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QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 23, 2015 -> 11:33 AM) So he's looking at a potential comeback at 42 years old after surgery. I could see someone giving him a minor league contract, but he's got to be done. He had a great career. Not sure why he would have the surgery unless he plans a comeback. Not that it will be an easy rehab.

QUOTE (daggins @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 05:51 PM) Also, Guerrero is clearly ready for A+. Double promotion? How many games have they played? I don't think anyone is clearly anything.

QUOTE (kitekrazy @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 01:55 PM) This is why Cooper in most organization will never be a manager. His attitude is "us vs the fans". He and Ozzie started this even in 2005. When you are bad at baseball don't attack the fans. I believe he has said he doesn't want to due to these reasons. Cooper was bad at baseball a long time ago.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 02:08 PM) Of course after I say that he takes 2 pitches and hits a double lol Keep saying it please.

QUOTE (BigHurt3515 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 02:07 PM) Eaton's ABs are frustrating right now If you feel this way, I wonder how he feels?

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 01:48 PM) Weather for the first three. I am guessing this one Cleveland requested be played in the day.Actually Cleveland is off tomorrow. It's probably weather related too. Teams often request day games for get away games all season.

QUOTE (Tex @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 01:29 PM) I have always been a huge Baines fan. His class and professionalism was always top tier. I wish injuries hadn't shortened his career. Most definitely. I still believe that he could have been an HOF and one of the best players of that generation without that knee injury. It didn't just shorten his career but really limited his hitting and play in the field for more than half of his career.

I see he had already made the most important improvement.....according to the Tribune he shaved the stache.

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 12:37 PM) Cooper is starting to piss me off. Usually when a coach has nothing else he starts using the whole "it's not easy" BS. Another thing is that this was a division game against a rival and a high leverage spot -- a MULLIGAN??? GMAFB. Don't insult our intelligence. Why is Hahn the only person in this org that owns up to mistakes? He owned up to the replay mistake even though he could have easily thrown the guy he didn't hire under the bus. How about Cooper says "you know it was a tough spot and with our other LOOGY option unavailable we did what we had to do. It was a tough spot but we felt it was the best option". I'm not even saying this was a "mistake" but take some of the heat off your players man without resorting to the whole "if it was easy you bums in section 103 would be out here" crap. You'd think with 5k showing up last night the first line of defense wouldn't be "it's hard being a major leaguer". No s***. Because he was trying to give the kid a break.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 12:30 PM) Scott Merkin ‏@scottmerkin 56m56 minutes ago Rodon obviously is not available today and Coop doesn't envision back to backs for him. Scott Merkin ‏@scottmerkin 56m56 minutes ago Coop on pitching: "It’s not easy. Pitching is not easy. If it was easy, you guys would be doing it." Scott Merkin ‏@scottmerkin 1h1 hour ago Rodon: "Bases loaded, no outs. Second and third, no outs. Big hitter up. That’s a situation I have to be ready for." Scot Gregor ‏@scotgregor 1h1 hour ago #WhiteSox pitching coach Don Cooper on Rodon debut: Give him a mulligan. Wasn't finishing pitches; standing straight up after release. However, he always does this. We've been talking about it since before he was drafted. It was just more pronounced yesterday hopefully due to nerves.

QUOTE (Condor13 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 12:18 PM) Could that be the reason the Sox have been one of the worst organizations in the last 10 years? Just something to think about. No. Injury rate and club success have no relation. Injury rate and talent have no relation. I can't even see why you would bring that up. Also, if you look at overall record over the last 10 years, the Sox are far from one of the worst organization. I would say they are closer to the top than bottom.

QUOTE (Condor13 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 11:51 AM) Sale went from 71 IP to 192 (29 starts). I personally believe the innings cap is total bulls*** and is irrelevant. Pitchers can go from 130 to 190-200 without risk to injury or dead arm. The organization and others (I feel) just use the innings cap thing as an excuse for their situations. They are chicken to throw him out their now bc IF he gets injured people will point to how others have used innings caps to prevent injuries. When in fact the injuries are complete freaks of nature. I think that the Sox just are to scared that Rodon may not live of to the hype or might get injured. The problem is, if he is truly better then Danks and Noesi ( I think he is better then Q as well but Q now but he will turn it around) then he should be pitching in the rotation. There is no point to insert him into the rotation when we are 10+ games out of first, other then to gain experience. The innings cap needs to be there for physical health reason. You can believe what you want but you are risking the health of the pitcher. The 71 innings doesn't include the number of side sessions and getting up and down as relievers do. The key to that year was he had 58 appearances. With that much work it off sets the low numbers of innings. Rodon has not had any of this and has not pitched that many innings in a season. He has not pitched an entire MLB season in any role. Hitters who have not played an entire 162 game schedule get fatigued at the end of the season. Overuse injuries to pitchers are not complete freaks of nature. Some are you cannot predict all of them. However, you can do many things to decrease the chances of them occurring. There is a reason the Sox have consistently had one of the lowest injury rates to pitchers over the last decade. If you feel you know more than the Sox and the organizations you mentioned than more power to you. From my perspective of dealing with MLB pitchers, I don't agree.

QUOTE (Tex @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 11:34 AM) We do not want people to think and make decisions. Instead we want numbers and procedures and strategy that is bound in research. There needs to be a balance. You have to include the players in this. Of everyone associated with the Sox, who had the absolute best view of the play? Ramirez. Who is not part of the process and still won't be? Ramirez. I hate to bring his name up but Oz's managing from the gut probably would have had his ass out of the dugout as soon as he saw his player's actions, not waiting on someone viewing it from various TV angles. This is true to a point. You need to take into consideration that the player always thinks he did the correct thing. Look at football. How many times does a receiver insist he caught the ball and wants a replay, when to replay clearly shows the ball touched the ground. The only way to truly handle it is to have enough people reviewing the play so that the manager has enough information to challenge it. How many people would rip Lovie Smith's decisions to challenge play just because they were important play? His success rate was one of the worst in the league. Now, the difference between the two is Lovie cost his team timeouts with poor decisions which really effects the game later on, where Robin doesn't have this penalty.

QUOTE (Lillian @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 10:20 AM) No, my point in other posts, over the last couple of years, has consistently been that we needed a middle of the order left handed bat, to break up all of the right handed hitters. The Sox haven't had a good one, since Thome. Apparently, the front office felt the same way. Rick Hahn articulated that view, on multiple occasions. I'm just disappointed that they weren't able to sign someone who was also respectable vs. left handed pitching. So what your're saying is that you would prefer the Sox have a border line HOF player who hit 600 career HRs in the lineup as opposed to Dunn or LaRoche. I'm OK with that. Is there one out there who is willing to play for the Sox? There aren't many LH hitters who can do what you're asking that their current team is allowing to leave. It's because they are rare.

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 10:47 AM) On the radio today, they said that McShay's newest mock has the Bears taking L. Williams That would be awesome for the Bears. The disruption in the middle of the line is something the team can be the defense around.

QUOTE (KG#1 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 10:55 AM) Well of course Rodon isn't complaining to the media, he might complain to family/friends, but he isn't going to openly say something like that. And the plan is a good one, just one he may have to adjust to. And my defense was not that Below is good... I just know that a pitcher who used to being a starter was turned into a reliever and didn't like it. I'm sure he adjusted but at first he didn't like it. And you are right, he should be happy to get into the majors again and he probably wouldn't care how he got there. All pitchers have a preference. The question is do they have the talent and the mental capabilities to adjust to the different roles. Many average pitchers do not. The really good ones do.

QUOTE (LDF @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 09:50 AM) Randy Johnson, the ultimate player. pitch the opening game of the playoff, came in several days later to pitch in relief when his team had the lead and started 2 days later, this last part i think is true. he was putting everything on the line for the playoff. i even think as a joke he said that he would have played a position, if the team needed him to. True. He also had the ability and mental makeup to do it. This is why he is an HOF. Not all players have all of these attributes. But the HOF to really good ones do.

QUOTE (Y2JImmy0 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 08:18 AM) For me the goal of this Bears season is officially, Be Horrible for Hackenburg I don't think that will be a problem.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 08:39 AM) Except you're never going to win...Robin has three "blown" games already this week, whereas you have two nights ago and the Shuck/Soto example. Not to mention the general feeling around the team right now...poor baserunning, defense, fundamentals, low OBP and lack of clutch hitting with RISP other than the 9th inning rally this week. Too much of a trend to fight against, in the end. If Detroit and KC werent off to such great starts and the Sox werent such notorious slow starters out of the gate, this wouldnt be as much of an issue. But it is what it is. Robin has not "blown" 3 games. The players have. The poor base running, and fundamentals can be blamed on coaching. Low OBP and lack of hitting is on the players. OBP is a players talent. It can be taught some but it's mostly "they are who they are."

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 08:08 AM) Well, knowing that Jennings was supposedly hurting, that eliminates one argument against Rodon being used in that particular situation. Still, theres a huge difference between doing it thirty plus times at FGCU and in the minors (2010) vs. just a "couple of times" in meaningless spring training games. If Rodon has the talent everyone thinks, he should have no trouble handling it. He just had a poor outing. This would have happened no matter when the Sox put him in.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Apr 22, 2015 -> 02:13 AM) Exactly. I mean this whole idea of limiting his innings is stupid. I mean, it's like the Sox are afraid they are going to make the playoffs and have to shut him down like Washington did with Strasburg. Send him down and have him start games in the minors. Period. As far as his performance, he was no good tonight. Do I blame him? No. It was his debut. He got hit hard (that double off the top of the wall) and was wild and stunk. The whole situation reeked though. Why did he have to come in tonight when he did? Like Caufield says, it's stupid how many games the Sox drop like it's no big deal. Some year we are gonna be 11-3 like KC is now and happy again. This is a requirement for ALL young pitchers. They cannot go from pitching a max of 130 innings to 200 in one year without significant injury risk. Even if he stays in the minors, he would be shutdown at that limit. It's like taking a 100 meter runner and having him run a 5k. He could do it. it would be a quality race and the risk for injury is substantial, if he really tries.

QUOTE (Condor13 @ Apr 21, 2015 -> 09:28 PM) I for one love how he is fighting and battling in a situation he has NEVER been in before. This was his first time EVER coming out of the bullpen (at any level) and the team put him in a Fail-Fail situation. He looked like he was over-throwing his fastball with all that adreneline it is understandable. His fastball looked like it has some late life to it and that slider looked wicked. I thought that the players around him looked like they were more supportive and understanding of the situation he was brought in to, but that may just be my optimism. Hopefully this gets all the jitters and butterflies out of the way and he can go back to STARTING very soon. Thought? I would disagree on three points. 1. if the Sox want im in the majors this years it has to be in the bullpen. He can only pitch about 160 innings this year. Which means if he is a full time starter anywhere he will be done on August. Fans will go crazy if he is pitching well and they shut him down ala Strasburg. 2. While the average pitcher needs a defined role for comfort and confidence, the really good ones do not. Examples such as Sale, Randy Johnson, Roger Clemens and others go to the bullpen and rotation whether it be in the reagular season or post season. If Rodon is as good as people think he should be able to handle it. 3. This is a pitcher who has always had and will have command issues. He will be fine but it's not a surprise to see him struggle this way early in his career regardless of the situation.

QUOTE (Condor13 @ Apr 21, 2015 -> 09:43 PM) Dumbass comment. Hewas and is more then ready. He is NOT a reliever Yes, he is for about a month.

QUOTE (mmmmmbeeer @ Apr 21, 2015 -> 09:29 PM) I agreed with the decision to put him in the pen before tonight. I did not foresee our totes awesome manager putting him in a pressure situation for his major league debut in a tight game. They literally threw the game to watch Rodon pitch. If that was the goal, they should've just started him. If the goal was to acclimate him to the bigs, he shouldn't have been inserted into a pressure situation like he was tonight. It's management 101, baseball or not...you put your people in positions to succeed. I disagree they threw the game. He came 7n a game they were losing to face a lefty. Once they started scoring they might as well leave him in to get work.

QUOTE (mmmmmbeeer @ Apr 21, 2015 -> 09:18 PM) And if that was the plan, why not give him a start? Now you've wasted a QS from Noesi, shattered Rodon's confidence, and lost a game to a division foe. I just don't know what to think of this org. They cannot start him and then have his innings limitin August.