elrockinMT

Koch is doing it!!!!

Jon Garland has loads of talent. The frustrating thing about it is he canm't seem to get the two-strike out or the last out in the inning without blowing it. He needs to step it up and come after the batter with more fire. If he doesn't learn that than he might be gone in a trade. It will be just our luck that when that occurs he will suddenly become a Cy Young candidate becasue it took the trade to wake him up. I see the same thing happening with our other young pitchers, e.g. Wright

I don't know if I have any faith in Danny Wright turning things around, but we can hope I guess? Kenny Williams is with the team and says he supports Jerry Manuel. OK! Now the question for Kenny is what are you doing to infuse some new blood into the team? We are 7.5 games out, which is not terrible considering how terrible the team has played. I predicted earlier we could see a ten game losing streak on the trip from Cleveland through Phoenix and on to LA. We have lost 5. Can we turn it around, please!? The only positive is that we started to score some runs last night. My prediction is that if we can get some quality pitching, defense, running and timely hitting we will win the game. Can we do that?

I will go with Magglio Ordonez tonight 6-5-03.

Exactly! Pretty pathetic interview in my opinion.

I agree that Jimenez has shown some good offense. But on the other hand he has played some real sloppy and almost uninspired defense and has made real bad base running blunders. However, his offense when compared to others on the team makes him look like Babe Ruth.

I just picked up the score from ESPN. Sox lost 8-6, but I know it was 7-1 early so the Sox must have showed some offense. Garland got hit hard in the first 4 innings. ESPN showed highlights of the Sox 9th inning and they had a runner on (I couldn't tell who) second and DJ hit a grounder to SS. The runner had broken for third and got caught in a run down and DJ got caught easiy trying to head into 2nd. That's the reason for the "typical Sox gaffe," talk.

Quote Bobby Valentine from Baseball Tonight, "I have NEVER seen a game end like that!" Others saying this might be the last straw for the Sox, but they seem to be getting a lot of last straws lately.

I don't think Manuel's a quitter. He'll stay and keep trying hard to be positive. I agree that he sure looked stressed last night. There just doesn't seem to be anything that will work with our offensive problems and that's what this team was built on was that ability to bash-em.

I agree! I want to believe we are all Sox fans with just one thing in mind... to win!

I went into last nights game thinking the Sox might make a move with Manuel this week. But, I saw KW shown at the Az. game and really no mention of a move except KW saying he wouldn't panic. It's one of those things you really struggle with... on one hand after 50 games you think enough is enough, but on the other... you want to support what KW says becasue in a way he is right and you don't want to panic and start dumping people. However, the statements made about we still have time are kind of hollow when you think we have gone through this and have heard the same things for 3 years now. All I know is that this is becoming real frustrating.

I know you weren't really picking on him.

The call for us was that old umpiring called, "in the neighborhood." Jimenez did have to hurry, but it was a play that should have been made. Errors happen but we seem to be really suffering from the inability to pull the plays off when we need to.

He is getting the chance and it failed in game one against te D-Backs. Maybe though through no fault of his own.

Well, I watched the game. E LO was simply super. The guy just kept coming after the D-Back hitters and never let up. The offensive showing by the Sox was an exercise in futility and ineptness once again. I really think the hardest hit was the single by Loaiza. Frank did pull one into left to score Lee. The error on the DP in the eighth made me cringe. If the Sox had been able to score an extra run or two with a runner on third it wouldn't have mattered, but the problems the team is having was just magnified when Jimenez couldn't get the ball to Valentin and then the throw from Jose went past Thomas, who maybe should have picked it, but it bounced back and he almost got the runner trying to get back to the bag. That's how it's been though all season: a lot of almosts.

Let's drop the racial stuff. The military was the first to do so and baseball was the second. The only things that you should be measured by is character & ability. The other thing in baseball is whether you produce or not. On the Sox nobody is producing. You don't trade a ballplayer because of race and you don't fire a manager because of race. Something needs to be done with the Sox, but I am not sure it's firing Manuel unless you start shaking up the rest of the team also.

D'Angelo Jimenez for me on 6-4.

I'll be watching on WGN. This is for all of us not able to get Sox games any other way.

Didn't hear Gammons say the Sox were "a dying team." But, he did say he disn't think Manuel will last the rest of the road trip and that it was unfortunate.

I remember JM saying he liked to play NL ball too. Apparently the only pounding the Sox are built for is to get pounded by the opposition.

Peter Gammons on Baseball Tonight said he doesn't think Manuel will last the road trip either. It also sounds like he supports Manuel.

Whoa Vince. You remember individual doubleheaders from 36 years ago? I dont even remember double headers from last year... OldRoman, don't pick on Vince. I can remember things from individual games too. Like in '67 when the Sox played the Twinkies at Comiskey. Pete Ward hit a 2-run homer off Dean Chance in the bottom of the 8th and the Sox won 3-2. I had to listen to Twins baseball back then, which meant I could hear the Sox 18 times during the year. I can remember when Ward hit that homer the Chicago crowd yelling and screaming and that was it over the radio. The Twins announcers were silent. I want to digress for a moment and talk about what's wrong/different about baseball today. I was in high school in '67 and started writing to Sox manager Eddie (The Brat) Stanky through the year. Everytime I wrote Stanky responded sending a post card picture of himself with his written comments. We mentioned the no-hitter pitched by Horel, well, the Sox and Gary Peters got beat by the Tigers the day befoe (a Saturday, which I watched on NBC Game of the Week). Actually Bob Locker lost the game in the 9th. The Sox had a 3-0 lead in the top of the ninth and Peters was taken out after giving up a long fly caught at the wall by Walt (No-Neck) Williams. Locker then gave up 7 runs in the 9th. It was devastating and the NBC crew was saying this could be the end of the Sox and their chances in the big race. I wrote a letter to the Brat right away and told Eddie I knew the Sox would come back and rushed it to the post office . The next day was a DH and Horlen threw the no-hitter and Cisco Carlos and relief help shut out the Tigers in Game Two also. I got a letter back from Stanky telling me thanks for the support and that I had been right. At the end of the season he sent me a package with a bunch of Sox momentos. Do you think that would happen today? I don't.

I am going with Joe Borchard on 6-3 in Arizona. Let's all watch the game on WGN

I missed the first part of Baseball Tonight so I'll have to watch the late night airing at 10:00 MT.

Me too YASNY. Since 1959 and we have seen some good years and lots of fun some were, but a lot of disappointment to go along with it. By the way I love your Gary Peters card and the Fox-Aparicio card on your posts. Joel Horlen was another favorite of mine (remember his '67 no-hitter versus the Tigers?)