokia, would be another. Apple Company, when they alienated Jobs and went through a lost generation of products in the wilderness with a Wal-Martesque leader.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:30 PM) Wow, De Aza running with a piano on his back? How many outs or simple mistakes has DeAza made this year already? He's more dangerous to us than Carlos Lee on the basepaths, sheez. More blunders than Jose Valentin and AJ in their entire Sox careers, one would think.

QUOTE (Jake @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:29 PM) We are really overreacting to the potential risk of starting Santiago today. It is sub-optimal, but really not a big deal. Those side sessions are typically thrown at a very low intensity. You wouldn't develop any soreness, for instance. Some guys won't even throw them from a mound. But when you take a pitcher out of his normal routine...even if it's just one day, and it's not like Santiago has been a starter at the big league level for 3-4-5 years, it's going to shake him up a little. And we have no way of knowing exactly what was the velocity he was throwing at (some throw harder so they're a bit tired, others don't)...just the quotes we read from the newspaper expressing some doubt and trepidation. He's still not over the 4th inning Saturday, one would think. It's just a puzzling way to treat one of the most valuable assets in your entire organization.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:25 PM) Who else was available? Seriously, you can't just say don't pitch Santiago, who pitches? DFA Greene, whatever. We have Sanchez and Beckham available Friday. I would rather sacrifice Spencer Arroyo from AA, who's pitched well this year and might actually have done well. Pitching John Danks on 3 day's rest or Erik Johnson on 3 day's rest wouldn't have been any better...but it's still a disaster.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:24 PM) The decision to start Santiago tonight ranks up there with starting Cotts in New York, etc. Just a complete failure by the organization. I don't even care about the results, but rather Santiago's long term future. This is an awful lot of stress to put on his arm. The organization is treating him like a 40 year old Terry Mulholland. It would be one thing if Saturday didn't happen and his confidence wasn't shaken the way he left the game in the 4th after walking 3 consecutive guys and giving up the homer to Trumbo to start everything. Then, being in disbelief that he was going to start after the side session and throwing an additional 40 pitches. It's just crazy. And the bullpen's still going to be taxed regardless.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:22 PM) Fat ass Ortiz steals a base with no throw come on. Despite the team meeting, there haven't been significant improvements in our defense/fundamentals. We're simply getting good pitching and better hitting than previously.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:21 PM) I do not see the superstar in waiting talk with Santiago at all. John Danks also started on Saturday. If he was starting and getting lit up on 3 day's rest tonight, then whose fault would it be? Danks, or the GM?

QUOTE (The Ginger Kid @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:20 PM) what a gas can Santiago was throwing 94, 95 and even touched 96 on Saturday, according to the Angels' broadcasters. This is all on the White Sox. They never should have started him. You don't have him throw 40 pitches in a side session and then start the next day unless it's the playoffs/World Series/emergency situation.

When you have the starting pitcher doubting himself and questioning the decision to start him against a team with the offensive talent of the Red Sox....the results will be a self-fulfilling prophecy.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 22, 2013 -> 06:14 PM) Surprised at how few people are at the game. Weather forecast...? The Blackhawks aren't playing again, are they?

I'll be the first of many to say this. WE NEVER SHOULD HAVE STARTED SANTIAGO TONIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

for its product, is it ever justifiable for that business to blame the consumers for the non-performance of whatever product or service they are selling? The reason I bring this up is because I was wracking my brain for an example. It has been commonly accepted by many at different Sox websites that the team is justified in not spending money at the deadline or in the off-season (if the Sox will be spending more money than they've earned or are projected to earn...of course, we've never been privy to that actual information, other than making educated guesses from Forbes, comments made by the organization, etc.) Obviously, last year, the team was in first place and the moves for Youkilis, Liriano and Myers were logical and didn't cost a boatload of talent or money. But this season presents a different twist, and there are even more needs to make a legitimate argument about finishing with an 87-91 win team. Not only that, but we're in a quandary about long-term development vs. competing in the short term, and we're in a precarious position trading away what prospects we do have for the 10-15-20% chance of having a playoff team this year, albeit one with quite a few flaws. At any rate, I couldn't think of any business or product where the response of the market was "tepid" and the management/ownership group didn't change the people in charge of marketing that aforementioned product. The only examples I could think of were non-profits/NGO's/501-c-3's (obviously different than for-profits) who were all competing for donation dollars....and many go out of business or simply disappear. However, you can't "sell" a non-profit for $1 billion dollars or take out excess revenues from the budget for the Board of Directors without incurring legal and IRS penalties. So other than the White Sox, is there is any other business or product that we can name where the consumers (or fans) are blamed for the failure or shrinking revenues derived from that product? And where the marketing team in place hasn't been changed...perpetuating the notion that it's the consumers' (fans) fault and not the operational model of the business itself?

Lessons from today: Boy, Gattis (oh, to dream of two catchers like that) and Jose Bautista are good. And Joe Maddon's not infallible. Made the questionable decision not to have the 9th place hitter bunt to put the go-ahead run on for the lead-off hitter...whereas the Blue Jays used the 8th place hitter to sacrifice the runner over to 2nd for their 9th place hitter. Oh, and "bad" Fernando Rodney is still back. 9/13 in SVO. Finally, the Twins are fun bad X 2. Verlander six hits and a walk already surrendered in 1 2/3. 1.38 WHIP (the equivalent of Matt Thornton). Still clinging to a 2-2 tie with runners at 2nd and 3rd, 2 outs in the early going. This is as vulnerable as he has been in years...it happened a couple of times in 2012, but now, even more concerns are being raised.

Bring back Jon Garland, Brian Anderson and Kirk McCaskill. Need more "hunnies" in the stands.

Harrelson would probably pick Michael Young to come in and play 1B...once again, if Konerko acknowledges it's better for him not to play for an extended period and/or retire.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 22, 2013 -> 03:03 PM) Ryan Howard has 3.75 years and $100 million remaining on his contract. That's where the KW-ish Jim Thome "subsidized" deal would come in... Would the Phillies be willing to eat 50-60% of that contract to get it off the books? Would the White Sox be willing to invest that much money into a veteran hitter past his prime? Probably not. It did work out well with Thome...and there's obviously a need for impact hitters in our line-up, but that one's probably not the right move at this point unless Konerko just walked into Reinsdorf's office and retired.

Needed more Uhuru and Scotty.

http://sports.yahoo.com/news/stating-obvio...-185800682.html Picking up Utley, Howard (if Konerko can't ever come back to form) or Ruiz would all be typical KW mid-season moves in a year when they're in the race and within hailing distance of first. All World Series champions/veterans. Utley wouldn't be needed if Beckham can hit at least 650 or 675 OPS-wise, but who ever knows how he'll do from one year to the next?

QUOTE (Benchwarmerjim @ May 22, 2013 -> 02:40 PM) the starting pitching is awful (outside of Diamond). Thus, the bullpen has been overworked. after the game, Worley got sent to Rochester. Samuel Deduno gets a crack at the rotation. What's the current thinking on the team? The decent start was giving false hope? That they're returning to what was expected? What about Ryan's performance, trying to undo the damage of the Bill Smith years? What's the patience level? Obviously, Aaron Hicks is the player to be most concerned about, in terms of how long they keep him at the major league level. How are the youngsters like Sano and Buxton doing? Gibson? Their other top pitching prospect?