shysocks

QUOTE (ptatc @ May 13, 2015 -> 11:04 AM) I would disagree with that comment. Even at the worst years of attendance they were at 70% capacity. And this was only for a few years. So the hawks draw at 70% capacity at the very worst. That is pretty incredible. First of all, the worst is more like 60% of capacity. Second, you're missing the point by focusing on capacity. The point is the trends, that you see a steady drop from about 1996 on until it went up to constant sellouts for good when they turned things around. There's a direct and irrefutable correlation in that chart between winning and attendance.

QUOTE (ptatc @ May 13, 2015 -> 10:25 AM) The Hawks have always had great attendance. It doesn't change regardless of the winning or losing. The very post you're replying to linked to a page showing that to be false. http://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att...ph.php?tmi=5218

QUOTE (lasttriptotulsa @ May 13, 2015 -> 10:03 AM) I think comparing hockey/basketball attendance to baseball is like apples and oranges. It's a hell of a lot easier to fill a 20,000 seat arena for 41 games than it easy to fill a 40,000+ stadium for 81 games. Would the Sox sell out nearly every game if the stadium held 20,000 and the schedule was cut in half? My guess would be yes. Not to mention the fact the baseball is played outdoors for the most part and the poor April and May weather combined with hot summers definitely keeps a lot of people away. Sure, I know it's not a perfect comparison and I think we're on the same side of this. But my point is that the Hawks muddled along for over a decade, and so did their attendance. Then it spiked when they got good and stayed up when they stayed good.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 13, 2015 -> 09:56 AM) If they didn't win the WS again, yes, without a doubt. That's laughable, and if you truly think that 4 division titles would have no effect on attendance, you aren't dealing in reality.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 13, 2015 -> 09:52 AM) The Twins have averaged 95.5 losses the last 4 years, their attendance has blown the White Sox away. Of course in 2005, when the team was never not in first place and won the WS, a 3 game home series vs. KC in September drew a total of 50k. If the Sox were the Tigers and had won the division four years in a row, do you really believe the attendance would be lower in 2015 than in 2010? I'm just gonna keep asking until you answer.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 13, 2015 -> 09:37 AM) White Sox tickets are by far the cheapest tickets in town. Cubs/Bulls/Bears/Blackhawks are all WAY more expensive. Hawks fans spend $100 for SRO against a no name team. White Sox fans can get into the upper Deck for $5 on a Sunday. The Blackhawks are essentially a dynasty at this point and their attendance mirrors what Sox figures would look like if they had two trophies in five years and playoff berths every year surrounding. That's all I'm saying and you know it's true.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 13, 2015 -> 09:25 AM) They made the playoffs in 2008, yet their attendance was lower than 2007 when they had the worst record in baseball for most of the season. And it was lower in 2009, then lower in 2010, then lower in 2011, then lower in 2012 when they led the division most of the season. They have lowered prices to where you can pay $20, $15 on Sunday to see Chris Sale pitch and they give you a t-shirt. 50 people a game take advantage of that. If you need 3 or 4 playoff appearances in a row to attend games, you are a fair weathered fan. As was stated previously, White Sox fans are excuse makers. It will always be something. None of that represents a consistent winner. If the Sox were the Tigers and had won the division four years in a row, do you really believe the attendance would be lower in 2015 than in 2010? My judgment is categorically that it would be higher, probably significantly higher. To the bolded, I think you'll find the same constitution for most fanbases in sports. What part of my post was untrue or an excuse?

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 13, 2015 -> 09:08 AM) What team (besides the Cubs, and they made the playoffs more often than the White Sox over the last 30 years) has had a consistently loyal fanbase over roughly a decade of mostly being a bit above average but rarely making a playoff run? The Indians, Orioles, Blue Jays, Mariners and Rockies all were among the attendance leaders roughly 15-20 years ago. Same with the DBacks and Astros for that matter. Their fanbases aren't much different than us. They just want to win too. Good post. The Cubs are an exception to every rule as tourists will always help fill up Wrigley, and because it's there slurping up market share, the Sox can never really be considered a big-market team. It sounds like an excuse, but it's not, it's just a fact. I attend as many games as I can so I don't feel compelled to make excuses for other people anyway. A consistent winner would do a lot to push casual Sox fans to go to games.

I think it's about time that Mike Fiers... (•_•) ( •_•)>⌐□-□ (⌐□_□) ...got burned.

Scott Merkin ‏@scottmerkin 4m4 minutes ago Noesi feeling better. Has been told to be ready out of bullpen tonight. Seems relevant to Rodon somehow...

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 11, 2015 -> 10:32 AM) Talk to me when Pau gets back. The Cavs just had a game where their superstar went 10-30, and they won. But he hasn't shot well in any game this series and evidence suggests Butler has at least something to do with it.

QUOTE (Rowand44 @ May 8, 2015 -> 10:19 PM) He only dick punched Derrick on that play, clearly no foul. I'll tell you what. I've seen a lotta no-calls as egregious as that one, but I ain't never seen one more egregious.

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ May 8, 2015 -> 09:39 AM) Why would it be a volley in Hawk vs. sabermetrics? It's not only sabermetrics where Votto comes up huge. This isn't Ben Zobrist. I'm sure Hawk would be very happy not to have to see if White Sox pitchers could get Votto out. It really is weird people have this perception of Hawk as this egotistical asshole who is grumpy all the time. If you ever decide to take a White Sox road trip and stay in the team hotel, if you run into players, coaches, broadcasters, you won't meet anyone more friendly than Hawk. I did explicitly say it was no big deal, guys. Just an observation. Not so much about Votto putting up good numbers but more his role as almost a spokesman. Again, I imagine if it was VMart he'd call it a crying shame and actually mean it.

QUOTE (Buehrle>Wood @ May 8, 2015 -> 09:27 AM) He has a 2.83 ERA this year while k'ing guys at a near elite level through 6 starts this year. He's been flat put dominant over his last 6 months of pitching. He doesn't go long in games still, but we'd kill to have him at the back of our rotation, let's be honest. His whip and fip are higher than normal, but they have been over the course of his career; they're broken when it comes to him. To say he sucks is simply not true. That's fair, I'll back off of "sucks," but I think his ceiling is average. His K% is 20.4 and the AL rate is 19.5. That's nowhere near elite especially for a guy who walks as many hitters as he does, and while FIP may underrate him, you know that 2.XX ERA is not going to last. In 23 starts since May of last year, I count 7 where he completed six innings. That's simply not very good. I would definitely take him in the back of our rotation, but that's not a high bar to clear, and then Jordan Danks or somebody would be our starting center fielder, so despite Eaton's slump I'd still do that trade again 200 times out of 100.

QUOTE (Soxfest @ May 8, 2015 -> 09:27 AM) Hawk saying Votto would not play not working out oops. Not sure if anybody mentioned it here, but when Hawk said that he threw in a sarcastic comment about how Votto missing the series would be a crying shame. No big deal at all, but Votto is the flag-bearer for new school, so I'm sure it was a volley in the Hawk vs. sabermetrics battle. If Victor Martinez was set to miss games against us, Hawk would stow the sarcasm and still spend three innings explaining what a great 7-8-9th inning hitter he is.

Yooka-Laylee, the Banjo-Kazooie-reminiscent platformer from seemingly every ex-Rare employee, hit its Kickstarter goal of £175,000 in 38 minutes and had reached £1,000,000 by the end of the first day. It's now sitting at £1,448,684, which is over $2.2M, and has broken all kinds of crowd-funding records. Very excited for it, but I hope playing a platformer where you just collect all the things is as fun as it used to be.

QUOTE (TaylorStSox @ May 8, 2015 -> 12:59 AM) I don't think you want to add more pressure to Micah. Moving him into the lead off spot is equivalent to changing levels in the minors. If you believe in Eaton, you keep him in his spot. Numbers have a way if evening out. Don't touch Melky. He has the best bat control on the team. He's absolutely ideal for the 2 hole. This exactly. Also Hector Santiago still pretty much sucks.

Nice outing Putnam.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 7, 2015 -> 03:40 PM) Probably saving other guys for this weekend when the bomb squad is pitching. Haha true, but I'd prioritize a game against Detroit more. Again, Robin did have reason to believe Jennings could get it done but he should also have had somebody ready to flip VMart around.

QUOTE (Alexeihyeess @ May 7, 2015 -> 03:34 PM) I really dont like just throwing this game. I get that sweeping the Tigers is not a must, but that doesn't mean the Sox should just hand the Tigers a win here. That seems silly. Very weird decision on its surface but Jennings did pretty well when going >1 inning last year. 18 innings, 1 earned run, 17 hits, 3 walks, 16 K's. What makes it weird is that other guys were available.

Not sure why Jennings is still in.

Lobstein has recorded the last nine outs on 28 pitches.

The good news is that Q is the master of the ND, so our odds of tying it up are pretty good.

QUOTE (greg775 @ May 7, 2015 -> 02:28 PM) All Lexi has to do is hit a fly ball against a lousy lefthander. First pitch grounder to third. Ridiculous. At least try to elevate, Lexi. QFT