NCsoxfan

Cora and Baines should of slapped some sense into Ozzie.... I just got back from watching Owens play against the Durham FREAKING Bulls and he couldnt hit their pitching --- why was he left in a CRITICAL situation? We had JR, BA or Swisher to move to CF!!!! F THAT, why was Owens playing at all? HE SUCKS!

Just checking in here guys... Am I the only one here who is OUTRAGED that Owens was not taken out in the 6th? Not only that Ozzie pulls Dotel after he gets two men out, and then suddenly wants to play the matchup game with Boone Logan who cant hit the strike zone!!!! Then Ozzie lets the game go by keeping Logan in!!! What the HEL! is going on? WHAT THE F IS WRONG WITH OZZIE?

QUOTE (lostfan @ Sep 2, 2008 -> 11:06 AM) Good offensive players are going to hit home runs, so there is no way to avoid it unless you want to decrease the quality of players in the second half of your lineup. If you want a Granderson/Sizemore type of player that's a lot easier said than done (and even they hit a fair # of homers). I think it has to do more with the plate approach than anything. Only CQ and Dye seem to have any hitting versatility IMO. I agree. You don't think Ramirez has hitting versatility? While he never walks, he hits a good amount of line drives and hits the opposite way...

Its not that I want to throw away HR's for the sake of it. I think b/c we have so many HR hitters, we are prone to the very things we are talking about... In a way (and to a point), the things we are discussing are mutually exclusive. Am I wrong?

QUOTE (lostfan @ Sep 2, 2008 -> 09:19 AM) We don't need a different style offense. We need a productive top of the order, and we can't have black holes like Crede has been lately, Konerko for most of the year until a month ago, or Uribe a lot of the time when he's not on one of his streaks. Our 3-4-5 is just as it should be and trading away the power production from there would be insanity. When the 6 and 7 are mashing too, there's nothing wrong with that either. Bottom line... have a true leadoff hitter who gets on base and can run, and a true #2 hitter who can handle the bat and has a decent OBP, instead of the stopgaps we have there now, and this offense is a juggernaut. It doesn't need a fundamental change. We are not 8th in the AL in Hits and OBP because of our #1 and #2 hitters. If you added the incremental hits and OBP between our #1 & #2 hitters and the best 1-2 pair, it would NOT boost us up that far. It is MORE than just 1 and 2. I think we do need to alter the offense...

My worry is that without trading players, there are limited positions on our team to change to more of a line-drive style. The only areas we could change would be 2B/SS (Cabrera out), 3B, and CF... While we might all want to see a different style offense, how likely is it that next year will be any different?

I don't understand how this can solely rest on the #1 and #2 hitters???? If we are 8th in the AL in OBP, how does that rest only on Cabrera and AJ?

Does anyone put any stock in the relatively new WPA statistic? Here is what the Sox look like for 2008... http://www.fangraphs.com/winss.aspx?team=W...amp;season=2008

That is a good analysis but it only further points the finger on Konerko and Thome. Those guys are both hitting below .250 - it would be naive to call that an anamoly given their ages and apparent decline in skill. They are major contributors to the Sox being so low in hits. More over, they are SLOW and hit into A TON of GIDP. Does that mean we should replace them with hitters that can hit .270 - .280 with 15 - 20 hrs? Maybe a Sean Casey / Carlos Guillen type hitter?

I agree regarding Dye and Quentin. Thats why I mentioned building a lineup with the only power hitters being those two guys. The question is how to upgrade the other positions with more versatile batters.

I think the middle of the order (excluding Quentin) is a major part of the problem. Against tough pitching, we struggle to get singles and doubles. We give up easy outs constantly. I include Crede in this as much as anyone.

Whether we win the World Series or miss the playoffs, I think its clear that a lineup that generates ~50% of its runs from HR's isn't the best idea. Clearly we have to play out the rest of 2008 as is. That being said, what do we do for next year? Back in the 90's the Sox generated plenty of runs with just the Big Hurt as its main power hitter. Am I correct in saying that? Does this mean we should build a ball club with Quentin and Dye as our only legitimate power hitters? If so, what does that mean? Get rid of all of these (Griffey, Konerko, Thome) guys? It seems like Getz might be the type of hitter to give us more balance. Would a 2009 IF of Fields, Alexei, Getz and Swisher be sufficient? Again, that leaves us without a legitimate leadoff hitter that can get on base. We don't really have anybody to trade in the minors, so what do we do? I'm guessing there isnt any young studs that are coming up for free agency, so maybe a Dave Roberts type player for a year or two? I am just thinking out loud, but am I being captain obvious by saying that there is NO WAY that the White Sox go into 2009 so heavily tilted toward the all or none HR style that gets extinguished against the Dice-K's and Cliff Lee's of MLB?

I have an opportunity to trade Braylon for Larry Johnson. Should I consider this?

Sorry about that. Think it makes sense to trade some of my WR depth and Julius Jones for a better RB?

I am in a 12 team league. How did I do in the draft? QB: Carson Palmer RB: LT RB: Ronnie Brown (Julius Jones - backup) WR: Braylon Edwards WR: Marques Colston W/R: Roy Williams TE: Vernon Davis K: Robbie Gould D: Chicago

Would I want a manager who takes fan's suggestions the manager of the White Sox? Of course not. Its just fun that a MLB manager actually posts his email address AND answers some of them!! While I don't love Jeff Cox as a 3B coach, I was being a little extreme in saying that he should be fired. Like Rick Morrissey, it was more of a form of entertainment than anything... As a side note, I would encourage Jerry Angelo to reveal his email address. I think Bears nation could build a better offense through the draft than he has so far in his seven years at the helm!!!

I'm sure I'm not the first one to suggest getting rid of Jeff Cox

I emailed Ozzie this afternoon with the suggestion of firing Jeff Cox. I ended the email asking why he and KW keep him. His response 10 minutes later? "because i want him all year ? "

i am so sick of crede's pop ups to short right field... i would rather have a full season of uribe at 3b than crede playing for the league minimum

Is it just me or have the A's had a TON of players with last names that sound alike? Or should I say players with names that end in N Harden Haren Barton Braden Blanton Gaudin Hudson

When Collins would broadcast the Bulls game the past few years, what was his assessment of the team? I'd be interested in hearing if anyone remembers what he would say. That would be an unbiased view, compared to what he will say during the press conferences. Was he high on Hinrich and/or Gordon? Low on them? These could provide a peak into what the bulls will do this summer

This is the SEVENTH game in a row where JD has no RBI's!!! He has probably been up 15 times with 2 or more runners on base!!!

Im going to go insane watching Konerko and Dye hitting (or trying to hit) Can anyone tell me how many runners Dye has stranded in the last two weeks? 30? Honestly? He is 0 for the last two weeks with RISP BA should be put in CF, and Swisher at 1b, --- either konerko or dye needs to sit

why the FU%K would you allow Ozuna to hit with the bases loaded?????? pablo suck$ monkey ball$

If Brian can't crack the lineup after the spring training he had and while Owens is injured - he's never going to... And its ashame, i really thought he could have a breakout year and be our everyday CF