Guest JimH Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 sick of friggin experiments out there. We're going for a WS with Willie Harris and Juan Uribe..?? Does anyone else giggle when they say that out loud...??? If they're counting on those two guys to be table setters ... that is a problem. They need a guy, maybe two, who has the experience and ability to be a situational hitter, draw walks and take pitches. Especially now with Thomas out, that's a glaring weakness. It's easy to say let's go out and acquire a leadoff hitter but there aren't any out there. They need a guy who is disruptive to opposition pitching, and preferably someone they can acquire on the cheap. And - who can contribute in the field. The only names I come up with are Robbie Alomar and Frank Catalanatto. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soxbadger Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Prior to Willie being benched, he was working almost every count, and seeing 5 or so pitches. Its just once he got on the bench, he started trying to make things happen right away to get more playing time. All Willie does is play really good defense at 2b, run as hard as he can, and just try and work counts and get on base. If this is not the type of player the White Sox need leading off, I do not know what is. Uribe may be great, but hes slumping, and Willie will atleast try and do the little things right, and with his speed, just making contact some times will be good enough to be standing on first. Harris needs to play in this line up, especially now that we have Everett too. We have enough power, we need speed and patience. SB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JimH Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 I agree with you that anything can happen and they could get lucky.. but I just don't see it happening wth these guys. They are not "geling". They all appear to be playing a different game. With the Yanks.. they have a common goal and work together to accomplish it. Example.. Aaron.. Aaron is at the park hours before a game to work on his hitting. It's starting to pay off for him. The other slackers... can't be bothered with getting to the park early for some self induced practice. That tells me they are OK with being "OK" at this point. Not good enough. Get your asses out there and figure out what the hell is wrong, fix it.. and win. This is a very good point. A good example ... Konerko's final at bat yesterday. 3 pitches and out, the last one a very weak swing. These guys have got to toughen up mentally, and the best way to get your confidence back is to work at it. Now I'm not picking on Konerko, but if you're scuffling at the plate, it's critical to look for a pitch in your zone and only in your zone and put a good swing on it. Mulder will shut lots of teams down but I didn't sense the Sox hitters had a good plan of attack yesterday. There were not a lot of good at bats. Good hitters will make good pitching work, even if they make outs. That's not been happening lately. Steff do you think Everett will improve the intensity level of this team, perhaps even the work ethic? I think he will. But you are right, they need a guy or two who knows how to win. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WSoxShuf Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Try Harris for a few games, Uribe looks completely lost Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Steff do you think Everett will improve the intensity level of this team, perhaps even the work ethic? I think he will. But you are right, they need a guy or two who knows how to win. Absofrigginlutely. Last year he made a world of difference. The guy is nothing like what was reported (clubhouse cancer, etc..). He took over the KC, got them having fun again.. and they won some ball games. And it was an incredible feat last year to accomplish that. This year it (hopefully) will be easier since things are pretty calm already. They just need a leader to help pull their heads out of their asses. Carl will be a definite positive in that clubhouse... IMO of course.. rolleyeyes.gif Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowand44 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 This is a very good point. A good example ... Konerko's final at bat yesterday. 3 pitches and out, the last one a very weak swing. These guys have got to toughen up mentally, and the best way to get your confidence back is to work at it. Now I'm not picking on Konerko, but if you're scuffling at the plate, it's critical to look for a pitch in your zone and only in your zone and put a good swing on it. Mulder will shut lots of teams down but I didn't sense the Sox hitters had a good plan of attack yesterday. There were not a lot of good at bats. Good hitters will make good pitching work, even if they make outs. That's not been happening lately. Steff do you think Everett will improve the intensity level of this team, perhaps even the work ethic? I think he will. But you are right, they need a guy or two who knows how to win. This is what has really impressed me about Carlos Lee this season. I know his power numbers are down but he's a much smarter hitter, imo. Last year he tried to pull everything this year he'll go to right field, he'll go to right center and he's also been having much better at bats. For example his last at bat last night against dotel, fought off some tough pitches, kept fouling pitches off and then finally worked a walk to bring the tying run to the plate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JimH Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Steff, what do you think about Alomar. Per what my dad is hearing in Arizona, he would love to come back here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BurlyMan56 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Now I'm not picking on Konerko, but if you're scuffling at the plate, it's critical to look for a pitch in your zone and only in your zone and put a good swing on it. Exactly. In that 9th inning, you're playing catch up baseball. Make the pitcher work, wait for the first called strike, especially against a hard throwing like a Dotel who can be wild. If its not in your zone, then dont give a weak swing like Konerko did. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kapkomet Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Absofrigginlutely. Steff's Webster's Dictionary of Absofrigginlutely Words. I agree, FWIW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowand44 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Try Harris for a few games, Uribe looks completely lost Can't argue with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JimH Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 This is what has really impressed me about Carlos Lee this season. I know his power numbers are down but he's a much smarter hitter, imo. Last year he tried to pull everything this year he'll go to right field, he'll go to right center and he's also been having much better at bats. For example his last at bat last night against dotel, fought off some tough pitches, kept fouling pitches off and then finally worked a walk to bring the tying run to the plate. Yes, exactly. Lee has actually been one of the better ones in terms of seeing a lot of pitches, though it's only based on my observation and not statistics. Konerko is pretty decent at it too, but he did not have a good series out there at all. His whole key is mental. You could tell he was all tense and not confident. Lots of defensive swings. Crede is a mess right now, he misses all the good pitches to hit. Ordonez I expected would struggle, and Davis is, well, Davis. Everett is a pretty good situational hitter, and I suspect he will help. But they still need a pesky-type hitter, or at least a guy who can make a pitcher throw 10 pitches in an at-bat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Steff, what do you think about Alomar. Per what my dad is hearing in Arizona, he would love to come back here. He wanted to stay here.. for a handshake and a song... rolleyeyes.gif but that's a story for another day. I would love to have Robbie back here. Dejavu, eh.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowand44 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 He wanted to stay here.. for a handshake and a song... rolleyeyes.gif but that's a story for another day. I would love to have Robbie back here. Dejavu, eh.. Carl, Robbie, and JimH said that he's heard sullivan's name floating around, I guess kenny really liked his acquisitions last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wedge Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Harris everyday at second and Rowand everyday at CF. Uribe can spell Valentin or Crede... but he looks awful lately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Carl, Robbie, and JimH said that he's heard sullivan's name floating around, I guess kenny really liked his acquisitions last year. Last years team had the tools to succeed. They just crapped out at the end. We needed a pitcher. We got Garcia. last years team with Garcia would have seen and had an excellent chance to advance deep into the post-season. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rowand44 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Last years team had the tools to succeed. They just crapped out at the end. We needed a pitcher. We got Garcia. last years team with Garcia would have seen and had an excellent chance to advance deep into the post-season. I agree 100 percent. That team quite possibly was the most talented team in the american league, they obviously didn't put it together but they definitely had the tools. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 I agree 100 percent. That team quite possibly was the most talented team in the american league, they obviously didn't put it together but they definitely had the tools. I remember Hawk saying that a member of the Yankees approached him after the season and told him that the Sox were the team they were most afraid of in the playoffs last year. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Holy crap.. I better slow down. I made sense twice in one thread.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Holy crap.. I better slow down. I made sense twice in one thread.. Yeah you better go back and delete one of those posts... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JimH Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Alomar has only had 90 at bats out there so if nothing else he's well rested. To me, it comes down to Alomar or Timo or Gload. I'd find it hard to believe KW isn't thinking very hard about all this. When Maggs is ready to play OF, Everett's acquisition crowds the outfield picture, even if he'll be the primary DH. Burke can play 1B ... I don't know. Even with Everett being added, they need another veteran bat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steff Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Yeah you better go back and delete one of those posts... No.. it's OK. I didn't post any lies.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elrockinMT Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 He needs to stop pulling at the ball, and start to go the other way and hit opposite field drives again. That's the rub with Uribe. He starts trying to be Babe Ruth and fails to stay within his ability. Walker tries hard with Uribe but it is a constant battle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
elrockinMT Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Carl, Robbie, and JimH said that he's heard sullivan's name floating around, I guess kenny really liked his acquisitions last year. Yep, and they are all worth double the prospects for another year right? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZoomSlowik Posted July 19, 2004 Share Posted July 19, 2004 Since when are we depending on Uribe to "carry the team"? As someone said, if he can hit .280, no matter where he is in the order, that will work. We don't need him to be our #3 hitter doing all the work, we have other guys to do that. Once Maggs gets back to being his old self, our offense will be much better. Rowand and Lee are hitting pretty well recently, and if you put a full strength Maggs between them with Paulie, Everett, and Valentin after that, we'll produce runs. And if we throw Uribe or Harris getting on base at the top, that's a not just a good offense, that's a dominant one. Every offense goes through slumps, especially when your best hitter is recovering from injury and your next best hitter is out. We're going through it now, the Yankees got it out of the way in April. Uribe hitting again would help, but we aren't done if he doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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