The Sox can beat the Astros. It comes down to pitching. The Sox can't have their starter giving up 3-4 runs in the first inning or two, which we've seen too many times lately.

1 hour ago, 35thstreetswarm said:

Sox are playing the worst team in the playoffs by record. Still salty about the division but you can't ask for a better draw.

I think the Sox can win in Houston, but having watching a lot of both the Astros and the Rangers lately, I would have liked to play the Rangers . bad things always seem to happen in Houston (well not always)

Edited 3 hours ago3 hr by White Sox Park
I forgot to add something

"The 2026 White Sox won just 84 games, but did so in front of fans that reasoned 75 victories was an aspirational goal, and repaid the overage in enthusiasm.

Could they have won more? They certainly thought so, and rue an early-September slide that cost them a division title. They also had 11 walk-off victories, were often stringing together pitching plans that would have made MacGyver nervous, and no team that’s tied itself spiritually to the papacy the way these Sox have can consider themselves starved of blessings."

Fegan csuntimes

Streaming on Peacock.

Game 1, 5 p.m. ET Tuesday (PCK/NBCSN): David Sandlin (CWS) vs. Peter Lambert (HOU)
Game 2 5 p.m. ET Wednesday (PCK/NBCSN): Sean Burke (CWS) vs. Hunter Brown (HOU)
Game 3, TBD*: Davis Martin (CWS) vs. Hayden Wesneski (HOU)
(*if necessary)

4 hours ago, The Mighty Mite said:

I’d like to know what genius came up with a 3 game playoff series with one team not getting a home game. A 5 game first round would be more fair with a 2-2-1 rotation.

I believe it came from a few competing interests:

1. Didn't want a one-game playoff anymore for competitive reasons (too much randomness in the outcome of a single game)

2. Players did not want to reduce the number of regular season games

3. MLB did not want the postseason to end any later in the calendar year (supposedly the TV partners are ready to move on to other programming by late fall, plus the weather gets cold in some markets)

So 3 games was the shortest way to go beyond a single game and by playing them all in one place, you don't have to add a travel day. I'm sure rewarding the division winner with a significant home field advantage was a motivation too.

2 minutes ago, Jake said:

I believe it came from a few competing interests:

1. Didn't want a one-game playoff anymore for competitive reasons (too much randomness in the outcome of a single game)

2. Players did not want to reduce the number of regular season games

3. MLB did not want the postseason to end any later in the calendar year (supposedly the TV partners are ready to move on to other programming by late fall, plus the weather gets cold in some markets)

So 3 games was the shortest way to go beyond a single game and by playing them all in one place, you don't have to add a travel day. I'm sure rewarding the division winner with a significant home field advantage was a motivation too.

A Division winner whose record is not as good as the last Wild Card, some changes are needed.

2 minutes ago, The Mighty Mite said:

A Division winner whose record is not as good as the last Wild Card, some changes are needed.

Its never going to be perfect. Unless you get rid of divisions, stuff like this will happen. The alternative is AL East teams generally dominating the postseason discussion every year. This is much better.

2 minutes ago, The Mighty Mite said:

A Division winner whose record is not as good as the last Wild Card, some changes are needed.

Well, I think it makes sense not to mix the two systems by re-seeding. If it's all about record, need to play a balanced schedule (which I would hate as I live on the east coast). Otherwise, have to treat winning a division like it's better than failing to win a division. This system will help the Sox more than it hurts them.

FWIW, home field advantage in baseball is very small. Home teams win about 54% of the time in the regular season, more like 52% in the playoffs.

Sox. Astros. Tuesday. 4 PM. On the COCK!

Going up against 3 righties (if they go 3). Going to need Mune and Colson to run into some stuff. That is a bit worrisome, especially with Colson lately.

12 hours ago, caulfield12 said:

Have to walk Alvarez and force Paredes to beat you

You know damn well we’re pitching to Alvarez every time.

4 hours ago, The Mighty Mite said:

One thing MLB can do is go back to a 154 game series freeing up more time for the playoffs. So many useless games are being played in late September anyway.

That's the answer, but they'll never do that. As it is, prefer this system over the 1-game wildcard.

5 hours ago, The Mighty Mite said:

I’d like to know what genius came up with a 3 game playoff series with one team not getting a home game. A 5 game first round would be more fair with a 2-2-1 rotation.

It's because they're already starting the season in March (March 25 this year) and the World Series is already pushing into November (actually Game 7 would be on Halloween this year). There really isn't room for a best of 5 wild card round with travel days without making the season's length even more ridiculous with possibly frigid temperature at the beginning and end unless they cut the regular season back to 154 games.

6 hours ago, The Mighty Mite said:

I’d like to know what genius came up with a 3 game playoff series with one team not getting a home game. A 5 game first round would be more fair with a 2-2-1 rotation.

I hate the new format. I like the 2nd WC but I think it should be a 5 game series. I get what @77 Hitmen is saying but I also think there are ways to make it work. Nobody wants in season doubleheaders tho.

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by chitownsportsfan

14 hours ago, chitownsportsfan said:

Anybody want to project the playoff roster? I don't believe Pham is eligible everybody else no in IL is, I believe. 13 pitcher max.

OF: Doyle, Peters, Beni, Grichuk, Montgomery

IF: Acuna, Vargas, Meidroth, Mune, Colson, Ant

C: Teel, Rogers

P: Taylor, Hagen, Burke, Kay, Fedde, Hicks, Sandlin, Newcomb, Martin, Hudson, Noah, Brazoban, Richards

They love Richards but he and his 91MPH fastball have been getting hit hard lately.

1 minute ago, GreenSox said:

They love Richards but he and his 91MPH fastball have been getting hit hard lately.

With the 40 man as it is it seems like they are just going to roll with him and hope he's just the mop up. I'd imagine Fedde and Kay will be used out of the pen if they don't start. Martin I don't know, he's probably closer to Richards' role than getting any starts. I think your starters are Burke and Fedde as crazy as that sounds. 3rd game would maybe be Kay or you try a bullpen day, which I wouldn't be opposed to in principle.

Edited 1 hour ago1 hr by chitownsportsfan

3 minutes ago, GreenSox said:

They love Richards but he and his 91MPH fastball have been getting hit hard lately.

I think people overrate how much they "love" Richards. He's pretty much the mop up or innings eating guy. We see him a lot because his role is to take innings when the game isn't really hanging in the balance. There were a few times he was forced into a high leverage spot, but for the most part was just a mop up guy.

If the Sox are too stubborn to pitch around/IBB Alvarez and he beats you, that's entirely on Teel/the coaching staff

He had 8 walks vs the Sox in those 7 games, and didn't do much damage.

Sox have to win game 1, because Hunter Brown knows exactly how to tie up this lineup

2 minutes ago, joejoesox said:

If the Sox are too stubborn to pitch around/IBB Alvarez and he beats you, that's entirely on Teel/the coaching staff

He had 8 walks vs the Sox in those 7 games, and didn't do much damage.

Sox have to win game 1, because Hunter Brown knows exactly how to tie up this lineup

Non intentional intentional walk works but in general agree, they don't have the murderer's row they used to, he's the one guy that scares me. They have some other competent hitters, but not with that sort of game changing power.

7 minutes ago, chitownsportsfan said:

Non intentional intentional walk works but in general agree, they don't have the murderer's row they used to, he's the one guy that scares me. They have some other competent hitters, but not with that sort of game changing power.

God that team used to be terrifying...when Yordan Alvarez was the young, up-and-coming guy just added to their pile of mashers.

1 minute ago, 35thstreetswarm said:

God that team used to be terrifying...when Yordan Alvarez was the young, up-and-coming guy just added to their pile of mashers.

especially at that band box. which now plays into our hands more. we are winning this series. we have the better team.

1 minute ago, chitownsportsfan said:

especially at that band box. which now plays into our hands more. we are winning this series. we have the better team.

We do have the better team now. Hope that translates into actual wins, but it's a better feeling than 2021. I went to Houston for those games, but had the gnawing knowledge in the back of my mind the whole time that they outclassed us in every aspect of the game.

2 hours ago, caulfield12 said:

Game 1, 5 p.m. ET Tuesday (PCK/NBCSN): David Sandlin (CWS) vs. Peter Lambert (HOU)
Game 2 5 p.m. ET Wednesday (PCK/NBCSN): Sean Burke (CWS) vs. Hunter Brown (HOU)
Game 3, TBD*: Davis Martin (CWS) vs. Hayden Wesneski (HOU)
(*if necessary)

Soooo why not let Fedde go in game 1? Really gonna trust Sandlin in the playoff opener….eek

Why can't we be one of the three worst teams ever to win a World Series?

Let's small sample our way to shocking the world, starting with Ron's guy Sandlin getting lefties out for the first time all year... then a good old fashion Sean Burke shove fest.

Just stopping in to say Go Sox! Nothing I'd enjoy more than listening to hundreds of people and talking heads tell us how we didn't deserve to win it all this year!