caulfield12

Wise was good last year against RHP. He had a 797 OPS in over 100 at-bats against RHP in 2008, but that seems to get thrown out/dismissed/overlooked conveniently. Nobody said he was an All-Star or the next Eric Ludwick. As far as Anderson goes....let's revisit all of our evaluation on May 30th. Agreed?

Okay. Brian Anderson is 3 for 13 with 6 K's when he starts out with an 0-1 count. He's 3 for 10 with 6 walks when he starts out with a 1-0 count. In those situations...he's getting a ball 43.5% of the time. That ratio (first pitch balls to strikes) will even out eventually. No quality big league pitchers throw anywhere close to 45% first pitch balls, especially to #9 hitters in the order.

That's my point...they were SO far out of the zone, not even Anderson, Ramirez or Vladmir Guerrero would have swung at them. That won't continue...looking at his at-bats, you would think opposing pitchers were seeing Pujols or Hanley Ramirez at the plate. Eventually it will even out and he'll have to hit his way on base with some authority.

That's not what I said at all. I never said he should swing at balls out of the strike zone. He does enough of that without my advising him to do so. What I said was that he was seeing a disproportionate number of balls on the first pitch...or even the second pitch, and that this would turn around and eventually he would have to hit his way on base. Logical?? It's a statistical anomaly. If you look at the pitch pattern to BA in every game he's started, probably 75-80% of his first two pitches are balls. That's not going to hold up. Look, I would be glad to be "proven wrong" about BA, but I've watched baseball my entire life...and I just don't see it happening with him as a starting/regular major league CFer. He has all the tools, but there were many prospects you could have said the same thing about. Kenny Williams, in fact, was a much better prospect and had even better overall tools than BA when he reached the majors. We can wish and blindly hope all we want for someone to succeed...I just don't see it happening. Here's what I will do. No commentary at all from me on Brian Anderson on a nightly basis. When (in the future) would be a "reasonable" time to discuss him again? You tell me. We have people here wanting to yank Contreras out of the starting rotation after 3 starts when the White Sox are in first place (even KW and Ozzie and Cooper are discussing "options"), so perhaps there's no such thing as premature evaluation anymore. Never wanted Kroeger in CF. Lillibridge or moving Ramirez is just a desperation move. Shelby and Danks aren't close to being ready. Like it or not, we're stuck with Anderson until KW makes a move. Jerry Owens will probably get his unconditional release tomorrow or Friday.

http://birmingham.barons.milb.com/milb/sta...47&sid=t247 McCulloch on the fast track to the fifth starter's spot. JUST KIDDING. This time Beckham didn't have a hat trick of strikeouts. Viciedo was even pinch-hit for late in the game by Retherford. Guess his confidence must be really down, unless he was hurt. Nix with an error from shortstop. Still waiting for the decision on his status coming off the 3-game rehab assignment. Nix HAS to be better than Betemit at SS, one would hope??

We won of our first two games and people were harder (much harder) on DeWayne Wise. I think your quote could actually be attributable moreso to the feeling/s people had about what would happen if Wise weren't in the line-up. As soon as Brian Anderson rips a fastball with no movement that's right over the middle of the plate, then I might give him the benefit of the doubt for 2-3 more games, which, once again, is more lenience than Wise got. Not to mention the bigger fact that we don't have any pitchers to replace Contreras with, so we have to get more offense on those nights when he starts. Everyone was bad, and in a game or two, there will be threads dedicated to "what's wrong with Josh Fields???" too.

Baker was really whacked around again. The Twins undoubtedly have the worst bullpen in the Central right now. Morillo and RA Dickey are getting absolutely lit up. Past tense. Maybe the last pitch of the day. Tarp on the field again. Not sure of their schedules, but probably they will have to have another DH tomorrow. Fear the Tigers.

Because Anderson, at the least...should learn how to hit the ball to the right side of the infield if he's not going to be able to get a hit in those critical situations. Had he done that, Josh Fields' flyball to RF would have been and 2nd RBI of the inning. Yes, it was a team loss...but I am looking for some signs of positive progression in BA with RISP, that's it.

Same reason we (or most sports fans) enjoy following college basketball or football rankings throughout the year. This guy is probably more "objective" than Phil Rogers is, so it's always interesting to see how people outside of Chicago perceive the Sox and the other teams within our division.

Hopefully an "arch" and not a "parabola."

QUOTE (NorthSideSox72 @ Apr 22, 2009 -> 11:33 AM) You seem to think that teams all over baseball have 7 shut-down relievers in their bullpens. They do not. Our bullpen is among the best, in the back 4. And the other three - currently Carrasco, Richard and Egbert - are no worse than what most teams have. And they can all go 3 innings. Guys who can do that, and are shut-down at it, are incredibly rare, and usually get converted into starters or late inning guys anyway. Plus, with the fact that the other starters are all doing very well, they will go deep into games, so the bullpen can be saved a bit for covering Contreras/Colon. Contreras (and possibly Colon) will lengthen out with time. No need to panic just yet. Nope, the Tigers are the only team in our division that can have a better bullpen than ours, if Zumaya comes back 100% (reports were that he hit 101 the this week in an appearance)...although KC doesn't have a bad pen either, with the obvious exception of Farnsworth. The problem I have is with the many fans who expect Dotel or Thornton to come into games in the 5th and 6th innings when we are tied, up by one, down by one. It's easy to say that Ozzie left Contreras out there too long, but he trusts a rehabbing Contreras more than he does Egbert, Mac, Carrasco or Richard. Ozzie is nothing, if not loyal. Let's say Contreras didn't go out for the bottom of the fifth (even though his pitch count was low and he would have lost the opportunity to get the win)...and Carrasco, Egbert or Richard got shelled. Everyone would be jumping all over Guillen for pulling Jose too early and wearing out the bullpen presumptuously. Not to mention the fact that Ozzie confers with Cooper on those decisions...ultimately, Ozzie's choice, but it's not like he makes in complete isolation, either. ''I don't know yet,'' Guillen said when he was asked whether he would keep Contreras in the rotation after a 10-3 loss Tuesday to the Baltimore Orioles. ''You make a decision right now after a game like this, then you may make the wrong one. We're going to sit down and talk with Coop and Kenny to see what we can do, see what we figure out.'' Contreras is a delicate topic right now because he defied all odds in returning from a ruptured left Achilles tendon four months earlier than expected. While Contreras was slowed in spring training, Cooper had penciled in the start against the Orioles as the one in which there would be no restrictions on how many innings he threw. Then again, because Contreras allowed six runs, seven hits and six walks in 5 1/3 innings, the Sox had no choice but to restrict him from going on. When Guillen was asked if he knows what has been wrong with Contreras, he quickly responded: ''No, he's got to figure it out. It was a pretty bad game -- walking people, didn't get many lefties out. I mean, he walked the leadoff guy maybe three different innings. When you do all that against a good-hitting ballclub, you're not going to win many games. ... You have to make every pitch count. Otherwise, the results are going to be what they were tonight.'' Contreras, who is 0-3 with an 8.04 ERA, said he knew what happened, but the key is fixing it. ''I felt fine,'' he said through interpreter Omer Munoz. ''I started well, but the last two innings I left the ball up, and they took advantage. That's when the runs came. ''I was rushing. I was opening up, and that's when I was leaving the ball up.'' cowley/cst

Guess Humber and Mulvey weren't as good as they were cracked up to be... The Royals had to do something about Ponson/Ramirez. The weren't going to wait half a season like the Twins did with Livan Hernandez. Surprised that many teams skipped over him, though. He was once pretty highly touted. Pedro Martinez is still looking for a job, too. Maybe the Padres or Angels will sign him. MacDougal will end up with the Twins, seems like destiny.

The problem with that is games like last night that are very close when the move could have been made...are Carrasco, Egbert or Richard capable of going 2-3 innings and keeping the team in the game? Last night, they definitely weren't, although Jose did himself no favors with his lack of control.

The problem Ozzie has is obvious...when you have only Egbert, MacDougal and DJ Carrasco as depth, it's a no-win situation. If you start pulling Contreras and Colon every game in the 5th or 6th inning, then your bullpen will be toast...and we have very little minor league depth to cover up for it. Let's say Dotel enters last night in the 6th inning. We can't end up having Dotel/Thornton/Linebrink/Jenks pitch four innings every time these games are close (tied, down one run, etc.) You just can't do that. We saw what happened to Egbert last night, and Richard hasn't been very consistent either, although I might agree with all the LH's and switch hitters that Richard was PROBABLY a better option than Jose, but he didn't get it done either last night.

Tillman is a better prospect, but those who were posting his (Bergesen's) BB and K numbers through 9 IP were a bit suprised by his stuff last night...and so were the White Sox.

http://www.cbssports.com/mlb/story/11656910 Although they might be back to sinking if they lose 2/3 to the Birds...hope this isn't our "high point" of the season. Also, didn't realize Kip Wells was back in baseball with the Nationals of all teams. BTW, you're acting like Cowley. Stop trying so hard and deliberately to be funny Dobrow, it only works 10% of the time when it's forced.

Yes, Neshek is expected to miss all of the 2009 season...they waited too long to do surgery. Matt Guerrier and Luis Ayala are not primary set-up men, the Twins learned that with Guerrier last year, and Crain was wildly inconsistent, even though he has a lot of talent. He has never been quite the same pitcher after coming back from injuries, and Rincon's HGH-injected FB was also a huge loss. A lot of pressure will also fall onto Mijares and Breslow, so, at the moment, our pen looks much better than theirs.

BALTIMORE — Wildness hampered Jose Contreras' quest Tuesday night for his first victory of the season. Whether he gets another shot as a starter may be up for debate after he allowed six walks in a 10-3 loss at Baltimore. "He has to figure it out, not me," manager Ozzie Guillen said after the Orioles scored eight runs in their final four innings after Contreras failed to protect a 3-2 lead. "It was a pretty bad game. He was walking people, not getting left-handed hitters out." White Sox-Orioles box score Guillen said he, general manager Ken Williams and pitching coach Don Cooper will assess Contreras' status Wednesday. But Contreras has hit a bump in each of his three starts — all losses. "I feel fine," Contreras said. "I just left the ball up, and they took advantage. "I was rushing and opening up and left the ball up." mark gonzales/trib There was a note in the article about Richard feeling more comfortable as a starter, but we all know how that will work out the 2nd and 3rd time around the order. They have to give Contreras at least 2-3 more starts. Maybe Ozzie's just trying to light a fire under him.

I just can't imagine what else that BA would expect in that situation from Ray BUT a fastball. Surely, every player in baseball would be an All-Star if they had only one type of pitch thrown against them and they didn't actually have to think or make adjustments. It was like Balfour and Cabrera last year...here's a heater coming, I'll through it right over the heart of the plate at 96-97, but I still don't think you're going to make any contact. That was just about getting overwhelmed/overmatched. If you're "in-between," you have to look for the FB first and attack that pitch when you get it. And Anderson still hasn't driven in a run with RISP (2nd and 3rd and one out)...maybe if we take a 4-2 lead instead of 3-2, the game turns out differently. Of course, Contreras just hasn't had his control. There were MANY things that went wrong tonight, and surely we'll be talking about Josh Fields (lack of power, K's, big swing) if he continues his current tailspin.

Got rocked tonight by Huff...he'll need to have better location if he doesn't want to be back in Charlotte next week. Throwing 87-91, you have to exhibit better command and movement than what he demonstrated tonight. Prediction...nobody claims MacDougal, and he signs with the Twins and becomes a dominant RH set-up guy in 2009.

He's not striking out at a HUGE rate right now...that would be one danger sign. He's never going to walk a lot...at least not until he's older. I just think he needs to play, and the future of Josh Fields is far from certain, too. So I don't think we can afford to move him to the OF yet. They should give him one full minor league season at 3B before they do anything that dramatic. Beckham has 4 errors already...but they're not thinking to move him to CF.

Why would he stay at extended spring training? The only argument is whether he should have started at Winston-Salem or BIRM. We only have this kid for four years...we don't have 2-3 years to "baby" him along...at worst, we would hope to have him ready for the 2011 season, but some were thinking he might make an impact this season, which STILL might happen. West was a lefty throwing 95 MPH tonight...Beckham struck out 3 out of 4 times as well. It happens.

Anderson simply cannot hit a major league fastball. His swing is way too big...and he hasn't shown any ability to be short and quick. Ray just threw center cut fastballs with no movement right down the pike and Anderson wasn't even close. As Harrelson says, if you can't hit the fastball, you're not long for the majors. The problem is that Brian isn't a very good offspeed hitter either. He has a "slider speed" bat and until he can tighten up that swing, he'll always be a 4th/5th outfielder no matter how well he can field, run and throw.

Cy Bergesen is his name. I guess that gun's about 2 MPH too fast. That means Contreras should be at 91-94 tonight.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 21, 2009 -> 06:16 PM) I've learned so much about Joe Cowley today... If I can help it, I will never fly Southwest again. It's a flying trailer park/happy hour dive bar. cowley/twitter At least you now now know what airline to fly. Maybe there will be a protest against Cowley by the trailer park operators for "social" profiling. Indians scalping Royals in CLE. If the Royals didn't have to throw Ponson and Ramirez out there (Hochevar and Bannister are next), then they'd have a chance. 6-1. Hawk's idol Sizemore with another homer. Not quite sure who to cheer for in this game...probably the Royals.