Weird happenings from Coors Field...

[bjm676]

Hopefully this was what the bats needed-- to play at Coors. Now maybe some of the slumping hitters can get into a groove.

Also, when was the last time two different Sox pitchers had a hit in the same ballgame? I don't have the answer, but I'm sure it's been a long time.

 

Weird doings in Coors Field

White Sox-Rockies finale anything but ordinary

 

DENVER -- There was no readily apparent full moon lighting up the night sky and it certainly wasn't Halloween when the White Sox and Rockies got together for their Interleague series finale Wednesday night.

It was simply life as usual among the thin air of Coors Field. Well, actually not even close to usual.

 

In fact, a few unique plays, bordering on the sublimely weird or even spooky, took place over the course of one nine-inning game, leaving the fans infinitely more entertained then by simply watching the White Sox's 15-5 pummeling of the last-place squad from Colorado.

 

Here's a quick look at the highlights from what transpired. Warning: These following plays might not be suitable for the baseball purists.

 

El Duque's bat and baserunning: With one out in the second inning, Orlando 'El Duque' Hernandez picked up his second career hit in 20 at-bats by blooping a single just out of the reach of first baseman Todd Helton. Hernandez moved to second on Pablo Ozuna's single and raced to third on Tadahito Iguchi's deep drive to center.

 

Third wasn't quite good enough for Hernandez, who made a wide turn toward home, with designs on scoring via the rare two-base sacrifice fly. Third-base coach Joey Cora put on the stop sign so late that Hernandez had to slide to the ground to stop his momentum.

 

Swing and a drive, or at least a hit: Relief pitcher Cliff Politte had a rare chance to grab a bat during the White Sox's six-run eighth, originally sent to the plate to bunt with runners on first and second and nobody out. But with Helton charging, Politte pulled the bat back and slapped a single to right. It was his third career RBI and first since Sept. 28, 2000 against the Cubs as a member of the Phillies.

 

Politte eventually tagged up and went to third on Iguchi's sacrifice fly and scored on Aaron Rowand's third hit of the night. His somewhat lumbering move from first to third made it easy to see why Politte gave up the outfield as a junior college player and moved to the mound.

 

"They are having fun with the chance to be out there," said catcher Chris Widger of the White Sox pitchers.

 

"I was lucky I made contact," Politte said. "We hit last week and worked on bunting and slug bunting. You always think about it but it never happens. Slug bunts are really rare. They were crashing hard so I took a chance with it being a four-run game."

 

Duck and cover: Brad Hawpe, the Colorado right fielder, has one of the strongest arms in the National League. He proved it Wednesday by hitting second-base umpire Jerry Layne on a throw back to the infield following Politte's single. The strike grazed Layne's jacket, but in an attempt to get out of the way, he lost his balance and banged his head on the ground.

 

Layne happened to be the closest individual to covering the base. There still is a search in place for the Rockies' middle infielders on the play.

 

"Somebody in our dugout said, 'There's nobody at second base,'" Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said. "Then, Jerry Layne dropped and I said, 'Yeah, there is somebody at second base.'"

 

Bobby Seay's 'Big Hurt:' A quick quiz for White Sox fans:

 

Of Frank Thomas' 437 career home runs, how many were of the pinch-hit variety? If you guessed one entering Wednesday, move on to the lightning round. In the ninth inning against the Rockies' reliever, Thomas doubled that number with a prodigious 450-foot clout to straightaway center.

 

Thomas appeared to run cautiously around the bases after the drive. You don't need to exactly sprint when they are hit that far.

 

Basepath larceny: Eddy Garabito was credited with his first career stolen base after stealing second in the eighth. The White Sox led by an 11-4 margin at the time and didn't even bother to cover on the play. Sounds more like defensive indifference.

 

Rockies catchers had thrown out exactly two baserunners during the entire season entering this series. Danny Ardoin gunned down Ozuna in each of the first two innings alone Wednesday.

 

Had enough yet? How about Rowand, Major League Baseball's spokesman for hustle and hard work, not running out a grounder to third in the ninth. He didn't move because the ball hit his foot first, but with the game well out of reach, Rowand didn't put up an argument.

 

The game even ended with a flourish, as Dustan Mohr threw his bat for distance into the crowd down the left-field line on the final swing against reliever Shingo Takatsu.

 

Coors Field had a reputation in the White Sox's minds for baseball that was out of the ordinary, but they had to see it to believe it. It could be a bit of a letdown moving to the normalcy of Petco Park, where they open a three-game series against the Padres on Friday. Unless, of course, they sweep again.

 

"I like it here," Rowand said of Coors Field. "Obviously, the air doesn't hurt, but the stadium is beautiful and so is the clubhouse. There also were a lot of White Sox fans in the crowd. It's been fun, but a little bit strange."

[Kyyle23]

"Somebody in our dugout said, 'There's nobody at second base,'" Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said. "Then, Jerry Layne dropped and I said, 'Yeah, there is somebody at second base.'"

 

LMAO

[knightni]

"Somebody in our dugout said, 'There's nobody at second base,'" Colorado manager Clint Hurdle said. "Then, Jerry Layne dropped and I said, 'Yeah, there is somebody at second base.'"

 

[shakes]

Good article. They left out El Duque almost getting decapitated by a foul ball while on third.

[Kyyle23]

I think El Duque fell twice on the basepaths. I swear he fell rounding 2nd as well as third, and he almost bit the dust coming around 1st too. Definitely a comical basepath session for Duque

[Controlled Chaos]

I think El Duque fell twice on the basepaths.  I swear he fell rounding 2nd as well as third, and he almost bit the dust coming around 1st too. Definitely a comical basepath session for Duque

he did do a nice job of tagging the bag on that one play. Hawk thought he missed it, but he had the nice drag step going.

[CaliSoxFanViaSWside]

I think El Duque fell twice on the basepaths.  I swear he fell rounding 2nd as well as third, and he almost bit the dust coming around 1st too. Definitely a comical basepath session for Duque

 

I don't think he fell either time . He slides to stop his momentum. He did that rounding 2nd and 3rd.

 

Glad i also saw a mention of the amount of Sox fans in the crowd. I was amazed there were so many , especially when Crede and Frank went back to back in the 9th. They were LOUD.

[robin_ventura_eternal]

dont be decieved. my money says the majority are fairweathers. even if i wasnt a sox fan, if i saw frank crush a ball like he did, i would cheer, especially with him coming off the DL and all

[Colorado Sox Fan]

I finally got registered. I'm a 35+ year Sox fan who went to the first two games at Coors and watched game 3 on TV. It was incredible. I couldn't believe how many Sox fans went to the games.

 

Getting out of my car in the parking lot the first night, families on either side of me got out of vans, wearing their Sox jerseys. Inside the park, the people sitting in front of me and next to me were long time Sox fans from Chicago who had moved to Denver. People in Sox gear were all over the park.

 

For the most part, these were no bandwagon-jumpers. I saw a lot of well-worn caps from '83 and old jerseys. I would say that for game 2, it seemed like there were more "brand-new" Sox fans in the crowd.

 

Anyway, by the end of both games, the Sox fans took over and cheered them on. Rockies fans didn't know what was going on.

 

With all the crap written about Sox fans, it's typical that a statement like this from Rowand about the Coors series was essentially ignored, except by the Sox web site:

 

"I like it here," Rowand said of Coors Field. "Obviously, the air doesn't hurt, but the stadium is beautiful and so is the clubhouse. There also were a lot of White Sox fans in the crowd. It's been fun, but a little bit strange."

[greasywheels121]

I finally got registered. I'm a 35+ year Sox fan who went to the first two games at Coors and watched game 3 on TV. It was incredible. I couldn't believe how many Sox fans went to the games.

 

Getting out of my car in the parking lot the first night, families on either side of me got out of vans, wearing their Sox jerseys. Inside the park, the people sitting in front of me and next to me were long time Sox fans from Chicago who had moved to Denver. People in Sox gear were all over the park.

 

For the most part, these were no bandwagon-jumpers. I saw a lot of well-worn caps from '83 and old jerseys. I would say that for game 2, it seemed like there were more "brand-new" Sox fans in the crowd. 

 

Anyway, by the end of both games, the Sox fans took over and cheered them on. Rockies fans didn't know what was going on.

 

With all the crap written about Sox fans, it's typical that a statement like this from Rowand about the Coors series was essentially ignored, except by the Sox web site:

 

"I like it here," Rowand said of Coors Field. "Obviously, the air doesn't hurt, but the stadium is beautiful and so is the clubhouse. There also were a lot of White Sox fans in the crowd.  It's been fun, but a little bit strange."

 

 

Welcome to SoxTalk!

[elrockinMT]

I was there for games 2 and 3. Big thrill for me to see the Big Hurt that homer. But, I do remember the wierd plays. Politte's hit was just great, the ball thrown in from RF hitting the ump and also Konerko getting the ball stuck in his glove's webbing and him throwing it ot Contreras. I saw them all and it was fun.

Edited June 18, 2005 by elrockinMT

[Texsox]

Of Frank Thomas' 437 career home runs, how many were of the pinch-hit variety? If you guessed one entering Wednesday, move on to the lightning round. In the ninth inning against the Rockies' reliever, Thomas doubled that number with a prodigious 450-foot clout to straightaway center.

 

I never would have guessed that. I guess Frank has spent so much time as a starter, he hasn't had many pitch hit appearances.

[whitesoxin']

I never would have guessed that. I guess Frank has spent so much time as a starter, he hasn't had many pitch hit appearances.

I remember always hearing an ESPN commercial with Rooney saying "And that's a White Sox Winner on a Frank Thomas Pinch Hit Home Run!!!!"