caulfield12

http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mlb-big-leag...21968--mlb.html Poor Gordon is now officially "posterized." The equivalent of getting dunked over in the NBA...haha. Something about Reed's fastball, it's not consistently crisp, either. Sometimes it's THERE, other times, it's a liability. For a closer, you need to have more consistency with your #1 pitch, if it's not going to be the slider.

QUOTE (Quinarvy @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 10:36 AM) Sale Viciedo Quintana Reed Jones Beckham (I still believe he can turn it around. Likely? Maybe not, but I think he can.) Konerko (I want him to retire here). Not with that huge hitch in his swing. Look how fast YOUK gets to the ball, with a similar set up. And he's 7 years older. Or Rios, compare last year's swing with this year's. Beckham has no chance to hit a fastball anywhere but into RF these days. The ONLY pitch he can possibly pull is a breaking ball. With that stance, when he tries to turn and burn, he just fouls it back or into the 1B/RF stands....EVERY time.

QUOTE (bucket-of-suck @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 11:14 AM) Anybody else have an awful feeling about these next two games...? I will have an awful feeling about Sunday, if we lose today. We usually don't do well against rookie pitchers we've never faced before. Turner has either been great or horrible, no inbetween so far.

QUOTE (Benchwarmerjim @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 04:39 AM) Liriano has had an insane amount of swing and misses the last 2 game. its somewhere in the neighborhood of 50. It's funny. Ryan has to be considering trying to re-sign Liriano (if they want to compete for the AL Central anytime soon), because he's far and away their best pitcher now. Unfortunately, the Mauer and Morneau contracts make that close to impossible.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 09:53 AM) Walker is looking more and more promising. I think he's the guy I'd least like to lose in a deal. Correct me if I'm wrong, but doesn't he profiles as a Kenny Lofton-type leadoff hitter? That's a stretch...he'll probably be more like Juan Pierre or Pods. Lofton was an exciting, dynamic game changing player, both offensively and defensively.

Broken record. DeAza needs to get on base like he was the first 2 1/2 months, Youk needs to continue to be superman...seriously, the Tigers and Red Sox just have much more dangerous and balanced line-ups than we do. Beckham hasn't a homer in like 6 weeks, but we keep worrying about Viciedo? Dunn's striking out every other at-bat and not giving us many productive outs? Even if our line-up is scoring, we don't have the bullpen to hold leads. It's like the perfect storm now, with the Tigers cresting and the White Sox trying to ride out the storm. Konerko will not be moved down. He's either hitting clean-up or out of the line-up entirely.

Inexperienced pitchers in the bullpen that throw 90%+ fastballs=15 blown saves The end.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 10:41 PM) My point was that I normally don't hop in a thread and declare BEST MOVIE EVER. I am declaring best movie ever. It's not even in the Top 5 of Nolan's career. 1. Batman: The Dark Knight 2. Inception 3. Memento 4. Batman Returns 5. The Prestige

QUOTE (Jake @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 08:02 AM) The Sox are all professionals, and they know that these series 90 games into the season don't mean s***. You want to win every game against the Tigers and you'd like to always be in first place, but there's a lot of baseball ahead of us. "Biggest series of the season" is a tremendous overstatement with all of the games left to play. The guys on the team are just trying to win because wins are good, not because their fans get too worked up over every divisional game. They also know that there a few guys on offense not clicking, we're short two starters, and our bullpen is full of unfamiliar names. Some of that will change and the sky won't be falling anymore. You just have a feeling each season when there are key points. Two years ago, it was the Jenks blown game and then the Thome GS off Thornton to put the icing on the cake. The White Sox are like a boxer who was just knocked down. They have these two games to get up off the canvas. All those conditions you're using as excuses have been there all season long, nothing's different...and Ventura isn't about to start making excuses now..."Well, the Tigers were always the favorite, they have more talent and a higher payroll, we have too many rookies to contend, they don't have any holes in their line-up other than 2B, we have 3-4-5 on any given night, etc." We all knew 16/19 on the road was going to be a b****, and it has been. The Tigers also have a difficult schedule from here on out, too, but they also have a huge home field advantage with sellouts every game for the rest of the season...another advantage the White Sox won't have. To top it off, they have the advantage of being able to go out and add a starter or 2B...and the luxury of having Smyly and Turner for the future, depending on who they trade (Castellanos, they've got 4-5 other really good prospects to go along with him). The final game of that Red Sox series was an inflection point in the season. I highly doubt the Tigers if they get going are just going to collapse like the 2008 Twins did at the end. That said, worst case scenario, we have a decent shot at edging out Boston and Tampa Bay simply because we have so many games against the Twins and Royals, if we can prove that we can beat them. In all honesty though....Ellsbury, Crawford, Pedroia, Gonzalez, Ortiz, Middlebrooks, Ross/Sweeney, Salty and Aviles...there's just no way in hell to argue the White Sox have anything approaching the firepower of that line-up. They're better. But it will come down to pitching, as it always does, in the end.

QUOTE (Swingandalongonetoleft @ Jul 21, 2012 -> 01:26 AM) It's one and the same. Movie theaters are a big part of our culture. Opening fire on a packed theater brings the same results as airplane hijackings, suicide bombers, or hostage takers. It makes people wary of going about business as usual because their sense of security has taken a hit. Armed robbery and gang violence typically have a specific target. Unless something comes out saying otherwise, this guy didn't have a specific target in mind. His target was anything breathing that he laid eyes on- just like the shooter in Norway. It doesn't matter who's behind the gun firing and for what reason- it matters that there is a gun being fired to begin with. Slippery slope is the concern here. People like to feel safe and the ones who make the rules are well aware of this. This was my school's topic for Model United Nations this spring. They first had to agree with all the other represented countries on a definition for terrorism. Obviously, that's not so easy to do. For example, the British representative brought up the idea that Washington, Jefferson, Franklin, Adams, Revere, Madison, Hamilton, etc., all would would have been tried and executed for "terrorism" had the US lost the Revolutionary War. Fair point. Terrorism is in the eye of the beholder. Bane in Batman is by most people's definition a terrorist, even though he's not a "foreigner." Some people get caught up in this idea it has to be a person with a different religious belief, which is patently false. Or skin color. This kid was suburb looking (for some reason, he reminds me of Jude Law when they keep showing that picture), honors student, budding scientist...so he's therefore NOT a terrorist, at least in the minds of most. Heck, George Martin could be defined as terrorist by the African-American community....or the police, for that matter, totally depends on your POV. We want to put people in the box of "other" or "that would never be my child." To find somewhere to assess blame. Movies, parenting, computer games, lack of control, everyone should have guns and therefore it wouldn't happen because people would think twice...did the shooter actually plan on dying when he went into that theatre, like the two kids at Columbine when they went to school that day? It doesn't seem like he was quite sure what he wanted as the outcome. The guy in Norway clearly was selfish enough that he wanted to live so that he could go on spreading his "message" in perpetuity. If there's no reason for doing something, specifically, does that make it any more or less terroristic? Heck, you can argue that "pointless" or non-strategic violence and murder creates more fear than anything else, even if it's not the original intent.

QUOTE (iamshack @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 08:42 PM) The question is better phrased as "Who is our most valuable asset?" The answer is clearly Chris, even with the injury concerns. Then I think you've got Alejandro, Quintana, and Dayan. Of the well-paid players, I'd have to say Alex. Ooops, somehow forgot DeAza. Probably because I couldn't conceive of a situation anytime soon where they would be trading him, with Mitchell going south and Rios so comfortable in RF. He's one of those guys who has a lot more value to the White Sox than what we could get back for him if we put him on the trade market. But it would be interesting to see what AJ, what Alejandro, what Dayan, what Quintana, what Alexei are worth right now to other GM's. Still don't imagine there are any GM's who would take either Rios or Dunn for their remaining contract numbers with no player coming back to the Sox.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 08:37 PM) Right now I'm most concerned with the fact that we seem to have been overworking Peavy and some of our starters lately. This lack of experienced relievers is hurting the club. That and Thornton just isn't reliable like he was in 2006-07-08-09. It's almost like the curse of MARTE. Once they pushed him to the very back of the bullpen and gave him closing opportunities, something's just broken inside of him. What is he now, 0 for 7 in save opportunities now? And Crain has been hurt and not nearly as effective as he was in 2011. And no Frasor, although he was pretty MEHHHHHH for us.

Nobody ever really said Peavy was an ace anymore. He's been great, he's Top 5 in the AL in quality starts and he's had horrible run support. That said, he's been more and more hittable as the season has progressed. He'll have those innings where he struggles to put away hitters and his offspeed pitches aren't sharp and they hang out over the plate and get tatooed. It happened again tonight. He'll never be the same pitcher who threw 93-96 consistently, and he'll never be the ace of a staff, but he's a super solid 2 guy now and a great 3 guy in a rotation. He's a bulldog, he eats innings and you have to drag him out of the game at your own peril, but he's not a Cy Young caliber pitcher after that surgery...but he's doing the best he possibly can under the circumstances, he has pushed himself as far as he can humanly go without another injury.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 08:32 PM) I disagree with Nate Jones being on the list because he is not very good. But he has a big league arm, and scouts are more in love with him than Quintana. That's what Buehrle was up against from the time he was drafted...it's the same thing Jose is facing now. Even the doubts from Ventura about him being able to finish out games.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 08:28 PM) Youkilis. If the White Sox make the playoffs and have decent attendance the rest of the season...it would make a lot of sense to bring back Youk and AJ. But it could just as quickly become apparent that the Sox need to move on and they can't afford to invest $20-22 million per year on two players declining in their mid 30's. AJ's had a great season so far, he has been by far our most consistent hitter from Day 1, but you can't expect that when he's 36 and 37. He's been an everyday catcher now for 12 seasons, and he's probably playing more in 2012 than in any other season with the Sox.

We also don't have ANY clarity at all about the catching situation next year. Right now, you'd say bring back AJ for $15-18 million on a two year contract, but that might look completely different 2 months from now. Flowers just really hasn't had a fair chance at all to get any kind of offensive rhythm, but to think he'd be able to hit for a higher average than Dunn or strike out much less than Dunn...it would be a big risk to go with Tyler as the starting catcher in 2013. Phegley started off like gangbusters and then faded, just like Mitchell. With Doumit signing an extension with the Twins, the best available FA option is Chris Ianetta, and that's not saying too much.

Yeah, just realized it's pointless, everyone will pick Sale. So maybe people should take their SECOND choice, that would be a lot more interesting.

Was just thinking about this topic because Fathom brought it up in the game thread. Other than Sale, Viciedo and Quintana, there's not really anyone I would be upset to trade between now and the beginning of next season. For a while, Mitchell would have been on this list, but that's even starting to be a bit depressing. The only other minor leaguer we might want to watch start a game for the rest of the year is Simon Castro. Just can't get over the lack of power from Konerko...something has to be seriously wrong with that hand/wrist, at some point, it might be better to shut it down for 10-15 days and let Dan Johnson try, but I realize he's the captain, he has a ton of pride, definitely he won't ask to take himself out of the line-up no matter how much he's hurting. Ooops, didn't make it a multiple answer possibility. Let's assume everyone will pick Sale first then, to make it interesting. Who would you pick SECOND after Chris?

QUOTE (oldsox @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 09:00 PM) Same here. I don't like reading about it. Has Ventura ever said he should have left Q in for the 9th inning? Nope. Not at all. Hope it happens the next time out...eventually he's going to have to change his mind and start giving Quintana some more respect.

Apparently the kid was a very highly decorated honors student at UC Riverside. Bizarre.

Greg, I suppose the Royals would have batted Verlander around when he was throwing 97-100 in the 7th and 8th? Tip your caps. 4 two out runs scored. Not that they were great pitches (any of them) by Peavy. Great job Donnie Veal, someone finally bowed their neck down there and fought back.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 07:07 PM) Castro with an excellent start tonight. Also, how does Mitchell have 12 errors in the outfield? Except for the 4 walks. That will get you killt at USCF or Fenway or Wrigley, as Harrelson likes to say. One of the Wiliams kids is doing his best to uphold the family tradition, hitting .162.

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Jul 20, 2012 -> 04:45 PM) Chris Sale IS a superstar. His body of this work this season speaks for itself, not the name on the front of the jersey. We'll find out tomorrow. Superstars show up and dominate in those must-win games. There's never been more of a game with that definition attached than Saturday's afternoon tilt. "We've had this before," manager Robin Ventura said. "We go through it, and most teams do. Eventually, we'll get on another run putting everything together where you score runs and pitchers pitch well." The Sox's third consecutive loss has coincided with the opportunistic Tigers winning three straight, and Detroit has won 11 of 13. "We know this is going to be a battle and grind," Peavy said. "We talked about it from the get-go. We never ruled anyone out. Detroit is playing well and has made a nice run. We believe that we're going to do that as well." Against Verlander (11-5), who has allowed three runs over his last 25 innings, the Sox didn't advance a runner to scoring position after De Aza's home run in the third staked Peavy to a 2-0 lead. That left Peavy (7-7), who has been the victim of low run support, with another frustrating defeat. "I just nicked (Berry) ... and Cabrera is just Cabrera," Peavy said. "I made some pitches to him and then had to throw a strike. The cutter wasn't good. I felt like I made a good pitch to Prince. When it's not going your way, it's not going your way." "We're not worried about anything," Alex Rios said. "Let's see what happens.'' Mark Gonzales, Tribune They seem really calm right now. Saturday and Sunday, that will be tested. The Ventura "even keel" approach was due to encounter a storm at some point.

Tigers playing great outfield defense tonight even, Boesch on AJ and then that play by Berry. Detroit is a steamroller for now.

Must be nice to have a 1-2-3 ninth inning.