chosk8

Al, I saw that as well. Class move by Mark and I'm sure you are dead on with your comments about what Mark probably told him. Huge game from our fifth starter. I like Danny's grit. This kid does have a world of talent if he can harness it.

jason.. well put.... small ball.. how many times have we been screaming for that this year??? geez us....the one thing that minny will kick our asses in is small ball espically in their home....if we cant get past this everyone swinging for the fences s*** and leaving guys stranded (or worse yet bases freakin loaded) we will not advance to far.........now i have pretty much been a jm backer since he came here... and in a lot of things he does i still am.. but in this instance (the small ball thing) i have to disagree with him wholeheartedly..... he just has no clue as to how to get it across to these guys that the little things will also get you runs and put numbers on the score board.......... I agree with playing small ball as well, but I also believe JM is playing the hand he was dealt. This team is put together to play small ball, this team is a team that lives and dies with the long ball. Sounds as if you want to lay the blame on someone, it is not Jerry, but the man who put the team together for him, Kenny Williams. I, however, won't blame either of them. Yes, JM has made his share of bad decisions and then some, but so does every other manager. At some point there has to be some accountability on the players end. I will not blame KW either as he is one person in the organization that has shown me he wants to put a winner on the field. I honestly believe this man has a deep passion for White Sox baseball.

Steff- My wife agrees with you on Cotts. I asked her what she thought about him on TV the other night and she said he was okay. We went to Detroit on Saturday and got there early to watch BP and Cotts was doing his running along the warning track so we wandered down to the left field corner. His next trip down I said "what's up Neal". So he says "hey how ya' doing" and goes on with his running. She turns to me and asks "That's Neal Cotts? He looks a lot better in person." 9 innings later I finally had to tell her to shut up about it. Also, if Mark Buehrle happens to read these boards, thanks for the ball in BP. Once I tell my kid (5 months old) who gave him his first ball he's gonna be thrilled. You've got a couple more fans for life.

Of course not, let's just hope the Sox's keeping winning and this becomes a moot point. Exactly. The only "stat", if you want to call it that, that I care about right now are White Sox victories. As long as that number in the "W" column keeps going up, then the rest will take care of itself. And I am sure that is all that is important to these players right now as well. I guarantee you ask any player after an 0-4 performance in a Sox victory, these words will come out of their mouth,"yeah, I would have loved to contribute, but we got the win". Believe me, I love to see the Sox players succeed on an individual basis as much as the next guy, but at this stage of the game, winning is the only "stat" I care about. 1-0, 3-2, 15-14, 20-19, I don't care about the score, I just want the W.

Molto, you're fighting a losing battle. I agree with you and JM. This is just another excuse for fans to b**** about the manager. Those who know baseball and have been around the game know this was a solid decision. If there is one thing I have noticed on these boards since I've been reading, it's that many fans seem to develop personal vendettas against certain players and managers and can't seem to let it go. Taking the opportunity to give one of your horses an extra days rest late in August when the playoffs are a good possibility is a solid decision. No one is talking about the adverse affect in could have on Buehrle in late September. No one can guarantee we would have won the game if Buehrle pitched. Say they loose the game and now have Cotts and Garland going back to back in Detroit. This team could be staring a 2 or 3 game loosing streak right in the face. Instead, we have Buehrle, Garland and Loaiza going against Detroit and have a great shot at taking 2 of 3, if not sweeping, the Tigers. If you told most people on this board that we were going to go 4-2 on this road trip, most of them would be very pleased. Especially with our struggles on the road and our unexplainable troubles with the Tigers. EDIT: now all we have to do is go 4-2, but better yet 5-1.

Nice job the last couple of nights getting hits and turning the line-up over creating many RBI opportunities for the top. Kudos. Good news for Loaiza, Halladay took the loss tonight against Boston.

Controlled chaos, intersesting name. Any particular reason you chose it? Reason I ask is that in college, one of my teammates' definition of hitting was... Hitting - controlled chaos with emphasis on punishing the baseball. I've never forgotten that. Maybe it's a commonly used definition and I had never heard it. Anyway, welcome aboard.

Nice job by the botom of the order.

Finally an link... http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sp...-home-headlines

mlb.com radio just announced this as well

I believe players are often sent to affiliates that may be in close proximity to where the big league club will be at the time of the players "target" return date. That way they can more or less "meet up" if they are on the road.

just heard on mlb.com radio that Hummel is in fact the PTBNL

He was a second round pick of, I believe the San Diego Padres, a few years ago. SS out of Southern Cal. He was a stud back in college.

Unheralded Nanita uses hitting streak, cycle to gain attention at Great Falls BY TED MANN Ricardo Nanita was only days removed from having his record-breaking 30-game hitting streak snapped when he strolled to the plate in the eighth inning at Helena. Though he was no longer under pressure to push his hitting streak to new heights, the Rookie-level Great Falls center fielder was working on a coup of a different sort. Having doubled in the second, tripled in the fifth and singled in the seventh, Nanita was only a home run away from hitting for the cycle. Tired of being ribbed by his father about his power—“If I don’t hit a home run, I don’t have to call him, that’s what he says,” Nanita said, laughing—he was eager to park one over the fence. Though he’d homered just twice in his first 153 professional at-bats, Nanita turned to his teammates and told them matter-of-factly that he was going to hit a home run, and it would be nice if the bases were loaded when it happened. “That’s not Ricardo being cocky,” Great Falls manager Chris Cron said. “He just has a lot of fun out on the field. It’s a joy to watch him play.” “There are still a few kids who would play the game for free,” added Danny Price, Nanita’s coach at Florida International. “Ricardo is one of those guys.” Sure enough, the White Sox loaded the bases, and Nanita stepped into the box looking to live up to his words, complete the cycle and add a little cushion to his team’s one-run lead. One changeup down the middle of the plate later, Great Falls had a comfortable five-run lead and Nanita was making a phone call home to dad. That long-distance call became even sweeter the following day, when he belted two more home runs, including another grand slam. Fulfilling A Dream Nanita grew up in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, dreaming of playing in the big leagues but never received a ton of attention from scouts, so the early success has been satisfying. The 6-foot, 202-pounder first came to the United States three years ago, when he joined his friend and current Pirates prospect Jose Bautista at Chipola (Fla.) Junior College rather than signing as a free agent. After two productive years of hitting and improving his English, Nanita transferred to Florida International, where he led the Golden Panthers in nearly every offensive category. Though he was thriving in the scouting hotbed of South Florida, Nanita remained relatively anonymous. “Ricardo just didn’t have a big name coming into the year,” said former White Sox scouting director Doug Laumann, the man who eventually snagged Nanita. “He never had the type of hype or publicity that a lot of other guys did.” According to Price, the speedy outfielder’s low profile was partially due to his deceptive tools. “He doesn’t have that one absolute tool that’ll jump all over you,” Price said. “But he does have really good ability. You have to see him a lot to appreciate him.” Fortunately for Nanita, White Sox scout Jose Ortega saw him a lot and began to appreciate his talent. At Ortega’s urging, Laumann, now a special assignment scout, watched Nanita play twice and came away impressed. The White Sox, however, had made it a priority to take position players in the first few rounds and then mostly pitchers in the middle rounds, making it unlikely Nanita would fall to them in a later round. But Nanita did fall, and the Sox happily scooped him up in the 14th round, with the 412th pick of the draft. “I was surprised to see him still around, but I’m obviously pleased with how it’s turned out for us,” Laumann said. For his part, Nanita has no idea why he fell so far in the draft—“Something weird must have happened”—but was excited enough to play professional baseball that he ignored the advice of his agent, who wanted him to hold out for a signing bonus worthy of his ability. Nanita just wanted to play, so he overruled his agent and signed quickly in order to get on the field as soon as he could. While he is grateful to be getting a paycheck to play the game he loves, Nanita uses the draft snub as motivation, a prospect that can’t excite his Pioneer League opponents. “That motivated me a lot,” Nanita said. “I just keep my mouth shut, play my game, and make sure that people know who I am now.” Starting Fast After a .379-5-37 start to go with a hitting streak that broke a 13-year-old record held by Billings’ K.C. Gillum and ranks as the longest in professional baseball this year—not to mention a cycle—people are quickly learning Nanita’s name. “I’ve never seen a kid get off to such a good start,” said Cron, who’s managed in the minors for the past nine years. “You just don’t do what he’s done in your first shot at pro ball. He’s really opened a lot of eyes in the organization.” While Laumann, Ortega and the White Sox saw potential in Nanita that may have been undetected by other scouts and teams, even they can’t claim to have anticipated quite what he’s accomplished. They just hope he can keep it going. “Obviously, when you take a guy in the 14th round, you can’t sit there and say, ‘I knew he would be this good.’ I’m not going to lie,” Laumann said. “Traditionally, when guys start out like this, they find a way to carry it through. As for the big leagues, I’m not sure.” Whether Nanita becomes a big league star or never again enjoys the success he’s had in short-season ball, he’s sure to give it his all—and have a blast all the while. “Can he become an elite player? He’s certainly going to work at it, and give it the best shot,” Price said. “He’s met the challenge so far; how far the ceiling will rise for him, we’ll have to wait and see.”

I'll stay optimistic and you stay pessimistic, but you gotta admit this year has been one roller coaster ride and it's getting pretty fun right now. I admit, I love this team one day and the next I question why I root for them.

I never mentioned we were going anywhere this season. "If we win the division " is how I stated it.

This is an absurd statement. If the Yankees were in the NL East, they wouldn't be in first place this year, but if Boston was in the NL Central, they would be. You are in the division you are in, plain and simple. Talking about the Sox being part of the AL West speaks volumes about your negativity towards this team. That was 10 years ago. If we win the division we are in, guess what, we make the playoffs and if you get to the playoffs our regular season records go out the window. We all start at 0-0 and anything can happen. Instead you choose to blame upper management for not going out and signing players "like bonds et el... to play for us for one season to win it all". If this is your thinking then, if I may use your quote, you are the one "with your blinders on". Personally, I wouldn't want it that way. I'd rather see some of the guys I've been watching for a few years "earn" a World Series title. Just an opinion, of course.

Tony, here's a few more... -I know Hawk loves when you analyze, but also "I love email" -When a player swings late on a fastball, he's "Tardy" -"Cinch it up and hunker down" -and of course, "The dreaded leadoff walk" and be a good 2 strike hitter, and carmine derriere "Ball four, basehit"

Tony, here's a few more... -I know Hawk loves when you analyze, but also "I love email" -When a player swings late on a fastball, he's "Tardy" -"Cinch it up and hunker down" -and of course, "The dreaded leadoff walk"

I don't know how reliable this is, but it says Tim Hummel will be the PTBNL... http://cincypost.com/2003/08/22/reds08-22-2003.html

That's what he does with the needle.

Tears of joy, man. Sounded like Hawk was breaking up a little bit on the call at the end. Huge win. Helluva game Frank. Hats off to Buehrle and Washburn as well.

Thanks, 5.

Don't count on any sweeps, the Sox just don't do it. If I'm counting correctly, the Sox only have 4 sweeps this year and this includes 2, 2-game series against Cleveland and Toronto. The other 2 were early against Detroit and recently against KC.

Him and Flash ought to get together.