Brian Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 With all the threads about the frustration we are experiencing with the offense, I'm trying to even out the see saw with a thread appreciating what Don Cooper quietly continues to do with this pitching staff. It's to a point where I am not mad at Thornton or Linebrink for giving up walk off homers. It sucks they happened, but they have been so good, that a hiccup is allowed. Keep up the good work Coop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DABearSoX Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 I like it.....nice contrast to my negative thread Great Job Coop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shipps Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 f*** DON COOPER! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whitesoxfan101 Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 Best pitching coach in baseball. I feel so bad for him watching this offense, if we could hit at all, we'd be a team that would win our division and Don Cooper's work with the pitching would be the #1 reason why. Keep it up Coop. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsideirish71 Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 The pitching has been great all year long. Its our ray of hope. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fathom Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 QUOTE (whitesoxfan101 @ Jun 1, 2008 -> 09:40 PM) Best pitching coach in baseball. I feel so bad for him watching this offense, if we could hit at all, we'd be a team that would win our division and Don Cooper's work with the pitching would be the #1 reason why. Keep it up Coop. No kidding, the pitching staff has been amazing. They keep us in 90 pct of the games it feels like. Great job Coop! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joejoesox Posted June 1, 2008 Share Posted June 1, 2008 i guess if you want walker to take all the blame, you have to say cooper is responsible for all of the positives w/ this pitching staff in my opinion, i think cooper has done a decent job, but other than Gavin, Danks and the reclamation project with Thornton, the other guys have pretty much pitched to their ability. just my opinion Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southsider2k5 Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 QUOTE (joesaiditstrue @ Jun 1, 2008 -> 02:42 PM) i guess if you want walker to take all the blame, you have to say cooper is responsible for all of the positives w/ this pitching staff in my opinion, i think cooper has done a decent job, but other than Gavin, Danks and the reclamation project with Thornton, the other guys have pretty much pitched to their ability. just my opinion Good call. The results this year are hard to argue with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
103 mph screwball Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 QUOTE (southsider2k5 @ Jun 3, 2008 -> 10:44 AM) Good call. The results this year are hard to argue with. Wow! I thought he was fired after reading the thread title. We usually appreciate players on their way out. Agreed. Great job Cooper! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DBAHO Posted June 3, 2008 Share Posted June 3, 2008 He's got his 05 mojo back. Doing a great job with the rotation and the pen. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Posted June 8, 2008 Author Share Posted June 8, 2008 (edited) 6 straight games with quality starts, I believe. Coop and staff are in a groove. Edited June 8, 2008 by Brian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenny Hates Prospects Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 QUOTE (joesaiditstrue @ Jun 1, 2008 -> 03:42 PM) i guess if you want walker to take all the blame, you have to say cooper is responsible for all of the positives w/ this pitching staff in my opinion, i think cooper has done a decent job, but other than Gavin, Danks and the reclamation project with Thornton, the other guys have pretty much pitched to their ability. just my opinion Jose Contreras was horrid in New York. They called him a bust, a huge disappointment, and the Yanks even ate a large chunk of salary when they dealt him to us. Well, Coop gets Jose back to the way he was in Cuba by allowing him to pitch from different arm angles and untangling the mess that the Yanks' pitching coach got Jose into. Contreras turned into an ace the following year and helped us win a World Series. The guy we traded Contreras for, Esteban Loaiza, was a journeyman starter that had spent 8 years in the league with three different teams. Loaiza was just trying to make the ballclub. It was Coop's suggestion of the cut fastball that turned Loaiza into an ace that year, winning 21 games and almost winning the Cy Young. He also went over 200 K's for the only time in his career. This is where Coop's legend began. And don't forget about Javier Vazquez. This guy was traded to the Yanks after his ace 2003 season and was expected to dominate in New York. He struggled, was sent to Arizona, and still kept struggling. He became a disappointment, an underachiever, and basically a waste of talent in many people's eyes. So, he gets traded to the Sox, who play in the most unfriendly ballpark in the major leagues considering it's a launching pad where you have to face AL lineups, and Coop makes some changes in his delivery. 2007 was the best year of his career except for 2003 in Montreal, but considering the differences in park, league, and quality of competition, I'd actually have to say that last year was the best all-around year of his career. He's become the ace he was supposed to be under Coop. There are tons of examples. Remember how awesome Damaso Marte was under his watch, or how Flash Gordon rejuvenated his career under Coop's watch? Gavin Floyd (called a bust), Matt Thornton (called a bust), Bobby Jenks (called a bust) and company are just the latest examples of Coop's magic combined with superb talent evaluation. The only recent marks against Coop IMO are MacDougal, Sisco, and Aardsma, as even Cotts and Politte who were terrible in '06 were amazing in '05. Politte was out of baseball shortly afterwards, Cotts hasn't done anything but get hit hard. With the other three, MacDougal though just seems like he's a wreck mentally, and even though Gavin Floyd and Jose Contreras were supposedly head cases just the same, there at least has to be some inner foundation for a pitching coach to build upon mentally. I don't think MacDougal has that. Aardsma is still walking everybody in Boston and his ERA is deceptively small. You can't keep walking everyone and expect not to get hit hard, no matter how great those two pitches you throw are. Still, Coop really didn't get a lot of time with Aardsma anyway. And then there's Sisco, who was supposedly throwing much better in ST but had to have surgery. Coop could still fix him if he comes back healthy and stays within the organization. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodAsGould Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 Only thing wrong with your thing is that Jenks was never really a bust, his arm was never the problem it was his actions that led to him being cut. But yes, Coop obviously knows what he is doing and the cutter is definitely the pitch he knows best. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kenny Hates Prospects Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 QUOTE (SoxFan101 @ Jun 9, 2008 -> 06:02 AM) Only thing wrong with your thing is that Jenks was never really a bust, his arm was never the problem it was his actions that led to him being cut. But yes, Coop obviously knows what he is doing and the cutter is definitely the pitch he knows best. That's why Jenks was called that. He didn't have the attitude and work ethic to back up his talent. It's the same thing they said about Contreras after he started getting killed in New York out of Cuba. He still had the arm but people claimed he was a bust signing. Ditto Floyd, as his case was all mental too. And Thornton. I just have to wonder how much money Coop has saved the Sox organization. Whatever he makes he should get more. If the Sox had to sign free agents every time they needed to get the type of production they've gotten from a Coop reclamation project they'd have never won a damn thing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasox24 Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 I'm so glad we have Coop. I really think he might be the best pitching coach in major league baseball. I know that's a bold statement (and a bit biased), but I do believe it's true. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
joejoesox Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 (edited) anyone listen to the score yesterday when they were at cork & carrie's? even prior to that, when cooper called chris during the post-game and was like "Get off the air and get down here now", either his sense of humor eludes me or he was sick of waiting for chris to get down there, lol coop sounded hilarious, like he was drunk or something, and during the chat @ the bar, coop even had the nerve to call out Chris saying "last year you said Gavin wasn't any good" and i was surprised he put Chris on the spot like that on the air, but i've always felt that Coop absolutely hates the media Edited June 9, 2008 by joesaiditstrue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodAsGould Posted June 9, 2008 Share Posted June 9, 2008 QUOTE (Kenny Hates Prospects @ Jun 9, 2008 -> 05:08 AM) That's why Jenks was called that. He didn't have the attitude and work ethic to back up his talent. It's the same thing they said about Contreras after he started getting killed in New York out of Cuba. He still had the arm but people claimed he was a bust signing. Ditto Floyd, as his case was all mental too. And Thornton. I just have to wonder how much money Coop has saved the Sox organization. Whatever he makes he should get more. If the Sox had to sign free agents every time they needed to get the type of production they've gotten from a Coop reclamation project they'd have never won a damn thing. Its totally different situations lol, Floyd and Contreras werent producing and Coop came in and figured out their problems. Jenks was actually producing on the field it was just his actions off that were a problem that Coop had nothing to do with, youn dont get a callup from double A to the majors and step into the closers role if your struggling. But whatever the case back to Coop appreciation. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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