To See Ourselves as New York Sees Us?

[Mercy!]

A fair, but generalized article. Not the source most people go to for their sports news, but Yankee fans have a particular interest in the Sox due to the Hernandez/Contreras connection.

 

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/20/sports/b...20whitesox.html

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September 20, 2005

With White Sox' Big Lead Dwindling, Fans Fear a Monumental Collapse

By JOE LAPOINTE

 

CHICAGO, Sept. 19 - At the beginning of the season, the Chicago White Sox introduced a new slogan: Win Or Die Trying. The first word seemed sufficient when they held a 15-game lead in the American League Central on Aug. 1.

 

But last week, as their lead dwindled and clammy panic gripped the fatalistic fans of the South Side, Manager Ozzie Guillen casually coined what could become their unofficial epitaph. "We flat-out stink," Guillen said Thursday, after a 7-5 loss to the Royals, who have the worst record in the majors.

 

At the time, the White Sox held a four-and-a-half-game lead over the second-place Cleveland Indians. It had dwindled to three and a half games by Monday night, when the Indians - the hottest team in baseball - arrived at U.S. Cellular Field for a three-game series.

 

Did Guillen regret his choice of words? "No," he said before Monday's game, adding that he always spoke the truth.

 

Were the players worried losing 7 of their previous 10 games while Cleveland won 9 of 10?

 

Not according to center fielder Aaron Rowand. "Nobody in here thinks about that stuff," he said. "That's all you guys thinking about us; what are we going to do, panic and stuff?"

 

So what advice may General Manager Ken Williams have for the White Sox' nervous fans?

 

"They've earned the right to feel a little nervous and a little anxiety," Williams said. "I feel a lot of it, too. Hang in there. Give us a little support. And please, stay off the ledges."

 

The fans filled the seats at the front edges of the upper deck Monday night, but the stadium was not quite full in the back rows. Flags commemorating the pennants of 1917 and 1959 flapped near the scoreboard in center field as an overcast sky settled above the park at dusk. The organist, Nancy Faust, greeted the crowd with "Let It Be" and "Still the One."

 

Overshadowed as they are by the more popular Cubs of the North Side, the White Sox remain the second team in Second City, although not quite yet in second place. They do not have a .300 hitter in their regular lineup. Pitching has been their strength, but now the staff is in flux.

 

One of their regular starters, Orlando Hernández, has been demoted from the rotation. The rookie Brandon McCarthy is expected to start in his place Thursday against Minnesota. In the bullpen, the rookie Bobby Jenks appears to have replaced Dustin Hermanson as the closer. McCarthy and Jenks started the season in the minor leagues.

 

Guillen said before Monday's game that Damaso Marte might also close games if left-handers are batting. Marte has apparently returned to Guillen's good graces after staying home last week during a series in Kansas City. Marte had been banished by Guillen for showing up late for a game.

 

Before that, during an appearance Sept. 7 against the Royals, Marte hit two consecutive batters, then said he had pain in his neck. Marte later apologized to Guillen and his teammates.

 

"Marte showed up like a man," Guillen said. "He showed his teammates how sorry he was."

 

Jon Garland, who leads the staff with a record of 17-9, is only 2-5 since the end of July and is no longer as strong a candidate for the Cy Young award. Garland said the team's emotional state was upbeat.

 

"It's definitely exciting," he said. "It's definitely coming down to the wire. I bet there's a lot of people who didn't see it coming. A few people in this clubhouse did. It's a 162-game grind. If you start to worry about things, that's when things fall apart."

 

Although the White Sox had drawn 2,123,180 fans in 74 home dates before Monday, their following has not been consistent. Only 14,571 showed up for a game Sept. 6 against the Royals. Across town, the Cubs, below .500 and third in the National League East, had drawn 2.9 million at Wrigley Field.

 

But the Cubs have a national cult following; they make chronic underachievement seem charming. Like the Athletics in the San Francisco Bay area, the Angels in the Los Angeles suburbs and the Mets in Queens, the White Sox have subordinate status in their local market.

 

When asked about a national personality for the White Sox, Williams scoffed at the Cubs' portrayal as lovable losers. "Winning will create an identity," he said of his team. "That's the only identity I want. You're not going to make up something. That has to be earned."

 

Although the White Sox have been worrying their fans lately, their situation is not dire. Even if they should squander the Central lead to Cleveland, they could still qualify for the playoffs as the A.L. wild card. The Red Sox had that role last season and won the World Series, the third season in a row that a wild-card qualifier has emerged as the champion.

 

The White Sox and the Indians will finish this three-game series Wednesday, then end the season with three games in Cleveland. Entering Monday's games, the Indians led the Yankees by a game and a half in the wild-card race.

 

Despite their recent skid, they still held the best record in the American League, 90-58, and were second in the majors to St. Louis (95-56). If the White Sox collapse and miss the playoffs, their fade would be the worst in baseball history, worse than the 1969 Cubs, the 1978 Red Sox, the 1964 Phillies or the 1951 Dodgers. Would people love them then?

 

Probably not, but they would never forget them, and somebody would take the blame. "Blame it on me," said Guillen, who added that he receives 40 or 50 e-mail messages every day from fans. Guillen said some of those messages said, "It's your fault" and "I know you're going to choke."

 

"A lot of people say: 'He's scared. He's insecure,' " Guillen said, referring to perceptions of him. "No. I know baseball. The heat is on. Hopefully, we can turn it on."

 

Copyright 2005 The New York Times Company