[Things may tighten up over the next few weeks]

I don't know why he's so scared to use Santos.

 

It's probably just the unknown. We're talking about a converted infielder with 12 innings of major league experience. He probably doesn't want to throw him into such big situations so quickly. But it's tempting to do. Santos has such great stuff! If Santos keeps this up he makes Jenks very expendable this off season.

[Things may tighten up over the next few weeks]

Too early to be looking at this stuff IMO. We have to start taking care of our own business before we even concern ourselves with who the Twins are playing.

 

Start winning series'.

 

I actually tend to agree with you. None of this looking ahead at schedules even matters unless the Sox start playing much better baseball. I just happened to get the urge to look ahead this morning and it got my hopes up a little bit. Hopefully it will help some others get their hopes up as well. I think Sox fans need a little bit of that right now.

[Things may tighten up over the next few weeks]

It's amazing how one game can change how we think about this team. I like the analysis of the upcoming schedules, and I tend to agree. If the Sox play today like they played yesterday, they should win, especially with Danks on the mound.

 

The Sox have to worry about one thing right now and that's winning games. Sounds simple, I know, but it's true. They can't worry about the Twins or Tigers and how many games they win or lose. Finish off the sweep today, go to KC and win at least 2 of 3, then go to Detroit and sweep. It may be asking a lot, but winning today is going to make it seem possible.

 

I know it's an overreaction to go from thinking this team is dead one day to talking about how they can close the gap in the coming weeks, but I hadn't really looked ahead at schedules until early this morning. When I did that it made me a lot more hopeful. Even looking a little bit farther down the road the Sox schedule looks pretty easy, assuming they start playing better baseball. Just look at the stretch from June 11th-June 30th...3 at Cubs, 3 at Pittsburgh, 3 at Washington, 3 vs. Atlanta, 3 vs. Cubs, and 3 at Kansas City. Those teams have a combined winning percentage so far of just .430. The schedule basically from now until June 30th is very favorable, minus a four game series at Tampa Bay.

[Things may tighten up over the next few weeks]

I'll start off by saying that everything needs to start with the Sox beating the Twins today and cutting the division lead down to six games. In looking at the Twins and Sox upcoming schedules the Sox may be able to get within 3 games or so of the Twins within the next three weeks. Here's why:

 

Twins upcoming schedule:

@ Yankees for 3 games (21-10)

@ Toronto for 2 games (19-16)

@ Boston for 2 games (18-16)

Milwaukee for 3 games (15-18)

Yankees for 3 games (21-10)

Texas for 3 games (18-15)

 

Those teams have a combined winning percentage of .548. Keep in mind that six of these games are against the Yankees who have a winning percentage of .677.

 

 

Sox upcoming schedule:

@ K.C. for 3 games (11-22)

@ Detroit for 2 games (18-14)

Angels for 2 games (15-20)

Marlins for 3 games (16-17)

@ Cleveland for 3 games (12-18)

 

Those teams have a combined winning percentage of .416.

 

If the Sox win today and cut the division lead down to six games, it's looking like over the next few weeks they may actually be able to get within three games or so of the division lead. That puts the Sox right back in the hunt and hopefully turns them from sellers to buyers. Just yesterday I was thinking that the Sox should start thinking about blowing this thing up, but after looking at the upcoming schedules I think things may tighten up and get a little bit more interesting.....if the Sox can start hitting the ball and playing better baseball overall.

[Sox sign Alan Embree]

I guess my biggest question on this signing was whether or not it may have been a sign or clue that something bigger and more concrete than just giving Bobby a couple of days off from the closer role was coming. Thorton to close, Jenks to be dealt? I was just thinking if you move Thorton to closer, you are taking a lefty arm away from situations other than closing, so maybe Embree was going to be brought up to Chicago to work Thorton's role. Trading Jenks would create a bullpen spot. It doesn't seem anyone is thinking that way so this doesn't appear to be anything major, maybe just AAA help/MLB back up plan for Williams.

 

I'm getting close to thinking it's best for the organization to trade Bobby for prospects, make Thorton the closer, trade A.J. for prospects and bring Flowers up to catch, trade Konerko to a contender (if he'll waive his no trade) for prospects, get rid of Freddy and let Hudson come up and get some experience, trade Pierre if anyone will have him, possibly even trade Andruw Jones (even though it's a cheap contract, why not let a top prospect get MLB experience) for a prospect and bring up Danks to get some MLB experience.

 

In short, completely blow this thing up. I'd have to think a Konerko rental to a contending team could bring in a pretty good prospect. I'm not sure what Bobby would be worth at this point, but getting his money off the books for this year and next (he'll probably get nearly $8 million in arbitration) may be good enough. A.J. may only bring in a mid level prospect, same with Jones if you could even get that, but it's all about positioning for the future. It's sad to say, but this team isn't going anywhere. Keep the nucleus together (Rios, Beckham, Peavy, Buehrle, Danks, Floyd, Quentin, Teahen, Ramirez, Thorton, Santos) and build from there. This got way off track, but that's just the way I'm feeling about this team.

[Sox sign Alan Embree]

Why? Randy Williams, thats why

 

Embree may be the only left hander that the Sox could have signed that could actually be worse than Randy Williams.

[Sox sign Alan Embree]

The White Sox signed Alan Embree to a minor league deal. Does this indictate that Thorton will be made the closer and Embree will be that second situational left hander for the Sox? Possibly meaning Jenks is getting dealt? Or is it just insurance in case Williams gets any worse....if that's possible.

 

 

It was on www.mlbtraderumors.com (sorry, I don't know how to make the link active. I know, I know)

[GT: Blue Jays @ White Sox, Fri 5/7, 7:10pm CT]

Pierre7, Vizquel4, Jonesdh, Rios8, AJ2, Q9, Teahen5, Kotsay3, Ram6. Buehrle pitching.

 

 

That just is not a major league line up. Pierre, Vizquel, and Kotsay all in the same line up? I hope Buehrle has his good stuff tonight because if he doesn't and the Sox get down three quick runs the game will be over. Needless to say I don't like the Sox chances tonight.

[Kenny Williams is Calling for a Blackout for Opening Day]

Fine, I'll wear the black jersey then! [grumbles]

 

I really think we should save this for playoffs though--keep it special.

 

 

I would probably agree with you that you want to save this for special occasions. But the more I think about it, isn't Opening Day special? How long have all of us been waiting for Monday to come? A long time for me. Monday's pretty special. Let's do what the Sox have asked of us and black that game out!

[Kenny Williams is Calling for a Blackout for Opening Day]

Debating whether or not the Opening Day Blackout is a good idea or not is perfectly fine. But the bottom line has to be if you are attending the game, whether or not you like the Blackout idea, WEAR BLACK! The people who run the team have asked fans to do it. If everyone does it it's going to look awesome and really may set a tone for the start of the season. If people don't do it, it's going to look bad. But if the players come out on Opening Day and the place is rockin' and everyone's wearing black it may actually get them going. I'll be there and I'll be wearing black. Go Sox!!!

[Detroit @ Chicago - 1:05 PM WGN/ESPN2]

What time is the game scheduled for?

 

6:37pm, per ticketmaster

[Cleveland Indians @ Chicago White Sox - 9/26]

Some of you guys are unbelievable! The Sox and Twins are TIED in the loss column. How can anybody say these games don't matter. If the Sox win these next four home games, where by the way, they win 70% of the time, they will win this division. I don't see the Twins sweeping the Royals. I think Greinke will shut them down. Yeah the last three days sucked, yeah the Sox didn't show much, but the upcoming series is huge. Fans need to show up and cheer for their team. But b1tching on message boards and feeling sorry for yourself isn't going to do anything. Go Sox!

[2009 schedule announced for White Sox]

How about that 10 game road trip in August? 4 at Boston, 3 at NYY, and 3 at Minnesota. Ouch!

[Carlos Quentin has a broken wrist]

ESPN says two weeks minimum, probably more.

 

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3571240

[Carlos Quentin has a broken wrist]

Griffey needs to have the September of his life.

 

Maybe the desire for a ring will drive him....

 

Didn't Soriano have the same injury and recover in six weeks? If that's the case, he'd be back in five more weeks. So around October 5-10th he could be back. That would be for what, the ALCS? Sorry, just thinking best case here. That's not too likely at this point.

[13-10]

with 23 games left, i think if the Sox go 13-10,they win the division. That would put them at 91-71. Minnesota would have to go 14-8 to tie. I think the Sox can easily do 13-10.

2-1 vs. Angels

2-2 vs. Toronto

2-1 vs. Detroit

2-2 at Yankees

2-1 at KC

1-2 at Minn

2-1 vs. Cle

 

looking at it, 13-10 should be the worse they do. They could sweep Det and Cle at home and take 3 of 4 against Tor. Of course, they could easily lose all 3 in Minny as well.

 

That seems like a pretty realistic prediction for the remainder of the season. The question is, will that be good enough? I'm with you in thinking that that would probably be good enough to get the Sox into the playoffs. Just in looking at the schedule, I actually expect the Sox to go 13-10 as well. But I see the Sox losing 2/3 to the Angels, winning 3/4 over Toronto, winning 2/3 over Detroit, losing 3/4 to the Yankees, sweeping KC, losing 2/3 to Minnesota, and then winning 2/3 against the Indians. It'll be close and it'll be exciting. The key is making sure that Quentin is okay and getting Danks back on track. If those two things happen, the Sox are in good shape.

[Royals vs Sox...Part Trois - Sweep Edition]

When was the last time ANYONE hit 4 in a row? I'm sure its been within the past few years but i just cant remember

 

Boston did it off the Yankees last season in Boston I believe.

[Royals vs Sox...Part Trois - Sweep Edition]

Hey guys, for us who are stuck tracking the game on just our computers, can you fill us in on what exactly Broadway is featuring. What's the speed on his fastball, how are his secondary pitches, .......Any extra information would be nice!

[Royals vs Sox...Part Trois - Sweep Edition]

Not a chance.

 

Yeah, I don't see Broadway sending much of a message or doing any damage with his 84MPH fastball.

[Rest of the Way Home]

4 Teams in the Hunt for 2 Playoff Spots. (1 Central Division Winner and 1 Wild Card)

 

- Minnesota's remaining opponents have a weighted winning percentage of 49.49% per game

- Chicago's remaining opponents have a weighted winning percentage of 50.42% per game

- Boston's remaining opponents have a weighted winning percentage of 51.90% per game

- New York's remaining opponents have a weighted winning percentage of 52.79% per game

 

This is going to come right down to the wire. I still like the Sox chances of winning the division. The playoffs may be a bit of a different story, but let's just take one thing at a time.

[Sunday 8/3 Games]

I'd assume because he figures the White Sox will call him up and put him in either the bullpen (which I would assume) or rotation. Having a lefty who can throw 97+ out of the bullpen can be pretty damn nice.

 

Having a lefty in the starting rotation who can throw 97+ would be pretty nice as well!

[Richard optioned to Charlotte]

Didn't see his last start, but Richard showed more promise than I thought he had. Hopefully, he just tweaks some stuff and comes out better.

 

 

I must be in the vast minority here, because I didn't see a whole lot in Richard that made me think much about his future with the White Sox. His stuff is average/below average, his motion isn't smooth, his location wasn't great, and his presence on the mound was shaky at best(getting rattled/giving up the big inning). I don't think we'll see him consistently in the White Sox starting five in the future. I'm chalking him up(probably too early) to being another in the sad recent history of failed number five starters.

 

For once, I'd like to see the White Sox bring up a pitcher who has a high ceiling. I've had enough of the Broadway's, Diaz', Danny Wright's, Haeger's, and Richard's. If I'm going to see a guy go through some type of rookie pains, at least let it be a guy like Poreda. At least he would be a guy that I could say, wow, we may have something here! I know, I know, Pereda isn't ready right now, but neither is a guy like Richard. The difference is, a guy like Poreda can make some mistakes down the middle of the plate and get away with it because he has plus stuff. So his struggles/mistakes may not be as noticable as a guy like Richard, who's just that, he's just another guy.

[Vazquez's Pitching Technique]

This technique is called "Pitching like a Pussy"

 

Ding Ding Ding!!! You took the words out of my mouth! Vazquez is just a loser. He has great stuff, but he typically pitches just well enough, or bad enough to lose. He's always been this way and he will never change. If the Sox do make the playoffs, I'll have zero confidence in him pitching in a big game. At this point, Floyd and Danks have shown me much more than Vazquez ever has.

[Ken Griffey Jr. + Cash to the White Sox]

f***ing terrible deal.

 

I can't believe anyone can really think that this is a terrible deal for the Sox! Richar is 25 years old, has pretty good speed, not much pop, and plays okay defense. He's nothing special at all. Not to mention the Sox have Ramirez at 2b right now, they have Getz in the minor leagues and will have Beckham coming in to either play 2B or SS. AND, Orlando Hudson is a free agent after this year. So giving up Richar is NOTHING.

 

And Masset is just an average to below average middle relief pitcher. He's never going to be anything special either. There is no chance of the Sox having to say in a couple of years, man, why did we give that guy up. That won't happen with this trade.

 

Everyone here has complained about Paulie for the last three months, but now the Sox make a deal to do something about it and people still complain. I personally love the deal. With Griffey coming in, PK is not going to be playing as much. With that alone, I love it.

[Doc Halladay]

Eh, this is true, I just highly doubt that Kenny is going to trade a key kog from our major league team even for someone like Halladay.

 

Are you kidding me? You don't think Kenny would trade away Floyd if it brought Halladay back in return? Floyd would be the only player in the deal currently on the Sox major league team, so I have to assume that's who you are talking about. I think he'd do that in a heartbeat!