NorthSideSox72

You can read about Morrison's stuff, and see video, right here.

QUOTE (fathom @ May 27, 2017 -> 10:19 PM) We talked about it in ST, but I hate Burdi's set-up. Also have noticed he has a tendency to throw sliders that back up and go way up and in to righties Pretty sure that's his change-up. Same velo range.

QUOTE (Hatchetman @ May 28, 2017 -> 01:08 PM) The way he holds the bat way up high, it's hard to believe he has a chance at anything. QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 29, 2017 -> 06:53 PM) Realistically it doesn't matter where his hands are pre-pitch. As soon as the pitcher comes set, his hands drop into the loaded position anyway. SS2K5 is correct here. Saw it in person, got video. he drops the hands well ahead of time into a loaded position. So the high hands don't matter here. Also, Engel has plenty of bat speed. That's not an issue for him. The current mechanics are fine, but he needs to stick with it and not keep tinkering. That's what kills him. He's always had a much higher ceiling than May, just needed to stay dialed in with this swing mechanics.

Catch up on the last 8 days' worth of minor league transactions, key stories, affiliate performances and more. Extra day due to the Memorial Day holiday. Some pretty interesting roster moves, with not only three promotions to the majors, but also some odd multi-level jumps, and Blake Hickman was finally added to an active roster.

QUOTE (Chicago White Sox @ May 26, 2017 -> 02:00 PM) Tilson coming back soon perhaps? Last I saw, there was no timetable on his return, and it didn't sound good. The roster spot is really for Moncada, at least transitively. My guess is you see Hunter Jones in Charlotte pretty soon, especially with Liriano struggling badly. Those two might flip spots in fact.

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 25, 2017 -> 09:09 PM) The difference is that I've learned since chisox.com/WSI to have a thicker skin and not to get a persecution/martyr complex, lol. Everyone has their quirks, it's "just" a message board, and not life or death...it doesn't (or shouldn't) affect our sense of self-worth or families or anything really meaningful, since it's all in good fun and SHOULD be for entertainment purposes only. For example, this year I've learned: 1) Dick Allen really isn't as bad as I thought 2) I never should have listened to Northside about Kevan Smith 3) This board is a lot more conservative/moderate than most like Rabbit tend to believe 4) As well as Rabbit writes about baseball, he's equally infuriating talking about anything non-baseball related 5) Fathom will never change, nor will Greg (both in mostly good ways!!) 6) Southsider2K5 and Witesoxfan and Heads22 remain the 3 mods "everyone would most like to have a beer with" 7) KYyle having an upper and lower case Y in his name is still annoying to the English/grammar side...but he knows more than everyone I grew up with combined about Marvel Comics 8) ElRockin is the best baseball fan in White Sox history 9) The rebuild has really lightened the mood around here and it's easier for people to get along in terms of baseball discussions, but definitely not politics...cool to see some old posters come back, too...wish Scenario hadn't disappeared, and Cubano so we could discuss Moncada/Robert/Victor Mesa Jr. 10) Balta is doing the sane thing by not overreacting to every political development like some of us since NOV 8 11) J4L is still shook up that Schwarber's legend is on the wane, but now he can annoy us with LeBron GOAT talk again (Warriors in 6, book it baby!) Good to take in stride. But I have no idea what you mean about Kevan Smith - what did I say?

Engel has been red hot since about the 3rd week of the season. He's got a new hitting approach that is working quite well. And he certainly has a higher ceiling than, say, Jacob May. We have discussed him quite a bit. Here's an in-person report, with video, that FutureSox recently published. Here's the thing with Engel. He's super-streaky. Here's how it happens - he re-tools his swing and approach, gets hot for a few weeks, then hits a skid (like all players will). But he then tinkers with his swing again, which keeps him slumped for long stretches. What he needs is to stick with one approach for a good long while - a few months or a season. Even when he hits a slump. You'll know he's ready if he hits that slump, but recovers from it in a relatively short period and looks the same on the other end. That's when you know he gets it. And that's when you promote him.

QUOTE (SoxAce @ May 25, 2017 -> 09:24 PM) Zavala must like those game winning situations. Game winning hit a couple days ago. He just put Kanny up 1 with a homer in the top of the 10th. I'm still high on him. Only reason he's in Kanny is because of Collins - once Collins goes up, so will Zavala. I think there's a high probability that Zavala plays in the majors as at least a backup. Has turned into a pretty decent defensive catcher, to go along with an offensive package that will play. By the way, despite the slow start, not only have his overall numbers improved, but his 8 HR are 3rd best in the system (Hayes and Barnum each have 9). This despite the facts that A) he's playing home games in a power-suppressing park and B) he's played about 25% fewer games than the others near the lead because he's a catcher.

Get a quick read-out on how the top 15 prospects (plus one bonus player) have performed in the past week. Plenty of good and bad going on.

QUOTE (raBBit @ May 25, 2017 -> 04:51 PM) s***, if I am Trump's administration and watching how everything is covered so differently. I'd be tempted to mimic the same Obama administration opacity in an attempt to stifle some of this stuff. Let's see if Trump's administration could use the Espionage Act more than every administration before him combined like Obama's admin did. Here's where you lose me. If you want to say that Bush and Obama were covered "differently" in some intentional way, then I think you can find that. I'd say that the mainstream national media as a whole leans slightly left, so yeah there is some differentiation, though I think it's not nearly as large a gap as Fox News would like you to believe. But Trump? I mean, put simply, the main reason the press has been so negative on him is that HE'S BEEN TERRIBLE AT HIS JOB. And I don't mean little stuff, or subjective policy - I mean complete, utter incompetence. How on earth can you spend much time reporting positives with this guy? What has he actually accomplished, versus the myriad stupidity coming from this administration? Does the press also dislike Trump, and might that cause them to be even more negative than truly unbiased? Yes! But that's like a rounding error compared to the simple fact that this administration has been a walking disaster.

Obviously, someone who did what Gianforte did should not be in office. But before people get in an uproar about the results, remember that something like 70% of the votes for the election were ALREADY CAST when it happened. So the incident ends up not being able to be the swing moment it would have been if it was all just voting day only. That also means that it doesn't mean a lot, good or bad, for either party as any kind of waterloo moment or the like.

QUOTE (joejoedairy @ May 25, 2017 -> 02:53 PM) Will Lamb is now listed as the starter for game 2. So it's a bullpen day.

QUOTE (Soxbadger @ May 25, 2017 -> 03:52 PM) NSS, Today a Montana newspaper when covering the congressman attack had to actually combat the "myth of fake news: http://missoulian.com/opinion/editorial/mi...ae9ef03c60.html The irony of this whole argument is that the person who is yelling the most, is the person who has consistently supported and pushed stories that are less than reputable. I mean, I had never even heard of the Seth Rich conspiracy before he kept pushing the narrative this year. Yet in his world that is "newsworthy." The Montana story is a perfect example. You've got a Fox news crew saying it happened, you have an audio recording confirming it to the extent that can... and yet the first reaction for some people is to believe that it didn't happen or is made up. Scary stuff. People are so, so stuck in the way they want the truth to be that they will act like toddlers. And by fact, I don't mean anything subjective. I mean actual events or data. The obfuscation of the concept of fact and embracing of ignorance happens all over the political spectrum, and it's not that the Republican Party is somehow unique in it. But Trump and his arm of the party have certainly taken it to a much more dramatic level then I've ever seen. It's one thing to look at, say, tax policy, and think that one party or the other is ignorant of how it works. That's a complicated subject with no objectively obvious best practice. But people are literally denying per se factual information and data. That's where it gets really, really scary to me.

QUOTE (raBBit @ May 25, 2017 -> 03:34 PM) My biggest concern is we actually have a crisis under Trump and he flexes his power/ignorance and the everyday Joe will have no idea we actually have a significant issue because the media has been sounding the alarms daily for over a half a year now. This is already true. There are all manner of articles out there you can read where Trump voters are literally saying they are intentionally avoiding news because they are convinced it's all made up. They apparently don't have the will or energy to sift through and determine what is actually a Big Deal, even though some of those Big Deals are going to directly effect them. It's a little frightening that way. But that's not just the fault of "the media", though their chase for every controversy means they are part of the problem (and by they, Imean some outlets far more than others). It's also the fault of people who are so mired in their own wishful thinking that they actively embrace ignorance.

QUOTE (raBBit @ May 25, 2017 -> 03:03 PM) Simply stating differences of input between presidencies doesn't make one worse or better. My point was that there's so much outrage over s*** that was never covered before Trump's presidency. He's a dope and if you give him enough rope he'll hang himself but why is the media creating faux-controversy? Why is there more unnamed sources then ever? Why can't anyone put their name next to the daily Trump pseudo-controversy? How come you guys stopped calling him a rapist? He used to be a rapist? Now he's not? Now you're okay with rape? Where's the disconnect? The media moved onto another story and today's is that Trump's press secretary should make the travel cut over his own family. Really cutting edge stuff. I'm sure the kids will be learning about this in history class in 40 years. I mean, there are cetainly some things people are getting outraged about that are silly. There was plenty of that with Obama too. What makes it extra weird when people get all upset about little stuff is, Trump is doing so many large stupid things, why hyperventilate about the little things? I really don't think this Spicey stuff is worth anyone's energy other than his. If he's upset about that, I don't blame him, but I also don't really care and can think of plenty of reasons why maybe it made sense. It's a non-issue, on that I agree.

As in previous years, we will be publishing previews of prospects that seem to be real possibilities for the Sox to pick. First up this year is speedy Vanderbilt CF Jeren Kendall. Get to know this prospect. Pick 11 for Jeren? Yes or no?

This article is just a short visit into the memory of Michael Jordan, the baseball player (with a few videos), and how impressive it was that he accomplished what he did. Even his struggles, when put into context, are easy to take different ways.

Zavala walk-off hit to win game 1. Zavala hit in last at bat to tie game 2, going to "extras" (8th inning, as it was a DH)

QUOTE (Swingandalongonetoleft @ May 22, 2017 -> 07:53 PM) Just saw the second Guardians of the Galaxy. My initial reaction is that it was at least as good as the first one. Kind of dreading their inclusion in the next Avengers movie. I saw it the other night, and thought it paled in comparison to the first one. This second one felt like, as I think someone here noted earlier, a mashed together series of skits, only some of which landed well. The dialogue was clunky. They did make some characters more interesting, but others became plastic. Step down for me.

QUOTE (BlackSox13 @ May 23, 2017 -> 10:00 PM) Fulmer still has the same stuff he had coming out of college. Difference is that AAA hitters aren't swinging at the stuff out of the strike zone like the college hitters were. Bolded isn't true. His velo is softer on the fastball, he's removed a pitch and added another, his delivery is different and so is the angle on his pitches. His stuff is quite different than in college.

More interviews! Here are our Q&A highlights with Kannapolis hitters and their hitting coach. Some interesting stuff in some of these. Anyone see anything in these interviews that jumps out at them?

QUOTE (flavum @ May 22, 2017 -> 06:45 PM) I'm a Remillard fan. Liked what I saw in the College Series. Maybe a bump up the ladder after the draft? Did you read our detailed look at him, within? QUOTE (caulfield12 @ May 23, 2017 -> 07:41 AM) What's the story with Morrison? He's a reliever from Coastal Carolina, like 27th round...how is he striking out everyone? Ehren Wasserman-esque trickery? We wrote him up in detail too, right here.

See who's been hot on the farm in the past week (or a little longer in some cases). We missed a couple of these while we focused on the affiliate coverage content, but it's back now and should be around the rest of the season. Any of these guys you are especially interested in?

QUOTE (greg775 @ May 22, 2017 -> 03:58 PM) It's kind of like the other thread about ND, discussing views. I like to listen to the pro-Trumpers on the radio present their stances on the subject, just as I like to hear/read the anti Trump view on this board. All the words resonate with me as I develop a position. OK hold on... when I said I'd hear any President speak, and really most anyone on the spectrum, that does not include people who's entire role is to cause people to be angry. Hannity, Maddow, doesn't matter. I am not going to listen to someone who is there purely to get people like you riled up about what other people are doing. Seriously, turn off the talking heads for a minute, and read about the actual things happening in government. Read and listen to the words of the actual politicians. Form your own opinion for s***'s sake.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ May 22, 2017 -> 12:41 PM) While I don't really like the guy at all, I would LOVE to see Jackson speak in person. He is a guy who is legendary for being a gifted speaker. I almost throw him in the same sort of category as Bill Clinton. I can't stand the guy, I think he is a spineless con-artist who I have zero respect for. But when he came to my hometown in 2007, I had to go see him speak. Watching him work a room was really impressive. Almost more impressive was watching him work the people in person after the speech. Despite my personal point of view on Clinton, I can't imagine missing out on seeing a President speak. Yeah, people know how much I despise Trump, but I would be open to seeing him speak. I also though, would have no problem with people protesting him outside or inside the doors as long as it didn't start a riot or something.