CSF Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 1) Jon Garland. The pressure is truly off now. He's not being asked to win 20, 18 or even 15 wins. Just stay at .500 and eat up innings. Anything else should be considered a bonus. 2) Joe Crede. I have a good feeling he's gonna put up some nice numbers. I think 2004 humbled him and he was learning to ask for help and it should make him an improved player. 3) Neal Cotts. I think a full year under his belt should make him better adapted to situations. If he could be used in the way Sean Lowe was in 2000, I'll be happy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AngelasDaddy0427 Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 The keys to this season... 1) Orlando Hernandez holding up... 2) Scott Posednik and Jermaine Dye putting up good offensive numbers... 3) Willie Harris being able to become a major league CF if Pods busts or 2B if Iguchi busts. 4) Aaron Rowand being able to be shaped into an impact player. 5) The bullpen being as good as advertised. 6) Frank Thomas coming back healthy in time for the 2nd half. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lvjeremylv Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 Haven't read through all these, as I think we've all suggested every possible key in past posts, but there's 1 key, and 1 key only. Staying healthy. We do that, and we have a legitimate chance at playing into late October. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soxfan3530 Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 1. Thomas/ Everett. I think we need some big production from the DH for some power. Hopefully these two can hit 45 hrs combined 2. Pod getting on base. 3. Hernandez staying healthy. 4. Crede posting solid numbers. 5. Shingo constitency. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
witesoxfan Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 This team is so high-risk, high-reward, it is not even funny. If Pods gets back to 03 form, if Iguchi peforms similarly to what he did in Japan, if Dye can put up .275 30 110 .850, Everett can give us good numbers off the bench, Rowand and Uribe can avoid "sophomore" slumps, if Crede can bust through, if Garcia can pitch well, if Duque can stay healthy....I can go on and on and on. We do most of that, this team is a 100 win team. If Pods is back to 04 form, Iguchi struggles, Dye gets hurt, Everett can't produce, Rowand and Uribe do suffer slumps, Crede is awful again, Garcia is back to 03 form, Duque gets hurt....again, I can go on and on and on. All of the perviously mentioned occurs, we are a 75 win team, or probably worse, because we'd be out at the deadline and pieces would be traded. The key to this season is to stay healthy, specifically the pitching staff. If they stay healthy, and produce well...I have almost no doubt we win the division. The offense will produce, regardless of who is hitting where. Pitching, pitching, pitching...we can't have enough of it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JUGGERNAUT Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 The MLB.com mailbag has lineups I've not seen mentioned here. LF-Pods, 2B-Iggy, RF-Dye, 1B-Koney, DH-Everett, CF-Rowand, C-AJP, SS-Uribe, & 3B-Crede. Pods & AJ are the LH. LF-Pods, 2B-Iggy, RF-Dye, DH-Thomas, 1B-Koney, CF-Rowand, C-AJP, SS-Uribe, & 3B-Crede. Pods & AJ are the LH. If Iggy struggles he'll likely swap with Uribe. That's the only likely move. What I'm most surprised at I guess is Dye remaining in the #3 spot in both scenarios. It's certainly not your avg lineup with a power guy like Crede hitting 9th. I think any team would like Rowand-AJP-Uribe-Crede as your 6-9 chain. We talk about risk w this lineup, but certainly there's no greater risk here than there was with the 04 lineup. The greatest potential for weakness is all bunched together: Crede-Pods-Iggy. That minimizes the effect of that weakness. Dye has good enough speed to where he can score from first with a long single or double from either Koney or Thomas. http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb...4&&sortByStat=R We should rank in the top 5 in runs again. http://chicago.whitesox.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb...mit&timeFrame=1 Pretty bad. With the new rotation & pen changes we should rank in the top 5. That puts us right around the 90 win mark. Need some more hope to get beyond that. The key as always is health. We're have little depth in the pen or IF so that is what must remain the healthiest. We can probably absorb a minor loss in the rotation or in the OF & still remain competitive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AddisonStSox Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 As Contreras goes, so go the White Sox in 2005. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mplssoxfan Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 1. Crede needs to improve offensively 2. Freddy needs to be more consistent. 3. Shingo can't roll downhill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JUGGERNAUT Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 There are some interesting numbers from 04 that gives us an idea of 05. Min 48SV, in 68SVO. (71%) Sox 34SV, in 46SVO. (74%) The Sox finished 9gb with 22 fewer save opps. The improved rotation & middle relief core should get us many more SVO. Min 1123K/431 BB, 1013K/Sox 527 BB. The improved rotation & middle relief core should get us more K's & less BB's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JUGGERNAUT Posted February 7, 2005 Share Posted February 7, 2005 We should probably lower our expectations of Pods & SB totals overall for the Sox. The AL got stingier over the past year. Los 117 Fla 118 Det 128 Bos 123 Phi 112 Col 111 TBJ 126 Cle 117 Mil 100 Cub 108 Bal 121 Tbj 91 Nym 98 Phi 103 Bos 101 Sox 90 San 95 Hou 101 Tex 96 Nyy 90 Atl 91 Nym 100 Kan 95 Ana 87 Hou 86 Ari 97 Nyy 92 Kan 84 Ari 84 Los 96 Oak 91 Bal 82 Cin 77 Atl 91 Cle 84 Oak 74 Col 73 Mil 89 Ana 80 Min 73 Cub 70 Pitt 72 Min 70 Det 71 Fla 70 San 72 Tam 65 Tex 71 Pit 69 San 69 Sea 62 Tam 67 San 67 Cin 67 Sox 58 Sea 64 Stl 55 Mon 58 Mon 40 Stl 53 2003 1304 2004 1405 2003 1269 2004 1184 So Pods is moving from a league that gave away 1405 SB to one that only gave away 1184. About a 16% drop. Conservatively speaking we should expect no more than 58 from Pods then. I-Rod greatly improved Det in that dept. For the most part KC, Det, & Min are pretty stingy. Cle is not. Offensively, Ana led the league w 143-46 SB, Min led the ALC w 116-46. The Sox won't beat Ana but they should beat Min in this dept. The Sox were 78-51 in SB. Harris + CLee + Val = 38. Assume 88 betw Pods + Iggy + Dye so that's a +50. Good for 128 total. I would say leading the ALC in SB in a key to 2005 since we gave up a lot of power towards that goal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TLAK Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 Reading the post mortems on the season, or listening to the radio, would lead you to think that NOBODY expected anything out of this team after the off season moves. Actually the core fans were pretty optimistic, and had sound reasons for it. Read this thread that Beck started 8 months ago. Many of the posts are absolutely prescient. Several ones about players and the style of play came true. Texsox called Shingo’s departure months before it happened. Juggernaut predicted 128 SB, they came in with 137. Nuke’s comments about the top of the order, starting pitching and fundamentals sound as if they were written today. There are some smart baseball guys on this message board. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wedge Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 QUOTE(AddisonStSox @ Feb 7, 2005 -> 04:26 PM) As Contreras goes, so go the White Sox in 2005. how totally prophetic. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bighurt2719 Posted October 29, 2005 Share Posted October 29, 2005 AJ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texsox Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 QUOTE(TLAK @ Oct 29, 2005 -> 11:11 AM) Reading the post mortems on the season, or listening to the radio, would lead you to think that NOBODY expected anything out of this team after the off season moves. Actually the core fans were pretty optimistic, and had sound reasons for it. Read this thread that Beck started 8 months ago. Many of the posts are absolutely prescient. Several ones about players and the style of play came true. Texsox called Shingo’s departure months before it happened. Juggernaut predicted 128 SB, they came in with 137. Nuke’s comments about the top of the order, starting pitching and fundamentals sound as if they were written today. There are some smart baseball guys on this message board. IIRC, Shingo was the only player I was really down on. I always love seeing these old threads and how wrong I am most of the time. I was shocked when so many people had this team figured out so well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bighurt2719 Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 QUOTE(TLAK @ Oct 29, 2005 -> 11:11 AM) Reading the post mortems on the season, or listening to the radio, would lead you to think that NOBODY expected anything out of this team after the off season moves. Actually the core fans were pretty optimistic, and had sound reasons for it. Read this thread that Beck started 8 months ago. Many of the posts are absolutely prescient. Several ones about players and the style of play came true. Texsox called Shingo’s departure months before it happened. Juggernaut predicted 128 SB, they came in with 137. Nuke’s comments about the top of the order, starting pitching and fundamentals sound as if they were written today. There are some smart baseball guys on this message board. i was extremely optomistic all year, and expected a world series (disclaimer: i expect a world series every year). even if we had lost to the bosox or the 'stros i would have been proud though. destiny didn't see it that way though!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kevin57 Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 Sox fans are knowledgable. Period. I remember predicting (okay, I was actually more hoping) that the Sox slide of August/September would actually serve them well for the pressures of the post-season. I think that was borne out. We'll never know for sure, but if they had kept winning at a .700 or so clip, would they have been caught unawares in the unique dynamics of post-season play? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AddisonStSox Posted October 30, 2005 Share Posted October 30, 2005 QUOTE(Wedge @ Oct 29, 2005 -> 10:16 AM) how totally prophetic. Why thank you! This gave me a nice little confidence boost today. I don't mean to toot my own horn, but, TOOT-TOOT! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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