Lip Man 1

Last four hitters in the starting line up tonight all hitting under .250. Basically that's almost half of your starting lineup in "automatic out" status. Simply can't win that way very often anyway. As Kenny would say, "it is what it is..." LOL. Mark

Offense has scored three runs or less in four of their last eight games. Tonight marked the 15th time the Sox held an opponent to three runs or less...and lost. Mark

QUOTE (Harry Chappas @ Aug 7, 2015 -> 09:52 PM) The white sox are becoming a very stale organization. Dombrowski and black would make sense but KW is here for as long as he wants. Have said that for a long time. Mark

Folks: Remember...Robin has another year on his contract. JR does not like to pay people not to manage...and he personally like Ventura a lot. Just sayin' Mark

QUOTE (oldsox @ Aug 7, 2015 -> 08:57 PM) Particularly at start of the season. A little bit better now, not enough. There's no urgency to the Sox in spring training, didn't have under Ozzie and that continues under Robin. Ozzie publicly said spring training was a "joke." Sox were brutal the last 10 days of spring training this year capped off by Charlotte scoring double figures on Danks. Flat and lifeless on opening day...flat and lifeless for the home opener. How can any player be that way on those two days is beyond me. That's DIRECTLY on Ventura and his staff. Mark

Some very rare audio (from the original television video in my library) is the bill o' fair for August 7th in my This Date in Sox History. The two clips highlight the Sox ending Nolan Ryan's quest for a no-hitter from 1974. In fact in a span of a few minutes Ryan lost the no-hitter, the shutout AND the game. Hope you enjoy it. http://www.chicagonow.com/soxnet/2015/08/t...te-sox-history/ If memory serves the next audio clips will come on August 11th but feel free to check daily for historic events in franchise history. Mark

Glad you folks like the stories. Always appreciated and thanks to Daniel for his help. Have some stuff "in the can" already which will be released when Daniel sees fit including: My detailed interview / conversation with the late Billy Pierce from 2002. Billy talked about how he actually got into baseball, his memories about playing for the Sox and Giants and the people and events he met or was involved in for the seasons he was in 'the show.' And we've also submitted a look at "SportsVision - The Legacy" (remember that?) what it was and its impact on the Sox franchise. Also included are remembrances from Mike Leiderman, one of the anchors of SportsVision. Mark

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 6, 2015 -> 12:11 PM) 5 games over vs. 19 or 20 games under in fewer appearances. I think it's significant. I am as sick of seeing Flowers strike out as anyone, but there is something to the staff throwing to him. Dick: My point is that regardless of it you are talking about five over or 20 under neither will get you into post season play. Flowers is consistently one of the worst defensive catchers in baseball (and I understand defensive statistics are still a work in progress). My own personal opinion is that I could care less what a catcher hits as long as he can actually catch the ball, throw out a decent number of base runners, frame pitches and call a good game. At best...at best Flowers does two of these things. Catching is a deep, deep hole for the Sox with no one in the minor leagues at this point even close to upgrading the position. This has got to be a priority this off season. Just my opinion. Mark

QUOTE (ChrisLikesBaseball @ Aug 6, 2015 -> 11:41 AM) This blows my mind. https://t.co/BMiRsOORGy I guess he's good if being five games over .500 is someone's definition of good. Catching is one area the Sox badly need to upgrade. Mark

Balta's post is very, very, VERY good. I agree with him on many of the points he brought up. I think they went off the rails because Kenny simply couldn't wait. Many of these signing over the winter appeared to have his fingerprints all over them. (veterans in their 30's). Hahn appeared to want to be more patient but apparently he was over ruled as Kenny himself said anything Hahn and his staff want to do they have to run it by him first. The other factor I think was that even with maybe the best stadium deal in MLB (as outlined by the tribune) last year, attendance was dropping dangerously low. The franchise had lost fans from the previous year for eight consecutive seasons. They had lost 56% of the attendance since the end of the 2006 season. The decision was made in part to do something to bring back the season ticket holders. Obviously it hasn't worked on the field. Patience is a virtue, Kenny with his "football mentality," and his "go for broke" approach just doesn't have the capacity to wait three or four or five years so it's always "rebuild and contend" or "retool and contend" and that usually does not work. At least history shows it hasn't worked for this franchise for almost a decade. "It's time" for drastic changes at all levels in the front office. New blood, new ideas are desperately needed. Mark

QUOTE (BigFinn @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 09:26 PM) The worst part of the "White flag" trade was how the White Sox front office betrayed Robin Ventura. If I remember correctly, Robin had a horrific knee injury on a play at the plate during spring training. Robin was busting his ass in rehab while the Sox were fighting with Cleveland all summer. Just as Robin was ready to rejoin the club, Alvarez, Hernandez, and Darwin got traded to the Giants. The Sox brass has been working to rebuild that sense of loyalty throughout the organization, but the "White flag" trade was a true low point in the history of this franchise. Robin broke and dislocated his ankle when his spikes got caught in the mud sliding near home plate against the Red Sox. His foot literally was pointing 180 degrees opposite of the way it should. The injury was so gruesome that a woman in the first row of seats fainted. Yes the "White Flag Trade" was an unmitigated disaster for the Sox. Locally even mild mannered columnists like Bob Verdi were savage in their responses. Nationally ESPN's Baseball Tonight devoted almost their entire show that night to the trade. Joe Morgan was extremely caustic berating the organization. Dave "Soup" Campbell the same although not quite as bad. The "Sox Surrender" was the lead story that week in Sports Illustrated. The story quoted Alvarez and Hernandez as saying when manager Terry Bevington (a first rate buffoon) told them they were traded he was "laughing." The move did incredible damage to the organization on and off the field. Sox attendance dropped like a stone the next few seasons and even in 2000 when the team won 95 games, attendance wasn't that great. Fans simply did not trust Reinsdorf anymore. And remember this took place after the collusion issues in the mid 80's which former commissioner Fay Vincent accused JR of being a ringleader and of course the labor issue of 1994 which cost the Sox a potential trip to the playoffs and or World Series. Mark

QUOTE (Balta1701 @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 04:56 PM) The team's lease on the ballpark runs through 2029. Between the deal with the TV network and the sweetheart deals that the ownership group got for the ballpark, including the revenue from parking, they're going to be in Chicago at least until that point. That's so far in the future it's impossible to predict how things will evolve in terms of financing options for new buildings, growth in other parts of the country, etc. 5 years ago no one would have predicted the kind of insane TV money deals that are commonplace now, just to show how rapidly the economics are changing. Agree the Sox aren't going anywhere even with eventual new ownership. Mark

QUOTE (Jerksticks @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 04:32 PM) Man, why do you do it? I think we all deserve the explanation. All love brother I assure you, but we deserve to know. Nobody else does it. Why do you have to? Jerk: I'm afraid you've lost me completely with this one. Mark

QUOTE (CaliSoxFanViaSWside @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 04:04 PM) One half of the roster is always conspiring against the other half. You're not a team to be taken seriously unless offense defense and pitching all do well together a lot of the time. Well said. Mark

QUOTE (LDF @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 03:58 PM) let me asked this question, if KW goes, do you think that Hahn can guide the org like KW have done?? and this is not including jr hands on appch. ref the bold, does jr ever see himself as partly to blame as well??? I think Hahn can do a better job simply because he doesn't let emotion get that involved that it carries him away. (Remember Kenny tipping over the post game food spread in Baltimore after a Sox loss and calling the players b****es for one example?) Have no idea if JR ever thinks that or not. I've met him twice but don't know him well enough to know how big of an ego he has. Mark

QUOTE (IowaSoxFan @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 01:18 PM) A true rebuild will never happen when JR is in charge. The fans are too fickle and he is still mocked to this day for the last full rebuild he attempted (White Flag trades). That was not a true rebuild the only reason Hernandez and Alvarez were traded was because they were going to become free agents, were represented by Scott Boras and the Sox knew they'd never be able to resign them. In fact a few days before the "White Flag Trade" Scheuler attempted to sign those guys to a new deal and was rebuffed. That's when JR said 'go ahead'. And as it turned out of the six minor league players only two Foulke and Howry ever made any type of impact at the major league level. Mark

QUOTE (chitownsportsfan @ Aug 5, 2015 -> 11:40 AM) JR seems disenchanted with Manfred and losing his influence in the cabal of ownership. It would be a great time to re-evaluate his stake in the club and his influence. I hope he is ready to sell the club needs new leadership. I was told by in May from a source that the topic of "selling" has come up from time to time this year. But as long as the Sox are continuing to make the kind of money they are I can't see major changes especially to ownership. The same source told me at the same time that JR was so pissed off at the way things were going he was almost ready to let Kenny leave. We'll never know for sure. In my opinion though and I've said this for a long time including a recent column at Chicago Now / Sox Net, this organization has become stale and set in their ways. Major changes are needed including bringing in successful front office and scouting people from organizations that have consistently won. The Sox desperately need new ideas and a fresh way of looking at their problems. I just don't see that happening however until JR is no longer on the scene. Mark

Interesting to think about but unless Robin simply resigns for whatever reason he's not going any place. JR and the front office still like him a lot. However if that possibility should occur I'm for anybody who has previous major league managing experience and who has absolutely zero ties to the organization. No more former players, no more former coaches, no more guys 'learning' how to be a major league manager with on the job training. Sox haven't hired a manger with former experience managing at the big league level since Jeff Torborg in 1989. Mark

Been trying to think of a way to sum up the Sox organization the last 10 years. I can't do it in one sentence but these come close: "One step forward...two steps back." "Loyalty without Accountability" "When in doubt, blame the fans" It's a shame that another summer has been flushed right down the toilet. When all is said and done it'll be six of the last nine of them. Beyond sad now. Mark

QUOTE (Dick Allen @ Aug 4, 2015 -> 07:11 PM) Why is that a putz move? Seems to me you should be applauding having nothing to do with a guy who was groome dby a guy who was the GM through 15 playoff less seasons leaving his minor league system in shambles. You so blind with the JR hate, even if he does what you want you moan about it. Roland Hemond took over the worst franchise in major league baseball in September 1970. There were worse off then even the expansion teams. They had one foot in the grave and the other in Milwaukee.They had gone through the three worst seasons in franchise history, Comiskey Park was falling apart, they drew 495,000 for the season in 1970 and had very little talent. In two years they won 87 games in a strike shortened season and as Chuck Tanner told me, if Bill Melton doesn't blow out his back the A's dynasty never happens. Hemond build the 72 team, the 77 team and the 83 team. And he did it without any money as Allyn and Veeck were broke. Regarding the minor league system this quote from Veeck to Roland says it all, "sign him for as little as you can, we don't have any money..." And here's another one. Did you know (if not you can read about it Friday) Fernando was down to the Dodgers and the White Sox? He went to the Dodgers because they offered 20 (as in twenty) thousand dollars more. Oh here's yet one more. Hemond had to trade All Star catcher Ed Herrmann in April 1975 to the Yankees because he wanted a 2 (as in two) thousand dollar raise. The Sox couldn't afford to give it to him. Given those circumstances Hemond is one of the three best G.M.'s in franchise history in my opinion. I would have loved to have had Dombrowski as G.M. for most of these past seasons. Mark

Just responding to some of the posts I read here tonight: "Robin Ventura's managerial career is over in two months." My response is I wouldn't bet the house on that. Robin is still very well liked by JR and I don't need to explain how much that counts in the organization. Plus he's under contract through next year. JR does not like to pay people not to manage. And of course if the Sox fired Robin that would make Kenny look bad. He hired him and had to talk him into it. This organization does not like to admit mistakes. "I'd still like Leyland or LaRussa. If they won't do it, Piniella. Of course I'd love Ozzie, but his mouth ruined possibilities of that." Leyland is 73 he's not coming back. Tony is already turning the D-backs around as president. Piniella is also older and has no desire to return. As far as Ozzie, he quit on the team in 2011, b****ed and moaned about his salary and contract. Insulted the fan base numerous times (remember his comments about the fans not liking his lineups? Or how about the infamous "pissing on statues" comment?) If Ozzie was the last manager on Earth, I'd say no thanks. As far as going 7-1 right before the trading deadline all I can say is that's typical White Sox luck if you look at the history of the franchise. Finally some were asking for a Micah Johnson return. He's currently on the DL (yet again) at Charlotte with left hamstring issues if I remember right. That marks the second straight year he's had leg issues. Running is his game...if he can't run basically he's useless. Could just be an unlucky guy who can not stay healthy. Mark

Today August 4th marks 30 years...30 years??????????? since Tom Seaver won his 300th game. We've got audio cuts from that historic event up now at Chicago Now / Sox Net (with thanks to Daniel). You can relive the final out as well as some of Seaver's postgame interview. Oh yes August 4th was also the day Carlton Fisk got into the Hall of Fame and Robin Ventura actually showed some (OK a lot of emotion) in Texas. I hope you enjoy reading / listening. Here's the link: http://www.chicagonow.com/soxnet/2015/08/t...ra-fights-ryan/ Mark

QUOTE (caulfield12 @ Aug 4, 2015 -> 04:48 PM) Think if the White Sox could have kept Dombrowski, LaRussa, Leyland, Duncan, etc. One of those huge franchise what ifs that stings a little bit less now because of 2005. When I interviewed Tony I asked him that question. If he ever thought about what would have happened had he stayed 20 years. He said he actually kids JR about that sometimes. His answer was that if he stayed he thought the Sox "would have won multiple championships." Because as he put it "everybody was on the same page, from the owners, to the staff, to the players to the minor league system." You're right...a BIG "what if?" Mark

QUOTE (Baron @ Aug 4, 2015 -> 04:54 PM) Nice thought but he's not coming here. Unless you want to clear out Rick and Kenny. I have no issues clearing out Kenny. Mark

QUOTE (KyYlE23 @ Aug 4, 2015 -> 03:53 PM) Dombrowski also offered a higher rated bunch of prospects. I don't remember Dontrelle Willis being refused by the sox and getting that deal nixed, it was just that Maybin and Miller were more attractive than Fields and others I recall reading that the Sox didn't want to take on Willis salary. And that was the deal breaker. Florida was dead set on taking themselves off the hook with his deal. Mark