tray

This is just another opportunity for trolls to try to spin this in some negative way. The fact is that naming rights have been around as long as inflated player salaries have been. Look around ANY major league ballpark and see signs for WINTRAUST, NUVEEN, Budweiser, XFinity,... plastered on everything in and around the ballpark. It's just part of the business. Fans don't have to call Sox Park anything but Sox Park or Comiskey. I certainly won't.

It will be "Guaranteed Field" not "Guaranteed Rate Field" Call it Sox Park or Comiskey. Teams have to do this sh1t for promotional purposes. I just asked a cubz fan friend of mine what the he11 " NUVEEN" is and we both busted up laughing.

My guess is that Ventura will not return as Manager. Meanwhile, Hahn and Williams will continue to revamp the Scouting and player evaluation personnel after acknowledging how ineffective they have been. They will also seek to rework the roster by adding hitters if they can find them and try to bolster the terrible bullpen. No matter who is in charge, that is going to be a tall order. Too many players have under-performed (Frazier, Robertson, Avila, Shields, Fulmer) , diminished their trade value, and hampered management's ability to trade them. As far as the Sox being for sale, everything is for sale at the right price. Kaplan created a rumor out of idle conversation that he instigated or perhaps out of whole cloth. I doubt the Reinsdorf family would sell their interest in the White Sox for several reasons. One of them is the interconnection with their ownership interest in the Chicago Bulls and their various media Contracts and promotional ties that they share with the Bulls that provide advantages and allow them to maintain greater leverage. Reinsdorf has a couple of sons who might step in if he retires, like old man Joe Ricketts children did or like the continuity in the Yankees/Steinbrenner organization.

I don't care if KW and Hahn stay, just as long as they hire a different group of people to evaluate talent and make more sound Draft choices and trade suggestions. As far as not being in the playoffs more than twice since they won it all, please.... This has been a much tougher Division than say, the National League Central and who cares if a team makes it but then gets swept four games in a row? LOL. I'd rather not make the playoffs than suffer that kind of humiliation.

I think talent evaluation is as important and sometimes even more important than Draft position. We have had some first round dogs, and I hate to call Fulmer one, but he might become another bust. You go into full tank mode to get a player like that?

Way too many questionable Draft picks, bad trades, and bad deals have cost the White Sox a lot of money and set back the franchise in terms of becoming more competitive. Assuming that heads will roll, who might Reinsdorf interview to replace Kenny Williams and Hahn?

QUOTE (DirtySox @ Aug 19, 2016 -> 02:30 PM) Perfect response. Perfect response,,,,,maybe for a Hawk hatin' cub fan.

Hawk has to drive for about two hours to and from home games, which is why he decided to only do away games. However, getting to and from airports, staying at hotels and being away from home for several weeks during the season is also not that easy for him. It's too bad he can't rent or buy a condo in Chicago to stay at during the season or at least during home stands. I never understood why he chose to do that drive every day in past years. So now he only does away games but why is staying in a downtown Chicago Condo during a home stand any different than staying at a hotel in another city (unless he wouldn't get lodging/meals in Chicago paid for as a travel expense)? Edited to add - I'd rather see Hawk do our home games and someone else (please no more Benetti) do the play-by-play for away games.

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Aug 18, 2016 -> 10:52 PM) Hell yea. Screw the service time argument, it's not relevant. The Sox plan to contend next season so let's see if Mr. Fireballs can anchor a critical spot in the pen. Looking like the Samardzija for Burdi trade might be a winner. "Mr. fireballs"?? Wow, your the master of wise--- sarcasm. There is no downside to bringing him up on a team that is not making the playoffs and is in the process of evaluating young players. Is Carson Fulmer's career ruined because he made some relief appearances in the majors? No, but Sox management now knows he probably won't be in the rotation in 2017 and based on how he performed they probably aren't counting on him for anything next season.

QUOTE (Jenksy Cat @ Aug 19, 2016 -> 12:06 AM) Yeah all Hawks stories about golfing & Yaz..his inability to tell a fly ball from a homer anymore...constant awkward silences with Stone...all around makes for a great "mute" broadcast option. Baseball is all about tradition. Hawk played with the greats and knew them personally, Mantle, Mays, Ted Williams.. He provides a lot of useful historical background and imparts a lot of knowledge and Sox history into the broadcasts. Benetti waxes on like a giggly schoolgirl. Hawk knows when to be silent and that silence usually speaks volumes. Hawk is going to be inducted in the Hall of fame as an announcer. Benetti will soon be forgotten and when that day comes, it won't be soon enough.

QUOTE (jamesdiego @ Aug 18, 2016 -> 11:43 PM) Glad you are not making those decisions Miracle. Benetti is top notch. Sometimes his jokes a a bit silly and I'm not a fan of Soxmath(although that's not his fault). But him and Stoney are a great pair, love their banter. You "love the bantar" ? OK.. I prefer a play-by-play announcer that is more focused on the game and has a better feel for it than Benetti. He is consumed with the bantar and inane questioning of Stone because that is all he has in his own playbook. This season has been a long one and Benetti's perpetual interview of Steve Stone asking ever more inane questions have made listening to the broadcasts unbearable at times. What is most annoying to me is his inability to follow the action in real time, describe it with accuracy as it is happening, and impart excitement when it is called for. As I pointed out, Benetti often raises his voice on routine fly balls. I'm fine with someone who has never played professional baseball, but the Peter principle set in for this guy a long time ago. Maybe back at HF. It's never going to be popular to criticize Benetti because of his disability and I am sensitive to that. Putting that aside the fact is that Benetti's skill set is not up to par with his peers, not even close to other major league baseball play-by-play announcers. It won't be long before he gawn, IMHO.

I hope Hawk will stay as long as he can do the job. Listening to Benetti ths season makes me appreciate Hawk all the more. Benetti is just awful. He distracts himself from the game by engaging in silly bantar with Stone and trying to appear clever and funny, which he isn't. Then a ball gets hit to short Left field and Benetti, consumed within his own conversation, finally reacts, "There's a ball hit deep to left Fi--el--ddddd.....oh it's caught by..." It becomes obvious that he isn't paying as much attention to the game as he is with formulating his next quip. Meanwhile, he has no feel for how hard the ball was hit, the trajectory, or whether the outfielder has already zoned it in and is on a clear path to make the catch. I am used to former major league players....pros in the announcing booth. Benetti is a disciple of Len Kaspar, and not a very good one. Sox need to make a change next season. Perhaps put Benetti on the radio side and get another play-by-play man for home gemes.

QUOTE (shipps @ Aug 18, 2016 -> 03:25 PM) You must have put him up to this nonsense. No, but I agree with Dick Allen more often than not. He's not one of the trolls here.

I was surprised to see how unbalanced his delivery was on the mound and his inability to locate pitches. He seems like a thrower more than a pitcher. As far as "bringing him up early" that is such nonsense. If he hasn't figured it out by now that may never happen for him. On the contrary, bringing him provided valuable information to management. They now know that they cannot rely on Fulmer being part of the Sox rotation next season or maybe ever. I'm very disappointed that the Sox took this kid in the first round last year. It looks like another terrible Draft pick. Instead of Rodon and Fulmer the Sox could have picked two position players that could have had a positive and immediate impact on this team. If Collins can't catch, they may have blown this year's first round pick as well.

Sanchez should have knocked him into next Sunday.

The ball was in the LF glove in extremely short Left and he had momentum going toward home to make the throw just as Sanchez was rounding third. This base running screw-up was as ugly as Sanchez getting cut down at second on an ill advised steal attempt. The Sox have lost way too many close games where managerial and coaching decisions contributed to the loss. Great at-bat earlier in the 9th by Anderson taking three sliders for balls with two strikes on him then launching a home run.

I did not see all angles but from what I saw, there seemed to be a question as to whether or not the catcher maintained possession instead of bobbling or dropping the ball. I guess they either had a camera shot that showed he had possession or they didn't have evidence to overrule the call on the field. In any case, it was really foolish of Joe McEwing to send the runner on that play. McEwing has been a terrible third base coach all along. He is as responsible for that loss as anyone. We should have won that game.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 12, 2016 -> 05:24 PM) Sure, but they played Alexei over Saladino and now Navarro nearly everyday over Narvaez when he will be departing as well... They tried it with Tilson, although that only lasted half a game. If that was their concern (your latter point), they sure haven't done an effective job "marketing" Fulmer to the fans, either. He's either pitching with a dead arm or his mechanics/psyche are off. Just like with Rodon earlier this year, some of that swagger is gone that helped make both of them so effective in college. I guess it's one thing if they really believed in him (Burdi or Fulmer), another if the reason is to give the fans someone to be excited about in what will be a difficult stretch for tv viewer and team alike. More than anything, they need young position players to excite the fanbase, and there are already so many relievers throwing 95-100 that it isn't nearly as exciting as it was a decade ago. Or to at least "honor" Ventura somehow and communicate to the fans this will be his final season, that a change in leadership is needed both on the field and in the front office. Your mixing everything up in your head. The need for position players has nothing to do with bringing up Burdi or Fulmer. And Tilson was brought up because the Sox had another injury (Avi Garcia). The Sox wanted to see what they had in Tilson. Sox fans, especially those who went to New Trier or know him and his family, were excited to see him. Fulmer has looked awkward but from the Sox perspective, it is valuable to see that. Instead of penciling him into the rotation for 2017 or 2018, they know what he has to work on to be on the roster next year.....everything. The more I see Fumer, the less confident I am that he will ever become a starting pitcher in the majors. Teerrible Draft oick by the White Sox and those are the sorts of bad decisions that have prevented the Sox from becoming better than a .500 team.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 12, 2016 -> 12:39 AM) The reason Sale, Rodon and Anderson were each pushed so quickly was "win now" situations. What's the compelling excuse to push Burdi up so quickly right now? Or for Fulmer to continue struggling in a role he's ill-suited for? Major league level playing time and experience that a player could never get in the minors, an opportunity for management to assess how a player performs at this level, how he reacts to pressure, how he fits into a team's chemistry, how a player reacts and responds to failure. Last but not least for the White Sox is the appeal for fans at this point in the season. Fans would rather see young players out there trying to earn a job rather than guys like Robertson who are about to lose theirs.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 12, 2016 -> 10:56 AM) Well, if they want to destroy 2 out of 3 kids they draft from the 1st-3rd rounds by rushing them up because there are no better options or they don't want to spend on free agents, they're really going to run this franchise into the ground. Collins shouldn't even be on the radar until 2018 if they're going to develop him as a catcher. That's where he has a premium value, and we haven't had a better than average catcher since AJ's prime years. It has been a long half decade of really bad performance at that position for the Sox. Rush him up as a hitter, you might get an average AL DH in a couple of years, but that's not going to move this franchise into contention like having a Top 5-7 catcher would. I don't buy the notion that a player can be "ruined" by bringing him up to the major leagues to see what he has and to get some experience seeing major league pitching, especially when a team is out of contention. Epstein had Schwarber in the line-up for his bat and that was in the National league. Bring Burdi up and let Zack take a few swats against major league pitchers this season. A side benefit of baptism by fire, like they are doing with Fulmer, is that it helps tank the team in the standings and raises the Sox position in next year's Draft. Win/Win, or maybe Lose/Win, but it's all good. Let the kids play, the season is ovah.

QUOTE (miracleon35th @ Aug 11, 2016 -> 04:42 PM) It has to do with an unsubstantiated rumor propounded by a Sox hater, and Bernstein most definitely is that. He's trying to create trouble and enjoying the White Sox floundering. He and other Cubs fans WANT the White Sox sold and moved. And one of the thimngs they love to point out is how terrible the neighborhood around US Cellular is. It is curious who posted so quickly in succession objecting to a negative post about the Cubs. Back to Bernstein, show me any evidence you have indicating that he is a sox fan. Something he claimed ? LOL. My opinion is based on speaking with Bernstein in person and listening to Boers and Bernstein sarcastic digs at the White Sox while praising the Cubs for years. Bernstein is feeding Cub fan/Sox trolls and apparently they easily bite.

QUOTE (bmags @ Aug 11, 2016 -> 04:04 PM) Can't think of a more unnecessary 2nd paragraph than yours. What does that have to do with anything in this thread? It has to do with an unsubstantiated rumor propounded by a Sox hater, and Bernstein most definitely is that. He's trying to create trouble and enjoying the White Sox floundering. He and other Cubs fans WANT the White Sox sold and moved. And one of the thimngs they love to point out is how terrible the neighborhood around US Cellular is. It is curious who posted so quickly in succession objecting to a negative post about the Cubs. Back to Bernstein, show me any evidence you have indicating that he is a sox fan. Something he claimed ? LOL. My opinion is based on speaking with Bernstein in person and listening to Boers and Bernstein sarcastic digs at the White Sox while praising the Cubs for years.

Bernstein is a cub fan, a sox hater, and a sarcastic buffoon trying to appease his listening audience. If the Sox were for sale, he would have as many sources for that as you or I would. I heard a rumor that the there has been a lot of increased crime around Wrigley Field...A lot f burglars and a scattering of rapists. Nice hood.. https://www.yahoo.com/news/rising-crime-wri...-032459601.html

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 6, 2016 -> 12:43 PM) if you really are gung ho for a rebuild, trading your biggest pieces and settling is really setting you up to suck for a real long time. Agree. That should be obvious to others as well, which makes it rather curious that some pine for that.

OK, alright already, Cutch won't be traded but some team that needs hitting for the stretch could use Melky. Pittsburgh seems to have a need for a guy like that. Maybe a team like the Dodgers would as well. I thought for sure Melky would be gone before Aug. 1.