caulfield12

Well, FWIW Beckham and Teahen are playing over Vizquel and Nix tonight.

Great reaction Pierre. Was adjusting his sunglasses and totally gave up on a ball that should have been caught in FOUL territory. Ridiculous. Peavy at 90-92 on the gun I'm watching. Last two pitches at 93-94. Seems he's close to being 100% after the slow start to the season.

Red Sox Nation Grumbles Like an Entitled EmpireBy DAVID MARGOLICK Published: May 7, 2010 The Red Sox are off to a troubled start, and barely a sixth of the way into the season, the Web sites and comment boards in Boston are warning of a long and miserable summer. But to any longtime Sox fan — born before, say, 1990 — it just ain’t so. To us, this year promises to be a cathartic trip down memory lane and, maybe, a return to tradition, and sanity. Online commenters are calling for the release of David Ortiz, whose slugging helped to deliver two World Series titles. Check out the online fury that follows every Sox loss these days: the perfervid denunciations of “Big Floppy,” David Ortiz (D.H. stands for “doesn’t hit”), and Terry “Francoma” and “Nancy” Drew and Marco “Scatterthrow”; the wilting attacks on General Manager Theo Epstein (better known these days as “Boy Genius”); the indignant vows to give up and watch the Bruins or wait for the Patriots (training camp is only 10 weeks away)... http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/08/sports/b...amp;ref=general David Margolick is a contributing editor at Newsweek.

Will there be some kind of betting/gambling scandal with Guillen's family that emerges after this season, because some of his line-ups seem as if we're beginning the game with the deliberate intention to lose it...ALMOST makes me wonder sometimes, what's going through Ozzie's head, playing Teahen against a LHP when Nix has more pop, especially against LHP.

QUOTE (Thunderbolt @ May 8, 2010 -> 02:28 PM) The only platers who i want active value for are Konerko, A.J. and Paulie, and maybe Jones. Everyone else is young enough to be on this core, or crappy enough to not have any value (Pierre, Kotsay) Putz could end up giving us a very nice return if he can get back the explosiveness on his FB and splitter.

Already too many questions about Flowers to get a huge return in trade. He has more value to our organization as AJ's replacement, and as a high OPS line-up match-up advantage over every player in our division but Mr. Mauer.

He should have an extra homer and 34 RBI's, but the suspended game (top of 5th) stripped those stats away for now.

Ozzie will be in "moderate/medium-high" trouble if this season spins away completely and we lose 90 games. KW's trouble with JR, about 2-3 on a ten scale. I'd put Ozzie at 6-7, with the possibility of escalating to 7-8 with more games (losses) last night due to atrocious decision-making. BTW, AJ's 10 and 5 year rights kick in before July, I don't know the exact date, but trading him gets a heckuva lot more complicated after JUNE.

But you really think the Orioles are going to come in and win three in a row against MINN on the road? I would bet against that happening. Of course, it's baseball, anything is possible, but Baker's not too shabby either.

Jamie Kotsay wouldn't even put her husband in the line-up so much...and certainly not in the 3 or 5 spot. Yet Ozzie's "man crushes" (I Love You, Man!) for Vizquel and Kotsay continue unabated.

QUOTE (jeffro2525 @ May 8, 2010 -> 03:02 PM) An opportunity to gain some ground. Twins lose game one of their DH... It was good to see Liriano get hit. A Baltimore favored pitching matchup for the nightcap as well. Baker vs. Millwood... Peavy has admitted to scoreboard watching...he should be all the more juiced tonight with an opportunity to get a little closer to the Twinks...I'm trying to keep it positive. Why would Kevin Millwood be favored over Scott Baker, pray tell? You mean the Kevin Millwood of about 5-7 years ago? Then I would happen to agree with you...

QUOTE (GreatScott82 @ May 8, 2010 -> 02:33 PM) We are 7.5 games back, 6 games under .500 and only have 3 guys hitting the ball and the pitching just hasn't been there for the most part. This rotating DH thing has been a nightmare. Ozzie has been outmanaged in most of the games thus far. We are built for now and next year and so far have been failing bad. Its obvious KW laid an egg by listening to Ozzie's wishes. He wanted a high OBP guy in the middle of the lineup but failed to bring him over. We need to start thinking about the future if this thing continues to unravel. If we don't finish May .500, something needs to be done with the organization. I think a change at the top needs to happen. I'm not saying KW needs to go- i'm more or less leaning toward axing Ozzie- his rants are getting old and he doesn't seem to have the team pulling on the same side of the rope like he used to in the past. That being said, I'm not a big fan of firing a manager during a season. Before that happens, I would like KW get some value back for certain players. 1. Sell high on PK. He is playing way over his head right now- it would be a perfect time to deal him for young arms. KW can use those young arms + some to aqcuire Adrian Gonzalez. Why trade PK to bring in AGon if the season is a wash you say? Well, you would have AGon for cheap for 1.5 seasons- if we struggle in 2011- you can deal him for probably more talent than your giving up for him. 2. What about AJ? I would see whats out there? Maybe bring in a few mid-level arms that can hopefully develop in our system. I want to see what Flowers can do sooner than later. 3. What about Peavy and Rios? Its simple, nobody are going to want these contracts and to be honest with you i dont mind. I love these 2 players. Rios has been great this year- his defense is solid and he is perfect in the 5 or 6th spot. Peavy is looking better and better each time out. If there are a few guys making the big bucks on our team the next few seasons, i wouldn't mind it being them. In fact i wouldn't mind if KW keeps the rotation in tact. 4. Teahen and Pierre- I'm not a big fan of both of these guys. Teahen's defense is below average and his hitting is subpar at best. I want to improve 3b. If anything start thinking about developing Viciedo over there. As far as Pierre goes, get this guy off the field. Yea he can steal them with the best but his defense is attrotious. There is a reason LA made him their 4th OF and primary pinch runner. Thats what he is. 5. Ozzie and his coaching staff. Ozzie said, i will go down first before his coaching staff. Well maybe its time to go because Walk isn't maximizing his hitter's potential and Ozzie is getting outmanaged frequently these days. No way we'll take on Adrian Gonzalez without him agreeing to a LT contract extension. And that's NOT happening, forget it. Yes on trades of PK, AJ, Jenks, Putz and Andruw Jones, depending on what we can get back in terms of value. We might LISTEN to offers on Alexei Ramirez as well, if they decide he won't become the player he was in 2008 again and cut the cord. Still, Beckham shouldn't be moved to SS, so we'd have to find a SS who can put up a 700 OPS, Escobar is too far away. Even if you traded Paulie today, you would get a B or C prospect back...not a Top 4-6 type guy in any minor league system. You just want to offload the money from the payroll and give playing time to Flowers and Viciedo there, as well as someone who's just a stopgap like Josh Kroeger to get you through the remainder of the season. No for Viciedo at 3B, he's already been moved off that position to 1B/DH and maybe LF/RF (possibly). Morel is our best candidate, the big question is his bat, but at least he can defend. We might need to play Nix there as a stopgap, or a veteran for first half 2010 until Morel is ready.

QUOTE (Special K @ May 8, 2010 -> 02:36 PM) Is anybody going to even mention the fact that Guillen made a terrible decision to let Buehrle pitch the 8th? What is the point of having a lockdown 8th inning guy like Thornton if you don't use him in those spots. I won't even suggest the idea that he use Santos either, because that would make no sense for a guy who hasn't given up a run all year. I suppose Randy Williams is the only pitcher who deserves to be out there with the game on the line. Guillen is such a joke at managing our pitchers that he costs us tons of close games. It's unfortunate that Guillen wanted close games with the NL Lineup he's been begging for as well. Yes, everyone in game thread mentioned it....as well as not using Thornton/Santos/Putz with a tie game as well. Not Bobby's specialty, those situations.

QUOTE (Kalapse @ May 8, 2010 -> 11:40 AM) I know I'm probably beating a dead horse but I can not adequately express how much I hate having a guy at the very top of the order who 36% of his hits this season have not left the infield and is actually struggling to get bunts down even though once a week Scott Reifert posts a pic of him taking extra bunting practice before a game. When you hit leadoff you're going to get some RBI opportunities and I expect you to come through on occasion, so it would be nice if you were capable getting the ball past the infielders and reaching first that way or perhaps putting it past an outfielder for extra bases like 5 times a month. I never thought I would say that a .216 AVG was empty because, well it is a .216 AVG but when you have 0 XBH, 8 infield singles, 1 bunt single and 7 walks through 128 PA and you have 1 measly hit in 27 PA with RISP (.042/.115/.042/.157) that's a pretty empty .216 and you're just not anywhere near a major league caliber baseball player. Juan Pierre actually has more GIDP with RISP than hits this season. Which is exactly where Damon (despite only one homer, as expected in that stadium) and Pods (2009) would come through, with those big RBI's when they were needed...Pierre just doesn't have the type of bat to hit sac flies, doesn't hit it hard on the ground very often through the middle of the infield, you could see his deperation with that bunt attempt last night to make something happen. And he's slower than Chris Getz now.

6-3 now. I guess Liriano is human after all. The first time the Twins have lost the first two games (knock on wood) of a series this year. But we still have to take advantage of it. Then again, the Twins just got a base hit and they're never out of any game 100%, especially at home.

Liriano already has a 2-0 lead on a Morneau homer. We could be anywhere from 6-9 games back at the end of play today. Nine would be ugly, but KW (and the attendance/apathy) might get the message, 9 GB would be enough to spur some kind of action...ANYTHING...to shake this team out of the doldrums.

IRON MAN 2=2.75 stars (first one was far better, Scar-Jo is cute and thinner and spunky, but MEHHH like Teahen and Transformers 2...if Robert Downey, Jr., wasn't such a talented actor, it would be worse, Mickey Rourke was ridiculous and I missed the seriously underrated Terrence Howard) KICK-ASS=3.25 stars (I liked this movie a lot more than I thought I would, but understand those fixated on the over-the-top violence too) Has anyone seen How To Train Your Dragon? Not for me, just considering whether the 3-D cost would be worth it for a 13-14 year old boy....my g/f and I would be taking him to the movies. That movie has held up remarkably well in the theatres.

We're really arguing about 1 MPH? The point is, he was throwing as hard as he has all season long, true (maybe one of the Twins' games, he was higher)? But I too questioned those numbers with Putz...if he was throwing 94-96, it was a flat/straight 96 with little life or movement. And his splitter obviously didn't split, it looked more like a BP fastball to Gonzalez, who's somehow leading the world in XB hits now.

2-1 Record 1-2 2.61 ERA 6.31 21 K 31 4 BB 21 0.77 WHIP 1.60 Which one is the former NL Cy Young winner and which one is B. Cecil?

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ May 8, 2010 -> 10:02 AM) So why then do you think he's impossible to dump now? He hasn't done anything unexpected this season, except maybe even showing a better fastball that other teams are still hitting. This argument is nonsense. KW should have moved him for value when other teams wouldn't have wanted him and when the other team would have been able to move him but he's unmovable now. I don't think he's impossible to dump now, I just made a typo, as you can see from the context of the rest of the sentence... That said, that $7.5 million would have been better off going to a real DH. That said, blow it up, take the $30 million we're guaranteeing to Pierre, Teahen, Kotsay, Vizquel, Castro and Linebrink and the franchise's future looks bright again with Aroldis Chapman and Daniel Hudson waiting in the wings. We could have done just as crappily without those six players with DeAza/Danks, Flowers, Kroeger, Nix, Lucy, Santeliz, etc. Would our record really be 8-10-12 games under .500 with those minor leaguers? In fact, I think our record might actually be better than it is now. Those guys would play with more hunger and desire than the aforementioned veterans, feeling they have a chip on their shoulders to prove that they belong every day they're in a major league uniform. Do you get that sense from Mark Teahen, who KW set up for life?

He's not unmovable now. And he won't be in May/June/July. There will be always be a market for a pitcher who threw 98 MPH yesterday, just like there are smaller ones for Putz and Linebrink, particularly in the NL. Just look at the evolution of Jose Contreras' career, Jon Garland, etc. They'll all (former Sox pitchers) be perfectly fine in the NL. Those hitters haven't seen his stuff 18 games per season for 5 years like the Tigers, Indians and Twins...it will take them one-half season to adjust to him in the first place.

A significant number of posters argued on behalf of retaining BBBJ. Not only that, but there was the concern that pushing Thornton to the back of the pne would further expose Williams' and KW's lack of depth in the farm system (it would have been Threets as a possible 3rd lefty). Not to mention some implicit concerns that Thornton simply doesn't have the mentality to be a good closer and would end up with a 60-75% save conversion rate. Certainly there has to be 3-5 MLB GM's out there, especially in the NL, who would have been very tempted to pull the trigger, if they thought Jenks was the final piece to put them over the top. Like Milwaukee, for example. Also, keeping him in the fold, there was the idea he could be traded and his contract WOULDN'T (TYPO) seem quite so egregious at $3-4 million as a rental player for a playoff contender.

The only move that could have been made, and it was argued ad infinitum....was TRYING to find a taker for Jenks or non-tendering him. That money could have gone to Damon/Matsui/Vladdy. Hindsight is 20/20, sure, but there were quite a few that were ready to cut the cord with Jenks heading into the season. The only highly-paid closer we've had in the last 20 years (unless you consider Roberto Hernandez as highly paid) was Billy Koch. We all know how well that one worked out. Howry, Foulke, Takatsu, Hermanson, Flash Gordon, Thornton, Marte, Jenks, etc. None of them highly-paid guys.

Last spring it was Gordon Beckham getting the rookie star treatment, the top White Sox prospect called up in early June to energize the team and perhaps validate the standing of the organization's talent pool. With only a year of minor-league experience, the Georgia product made good on expectations, his rookie season earning him honors from The Sporting News, the Players Choice AL Outstanding Rookie award and a fifth-place finish in rookie of the year voting. But even then, manager Ozzie Guillen frowned on the attention showered over Beckham, cautioning about expecting too much and saddling a young player with undue pressures. Now, after making the decision to sit the struggling sophomore second baseman for a few days, Guillen is the one voicing the strongest support for Beckham and doing something to reset the youngster's course. ''He won't be sent down to the minor leagues because he's struggling,'' Guillen said of Beckham, whose average is down to .198 but has been only .157 in the last 14 games. ''He will be sent down [for] attitude and the feeling sorry for himself, putting his head down, I guarantee you that. That will happen. To have a bad game, he's not going to be sent down for that. Not right now.'' Right now is time to sit and watch and recharge, with Guillen coming to the decision as much because he saw Beckham's frustrated gestures as his futile swings. ''I had a problem last year with [shortstop Alexei] Ramirez about a certain way, and I just told him the right way -- I said, 'You are too good to put your head down and look like you don't belong here.' I can deal with struggles and errors. The only thing I can't deal with is long faces and feeling sorry for themselves. I told him he's too good, and you are around a lot of good players to be doing that. The bad habit's not going to happen with me. ''You see him put his hands on his hips. Come on, that's not baseball. Shaking his head every time he made an out. I don't say he's not playing hard. He does. He brings his bat to the field sometimes. And I see him throwing stuff and being upset down at the end of the dugout -- stuff I never saw before.'' (here I think Ozzie has shifted to talk about BECKHAM and NOT Alexei still...) It's because Beckham never struggled like this last season, even though the history of the game says every player will struggle at some time -- and perhaps many times. ''You always have to make adjustments, day in, day out,'' Beckham said. ''I figured I would have to. I was hoping it wasn't going to be this bad, but it's all a mind-set, and I kind of got away from that. I just need to remind myself that I can play the game and go out and do it. ''I reminded myself last night about something that I've always told myself and I just haven't even thought about this year, and it's to just go out there and be fun to watch. That's a little different than just saying go out there and have some fun. What I mean by that is just play the game the right way. People respect people that go out there and bust their butt just because they have to. That's one thing I want to make sure I do: Go out there and just be fun to watch; get a bat, run around and just have some fun. ''It's no fun struggling, but it's not different. It's just another battle. Mentally, I've got to get over it. I think I can, and I think I will. It's nice to have guys like Ozzie and teammates that reach out. Everybody's behind me, and they want me to do well as much as I want to do well.'' Guillen hopes a few days will help Beckham relax and regroup. ''This game can put you down on your knees in a heartbeat,'' Guillen said. ''That's why you have to be strong enough mentally. It's my job to make him a better professional. I don't want him to get down on himself.'' from an actual reporter, Ginetti, not Cowlick Guillen doesn't doubt Beckham's effort, but he wants Beckham to be the best player he can be and used Andruw Jones as an example. "I saw (Andruw) one day not hustle on a ball against the Cubs, and I see (Braves manager) Bobby Cox get him out off the field because he wasn't playing the way he should. Every manager has to have enough guts to treat the players like that. Respect the game, play out there and have fun. You are here for a reason. Everybody struggles. Don't put yourself down when you struggle. "He's not going to be sent down for having bad games, but he will get sent down for feeling sorry for himself. I guarantee you that." Beckham realizes his struggles and admits they are self-inflicted. "It's a baseball game," he said. "Sometimes I tend to forget that because of how well I want to do. dailyherald.com

"We have to stop feeling sorry for ourselves, we have to stop complaining, we have to play as hard as we can and hope things work out," catcher A.J. Pierzynski said. "In the end, it's going to work out or it's not." mark gonzales/chicagotribune.com