elrockinMT

I must be missing something about Carlos. I still think he has the talent and potential to be a .300 hitter with 25-30 homer power. He has worked hard on his fielding game and if he will start going to right with his hits then we will see some real fireworks. However, might Carlos get traded? yes, I think it is a possibility, just don't underestimate him.

Paulie continues to make contact, but pounds the ball into the ground almost everytime. Frustrating to watch this constantly happen. He and Maggs quite often are DP's just waiting to happen. I wonder if it's timing since he hasn't played much or what?

You have got to like Buerhle's ground balls to fly outs ratio. He has thrown 62 pitches through 5 compared to 105 or so for the 2 D-Ray pitchers. Real good showing today so far. Bring on the Tigers now.

I know that Frank Thomas likes D'Angelo and he may be talent, but we never saw it. Hopefully he can turn it around with the Reds. I'll take the prospect.

I took a break and come back to a Sox blast of Tampa Bay. Jose Valentin, Joe Crde and Sandy Alomar are showing the guys how to do it. Maggs came through again too. WOW!

Rowand with two-out single to drive in Sandy. Aaron has really been coming around lately. Why wasn't he in the line up yesterday?

Sandy Alomar follows with a double. Come on brother Robbie drive him in..

Crede with a two-run homer. Way to go Joe! 3-0 Sox.

Keping up on the game with MLB game day, but may switch to CBS sportsline. 3 ground ball outs by Buerhle in the 1st is a good sign. Maggs and Alomar hitting and Frank in the clutch. Good start

Well, Jerry Manuel messed me up on 7-5 when he left Paul Konerko out of the line up in favor of Daubach. I will go with Konerko for Sunday now and see what transpires. SCORE SOME RUNS SOX!

Very frustrating to lose by one-run to a second tier team isn't it? One POST said that we never hit against pitchers we haven't seen before and their right. Any minor league call up or rookie with an ERA over 10.00 can shut us out it seems. Hawk and DJ mentioned it last night on WGN and what the problem is and it was when Carlos Lee was up. Everyone wants to hit the dinger instead of going with the pitch and taking it to right field and up the middle. Carlos is back to his old self and overswinging on everything. Others are doing it too. They know what their supposd to do but don't stick with the plan.

Sunday, July 6, 2003 White Sox punish Provo By SCOTT MANSCH Tribune Asst. Sports Editor -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Great Falls baseball fans know how cool it is to be in first place. The few dozen who hung around at Legion Park late Saturday night, in fact, were really chillin'. Despite a 40 mph north wind that made for an autumn-like evening in July, the Great Falls White Sox continued their hot play by posting an 11-0 victory over the Provo Angels. The victory, the Sox' 13th in 17 games this summer, kept Great Falls in a first-place tie with the Helena Brewers in the Pioneer League's Northern Division. Provo, leading the Southern Division division by two games despite a .500 record, fell to 9-9. Teenager Matt Nachreiner worked six scoreless innings and Ricardo Nanita increased his average to a league-best .446 with a 3-for-6 night as the White Sox, 12-7 winners over the Angels on Friday, cruised to another one-sided victory. An announced crowd of 3,416 had dwindled considerably by the time it was over, but if the White Sox relaxed they certainly didn't show it. Of course, it was too cold to relax this night. Brandon Bounds clubbed his third home run of the summer -- his Pioneer-high 16th extra-base hit -- and leadoff hitter Antoin Gray drove in three runs as the red-hot White Sox put together another impressive performance. "It's not like they're loaded up with a bunch of old guys, either," said veteran Provo manager Tom Kotchman. "You've got a very good blend with this team. You've got power, you've got speed. ... It's a pretty good team." Bounds, the 6-foot-6, 205-pound first baseman who was a 32nd-round selection in the 2000 draft, continued to bomb the baseball. His high drive over the right-field fence in the seventh inning ignited a six-run frame that ended any hope of a Provo comeback. "We can swing it," said Bounds. "We'll put the ball in play and score a lot of runs. It's real fun." The relentless winds that forced fans to bundle up with blankets and seek shelter provided a strange sight on a July night. Another oddity happened about an hour into the game when a transformer blew out with a resounding boom in one of the Legion Park light standards. With five of the eight standards still lighting the field, the action continued -- and the White Sox just kept hitting. The Sox scored single runs in four straight frames before breaking things open in the seventh, a nightmarish frame for the Angels that included three errors. Shortstop Mike Myers and centerfielder Brian Anderson knocked in two runs apiece for the Sox. Nanita, who hit the ball hard consistently, had two singles and a triple. "It's awesome," said Nanita, a 13th-round selection in last month's amateur draft out of Florida International University. "Everybody's swinging well and that sure helps the pitchers." Nachreiner is well aware of that. Two weeks ago, the former Texas prep phenom made an unimpressive pro debut when he was bashed around by the Missoula Osprey. "It's nothing like high school," said Nachreiner, a fifth-round draft pick in June out of Cedar Park, Texas. "If you throw hard in high school you can just blow it by people. Up here, you've got to keep the ball down. Otherwise they'll tee off. I learned that right away." Nachreiner allowed only three hits and did not walk a batter in six scoreless innings against the Angels. Said Great Falls pitching coach Rich Dotson: He's staying over the rubber a lot better. He's not rushing, and he's keeping his pitches down." White Sox manager Chris Cron was also impressed. "I couldn't be happier with what he did. He got his feet wet a little bit early and is more comfortable now," Cron said. "He did what he's capable of tonight." The White Sox hitters, meanwhile, have been displaying considerable prowess ever since the season began. The Sox are hitting .324 as a team, tops in the Pioneer League. "It's fun to watch," said Cron. "I'm not doing anything, just sitting there watching -- and my jaws are open too. These guys are playing very well and I'm just trying to stay out of the way." The White Sox continue their season against the Angels this afternoon at 4.

The New Jersey Ledger is reporting the Yankees and Sox are still talking deals as of yesterday. The Yankees want Gordon for their bullpen and Cotts to restock their farm system with a quality arm. The Sox get Weaver, who many on the Yanks think will not be a winner for them, but may still be a good pitcher for someone else. My question is: Who in the heck would anyone want to part with a talent like Cotts and a relief pitcher, that is picking up the slack from an ineffective Koch, for someone the Yanks think is better as a castoff?

This is the reasonable assumption and I think it's time for the Sox to require a physical check up. Koch apparently won't admit he is hurt and wants to continue pitching, but all he is doing is blowing it. Even the games he has won has been because the offense picked him up. I am sure Koch wants to be a part of the winning team and do his part to contribute, but he is the weak link at this point.

It must have been Billy Koch for Keith Foulke?

Paul Konerko on 7-5

We have to Karmanize tonight. I'll be watching on WGN and am happy to see Loaiza pitch for a change on a TV game I get. Last night has to be heartbreaking to the players. Koch is not our answer as closer, at least not right now. When you battle like the Sox have and are now in a position to overtake the Twins and Royals and have your ACE relief pitcher blow it AGAIN there isn't much you can say. It sucks that we play the Devil Rays, who are struggling and rebuilding and LOSE while the Royals are feasting on the Tigers (7-0 this season). We go onto Detroit Tuesday after the TB series and should realistically been looking at a real winning streak and I am saying sweeps here people, but becasue of Koch and his continued ineffectiveness we may have to settle for 5-1.

Your probably right that Koch's value is down, but I think there are some teasm that might take him. I would think that Gordon is the option/answer right now, but for the Sox and not some other team. There are teasm that inquired about Flash, but I would like to keep him on our team.

Billy will be our closer in October and Billy will be successful. Chill out people, it was one baseball game in July. I want to believe that too, but it's difficult, if not almost downright impossible to envision the Sox in the playoffs and world series with Koch pitching the way he is now. The trouble is it isn't just one or two games he has been like this from the first game of the season. I don't know if he is hurt, burned out from his use in Oakland or mechanically unsound. I do know that a guy who used to hit 99-100 MPH is now hitting 92 tops and hanging curve balls so something IS wrong. I stuck with Paul Konerko and want to stick with Koch, but we need to see some results and not more after the game explanations about how he screwed up AGAIN.

My suggestion, and maybe it's more out of frustration, but let's trade Billy Koch for a closer becasue he certainly isn't it.

Saturday, July 5, 2003 Sox pummel Provo By MIKE TOWNE Tribune Sports Writer -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- A season-high crowd of 4,346 was treated to a pair of fireworks shows Friday night at Legion Park -- one by the red-hot Great Falls White Sox and one that followed the Sox's 12-7 victory over the Provo Angels. And it's debatable as to which show was better. Great Falls exploded for 11 hits -- six that went for extra bases -- in the first five innings to build a 12-2 lead. Provo provided some unwelcome fireworks in the eighth and ninth innings, scoring five runs on four hits off a pair of relief pitchers, to make the final score appear closer than it really was. No. 5 hitter Brandon Bounds, Great Falls' first baseman, led a balanced offensive attack with a 3-for-5 effort. He tripled in the White Sox's three-run third inning, then doubled in both the fourth and fifth frames. He drove in two runs, . Shortstop Cory Haggerty, the ninth hitter in the lineup, plated four runs with a bases-clearing double in the fourth and a single in the sixth. Second baseman Antoin Gray, right fielder Ricardo Nanita and designated hitter Seth Morris, who was making his first start, all had two hits apiece for the hot-hitting White Sox. Great Falls' first seven hits came off Provo southpaw Nic Touchstone, who hadn't given up an earned run in nine innings entering the game. "Everyone in the lineup, one through nine, can hit the ball," Haggerty said. "When we put the ball in play, it puts pressure on the defense. Everybody is seeing the ball really well. "The team as a whole is playing great. We couldn't ask for anything more. "I was happy I hit the double. It really set us forward." The two-base hit, to right-center field, plate Bounds, Clinton King and Morris to give the White Sox a 10-2 lead. "Everybody is doing a great job offensively," Great Falls manager Chris Cron said. "It's an old clichÈ, but hitting is contagious. That's holding true on this team. "It's nice to see everyone contributing and making the most of their chances. They all know they're going to play, and they can't wait to getting when they get their chance." Morris provided a good example, as he belted a two-run home run in only his ninth 10th at-bat, which came in the second inning. Great Falls starter Sean Thompson pitched well after giving up a run in the first inning. Leadoff hitter Reggie Willits singled on Thompson's first pitch and came around to score. Thompson worked five innings, allowing five hits while striking out four and walking one, to earn the victory. "(Thompson) pitched well. He changed speeds well and kept them off balance," Cron said. Paul Moviel, Fraser Dizard, Jeffrey Little and Randy Surratt pitched the sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth innings, respectively, for the White Sox. "We hadn't seen those guys pitch, and we definitely wanted to get them in," Cron said. "It was good for them to get their feet wet with a big lead. It worked out fine." Provo roughed up Little in the eighth, pushing across four runs on three hits. The big blows were a two-run double by Blake Balkcom and a two-run home run by Ryan Kenning. The victory was the White Sox's third straight and their 10th in their last 11 games. They improved to 12-4 and remained in a first-place tie with the Helena Brewers. "I'm happy with the streak. I told the guys before the game to try to keep it going," Cron said. "There's nothing better than winning. It's the best part of development. "We want to develop the kids, but we also want them to have a winning attitude." NOTES: The second game of the scheduled four-game set is on tap tonight, starting at 7. The White Sox and Angels meet at 4 p.m. on Sunday and at 7 on Monday. Wal-Mart/KFBB Night will be celebrated tonight at the park. Coupons for $1 tickets are available at Wal-Mart. The first of four Great Falls Tribune Family Days is Sunday. For $10 and coupon that can be clipped out of the newspaper, a family of four receives four tickets, four hot dogs and four soft drinks ... Right-hander Matt Nachreiner (1-1, 13.50 ERA) is scheduled to start on the mound for Great Falls tonight.

Olivo can't bunt someone over and then grounds out. However, he shows some of that good speed and steals 2nd.

Colon gets out of it again. Probably has one more inning left before the bullpen. What do you think?

Well, I spoke to soon and Colon walks his first batter of the day. Two on now.

You can see what it takes out of Colon having to throw that many pitches. Gave up a single to the next batter. I am happy to see no walks from Colon today. That's great.