caulfield12

QUOTE (OilCan @ Jul 7, 2011 -> 06:47 PM) My apologies if this was already posted. http://blogs.ajc.com/mark-bradley-blog/201...-the-pale-hose/ Except he's a one-year rental in the same sense Danks would be. They would actually control the rights to either Danks OR Quentin for 1 1/3rd seasons, not just 2-3 months.

My girlfriend said yesterday, "Why don't the players just retire? Why don't they find better players? Why don't you like a better team?" This was after I had explained to her why I kept following a team that loses more often than winning....and how there were still 3 full months of games (and potential suffering) to come.

QUOTE (PorkChopExpress @ Jul 7, 2011 -> 04:42 PM) Yes. Call me crazy, but with the feel-good vibes going around the clubhouse right now after getting Paulie into the All Star game, I see the team coming out with a little spring in their step. Plus, after Blackburn basically ridiculed them publicly for being incapable of adjusting in game, I think they may actually have some bulletin board material this time. I just feel good about this series. We've seen this before, like when Hunter ran over Jamie Burke. They just have never responded well to the Twins in the 2nd half with the exception of Game 163.

Search google: Bozo and Cookie wearing White Sox hats

QUOTE (GreatScott82 @ Jul 7, 2011 -> 03:37 PM) I think this deal will get done soon. This would be a brilliant move by KW. It would give us pleanty of flexibility to make other moves and it gives us a pretty damn good young arm to plug in our rotation for many years. It would also allow us to FINALLY bring up Viciedo! It seems like the "Tank" has done a lot of work hitting the off speed stuff down in the farm. Which is why it probably won't get done. Because teams around baseball have watched trades like E-Jackson for Hudson blow up over and over again, from a financial standpoint. KW traded Hudson away when there was absolutely ZERO starting pitching depth that would be ready to contribute within a 2 year time span. Typical go-for-broke move out of him. Unfortunately, we're now a lot closer to busted than taking the entire pot because of that tendency for recklessness. At least the Braves can make the argument they have 3 youngsters who arguably can be even better in the pipeline.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jul 7, 2011 -> 02:52 PM) http://espn.go.com/blog/chicago/white-sox/...s-top-out-pitch Great, maybe Sergio and Cooper can teach it to Edwin Jackson, as well.

When your team is struggling to score runs, I don't like the logic of putting someone onto the field who is your worst defensive OFer in Teahen. Sure, Kubel/Span/Morneau/Young are all out of the line-up, diminishing the probability of a majority of the balls being hit to RF, but there just seems to be a law of probability in this series that whatever can go wrong, will go wrong. I know that Quentin's been struggling, 0 for 17 against Pavano, etc., but you should go down with your best players on the field. Teahen just hasn't had enough regular playing time to come in against a pitcher like Pavano...we'll see.

When he was talking to Farmer and DJ, he said the Sox scout who signed him had him at 70.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Jul 7, 2011 -> 12:51 AM) The Sox need to hire some of their scouts. They also seem to bring up some decent hitters. And yet they went through their period where they whiffed on a lot of young players/prospect trades. LaPorta, Brantley and Lou Marson still haven't paid many dividends. Remember Andy Marte and Jesse Barfield? They also cast off Franklin Gutierrez in a dubious move. Ben Francisco, okay...he wasn't the greatest. Ryan Garko kind of flamed out. Luis Valbuena? Trevor Crowe? Chris Gimenez? I mean...c'mon, they traded away CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee, two former Cy Young winners, not to mention Victor Martinez. Of course they're going to have some quality young talent to show for that, to not would be almost criminal. Blake and DeRosa come to mind, as well. Just like if we traded away Danks, Quentin, possibly Floyd, Alexei, Jackson...we'd PROBABLY get some very nice pieces back in return.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Jul 6, 2011 -> 11:34 PM) I wonder what they got in their farm system they could trade to help get them some decent pitching. The Indians have an almost identical ERA to the White Sox, right around 3.85. Masterson just shut out the Yankees. Sure, they could use a replacement for #5 in their rotation, but they've already got first round draft pick Alex White on the mend. Carlos Carrasco has been one of the better pitchers in the game in the month of July. Carmona has always had the stuff, and we all know about Masterson from firsthand experience. They also just got Matt LaPorta (LaFatta Ozzie calls him) back from the DL. Offensively, they could certainly get better at 3B and they need another outfielder with Choo out but they're not going to make any drastic moves because he'll be back this season. Brantley has been decent in CF, Hannahan at 3B (good glove, so-so bat) and Orlando Cabrera providing steady leadership.

From listening to the Indians/Yankees game tonight, there's something about that team that's starting to make me think they can win the division. It would be completely improbable, but that entire team's starting to believe in itself again. They went from 15 games over all the way down to 4 I think, but they've been a resilient bunch all season. Missing Hafner for most of the season, Sizemore as a shade of his former self, Choo out 6-8 weeks, they're just getting it done despite all the obstacles thrown in their path. Same with the Twins. We, unfortunately, don't have that built-in health/DL excuse. Asdrubal Cabrera is just playing exceptionally well in all facets of the game, and Santana's starting to come into his own offensively. They've become a very difficult "out" because of Masterson, Carmona and Carlos Carrasco looking like he was a great get in the Cliff Lee deal. Even if Tomlin and Talbot are pitching over their heads, it's pretty impressive. And they'll get Alex White back at some point for depth. Chris Perez is having his best overall season as well.

http://www.startribune.com/sports/twins/125116604.html It's a great story (not the writer's, I mean Humber's resurgence). Almost nearing Lifetime/ABC Afterschool Special territory. The Twins have lost five in a row on the road and haven't won away from Target Field since June 21. They're coming off a 6-3 homestand in which they took all three series. ... Minnesota is 4-0 against the White Sox this season, but three of those were one-run decisions. Nick Blackburn, Friday's starter, is 2-0 against the White Sox in 2011 with a 0.61 ERA in 142/3 innings. ... On May 3, Francisco Liriano threw the fifth nine-inning no-hitter in Twins history in a 1-0 victory. He walked six and struck out two. ... Michael Cuddyer has continued his hot hitting after being selected to his first All-Star Game. The right fielder is 9-for-20 in the past six games with three homers, 10 RBI and seven runs scored. ... Scott Baker (right elbow strain) probably will miss his scheduled start Sunday, with Anthony Swarzak taking his place. WHITE SOX UPDATE A 19-game stretch against AL Central opponents got off to a slow start for the White Sox, who lost two of three at home to Kansas City. Chicago (43-45) is only 7-13 vs. divisional opponents in '11. ... The White Sox haven't beaten the Twins at home since April 11, 2010. ... Gavin Floyd is 4-9 with a 5.20 ERA in 14 career starts against the Twins. Those nine losses are his most against any team. startribune.com/sports

Harry Potter 8 for 8 in glowing reviews so far.... http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/harry_pott...allows_part_ii/ Horrible Bosses is also generating a lot of positive buzz.

Cardinals have come back from 8-0 down to the Reds to tie the game at home in extras. Wow, Cincy has really been struggling.

http://insidetv.ew.com/2011/07/06/the-franchise-showtime/

Personally, it'd be nice to have a "new voice" in the coaching staff mix who wouldn't be "in Ozzie's pocket." Clearly, Ozzie is a little too comfortable with who he surrounds himself with, his job status. It's like in the NFL, when the owner says he's bringing in an outsider offensive/defensive coordinator OR "don't let the door hit you on your way out." Don't think KW even has the ability to enforce such a change, but it would be nice to have someone more independent from outside the organization. It seems Buddy Bell has been "co-opted" from his once objective perch.

Well, that's a short list. Chris B. Young and Michael Morse never even worked with Greg Walker, except for Spring Training. Walker didn't "DO" anything to Jeremy Reed or Jeff Abbott and many of the other 53 "TOP 30" Sox minor league prospects who were traded and busted in other organizations. Chris Carter and B. Allen haven't lit the world on fire as projected by some. Cynics would argue that those players didn't have the opportunity to have their swings ruined. Sweeney has turned out to be exactly what many thought he would be....more of a 4th outfielder, as the power still hasn't developed that was projected based on his swing, height and frame. It's not the players that have left....it's the famous (or infamous) cases of Borchard, Brian Anderson, Getz (who's basically the same exact 600-625 OPS guy he was in Chicago)Josh Fields, etc. So you can blame Walker or you can blame KW for not seeing the holes in their games and approaches from the very beginning. And that's a legitimate point. Maybe there was such a dearth of talent in our system that Brent Morel HAD TO BE a top minor league prospect, whereas in other systems he would have been outside the TOP 10. Aforementioned prospect fails to meet "expectations" based on his ranking and it's easier to blame on Walker than Kenny. Because if someone's actually talented and a "good baseball player," there has to be an explanation for their failures, logically. Really, 90% of the angst is about Beckham. If Viciedo succeeds, it will because Walker wasn't allowed to ruin him or change his approach....he came up "big league ready" and Walker didn't need to make a single adjustment.

QUOTE (TheBigHurt @ Jul 6, 2011 -> 09:35 PM) *SIGH* So because maybe TWO guys are hitting really well that means the coach should be glorified for that... but the rest of the guys being abysmal should be overlooked? Meanwhile, SO hilarious how a lot of people's SOLE LOGIC for not trying a new coach when things OBVIOUSLY aren't working is, "I don't think it will make a difference." Worst argument ever. And being "liked and well respected" doesn't mean the man is good at his job. And even FURTHER, who is gonna come out and say, "Yeah, our hitting coach sucks" if he thinks so? GMAFB. Nothing but cop-outs and excuses on the other side of this argument. When things don't work, eventually you need to make a change. And regardless of future results, it still doesn't change the fact that at that present time a change needed to be made. But to hell with logic. Having worked in a public/"inner city" high school for four quite painful years, there's just that "institutionalized group think" that 1) it's been tried in the past, 2) other school districts tried similar reforms, 3) it doesn't matter, the superintendent who came in to reform the schools will be gone and everything will change "back to normal" eventually. In the process of becoming cynical and apathetic about change, NOTHING EVER CHANGES. This current administration with KW, Ozzie and the coaching staff just seems to have grown stale. It's pretty obvious they need a fresh approach, a new outlook, a rallying point for everyone to believe in. Whatever you want to call it, a vision or mission statement. I know the D-Backs get cited a lot, but the coaching staff over there has instilled the idea that "other teams might be more talented, but we're not going to lose games because we don't hustle. We're going to come out and put pressure on the opponent, make them beat us....and in the process, more often than not, they'll make mental/physical mistakes and we'll get some wins that could have gone either way." It's another way of restating the "Twins Way." It's not even whether Walker or Guillen or KW are "nice persons" or "good at their jobs," it just FEELS like the time for a change has arrived.

Dick Allen, it's fair to say you'd have to blame KW for this mess, right? What would you do if you were Reinsdorf and scared to wake up tomorrow morning with the Twins coming to town...?

QUOTE (fathom @ Jul 6, 2011 -> 08:01 PM) 3 doubles, 2 triples and a homer for Mitchell in his last 20 ABs Well, better late than never. I guess this is one case where patience was definitely the operative word.

Overperforming: Konerko, AJ, Lillibridge until 3 weeks ago As expected: Quentin, Ramirez, Vizquel, Castro Underperforming: Teahen, Morel, Beckham, Dunn, Rios, Pierre (I was tempted to put him in "as expected" but just can't because of defense and dubious SB/CS totals)

The only way "mystery DLing" Rios would get Viciedo into the line-up would be Lillibridge/Pierre in CF and Dayan in LF, so I'm not sure if that helps much. With how low-scoring our offense has been, you don't want to present the opposition an outfield of Viciedo/Pierre/Quentin to shred to pieces. At least Rios plays adequate defense, normally. Dunn is the first issue that has to be addressed for this team to move forward in 2011.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jul 6, 2011 -> 08:43 PM) Losing 2 out of 3 to KC at home is even more sickening when you look at KCs record the last 80 to 100 road games. Its almost unbelievable. Realistically, it easily could have been a sweep. Sure, it would have been a great story had Dunn gotten the job accomplished and come through big twice. Maybe not having that opportunity (with the balk) actually hurt him a little bit, mentally, to where he felt "lucky" instead of good. With the way we've performed in extra innings, even at home you didn't feel comfortable going to the 10th inning...especially after Sergio gave the lead right back on the Hosmer blast. And I didn't realize we'd lost 7 in a row to Minnesota. 6-26 or 7-27 is bad enough, I guess. 7-13 in the AL Central is just unacceptable (to quote Greg) for a team with this kind of payroll and SUPPOSED talent.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jul 6, 2011 -> 08:39 PM) What would the realistic expection for improvement be if Walker were to be replaced? I just find some of the argument laughable. Yesterday someone said Walker tells them to take fastballs down the middle, then said it was Walker's fault when they "just miss" cookies. If a guy can't hit a "cookie" no one is going to make him a major league hitter. Go through the line up. AJ is hitting about .290 with limited power. Who will get him to improve. Konerko having a MVP type season. A new hitting coach makes him Albert Pujols? Beckham-struggling. His swing has to get shorter, and I think it will, but many of the same people who will blame Walker for his struggles are already calling him a bust and want to dump him. Ramirez, doing what he always does which was a lot better than most scouts thought when the Sox signed him. Morel-no power, doesn't get on base, but a rookie, may improve. Pierre, nearing the end of the line. Always streaky, a new hitting coach will make him better? Rios- total headcase. Toronto happily dumped him. Sucked for the Sox except for first half of 2010 when he was outstanding. Seems to not care. Is pinning his lack of success on Walker fair? Quentin-doing a lot better than a lot of people calling for Walker's head thought he would do. Dunn-easily the worst power hitter in baseball so far this season. Thought he may be out of it with a single that I'm sure if you asked the RF, he would have told you he should have caught, and an obviously wind aided HR Monday night. He's back to looking horrible. Does a new voice turn him around? I don't see how a hitting coach could have that much negative effect on a player, especially if he's well liked and respected like Walker is. I just look at the teams that people mention fire coaches and don't see a huge jump in performance afterward. I think we should be concentrating the blame on the players rather than a hitting coach. I think a lot of it's the concern that even players like B. Lillibridge fashion themselves home run hitters and never bother to adjust their swings based on the count or situational hitting. Brent is an example of a player whose "progress" up until recently would seem to be a feather in Walker's hat. But his lack of contact with the bases loaded in recent weeks and his immense struggles against RHP has set off alarm bells. The players like Morel or Vizquel who try to do things the right way have almost zero pop in their bat, same with Juan Pierre. Or I guess some will blame the lack of pop out of Morel on Walker, too. And then there's the horrid hitting with RISP over the last couple of weeks. We've had a couple of huge comeback wins, but more recent teams like 05-06-08 and last year during the streak, you absolutely expected them to get a base hit. Of course, it's contagious. Listening to games, you're afraid when they get runners to 2nd and 3rd with less than 2 outs (or bases loaded) that they're more likely to be 0 or 1 runs than 2+. Somehow, that "fail fail fail" mindset needs to be erased from their minds and reset back to 0. Especially against the Twins.

Haugh on the need for Viciedo to be brought up... http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/baseb...,2879948.column