Lip Man 1

QUOTE (Iwritecode @ Jun 17, 2016 -> 08:55 AM) He's still talking about being a seller at the trade deadline, not about selling the team. It doesn't matter either way because he's not the majority owner. He's just the face of the ownership group. Actually if you are talking about JR he IS the majority owner. The Sox have so many investors that his share (speculated at up to 33%) puts him in the drivers seat. AND this is more important in his contract he is allowed to run the day to day operations of the franchise without interference from the other board members. Basically he has total complete control in all aspects. I've heard that some other members of the board of directors do want to sell, in fact last year (I think) there was a long detailed story in the Tribune talking about the future of the franchise and quoted sources as confirming this. But...those people are powerless to force anything on JR because of his contract. JR is an exceptionally smart and astute business man. Mark

QUOTE (soxfan2014 @ Jun 16, 2016 -> 04:09 PM) Did you break your keyboard with this post? Not sure I understand the comment. Sounded reasonable and brought up valid points in my opinion. Mark

You bring up some very good points. The Sox the past decade always seem to be between "the rock and a hard place..." with no clear answers, no easy solutions. They aren't willing to "blow it up" and start over yet they aren't willing to commit the monstrous money needed to get the top of the line free agents when they become available (which granted isn't often). They go "dumpster diving" a lot (with the usual results) and still don't have a quality minor league feeder system that can be used for reinforcements or to trade for established quality vets who aren't on the downside of 30. Wish I had the answer but that's why the front office folks get paid what they do...to solve the problem. Mark

A win is a win. Nice showing by Anderson This is weird, don't know if the Sox ever pulled this before: Went 23-10 in their first 33 games. Went 10-23 in the last 33 games. Mark

If you think about it the past two series (five games) are a textbook, perfect example of one of the main issues that has been a plague for this organization for years...inconsistency. Against Kansas City the pitching is very good...and the hitting is non-existent. Against Detroit they are scoring runs in bunches, hitting the hell out of the ball...and the pitching is brutal. The only thing consistent about this organization on the field is there inconsistency. ----- Moving on, I see where Frazier was benched. Hitting .210, visibly showing frustration at the plate Monday. To his credit he is still playing a very good defense at third base but if his hitting doesn't get better the comparisons to Adam Dunn are going to start (if they haven't already). "Home Run or nothing..." We'll see if Sale can at least take the series Wednesday. Mark

Little note for tonight: Sox are now 3-0 in games Ventura's been kicked out of. Mark

Deja vu all over again for 6-13: June 13, 1978 - It was one of the greatest comebacks by any team in franchise history. After trailing Cleveland 9-0 going into the bottom of the third inning, the Sox wound up winning the game 10-9! They scored six runs in the third, four runs in the fourth inning and hung on to win. They scored 10 runs without benefit of a home run. Wayne Nordhagen led the way with three RBI’s. Rich Hinton went over six innings in relief allowing only a run on five hits to get the win. Give them all the credit in the world. Season went south after blowing a huge lead in Texas maybe the season will head north after this one tonight. And can James Shields possibly pitch any worse than right now? Tonight may have saved Robin's job...don't know if that's a good thing or not. Mark

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 13, 2016 -> 12:44 PM) Yet Larry Himes was able to get it done under the same ownership, and you threw a "well he had top 10 picks" in there. So did Roland and he failed miserably. Don't downplay Larry Himes, and then come up with excuses for Roland. One difference between the Mike Trout one was a lot more teams passed on Trout. Bonds was the next pick after Brown. Don't tell me you wouldn't be holding that against KW ever. So who is downplaying Himes? I'm not. All I said was I thought Roland was the best GM under JR especially given the circumstances. I've tried very hard to find out more info and get to the root of the dislike between the two men to little avail. All I have to work with are statements on the record by JR on the Chet Coppock show and info from jeff Torborg. He did a nice job building the farm with four consecutive top 10 picks. I'd certainly hope most GM could have a good success rate with that. Don't try to make something out of nothing please. Mark

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Jun 13, 2016 -> 12:12 PM) Roland got the axe because the minor league system was embarrassing. The guys they were calling up in 1985 were not major leaguers in any way. Roland's a nice guy, but if you use the same criteria on him you use on everyone else, his being fired was deserved. Kurt Brown over Barry Bonds with the 5th overall pick in the 1985 draft? Oops. Some of Roland's top 10 picks, Baines, nice, Daryl Boston at 7, Cecil Espy at 8, Steve Trout at 8, Steve Bueschele a decent player at 9, but didn't sign. Why would you draft a HS player at 9 who isn't going to sign? I do not want to hijack this thread but I simply can't let this pass. It's really hard for any GM to build a good minor league system when the operating 'philosophy' runs counter to that. Eddie Einhorn expressed that philosophy early on in the new ownerships tenure: (Paraphrasing) 'The way to win in baseball is with trades and free agent signings.' Many claim that philosophy still exists today. And there's a reason why JR fought for so many years to get a slot system in the draft. He's also publicly stated he does not like to pay unproven, untested players top dollar. From a business sense I understand that and would probably agree with it...but baseball wasn't run that way for better or worse. Instead of adapting, he continued to swim upstream against it. Which as owner was his right. But the Sox paid the price for it. If the Brown / Bonds situation is brought up, how about the Mike Trout one? The draft is not an exact science. every GM today, every GM in the past has blown picks. When ownership isn't interested in a solid minor league system, when ownership won't allocate resources to it (for example Mark Gonzales when he was the Sox beat writer posted a story stating that in terms of money spent on minor league talent the Sox were dead last in major league baseball for a five year period. I think it was something like 2007-2011) it's hard for any GM to work miracles. And that's not even counting the caliber of the minor league coaches, managers and instructors. Mark

QUOTE (FT35 @ Jun 13, 2016 -> 11:22 AM) The argument about the players not getting it done is valid when thinking about whether Robin is to blame. They need to play better...got it. But what IS on Robin's plate is playing a large part in establishing a winning culture within the organization--developing the mindset of the team, the mental approach to the daily grind, the player's psyche, creating a culture of winning. Look at the organizations that have had that no matter what players are on the field...St. Louis, San Francisco, Texas, usually the Yankees and Red Sox--minus the occasional outliner year. These franchises have winning cultures. The players change, but the results usually produce a winning season. The White Sox have had that...they were one of the top win% teams in the 90's and have had many solid years since, but the winning culture has dissolved into a survival culture--a "what else could go wrong" culture. Whether Robin is solely responsible for taking them there is debatable...whether he's a great baseball guy is not the question...I'm sure he is--we all loved him when he played here...but the fact is, the culture has dissolved into what it is under his leadership and it needs to change. No matter how much talent is put around him, he's not able to tap into players' full potential and ability. Out of the 4 years he's been here...there have only been short periods of time where everyone was pulling on the same end of the rope. The result was the ability to win. However, MOST of the time, we see too much of the hitting being on one day and off another...usually negatively corresponding with the days the pitching is on or off...it's all the evidence of a group of players who are responding as individuals and not as a cohesive unit--TEAM. When this happens in all other sports, the manager is the first to be held accountable--especially after a 4 year sample size of the same thing and a fan base who is beyond frustrated with it all. This part I agree with completely. Well thought out post. Mark

QUOTE (GhostofDickeyKerr @ Jun 12, 2016 -> 10:35 PM) Funny, since Himes was the best GM he ever had and the only one who gave a deuce about developing the minor league system. In my opinion Roland was the best GM JR ever had but your point about the minor league system is valid. Of course having four top picks in a row didn't hurt. And by top picks I mean in the top 10. Mark

QUOTE (SCCWS @ Jun 12, 2016 -> 08:19 PM) Who is loyal??? Is JR loyal??? He allowed his GM to fire Thobodeau. Maybe Hahn/KW are the ones who are loyal. Maybe JR is loyal to Robin becuase he played here. He also allowed Hawk to fire LaRussa (a move he's publicly admitted was wrong). The point is he's made exceptions he allowed Doug Collins to be fired. But those are few and far between...and when was the last time he actually fired a member of his front offices? I'm guessing Larry Himes in September 1990, a guy he personally disliked very much. Mark

QUOTE (ptatc @ Jun 12, 2016 -> 08:03 PM) This is the only place where the word loyal is a four letter word. In most places it's a good thing. Loyalty without accountability be it to a sports team, a religion, a politician a government whatever you want to name is usually not a good thing. Mark

If you look at this logically the conclusions are pretty obvious to me. How many different players from how many different organizations have the Sox brought in over the past 10 years? I think most of us would agree that a lot (maybe most?) of the players have not succeeded. There's been two different managers during that time period and at least on paper two different G.M.'s Yet it seems no matter what they try, no matter who they get it...doesn't...work. There's something about the organization itself, something ingrained in it that basically spells failure. That's the reality. I think its time everyone realizes that until new ownership arrives or JR has a real change of heart and overhauls the front office on the baseball side that nothing substantially is going to change. They may have a good year now and again, but consistent winning simply isn't going to happen. They haven't even had back to back winning seasons now since 2003-2006. Mark

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jun 11, 2016 -> 05:21 PM) Melky was also batting righty, something I don't think he's done much of the last few days. He saw an opportunity to maybe get bags loaded with a push bunt. Not a bad idea, just bad execution on Melky's part. Not on the manager at all. Are you calling me a bad guy? If Melky was bunting for a hit, Robin apparently thought differently: "He decided to do that on his own," White Sox manager Robin Ventura said. "He's up there sensing the situation, and I think he thought we could get on the board early by getting them over. It's something that you look at either way. But he decided to do on his own." His choice of words makes it sound like to me that he was sacrificing. And no I don't think you're a bad guy, don't even know you, and for that matter you don't know me. Maybe we're both just "meathead" fans? Mark

QUOTE (SoxPride18 @ Jun 11, 2016 -> 04:24 PM) He's also 2nd in the MLB in HRs and has 40+ RBIs. Literally almost every big hit the Sox have had this season, Frazier has had it. With you as manager, Frazier would probably be hitting 9th with that .215 average. To me, that's not very smart baseball. You sound like a meathead fan. No I wouldn't hit him 9th but that's not the point is it? I also wouldn't have allowed my #3 hitter, currently hitting 8-15 on the home stand to bunt. Knowing that he might do it oh his own now I hope Robin tells him "never again" unless he actually orders it. How many times this year have the Sox sacrificed guys into scoring position and gotten absolutely nothing out of it? You don't give up outs like that in my opinion. The meathead reference also was funny, I've been called a lot worse by better people. Mark

My only comment is this. Regarding the bunt in the first inning. It doesn't matter if Melky did it on his own or Robin called it. Doesn't matter if he was bunting for a hit or to sacrifice. You have a clean up hitter hitting .215!!!! Who strikes out a lot coming up to bat next. This isn't Frank Thomas and his .300 average with a great knowledge of the strike zone is it? Or a Magglio or Carlos Lee...guys who were hitting .280, .290 or over .300 Melky or Robin or whomever should know the clean up hitters capabilities. That's not smart baseball in my opinion. Mark

Rich has had a terrific career in Chicago for many, many years. He's one of the few media guys that I know of that wasn't ripped to shreds by fan bases. He is a huge Sox fan and you could see the pride in his face when he was doing the extending coverage of the Sox winning the 05 World Series. he's what a broadcaster should be but unfortunately you rarely see anymore. Having lost his wife a few years ago he went through a lot and he's had some health issues himself so I hope his retirement is long and fulfilling. The man has earned it. Here's the link to my interview that I did with him a few years ago. He was most gracious in it: http://www.whitesoxinteractive.com/rwas/in...=11&id=2435 Mark

When was the last time the Sox hit four home runs at home? That was nice to see. Sale shouldn't have started the 7th but they survived it. Mark

When it rains it pours. Now the Sox are going through injuries like Kansas City and Cleveland. We'll see if they have any kind of depth to alleviate things. Mark

QUOTE (Black_Jack29 @ Jun 10, 2016 -> 10:23 AM) I don't think that Hahn has the power to fire RV. JR would likely have to sign off on that one. I'm not sure that the comment is anything other than posturing. Fans want accountability right now, so the Sox have to feed that perception with regard to the manager. Anything regarding a manager hiring / firing has to be signed off on by JR that is a fact. Remember Kenny wanted to fire Ozzie and Greg Walker at various times...JR said no and that was the end of that. Mark

You give the front office points again for trying to correct their mistakes for sure but I'm confused as to what "the plan" now is. Seems kind of 'hit and miss' but that maybe because the options are still really limited. On the flip side though you all so start to wonder about what drove the decision makers to sign these players in the first place since they've been cut already. It's been an interesting year. Mark

QUOTE (Deadpool @ Jun 9, 2016 -> 07:54 PM) I appreciate that sentiment, but that was a lifetime ago. True but I recently saw a stat comparing the last four years plus 57 games of the fifth season of Veeck's second ownership to the same time frame for this ownership group. The numbers are incredibly similar including post season appearances. Mark

QUOTE (Saufley @ Jun 9, 2016 -> 06:38 PM) Not inconsistent. If I am not mistaken, Einhorn, when his group purchased the Sox, said the Sox were going to be run more professionally. This franchise now is more of a joke that at the time it was purchased from Bill Veeck. That's complete true. I asked Mike Veeck about some of the things I heard: ML: That group made the first in a long line of faux paux when Eddie Einhorn made a statement the day they bought the club along the lines of ‘we’re going to start running a first class operation.’ Many Sox fans and reportedly your dad were shocked and insulted by that comment. Making it worse was that your dad was right there when it was said. How did your dad and the Veeck family feel about that comment? MV: “We have never equated money with class. Just because we didn’t wear two hundred dollar shirts and three thousand dollar suits didn’t mean we didn’t have manners or didn’t respect other people. The one thing that my family has always done first and foremost was respect the fans of baseball and the game of baseball.” ML: I have heard that supposedly, Eddie Einhorn over the years privately apologized to your dad and tried to mend fences with him to no avail. Is that true? MV: “No Eddie Einhorn never apologized for that remark, Jerry Reinsdorf did, and there is a difference between those two men.” Mark

QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jun 9, 2016 -> 06:16 PM) It is funny that Bill Veeck is revered like he is, while JR is criticized for how little the team has made the playoffs. How many times did the Sox make the playoffs while Veeck owned the team? To be fair that was a much different time. In his first ownership only one team in each league made the playoffs. Veeck had his faults and the idea that he a savior is overblown, many think his deals after 59 put the Sox in such a hole that he had to return in 75 to keep the team from moving to Seattle. And he had some of the richest people in America as his partners yet he refuses to go to them for money and in fact promised them he'd turn a profit for them every year. Met him twice, very nice man but let's just say he could have done a lot better with the franchise had he wanted to. Mark