|
|
Wednesday, December 14th, 2005
| |
3:17 am
|
Well.
Vazquez for Garland made sense.
Vazquez for Garland and Young didn't.
Vazquez for Hernandez and Young made sense.
Vazquez for Hernandez, Young, and Vizcaino didn't.
But according to Kenny Williams, Vazquez + Cash for Hernandez, Vizcaino, and Young is worth doing.
This gives us the world's scariest rotation*
(* denotes uncertainty of performance levels of Jon Garland, Jose Contreras, and Javier Vazquez, but is offset by the luxury of Brandon McCarthy's ability to start)
What this also indicates is that we wren't finished. We can't be. We have 4 guys in our bullpen. It's safe to bet that right now the plan for McCarthy is to pitch out of the pen for a year as a long reliever/swingman until he inherits Garland's rotation spot in 2007, so that gives us 5. We still need AT LEAST one more arm, and we're not going to find anybody in the system to fill the void (Munoz, Diaz, Adkins, and Bajenaru are our underwhelming in-house candidates).
What is looking more and more likely is that we have some free agent we like and think we can ink, or we plan to trade one of our (now) SIX starters to shore up a couple of roster spots.
It's a bold move by Williams, if not an extremely good one.
Buehrle
Garcia
Contreras
Vazquez
Garland
(McCarthy)
That's a rotation you can't even get in most video games.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Tuesday, December 13th, 2005
| |
4:55 pm
|
The afternoon after reports surfaced that the Sox were close to acquiring Javier Vazquez from the Diamondbacks we turned down Arizona's offer, Vazquez for Jon Garland and a prospect (widely believed to be #3 prospect Chris Young). Talks have now stalled, but there is still a possibility of a deal getting done. Expect the Mets and a couple other teams to step up their pursuit of the right hander.
This is at least the 3rd deal for Vazquez that has fallen through. There was a report of him going to Detroit when the Backs wanted Curtis Granderson and Joel Zumaya (way too much to give up), then there was a deal that fell through with the Cardinals (because the Dbakcs wanted way too much) and a failed deal with the Mets.
It sounds like Arizona is treating a Vazquez trade like he's Randy Johnson. Vazquez is a fine pitcher, but he's got enough "what if?'s" on his resume to make him a rosky pickup for a lot of teams, and his huge salary doesn't help. I debated for a while before deciding I'd support a Garland for Vazquez deal, but start throwing prospects around and you're doing something stupid.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| |
5:28 am - Garland working his way out of Chicago
|
I'll say it now so that I may look like a prohpet in 3 weeks.
Jon Garland is the most likely player on the Sox to be traded right now.
Orlando Hernandez is the guy without a job, but Garland is steadfastly refusing to negotiate a long term deal with the Sox with the idea of heading into 2007 as a free agent.
Off the record, nobody can blame him. He's seeing what mediocre pitching is going for nowadays - Matt Morris gets $9M/y, Burnett $11M, even Kenny Rogers, a 40+ maniac got $8M.
I won't even mention the money that Paul Byrd and Scott Elarton will be making next year.
There's not much reason to think that even if (and when) he regresses a bit in 2006, he won't be able to pull in 9-10 million dollars over 4 years. Garland has been as average a pitcher as you could possibly be from 2002-2004, but one big season will make your career (ask Darren Dreifort, who got paid $11M last season). If he repeats his 2005 numbers he'll be a in for a HUGE paycheck, and even if he doesn't, he can always rely on these six things that always bring more money:
1.) He's a high draft pick. Anybody who goes in the first round gets an unlimited amount of second chances and a few extra dollars every time they negotiate a deal. That "first round draft pick" always stays in the back of your mind, and until you turn around 30, somebody - SOMEBODY - always believes you can fulfill that potential, even when it seems hopeless. Which brings me to...
2.) He'll be 26. More than a handful of players, pitchers especially, have "clicked" at the age of 27 or beyond. So no matter what the numbers are, he's still technically before his prime as a player, which will mean dollars. This is also a huge factor on the most important part of the contract, the number of years. He could possibly get himself a 5 year deal from some team. Not us though. No sir. Not a chance.
3.) He doesn't get hurt. 33 starts per year for 4 straight years. That's reliability, which is surprisingly valuable.
4.) He helped bring a world championship to his team, and got some publicity for doing so. When Jarrod Washburn signs his contract in about a month, I garauntee the press release highlights his 2002 championship contributing year. That's THREE YEARS AGO! It'll still get him a few extra bucks.
5.) Whatever kind of stats he pulls in in 2006, he can always say they were compiled (mostly) in a hitter's park, a HUGE hitters park, perhaps the biggest in the AL. This is the "but maybe he'll be better here" factor that mostly applies to teams with bigger stadiums. Added bonus to National League teams who factor in that he'll only be facing 8 hitters instead of 9.
6.) He's a fairly attractive, young white male. You don't think this will make much difference, but ugly players make less money than attractive players. I have piles of statistically significant research here, seriously. How many "GARLAND 20" t-shirts did the southside ladies purchase this year? And how many "CONTRERAS 52" shirts?
Irregardless, Javy Vazquez wants out of Arizona and a lot of people think he could be swapped traight up for Garland. As likely as this to happen or not, it's just the first rumor of many, so don't be terribly shocked when we send away one of the top 4 reasons our 2005 team won the world series.
But don't say I didn't warn you when he signs a 5 year, $47 million contract with the Dodgers.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Tuesday, December 6th, 2005
| |
6:54 am
|
Winter GM meetings are ongoing. Here's who should be available.
-Damaso Marte. Decent value. Everyone wants lefties. Is actively being shopped. High probability of going.
-Orlando Hernandez. Very minimal trade value (age/health issues) unless the market dries up to nothing, and it could, eventually, I guess.
-Jon Garland. Maximum peak value. See explanation below. Still, won't be traded unless it's for a Vazquez type pitcher.
-Joe Crede. Peak value. If we get an offer we can't refuse, we shouldn't refuse it. Won't be traded.
-Chris Young. Peak value. If we acquire an outfielder he goes.
-Ryan Sweeney. Mid-range prospect value. Shouldn't be traded because he was so awful this year.
-Jerry Owens. Peak value. Could go if we see something we like.
-Sean Tracey. Mid-range prospect value. If we trade any minor league pitching he goes, because he's about all that's left.
-Timo Perez. If we still have his rights, I don't know. He has absolutely no value whatsoever. There are dozens of free agents and minor leaguers who are significantly better than he is.
-Willie Harris. Very little value.
-Dustin Hermanson. Absolutely no trade value because of his injury.
-Casey Rogowski. Rogo isn't a big prospect but his position has been filled for the next 5 years. Remember when Chris Young and Rogo were going to Cincinnatti for Ken Griffey? Can we uh, maybe talk about that now?
-Josh Fields. I've got news for you kids, look up Josh Fields' minor league stats. Remind you of anyone?
Yeah. If you think Fields will be the 2007 starting 3B you're nothing more than a cockeyed optimist, my friend. He strikes out like it's going out of style and he sports a whopping .250 batting average without the power numbers to justify it. We'll need some help at third if a.) Crede gets hurt, b.) Crede sucks (both equally likely), and c.) WHEN Crede leaves in free agency. He's a Boras client which means we won't keep him.
And of course:
-Joe Borchard. I don't know if he's even ours, he may be a minor league free agent. If he is he's finished with us. He's got basically no value unless some team desperate for power wants to give us equal garbage for him (Sean Burroughs).
Guys who should not be available despite speculation
-Brandon McCarthy. No sir. I trade Garland before B-Mac. BMC is cheaper and will put up comparable numbers if the last few months of the season meant anything at all. I don't want to trade Garland, mind you, but he's basically decided to go into free agency next year and if he can bring in a pitching upgrade or a significant bat (plus prospects, cause we needs some ahem), why not? Listen, at least.
-Brian Anderson. He should start in center unless we get a beat on an obvious upgrade (corner or center fielder). Even if he doesn't start he should go into srping training as the 4th outfielder, and one hell of one at that. Give Pods his days off to rest the wheels, spell everyone else. He gets the protection over Chris Young because though their trade value is comparably high, but Anderson is ready for the bigs and Young isn't quite just yet, at least not for a team that wants a(nother) ring.
-Freddy Garcia. What are you stupid? Who's starting these Garcia trade rumors? At $9M he's our biggest bargain.
-Robert Valido. He's nothing special, but when it comes to middle infield prospects, he (and 2005 draftee Chris Getz) are about all. we've. got. You'd rather deal from a position of strength obviously.
-Basically the rest of the major league roster.
None of our prospects are untouchable - I learned that when Haigwood and Gio Gonzalez were BOTH tossed into the Thome deal like neither of them had ever made a top 10 list in their lives. We should at least entertain offers for good corner outfielders (to shift Pods to center) or centerfielders if we really are concerned that Brian Anderson isn't ready. (Though I pretty much am).
And I say, though it's heartbreaking, if we get offered the right pitcher for Garland we should really think about it.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Saturday, December 3rd, 2005
| |
4:32 am
|
Life Lesson Learned: Do not leave your towels in the bathroom when your roomates are throwing a party. Potential consequences include finding them hidden in the bathtub covered in some stranger's vomit three hours after everyone leaves.
Rule of Thumb: Don't tell people you're throwing them a birthday party and then act surprised when you request $50 for the booze you bought.
Little Known Fact: Microwave doors can be closed with minimal noise, if proper precautions are put in place.
Unwritten Rule: Winning the award for most sober guy at your place of residence gives you the prestigious honor of cleaning up the vomit all over the bathroom floor and cabinets because you're the only one who notices.
Contrary to Popular Belief: Drinking half a beer doesn't get you drunk, so don't act like you are.
Rant Interruption: Mr. Show is the most underrated show I have ever seen. Find some DVD's and watch it.
People cursed with highly irregular sleeping patters would be best living alone in order to spare an unintentional wake-up call every 2 hours (or so).
I haven't done homework in about a month, which was merely the calm before the storm, as I have to write three 7 page papers and revise 4 others within the next 6 days. I have never agreed with the philosophy of final exams or final projects. Too much of your grade should not rest on any single entity.
I wrote 4 papers in my English class that earned an "advisory grade" of an A. After rereading them and doing a little thinking, I agreed with her. The teacher has threatened all students that the failure to significantly edit all 4 papers will result in your grade being lowered, which I can maybe see for C papers or the like, but come on, you tell me it's an A or a B on a rough draft, don't tell me it's worth a C after I clean it up. I'm going to toss in an extra thought or two, but if I end up with anything below a B I'm going to make her write ME a 7 page paper explaining in great detail why the hell her evaluation of my work dropped do dramatically over the last month.
FOX has cancelled Arrested Development and replaced it with this gem. I though I had already identified the genre of television I had despised the most, but that was before some talentless douchebag invented the "D-List celebrities hopelessly performing some talent with a professional of said talent". I can not imagine the kind of person who was waiting for something like this to happen. I can not imagine there is an audience waiting for these shows. It is painful.
|
|
(1 comment | comment on this)
|
| Wednesday, November 30th, 2005
| |
1:04 am - Here We Go
|
Konerko has turned down an offer from the Baltimore Orioles that reached $65M over 5 years. This is believed to be the biggest offer he has on the table, with the Angels a close second at 5 years / $60M. The offer from the Sox has only been speculated on, and the initial parameters (4 years, $52M) were probably pretty close to the truth. Now it appears that the Sox are willing to toss in the fifth year they know will be necessary to have any chance at keeping Paulie, which could/should bring the annual sum (previously 13 bones a season) down to around 12, or at least (most?) 12.5, so let's say anywhere from $60M to $63M over 5 years. Thats a lot of scratch.
Konerko's agent is making a counter offer to the O's, and even though the price tag will go up (70 mil?) it sounds like Baltimore is taking themselves out of the running and any numbers discussed with them would be pure leverage for the Sox and Angels.
This could be resolved in a couple of days or so, but if you think the Sox will outbid Anaheim you're kidding yourself. They'll top us by a bit more money and it'll be up to Konerko to make the decision.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Friday, November 18th, 2005
| |
7:53 am
|
It's 12 degrees outside, and you know what that means:
It's baseball season!
First hot stove musing of the new season.
Paul Konerko really should be resigned, but realistically, it's a long shot. We're all under this euphoric cloud of championship reign, and man is it ever sweet, but I tell ya if we were just one win shy of a championship the old time pessimism would be reigning strong and it wouldn't be too far off.
Think about it. What's Paulie worth? 10 Million/year. What will we offer? Under normal circumstances (gasp) 9-11 Million/year. But since we've got that thick cloud of groovy feelings going on, we'll go to 12 or maybe 12.5. I can't see us writing a check for 13M/y to anybody, because that would just kill our buzz, dude. We don't write bad contracts - we've seen plenty of them. We WILL be outbid for Paulie. Someone will do the unthinkable and hit the big 15, and I'll tell you what, I'll shy on the hefty side and predict RIGHT NOW that the top offer for Konerko hits 16 million dollars a year. Does he take it? Realistically, yeah, he'll take it. It's double what he's worth, you have to take it. But that cloud, man... it's doing funny things to my judgement.
Let's play the example game: How much money per year is Scott Eyre (the only free agent besides our hero Geoff Blum to sign thus far) worth? I'll tell you: 1.5 - 2 million dollars a year. Because he's left handed we'll be generous and say a solid 2M, and this takes into account his "breakout" season last year, which was the only season even close to "above average" in his entire career. Recognizing an inflated market prognosticators predicted Scott would be a prized jewel to teams looking for bullpen help, i.e., about 28 of them (guess who isn't? BOOYAH.) They said that Scott's big prize would be a third year, and that he'd be looking for 3M/y, which is not worth it but he'll get it. 30 teams, yes, all 30 teams, even our White Sox under the idea that Eyre would make Marte a former White Sox, signed up. Upon hearing the asking price (3 years, 9 Mil) about 22 teams instantly backed out. That's the way it works. In the end, Eyre exceeded expectations by getting himself not the 9 he wanted but ELEVEN MILLION DOLLARS over three years. There is no reason to think that any hitter in demand or even halfway decent pitcher won't absolutely clean up in their new contracts.
Look at last year's example: Magglio Ordonez. Maggs was one of the last free agents to sign. All the other "big" outfielders (Jeromy Slimenitz doesn't qualify) had already signed. The Tigers were basically the only team looking at Ordonez. HE STILL GOT MORE THAN HIS ASKING PRICE. 5 years, 15 Million/year. It took everyone by surprise except Scott Boras - or at least everyone in Chicago.
I see the same thing happening to Paulie. We'll give him a decent offer. Then a good offer. Then we'll start planting the stories "oh, he's being unreasonable, his agent stopped talking to us, we're trying we really are but he wants to explore the west coast" in the Times. Then one day he signs a monster contract worth about 15 Million more than we would even have thought to offer him.
The trade market options that are the most popular are Jim Thome and Carlos Delgado. Don't forget, that when healthy both of these guys are much better players than Konerko. Neither is worth their current contract but things like that can be worked around. The most wide eyed of the optimists, undoubtedly huffing and puffing the sweet post-championship air are calling for the dream lineup of Konerko back home, safely at his corner base, and one of the aforementioned duo as the new full time DH. Therein lies the problem. We don't just need one big masher, we need a pair. Thomas fits the bill, but he's looking like a backup plan more than anything at this point. If Konerko skips town, we'll have a lot of catching up to do.
There is absolutely no reason to think that Brandon McCarthy won't enter the season as the 5th starter. Orlando Hernandez did his job, and you can't regret his signing, but he's either traded or placed in the bullpen this winter. McCarthy wasn't ready last year, but over the last 2 months of the season he left little doubt that he'd be ready for 2006. If tere was ANY market for a 40+ year old injury prone Cuban starter, El Duque, god bless him, would be elsewhere by now. Sadly, there isn't, and everyone who speculated that he'll be a big part of a deal that lands an impressive bat are kidding themselves. If anything, the worst case scenario is another Takatsu situation. Remember when we thought that we could trade Shingo, pass him off as a closer, and get some prospect or major league help for him last year? No. We'd release El Duque sooner than get decent return value in a trade.
People are saying that Aaron Rowand is on the market, and by gar, he ought to be. Rowand had a career year in 2004, and his trade value was at its highest. Unfortunately, Mr. Brian Anderson wasn't quite up to the job as White Sox center fielder then. In fact, he isn't now either, but teams need outfield help, and ARow has proven himself to be a fine glove n even the toughest parks. We should shop him a bit, knowing full well that we dont HAVE to trade him right now, but if we can get an offer thats hard to say no to, then take it baby. Anderson wouldn't be a weak spot in the lineup for 2006. Plant him in the 8 spot or even 9 if he has wheels for it and he'll fit in nicely. His defense is not much worse than Rowands is right now, and most people think he'll be better in the long run. Will he hit .270? Probably not, but he should be in the .260s.
Trading Damaso Marte may prove to be a mistake. Surely, Marte is now the second lefty in the pen now that Neal Cotts has claimed his territory, but Marte is still a good pitcher wose overall value is the lowest it has ever been. Aside from him, there aren't too many other options to be "Lefty #2". Obviously, if we get a good neough offer, he should be shipped out, but just to trade him because of all the bad memories (walk, walk, walk, walk, walk, walk) he's burned in our brains is not a smart course of action.
Where are we going to upgrade? I tell ya, there's not much we can do. Statistically, Podsednik is one of the weaker corner outfielders in baseball, but come on, nobody in Chicago is calling for a replacement. Did Joe Crede make up for his ugly season with a gorgeous October and that walk-off of David Riske? It looks like it. Remember when Juan Uribe was hitting .220? Me either. Working in these guys' favors aside from their impending rings, fantastic defense, and memorable October moments, is that there aren't any sure upgrades anywhere on the market. The Sox need power, the big timers, 1B, DH. That's about it. Maybe a bullpen arm to back up Hermanson (pun intended? maybe maybe not) and a couple of bench players (So long Timo, thanks) and we'll be ready for spring training.
Keep an eye out for the Konerko Report. It's the critical element of this entire winter.
|
|
(1 comment | comment on this)
|
| Thursday, November 17th, 2005
| |
7:34 am
|
"This show was so dumb. It didn't even have a laugh track? How were we supposed to know when it was funny? This show was about a bunch of rich republicans being greedy and sexually immoral."
These are the people that rule America and ruin television.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Tuesday, November 15th, 2005
| |
12:49 am
|
http://mmeiser.com/media/David_Cross_Rant.mov
I've got an idea for what you can do, why don't you fucking fire your complete marketing team, alright, get a new one in there that knows how to maket a show that won 5 motherfucking Emmys, Golden Globes, SAG awards, WGA awards, DGA awards, producer's guilds awards, critics top 10 lists, you know, if you can fuckin' - if you can't market that kind of show and get better ratings, then maybe the problem doesn't lie "here"... maybe it lies with marketing.
Good night.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Wednesday, November 9th, 2005
| |
5:40 am
|
I don't get it Anaheim, what's wrong with Casey Kotchman and Kendry Morales? Seriously? Do they have horrible contagious skin diseases or something? You just have to spend your money on somebody huh? No sense in padding that rotation? Gotta have somebody other than Darin Erstad plug up that 1B hole (for seven years?) until one of your 11 top notch hitting prospects are ready?
Top of my head:
Jeff Mathis (C)
Howie Kendrick (2B)
Erick Aybar (SS)
Brandon Wood (SS)
Casey Kotchman (1B)
Kendry Morales (1B)
Dallas MacPherson (I still consider him a "prospect" - prove me wrong) (3B)
Macier Izturis (no bat) (SS/3B)
Ok let's go to the web and see who I missed:
Alberto Collapso (2B) (i just heard about this guy a week ago, oops)
Yeah, so they had 7,000 guys who are ready to play SS for them and they decided to give a big contract to Orlando Cabrera. They had 3 decent outfielders and they just had to add Steve Finley. I wonder how much money they have stockpiled to buy seven years of Paul Konerko.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Monday, October 31st, 2005
| |
8:44 pm
|
So yesterday I stumbled upon a couple of websites that were dedicated to the practice of "lucid dreaming" which is basically brought about by going to sleep and knowing that you are dreaming, which then enables you to control your environment. I've always been fascinated by lucid dreaming though until yesterday I didn't know the "official" term.
My first lucid dream was many many years ago and started as a nightmare. Standard nightmare: you're a kid and there are a couple of thugs breaking into your house. So the dream is me running around in terror trying to escape until I notice whatever the hell I notice to make me realize that hey, this isn't real, this is a dream! The difference is that sometimes when you realize you're dreaming you just wake up, this became a lucid dream because I stayed asleep, went into my garage, grabbed a baseball bat and beat the thugs up.
I've had other lucid dreams off and on as its something that I subconsciously try to do whenever I can. One of the first things you do if you figure out that you're dreaming is jump around, or more commonly fly. When i "fly" its really more like swimming through air. When I jump its sort of matrix-y but its very slow and I can go as high as I want and descend as slow as I want. The other popular thing to do while lucid dreaming is create a woman, which is actually very difficult. I mean how do you "create" a woman? You have to have a face and a body type all ready and the moment you figure out that you're creating some frankenstein fake woman in your dream you tend to get a little defeated, stop, and move on - it's not as fun. It works much better if you have a woman already in mind, because its less shocking to see someone you're familiar with appear than some frankenstein monster you just built. It's also better because for a person you're already familiar with you know how they will act while with a fake person, they dont act. They just stand there. Again, this signals the charade is up and its time to do more flying.
Last night I was very tired and knew I was going to fall asleep very easily, so I decided to try and have a lucid dream. I dont know how I did, but I did so without having to understand it.
I decided I wanted to play baseball, so I was. I was back at the field in Worth, in my Sliders uniform, and the team was on the field playing. I don't remember who we were playing against but I want to say the Legends. I began to cheer on the team and watched as the first batter hit a routine pop out to right field where my good friend and teammate #7 was playing. #7 moved in for the easy catch, but the ball popped off the fngers of his glove. I was distraught in the dugout but watched the Legends runner go for second base where we surely had an out. #7 threw the ball to #12 at second but the ball sailed through his hands into left field. The runner took third and on an errant throw to the plate scored. If this was my lucid dream I was doing a very poor job. The team on the field began to argue and as the fights turned physical I thought to myself "this is a bad start, I should just wake up and try again"
And I did. I looked at the clock and saw I had been sleeping for about 15 minutes. I fluffed my pillow and took another shot at a lucid dream but failed.
So basically, it was like my brain giving me the finger in dream form. "Oh, you wanna play some baseball? Sure we'll play baseball. Suck on THAT." My brain is a bastard. I guess I'll have to get the hang of it.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Sunday, October 30th, 2005
| |
8:46 pm
|
The following was written by an actual living breathing Cubs fan and has not been altered in any way:
Top Ten Reasons Why the White Sox Still Suck?
1. They can't speak english
2. Sox belong on my feet
3. They need to go out of this country for talent
4. They didn't play against the angels best pitcher,for long,: roberto colon(injured)
5. They didn't play against,for long, Roger Clemens(injured)
6. The Red Sox best pitcher in game 1 of the playoffs in round one was matt clement, he sucks.
7. Minute Maid park roof was open, so Astros got screwed.
8. A.J. Persinski ran to first when he shouldnt of and got the call.
9. They got lucky.
10. CUBS ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Thursday, October 27th, 2005
| |
6:57 pm
|
The White Sox are substituting activity for performance, which is one of the last steps before "unemployment" for a baseball management team. When signing Jermaine Dye to a two-year deal is the good move of the winter, it's a very bad sign. Actually, that shorts the pickup of Tadahito Iguchi, who was kind of a Japanese Ray Durham. Keep in mind that Durham had his last healthy, effective season at 29; Iguchi turned 30 in December.
Carlos Lee is now Scott Podsednik. Frank Thomas might be back in April, May or never. Aaron Rowand is presumably back, taking the place of the alien that played in his body last year. It's one thing to again hope that this is the year Joe Crede finds the keys; it's quite another to need it to be the case. The "small ball" concept should claim another victim this year.
The pitching staff isn't going to make up for the falloff in runs scored. Freddy Garcia and Mark Buehrle are mid-rotation innings guys who get paid like aces. They head a rotation that's long on hope--not just one, but two Cubans with shaky recent track records exiled from the Bronx--and short on anything you can rely upon. The bullpen is better, with two legitimate studs at the back in Damaso Marte and Shingo Takatsu. Ozzie Guillen did an excellent job last year in funneling most of the relevant innings to his nine or so best pitchers, perhaps Guillen's signature skill aside from being quotable. It won't be enough to patch for what is going to be a bad offense.
Projected standings:
White Sox 71-91 749 856
- Joe Sheehan's Preseason Preview
Everything he dissed us on turned to gold, and his biggest compliment (SHINGO and MARTE) turned out to be garbage.
God bless Kenny Williams, because every move he made to bring this team together turned to absolute gold.
Thank you Jerry Reinsdorf, who despite his flaws (and there may be) paid for a first place ballclub.
Thank you Ozzie Guillen, who drove me to the brink of insanity at least 600 times. My biggest complaint of Ozzie style can be split into two minor complaints: 1.) Fucking around with the lineup too much, and 2.) Using his bench poorly, and by poorly, i mean using it too much. In the playoffs he set his lineup and stuck with it. And when we needed the bench, somehow, maybe because they got as many at bats in the season as they did, they all one by one by one came through huge. I am sure that in the next 4 years if Ozzie remains with this team I will call for his head at least once more, but deep down I'll know I'm wrong.
Thank you Scott Podsednik. The trade that brought Scotty to Chicago was ugly on paper. It was the behind-the-scenes aspect of this trade that made it perhaps the best swap ever pulled off in Chicago White Sox history. We needed to clear payroll, and we did so in a brilliant manner. We got a good arm for the pen, one of the top 3 leadoff hitters in the game, and the money we needed to ink Orlando Hernandez. Whether Carlos Lee was truly a bastard or not, he was a perfect trade candidate and I'm sure the Brewers thank us as much as we thank them for this deal. Scotty is a class act, a great ballplayer, and has the hottest fiancee I have ever seen. To think of how much I was ready to hate him if and when his OBP dipped below .300 is now a surreal memory. I am a believer. Watching his walk-off from game 2 will be his 2005 signature, but the second and a half between the time he slides into second and third and the time the ball gets to the shortstop is the most exciting thing in baseball.
Thank you A.J. Pierzynski. I hated A.J.'s guts for the most superficial of reasons; he was an asshole who said "the White Sox suck" and then proved it by destroying our 2001-2003 teams. Clearly, this is illogical, especially given that there are other genuine reasons to hate the man. Now, A.J. is one of my favorite players. He's a bastard. He sets the other team off. He pisses off other teams fans. I get to laugh at his escapades because he's ours. I love it. I fully credit A.J. with taking care of this pitching staff, and I'll never forget his walkoff homer off of YHENCY J BRAZOBAN, which at the time, became the season's early highlight.
Thank you Paul Konerko. Paulie isn't as good as his numbers suggest, but at a time where the 1B position is in a drought outside of the usual suspects, he's one of the best. He was undoubtedly the most important bat on this team, and will be a fantastic 3 or 4 hitter for whatever team he plays for in 2006 (in between the weeks where he hits .220), and I do hope its the Sox. I hate bad contracts, but we should really think about giving him one. He was our MVP this year, and the most indispensable player. On top of it, he's yet another classy guy. His grand slam from game 2 in my mind ended the World Series, despite the failed comebacks that very game by Houston.
Thank you Jermaine Dye. When Magglio Ordonez left in such a dramatic fashion, it left a pair of big shoes to fill. Honestly, I didn't believe anyone could come close without costing us $15 Mil, but at one third of the price you did it all. I had a soft spot for Jermaine since his days with the Royals where he was the "it" player, much like Beltran was last year. I felt he was a bargain, and this year he proved it. World Series MVP is a great thing to have on a resume. If it turns out that Dye was only a 2 year stopgap to plug up right field while Brian Anderson, Chris Young, Jerry Owens, and Ryan Sweeney honed their talents, then he's undoubtedly the best.
Thank you Juan Uribe. Off the top of my head I can count about 6 games he saved wih his absolute cannon of an arm. His swing is ugly. His footwork is ugly. His defense is beautiful. In a world where below-average shortstops (ALEX GONZALEZ FOR $6M!?!?!?) are being payed like royalty, we have a diamond in the rough. Your dive into the Houston seats will be replayed on World Series highlight reels for the rest of your career.
Thank you Joe Crede. Again, redeemed mostly by defense, you earned a spot in Chicago baseball lore with your clutch late-inning power in October. You can hit .240 the rest of your career and I'll still shine your shoes, sir. By gutting it out and playing through two herniated discs in his back for the SECOND HALF OF THE SEASON he exemplified the mentality of this team. All of his game tying and go-ahead home runs are now blurred in my mind into one shot, much resembling the one that put away Cleveland when we really needed to.
Thank you Aaron Rowand. Another player I was ready to toss aside in favor of a younger more promising prospect, his defense is worthy of a gold glove. The way he haunted the Yankees this year was remarkable.
Thank you Tadahito Iguchi. I still remember the cold winter nights I spent reading about his career in Japan, comparing him to the rest of the 2B free agent market, and thinking how big of a steal he could potentially be. I remember waking up last year and translating a japanese website that announced a deal was done. He was the final piece of the puzzle. The 3 runs dagger-in-the-heart shot off of David Wells will never be forgotten.
Thank you Carl Everett. Peter Gammons wrote after the first month of the season that you were the most important person to have in the clubhouse, and I don't doubt him. As crazy as Everett is, he kept the ship steady when Frank got hurt.
Thank you Geoff Blum. I am still, right now, freaked out by that home run. That sealed the deal. I became convinced that someone, be it the baseball gods, the devil himself, or as FOX really liked to suggest the ghost of Joe Jackson was looking over his shoulder. Scary. In my mind, you were acquired for that one at bat, and my god, what a brilliant move it was.
Thank you Willie Harris. When you went opposite field on Brad Lidge, a feat that both teams were seemingly refusing to do all game, I was convinced we were on our way to a world championship.
Thank you Pablo Ozuna. Nobody gave you a chance this spring, and when the rest of the world was waiting for you to stop proving them wrong you refused. Stealing second off of a rattled Josh Paul reminded the Angels that their world was crashing down around them. Utility gold.
Thank you Chris Widger. Widger is maybe the best story on this team. And every time you hear him talk you can tell he's having the time of his life. Taking the walk from Ezequiel Astacio to give Damaso Marte a much needed insurance run was an overlooked but huge at bat.
Thank you Timo Perez. You single handedly beat the Angels once. That was cool. You're also a great guy in the clubhouse. I hope you enjoyed your time in Chicago.
Thank you Frank Thomas. Thank you for 10 years of hall-of-fame caliber baseball. It wasn't a perfect marriage, but you're our biggest star, and every Sox fan will always remember that. Thomas carried this team and was dominant in his short time with the team. You deserve this ring more than anyone.
I apologize to Ross Gload. You deserved better this year, but we couldn't find room for your bat. You got a bad break. We'll see you next year.
Thank you Brian Anderson. Your story with the White Sox is just starting, but 2 blasts off of Felix Hernandez is a nice introduction.
Pitchers next... I have to run...
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Wednesday, October 26th, 2005
| |
5:11 am
|
"After taking a 4-0 lead on Jason Lane's fourth-inning homer, the Astros sent another 47 batters to home plate -- and precisely one of them got a hit. Naturally, that hit was a game-tying eighth-inning double by Lane that made the rest of this marathon possible."
-Jayson Stark
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Tuesday, October 25th, 2005
| |
3:55 pm
|
A houston fan:
"If Chicago can have homefield advantage with their ugly-ass chicks and the thuggish hair-pullers/face-slappers...we get it our way, too. DiamondBacks got an option to keep it open or closed, not an ultimatum. The same should be given to us for at least Game 4, since The Black Sox have no chance tonight either way."
There's your Astros fan for you.
Ugly-ass chicks? Uhhh... I present to you Exhibit A:
Next case please:
Douchebag fans exist in every ballpark.
There are a lot of stupid sox fans. A LOT. Are you telling me your team doesn't have a lot of stupid fans and a lot of douchebags? Seriously? If you believe that, you're one of them.
Moving on:
Curt Schilling argued before MLB to keep the BOB's roof closed while he pitched. He lost. It was absolutely their decision. Not the option of the ballclub. The commisioners office makes all decisions when it comes to the world series.
Disclaimer:
It's hilarious to think that the roof will have any bearing on the outcome of the game. You think the Sox care? Please.
Note:
It probably would matter to the Astros, who are 36-17 With Roof Closed, 15-11 With Roof Open. That's a shame guys.
Note 2:
The Astros should indeed be able to decide what they want to do with their roof in a game they host.
Note 3:
But because they don't, they should shut up and play instead of whining.
Note 4:
What would their excuse be for closing the roof? Unless it rains, is 30 degrees, or 95 degrees, closing the roof shouldnt even be an option. Screw your record. Baseball is an outdoor game.
Note 5:
If I was a betting man, I'd say the Astros win tonight.
Note 6:
I'm not a betting man, let the crusade continue.
A cub fan, Mr. Rob Berndl, Brother Rice class of 2003:
"Dear WhiteSox fans, you may beat the astros in four games and win the world series. For that i send my congrats. However the cubs also managed to beat the astros 9 times this year. So with that being said, im not impressed by your team"
People this stupid shouldnt be allowed to live.
There is no trace of logic in this statement, or the similar argument that the Cubs are as good as the Sox because the 2 split their 6 game series 3-3.
WHAT!?
There's a reason they play 162 games.
There's a reason the invented "playoffs".
Were the 2003 White Sox as good as the 2003 Cubs?
HELL NO!
Were teams that bested the 2004 Red Sox in their season series a better team than the eventual world series champions?
HELL NO!
Were the Devil Rays better than the Yankees this year?
HELL NO!
People that make such statements show clear misunderstanding of the rules, the game, and everything that it entails. You're either blatantly making excuses for your own teams failed expectations or you're just amazingly stupid. Admit to the former or accept the latter.
It is an absurd amount of fun to read articles, message board posts, and chat logs of Houston fans, Cub fans, East Coast lovers, and all other members of the baseball community who wish the Sox weren't on top of the world right now and scramble to find some reason to dismiss a season of great baseball.
Ha. Ha. You know we love it, the more bitter you are the more satisfying it all becomes.
Squawk all you want kids. Good luck next year.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Monday, October 24th, 2005
| |
2:40 am - The Boonewalk
|
|
| Saturday, October 22nd, 2005
| |
1:18 pm
|
Biggest series in baseball history starts tonight. I don't know how to feel. By that I mean, I have no idea how I'm going to feel if/when this is all over, regardless of the scenario. I want it bad though. Very bad.
If we can pull this off, in all honesty, I won't be able to make many complaints about the 2006 roster. But in case we don't:
1. Find money for Konerko. Never has someone been the beneficiary of a terribly weak free agent class than Paulie in 2006. Konerko can expect to get an extra $2-3M per year because there are basically NO other first basemen with any potential on the list and EVERY team with a little money to spend will go after him. We're talking Angels, Mets, Orioles, Red Sox, possibly Yankees, Blue Jays, the potential list goes on. All of these teams will outbid eachother. The next best 1B on the list is Erubiel Durazo, who's really just a DH. After him, there's basically nobody. Konerko will get much more money than he deserves, for 2 or 3 more years than he should get. It will be an ugly contract that any team that inks him will regret 2 years down the line, and if he ever shows a resurgence of his month long slumps or .220 BA he will be hunted down wherever he goes.
But to lose him would kill this team. He's far and away our top hitter. No one else could hit 4th. He's just 29 despite looking like he's 33. He has a huge fan base here. He brought us to a World Series. We have absolutely no one in our farm system who is ready to take over at first. Ross Gload would be an awful option as a starter. Casey Rogowski isn't ready yet. We lost out on Ordonez, and that didn't hurt us, but if we had money for him (at a position that is extremely deep both in free agency and our own farm system) we should find money for Paulie.
As a person prone to cynical and realistic thought, I don't see any way we keep him. We're really going to outbid the Mets? He'd really accept $15M less total to stay in Chicago? There's no way.
2. I'd actually like to sign Erubiel Durazo. Yeah, but not as a first baseman, I like him better as a DH than Everett who may or may not return. Again, the potential DH market is very thin. You're looking at Everett, Piazza, Rafael Palmeiro, and a host of other embarassing candidates. I wouldn't mind having Everett back but we should be able to do so much better. Soooo much better. Clubhouse presence aside, he's a very weak option.
Again, our only DH option is Brian Anderson, and he's a better fielder than probably 2 of our 3 outfielders. He's also not quite ready to be a productive MLB hitter. As close as he is.
3. The only free agent bats out there that intrigue me at all are Brian Giles, Durazo, Octavio Dotel, and Maybe even Nomar. Dmitri Young if we're desperate. We have no room (except the DH slot) for any of them.
4. The only guys who we have that are Free Agents are Konerko, Everett, and Thomas. Geoff Blum is a free agent but also the most replacable player on the planet. That means that the only holes in our ENTIRE ROSTER are on the big bat section of the lineup. It's nice to have minimal holes, but when you know you're only going to need a guy as a DH you start doing stupid things like sign Sammy Sosa or Juan Gonzalez, Tim Salmon, or Rafael Palmeiro. Or Tino Martinez, Ruben Sierra, or Travis Lee. Let's not try that. The number of bad 1B/DH options are astounding. The number of good ones are slim.
5. The ony place we need to spend money this winter is our arbitration eligible guys. I don't have a formal list but I think this includes Garland, Pierzynski, Crede, Podsednik(?), Marte(?), and Rowand(?). I don't expect us to non-tender anyone, but they're all going to get raises that might make free agent spending hard to do.
6. Our rotation is set. Don't touch it. Buehrle, Garcia, Garland, Contreras, McCarthy. Hernandez moves to the pen and still hurts his shoulder somehow. Did you know that even with his ugly 5 or 6 starts or so in the beginning of the season, BMac still finished with an ERA of 4.03!?!? AND TEAMS WOULDNT ACCEPT TRADE OFFERS FOR THIS GUY!?!??!
7. Candidates for trades that we should think about moving for the right return: Hernandez (will be moved if we get any offers on him at all), Marte (very likely to be moved), and maybe Vizcaino. Marte had good value at the deadline. Probably won't anymore.
So basically if we do nothing, the payroll will still increase because of the arbitration deals. With us losing the DH trifecta that gives us $22M of money to spend on both raises and free agents. Expect a slight increase in payroll, but don't forget:
-Buehrle gets an extra $3M
-Dye gets an extra $1M
-Hernandez gets ~ an extra $1M
-Hermanson get's an extra something
-Pollitte get's an extra something
The payroll was at ~$75M, those raises put it to 82, a blind estimate of arbitration raises takes it to ~$89. It could end up being more depending on what happens with Garland especially. Subtract the 22 from the DH trifecta and we're already at $67M for the 2006 payroll. A payroll that is nearly complete, but still. I'd bet the 2006 payroll falls in the range of $78-83M. So a best case scenario gives us $15-16M to spend on our 3 and 4 spots of the lineup.
That's the most B.S. math anyone has ever executed, and adding in the buyout of Thomas's contract ($3M) a more realistic estimate is around $12-14M.
That'd be just peachy excpet the only 1B worth spending over $4M on is Konerko, and he'll be getting about $12-14M. That'd be the entire free agent budget. The DH spot would then have to go to Anderson (Dye) or a throaway $1M contract to Travis Lee or his general equivalent.
If we spend ~$7.5M on two good bats to shore up our lineup, or the equivalent of a $7.5 increase through a trade, then who knows, there may be life after Konerko.
Free agency musing is a pretty decent way to deal with World Series Anxiety (WSA), which unfortunately is not yet acknowledged by the DSM-IV.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Thursday, October 13th, 2005
| |
3:24 am
|
We deserved to win that game just as much, if not more, than LA. Those upset that the Sox won on a controversial call are insinuating that somehow the Angels deserved it more. They did not. If anything they deserved three more outs, and after watching the ball seemingly skip into Paul's glove, I'm not so sure they should have gotten them.
God Bless Mark Buehrle.
|
|
(comment on this)
|
| Saturday, October 8th, 2005
| |
9:23 pm
|
|
| |
2:48 am - Fuck you, Berman
|
I don't ever want to hear Chris Berman announce a baseball game again. He made me fucking sick. If I was watching the Boston broadcast of the game I'd expect to hear the play by play man drooling all over the home team, but for God's sake, this is upposed to be a national unbiased broadcast. You fucking suck at your job, Berman. Give it up.
This guy got it right:
http://chicagosports.chicagotribune.com/sports/columnists/cs-051007sherman,1,2430845.column?coll=cs-home-utility
Hey-hey-hey, goodbye, Berman!
by Ed Sherman
So long to hearing endless stories about the Boston Red Sox. Goodbye to Babe Ruth, breaking the curse and blah, blah, blah.
And most of all, see you later, Chris Berman.
The White Sox spared their fans from hearing Berman call another one of their games on ESPN. Thank you, El Duque.
Berman was tolerable during the first two games, giving each side a fair shake. But Friday, he walked into Fenway Park, sniffed the Boston air and began to overdose on the Red Sox.
It almost felt like a Cubs fan hearing Ken Harrelson call one of the cross-town games. There is little question that "Boomer" is an enthusiastic guy, but he went too far in Boston's favor Friday.
Berman nearly jumped out of the booth on the calls for David Ortiz's and Manny Ramirez's back-to-back homers. He then almost hyperventilated, thinking Trot Nixon followed with a third straight homer. It turned out to be a routine fly.
In the sixth inning, while the White Sox scored two runs to take a 4-2 lead, Berman said, "The Red Sox can't let this game get away."
Then when Juan Uribe struck out to end the inning, he said, "Maybe that's the lift Boston needs." Huh?
The final two innings were excruciating as Berman started to eulogize the end of Boston's reign. He rhapsodized about how wonderful it has been in New England. It was enough to make me never want to watch "Cheers" again.
Berman also asked, "Could [Boston] be low in the tank?" Boston had to be spent mentally to lose three in a row to the White Sox, right?
At that point, most White Sox fans wanted to throw their Nellie Fox bats at the television.
The White Sox, though, put viewers in a Berman-free zone for the rest of the postseason. Winning is sweet, isn't it?
WGN-Ch. 9 lost its picture briefly during the opening moments of the game. ESPN had warned the station beforehand there could be a technical issue with the sun affecting the satellite.
esherman@tribune.com
|
|
(comment on this)
|
|
|
|
|
![[info]](http://l-stat.livejournal.com/img/userinfo.gif){kind=small}
dts's journal