caulfield12

QUOTE (Swingandalongonetoleft @ Jul 9, 2012 -> 10:45 PM) Hitting coaches around baseball make decent change doing just that. $100-125,000 is a LOT less than most Division 1 baseball coaches earn.

So if supporting their fans is so important to the White Sox, why don't they low their ticket prices or parking fees? It's a business. The White Sox are worth roughly $1.2-1.5 BILLION dollars. If they start giving away tickets for free or operating as a 501c3 nonprofit/charity, then booing becomes more questionable. That said, it's ridiculous to make so many excuses for players. That's the culture we live in today, where nobody is held accountable for their actions...it's scaring me, but maybe my dad was right and you do lose your "liberalism" as you grown older and understand the ways of the world. Comparing China to the US, having lived there for two years, you see the huge differences. If a student is fat or overweight, they're teased (pretty unmercifully) about it. Being overweight is not seen as a disability or something to be embraced or used as an excuse. And yet you see very very few obese people in Asia, except for the children of the very rich who are spoiled and spend all their time playing computer games and discovering all the latest apps on their cell phones. Menendez Brothers killed their parents....they were abused, so even though they planned to murder their parents with malice and forethought, excusable. In the end, every evil action in history can probably be excused. Numerous books have been written about Hitler's youth and childhood, looking for clues or reasons to explain the "pure evil" he later embodied. To go along with J4L's exaggerated point about Jaime Navarro, where does it end? Albert Belle had a tough childhood and was victimized by racism, so we should excuse his behavior towards fans? In the end, Adam Dunn would probably tell you himself that he let the pressure of the contract get to him, he came into the season unprepared physically, he came back too early from the appendectomy...he's not going to use his kid as an excuse for performance. Perhaps the boos that Rios and Dunn absorbed are what pushed them to be better players, in the end. Or can we still keep blaming Ozzie and the fans for the performances (or non-performances) of Joe Borchard, Josh Fields and Brian Anderson, for example? Brian Anderson was rushed to the majors, he was never allowed to experience failure, he was gifted enough to succeed without working hard until he got to the big leagues and then he was overwhelmed, Walker screwed him, Guillen hated him, he was too attractive to the ladies so he couldn't help but get sucked up into the Chicago nightlife scene, he wasn't properly instructed from a fundamentals standpoint by our minor league staff, blah blah blah. Can't we also excuse Ozzie for 90% of his Ozzieness because of growing up dirt poor in Venezuela? Is it really his fault where he came from? How can we hold him accountable, when he basically dropped out of school in his middle school years? We expect him to be like LaRussa, Scioscia, Maddon....who came from upper middle class backgrounds and has access to computers and great instructors growing up?

Yet can't we be open to the idea that Rios and Dunn both are performing better this year because of the adversity and booing last year? It's not like there has been tremendous attendance or fan support for MOST of this season... Would be interesting to see from the POV of both those players why they've improved so much, and Rios, why he has been so inconsistent in recent years when he has so much talent and ability.

I can just imagine if Gordon was getting booed like Dunn last year. Harrelson: 1) Those umpires are just not giving him a chance. 2) He's having problems with his g/f. 3) Sully's not here to watch. 4) They've moved him all over the infield and up and down the line-up. 5) Greg Walker forced him to change his swing after 2009. 6) His dad is his coach and he's getting inconsistent advice. 7) Doesn't matter what he hits, his defense makes his presence in the line-up indispensable. 8) He brings lots of female groupies out to games. 9) He's the first one out there doing hitting drills and working with Manto, putting too much pressure on himself (see Konerko/Quentin). 10) He'll get it figured out. I've never seen a more talented SS come out of the University of Georgia in my 75 years in baseball.

Do you owe your local community an apology if you don't meet ur sales targets? For not contributing as much as possible to the economy, leading to diminished output, higher unemployment and lower GDP? Adam perhaps feels like it owes it to KW and JR, but every ballplayer knows the booing comes with the territory. Does Dunn or any player have a "higher obligation" because of his public status? To be a role model? Should he have the right to ask for more money if he's overperforming, for example? Or to ask for more cheers or adulation from the fans or endorsement deals (see Alexei Ramirez 2008-2010).

Greg, what do you expect on the Missouri side of the fence with Self? License plates for State of MO residents with Coach Self's image on them to help cut the budget shortfall? Cassell just had a really bad season for the Chiefs, showing that the patience of even the best fans is getting tested with that long and inconsistent rebuilding project. You can bet if the former coach of the Chiefs was playing, the boos would have been 10X louder....just be thankful you don't have to hear Ozzie getting booed until the Marlins play at USCF next year. Sweeney doesn't make ANY sense. Maybe it's frustration that he had so many injuries and kind of just faded out of existence. For 3-4 years there, he was Mr. KC Royals...especially after Damon/Dye/Beltran/Randa left and the only hope for the franchise was Greinke getting his act straightened out.

Don't Boers and Bernstein basically hate Phil Rogers and always pick on him?

Yeah, where's Marty34 to chime in? He hasn't touched this thread with a 10 foot pole.

The bad-news story circulating nationally during the All-Star Game feel-good week involves Frank White and the Royals. A primer: The Royals' best-ever second baseman quit his job as a community relations person after a pay cut a few years ago, Then he was basically fired as a broadcast analyst. The national media are paying attention, because White infamously has said he won't step foot inside Kauffman Stadium during the All-Star festivities. In a column in today's USA Today, White really brings his criticism of the Royals. "I'm done with the Royals. I just can't do it." And this: "I called my wife (Teresa) into the bathroom and told her, 'I can't take their crap anymore. I have to get away. If we have to sell everything we got, we've got to leave here, because I can't put up with these people.' Royals general manager Dayton Moore said he basically didn't understand why White felt the way he did, but also said everyone needs to move in the same direction in the organization. Read more here: http://www.kansascity.com/2012/07/09/36969...r#storylink=cpy

July 17th (next Tuesday) theoretically could be Humber over Axelrod depending on how his start for BIRM goes Wednesday. Not sure if we can take another big-time offense tearing apart Axelrod. Roll of the dice. And hope Youk can carry over his current hot streak to Boston...

With the Youk acquisition, their stay in first place, their recent homestand....you'd have to guess they're NOW up around 12-15% vs. last year So about a 20-25% cut in payroll, 20-25% fall in attendance, but an increase in tv ratings counterbalances that and then some. For what it's worth, they'll have to average 26,826 over the remainder of the season to equal their attendance from 2010. Definitely doable. The biggest problem is that 16/19 on the road wipes out almost all of July, so they're really going to have to draw well for that Angels series and in the first 15-20 games of August before the kids go back to school and university students are gone as well. White Sox are still in first place then, the fans should come out, particularly for the times we're playing DET and CLE at home, but that's not nearly as often as the Twins and Royals. Home games It's probably a good thing that two of the three Crosstown Classic games this week are technically "White Sox telecasts" on Comcast SportsNet. Compared with last year's season average, the Sox's TV ratings on CSN are up 10 percent in the 25- to 54-year-old demographic, according to the network. Perhaps it's the improved play or, more likely, an exodus of frustrated Cubs fans away from Len and Bob. Maybe people are just hoping to catch another Hawk Harrelson rant. Regardless, I'm sure the Sox's head of marketing, Brooks Boyer, would much rather those people show up at the stadium instead of couching it with the clicker. The Cubs, meanwhile, are heading the opposite direction, down 11 percent from last year's average. No surprise there. Comcast is betting that fans will be watching closely this week; it's broadcasting two hours of pregame coverage for all three games instead of the usual half-hour. Read more: http://www.chicagorealestatedaily.com/arti...r#ixzz2054NYSjL Stay on top of Chicago business with our free daily e-newsletters

Jake, this can be my Zach Stewart moment. You believe that he as the ability to be a solid major league starter. Very few here do. All I can do is comment on what I am seeing with my own eyes. Just like the idea that anyone in baseball is stupid to thrown either Beckham or Viciedo anything but a letter high or above fastball. (What I don't understand with Gordon is how he's on such a high strikeout pace recently...he just doesn't look comfortable with that stance and he's got such a pronounced hitch that there's almost no way for him to pull a fastball...) If you were watching the game yesterday, nobody swung and missed on Jones' fastball. Yet all of them were thrown at 98-100 MPH. That's telling. Of course, part of the story is that he was getting behind in counts and having to come with the fastball, but that's not the whole enchilada. He just hasn't been as consistent with his secondary stuff. From what I've seen since I returned to the US and have been watching all the games on t.v. instead of listening on the radio, he's either lacking in confidence (we saw this with Sergio in the 2nd half last year) and/or not able to throw his slider to get a swing and a miss. That's the great thing about Sale....having that 3rd pitch, the change-up. Of course, most bullpen pitchers wouldn't be there if they could adequately throw 3 or more pitches. The fact of the matter is that trading Viciedo and Jones (they would want Reed, first, logically) already blows 2 big holes in the roster...especially with Crain's return uncertain, as well as his ability to stay healthy going forward. Most importantly, SEA doesn't want to trade him. Or need to trade him.

QUOTE (Lemon_44 @ Jul 9, 2012 -> 04:37 AM) People always say that and then a guy gets traded and you hear things like, "that's all it took to get him." Felix would cost alot but the Sox, or any team, has the assets to get him. What was Seattle's motivation for letting Griffey, Johnson, Arod, or others leave? They all made, or were about to make, big money. Seattle isn't winning so stocking up on assets isn't a bad option. All that being said, I seriously doubt the Sox trade for him. As much as we keep taling about the rookies throughout the roster, none of them are impact players, other than Reed. Other teams have the same concerns about Nathan Jones' career history (erratic at best) and his straight-line fastball. Notice in the game yesterday, he finds it hard to miss bats even at 98-100 because of the lack of movement? While a team looking for a future closer would want him as a part of a package, a kid like Jones is just one out of 3 or probably 4 pieces. Yesterday, with Omogrosso, Septimo, Jones and Santiago.....showed the very clear weaknesses of the pen and why they probably are more likely to add a piece rather than subtract one. In fact, facing Frasor, our reliever from last year who would be in the Crain role now if not for his salary and seeming superfluousness on the roster, made that an even stronger point about KW's roster construction. Can we trust that level of inexperience in a bullpen down the stretch? Especially Jones and Santiago? You're also going to have to trade Viciedo...so that causes another problem, because that would mean Danks or someone like Conor Jackson or Dan Johnson playing LF. That's going to be a disaster, simply put. So let's say it is Jones, Viciedo, Mitchell and someone else (Santiago/Simon Castro/Hernandez/Trayce Thompson/Saladino). Still not sure that's enough. Just having 3-4-5 players in a deal, that's the kind of trades Cubs' fans come up with after a tough loss but don't work in the real world. The only realistic move not to cripple the team THIS year is taking on a salary, like they did with Youk.

Francisco Liriano Jorge DeLaRosa (only put this name up because he's either a FA or has unrealistic option for 2013, coming off a major injury/surgery) September's the earliest the Rockies will see De La Rosa, if they see him at all this season. He is slowly coming back from Tommy John surgery performed June 3, 2011.. Jeremy Guthrie would be another name from the Rockies, 6+ ERA so obviously him pitched in Denver got him spooked and would cost next to nothing but has always had very good stuff...high draft pick, Don Cooper/KW specialty.

Hawkins has 21 K's in 75 PA's and a .601 OPS. Guess that was pretty much expected. He was never going to follow a Harper/Trout timeline anyway. Patience.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 9, 2012 -> 01:40 AM) Did he punch a Miami fan? No, I meant in the Joaquin Andujar sense. Or was that John Tudor? Remember the 1985 World Series? An electric fan, whose express purpose is to cool down the overheated dugout area.

As far as signing Meche, it was a "shot across the bow" that Glass and family were willing to spend big money to improve the team AND that Kansas City was an attractive free agency destination...unlike, say, Cleveland. Look at it as an investment in the future. And Meche at least did the honorable thing by retiring instead of collecting $11 million or whatever it was his final season. The one thing about the Rays which is most amazing (besides their use of statistics and shifts) has been how in God's name they've been able to get such consistent performances from that bullpen...which has changed names more than Hugh Hefner changes girlfriend and fiances but has still continued to produce Top 3-5 results in all of baseball on a yearly basis, seemingly.

http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/07/09/2887...ppointment.html No All-Stars with Stanton out. Hanley punched a fan and needed 2 stitches. Guillen called him immature. White Sox can't win at home or draw fans. Boo!

Still don't believe we have the pieces for a Greinke or Hamels, and I'm not even sure I'd want Greinke... Jason Vargas Dempster E. Bedard (he was an ideal candidate before the Pirates suddenly because the story of the season) B. Myers (our bullpen is clearly short now at least one pitcher...especially with Crain's status uncertain) Wandy Rodriguez Garza Matt Capps Heath Bell (looking like they should just dump him and eat that contract but he's not in good shape)

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Jul 8, 2012 -> 09:33 AM) High risk/high reward rotation coming out of the break. Sale gets 3 weeks between appearances. TBD could be trade? Axelrod v. KC Floyd v. KC Quintana v. KC Peavy V. Bos TBD V. Bos Axelrod v. Bos Floyd v. Bos Quintana v. Det Peavy v. Det Sale v. Det Is this ur plan or what you actually heard? I thought it was two weeks, including the All-Star break, for Sale. There's going to be a big argument between holding the lead during this 16/19 stretch on the road (yes, we are a better road team...or historically were until the past 10 games or so at home)...and the intelligence of perhaps giving up 1st place with the idea that Sale can ride in like Shane (movie reference) or Gary Cooper in High Noon and save the day. That's going to be a lot of pressure on Chris to win each of his starts. Then you have the issue with how many innings you're going to be able to get out of Quintana based on his workload the last 2-3 seasons in the minors. They'll push him harder, of course, but how far can you realistically push him without hurting him? Has there ever been a similar situation where a pitcher came out of A ball with his IP totals and then threw 150-175-200 combined innings (mostly MLB) the next year? And what happened to that pitcher the following season, or his overall career, after such a massive jump?

The Tigers are 20th in the Majors in home runs (76). This stat is appalling enough on its face, but made worse when you consider the fact that the Tigers were supposed to mash enough runs to overcome a shoddy defense. That hasn’t happened which is why they find themselves in third place. As much blame as people want to put on the second base position, the real issue is the triangle of the two corner outfield positions and the designated hitter. Right now, the regular starter in left is a combination of Ryan Raburn and Quintin Berry. The two have a total of two home runs. The starting right fielder is Brennan Boesch, who has gone deep eight times. And the DH is Delmon Young, who has chipped in with 7. That’s a grand total of 16 home runs from three positions which are normally counted on to produce good power numbers. Unacceptable on most teams, but certainly more unacceptable on a team like the Tigers that gives away runs with bad defense. Is help on the way? Not within the organization. At some point, Andy Dirks will return, although there’s no timetable for that and his time on the disabled list has already lasted much longer than expected. So the help needs to come from the bat of the Padres’ Carlos Quentin. He’s the biggest name with the biggest bat that’s currently on the market. So the asking price might be high. But the need is pretty high too. If the Tigers are going to spend leading up to the trade deadline, they’re better off spending on picking up some power over picking up some pitching. http://www.freep.com/article/20120707/SPOR...7001/1050/rss15

QUOTE (Lemon_44 @ Jul 8, 2012 -> 04:22 AM) Why think small nd go after a back of the end rotation guy. Think big and go after King Felix. Seattle isn't going anywhere anytime soon and they've shown in the past that they will trade their star players. And who could u possibly acquire him with that wouldn't cripple our major league roster? We really don't have the pieces or ammunition for that type of acquisition. And what is Seattle's motivation to trade him? Even Viciedo, Nathan Jones, Mitchell and Thompson/Saladino wouldn't get it done. Not even close.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jul 8, 2012 -> 02:10 AM) I'll be at the futures game too. And I got my tix for friday night's sox-royals. Who would u cheer for if the Royals played the Marlins? What if Buehrle was pitching for the Royals against Ozzie?

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Jul 8, 2012 -> 12:53 AM) If you are going to complain about batting average, you should shoot a little higher than 3-6 more hits. That .232 is fine, it's the strikeouts that are alarming. Dude is going to strike out a lot, but you'd like to see him decrease the rate at which he does it just a little bit. I guess it's more a matter of perception. Gordon Beckham seems okay in the .240's, but maybe not so much in the .230's or .220's, but that's not taking into consideration factors like OPS or RBI's or clutch hitting, for example. With Thompson, everyone seems to be waiting for that moment when he turns it all on and everything just magically clicks. I guess it's the same thing with promotions to the next level...obviously, there are a lot more areas to look at, BA is just the simplest measurement. And Thompson has been piling up XB hits and RBI's, so it's not like he has been anything close to useless. Maybe expectations were increased a bit by spring training, and that's always a danger, where it clearly looked like Mitchell and Thompson were making some progress as players.

You could get by with Viciedo, Nathan Jones and Mitchell, perhaps. Or including Thompson/Saladino as the 4th guy. Viciedo and Beckham both have to prove they can consistently hit 90+ fastballs. I wouldn't dream of trading them Sale for Justin Upton. I'd rather trade some riff-raff and see if we can straighten out BJ Upton. Stephen Drew is the other interesting name...if he could play 3B next year.