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I'd love to see Harris kick some ass their and gain confidence because to me having Harris and Jimenez playing everyday would be awesome. Of course the key is if they can produce and I think the Harris is the bigger questionmark cause I loved what I saw out of Jimenez, that guy is good. Harris has a ton of potential too, but I got to see him make use of it. To me it would be awesome to have a super sub like Manos able to dh some, pinch run, pinch hit and everything like that.

These guys both had great games this week. I like Simms as a pro quarterback and I've noticed he hasn't gotten any of the hype the other guys have gotten, typically because he's not considered a big game qb, but damn he's playing against Nebraska. The other guy I finally watched was Eli Manning and s***, this guy is good. He may be the best qb on the board, even over the raw ability of Leftwich if you ask me. I'd love for the Bears to have the chance to take any of the two.

Fenway park sucks. I wouldn't have one problem if they strapped up some tnt on it and blew it up to build a new stadium. Absolute craphole in my opinion.

This one sucks. No excuses. I know they had that one touchdown taken away cause it was a catch, but how many freakin times were they in the redzone only to piss it away. This was embarassing. They should of kicked the living snot out of them, instead they lose. Pathetic. Tyrone is going to eat them alive.

Holliday just threw a touchdown pass and the reciever got both feet down and yet they didn't call it a touchdown. Hell, all he needed was one foot down and he had two. Now Notre Dame fumbles another snap and they fail on the field goal. Come on Tyrone get on their ass and Irish pick up your play. No mistakes, you create them.

They are down 7-0 but are driving. Their offense has looked fine minus a fumble that set up Boston College's touchdown. Dang, Notre dame just had its 3rd fumble, luckily they recovered it again.

Wasn't New Orleans supposed to be good? I sure hope they beat the Hawks today, that would be sweet, cause I'm planning on watching that.

Sanders was just amazing to watch, of course he never won a damn thing. You could blame his team for that on the most part though. Although he did put his team in tough 3rd and long situations often, but he also bailed them out with absolutely amazing runs.

Man, with the Hawkeyes looking like they will roll over Wisconsin I'm going to now hope that the Irish will do the same and whoop up on Boston College. Man, both of my teams are doing good this year so far. If only Iowa didn't lose to Iowa State, a game in which they blew. Oh ya, I must add, Brad Banks may just be a good pro quarterback. And of course once Holliday puts things together he will be awesome.

After reading up a bit, these guys we got aren't really young. They do sound like good players though.

I think he goes to the Cubs or Giants. He won't go to the Mariners, imo. I hear they are interested in Riggleman.

Well I'll trust your judging of talent so this looks like a good move. We traded Nylander and added two quality young players.

I didn't see it either, but Curry still hasn't gotten his first rebound. Not sure about Williams, he played good game one, but this game wasn't so. He'll have a lot of growing pains. Crawford had a bit better of a game this week. From what I know the Bulls were up 16 in the 4th and then had to fight to hold on. Rose turned it on late. I'm loving this, I hope it keeps up.

I'm with ya on that. Of course 60 years from now, I'll start to worry.

I here some people saying the Yanks just want someone to pick up his entire salary.

Geeze, what I would give to get Pedro here, Wow. Wunsch may make it back to strength, and if he can pitch like he did in 2000, well that will be huge.

I don't like Biddle as a starter. He just seems to tire way too early. That could be because of his injury, but I just like him more in a relievers roll. He does have a good fastball and curve and if he could develop a nice change then things could go alright. I don't know what it is though, but I'm always worried with Biddle.

I didn't hear that, but I know we are the laughin stock of the league. I hear tons of columnist come on and they really believe we are the worse team in football right now. I can't really disagree with them. For Pete Sake the f***ing Vikings. They suck on defense and we couldn't do s***. Right now our problem is everything. The running game sucks, namely cause the oline sucks, but also due to Thomas. Passing game sucks cause the qb's are hurt and only decent, plus John Shoop is an incompetent bum. Defensively, man oh man. They are freakin horrible. Can Someone stop the run or the pass, or can we at least hit the frikkin qb. I know we are injured but stop making excuses and just lay it all out. On a sidenote, your gonna be down this weekend right? We got to see the Bears kick the crap out of the Iggles. Freakin Iggles.

Sirotka hasn't thrown a pitch in two years, so odds are he won't be able to do anything with the Cubs. The Sox have a lot more left handed arms then the Cubs and in general are in much better shape when it comes to the Farm System. I know the Cubs farm system was ranked #1 or 2 last year, but it was very over-rated and all of their top pitching prospects are at the major league level or seriously injured. As far as Porzio goes, the guy has a shot, mainly because he's a lefty, but he's got to pitch better then he did with the Sox last season. At times he was unhittable, but other times he looked pathetic. The one thing going for him is the fact that Jm loves the lefties and we may just carry 3 of them if we don't want to go with one of our young studs.

Sanders is dominating the Arizona Fall League as is another lefty Josh Stewart and Righty Gary Majewski. We also have a ton of prospects down in A ball and the rookie levels that will be with the Sox. I hear many saying we had the best draft in baseball last year. Of course you can't judge that quiet yet, but we've had a ton of guys step up. My personal favorite is Jeremy Reed. The guy can run, hit and is one of the best defensive outfielders in the minors. Oh ya, he runs to first in 3.8 seconds. I think thats damn near what Ichiro does it in.

I've been thinkin that too. Remember how Salaam in his first season rushed for a 1000 yards and everyone talked him up. Then what happened, he fell apart and we never heard from him again. I think the Train is a better runner, but I really am worried about him. He is supposedly quicker this year, so his timing may be off, but Anthony needs to get back to runninga little lower so he can bounce of runners better and he also needs better vision. Of course some push from our oline would help a whole lot. When a back can get some nice holes it makes a huge difference cause we can keep running and wear a defense out. Of course the way our defense plays we are behind so quickly that we have to give up on the run, so the opponents d stays fresh. Our Line sucks this year, but Thomas needs to pick his game up. I'd also like to see Johnson used more, and for pete sake, can we please start getting first downs on 3rd and 1.

Gary, I'm starting to agree with you. Miller is our mvp on offense at least. The guy leaves everything out on the field. He doesn't have all the ability of the elite qb's in the league, but he gets it done. Of course Shoop holds his hands and calls such crappy plays we really don't know what we have in our offense. The only thing I can hope for is a s***ty season where we position ourselves to get Dave Ragone or Leftwich or a top corner as well as see our coaching unit ousted because they fail to make changes and it kills us. Blache....gone Shoop....gone Jauron...gone for failing to remove those nimrods.

2003: A Look Into a Crystal Ball - Part 2 By: Matt Michel Earlier this week, I brought you my outlook on the position players and how the White Sox are shaping up; as well as moves I feel need to be made to give Chicago a World Championship. Now it is time to look at the pitching staff Sox fans can expect to see on March 31 against Kansas City. This column will assume that Kenny Williams will not make any significant moves, and will not acquire a big name pitcher this off-season (however, again, at the end I'll throw in my two cents as to what I'd do if I were KW), and again the projected 2003 stats are only projected if the player stays in the White Sox organization. Starting Rotation 1) Mark Buehrle (2003 Projection: 21-8, 3.02 ERA) Duh! There's only one given with the pitching situation in 2003, and it is that Mark Buehrle is the ace of the staff. Coming off a season in which he fell agonizingly short of becoming the first 20-game winner to don the South Side pinstripes since Jack McDowell, Buehrle fully established himself as one of the best young pitchers in the game. The only real progression Mark needs to make is to limit the number of starts where he simply doesn't have it, whether because of fatigue or for other reasons. Despite the strong numbers Mark had last year, they could have been better had Mark not been completely flat in a few games. However, he is head and shoulders above 99.9% of the pitchers his age, so it is very likely that he will continue his development. 2) Jon Garland (Projection: 17-9; 4.07) Yes, many may look at my projected stats for Jon and think I'm crazy, but I sincerely believe that Jon is on the cusp of superstardom. With Nardi Contreras a distant memory, Garland looks ready to make the next jump in his development. While many have chastised Jon for developing slowly at the major league level after being hyped in the minors, Jon will only be 23 at the start of next season, and like Buehrle, is far better than almost every other pitcher his age. Under the tutelage of Don Cooper, Sox fans should sit back and enjoy watching Jon develop into a front line starter. 3. Dan Wright (Projection: 10-10; 4.88) Much like Garland, Wright is a talented, young pitcher who can be a force on the mound if he can get his act together. Also, like Garland, Wright mixed flashes of brilliance with flashes of the atrocious. All in all, 2002 was an up and down year for Dan, but that is to be expected of a young pitcher. And again, like Garland, Wright looks to vastly improve under Don Cooper. 4. Todd Ritchie (Projection: 9-11; 4.48) Is Todd Ritchie as bad as he showed last year? Probably not. Will he ever be worth the three pitchers that GM Ken Williams dealt to get him? Probably not. While Ritchie suffered a horrible year, fans wanting to automatically cast him off need to regain their wits. Yes, Ritchie will probably never be the guy that Williams expected him to be, but that doesn't mean that Todd can't be an anchor for the rotation. If Williams gets a frontline starter to bump Todd back to the fifth starter role, it could do wonders for him, relieving him of the stress trying to live up to the deal that sent him here. 5. Rocky Biddle (Projection: 7-5; 4.32) Barring a move by Williams, more than likely the #5 spot on the rotation will come down to a battle between Biddle, Gary Glover, and Jon Rauch. Biddle pitched the best last year for the Sox, and pitched very well towards the end as a starter. Glover and Rauch will probably need to have monster springs to leapfrog Rocky out of the starting rotation. Bullpen (Note: The order is determined by the likelihood of a player's chance to break camp with the Sox… It has nothing to do with a player's expected role.) Keith Foulke (Projection: 2-6, 2.37, 41 SV, 5 BS) More than likely, Keith's chance of returning to the Sox are more dependant on what kind of a deal Williams can get for him and how much Jerry Reinsdorf wants to pay him more than what he shows Cooper and Manuel in Arizona. If Keith is still a member of the organization by spring's end, he is certainly a lock to get on the team. Whether or not he has found his way out of the doghouse remains to be seen, but under ideal conditions, he would catapult back to being one of the more dominant closers in the game. With the ineptitude of Contreras gone, hopefully Cooper can pinpoint Keith's mechanical problems that have caused him to tip his pitches. While the debate over whether Keith should start or come out of the pen still rages, if Keith is allowed to regain his closers role by Manuel and Cooper, he looks ready to become an untouchable closer once again. Damaso Marte (Projection: 82 G, 5-3, 2.71) Again, it looks as if Williams showed his ability to scout minor league talent when he nabbed Damaso Marte and Edwin Yan from Pittsburgh for Matt Guerrier. Marte developed into a solid left hander out of the bullpen, and while made some hearts skip at times, was generally very reliable. The only thing that could hold Marte back would be injuries suffered as a cause of overuse (a la Kelly Wunsch), however, Damaso looked fine for all of last year and looks to be another force in the Sox pen. Gary Glover (Projection: 52 G, 11 starts, 5-10, 4.52) If Gary proved one thing last year, it was that he is a better relief pitcher than a starter. While he was ineffective (and sometimes, downright awful) as a starter, he proved his worth coming out of the 'pen. Next year, Glover looks to continue his bullpen duties as well as perform as a spot starter for the Sox. Kelly Wunsch (Projection: 72 G, 1-2, 3.92) Knowing Manuel and his love affair with righty/lefty matchups, he will carry at least two left-handers in the bullpen come 2003; and that more than likely means Kelly Wunsch will be packing his bags to join the team in Chicago. In 2000, he was one of the most effective relievers the Sox had, and now over a year removed from surgery, Kelly should at least regain some of that 2000 form. Antonio Osuna (Projection: 59 G, 4-4, 4.15, 3 S, 2 BS) Like Wunsch, Osuna is now over a year removed from shoulder surgery, meaning he should be returning to previous form. However, with a lot of youngsters beginning to make noise, Osuna will have to fight to earn his job, especially if another starter is added to the mix. Edwin Almonte (Projection: 52 G, 3-8, 5.05) While Almonte made headlines in Birmingham two years ago, setting the league record for saves (that has since been broken), his big league make-up is still shady. Without overpowering stuff, Edwin needs to rely on control as his main weapon of choice, and the past generally hasn't been in the favor of rookie finesse pitchers in the American League. I could be wrong, though. Joe Valentine (Projection: 11 G, 1-2, 4.86) With no changes to the current staff, Valentine would be the twelfth man (and, of course, the odd man out on an 11-man staff). If Valentine has a monster spring, he may leap other righties such as Almonte and Osuna. However, it is more likely that Valentine will start the season in Charlotte, which wouldn't be all that bad for him. Jon Rauch (Projection: 18 GS, 5-2, 4.41) Still trying to regain his form, Rauch will start the season in Charlotte. If he shows that he has regained the form that won him Minor League Player of the year a few years back, it won't be too long before Sox fans can expect him to make regularly scheduled appearances at Comiskey. Depending on the success of the rotation will likely regulate whether Rauch is a starter or follows the footsteps of Mark Buehrle and Jon Garland and come out of the pen. Bill Simas (53 G, 4-8, 4.11) While it's highly unlikely that Simas will make any more appearances in the big leagues, he is still a veteran that can provide leadership for the younger pitchers. However, this does not justify taking him over younger, better pitchers unless Simas has a great spring. Mike Porzio (43 G, 3-8, 5.02) With two left-handers already significantly ahead of him in the bullpen, Porzio faces quite an uphill battle if he wants to spend his summer in Chicago and not Charlotte. Matt Ginter (21 G, 2-4, 5.28) While Ginter has shown brief flashes of dominance, the overwhelming majority of his performances have left some reaching for the Maalox. Ginter doesn't have what it takes to pitch in the bigs. I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think I am on Matt. Time to move on. Review: While this staff shapes up to be better than the one that was trotted out on the field in 2002, there is still a gaping hole in the rotation. If the Sox are serious about contending, they need to bring in a front line starter to take the pressure off Buehrle, Garland, Wright, and Ritchie. This off-season is shaping up to have several experienced, winning pitchers available on the market. Williams will make the biggest statement about the direction the team is making on how he reacts. If he picks up a Maddux, Glavine, or Moyer to fill out the starting corps, then again, he is banking on the Sox to make a run at the postseason. If he sits by idly on his hands, then he will be all but forfeiting 2003 in hopes that players step up and develop for a run in '04 and '05. As for the bullpen, it is beginning to regain the luster it had in 2000 when it was one of the best in the league. While a few questions remain, overall, the pitching staff that has been lined here is middle of the road in the American League. While it is nowhere near as good as top staffs such as Oakland, New York, and Anaheim, it is also no where as bad as the bottom-feeders, such as Tampa Bay, Detroit, and Texas. Minor League players to watch: Royce Ring, Kris Honel, Delvis Ulacia, Brian West, Felix Diaz, and Corwin Malone.

Arnason is one of the better rookies in hockey so far or at least I think he's a rookie. 4 goals already on the season and another Blackhawk winner. Thibault had a good game too. Man, if Jocelyn could get consistent he could become a pretty damn good goalie. Some games he looks lights out, others he's horrible.

Good Column Matt. I disagree with Almonte and Valentine making the bullpen cause I don't think either of them will make it. Glover, Wunsch, Marte, Foulke, Osuna, and Biddle will probably make it if you ask me. Of course I'm banking on us picking up another starter, something you couldn't do. If we don't get another starter then I see the last slot going to either Almonte, Valentine or Rauch.