who cares about comparing we are in first and getting it done...enjoy it. I know most people here thought were were going to be out of it by June 1 during spring training.

I think the expectations I had of Swisher were he wasn't going to be a good CF, but I think he has been real solid out there. If he's not equal, I think he's pretty close to Rowands level.

 

Rowand was an elite defensive CF three years ago. Swisher is a corner OF/1B who has been essentially forced to play CF in Chicago. Agreed that he's been really solid out there and has exceeded expectations... but I don't think that makes him equal to Rowand in his prime. Rowand's only weakness back then was his arm strength, and Swish doesn't exactly have a cannon either. That said, I think that we would be OK with Swish in CF for the next year or two.

 

IMO, Alexei does everything just as good if not better than Gooch and his gun puts him over the top.

 

Alexei is clearly more physically-talented than '05 (past his prime) Tad. I think that Tad played a better 2B better than Alexei (who is essentially a utility player). JMO. Of course, Alexei clearly has more potential at this point in his career than Tad did three years ago. It's just a matter of when/if he realizes that potential.

 

Edited June 5, 200817 yr by WCSox

I love reading these threads because it's funny how everyone makes assumptions about who's going to do what and who's NOT going to do whatever. The pitching won't last, the hitting won't get better, this guy won't get better, this guy can't get worse, lol.

 

It seems like everybody just guesses on everything.

So much depends on whether or not Paulie, Thome, and Swisher start to hit. If they don't, I think this club comes up just a little bit short, despite the great pitching.

remember the absolute panic around here during the meltdown in August/September '05? Wish I could read some of those threads again - they were Moronotti-esque!

 

I couldnt agree more. According to this very website, the Sox were buried in 2005 and had no chance in the playoffs.

 

 

If you can't see what this team could become, then the doom and gloom you've got pumping through your veins is scary

I don't know what that means. Everyone was saying the same thing all last year and even some into 2006. At some point, you just have to admitt these guys aren't going to be like they were in 2004 and 2005.

I don't know what that means. Everyone was saying the same thing all last year and even some into 2006. At some point, you just have to admitt these guys aren't going to be like they were in 2004 and 2005.

Why? This team is at least as talented as the 2005 team, IMO. Just in different areas. So why on earth do we "have to admitt" that these guys aren't going to do well? Its just as silly, if not sillier (since we're in first, in June), as telling people they "have to admitt" that the team is going to win the division.

 

Why? This team is at least as talented as the 2005 team, IMO. Just in different areas. So why on earth do we "have to admitt" that these guys aren't going to do well? Its just as silly, if not sillier (since we're in first, in June), as telling people they "have to admitt" that the team is going to win the division.

Because the whole time last year, everyone was saying that we were definitley going to come out of our offensive slump as a team. It didn't happen, and it's carried over to this year, and they are STILL mildly struggling. There's a good chance PK and Thome will never be the same again, after the last 2 seasons they've put together.

Because the whole time last year, everyone was saying that we were definitley going to come out of our offensive slump as a team. It didn't happen, and it's carried over to this year, and they are STILL mildly struggling. There's a good chance PK and Thome will never be the same again, after the last 2 seasons they've put together.

Dude, look at 2007. The reason the offense never came around is because of how many lousy players were in the lineups. Andy Gonzalez? Luis Terrero? Jerry Owens? Juan Uribe? Hall the bad version? And those guys played a LOT. PK and Thome, as has been pointed out before, actually had seasons in 2007 that were FAR better than they are having now. And as a team, the 2007 club was out of contention in May. This club is in FIRST in May. And that's not even getting into the fact that this team is leading the world in pitching, as opposed to near dead last.

 

Seriously, comparing this team to 2007 is just a bad joke.

 

I never really started this thread with intentions of comparing our 2005 team to this 2008 team. It was more so a clubhouse/personality comparison.

Everyone was saying the same thing...into 2006.

 

They played 162 games that season, and of those 162 games, they outscored the opponent in 90 of them. That's the 3rd most times they've outscored the opponent in a single season this decade!

 

Get f***ing real, the reason people were excited about the team in 2006 is because it was a damn good team that saw the pitching fall apart and the offense fall asleep in the second half of the year. That team was on pace to score 950 runs with Scott Podsednik and Tadahito Iguchi at the top of the order and a rookie/s***ty defensive veteran in CF (no fault to his own that he was out there).

 

Atleast make sense when you are arguing, please.

Edited June 6, 200817 yr by witesoxfan

They played 162 games that season, and of those 162 games, they outscored the opponent in 90 of them. That's the 3rd most times they've outscored the opponent in a single season this decade!

 

Get f***ing real, the reason people were excited about the team in 2006 is because it was a damn good team that saw the pitching fall apart and the offense fall asleep in the second half of the year. That team was on pace to score 950 runs with Scott Podsednik and Tadahito Iguchi at the top of the order and a rookie/s***ty defensive veteran in CF (no fault to his own that he was out there).

 

Atleast make sense when you are arguing, please.

 

 

rookie = Brian Anderson

s***ty defensive veteran in CF (no fault to his own that he was out there) = Rob Mackowiak

 

Makes perfect sense to me

 

rookie = Brian Anderson

s***ty defensive veteran in CF (no fault to his own that he was out there) = Rob Mackowiak

 

Makes perfect sense to me

 

I got it.

rookie = Brian Anderson

s***ty defensive veteran in CF (no fault to his own that he was out there) = Rob Mackowiak

 

Makes perfect sense to me

 

Thanks for clarifying. I had forgot about Rob in CF there . . . Sorry.

Thanks for clarifying. I had forgot about Rob in CF there . . . Sorry.

That's ok....most of has have tried to wipe it from our minds. He did take one for the team and give it everything he had though.

I wish people would realize that in the middle of June last year, the White Sox gave up on the season as injuries and s***ty decisions in the bullpen over the offseason killed them and for that we have Gordon Beckham.

 

I don't know if Thome and Konerko will get back into the .280's and 30HR range, but guess what, neither are a good number of otehr proven hitters in baseball.

 

The times appear to be a changing as faras offense goes.

 

If those two and Swisher can get to .260/.380 with 20-25 and 85-100 and the pitching staff is close to the top in baseball, 2005 will not be the comparison for what this team can do.

 

 

Jose Contreras is dealing like the 2005 version. I don't know if he can keep it up, but you have to give him a lot of credit. He was given up for dead by most.

2005 good pitching

2008 good pitching

 

Thanks for the research Sherlock!

Jose Contreras is dealing like the 2005 version. I don't know if he can keep it up, but you have to give him a lot of credit. He was given up for dead by most.

 

Yea, IIRC, a lot of people were wishing we had sent him to the Angels for OC instead of Garland.

 

Wondering how they feel about that now...

Yea, IIRC, a lot of people were wishing we had sent him to the Angels for OC instead of Garland.

 

Wondering how they feel about that now...

A lot of people were hoping the Sox would eat a lot of his salary and just give him away.

A lot of people were hoping the Sox would eat a lot of his salary and just give him away.

I'll admit, if this past offseason someone told me they could have traded Contreras OR Garland for O-Cab, I would have chosen Contreras. Glad I was wrong.

 

Jose Contreras is dealing like the 2005 version. I don't know if he can keep it up, but you have to give him a lot of credit. He was given up for dead by most.

 

You deserve props, as you were always saying he'd come around.

I still think the worry over Contreras was justified. I had nothing more than hope. Then again, I never thought his problems last year were related to anything physical. But I wasn't confident he could turn that switch in his head back to "on" again.

I still think the worry over Contreras was justified. I had nothing more than hope. Then again, I never thought his problems last year were related to anything physical. But I wasn't confident he could turn that switch in his head back to "on" again.

He just needed to get laid again on a regular basis.