elgonzo4sox

Nice job by JP going first to third on that hit.

Nice work, 56! BTW Gameday says the 2-2 pitch to Thome was indeed a strike. But Mark got him anyway.

When Casilla is up, our outfielders should be no more than 50 feet behind the infielders. Sickening watching him double on a ball that doesn't even roll al the way to where Pierre is playing.

QUOTE (Stan Bahnsen @ Jul 9, 2011 -> 04:08 PM) We've got it in our familiar shutdown mode. 56 deserves better. I love watching Buehrle pitch when he's on, which has been most of the season so far. That's what I am trying to focus on while watching this game. If the Sox decide to wave the white flag and trade Buehrle to extract some value before his contract expires, I am going to sorely miss watching him pitch on the South side for the rest of the year. Hopefully it won't come to that, or he'll exercise his no trade.

QUOTE (JoeCoolMan24 @ Jul 9, 2011 -> 03:45 PM) That was the most "Twinsiest" way to score 2 runs, seriously. They had 4 baserunners and 2 runs on all groundballs. The Twins are still the most maddening team to watch. Even more so this year, with Kubel, Thome, Mauer and Thome having injuries, they have to be the weakest hitting team in the majors. How many Twins in today's lineup can regularly hit the ball hard enough to reach the outfield wall, on the fly, bounce or even roll? We should try pulling our outfielders in even further, or even pull an outfielder and go with an extra infielders when the super weak Twins batters come up. Might have helped to have an extra infielder playing a deep third behind Morel on Casilla's weak RBI single.

QUOTE (Pale Sox @ Jul 9, 2011 -> 02:39 AM) The only guys in the lineup performing better than most expected are our two remaining 2005 members. Quentin's at about what people expected, given his health, and the rest are well below. I'm not sure what to make of this, but I find it interesting. I think it's more than just interesting. I think it's a clue to one of the major problems with this team: we don't have enough players who can perform under pressure - the pressure that comes from playing on a big money big market team with widely stated playoff aspirations. PK, AJ, MB are all proven winners who've done it here in Chicago. Dunn has spent his entire MLB career playing on second-division NL teams. Rios played on Toronto, a perennial also-ran behind the Yankees and Red Sox - and I wouldn't exactly call Toronto a rabid baseball town. Pressure affects all professional sports but especially the high skill sports: baseball and golf. It doesn't take much to interfere with a swing or a pitched ball. It's one thing to hit 40 home runs on a last place NL team playing out the string - it's an entirely different thing to do it on a team in a pennant race. It's one thing to sink a six foot putt with your three buddies during your weekly Saturday morning game - it's an entirely different thing to do it on the 72nd hole of the Masters to take home the green jacket.

QUOTE (Stan Bahnsen @ Jun 28, 2011 -> 12:47 PM) Jimmy, Longshot, ElGonzo, Kevo, Parker, Bob, etc. Sounds like there'll be a few of us out there tonight, and for the series. I've got obligation for tonight's game, but I was wondering if any of you will be going to Thursday afternoon's game and want to meet for a soda beforehand. There's any number of sports bars in the immediate area that are pretty much the same, so let me suggest The Sports Column at 1930 Blake Street (stone's throw from home plate) at around 11:30-noon. I'll be wearing the red '71-'75 cap. I'm sitting in the WellsFargo club level tonight, but on Thursday, I'll be getting a ticket at the Park, or scalping something cheap just outside, which should be easy on a weekday afternoon. I'm posted this in each of our threads to make sure we see it. Don't know how to merge, sorry. Hope to see you Thursday! I am not sure what time I will make it to the park on Thursday, but if I get there in time I will definitely stop by.

QUOTE (bobryansson @ Jun 28, 2011 -> 09:17 PM) At the game. Don't see anybody up in Sox pen. Go volunteer! Ask Coop for the ball. Sox bullpen needs fresh arms...

I'm making the trip, to add another notch on my MLB stadium belt. If I have the time I want to climb to the top of the second deck in center field, which supposedly has the seat which is furthest from home plate in any MLB stadium - but a great view of the mountains... I'll be proudly wearing my AJ road jersey - GO SOX!!!

QUOTE (elgonzo4sox @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 10:53 PM) I saw Dunn in batting practice, on the road in Seattle a while back. He looked fine, which I think is some evidence that pitcher familiarity and being able to time the pitcher (and match his long swing to the pitcher's delivery) is a big part of his past success and current lack of success in the AL. And BP pitches are also pretty straight, so the ball ends up where he thinks it is going to be when he starts his swing. p.s. The other thing I learned watching BP is that you can't extrapolate BP success into game success. I chose Teahen as my pick-to-click that day because he must have hit a dozen bombs into the Safeco stands, the best performance of any Sox batter. Naturally he was 0 for 3 with two Ks...

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 10:31 PM) Great post. I did notice he was not booed when he stepped to the plate. Some clapped each at bat. It's when he gets one strike, then two the rumbling begins. Then strike three ... boo. To strike out four times today, looking sick against Livan who was soft tossing .. it makes you wonder how Dunn even looks in batting practice. I saw Dunn in batting practice, on the road in Seattle a while back. He looked fine, which I think is some evidence that pitcher familiarity and being able to time the pitcher (and match his long swing to the pitcher's delivery) is a big part of his past success and current lack of success in the AL. And BP pitches are also pretty straight, so the ball ends up where he thinks it is going to be when he starts his swing.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 04:25 PM) Hard to say. Dunn is a DH and WAR accounts for defense. Will know tomorrow, I guess. But at least JP makes contact with the damn baseball. Meaning something flukish can always happen when you put the ball in play. Dunn. K and that's it. I wasn't entirely serious with my question. I think WAR is a decent stat to rank players relative to each other, but I think that replacing a bad player with a good player can make a much bigger difference in actual real world wins than the difference in their WAR numbers.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 04:17 PM) I never thought I'd say this in my life, but he might be worse than Pierre. This is unfathomable. Does Dunn's WAR go down by one since today's loss can be pinned on him? If so, he is indeed lower in WAR than Pierre now...

QUOTE (BigEdWalsh @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 04:12 PM) There's a lot of worst things about this game but I would say it was Adam Dunn and his 4 K's. You can easily pin this loss on Dunn. Twice he came up with two on, and he also started an inning late when we desperately needed at least one run.

What does Sox PR say about Dunn? You know how, before the game begins, they flash some stat on the videoboard for each starter that shows something positive about their recent performance? Well what stat did they show for Dunn today?

QUOTE (BigEdWalsh @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 03:32 PM) Wow. Be proud, Greg Walker!! Can't pin Dunn's 3 Ks on Walker...it sounds like the Sox are just now finally starting to get Dunn to make some changes, and are going about it in a very gentle way...

QUOTE (Harry Chappas @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 03:28 PM) Humber tired at 90 pitches and Hernandez is breezing at 120 this offense is an epic embarassment Soft tossers and knuckleballers can throw all day. Agree on the second comment.

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 03:22 PM) Agreed completely, and it's a shame that he couldn't get any breathing room Ditto. Ozzie's main mistake today is the lineup.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 03:05 PM) Dunn baffles me. Beckham, the technique issues are pretty obvious. Dunn looks just blind. Blind is a very good way to put it. Once he starts his swing (and he starts it very early) it is going exactly on plane with how he started the swing. He might as well be blind as soon as he decides to swing. He's not watching the ball all the way to the plate, the way that good hitters will say they are doing when they are "locked in".

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:49 PM) The latest from Greg Walker. They're trying to get Dunn more balanced and out on his "right side" more, instead of loading and having all of his weight back. The phrase was "he's spinning around the ball and hooking/pulling everything" instead of taking a nice, balanced swing with proper weight distribution and transfer. Not sure how that can change his long/slow bat. We'll see. Thanks for the info. I think that getting more onto his right (forward foot) is indeed a way to try to shorten and speed up his swing, because he can't lay back and do his current full swing.

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:38 PM) I happen to love watching Paulie play defense, too. He makes at least one great play with the glove per game...even my 9 year old daughter noticed this...I don't believe any of the defensive stats that say Konerko isn't one of the best fielding first basemen...

QUOTE (fathom @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:33 PM) 1 percent chance Not even the Dodgers, if MLB takes full control? When they controlled the Rangers last year they spent money to build a postseason team. Maybe Bud Selig will do his buddy Jerry a favor and take Dunn off his hands...

QUOTE (greg775 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:31 PM) That's a great post IMO. Paulie not starting the all-star game angers me. He is the definition of 'all star starter.' Agree completely. But the starting lineup is determined by fans. Jeter's presence shows it's an absolute joke.

QUOTE (Chisoxfn @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:27 PM) Other than Dunn coming out of this and playing out his contract at least close to his career numbers (with a small decline for age each year), that would probably be the best thing that could possibly happen to the Sox. But how often does that happen. I'm sure he'd still want to get his money. I really hope he figures this s*** out, but the longer you are like this, the more mentally you get f***ed up and then the only thing that can help is just a full off-season away from baseball. Kind of like what happened with Rios 2 years ago or Swisher a couple years back. Or even Konerko back in the early 2000's when he had that disasterous season. He's an obvious waiver candidate. What do you think the odds are that a NL team in the postseason hunt might pick up his contract for nothing in return (a la the Rios waiver deal)? An argument could be made that if Dunn moves back to the NL he'll do better, a la Pat Burrell.

QUOTE (chw42 @ Jun 26, 2011 -> 02:20 PM) I don't think Dunn refuses. Walker was on the Score this morning and said he doesn't want Dunn to change anything drastic, because what he's done has worked for so long. Walker does work with Konerko a lot and he says he tells Dunn to walk away when he's talking to Konerko about hitting. It might just be the opposite. Did Walker get into details about what Dunn is doing wrong? I think that Dunn's long swing forces him to have to start his swing early, and his poor knowledge of AL pitchers and inability to time them is making him highly susceptible to swings at bad pitches and missing any ball with movement on it.