Flash Tizzle

82 wins.

/sigh This spring training has become an absolute joke. I suppose with Floyd and Danks the statistics mattered in selecting the appropriate candidate, yet, not with Sisco and Logan. Ridiculous. Atleast now we're intent on delaying the development of Sisco into a starter AND denying Logan the roster position he has rightfully earned. Aardsma, by all accounts, doesn't deserve a position but he's a better option than Floyd. I don't mind that. It's just, again, everything has come together this spring to completely test my nerves as a Sox fan.

28 Weeks Later Trailer

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 04:21 PM) You mean he's not getting squeezed by the umpire and the Arizona weather conditions aren't getting the best of him? No, but maybe the dust was in MacDougal's eyes after all the batters were running along the bases. You know what they say about Arizona dust. It makes Chicago White Sox pitchers look bad. QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 04:26 PM) This DBack pitcher has an ERA over 10.00 and has allowed 20 hits in less than 9 innings. I bet KW has his eye on him. LOL, and he induced an inning ending DP from Thome. Some quality offspeed pitches from Thornton last inning. Although he appeared to telegraph the first couple with a slow windup, if he begins to incorporate something besides a 97mph fastball it'll be a good year for him.

MacDougal is sure wetting the bed this inning.

QUOTE(jphat007 @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 03:53 PM) Forget the blowout. Anytime during Spring Training. Yeah, on top of that.

I was thinking the same thing as Hawk and DJ. You pull a muscle attempting to stretch a double into a triple in a blowout I'll f***ing kill you.

Let's look at the two reasons listed by Hawk to explain our failures last season: -We beat ourselves more than 2005. Lack of fundamentals -Lack of adrenaline I suppose pitching never factored into the equation.

QUOTE(fathom @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 03:31 PM) Give us something positive.....please Is missing the strikezone, failing to exceed 91 mph, and giving up inherited runners considered positive?

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 03:23 PM) Which should you believe, 10 random innings in Tucson, or a minor league career spanning (without looking it up) 450 innings? No doubt the 450 innings. I'm just suggesting for a pitcher known for control this spring, especially to Guillen, he'll ride himself out of Chicago quickly with starts such as today. Remember, he won the spot this spring based upon the 20 random Tuscon innings, not his career numbers.

QUOTE(fathom @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 03:18 PM) I would still love to bet anyone that McCarthy's ERA will be better this year than whoever is our 5th starter. Considering the competition Danks will have within our division, and the possible hurting he will receive from 4+ walk outings such as today, there's a good probability you'll be correct.

QUOTE(Gene Honda Civic @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 03:14 PM) Danks hasn't exactly been noted for his control prior to arriving in camp. Look at his minor league numbers. They certainly don't scream control pitcher. I meant this spring. At a certain point, IIRC, he had a ratio of 14 strikeouts to 1 walk. Guillen was going on and on about him throwing strikes.

These walks are inexcusable. I don't care if he's a rookie. If he's doing this in the season, he'll stay will be short lived. 39 balls, 36 strikes is disgusting from anyone. Especially someone who was noted for his control.

QUOTE(greg775 @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 02:42 PM) To those of you who have watched a lot of spring training up close and personal and studied the stats as well ... I'll make this fairly quick. Mediocre. If you take stock in spring training performances, which many don't, you probably can't help but feel tense about our rotation. He looks rejuvenated health and velocity wise, but baseballs are still find their way all across the ballpark. Hard to tell. He has been the most consistent of the starters this spring. Velocity remains near previous years. He's been pitching better recently. Strikeouts have been mounting, which suggests the 'stuff' is present. No. I don't necessarily believe this. If the bullpen establishes consistency, Guillen should be more willing to remove starters earlier; before their inevitable meltdown. Probably not.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 02:45 PM) CC's x-rays were negative, but there is still question whether he can go opening day. Good enough, I suppose. First several weeks will be tough and we should take full advantage of his absence while we can. What the hell is DJ talking about, adrenaline letdown? Terrible excuse. Danks is eerily resembling Boone Logan these last two batters.

QUOTE(Jenks Heat @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 02:42 PM) Farmer said Sabathia left the facility in an aircast....... SOURCES?!!!11 I'm not going to say, "I would never wish injury upon a pitcher." No, I do and will. We may actually have a chance opening day, now.

QUOTE(Jimbo @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 02:38 PM) nice danks....who does danks remind you of with his delivery..i cant figure it out. Not a good comparison results wise, but he reminds me of Wandy Rodriguez from Houston.

QUOTE(TheOcho @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 02:35 PM) This ump is getting me pissed. Heh ... Hawk called Erstad, Pods... SO IT BEGINS. I don't blame him. I'm listening to the game without sound and they both look exactly alike from afar.

Was that Podsednik in CF?

QUOTE(ScottyDo @ Mar 28, 2007 -> 12:32 AM) I'll tell you what I think's not quite right: the pitching staff. If I saw a fastball hit 93 mph this spring, I wouldn't give a crap about Eduardo Perez. But seeing as our pitching staff shows no signs of turning over a new leaf, these little moves are amplified. Right now I'm inches away from panicking about our rotation, particularly Buehrle who appears to have zero stuff and still gets the ball up. That's strange, because it's Buehrle who appears to have his velocity intact. Last start he was consistently sitting at 88-89 mph. Unfortunately, the results weren't very encouraging. So I guess it really doesn't help you much.

He must have mentioned three of four times that the Red Sox have several potential Cy-Young candidates. Several of these rankings are way off. First, even with all my criticism, I wouldn't even venture to place the White Sox 15th. 8th or 9th would be more appropriate. The disrespect shown towards the Rangers surprises me the most. 24th overall seems a bit harsh. A rotation of Milwood/Loe/Padilla/Tejada/McCarthy can, at the least, keep their team within games. You know the offense won't disappoint.

QUOTE(caulfield12 @ Mar 27, 2007 -> 10:29 PM) It's all kind of a mystery, why the Astros would want Jennings over Garland, perhaps simply because he's left-handed, they were more familiar with him and Jennings' contract was more reasonable from a financial perspective, giving them more room to go after Clemens, etc. There's no mystery here. Houston rejected our proposal because Williams demanded Purpura include Hunter Pence, in addition to Jason Hirsh and an additional player.

I generally agree that Hall's absence, Molina's addition and Perez's removal aren't moves which will ultimately determine our success. It's just small moves such as these, in addition to points Santo illustrated earlier, that have just morphed together to completely irritate me as a Sox fan. Our overall offense will still be in the top third of the American league. I'm not worried much about that. The problem is right here: Ozuna Iguchi Thome Dye Konerko Crede Uribe Anderson Molina That's a lineup we can frequently expect against lefthanded pitching. Sure, substitute Anderson for Erstad or Molina for Pierzynski, but you're not changing a whole lot. The first game against Sabathia should be an absolute hoot. Considering how pitching will determine our success, I"d rather try and provide the starters with as much offensive support as possible then just sitting back and hoping a repeat of 2005 occurs. What has transpired within the last week certainly doesn't help that belief. No question Hall and Perez would have been welcomed additions. Now that neither are on this club, one key area that the team struggled against -- and Williams attempted to upgrade -- has experienced absolutely no improvement. That's sad. It will be on the field as well when Santana is mowing through the order and all people can do is shrug their shoulders. Judging from the comments within this thread, I'm not the only one who just feels watching this ballclub that something isn't quite right. Almost as if it's inevitable we're going to struggle throughout the season.

Logan deserves a roster position, no question about it. I don't care how many lefties he's walked within the last several days. He's proven himself. If this organization can't recognize it, shame on them. If we're basing a decision on results, it would probably be Logan and Sisco. However, since this spring training seems to have adopted a theme of frustration, I'm going with Floyd and Sisco as the final two selections.

If Hall were to return to the White Sox early we couldn't get away with only him and Pierzysnki. There would have to be an additional catcher on the roster, which takes away from another area of the ballclub. Honestly, I don't like the idea. Just think about the circumstances warranting his usuage -- opposing lefthanders, and not catching Contreras. Considering our problems with throwing out runners, with Hall's shoulder we'll be destroyed on the basepaths. It wouldn't be pretty. Also, remember Hall damaged his right shoulder -- which will effect the follow through motion of a swing. If problems continue to linger leading up to a possible return, he'll only posses limited power. I just don't believe Hall at any around 50% is greater than Molina/Gonzalez at 100%. I have no problem with him attempting to rehabilitate the shoulder joint, but if he's not capable of performing basic catching duties or holding himself offensively it'll be no use.