hogan873

Plus, if he moved over to the AL he wouldn't hit and therefore couldn't hone his Gatorade machine destruction.

I remember hearing that Z wanted to finish his career as a White Sox as he has always been a fan and likes Ozzie. That aside, there is no way the Cubs would deal him to the Sox, and I'm not sure the Sox would even want to explore that. I don't think he's miserable as a Cub. I think that is just the way the guy is. He's very emotional and flies off the handle way too much. He would be doing the same thing in a Sox uniform, I'm sure.

Jerry Owens and Wise over BA. Todd Ritchie

I could see the Sox bringing him back and even keeping him on the bench as a very occasional PH.

I agree. I always liked poking through the trade winds and getting excited, then let down, then excited, then let down, then dozing off, then waking up and getting excited again. With the trade winds, we could consolidate all of the threads about NL pitchers too afraid to pitch in the AL, using their excuses of "it's what's best for my family", "Ozzie is mean", "AJ scares me", "my pants are too tight", etc.

Before opening the thread, reading it, and changing my mind with every post, I said 7-5 to myself. Other people in the room were giving me strange looks as I talked to myself, but I don't care. Although 7-5 is an above .500 record, and I would be satisfied with that, I would love to see 8-4 or better. I'm not sure it's realistic, but if they keep playing like this you never know. A four game sweep of the struggling A's would be a great way to start. The very important part of this homestand is the 5 games against Detroit. It is conceivable to come out of this homestand in first place in the AL Central. We cannot, however, rely on doing so with the Detroit series only. So, beating up on the 19-30 A's would give the Sox a nice head start and a good head of steam going into a long battle with the Tigers.

Reading Sea Change by James Powlick. Good stuff.

I was reading up on this and thought I saw JR's name mentioned. The other interested party was looking to move the team to Hamilton, Ontario. I wonder if Reinsdorf's intention would be to move the team, and if so where? I know that the Glendale location is terrible for that team. I don't know if the Chicago area could support a second hockey team...not that he would move them here.

Josh to the Cubs straight up for Milton Bradley. Then the Sox can sit Bradley for the rest of the season so we can stop hearing about him and his antics. Seriously, though, I like the idea of Cunningham.

Well, keep playing like they played these two games against the Angels and the Sox could easily be at or near the top of the division by the all star break. Even discounting the 17-3 pasting, the pitching has been good, the defense solid, and the situational hitting is even getting better.

Good analysis of what the team needs to do in order to have a chance. Playing .578 ball before the all star break (and beyond) is achievable, even with the team as it stands now. If they are in this position come June/July, expect KW to make a move or two which would hopefully strengthen the chances of taking the division. Winning last night (big) against the Angels was huge, and one would hope they can take at least one more against the Halos. That would be a great start towards being in a favorable position at the all star break.

Although I'm not convinced the Sox have a good or even decent chance of winning the division, I feel that they stand a better chance of doing it than the Cubs...right now. The Cubs are faltering, but that won't last. What will last, I believe, is their inability to pull it together. There's a lot of talent on that team that doesn't seem to play well together. The Sox may have less talent, but there seems to be a better cohesiveness. I hope, anyway. Plus there's the fact that the AL Central is a very weak division. The NL Central is a bit stronger.

QUOTE (Steve9347 @ May 26, 2009 -> 08:45 AM) Hawk told me so. Yeah, I heard Hawk saying that he'll end up with a ball between the eyes or in the ear, dag gummit.

Poreda seems to be a highly thought-of prospect, and that is good news. Since the trade didn't go down we can concentrate on what he can do for the Sox in the future. And, hey, we still have Richard with his flashy teeth.

The love for Wise confuses me. I understand that it's hard to love any of these guys, but Wise has not proven anything except that he is not Jerry Owens. I know that Ozzie loves Wise but am flabbergasted as to why. BA deserves the shot. I'm not saying he will succeed, but we'll never find out if he doesn't get the chance.

QUOTE (rangercal @ May 22, 2009 -> 11:21 AM) I will not root for the Cubs. f*** that.

I have to say I've learned more about our minor league system so far this season than ever before. Although I don't like seeing the Sox struggle, I am quite excited about the future. 2010 and beyond could be very entertaining here.

6 out of 10. I disappointed myself. The one about how many ways can a player get to first really threw me.

The money is an issue, but he is an ace and combined with Buehrle and Danks (and Floyd if he remembers how to pitch), the Sox would have a great rotation for years.

QUOTE (watchtower41 @ May 22, 2009 -> 11:02 AM) Ummm... the Bucs are 7-3 in their last 10 and just had a 5 game winning streak snapped yesterday. Noted...I hadn't looked at their recent record. I was looking at their overall record, and it's about where they are every year.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ May 22, 2009 -> 10:53 AM) Very important. As I said, we find out a lot about this club by June 1st, cause it likely puts the Sox in a position of what they are doing. I still think they'll be looking towards next season and beyond. I agree. Being at .500 at the beginning of June would say at least some good about the team. But, looking forward is probably the way we're leaning. With the AL Central the way it is, we could be both competing and gearing up for 2010 and beyond.

With the Pirates coming to town and both teams not playing well, how important is it for the Sox to sweep? Sounds like a stupid question (and it probably is), but with the humiliating loss yesterday I would think a sweep and 5 of 6 home stand would be what the Sox really need. They could head out west (cringe) only 3 games below .500 and a head of steam. Granted a series win is a series win, so winning 2 out of 3 against Pittsburgh would be okay. The Sox, however, need every win they can get before going to the left coast. History tells us it could be ugly.

I voted for Brian. I still think he needs a shot to start quite a few games in a row. I'm not sold that he will be great, but I don't think he's gotten a fair shot yet. My second choice would be Pods. He has been about as good as I expected him to be, which isn't great but okay.

I couldn't see rooting for the Cubs just because Peavy is pitching for the Padres. It's not his fault that Sox nation got exciting and then let down. There was never an indication that he would accept the trade. As a matter of fact, most of the rumors and scuttlebut was that he would NOT accept the trade. I'll admit to being let down, but I don't blame Peavy. I suppose I really can't blame the media either. They were just reporting what they knew. There was a post (or 30) in the Peavy trade thread that stated if nothing else this shows that the Sox are not laying down and are still thinking about winning this year. I agree with that. Whether the Peavy trade DOES happen at a later date or the Sox acquire Oswalt or whatever, I'm satisfied that this season is not over...yet. If we're in the same position a month from now, well that's a different story. So, long story short (too late), I will not root for the Cubs tonight.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ May 21, 2009 -> 11:09 AM) I'll just wait until he walks away and spice up his cinnabon. Wait, this cinnabon wasn't warm when I walked away...