lvjeremylv

QUOTE(JFields27 @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 02:26 PM) 6-2 And Mark's supposed to be one of the starters we can count on? Nice way to open the season, "ace".

QUOTE(JFields27 @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 02:23 PM) Back to Back the Sizemore homer was just going to happen sooner or later though. 5-2 Well technically it wasn't b2b since there was a groundout sandwiched in there, but I'm pretty glad this isn't on TV for me. I would have broken my new remote by now.

QUOTE(joesaiditstrue @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 11:59 AM) wow, absolutely the worst called third strike call i've ever seen in my life @ the tigers/royals game, on alex gordon, the ball was outside about 5 inches I'm OK with that since I have Verlander on my fantasy team.

QUOTE(witesoxfan @ Mar 31, 2008 -> 07:33 AM) Uh, no. Not when Buehrle had a better ERA than Vazquez, and 15 other pitchers in the AL had better ERAs than him too. Vazquez was not a Cy Young candiate last year, and it would take a slight alignment of the stars to have him get in the top 10 this season. Even if Javier would have won 20 games last season, he wouldn't have won the Cy Young on a 3rd place team. Not with an ERA in the high 3's, at least. You only have to look to 2003 to see a Sox pitcher who had a phenomenal season on a bad team and didn't win the CY. Loaiza that year went 21-9 with a 2.90 ERA. And that was a year the Sox finished in 2nd place, just 4 games out of 1st. So even if Javy would have had those 5 or 6 extra wins, he still wouldn't have had as good a year as Esteban had, and the Sox still would have been in the middle of the AL Central pack. Interesting thing I just noticed. That year (2003), the Twins won the division, we were 2nd, the ROYALS were 3rd, Cleveland was 4th (68 wins), and the Tigers were dead last in the majors with 43 wins. Things sure can change fast.

QUOTE(StatManDu @ Mar 30, 2008 -> 12:06 PM) ASK NOT FOR WHOM THE BELL TOLLS, IT TOLLS FOR SAMMY 1992: The White Sox acquired George Bell from the Cubs for outfielder Sammy Sosa and left-handed reliever Kenny Patterson. Bell gave the Sox an extremely productive 1992 campaign, hitting .255 with 25 homers and 112 RBIs while giving Frank Thomas some protection. Bell's productivity dipped in 1993 although he did have some big games during that division-championship season. As for Sosa, his track record is well known and history will judge him accordingly. However, it should be pointed out that in the years following Sosa's departure from the South side, offense was not the White Sox problem, particularly in right field where the Sox employed heavy-hitters such as Ellis Burks, Darrin Jackson and Danny Tartabull until Magglio Ordonez arrived in 1998. Darrin Jackson? Heavy hitter? He hit 80 career HR in 960 games.

QUOTE(jenks45monster @ Mar 27, 2008 -> 12:21 PM) 93, because I really think guys in the division like Sheffield, Pudge, and Maggs can have future injuries as they age. Also, with Detroit's horrible bullpen and mostly crap rotation with the exception of Verlander, they can have major problems winning. Offense doesn't win it all. We should be able to get some wins against The Almighty Detroit Tigers if the above injuries should happen. Um, you DO realize that if the Tigers are losing, that doesn't help the Sox win, right? The Sox play pretty well against Detroit anyway. I went with the 82-85 selection. I think the Sox improved over the off-season. The additions of Swisher, Cabrera, Linebrink, and Dotel certainly improve us, and we might even have found a diamond with Alexei. Time will tell on that. We lost Garland, which really hurts our rotation - which is going to be pretty awful once you get past the fairly reliable duo of Buehrle and Vazquez.

I went with Javy to have the most wins. I think him and Mark are pretty equal when it comes to talent, but Javy will face the #2 pitchers while Mark will face the #1's. Gives Javy a slight edge. I'd take anywhere from 15-17 wins from him for sure. Whoever it was that said 15 wins for Contreras is suffering from a severe case of wishful thinking. Predicting injuries? C'mon. And as far as Jenks goes, I think he's one of the top 5 closers in baseball, and there are probably only a few set-up men that are in his league, so I think his #11 ranking is a little bit off. He's probably around #7 or #8 IMO. He just gets the job done, and that's what matters for relievers (especially closers).

QUOTE(joesaiditstrue @ Mar 29, 2008 -> 02:17 PM) i'd actually rather have (assuming uribe is going to be in our lineup) alexei at SS, uribe at 2nd, BA in CF with garland over floyd in the rotation instead of cabrera at SS, uribe at 2nd, alexei in CF with floyd in the rotation i guess that's the way i look at it right now This was mentioned before, or at least something to that effect. And what someone said in response was very true: do you honestly think anyone, coming into this Spring Training, thought that Alexei or BA would look so good? Hindsight is 20/20, but KW can't operate that way. He has to make moves and doesn't have the luxury of "do-overs". What's done is done, and while the Sox will greatly miss Garland as their #3 starter, the moves KW made this off-season made us a better team overall.

http://www.sportsline.com/mlb/story/10747385 DENVER -- Cory Sullivan, the Colorado Rockies' best defensive outfielder, was optioned to Triple-A Colorado Springs on Saturday after he was beaten out for the fifth outfielder job by free agent Scott Podsednik. Sullivan, in his eighth season with the Rockies organization, hit .286 in 140 at-bats for the Rockies last year and went 2-for-6 in the playoffs. He was beaten out by Podsednik, who showed speed on the basepaths and in the outfield while proving he's gotten past a series of injuries that bogged him down the last two years with the Chicago White Sox. Glad to see Scott make their team. Hopefully for him he can manage to stay healthy, because we all know what he's capable of doing on the base paths when he's able to run. Thanks for your part in 2005, Scotty.

QUOTE(bullpenHeat @ Mar 26, 2008 -> 03:12 PM) Why do I have a feeling that first inning is going to happen alot against Floyd? Because you're right. He sucks.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Mar 25, 2008 -> 09:42 PM) IMO, Brian is by far our best CF. If he's hitting, play him every day, or use Ramirez if he needs a break. If you want to work Quentin in, use the DH slot and give Dye some extra rest. I think the Sox will (and should) be more worried about giving Thome some days off (especially vs. lefties), since he's more important to our lineup than Dye. Thome being in our lineup vs. not being in there is like night and day, and we absolutely must keep him healthy if we want to have any chance for success in 2008.

QUOTE(Dick Allen @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 06:22 PM) The good news is if the long man is the White Sox biggest issue this year, there will be a lot of wins. Unfortunately, that's not our biggest issue. Clearly the biggest problem facing the Sox is going to be the starting rotation. Buehrle and Vaz are fine, but HUGE question marks from 3-5. It could be very ugly.

Anderson has been superb this Spring, so obviously you have to go with him. It's too bad Quentin isn't fully healthy yet, because it would have been nice to see what he could have done to try and match Anderson's production. But I think it's clear that BA has earned the right to be a starter, and hopefully he takes advantage of the opportunity.

QUOTE(lostfan @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 07:46 PM) Well, you know, technically it is... Good call.

QUOTE(Hatchetman @ Mar 24, 2008 -> 04:08 PM) pitchers have no control (well, very little) on whether a ball in play results in a hit or an out. Spoken like someone who knows very little about pitching. Trying to get a batter out is a psychological game just as much as a physical game. Both are trying to guess what the other is thinking, and if the pitcher has done his homework on a hitter and sticks to the game plan, he's going to dictate everything while that hitter is in the batters box. When a pitcher has a plan and is able to throw the ball in the manner and location he wants, there's very little most hitters are going to be able to do. They might put the ball in play, but will do so weakly and ineffectively. Obviously errors and bad plays can muck everything up, but to suggest once the ball is thrown it's completely out of the pitchers' hands is incorrect.

QUOTE(joeynach @ Mar 23, 2008 -> 12:35 PM) Looking at this years schedule it just looks very unfavorable on paper. First of all we have 16 home games in April, terrible attendance and weather month (bound to be a ton of make ups) and we have 20 Road games in May, a much better weather and attendance month. We have a 10 game road trip out west in May, we have a 10 game road trip end of July, we have a 9 game road trip end of August, and we have a 10 game road trip at the end of Sept (including 4 at NYY). Thats just seems a little extreme to me, on paper, to have so many extended road and home stretches instead of more balanced schedule that would have less peaks and vallys. Just for comparison the cubs have 1 road trip of 9 games and their next longest are 7 gamers. The indians have an 11 game road trip and a 9 gamer, none of which are down the stetch in Sept. Just seems a little odd thats all im saying. The schedule doesn't seem to change much from year to year. I mean it seems like we open the season vs. the Indians every season. There's a lot that goes into making a 162 game schedule, so MLB probably tries to keep it that way just for the sake of making it easier. I'm sure you could look at every team's schedule and find things that would make you think it's unfavorable.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Mar 21, 2008 -> 08:44 PM) Yeah, obviously you havent gotten to the part in the game when he does it. Nor will I. It's practice. Although, after making a comeback the way they did today, it would have been nice if Ozzie would have put a major league pitcher in there to close it out. Even though it's practice, giving games away isn't something the Sox need practice doing. They perfected that last season.

QUOTE(RockRaines @ Mar 21, 2008 -> 05:31 PM) Fields moving the runner over. Does the catcher dropping a swing & miss strike 3 count as advancing the runner?

QUOTE(CubsSuck1 @ Mar 21, 2008 -> 12:29 AM) Just sayin. Of course its time to move on but let us not forget. People are quick to forget the great things players did in the past. That 9th inning in Houston, Uribe made 2 of the finest plays you'll ever see a player make, and did it on the biggest stage in sports. For that, I'll always have fond memories of him, and any real Sox fan should feel the same.

QUOTE(thedoctor @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 09:45 PM) no, i think it's more stupid to continue to piss and moan over uribe's presence on the team. yes, he's overpaid and yes he represents a mistake. but i'm not going to sit here crying about it repeatedly, particularly at a time when our second base situation looks tenuous at best. Look everyone, Uribe is not *that* overpaid compared to many, many other players in baseball. He brings pretty solid defense along with some power. What other categories are there? Speed and a good batting average, right? How much do you think a SS/2B with all 4 of those attributes would make a season? Yes, that's right, well over $10M (see: Chase Utley, who has a 7 year $85M contract). So he has 2 of the 4 and we're paying him under $5M. Like him or hate him, that's reasonable. Or let's say you want to include on base percentage as a 5th category. Juan doesn't provide that at all, so he's got 2 out of 5. You figure someone like Utley that gives you all 5 makes $12M a year, that's $2.4M a category. So Juan should be making $4.8M since he provides good defense and power. Quit your b****ing everyone. If Uribe plays everyday he's going to probably hit around .240-.260, with in the neighborhood of 20 jacks and about 60-80 RBI, depending on how the hitters around him perform. That's not really that bad.

QUOTE(Kenny Hates Prospects @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 11:59 AM) Cesar Izturis was out there and I'm sure there were other options as well. It's not like any of those names you mentioned would be our starting SS. Regarding the second part, lets say that happens and we start the season around the horn as Fields-Ramirez-Richar-Konerko with an OF of Quentin-Anderson-Dye and Owens as the 4th OF. Then, instead of trading for Swisher, we put together a deal for Blanton and go into the season with Buehrle-Vazquez-Garland-Blanton-Contreras/Danks. Same bullpen, but with a bench of Hall, Owens, Bourgeois, Ozuna. That's a much better team IMO. Swisher is a stud on and off the field. No way the Sox would be better off without him. He'll put up monster numbers in 2008 and beyond for the ChiSox.

QUOTE(Balta1701 @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 05:33 PM) Iguchi was a free agent last season and probably wouldn't have been resigned. And we have no need of a 2nd baseman right now...we traded our best hitting prospect last season in order to acquire a young guy who can play 2nd base...he's just a little hurt right now. Iguchi had no desire to leave Chicago, so re-signing him wouldn't have been a problem. And while Richar might be a capable second baseman, he didn't do himself any favors by showing up late for spring training. That also doesn't make a good first impression on his new teammates nor the fans of Chicago. So my question would be WHY would the Sox trade their best hitting prospect for a 2B when we had one that was doing a fine job (Tads), when we're severely in need of a reliable starting pitcher as well as a lead-off hitter and/or a natural center fielder? Wouldn't that "best hitting prospect" have been better used to acquire either Erik Bedard (as part of a package, of course) or Brian Roberts?

QUOTE(flavum @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 05:24 PM) Just rumor, but it's popped up a couple times in the last month. No idea if it's true, but he'd be a nice pickup. Beane and KW have made several trades in the past, so I suppose it's possible. A career .271 hitter with a little pop (avg 14 HR a year over the past 3 seasons - probably closer to 20 at the Cell) certainly would be a nice upgrade. I don't think I'd be willing to give up much to get him though. I think Alexei is going to be just fine as our 2B - although is OCab is just a 1 year rental, I'm sure Alexei would be moving to SS next year, in which case we'd need a 2B again. Why did we get rid of Iguchi, again? He wasn't the flashiest, but you knew what to expect from him. A pretty decent glove, some pop, a fairly good batting avg & OBP, some good speed, and he didn't cause any problems. Just went about and did his job. He was able to advance a runner, seemed to run the bases well. I don't get it.

QUOTE(flavum @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 04:36 PM) I still think Uribe is gone. They'll go with Ramirez/Ozuna/Bourgeois. Or maybe the Mark Ellis thing gets done. That would be my preference. Mark Ellis thing? Elaborate please.

QUOTE(RME JICO @ Mar 20, 2008 -> 01:01 PM) Giants still do not have a starting 3B. They will have to do something by Opening Day. http://www.mercurynews.com/giants/ci_8635371 Well if all the Giants are offering for Crede is Dave Roberts, they won't be making a deal with us. And I don't see the Tigers giving away Inge, either. Of course Inge has a pretty big contract, but I'm almost certain if the Giants deal for him, they'll expect Detroit to pick up a large portion of that contract. The Giants are going to be hideous no matter who they have at 3B, so I don't really see them giving up much talent in order to fill that position. They could have A-Rod or David Wright playing third base and they'd still finish last in that division, so it really is irrelevant. Plus with Crede being a free agent after 2008, I REALLY don't see them giving up much to get a rental player in a year that they're going to finish last.