Thornton & Logan look like locks for bullpen

[SSH2005]

Sox' Thornton a work in progress

The major flaw Cooper saw with Thornton back in '04 was his inability to use his legs to finish pitches. That's still the work in progress, according to Thornton.

 

After his last start with Seattle, Mariners pitching coach Rafael Chaves talked to Thornton about it, and the two even began making adjustments.

 

"After my last outing, I was up in the zone, and it was something that Chaves and I just started working on, my drive to the plate,'' Thornton said. "So I know exactly what we'll be working on here.''

 

The thought is that if Thornton can drive through his pitches, he will stay down in the zone. That means more strikes.

 

In many ways, Cooper sees Thornton having the same problems Contreras had before he put it together.

 

"Both of these guys have low batting averages against,'' Cooper said. "Somehow, some way, we have to get [Thornton] over the plate. It was just like what we talked about with Contreras. When they get the ball over the plate, the hitters aren't doing too much with it. So let's throw more over.''

 

Being out of options, Thornton is just about a lock for the 25-man roster. He also has been told that his role for the time being is long relief. If he can show more consistency within the strike zone, that will change.

Thornton hit hard; Sox not concerned

“He had trouble finding the strike zone a little bit,’’ catcher Chris Widger said of Thornton. “But he actually made a couple good pitches. The home run wasn’t a terrible pitch.’’

 

[...]

 

“I like his arm,’’ Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said. “And I always liked him when he pitched against us. The first hitter, if (Uribe) makes that play, we’re out of the inning. It was his first day. If the kid throws the ball over the plate, he’ll be fine.’’

 

Widger had the best view of Thornton, and he thinks the big lefty eventually will settle in and help the White Sox out of the bullpen.

 

“He’s going to be fine,’’ Widger said. “I like the way he pitches. A hard thrower like that with a good slider out of the bullpen, I mean, they’re not easy to find. Coop’s going to work with him and make sure he stays in the strike zone early.

 

“As long as he works ahead in the count, he’s going to be pretty good. He’s kind of like (Sox closer Bobby) Jenks, but from the left side. He throws hard and if he gets strike one, guys aren’t going to have a very good chance. But if he’s ball one, ball two, he gives them a pretty good chance to hit. That’s the biggest key for him.’’

 

One bad relief appearance isn’t going to make the Sox regret the trade, and Thornton’s not about to give up on himself.

 

“It’s a fresh start here,’’ he said. “I’m going to continue to try to make a difference, compete and help the team win and keep on growing as a pitcher. Hopefully, I can make that turn I need to make in my career. The Mariners were waiting for it and hopefully I can make it here.’’

Guillen applauds new lefty

Left-hander Matt Thornton was baptized with four runs in one-third of an inning in his White Sox debut Tuesday, but manager Ozzie Guillen isn't discouraged.

 

Thornton throws a 96-m.p.h. fastball, and Guillen quickly pointed out Thornton's outing wouldn't have looked so poor if shortstop Juan Uribe hadn't committed an error in the sixth inning that set up Justin Leone's three-run home run in San Diego's 10-7 victory.

 

"I like what I see," Guillen said.

Lefty Logan good bet to make roster

What started as a long shot is now becoming reality as the White Sox are prepared to break camp with 21-year-old Boone Logan on the 25-man roster.

 

According to one Sox source, unless Logan has a complete meltdown over the remaining nine Cactus League games, he will be one of three left-handed relievers the club leaves Arizona with. That also means the Sox are expecting right-handed reliever Dustin Hermanson to start the regular season on the 15-day disabled list.

Edited March 22, 2006 by SSH2005

[RME JICO]

At least the picture is getting a little clearer, but who could have imagined that Matt Thornton and Boone Logan were going to be the last two guys out of the bullpen even a month ago.

 

I hope Thornton can find some control and Logan can continue his excellent pitching. We could always use a couple more success stories.

[SSH2005]

At least the picture is getting a little clearer, but who could have imagined that Matt Thornton and Boone Logan were going to be the last two guys out of the bullpen even a month ago.

 

I hope Thornton can find some control and Logan can continue his excellent pitching.  We could always use a couple more success stories.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hope is all we have. There's definately no record of success with either of these two guys.

[RME JICO]

Hope is all we have.  There's definately no record of success with either of these two guys. 

Based off the stats, the Sox won by luck last year, so these hope-ful guys will fit right in.

[SSH2005]

Based off the stats, the Sox won by luck last year, so these hope-ful guys will fit right in.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, I guess we did win it all with a lefty who couldn't throw strikes in the bullpen last season. This season, it appears we will just have another lefty who can't throw strikes with a better fastball.

Edited March 22, 2006 by SSH2005

[RockRaines]

Funny how our catcher says that Thornton has a good slider, yet all the soxtalk experts say he has a s***ty breaking ball......

[Balta1701]

Hope is all we have.  There's definately no record of success with either of these two guys. 

At least in Thornton's case, there's a ton of potential, and the right circumstances have molded potential into success many times before.