Fire Greg Walker

[southsideirish71]

Robinson Tejeda - 7 IP, 3 H, 4 BB, 3 K; 100 pitches

 

Just don't understand. It's patience at the plate; I would assume he was a bit wild if he allowed more f***ing walks than hits. It's actually putting good swings on the ball; that's 3 hits against a guy who opponents hit .288 off of last year. It's horrible hitting all together.

 

Fire Walker, and then fire Erstad. This offense has been a joke for 4 months.

 

My comment in chat tonight. This is a guy the sox should light up. He doesnt have enough control to throw to the outside corner enough to shut them down. You just wait out the count, and a good fastball will come to crush. I never thought that they would after the first inning would start free swinging crazylike It makes no sense. If it was one player, then you bench him. But my god everyone was just flailing away, like it was a getaway day.

 

They should of crushed him. He is a basic 2 pitch pitcher. I know Hawk thinks that he has 9 pitches. But it was 2. You eliminate the change, and you get into a hitters count. This team for years would suck against soft tossers, but fastball pitchers who challenge them get rocked.

Edited April 18, 2007 by southsideirish71

[SoxAce]

I didn't watch this game cause I had to work, but how in the flying f*** does a pitcher have four walks and only give up one run who is not an ace a number two or quite possibly even a number three?

[Jimbo's Drinker]

We need a healthy kick in the ass.

[RockRaines]

And Rock would be near the bottom of most everyone's list.

You know it. its time to do this thing.

[southsideirish71]

You know it. its time to do this thing.

 

Your thread is in stealth mode, as most people are staring at your avatar.

[Flash Tizzle]

They should of crushed him. He is a basic 2 pitch pitcher. I know Hawk thinks that he has 9 pitches. But it was 2. You eliminate the change, and you get into a hitters count. This team for years would suck against soft tossers, but fastball pitchers who challenge them get rocked.

Put it this way -- never have straight fastball down the middle in hitters counts looked so devastating.

 

The team wide struggles have to make you believe that whatever Walker is instructing these hitters to do, it's easily being exploited by opposing pitchers.

 

We're recoginizing their flaws as fastballs and offspeed pitches located on the outside corner. I'm afraid, judging from their offensive output (ranked amongs the worst in the league) other teams have caught on.

 

It could be a LOOONNNGG year ahead of us. What's overlooked in this loss is how Garland failed to exceed 89 mph on his fastball (WCIU didn't even have a radar gun), and Pierzynski's plate calling was horrendous.

Edited April 18, 2007 by Flash Tizzle

[fathom]

Put it this way -- never have straight fastball down the middle in hitters counts looked so devastating.

 

The team wide struggles have to make you believe that whatever Walker is instructing these hitters to do, it's easily being exploited by opposing pitchers.

 

We're recoginizing their flaws as fastballs and offspeed pitches located on the outside corner. I'm afraid, judging from their offensive output (ranked amongs the worst in the league) other teams have caught on.

 

It could be a LOOONNNGG year ahead of us. What's overlooked in this loss is how Garland failed to exceed 89 mph on his fastball (WCIU didn't even have a radar gun), and Pierzynski's plate calling was horrendous.

 

Is every pitcher's velocity down from where it was 2 years ago? Thornton doesn't seem close to the 97 mph mark he was at last year. MacDougal's slider has been great this year, but his fastball has been in the 91 mph range. It's just weird that other teams seem so much fresher offensively and on the mound.

[Flash Tizzle]

Is every pitcher's velocity down from where it was 2 years ago? Thornton doesn't seem close to the 97 mph mark he was at last year. MacDougal's slider has been great this year, but his fastball has been in the 91 mph range. It's just weird that other teams seem so much fresher offensively and on the mound.

MacDougal's HR pitch to Sosa was clocked at 93mph. With him, I honestly believe our coaching staff refined his mechanics to gain control at the expense of several miles per hour.

 

Thornton is definitely not throwing 97. Last I seen, he was 93-94.

 

And I know the radar guns of various stations have been put into question, but aside from Buehrle, no one really seems up to the velocity of previous seasons. On FOX several weeks ago Vazquez couldn't hit anything higher than 91. Contreras and Garland are below past seasons, and while it's difficult to judge with DAnks, the reports I read drastically over-valued his fastball. As well as Massets.

Edited April 18, 2007 by Flash Tizzle

[Rowand44]

I'm certainly not opposed to firing Walker, cause like Kalapse said, I think at first it'll give the offense a bit of a jump start. That being said, Walk or no Walk in a few years, I bet this club is having the same problems offensively.

[SoxAce]

I am not a fan of our little 200+ homers a season streak. Just throwing that out there.

[RX Bandits]

It sure as s*** worked for Cleveland last year. Even if this somehow isn't Walker's doing you still need to can his ass, a firing right now would almost certainly fire up the offense. It works most every time.

 

they're professionals, the white sox dont need someone to get fired to realize they need to start actually hitting.

 

with that being said, the hitting has been bad.

[greg775]

Funny how things can change in 2 years.

Hopefully it's the cold weather but we just suck.

I'd simply release Erstad. He's over the hill. He's done.

If our boppers don't start hitting home runs in bunches we could

be out of it early this year.

Our only hope is the long ball.

 

How bout this lineup the rest of the year

Uribe ss

Iguchi 2b

Thome dh

Paulie 1b

Dye rf

Crede 3b

AJ c

Sweeney or anybody from minor leagues cf

Mackowiak or anybody from minor leagues lf

 

Our outfield has to be the worst in baseball production wise. The worst.

[southsideirish71]

Sigh......

[Swingandalongonetoleft]

It's weird to see this going down with our offense cause in my MVP season Pods has been lighting it up, but Gooch, Konerko, and especially Dye have been lighting it up like a caveman starting fire for the first time with a rock and some twigs. I'm taking a bat to my gamecube.

[witesoxfan]

I am not a fan of our little 200+ homers a season streak. Just throwing that out there.

 

I love it. Homers are the most effecient method of producing runs. The Yankees have scored 800 runs every year this decade, and they've hit 200 homers every year this decade. It's not a coincidence.

 

BUT the only year they didn't score 870+ runs was also the only year their team OBP wasn't above .350. In fact, it was .334. Is that coincidental dude? No, not in the least.

 

This year's White Sox team will be no different in the home run department. However, seeing as how they have the second worst OPS in the AL (to Oakland), and the fact that they have been caught stealing more times than most teams and have one of the worst stolen base percentages of teams in the league already makes it perfectly clear as to why this team can't do s*** offensively.

 

Homers are not the problem. The goal to hit a 5-run homer with no one on base is the problem, and it has been since July of last season.

 

It's weird to see this going down with our offense cause in my MVP season Pods has been lighting it up, but Gooch, Konerko, and especially Dye have been lighting it up like a caveman starting fire for the first time with a rock and some twigs. I'm taking a bat to my gamecube.

 

that should have been your first option

 

Sigh......

 

I said it in a chat one day Irish, that's the guy I wanted the Sox to throw like a $750K at come the offseason. It's overpaying, and I don't give a s***. He's amazing at what he does.

 

The Sox take good hitters and make them s***ty. Why do I not think that will work?

[Wanne]

they're professionals, the white sox dont need someone to get fired to realize they need to start actually hitting.

 

Yes...they do. And being professional...you ARE held accountable for your job performance. This entire team's approach at the plate sucks. It starts somewhere.

[SoxAce]

I love it. Homers are the most effecient method of producing runs.

 

It's an agree to disagree basis for me wite. The solo shot has me the most disgusted since it usually seems that about 25-30% of that 200+ have been solos just to the untrained eye/casual fan thats watched most of the games in the past 6+ years. Homers might be the most effected but I would love the occasional two bagger with people on base, maybe a single every once in a while. Is a triple for a slap hitter too much to ask? There's a difference between the increase of an out trying to hit a homerun/pulling a pitch/hitting the ball with everything you got than there is just to hit a basehit/go with the pitch/see a gap and try to go with it basically. While I will never complain about a homerun by all means but hitting 200+ specifically with noone on base... not cool.

[caulfield12]

I love it. Homers are the most effecient method of producing runs. The Yankees have scored 800 runs every year this decade, and they've hit 200 homers every year this decade. It's not a coincidence.

 

BUT the only year they didn't score 870+ runs was also the only year their team OBP wasn't above .350. In fact, it was .334. Is that coincidental dude? No, not in the least.

 

This year's White Sox team will be no different in the home run department. However, seeing as how they have the second worst OPS in the AL (to Oakland), and the fact that they have been caught stealing more times than most teams and have one of the worst stolen base percentages of teams in the league already makes it perfectly clear as to why this team can't do s*** offensively.

 

Homers are not the problem. The goal to hit a 5-run homer with no one on base is the problem, and it has been since July of last season.

that should have been your first option

I said it in a chat one day Irish, that's the guy I wanted the Sox to throw like a $750K at come the offseason. It's overpaying, and I don't give a s***. He's amazing at what he does.

 

The Sox take good hitters and make them s***ty. Why do I not think that will work?

 

 

Wouldn't it be be better to spend $2-3 million and lure the Twins' Director of Scouting away from them....which would be better, having Pods/Cintron/Mackowiak, or an investment that keeps paying you back over time, one that's not depreciating?

 

"There were a whole lot of 'what ifs' in the game," Garland said. "Mentally, I didn't stay on it. I gave up, and it showed."

 

Nice quote Garland...I hope it was taken out of context, because it doesn't sound very encouraging on the surface of it.

Edited April 18, 2007 by caulfield12

[witesoxfan]

It's an agree to disagree basis for me wite. The solo shot has me the most disgusted since it usually seems that about 25-30% of that 200+ have been solos just to the untrained eye/casual fan thats watched most of the games in the past 6+ years. Homers might be the most effected but I would love the occasional two bagger with people on base, maybe a single every once in a while. Is a triple for a slap hitter too much to ask? There's a difference between the increase of an out trying to hit a homerun/pulling a pitch/hitting the ball with everything you got than there is just to hit a basehit/go with the pitch/see a gap and try to go with it basically. While I will never complain about a homerun by all means but hitting 200+ specifically with noone on base... not cool.

 

You're agreeing to agree. All I was saying was that if they get on base at a good rate - singles to the outfield, infield singles, bunt singles, doubles, triples, walks, hit batters, or whatever other forms of getting on base you can possibly imagine - they can hit 200 homers and I'm not going to complain, and neither will you.

 

The difference between last year's entire offensive output and 2005's entire offensive output was 20 points in OBP (.322 to .342) and 59 points of OPS (.747 to .806). That's as big of a reason as any as to why the 2006 team scored 127 more runs. Add to the fact that the Sox have been absolutely horrendous at stealing bases the past two years, and you have to figure that they lost quite a few runs both years, and that goes without saying.

 

What I understand you're complaining about goes to their offensive approach to hit a homer every time they go up. That I won't disagree with, because I've already agreed with what you're saying hundreds of times. They need to look to get on base more than they are without looking to hit the home run every time. If they are pitching you away, away, away, it's a much better idea to go with the ball and put it into RF then to try and pull it and roll it to the SS all day long.

 

and for the matter, there is no disagreeing with the fact that a homer is the most effecient way to score a run, because that is indeed a fact; you will never in the game of baseball find a way to score 1 run any more effeciently than by hitting a home run.

 

 

and also, on a somewhat lighter note - even considering it's an untrained or casual eye - if 25-30% were solo shots, I'd love it. That would mean the Sox were getting about 484 runs off of homers; using 30% of 236; that leads to 70.8, so that's approx. 71 runs. I then figure 2.5 R (because 2, 3, and 4 runs are not going to come on homers equally) * 165.2 is 413, so simple arithmetic brings us to 484. It's not an exact science, and I'm obviously not sure of the exact numbers or what a better number is that I should use - probably around 2.25 or perhaps just multiply the entire figure by like 1.75 or what I should do exactly, but regardless, 25-30% would seem great considering the White Sox were on base 1910 times without including home runs. I would guess it was closer to 40%, but that's really nothing more than a guess and a little bit of research behind it.

 

Wouldn't it be be better to spend $2-3 million and lure the Twins' Director of Scouting away from them....which would be better, having Pods/Cintron/Mackowiak, or an investment that keeps paying you back over time, one that's not depreciating?

 

"There were a whole lot of 'what ifs' in the game," Garland said. "Mentally, I didn't stay on it. I gave up, and it showed."

 

Nice quote Garland...I hope it was taken out of context, because it doesn't sound very encouraging on the surface of it.

 

Scouting only does so much. I think the Sox scouting is fine, because they've produced quite a bit of talent over the past 5-7 years. Talent only goes so far in any aspect of life. What the Sox need to do is to start developing this talent, because that's something they have not done in a long while. Since Maggs and CLee, what type of hitting talent have the Sox developed that has stuck at the MLB level and produced well? Crede and Rowand have both had one nice year, and I honestly, for the life of me, can't think of a single other that has produced well.

 

Could you imagine what Minnesota would have done with Joe Borchard? Yikes.

[chisoxfan79]

FIRE OZZIE, Make Erstad disappear, Play BA and call up Sweeney and let him play left

[beck72]

It's not going to happen. And it shouldn't. Unless the sox are still hitting like this in late May, Walker isn't going anywhere. No hitting coach will be able to turn around all these veteran hitters with a magic wand and fix all their problems. Most of these hitters know the problem just as well as Walker, and will correct them in time.

 

The sox may need a fall guy if the team is still collectively slumping two months in. Yet I'm pretty sure the hitters will get on track by then.

[Soxfest]

Walker can go.......but KW put this team together time he feels some heat!

[SoxFan562004]

I agree with Rock... even if it's just a symbolic move, something has to be done. The swinging for the fences swings on display last night was a joke. Despite what Hawk and DJ said, Tejada was hittable yesterday, and he walked 4 people.

[Dick Allen]

While Walker may or may not be in over his head in his current position, the way the White Sox offense is constructed is one that will have extended periods of drought. There's hardly any speed at all. The guys who do get on base the most are base cloggers. Its a team that regardless of what KW and Ozzie will ever admit, relies almost entirely on homeruns. Maybe another hitting coach could make a difference, but it would be only temporary. Many of these hitters have had some great years under Walker's supervision. Konerko, Dye, Thome had a good year last year. Uribe was pretty good in 2004. Crede had breakout year. AJP has done alright.

[NorthSideSox72]

Since Hriniak isn't willing to join a team full-time (if I recall), maybe the Sox can contract with him to rebuild the hitting coaches and theis system, throughout all levels of the Sox organization. Have him choose the coaches, give them some direction on methodology, maybe even move a few players around.