caulfield12

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 24, 2009 -> 08:17 PM) Judging anything in the AL based on last year is a big mistake. The depth in the AL is so much better, as the teams that sucked last year have a lot of young players that seem to be coming into their own. You look around the AL, and there's no teams that you sit back and wait for them to come up on your calendar. Well, you should win 2/3 at Baltimore with Bergesen and Eaton on the mound and without Jones and Mora in the line-up for some or most of those games. Of course, you don't expect to take 3/4 in the Tropicana Dome, either. The only team you really want to see right now is the Angels. The Indians are as dangerous as any team five games under .500 in either league.

In fact, the Cubs are 3 games out of first place. The White Sox are only 1 game back. It shouldn't be a huge surprise. We will be 1-8 in our last 9 games against TOR. Hopefully the game Sunday will be rained out after we win tomorrow's game.

We're playing against the best team (right now) in the American League. They tore apart Gavin Floyd...everything they made contact with practically was a hit. We have no momentum after falling apart at Baltimore and they have all the momentum in the world. It won't stay like that forever. The White Sox won't continue to be a sub-.500 team at home all season.

QUOTE (fathom @ Apr 24, 2009 -> 08:06 PM) Please let this be Alexei's last game at SS in his career!! If Ramirez made every play tonight, the White Sox would still be down 6 or 7-0. Who are you going to play there? Nix? What would be the point of bringing up Beckham when he has an 850 OPS in Birmingham? He's made 4 or 5 errors, himself. You want Lillibridge to be the starter? Everyone has games like this...it doesn't count any more than a 1 run loss like Friday against TB.

QUOTE (WhiteSoxfan1986 @ Apr 24, 2009 -> 08:03 PM) He's on the DL. Were facing Brian Burres who is awful. Yeah, but so was/is Adam Eaton. He was about to be released by the Orioles...we might have delayed that eventuality. Bergesen toyed with us for most of the game. We haven't done much against Tallet and there's not much of a reason to have hope the way we're going against Burres, other than the fact that everything possible has gone wrong the last two nights for the White Sox. It seems very obvious that Ramirez has lost it mentally now. You can say this for Tallet, RH batters were 1 for 31 coming into the game today, but we had the bases loaded with one out and didn't take advantage of our opportunity to get back into the game. As far as the AL Central being good, the Royals are in first place without Gordon and Guillen in their line-up. Pretty much the only bright spot is Chris Getz.

Romero's not pitching and Ryan is out. It will be Burres vs. Buehrle. We absolutely need that game tomorrow from a psychological standpoint to get the ship righted.

Now the concerns are getting bigger than just Contreras, Ramirez and Viciedo. We have to worry about Floyd and the back of the rotation...and Thome just doesn't look right this season, either. I know he's hit a couple of opposite field homers, but his bat speed just seems to be missing. Ramirez and Getz are miscommunicating (probably was Getz's bag), wild pitches, walks, Anderson made an error, Ramirez opened the floodgates in the first and then Gavin (just like last year) didn't pitch around it. This has to be the ugliest four game stretch of White Sox baseball in a long time. We have a pretty sure loss Sunday and the Mariners are 12-5. The only bright spot is the rest of the AL Central sucks too, more or less. Farmio is blaming it on coming back from the long road trip...DJ disagrees. Same excuse was used Tuesday...because they had an offday Monday.

When I watched him in ST, Poreda was throwing the slider 82-85, FWIW.

Harrelson pointed this out last night...hang out over the plate and they're going to attack you inside or hit you, although a lot of umpires are more afraid to call inside strikes for this very same reason, it precipitates lots of beanballs and confrontations with other teams. Players like Lillibridge and Fields, you attack them outside, as they did with Fields last night.

It's ridiculous to think of Nix replacing I Can't Hit a Curveball Ramirez because Nix has almost no experience playing SS. In fact, Dayan Viciedo might have played more games there in his career than Nix. Alexei hit a hanger last night, so he's either going to have to lay off them or just see only curveballs in BP until he starts to learn to hit them. Why didn't the opposing teams do this all season long in 2008? Same thing with Soriano, I don't know why anyone throws him a fastball on the inside half of the plate. (Of course, part of the key is getting the ball over the plate and getting strike one, which has seemingly happened against Ramirez all season long). The other problem with Cowley's idea is that it's not like Nix would be guaranteed to put up huge offensive numbers with the Sox, far from it. You'd almost have to argue Lillibridge would give you more than Nix because of his defense and speed. The last thing we need is more pull happy hitters. On this current team, the only really "full field" hitters we have are Getz and sometimes AJ. Look at Quentin. He just tries to jack almost everything out of the park. Sometimes Konerko and Dye revert back to good hitting habits and take the ball up the middle and to RCF, but they're all part of the Greg Walker school of Lift and Pull. That's why players like Beckham and Allen will really help, because they're more athletic and they can hit the ball from line to line. As far as 4/5, it's going to have to be Richard or Poreda. Whichever team in the AL Central gets the best production from the back of their starting rotation will win the division, just like in 2001-2004 with the Sox. Colon, in all fairness, was good his first two starts, and the Rays' game looks bad for him only because Thornton gave up all three of his runners on base with the GS to Zobrist. Indians=Pavano, Reyes (solid yesterday), Laffey, Lewis, Sowers, Z. Jackson Royals=Bannister (pitched well 2 days ago against Tribe) Ponson and Hochevar Minnesota=Perkins is now their ace, so you have to say they are the best if Liriano/Baker turn it around Detroit=Ed. Jackson, Miner, Robertson, Willis

QUOTE (Benchwarmerjim @ Apr 23, 2009 -> 09:01 PM) well, the dimensions of the new stadium is going to be nearly identical to Metrodome (I think centerfield is going to be a few feet shorter because of space constraints), and the Grounds crew and shape the dirt and infield grass to help the Twins out (if my memory serves me right, I think the White Sox do the same thing by shaping the basepaths from first and third in a way so that bunts go foul. But I could be wrong on that) . One thing I havent heard discussed much is how the wind is going to play a factor on things. I think the Twins Cities is one of the windiest metro areas in the country (Top 10ish). But of course, one doesn't really know all that stuff until you play games there (see Yankee Stadium) I remember Terry Ryan saying that there was a lot of discussion about how the ballpark was going to be built, but the conclusion was make it similar and then the organization can continue to Draft players just about the same. I just hope they draft a few more boppers instead of toolsy outfielders. Actually, almost every bunt that gets onto the dirty down the 3B line at USCF stays fair...which is very strange, because the White Sox have very few bunters on their team. If you watched the game in BALT last night, you'd notice that the grass comes almost right up to the foul line, so it's much harder to bunt down the lines there...despite the presence of Jones, Roberts and Pie, you would THINK their groundskeepers would do the opposite. If they are smart, the Twins would find a way to have a "jetstream" going against RH hitters and one taking balls hit up into the air to RF out, like in Yankee Stadium. That would benefit Morneau and Mauer...and the White Sox have predominantly RH power hitters, with the exception of Thome, who will be gone after 2009 in all likelihood.

QUOTE (JPN366 @ Apr 23, 2009 -> 10:59 PM) Viciedo found his gold glove tonight, snagging some screamers to contribute to Poreda's gem. He ranged deep to his right and into foul ground to snag one and throw the runner out. Poreda was great, but he clearly was out of gas in the 7th. His fastball was topping out at 90, so he ended up having a rough inning. But, through the first 6 innings, he only threw 85 pitches and no more than 15 in any inning. No walks until the 7th, only two 3 ball counts and only six 2 ball counts. He was visibly pumped when he struck out his 11th batter to end the 7th with the bases loaded. Beckham's error wasn't really an error. He ranged deep to his left and spun around to throw, but didn't get enough on the throw. Seems like a strange error to give playing at home....? Did the throw pull Allen off the bag? I've never seen an error called on a player in that situation unless he clearly mishandled or bobbled the ball first. Especially if he had to do any kind of spin move, just doesn't sound like an error that would be called in your home park when you're that organization's top prospect. Character building for Beckham, I guess. It would be great if Poreda could develop a curveball. His slider in ST wasn't very consistent or effective. If Poreda can throw mid 90's and then get over a hook with a 20+ MPH differential without varying his delivery at all, it would be a big breakthrough for him and the organization.

Rowand was the #6 ranked prospect for the White Sox in 2000. He was never a Top 100 prospect, but it's not like he was chopped liver, either. I guess I would have put him in the Aaron Cunningham or Jeremy Reed category of being more likely to make it as a fourth outfielder, but he surprised me. Especially his recovery after the dirt-bike incident. KW was really furious about that one. It almost ended his career with the White Sox.

Luckily it hit on the top of the hand, but they really need to give him some additional non-cumbersome protection for at least the wrist and that exposed part of his hand....since he gets hit so many times. Quentin breaks his hand and our season is essentially over. Plus, it was the same hand he had problems with last year.

QUOTE (BigSqwert @ Apr 23, 2009 -> 02:05 PM) Urinating on Brian Anderson's lawn. I was going to urinate on Brian's lawn, but I am currently too busy trying to keep my Colombiana "hunnies" away from him. As soon as Brian hits a homer, I will release them to him for a celebratory fiesta and salsa and wet t-shirt contest. In my opinion, the "all-time" hottest Latina is a myth/legend from the Internet named Keyra Agustina (sometimes Augustina). She's supposedly from Argentina and may or may not actually exist, but she has the best "trasero" (butt) ever. You can google her.

Harris has always been a "plus" offensive player, but you give up a ton on defense. It's something that Bill Smith will have to consider because of the erratic starting pitching from Baker and Liriano...actually, I think they used Harris at 2B for Casilla and Buscher for Crede at 3B in one of the games last night. Harris has played SS, 3B and 2B but he's kind of like DeRosa in that he's the master of none. Gil Meche is continuing to pitch impressively, and Reyes was able to get out of a bases-loaded situation with no outs, but he had an elevated pitch count and also walked 4 batters in 6 IP. Will be interesting to see what happens with DET/KC and Minnesota at Cleveland this weekend. Of course, the Blue Jays have the best record in the AL, Halladay is matched with Contreras and the M's haven't been slouches either. Rumor that Cliff Lee will be made available to the highest bidder if the Indians fall further back in the first 2-3 months (cbssportsline.com). He has one more year left on his contract. The Cubs' designated Luis Vizcaino for assigment. KW and Ozzie might be interested, possibly.

Yes, BUT... You're also leaving out many important facts. 1) Konerko was fighting a hand/wrist and later an oblique injury at that time...early in the season...so obviously he would not do as well. Doesn't that follow? 2) Contreras was battling an injury after that Reds game in May or June of 2006 that broke his consecutive victories streak. He would never be the same pitcher with the White Sox. 3) Contreras was also fighting through injuries/health concerns last year but did not take them to Cooper and Guillen...he tried to pitch through them. All of those exigencies corrupt your example.

Was Edwin Jackson available? Obviously he was, he was traded.

Well....then we would have had to trade them Dye and they wouldn't have signed Burrell. With that additional money, we would have signed Abreu for RF. We know he was available because the Tigers' "dumped" a lesser player on the Rays. I think it's pretty logical that they knew they had the cheaper Niemann and Price in the pipeline and Jackson, from their perspective (both salary and performance in 2008) was the one to go. Burrell is RH and he was changing to a new league (which has obviously been a difficult transition for him). Dye was only $2 million higher in salary. So the White Sox get additional insurance for the back of their rotation...since...at the time, it wasn't 100% clear that Jose was going to come back effectively. One must assume Williams knew Jose would be back this year, but being back and being effective are two different things entirely. KW also must have known we had "depth" issues behind Contreras...Marquez, Richard, Poreda, Egbert, Broadway...none of them could be counted on to put up .500 or better records as a 5th starter. PLUS, Cooper usually loves to take on talented projects that have tools, a willingness to learn and at least competent secondary stuff to go with a "plus" fastball (Jackson is usually 93-97).

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/gamelog?playerId=5842 We'll see how long it lasts, but this guy has been their version of Gavin Floyd so far...he has another start today. The consensus was that Edwin would never turn it around, realize his potential, and become a consistent starter. KW can't be right 100% of the time, and Jackson might falter (starting today), but there's no doubt we would be better off with him rather than Jose as our #4/5 guy. I know he was one of the more talked-about names on the boards in terms of targets to fill the back of the rotation.

"While his 1990 rookie year was marred by an 0-for-41 slump and 25 errors" Wikipedia.com

That's exactly why you should fear the Tigers. Because Verlander is pitching horribly and they are still in first place, the longer they hang around, the more dangerous they will be. They rallied late and the Angels gave up another huge crooked number in the 7th (Shields/Arredondo) and the Tigers took the win. There are a lot of "ifs" with this team...health of veteran hitters, Porcello's progress and number of innings pitched, Zumaya...but if either Robertson or Willis can ever figure things out and Bonderman comes back at midseason, they're at the very least, extremely dangerous. With Perry, Lyon, Seay, Zumaya and Rodney, they have the makings of a bullpen that's a notch or two better than ours. A big if, sure, but not impossible or entirely implausible. Galarraga is their version of Danks, Jackson has been better than advertised and Verlander will probably come around eventually...and we simply can't get any better pitching from our Big 3 and Colon. The only place we can realistically look for improvement is from Contreras' spot in the rotation. You can take the approach that the Angels suck without Vlad and most of their rotation, but the fact is that winning at Anaheim and rallying late is still a big confidence boost for a team that underachieved and never really was in it for the entire 2008 season.

That strikeout percentage for Danks needs to decrease from 1 in 3 to the 1 in 4/5 range for him to be really effective. I don't know what kind of power he will eventually develop, but those are Curtis Granderson (or Chris Young) numbers...the year he struck out 174 times.

Liriano with a 7.06 ERA now. Baker is also way up there. Perkins has really been the ace of their staff, and Blackburn and Slowey have pitched decently. They are going to have to get better starts (obviously) out of those two "aces" if they're going to do anything. More troubling, Cuddyer, Young and Gomez are all struggling mightily...and Punto/Crede on the left side of the infield don't give you much, either. They're going to have to start using Brendan Harris, and maybe Tolbert to generate some offense. It looked like Casilla was going to be a really pesky/dangerous offensive player like Asdrubal Cabrera with the Indians but it hasn't happened yet. Still, they're the freakin' Twins and they are only 2 games out of first, despite everything (and partially thanks to the anemic Angels).

QUOTE (GreatScott82 @ Apr 22, 2009 -> 07:54 PM) I'd like to see Contreras get those starts down in triple-a. He obviously needs more time to work out his kinks.... I'd like to see one of these guys up here getting some MLB experience: Charlotte (AAA) John Van Benchoten (1-1, 2.65 ERA, 17 IP, 13 SO) Wes Whisler (1-1, 2.20 ERA, 16.1 IP, 7 SO) Birmingham (AA) Kyle McCulloch (2-1, 2.37 ERA, 19 IP, 9 SO) Aaron Poreda (0-2, 3.00 ERA, 9 IP, 6 SO) It took a long time for them to give Egbert a shot in the bullpen...Whisler, you'll see the same thing. Van Benschoten and Poreda would be more likely to get a spot start than the other 2. Most see Whisler as "organizational filler" or merely a AAAA pitcher. A lot depends on Cooper's perceptions of JVB and Poreda. Poreda seems like he has another half year (at least) to go before they throw him out there for a start.