I am going tomorrow and am interested in seeing his progression from the last couple of years.

Kenny, JR, and Ozzie are gathered around the office discussing Saturday and the rotation. Let's take a look at some of the tools they used

 

Who goes down?

You forgot:

 

 

 

and

 

It should be interesting. Hopefully he comes up and pitches good and after tomorrow the Sox think they have a 5th starter.

Who goes down?

Wunsch.

 

White Sox optioned LHP Kelly Wunsch to Triple-A Charlotte.

Wunsch had pitched two scoreless innings since being called up, but he's a victim of the stupid decision to send Neal Cotts back to the pen after just one start. Joe Rauch will be called up Saturday to replace him on the roster. May. 29 -

Who goes down?

Wunsch.

I'm a tad uneasy about our 5th starter situation right now...Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't we have exactly ZERO wins from that spot this year??? Didn't we have something near THREE wins from that spot all last season (thoughts of Wright even give me the creeps). Hopefully Rauch will be able to go deep into the game and record outs unlike the others who have been pitching in the #5-spot! I can't take much more of this drama at the #5. Hopefully more Ozzie magic will happen with Rauch.

I'm a tad uneasy about our 5th starter situation right now...Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't we have exactly ZERO wins from that spot this year???  Didn't we have something near THREE wins from that spot all last season (thoughts of Wright even give me the creeps).  Hopefully Rauch will be able to go deep into the game and record outs unlike the others who have been pitching in the #5-spot!  I can't take much more of this drama at the #5.  Hopefully more Ozzie magic will happen with Rauch.

Rauch hasn't even averaged 6 innings per start in AAA. Don't expect anythying close to "deep into the game".

ok i really think we shouldnt be disrespecting wunsch like this. He's a solid player and a heck of a guy too. We're tossing him around like he's nothing. He's done a lot for this club and his numbers are damn good too. Lets just dump Jackson, he's sucked it up so far.

ok i really think we shouldnt be disrespecting wunsch like this.  He's a solid player and a heck of a guy too.  We're tossing him around like he's nothing.  He's done a lot for this club and his numbers are damn good too.  Lets just dump Jackson, he's sucked it up so far.

Your acting like jackson has an era in the sixes like politte.

Politte would be great if he knew how to locate a god damn fastball.

 

He throws 96, but he doesn't know where its going.

 

Coops needs to help him locate that fastball. If he located it, the guy could dominate.

Politte would be great if he knew how to locate a god damn fastball.

 

He throws 96, but he doesn't know where its going.

 

Coops needs to help him locate that fastball. If he located it, the guy could dominate.

I agree but it seems like he does not get the same s*** that jackson does for some reason.

Rex made a good point. Jon has only been going 5-6 innings all year. I don't expect him to go past the 6th. That's if he pitches well. All I want is 5 solid innings from, Jon. Just give us a freakin chance to win.

on that 5th starter win thing didnt we win felix diaz's first game but he just didnt get the win?

on that 5th starter win thing didnt we win felix diaz's first game but he just didnt get the win? 

Yeah we won but he still gave up 5 runs and three homeruns.

For those who don't know much bout Rauch, here's some news on his stuff;

 

Perhaps the most interesting aspect of Saturday's game will be the White Sox starter. Right-hander Jon Rauch is the tallest pitcher in baseball history, standing 6 feet 11. Dubbed by some The Bigger Unit, he was with the Sox briefly in 2002, then spent last season with Charlotte in the International League where he made 24 starts. Though not the same kind of power pitcher as Randy Johnson, Rauch still has a fastball in the 90-95 mph range, an above-average curve and slider, as well as an improving changeup.

 

Rauch can be intimidating because he drives the ball down and gives batters angles they haven't seen before. He is also said to be fundamentally sound with his mechanics, has excellent command, and is very athletic, moving around the mound very well for a man his size. The Angels will be starting veteran Aaron Sele (3-0 3.05), making for a very interesting pitching matchup.

Pollitte is a waste of space.

GET RID OF HIM!

Hey Rex, I couldn't agree more with you. I made this statement after they said they would be moving Cotts back to the bullpen and I also felt this way after they pulled Diaz.

 

If the Sox want these guys, they first off need to realize odds are a pitcher is going to come in and struggle at times. However, with Diaz, he retired 11 straight batters in his first start. You could see his release point on his pitches was a bit off, but that very well coul do with the fact that instead of letting him pitch on his normal schedule, they had him pitch very limited over an extended period.

 

Then they had Diaz go on 3 days rest the 2nd start. Yes, he struggled, but it was against the 2nd or 3rd best offense in the majors and an offense that had been on fire. He struggled early and then, even though he was on 3 days rest (this was the rigth call, cause Garland threw a ton of pitches the same day as Diaz) but then their was no reason to not start him the next time around.

 

If you are willing to call these guys up, then you have to be willing to give them a chance. Now if Diaz or something else happened where basically they all agreed he wasn't ready, then fine with me, but I'm sick of the Sox just handing it to a guy for one start expecting him to just instantly be the savior.

 

It doesn't work that way in the majors. Now I sure hope Rauch can come in and do his thing, but I don't expect him to go very deep.

Pollitte is a waste of space.

GET RID OF HIM!

By year's end, Politte will have better stats than Billy Koch.

 

He starts to get that slider over, he'll be doing to hitters what he did in Spring Training - dominate.

Rauch still has a fastball in the 90-95 mph range

 

Not anymore - more like 88-92.

 

Prior to the injury he had the stuff - up to 92-94 mph fastball coming from the unusual angle and located above the belt is VERY hard for a hitter to get on top of.

 

Stuff isn't everything - Danny Wright got pounded while throwing 94-97 in 2001. Bigger Jon just has to locate, locate, locate - he'll have no problem with the Rangers if he does. If he doesn't? It's gonna get ugly because Young, Soriano, Texeira and Blalock can hit a mistake/get-me-over pitch a LOOOOOONG way.

I'm a tad uneasy about our 5th starter situation right now...Correct me if I'm wrong, but don't we have exactly ZERO wins from that spot this year???  Didn't we have something near THREE wins from that spot all last season (thoughts of Wright even give me the creeps).  Hopefully Rauch will be able to go deep into the game and record outs unlike the others who have been pitching in the #5-spot!  I can't take much more of this drama at the #5.  Hopefully more Ozzie magic will happen with Rauch.

Yes, Ms. Lee, you are correct that we have no wins from the #5 spot and I am not sure any of the starters used this year have lasted through the 5th inning. I like Rausch and I wished he had been brought up late last year instead of Paniagua, but that is all history. Today he gets the start and I am looking forward to at least 6 innings and a win from him.

What a putrid performance by Bigger Unit.

 

Terrible location. Breaking ball gone AWOL. 90 mph bp fastball.

 

Diaz Redux

 

:headshake :puke