black jack on white sox, beckham handling

[BearSox]

I heard Stone was defending Black Jack... and I'd hardly call what McDowell wrote as stupidity.

[WCSox]

Hawk and Stoney call out blackjack for his stupidity

 

Since Hawk is the official mouthpiece of the front office, Kenny and Ozzie must not be happy with Black Jack right now.

 

 

[WSoxMatt]

Stoney agreed with Hawk...I believe he even said it was sily of BlackJack

Edited June 14, 2009 by WSoxMatt

[Chisoxfn]

The most recent quotes were a-ok with me. Oh and Beckham just raked an opposite field double and had a much better at bat. He's starting to figure stuff out, but another guy that really is hitting well is Christopher Getz, who I think is going to be a very very good long-term 2nd baseman (good defense, high obp, I like his upside to be a #1 or #2 hitter).

[Marty34]

This whole "Ozzie hates Beckham" is ridiculous. The Sox clubhouse is filled with veterans, can't be an easy place for a highly touted rookie to break in. It would be even more difficult for Beckham with his teammates if Guillen gave him the "teacher's pet" treatment.

[ThunderBolt]

if Guillen gave him the "teacher's pet" treatment.

We call that the Dewayane Wise treatment.

[The Ginger Kid]

I heard Stone was defending Black Jack... and I'd hardly call what McDowell wrote as stupidity.

i would

[The Ginger Kid]

I heard Stone was defending Black Jack... and I'd hardly call what McDowell wrote as stupidity.

not on TV he wasn't, where did you hear that?

[ILMOU]

Maybe we just have to realize that Fields and Anderson just aren't that good and move on instead of holding on to Ozzie mistreatment as a defense for their struggles.

 

For the sake of the Soxtalk I sure hope this happens.

[ILMOU]

i would

 

Well, it's definitely sensationalistic journalism. I mean, Beckham has sat what? ONE day since he's been up?

 

The point is he IS getting consistent AB's, he's starting to hit, and his "handling" is completely a non-issue.

 

Makes me wonder how little it took to get so many here believing how badly BA was"mishandled" in '06.

 

[SoxFan562004]

I heard Stone was defending Black Jack... and I'd hardly call what McDowell wrote as stupidity.

On the game today he agreed with Hawk, it wasn't like he sat there and didn't say anything, he actively agreed with the Hawk about it and I believe he was the one who pointed out that Beckham has basically played all but one or two games since he's been here.

[BearSox]

not on TV he wasn't, where did you hear that?

 

I'm mistaken... I thought someone said that in the gamethread, but when I watched the game on my tivo, Stoney agreed with Hawk.

[Heads22]

For the sake of the Soxtalk I sure hope this happens.

 

If I'm even close to cutting the cord on Anderson....

[ThunderBolt]

"Guillen also took exception to comments made by former Sox teammate Jack McDowell on his blog in which McDowell writes that "it seems manager Ozzie Guillen is not a big fan of Beckham's. Every time the kid's name has been mentioned throughout the year, Ozzie has never uttered a positive word publicly about him."

 

 

Guillen took great extremes to say he protected Beckham from the hype surrounding his ascent to the majors.

 

 

"I think the hype in Chicago was too high," Guillen said. "The prediction was too much for the kid. I know Chicago better than Jack McDowell. I know Chicago better than (Gordon) Beckham. I just try to get fans and media to let this kid alone and let him play the game."

 

Guillen also questioned McDowell's comparisons of Beckham with former teammate Robin Ventura, who also got off to a slow start.

 

 

Guillen pointed out that Ventura, unlike Beckham, was a natural third baseman and a better hitter coming out of college than Beckham.

 

 

"It’s kind of funny because everyone has their opinion and you think people who know about baseball, all of a sudden surprise you that they don’t," Guillen said. "When people have little knowledge about the game, all of a sudden you turn around like, 'oh, I guess he don’t know (bleep) about baseball.' "

Article from White Sox section of Chicagosports.com

Edited June 15, 2009 by Thunderbolt

[lostfan]

I don't usually listen to Hawk's ramblings, and I tend to favor Ozzie-bashers in these cases, but I think I'm going to take Ozzie's side on this one. It really looks like Black Jack overreacted.

[ThunderBolt]

"Ozzie questioned my knowledge (or lack thereof) of the game of baseball because I compared Robin Ventura to Gordon Beckham. Well his own GM Kenny Williams has done the same thing.

 

The similarities are indisputable. Both were college infield stars and great college hitters. Both were first round White Sox picks. Both were brought up to the big leagues quickly. As far as comparisons go, I feel like I was in the ballpark.

 

The recollection that Ozzie has wrong is the fact that Robin was a natural third baseman better hitter coming out of college than Beckham. Beckham hit .411 with a nation leading 28 HR's and 77 RBI's in his final season at Georgia! He has always been seen as an offensive infielder first and foremost.

 

And if you'd ask any person who was with the White Sox when Robin and I came up, Robin was not a gold glover when he was drafted. In fact he had 26 errors in his first full minor league year at Brimingham in 1989. Robin had to work his butt off to become a star defender and consistent gold glove winner.

 

I should know, I roomed with him during those first few years! And while he was a star offensive threat in college, he only hit .278 with 3 HR's that first full minor league season (500 at-bats).

 

So Ozzie can be pissed about me questioning his tactics in protecting Beckham from the hype machine around Chicago, that's opinion vs opinion and style vs style. As far as the other stuff goes, I think that the facts speak for themselves and I'll stick by them!

 

I love Ozzie as a manager, as a teacher and as a friend. When I'm coaching back here in San Diego I find my players asking me where I learned this or that little trick I'm showing them and I find myself saying I learned it from Ozzie Guillen more often than not!"

 

Black Jack's response: http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/black-jack...s-doghouse.html

Edited June 15, 2009 by Thunderbolt

[caulfield12]

Well, I would have to say there was even MORE hype about Ventura because of the DiMaggio like hitting streak he had at OSU, even if he was drafted in a fairly similar position.

 

And I think Ozzie's point was that scouts were already starting to see glimpses of all the hard work that Ventura was putting into the defensive side of things...work that would blossom into the best defensive 3B of his generation with the White Sox, even though a few believe Crede in his prime was better.

 

Perhaps part of it is also to shield Beckham from scrutiny for his defense, as we've moved him around already from his natural SS to 2B and now to 3B in the span of less than one year...and he was already well into double figures in errors at Birmingham 1/3rd of the way through the season.

 

Ventura and Thomas were coming up at a time when the only pressure on them was to succeed individually, but not on a competitive team where there was any pressure on the manager (I guess it was either Fregosi or Torborg that season) to compete for the division title.

 

That wouldn't come until the surprise team of 1990 that seemingly came out of nowhere to compete all season long with the hated A's.

 

So key differences:

 

1) Ventura's hitting streak made him perhaps the most famous player in the country

2) Ventura was allowed to stay at his natural position

3) His 0/41 streak was not juxtaposed against a team fighting for the division crown in a heightened media market

4) There wasn't a 20 year history of failed White Sox position prospects (outside of Durham, Cameron, Lee, Ordonez, Rowand and Crede)

5) Usually Ozzie is "crazy like a fox" trying to defer attention from players and put it back on himself so they perform in and out of the bubble

Edited June 15, 2009 by caulfield12