What we learned from Opening Day

[2Deep]

One game.....

We move on.....

I expect Sox to put up 6 or more tonight 

[SCCWS]

42 minutes ago, EloyJenkins said:

What team in the AL has a better 4/5 than Cease/Rodon with Kopech in the cue? Seriously asking. Yankees are 1-2 injuries to pitchers with recent injuries to a disaster and there just are not many teams in the AL that are really good. Tampa took a hit with their rotation but always seem to find depth, but I just can't really think of anyone else. YES, the Dodgers and Padres have an embarrassing wealth of riches, but different league. 

Hopefully we are saying this after at least 4-5 starts.  But I think many ML teams are going into the season hoping their 4/5 are productive.  Maybe 4-5 won't be a good measure especially if April is a cold, lousy weather month in the north half of the league

[Rowand44]

23 minutes ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said:

Who was supposed to hit for either one ? Jake Lamb ? Maybe for Leury but if Leury gets on that's a lot of speed and you only need one run.

Vaughn should have been hitting for Leury imo.  But that's down the list of things that went wrong last night so I'm not going to harp on it too much.

[Two-Gun Pete]

49 minutes ago, EloyJenkins said:

What team in the AL has a better 4/5 than Cease/Rodon with Kopech in the cue? Seriously asking. 

Isn't that word "queue?" (Not being critical, just wanting to be sure I understand you.)

Regardless, in the day and age of Three True Outcomes Baseball, Cease was among the worst SP in MLB in BB/ last season. Rodon, as usual, ate his way through 2020.

BOTH got skunked by Dane Dunning, whom I was led to believe sucks out loud at baseball.

 

So, if Dunning sucks at baseball, and he skunked Cease/Rodon/Lopez, then by inference, those three must suck out loud at baseball as well.

34 minutes ago, Rowand44 said:

Maybe nobody, maybe everybody.  I know everyone is excited about those 2(especially Dylan) after the spring but none of us have any idea what either of them are bringing to the table this year.

Agreed with the bolded. Cease, Rodon, Lopez, Kopech, and Crochet all have ability. They all might become Golden Gods at baseball, or they might suck out loud. 

 

While I recognize his potential, I for one am not at all excited about "Dylan." I worry that he might suck, and walk the fucking yard (as he's done, going back to his time in AAA), which might keep this team from winning. I would jave preferred there to be other, more reliable options to take his job away, if he can't find the strike zone.

We'll see. I maintain that this team needs to make hay when Giolito/Keuchel/Lynn are on the mound, so that Cease and Rodon don't sink this ship.

Edited April 2, 2021 by Two-Gun Pete

[RagahRagah]

1 hour ago, JoeyCoralFanClub said:

Your what hurts??

Multiple people might have the same perspective. What a shocker.

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

25 minutes ago, Harold's Leg Lift said:

Here's a good rule of thumb: Big league shortstops are not the second best shortstop on their college team. 

Well, good thing Nick Madrigal doesn't play SS and isn't a big league SS otherwise you might have made a decent point.

[greg775]

I got a bad feeling late in that game and was tired and turned it off and went to bed. Thought we were in good shape when Eaton homered

[Look at Ray Ray Run]

30 minutes ago, GREEDY said:

What is an acceptable sample size for fan(atics) to be qualified to start discussing the team on a discussion forum? 

Who said people can't discuss things? We're discussing things in this thread, are we not? I said there's nothing to infer. I'll make sure to let you know when it's OK to start making broad generalizations about the team, don't you worry.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

1 hour ago, RagahRagah said:

Frankly, that was the very first gamethread of the regular season and I'm already contemplating just not participating in them. The knee jerk reaction garbage, double standards and absurd presumptions I saw about multiple things was so ridiculous. And I'm the one who gets attacked for being too negative around here. Jesus, after seeing that thread last night it just highlights the common human tendency of lack of self-awareness.

That was a great game thread. Gio was pitching great and a lot of people were loving it . At the end if was a typical game thread but  that's to be expected. Even if you have stuck up for Madrigal you have to be disappointed in the guy. Turns out Leury did nothing to make anyone believe he should be batting 6th from the left side. There were a few Collins haters but it wasn't too bad. I think most are OK with him, showing he can make more contact  and he'll show power and get walks.

Ragah you'd be a lot better off if you just talked baseball and left the social commentary  and the "poor me" I'm always getting attacked thing at home. Everyone knows game threads are hotbeds of meatball comments but yesterdays was mild and a lot of funny stuff was said.

Obviously it's in your nature to argue but once you start arguing about how other people argue like they aren't following some crazy argument rules it gets pretty bad. No one follows rules. We take potshots, use sarcasm,  insult. You really need to just let it go . I can see getting into extended arguments once in a while but you do it all the time. Learn to let go. So what if you think someone is being illogical or their analogies suck. After a couple of exchanges just say "this is getting nowhere" and just stop or agree to disagree. You also put yourself on a pedestal like you are better than others. That never goes over very well. Just sayin' bro a look in the mirror once in a while helps  and that goes for everyone .

[caulfield12]

6 minutes ago, Two-Gun Pete said:

Isn't that word "queue?" (Not being critical, just wanting to be sure I understand you.)

Regardless, in the day and age of Three True Outcomes Baseball, Cease was among the worst SP in MLB in BB/ last season. Rodon, as usual, ate his way through 2020.

BOTH got skunked by Dane Dunning, whom I was led to believe sucks out loud at baseball.

 

So, if Dunning sucks at baseball, and he skunked Cease/Rodon/Lopez, then by inference, those three must suck out loud at baseball as well.

Agreed with the bolded. Cease, Rodon, Lopez, Kopech, and Crochet all have ability. They all might become Golden Gods at baseball, or they might suck out loud. 

 

While I recognize his potential, I for one am not at all excited about "Dylan." I worry that he might suck, and walk the fucking yard (as he's done, going back to his time in AAA), which might keep this team from winning. I would jave preferred there to be other, more reliable options to take his job away, if he can't find the strike zone.

We'll see. I maintain that this team needs to make hay when Giolito/Keuchel/Lynn are on the mound, so that Cease and Rodon don't sink this ship.

Dunning is going to be the type of pitcher who’s going to be limited to no more than two times through a lineup...at best.

For whatever it’s worth, he is the Rangers’ fifth starter after Folty.

Edited April 2, 2021 by caulfield12

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

6 minutes ago, Rowand44 said:

Vaughn should have been hitting for Leury imo.  But that's down the list of things that went wrong last night so I'm not going to harp on it too much.

Right but the whole reason he didn't start was because of matchups and against Inglesias wasn't a good matchup either. If you're looking for 1 swing of the bat to tie it up or a walk I understand thinking Vaughn. But then its probably best to pinch run for him with Hamilton if he draws a walk or singles.

[Two-Gun Pete]

8 minutes ago, caulfield12 said:

Dunning is going to be the type of pitcher who’s going to be limited to no more than two times through a lineup...at best.

Oh, I agree with you with your assessment of Dunning.

But all offseason, posters were telling us how Dunning sucks at baseball, and to give 6 of his seasons away for 1 season of Lynn was not even worth an afterthought. 

 

Also, if Dunning, a rookie coming off an injury, and without ++ stuff and without ++ velo was able to take away jobs from Cease, Lopez, Rodon, and Gonzalez, what does it say about those guys?

Especially in a division race, AND THEN a playoff series?!? That NONE of them could "cowboy up" enough to take their jobs back...

 

This is why I wanted more SP depth, and why I believe that this team needs to go .600-ish in games started by #s 1-3, while hoping to go ~.500 in Cease/Rodon/#6/7 SP-started games, in order to make the postseason. 

Edited April 2, 2021 by Two-Gun Pete

[JUSTgottaBELIEVE]

1 hour ago, caulfield12 said:

The difference is third base is not Moncada’s natural position, it’s SS, so his third position (although pretty sure he briefly debuted there in BOS since the two middle infield spots were already spoken for.)  Whereas Madrigal has been a 2B almost exclusively since Oregon State because of the presence of Cade Grenier there. 

Not sure what you’re getting at but most shortstops that move to second base perform much better there. Shortstop and second base are more similar than shortstop and third base. My point is some guys struggle initially adjusting to the big leagues but are capable of making improvements in short order. I’m not making any broad generalizations about Madrigal’s defense after 33 games.

[Rowand44]

2 minutes ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said:

Right but the whole reason he didn't start was because of matchups and against Inglesias wasn't a good matchup either. If you're looking for 1 swing of the bat to tie it up or a walk I understand thinking Vaughn. But then its probably best to pinch run for him with Hamilton if he draws a walk or singles.

In Tony's opinion(I guess) that isn't a good matchup for Vaughn.  There's nothing out there to suggest that Vaughn can't hit those type of pitchers.  

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

1 minute ago, Rowand44 said:

In Tony's opinion(I guess) that isn't a good matchup for Vaughn.  There's nothing out there to suggest that Vaughn can't hit those type of pitchers.  

Well the real problem is there's nothing to suggest much of anything about Vaughn against MLB pitching . That's why veterans usually are pinch hitters and not a guy looking at his 1st MLB AB.

[JUSTgottaBELIEVE]

1 hour ago, Balta1701 said:

And since the White Sox are in a rebuilding season, it doesn’t matter if his defense and base running costs this team a few games.

Did I say that? Does it matter that Robert is still flailing at pitches low and away? Does it matter that Vaughn will likely go through growing pains this year? Does it matter that Cease will likely have another volatile season? I’m not sure what your point is. When your team is built largely around young, still developing players, you live with the good and the bad and hope they improve. If they don’t, this team is headed for another early playoff exit anyway.

[Rowand44]

1 minute ago, CaliSoxFanViaSWside said:

Well the real problem is there's nothing to suggest much of anything about Vaughn against MLB pitching . That's why veterans usually are pinch hitters and not a guy looking at his 1st MLB AB.

Absolutely.  But the thing is if the Sox think highly enough to have him on the roster it's because they think his bat is as advertised.  If it's as advertised then he's your best bet there to tie the game up.  Him not starting is obviously a whole other bag here because that annoyed me to begin with but ya, I just think the whole situation was handled wrong.

[Tony]

10 minutes ago, Rowand44 said:

In Tony's opinion(I guess) that isn't a good matchup for Vaughn.  There's nothing out there to suggest that Vaughn can't hit those type of pitchers.  

Don't you dare assume what my opinion is. I LOVE ANDREW VAUGHN

[Rowand44]

1 minute ago, Tony said:

Don't you dare assume what my opinion is. I LOVE ANDREW VAUGHN

My bad, my bad.  Let me clarify: The hall of famer baseball person, Tony, not the hall of famer soxtalk poster, Tony.

[Tony]

3 minutes ago, Rowand44 said:

My bad, my bad.  Let me clarify: The hall of famer baseball person, Tony, not the hall of famer soxtalk poster, Tony.

I'm just glad we cleared that up. 

[tray]

Ranting about Madrigal's throwing error (which caused TA to come off the base by about a foot)  doesn't help Madrigal or the team. In fact it could be counterproductive (as I recall a similar situation became for Steve Sax  years ago).  The last bounce on the ground ball took Madrigal back toward first and skewed his throw to TA who was moving quickly across the bag.  Oh well his throw was off the mark.   He was also caught stealing, but that was also a close play. That's part of baseball - close plays and occasional errors.

My overall impression from the game though was that the LAA seemed to have an equal or  better line-up than our White Sox do, especially without Eloy. I would not be shocked if they swept us or win 3/4, not because the Sox aren't a good team but maybe the Angels are as good or even better.

Once TLaR gets to see the relievers over several more games, I think he will adjust how he employs them.  In hindsight, perhaps  Kopech would have been better in the 8th than Bummer  - (edited) and you bring in Liam your Closer to face Trout and the heart of the order even though it is the 8th..

Edited April 2, 2021 by tray

[Dick Allen]

I don't understand why people are already starting with the bitching. 

Let's give a history of Yasmani Grandal on Soxtalk. 2019, Sox sign James McCann. Soxtalk: WTF? We have Narvaez and Kevan Smith, why sign this bum. If you're going to sign a catcher, sign Grandal. 2020  Sox sign Grandal. Soxtalk: WTF? We have James McCann. Now Grandal can't do anything right. Of course Gio didn't pitch too badly with Grandal catching, something Soxtalk was silent about. If you recall, Gio can't pitch to Grandal.  

Madrigal made a bad throw. It cost the Sox the game. We didn't learn anything. Soxtalk has always wondered how the career .340 hitter is on the team.

Leury is great, until he goes 0-4, then he should no longer be on a major league field.

At least Adam Eaton, who has no power, and bat is so slow, he looks like he's 50 years old, hit a homer. 

And as I predicted when he got hired, the HOFer baseball person got criticized game one. He doesn't know as much as a message board poster.

[Balta1701]

25 minutes ago, tray said:

Ranting about Madrigal's throwing error (which caused TA to come off the base by about a foot)  doesn't help Madrigal or the team. In fact it could be counterproductive (as I recall a similar situation became for Steve Sax  years ago).  The last bounce on the ground ball took Madrigal back toward first and skewed his throw to TA who was moving quickly across the bag.  Oh well his throw was off the mark.   He was also caught stealing, but that was also a close play. That's part of baseball - close plays and occasional errors.

My overall impression from the game though was that the LAA seemed to have an equal or  better line-up than our White Sox do, especially without Eloy. I would not be shocked if they swept us or win 3/4, not because the Sox aren't a good team but maybe the Angels are as good or even better.

Once TLaR gets to see the relievers over several more games, I think he will adjust how he employs them.  In hindsight, perhaps  Kopech would have been better in the 8th than Bummer  - (edited) and you bring in Liam your Closer to face Trout and the heart of the order even though it is the 8th..

I see it has taken us 1 game to get to "Clap louder it's your fault he's bad!".

[EloyJenkins]

We learned Nomar Mazara went 0-4 and his replacement played much better!

[Kalapse]

26 minutes ago, tray said:

Ranting about Madrigal's throwing error (which caused TA to come off the base by about a foot)  doesn't help Madrigal or the team. In fact it could be counterproductive (as I recall a similar situation became for Steve Sax  years ago).  The last bounce on the ground ball took Madrigal back toward first and skewed his throw to TA who was moving quickly across the bag.  Oh well his throw was off the mark.   He was also caught stealing, but that was also a close play. That's part of baseball - close plays and occasional errors.

My overall impression from the game though was that the LAA seemed to have an equal or  better line-up than our White Sox do, especially without Eloy. I would not be shocked if they swept us or win 3/4, not because the Sox aren't a good team but maybe the Angels are as good or even better.

Once TLaR gets to see the relievers over several more games, I think he will adjust how he employs them.  In hindsight, perhaps  Kopech would have been better in the 8th than Bummer  - (edited) and you bring in Liam your Closer to face Trout and the heart of the order even though it is the 8th..

**COMICALLY EXAGERATED WANKING MOTION**