Chicago White Sox

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Apr 19, 2011 -> 08:39 PM) What team wins because of brilliant managerial moves and strategy? Teams may not win because of them, but they certainly can lose games because of poor managerial decisions. Everything adds up in the end. You miss the playoffs by a couple games, I can show you a few decisions Guillen made that ended up costing us games that most managers would consider stupid. It's really no different than having a bad DH or closer. There is never a single cause to missing the playoffs, but a manager can definitely be one of the reasons. Otherwise, any Joe Schmo could have the job. I've wanted Ozzie gone for a couple of years now. I've never been a supporter of his philosophies, but I can longer tell what he does well. He's a terrible in-game manager. He refuses to use any statistics to support his decisions. Therefore, he has no idea that some players have reverse splits, which puts certain players in situations to fail. He's obsessed with small ball, regardless if it suits the team, which is costing us outs left and right. He overuses his worst bullpen arms. I still have nightmares about Randy Williams coming in every game last year. Now Ohman is his go-to-guy. He uses his bench poorly. Certain guys play too much and his Sunday lineups are an absolute joke. What once was considered a strength, his ability to motivate his players, doesn't appear to be there anymore. How else do you explain a team that constantly plays like a bunch of cowards as soon as they lose a few games in a row? Most importantly, his teams have been underachieving on a regular basis since 2005. If he's not at least partly responsible for that, how in god's name do you evaluate a manager?

QUOTE (RockRaines @ Apr 19, 2011 -> 08:09 PM) Biggest problem on this club, the hitting or pitching? Neither, it's the managing. The hitting and pitching will at least come around.

Guillen really needs to go. He will continue to throw away outs left and right as he tries to convince himself we are a small ball team. I still like this team a lot, but I'm 100% certain Guillen will limit our potential. His idiotic philosophies could be the difference between making and missing the playoffs in the end.

The topics on this site may be at an all-time low. This is quite possibly the dumbest suggestion I've ever seen here.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 19, 2011 -> 09:30 AM) I'll wait and see what the news is before throwing more dirt on Peavy's grave. The last time he had a setback it was nothing, and he was throwing within days. Thank you. Everyone here has the right to be concerned about this, but to say he is done for the year is complete nonsense at this point. We have no details right now, so not even a doctor could speculate on the severity of this. Why not wait a few hours before we start the "put a fork in him for 2012" comments? I'll be just as pissed off as the rest of you if the issue turns out to be significant.

The overreactions on this site are hilarious. No one here has any real news, yet everyone is suddenly a team physician with access to private information. STFU and wait a couple hours before you officially quit on Peavy and this team.

QUOTE (kapzk @ Apr 14, 2011 -> 01:47 PM) Didnt we just add Jeff Grey by sending down Milledge.... so can`t we just send down Grey once Peavy returns? What I was saying was once Peavy returns (and Gray has been sent down), if you want add a reliever via the minors or trade, you'll have to cut loose Pena or Humber. If that's the case, I'd cut Pena.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 14, 2011 -> 10:40 AM) I wouldn't cut him, but I have no problem with him becoming the long reliever. I think I'd rather keep Humber for that role. The problem is once Peavy comes back, who do you get rid of if you want to improve the bullpen? Crain, Thornton, and Santos aren't going anywhere. Despite his struggles so far, Sale has the potential to be our best reliever this year, so I don't see KW sending him down. Ohman is signed for another season and we all know how much Ozzie loves his lefties. If you want to add someone to the pen, it comes down to Pena or Humber going and I'd keep Humber right now. Not that I think he's anything special, but I feel more confident with him as our emergency starter than Pena.

I think you have to go with Santos at this point. He's been our best reliever so far this season and he should be our long term answer anyways. Once Peavy comes back, I'd DFA Pena, call up Infante, and move Humber back to long relief. I think Infante is going to be a huge factor for us at some point this season. With those moves along with Santos as closer, I believe our bullpen comes together quite nicely. Obviously everything is dependent on Santos.

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 13, 2011 -> 05:23 PM) Just going with pitchers in the Sox organization, this is the pitching staff I'm looking forward to: Starters: Danks, Peavy, Buehrle, Jackson, Floyd Bullpen: Humber--long relief Pena-- long relief and slop Ohman--LOOGY and slop Carter-- inning here and there and setup when Crain and Thornton are taxed Thornton--lefty setup Crain--righty setup Santos--CLOSER I want Sale to be in the minors starting and I'm going to be consistent about this the rest of the season. Makes perfect sense. We are 2 1/2 and 2 games up on the Twins and Tigers respectively despite our bullpen doing everything it can to cost us games, so you want to send Sale down and call up some average right-handed relief prospect who isn't ready for the majors. I'm sure that will solve our bullpen problems and help us maintain our lead over our real rivals.

QUOTE (scenario @ Apr 12, 2011 -> 04:35 PM) Escobar?? Not unless one of those outfielders can play SS. I could see Gallagher getting sent down and moving Viciedo to 1B. That almost makes less sense than Escobar being demoted. Danks should be sent down.

QUOTE (hawksfan61 @ Apr 12, 2011 -> 07:50 AM) He should not be working through it in a 1-0 game. 3-0 or 4-0 game, a 1-0 game has no margin for error and you can't bring in a guy who has given up missles his past couple outings. Agreed. Thornton is a mess right now and should be given a low leverage situation to get himself together. Once he shows he can dominate in let's say a five run lead or deficit, you can give him another chance in the closer role. But under no circumstances do you throw a guy out into a save situation who's looked terrible in his last three appearances. We can't afford for him to blow more games while he tries to regain his confidence. We have other options we can use for the time being. I'd use Sale for a couple days until Thornton proves he has the ability to dominate again. If Thornton can't do it in a low leverage situation, then we have more problems than just who the closer is.

QUOTE (LittleHurt05 @ Apr 11, 2011 -> 01:49 PM) Sox's lineup: Pierre lf Beckham 2b Rios CF PK 1b Quentin dh Ramirez ss Morel 3b Castro c Lillibridge rf How I wish we had Milledge or Viciedo on this roster. I can't stand Lillibridge starting in a corner OF spot.

QUOTE (witesoxfan @ Apr 10, 2011 -> 05:36 PM) I'm guessing Jerry Owens, perhaps not as fast though. Don't think he's very strong or powerful, not an incredibly patient hitter, but he's OK and can draw a walk. I'd guess OK defensively. Probably a 4th outfielder if he ever makes it, not sure that he will though. Just to point it out, other franchises do this too. In fact, the Tigers have been more guilty of it, considering they are starting the son of front office man at catcher and the son of the manager is in the minor leagues. Avila was drafted in the 5th round, Leyland in the 8th. From what I've read, he's a raw speed/power type player, so I wouldn't compare him to Owens. He's just never made good contact, so his chance of making the pros is extremely unlikely. There's no doubt he's physically gifted though. He's also been unhealthy since we drafted him, which hasn't helped with his development. I have no problem giving him a chance as an everyday player, but AA seems too high for him right now.

QUOTE (flavum @ Apr 9, 2011 -> 10:52 AM) It's not b****ing. It's embarrassment. I think a AA leadoff hitter should be a prospect. Not minor league filler, which he is. I agee it's an embarassment. He shouldn't be in AA or a leadoff hitter, but that team isn't exactly overflowing with talent this year. We shouldn't hold it against the kid that nepotism played a role in his early selection and most likely his minor league advancement. He is what he is, a very fringe prospect. Having said that, I'd rather give him a chance than some 30 year career minor leaguer. As I said earlier, he has some physical tools. It's not like we're talking about Josh Shafer here.

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Apr 9, 2011 -> 09:21 AM) FutureSox FutureSox.com Barons won 7-2. Williams 2-5, 2B, HR. Short 3-5, 2B, K. Phegley 1-5, HR, 3 K. Peavy 3.2 IP, 2 UER, 4 K, BB, 5 H. Zaleski 5.1 IP, 5 K, BB, 2H I love all the b****ing about this kid. Was he a huge reach? No doubt, but at least he's physically gifted. I have little faith that he'll ever sniff the pros, but our system is so weak we need to give kids like him a chance.

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Apr 8, 2011 -> 03:48 PM) I wonder if he'd even have made the bigs if he was clean. I really hope this a joke. Did you ever see him when he first came up? He would have been a great hitter regardless, but steroids made him one of the best in the game.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Apr 8, 2011 -> 03:08 PM) Jackson for Hudson will be an economic fail no matter what happens. That's the key. All thing being equal and I'd be fine with the trade. If Jackson has a breakout year then he's looking at 5 years and at least $70-75 million. And then we've still got the two giant elephants in the room that is Danks and Buehrle to worry about. And a farm in which Wite would be the team's top pitching prospect. And hes's garbage. If Jackson has a breakout year, does he still have a chance of becoming a Type A free agent? If he were to become that and leave, we'd get 2 high picks and 1 1/3 years of Jackson in exchange for Hudson. Unless Hudson becomes a legit top of the rotation starter, I don't see how the trade is an economic loss. Sure, they don't help us in 2012, but those potential picks need to be considered before concluding which team received more value in the trade.

People need to look at Lillibridge's minor league numbers. He's a terrible offensive player period. He'll probably hit around .200 - .230 at the major league level. He doesn't provide plus defense at any position either. He only offers speed and versatility. The problem is with a four man bench, he'll sneak into the lineup far too often. He will start costing us games. In a sport where every regular season game matters, small moves like these add up and can make the difference between making the playoffs and not.

f***ing stupid decision. For all of you b****ing about Millidge's defense, just wait until you get watch Lillibridge start in LF/RF once or twice a week now. His lack of offense will make Mark Kotsay's time at DH pale in comparison. That's the problem with this move. He's now our primary right-handed hitting reserve and will sneak his way into the lineup way too often and will actually be used as a pinch hitter, even though he can't hit. I don't care what what anyone tells me, but if you use Lillibridge for anything more than a pinch runner, late game defensive replacement (due to his versatility), and a once in a great while backup SS/2B/CF, it's going to cost us games over the long-run and our team isn't strong enough to be throwing away games.

f***ing stupid decision. For all of you b****ing about Millidge's defense, just wait until you get watch Lillibridge start in LF/RF once or twice a week now. His lack of offense will make Mark Kotsay's time at DH pale in comparison. That's the problem with this move. He's now our primary right-handed hitting reserve and will sneak his way into the lineup way too often and will actually be used as a pinch hitter, even though he can't hit. I don't care what what anyone tells me, but if you use Lillibridge for anything more than a pinch runner, late game defensive replacement (due to his versatility), and a once in a great while backup SS/2B/CF, it's going to cost us games over the long-run and our team isn't strong enough to be throwing away games.

I'm sorry, but it's a complete joke that Lillibridge is starting today. We need all the offense we can get against Price and Millidge crushes lefties. I know Millidge had a bad game yesterday and has looked iffy in the OF so far, but let's give the guy a chance. He can be a valuable role player for us, Lillibridge not so much. Hopefully Lillibridge gets sent down when Peavy comes back, because I never want to see him starting in a corner OF spot again for the rest o my life.

QUOTE (Marty34 @ Mar 27, 2011 -> 12:39 PM) Too many question marks for a team with this payroll. after watching this spring, I'd rather have started the rebuilding than go 'all in" Particularly since so much of the Sox being World Series contenders is predicated upon a Cy Young type version of Peavy. Peavy returning throwing 85-90 won't cut it. This is one of the least logical posts I have ever seen on this site. What are all these question marks? #5 spot in the rotation? Sure, until Peavy is back. The bullpen? Yes, but so are most bullpens and we at least have some talent. What are the other ones? You could make an argument for 3B, but at least you'll get good defense from Morel. Quentin is a slight question mark, but we only need him to do a little bit better than last year. If you're so eager to start rebuilding, go become a Pirates fan. I'm sure their fans wouldn't mind swapping teams with you.

Why is Ozzie flip flopping Milledge and Lillibridge in the lineup? Millidge lead off last time they both started a game. This scares me quite a bit. I'm actually worried that Ozzie prefers that extra "versatility" from Lillibridge now that he feels like he has to go with a four man bench. I will be so f***ing pissed if Lillibridge somehow makes the team over Millidge.

QUOTE (Jordan4life @ Mar 25, 2011 -> 06:05 PM) Cordero will open the season as closer. But it's popular opinion that Chapman will take over the roll at some point. As Cordero is not really that good. And he's [Cordero] got a club option for 2012. So unless he's dynamite, the worst-case scenario for Chapman would be he's the full-time closer next year. But I still think that would be an overpay for what they signed him for if he doesn't start. I don't think it's an overpay if he can be a dominant closer, but I do think it's a stupid move to make him a closer unless you're all but certain he won't stay healthy as a starter.