Soxfest 2012 announced

[Balta1701]

cherann23 cheryl

Dynamic pricing bein rolled out next week with tix goin on sale. #SoxFest

[Balta1701]

Ventura, who admitted in a previous session that he's aware that video of the incident, in which Ryan gets him in a headlock before he starts slugging his skull, is shown before Texas Rangers games to the delight of some easily entertained fans. The Sox open the 2012 season at Rangers Ballpark - where Ryan serves as team president.

 

“Really, what the teams were going through at the time, there was a lot of back and forth," Ventura recalled. "Sometimes as a player, you pick a spot that something needs to happen. It’s not like he derailed a promising UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) career. So it is what it is, but that was something I had to do as a teammate."

 

Sox announcer Hawk Harrelson recalled that he asked Ventura after the game, "What is this?"

 

Hawk said he was told by Ventura: "Hawk, he (upset) me when he hit me, and I got halfway there and I said, ‘my God, that’s Nolan Ryan out there.’’

 

Harrelson: “And then he ducked his head right into a headlock.”

Ouch.

[Balta1701]

 

 

 

 

 

[Balta1701]

Many of the groans heard throughout U.S. Cellular Field have stemmed from Chicago White Sox's players making first-pitch outs.

 

New hitting coach Jeff Manto is aware of cries for the Sox's hitters to work deep counts, but he believes that approach varies. He explained his views during a SoxFest seminar with fans.

 

"We’re going to play the game, whatever the game calls for," said Manto, the Sox's roving hitting instructor four seasons. "I know taking pitches and taking strikes, that works for some but doesn’t work for everyone. You analyze each situation and get it right."

 

Obviously, Manto doesn't want to take away the aggressiveness of some hitters. A.J. Pierzynski, for instance, batted .386 on the first pitch last season but batted only .195 on a 2-2 count and .207 on a full count.

 

Alexei Ramirez is a career .341 hitter on the first pitch but has batted .205 with a 1-2 count during his first four major league seasons.

 

Sox announcer Hawk Harrelson added: "Going deep in the count is one of the most overrated phrases in baseball."

 

Manto made a point to praise former Sox hitting coach Greg Walker, who will handle those duties in Atlanta.

 

"He taught me a lot of things," Manto said. "I have nothing but good things to say about Walk. He’s definitely a tremendous person, and I’m glad he landed on his feet. I don’t think anyone didn’t expect it because he’s such a good hitting coach."

Link

[Julius]

Saw this "dynamic pricing" phrase in the pocket schedules. Is the opening bid for a ticket at $1 and then rises from there?

[Balta1701]

Nobody beats him because he's the Widge!

[almagest]

Link

What do they bat on a 2-0, 2-1, 3-0, or 3-1 count? I get that they don't want to take away the aggressiveness from a hitter, but you don't take pitches and get into bad counts all the time, or even most of the time I'd bet.

 

[ewokpelts]

Saw this "dynamic pricing" phrase in the pocket schedules. Is the opening bid for a ticket at $1 and then rises from there?

it means that prices will go up based off demand. that the price in the schedule will not be the same as when you go to the box office.

 

"buy now" to get the "better " rate.

 

this program has failed 2 years in a row becuase the true market rate is stubhub. why pay the sox $41 for a bleacher seat on a saturday night in august, when you can get the seat next to it on stubhub for $25?

 

look at this:

http://www.stubhub.com/chicago-white-sox-t...reIdForTab=5645 There are ALREADY game dates with tickets under $6. The lowest a ticket can be at the box office is $7.

 

the language for dynamic pricing suggests that steep discounts will exist to lure in buyers. i've only seen the prices go up. never down.

 

of course, if you buy group tickets, those prices are set. same as a 7/14/27/81 game plan. this applies to individual box office prices.

Edited January 28, 2012 by ewokpelts

[Swingandalongonetoleft]

The crowd reaction was very loud & positive when he was announced. I was there, so I didn't get to hear his interview with Kustok.

 

Saw it on tv, but I toonever heard the interview. For some reason, I experience tunnel vision and become deaf/mute (temporarily) whenever I see her. It looked like an awesome interview. Compelling, and rich.

Edited January 29, 2012 by Swingandalongonetoleft

[The Ginger Kid]

Best thing I've read so far from Beckham...

"People are going to chase (bad pitches) when you don't feel good at the plate. Last year, I looked back at my swing, and I'm trying to load (my hands) and hit at the same time. You can't do that. You have to be ready to hit, on time. And I wasn't on time. That was causing me to make bad decisions."

[Milkman delivers]

Best thing I've read so far from Beckham...

 

Took him the entirety of a season to figure that out, huh?

[Quin]

Took him the entirety of a season to figure that out, huh?

 

Greg Walker

[Whitewashed in '05]

Greg Walker

Honestly, it could very well be that Becks tuned Walk out. Probably a bunch of other people too if he himself just noticed.

[Balta1701]

Honestly, it could very well be that Becks tuned Walk out. Probably a bunch of other people too if he himself just noticed.

It doesn't sound like that from what others have said, it's sounded more like the opposite, that he was trying to take everyone's suggestions into account simultaneously.

[Balta1701]

The 2011 season ended with Beckham going hitless in eight of his final 12 games, finishing the last two months hitting .198 with 40 strikeouts.

 

He found himself behind in the count in 211 of his 499 at bats and struck out 111 times. He hit just .230 on the season with a .296 on base percentage and .633 OPS.

 

It was gone.

 

He packed up his things.

 

The Sox had missed the playoffs for the fifth time in six years, and it seemed as if the 24-year-old phenom, who was once deemed untouchable in trade talks, was now at a career crossroads.

 

“I don’t ever want to feel that way again,” he said.

 

***

 

Fllp, blink, flip.

 

In December, Beckham rediscovered it.

 

He maintains his swing had never changed, that it’s too easy to just say he’s “going back” to what worked for him at Georgia and in 2009. But somewhere between then and 2011, something broke down.

 

“I had to be perfect,” he said. “There’s a million ways to describe that but I had to be perfect in my load and the way I hit and if it wasn’t perfect, I didn’t hit.”

 

He placed no blame on former hitting coach Greg Walker. He put it all on his own shoulders, or more telling, his own head.

 

“The reason I struggled last year was I swung at bad pitches,” he said. “What causes that? Well, that’s caused from a little bit of uncertainty, a little bit of anxiety, trying to go up there and get a hit every time is not an easy thing to do.”

 

Then the proverbial snowball began to roll.

 

“I let it beat me down last year,” Beckham said.

 

New Sox manager Robin Ventura could relate. He was a college star at Oklahoma State and spent just 129 games in the minor leagues before being called up in 1989. Only he collected just eight hits in his first 58 plate appearances. In 1990, he went 16 games without a hit at one point and didn’t crack the Mendoza line for good until mid-June.

 

Kenny Williams knows where Beckham's coming from, too. The GM joked during Sox Fest his career was “all downhill” after his first major league plate appearance.

 

“He’s a really talented kid,” Ventura said of Beckham. “I just want him to go play and not worry so much about what’s expected of him and try to go to the plate and go 10-for-20 when all you can do is go to the plate, try and have a good at bat, and see what else happens.”

 

Williams took it a step further, saying all he expected out of the now 25-year-old second baseman is to play to win, and to have fun. So much so he made the statement twice.

 

“The success will be there at the end if he just lightens up a little bit on himself and it goes back to being a game,” Williams said.

 

That positivity, along with Beckham’s rediscovery taking mere flips in December, has helped him rediscover what was missing.

 

“Legitimately, yes,” he said. “You don’t usually think you’re going to get something like that but yeah, absolutely (I found it). By the way the bat is coming through the zone, the way the bat is lagging. Obviously it’s just flips and we’re getting loose and stuff like that, it’s not 95 (miles per hour), but it will hold up. What I’m doing now will hold up. It just feels like I’m getting to the point where my bat is just flying through the zone in the right way.”

 

***

 

Standing off stage following a seminar, Manto’s eyes lit up when he heard of Beckham’s renewed confidence, how he could just feel that it was right, that it was back.

 

“That’s how I know Gordon’s mind’s right,” said the new Sox hitting coach. “I’m a feel coach, I’m a mental coach. That’s important to me and it’s important to the swing. I believe to get to the major league level, you have mechanics already. To hear Gordon think about the things we used to talk about in the minor leagues, it’s good that he’s remembering those things.”

 

Beckham exuded confidence at SoxFest, an air that reminded many – but most importantly, himself – of the player he was a few short years ago.

 

“I lost a little confidence last year, but recently I’ve really felt like myself, moreso than I’ve ever felt like myself in the last two years,” he said. “I feel like I’m back to being that confident guy that can really go out there and carry people sometimes when I’m doing well. I’m kind of back to that situation. I feel good about where I’m at mentally. Physically I feel good. My swing is the thing – it’s there.

 

“You know it when you see it, and you can feel it and it’s there.”

CSN

[Balta1701]

Flowers article

"I think I'm in a good spot if I'm just backing up and not being able to play as regularly as I'd like," Flowers said. "There's still a lot of education in being up here for a full season, learning from A.J. over the course of a full year to see how a guy like himself prepares everyday. And just getting the experience of being around an entire big-league season, I think it's going to beneficial no matter what my playing time is throughout the year."

 

Flowers and Pierzynski didn't exactly get along when they first met, though. In a seminar Sunday, Flowers mentioned that he and Pierzynski had some confrontations early on, but now are on good terms and talk quite a bit.

 

Maybe the tense nature of their nascent relationship was due to the fact that Flowers was penciled in to take Pierzynski's spot on the roster down the road. If all went according to plan, Flowers would've took over as the White Sox starting catcher in 2011. Pierzynski, solidly in his mid-30's, would have his contract expire following the 2010 season, which saw him post a career-low OPS of .688.

 

But Flowers hit just .220 with a .344 OBP in 2010 with Charlotte with an alarming 121 strikeouts. During that season, Flowers worked on making some tweaks to his swing and plate approach that were handed down by Kenny Williams, Greg Walker and Jeff Gellinger. He initially struggled with those changes, but instead of trying to revert back to his old swing and approach, Flowers worked through his issues and produced at a high clip in Triple-A last year.

 

"It's becoming more and more normal to me over time," Flowers said. "It's been a couple years now working with that approach and that swing. It's been very consistent this offseason. I'm definitely looking forward to putting it together in spring against live pitching, seeing how it holds up and where the problems come in."

 

Three years ago, few would've predicted Flowers' offense would be his greatest question mark. His defense earned poor reviews by many who saw him, with his footwork, arm and body type leading to predictions that Flowers' ultimate destination was at first base or designated hitter.

 

But in his 262 2/3 innings at the major-league level in 2011, Flowers wasn't a disaster behind the plate. Far from it -- he was, at worst, capable.

 

He didn't need to prove anything, at least to the White Sox. The front office has been telling him for years how happy they are with his defensive improvements. His teammates have his back, too.

 

"Tyler's come a long way," said starter Jake Peavy. "Since I got traded over here, I was in the minor leagues with Tyler watching him develop.

 

"He deserves to be in the big leagues. Obviously, we have A.J. Pierzynski and his track record throughout his career speaks for itself. But we have two very good catchers on this roster."

 

In filling in for Pierzynski for most of the month of August, Flowers developed a good rapport with the team's pitching staff, which remains largely intact heading into the 2012 season, except for one big name.

 

"I had a good one with [Mark] Buehrle," Flowers said with a wry grin. "Too bad he's not here.

 

"The other guys, we all have good relationships. I felt like we had a lot of success together. It helped solidify the opportunity to be a catcher here in Chicago, to have that good experience, to have some success working with guys and have that carry over into the season, it's definitely a good thing."

 

Take it from Peavy. Flowers has earned this chance, even if it's just as a backup.

 

"He's a big-league catcher," Peavy said. "That's the bottom line."

[Balta1701]

Tons of readable quotes at Reifert's blog.

[Balta1701]

At 9 a.m. today, Coop was already working on the pitching schedule for Spring Training. He was surrounded by paperwork and wrote out the team’s March pitching plans on a legal pad, sliding them across the table for Robin and Mark Parent to review.

 

“You’ll throw the second day of spring,” Coop said to Phil Humber, who had just sat down with his breakfast. “Plan your workout schedule around that.”

 

“Great,” answered Humber.

Nice.

[greg775]

Honestly, it could very well be that Becks tuned Walk out. Probably a bunch of other people too if he himself just noticed.

 

Didn't Walker immediately land another hitting coach job the moment it was obvious he wouldn't be back with the Sox?

Just saying, maybe he's not the devil.

[Balta1701]

"I'm not potty trained."

-Cliff Politte

[southsider2k5]

Flowers article

 

remember when people questioned the idea that AJ wouldn't help Flowers? There you go.

[Balta1701]

Reifert's final wrapup:

Must’ve heard the word “consistency” 50 times during the LOOKING AHEAD seminar: Farmer w/Tyler Flowers and the Brents, Lillibridge and Morel. In approach, routine, mentally, physically, “consistency” is key during a long season, especially for a young player. Other tidbits:

 

-When a fan said she and her son saw him at a community event last season, and her son told Tyler he’d hit a home run that night, which Tyler did, his response: “I like that.”

 

-Lillibridge on Konerko: “We all thrive off of Paulie.”

 

-Morel: “The best players in the game understand how to deal with failure.”

 

-Flowers: “I like facing guys with high ERAs. Guys with low ERAs tend to be better pitchers.”

 

-Lillibridge on how he’s improved as a hitter: “I made a point to not miss pitches down the middle or get into a hole by swinging at bad pitches. I try to think up the middle – because if you’re late, it goes to right field, if you’re early, it’s probably still fair in left, and if you’re on time, it’s a shot up the middle.”

 

-Also said his favorite position is his natural one, shortstop, but ”I love to play anywhere in the infield, and I like playing center and running around and jumping the wall.”

 

-When asked how he felt playing first base last season when Paulie was hurt: “I’m comfortable over there, but I felt bad because I was such a small target. I stood on the base so the guys could see me.”

[Balta1701]

White Sox threaten to start beanball war

One fan's question to the coaching staff about the lopsided statistics brought much interest to a large crowd Sunday at SoxFest.

 

"You hit our guy, we'll hit your guy," said new bench coach Mark Parent, whose reply was met with scattered applause.

 

Sox batters were hit 84 times last year, compared to opponents getting nailed only 44 times. New manager Robin Ventura, who was peppered with another question about his bench-clearing brawl with Nolan Ryan 19 years ago, explained how the Sox would police this issue should it arise.

 

"I don't pitch, and it's not going to be a necessary order," Ventura said. "But the game takes care of itself and the pitchers, we want to protect our own guys.

 

"If we feel it's necessary, obviously the game takes care of itself and guys take care of their own teammates. That's important for the guys on our team and staff to know we're standing behind each other and protect each other."

[BigSqwert]

Didn't Walker immediately land another hitting coach job the moment it was obvious he wouldn't be back with the Sox?

Just saying, maybe he's not the devil.

So you're saying as long as someone hires you to coach, you're automatically an excellent coach? How many awful coaches do you see get recycled in all of the major sports?

[greg775]

So you're saying as long as someone hires you to coach, you're automatically an excellent coach? How many awful coaches do you see get recycled in all of the major sports?

 

I'm saying he obviously has a way better reputation than Sox fans who have fried him on here give him credit for since he landed another big league job so quickly.

The guy obviously puts in the work and has a decent philosophy. It's not necessarily his fault if the guys with the bats in their hands don't listen and/or fail.

Edited January 31, 2012 by greg775