winninguglyin83

Reed, Honel and Wing some good news from the Carolina League The high Class A Carolina League was chock full of pitching prospects in 2003, though most of them didn't stick around for very long. Led by Wilmington's Zack Greinke, the league's pitcher of the year, hurlers took center stage—and 11 of the first 15 spots on the top 20 list. "All you have to do is look at the pitching leaders to realize how much they controlled what happened in the league this year," Winston-Salem manager Razor Shines said. "They all had ERA's under 3.40. And that's at the end of the year, so you aren't even talking about guys like Greinke or John VanBenschoten. Those guys were beyond this league pretty early on." That's not to say hitters didn't do any damage. Winston-Salem outfielder Jeremy Reed tore up CL pitching and earned a promotion to Double-A, where he hit .409 in the second half. "He was as good a hitter as I've ever seen, " Shines said. "Just the way he carried himself and the fact that he took the same approach every time he stepped in the box. He made the adjustments he had to make and moved on." -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 2. Jeremy Reed, of, Winston-Salem Warthogs (White Sox) With little fanfare, Reed led Team USA in hitting in 2001, outpacing future first-round picks Michael Aubrey, Carlos Quentin and Rickie Weeks. He went straight to full-season ball as a second-round pick in 2002 and batted .319, yet still remained anonymous. That changed in 2003, when Reed led the minors in batting (.373) and on-base percentage (.453). He has good speed and plays a fine center field. The only question that remains is his ability to hit for power, and some managers say it will come. At worst, he should be able to hit 15 homers a year. "Here's a guy who has all the tools," Salem manager John Massarelli said. "He's athletic, has good arm strength and has some power from the left side that I believe has great upside. His power will only develop for him. He had 18 doubles in the Carolina League and then went and hit seven homers in Birmingham, which isn't a very good park to hit in." TEAM G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB AVG OBP SLG Winston-Salem 65 222 37 74 18 1 4 52 41 17 27 .333 .431 .477 5. Kris Honel, rhp, Winston-Salem Warthogs (White Sox) Honel and lefthander Ryan Wing pitched the Warthogs to their first league title since 1993. Winston-Salem swept through Kinston and Lynchburg as Honel won both of his playoff starts, including the clincher. Observers can't agree on his strongest attribute. Some like his low-90s fastball. Some point to his knuckle-curve, which can be unhittable. Some say it's the command of all his pitches. "He's got two plus pitches and he's developing a changeup," Massarelli said. "He creates a good angle and throws strikes. He overmatched a ton of hitters in this league. You can't ask for more at this level than he's already doing." Team W-L ERA G IP H R ER BB SO Winston-Salem 9-7 3.11 24 133.0 122 51 46 42 122 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 13. Ryan Wing, lhp, Winston-Salem Warthogs (White Sox) Another integral part of Winston-Salem's championship, Wing has pitched nearly as well as Honel since being drafted one round behind him in 2001. Wing doesn't have Honel's command, though he did improve in that regard this year, but he can match his two plus pitches. Wing's slider is his best pitch and his 90-92 mph sinking fastball is nearly as good. His delivery has a lot of deception, making those offerings even tougher. He's difficult to run on, leading the CL with just 33 percent of basestealers succeeding against him. "His stuff just bores in on lefthanded hitters especially," Massarelli said. "He'll throw you inside and set you up with the slider. He was one of the best pitchers we faced." Team W-L ERA G IP H R ER BB SO Winston-Salem 9-7 2.98 26 145.0 116 62 48 67 107 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Sheff, Andrew, Chipper, Javy, Furcal, Maddux, Smolta, Ortiz and friends: WE'RE COUNTING ON YOU

i'm not going to get too excited Durham said he wanted to come back -- and he was gone. Ventura said he wanted to stay -- and he was gone. Charles Johnson said he liked Chicago -- and returned to Florida. Buehrle says he liikes the team -- but they've never been able to work out a long term deal. Generally, they ALL say they want to stay. I think it's what the players' association tells them to say so fans don't get POed. But in the end, almost all of them go for the money. I'm skeptical Bartolo will be around -- especially when you know Boston, the Yankees and others are waiting to throw more money at him.

top two, I believe Tigers are lucky to get meal money

Everett is sitting so Rowand finally gets some at bats not sure about Robbie because Miles and Harris are only getting occasional looks

no complete game for Garland flash to finish this game too bad. Would have liked to have seen Garland finish with his only complete game this season.

Garland turns 24 tomorrow A lot of 24 year old guys are just getting to the big leagues So he still has upside. and plenty of it. hope the Sox stick with him. Hate to see him go to another team and let them reap the rewards. Farmer just corrected the record: Garland has no complete games this season, but one in his career, last year against Toronto.

he brings a lot of plusses. switch hitter. plays hard. can play all three outfield spots -- although he is better off not playing CF. Can also DH. solid power. good speed The problem will be: How much money will he want to come back and how many years? And, of course: How many other teams will pursue him? Some teams might stay away from him because of his rep, although I have to admit I haven't seen any negatives from his during his three months in Chicago.

maybe manuel's harping at Garland worked he pitched better tonight and he has a chance to get his first major-league complete game in the same park where he made his big-league debut a little more than three years ago. still have hopes the kid can be a stud

Ed Farmer told a nice story about Carl Everett tonight said the Sox were voting on post-season shares for possible second-place money guys who have not been with the team all season are not invited to the meeting -- per baseball custom Farmer said Everett told the players not to vote to give him any money. Instead, he wanted them to take his share and spread it out to the younger guys on the team who have only been around for the last part of the season. Sure, Everett has plenty of dough. But Farmer said you'd be surprised at the number of big-name guys through the years who only let go of their money long enough to get a better grip on it.

got to be Reed Number one Cotts or Honel, two and three Honel might get two because he's got better command, even though Cotts has shown more after that ... BAmerica is posting its top 20 from the Carolina League tomorrow. be interesting to see where Honel, Wing and Yan rank

cito awfully low key weird career got thumped by the Jays after winning two titles -- then went back to Toronto a few years ago as a bench coach wouldn't be my choice.

let's see if Garland can pitch out of a jam

it appears we have reached the point where only the hardest of hard core care

guess he wants maggs to get more ABs to go for the batting title

Losing 8 games to the Tigers allowed the Twins to stay close enough to the Sox all summer so they felt as if they were always in contention and could turn it on whenever necessary. The 8 losses to Detroit were totally inexcusable, considering the Sox scored 3 runs or less 7 times against a pitching staff with an ERA of 5.35.

Don't forget Matt Ginter, Jon Rauch, Jason Stumm, Rob Purvis, Jim Parque and a flurry of other high draft picks that have not worked out. (Won't even bring up Josh Fogg and Kip Wells.) I agree. Something ain't right in the minor-league development. Too many busts. Too many injuries. Too few success stories. As for LaRussa, it's definitely a long shot. But conditions are right for him to leave St. Louis. And if the Sox want to send a message that they are indeed serious about winning, they should at least talk with him.

A year ago everybody was praising LaRussa for keeping the Cardinals together and then into the playoffs after the death of Daryl Kile. This year they've killed him in St. Louis. Not really his fault -- when you look at that pitching staff. All they got is Morris, and he's always hurt. Plus the St. Louis farm system is awful. Maybe the Cards are looking to save money and would be willing to let him out of the last year of his deal at a reduced price. Then theSox could bring him back. I think his decision to hang around Chicago for the reunion of the 1983 team was a clue that he still has strong feelings for the Sox. If they can bring back Tony, bring him back. He's good with veteran players and it would energize the fan base. Do it

didn't understand why they never gave him a look in the bigs, even a September call-up. he pitched well last september. he's got command. he can't be any worse than Danny Wright

Why not go ahead and get the no-hitter fellas? Give us something to remember you by. Paulie 0-for-19. Nice

8-4 Reds They just posted the score to a roar in Houston, where the Astros lead the Brew Crew, 1-0 in the fourth And I realize Paniagua is gone. Released two weeks ago yesterday. get his cell number and call him for a one-inning farewell. He can't be any worse than Wright.

Sean Casey homers hell, yes

6-4 thank you D'Angelo, Tim Hummel and friends

5-4 Reds they're not as bad as the Tigers but they're close

this game is the final proof of what a manager who insists upon effort can do for a team. Royals have one. Sox don't. Hire Tony Pena. didn't he manage in the Sox farm system one season?