Chicago White Sox 2012 Prediction

Every time I want to resign myself with the notion that this 2012 squad might be the worst White Sox team ever assembled, I quickly think about every Sox team from 1986-1989, and I abandon that notion. THOSE teams set the standard for abysmal, and in comparison to this team, the 2012 White Sox look like the 1927 Yankees compared to say the 1988 team.

Even after all of that, this is still not a good team that will be taking the field on Friday. Much like their North Side counterparts, the White Sox are a team with bad contracts tied to aging veterans. They have no hope of someone coming up from their minor league system to save them, and aren’t one or two, but more likely five trades away from contending again.

Still though, I’m not nearly as pessimistic about their chances of being watchable. That might change after one broadcast of listening to Hawk Harrelson, but for now I don’t think this team is deplorable.

One of the reasons I’m looking forward to this White Sox season is (shh don’t tell anyone) Adam Dunn has looked much better this spring, mainly because he’s taking Walks again. Gordon Beckham doesn’t look as over matched at the plate, and maybe Chris Sale can become a decent starting pitcher? Maybe Robin Ventura could be a good manager? We won’t really know until he gets some proven talent at his disposal, but for now I think he’ll do fine. He certainly won’t be as clueless as Terry Bevington.

All of those things pertain to the short term however, and are quickly tempered by the realization that the long term future of the White Sox is screwed as long as Kenny Williams is responsible for it. I personally am relieved that Ozzie Guillen and his carnival act is now playing in Miami, but I remain disappointed that Kenny Williams was retained – even if Williams may have made a good managerial hire in Robin Ventura.

I have no confidence that Williams will be able to draft the prospects necessary to keep the franchise in contention over the next 5-7 years, and judging by the minuscule returns he received in the trades he has made, I don’t expect him to get good value on the few players he is able to move. I hope I'm wrong.

Who to Watch In The Lineup: I already mentioned Dunn could be good again, and that Beckham could be good FINALLY. I’m curious to see if Brent Morel can learn to take walks in addition to carrying his stark increase in Home Run to Fly Ball Ratio he posted in September over to this season. It's also now or never for Dayan Viciedo. When you get right down to it, the White Sox could actually be good if all of them have "normal" seasons. As simple as that appears to be, it's also not realistic.

Who to Watch Pitch: Chis Sale is the most intriguing one of the bunch, particularly because he's making the difficult transition from reliever to starter. For most of his career, we have been told that Sale possesses Starter Stuff. It will be interesting to see if he can make the switch. John Danks always bears attention but now he's got the 5 year $65 million contract extension. For better or worse Danks is the White Sox present and future of their starting staff.

Bottom Line: I believe this White Sox team will finish 81-81. When they are on their game, they do a lot of things well, but not well enough to win the division. Sort of a "Jack of All Trades, Master of None" type of team. It won't amount to anything more than spinning their wheels, unless this organization finally gets serious about drafting and development.

Drafting and Development is not what Kenny Williams does however.

WHAT?!

I think the title sums up around 90% of people's reaction to the news today that the Chicago White Sox have named Robin Ventura their 39th manager in franchise history. "WHAT!?" The rest of the 10% of people are the baseball retards that said "Ain't that there that sum-bitch that done got his ass beat by Nolan Ryan?"

This is utterly confusing, surprising, and most importantly creates more questions than it does answers. The reaction is pretty universal no matter what side people take : "Robin Ventura was a very good to great player, but he has no experience managing or coaching at any level of baseball. Why would he be the right fit?"

In terms of how good of a player Robin was, there's no real debate in my opinion. Robin was as solid as it gets as a player. While he wasn't Mike Schmidt at the dish, he could still hit with any of the contemporary third baseman of his day, and his defense was constantly superb. Even the Saber-Nerds recognize and appreciate Ventura's career as he qualifies for their Hall Of Fame Standards with an above 60 career WAR (61.5).

What should also be pointed out with regard to Ventura the player, is that many of his teammates had him pegged to eventually become a manager in the big leagues. Ventura has always been a student of the game according to many of his peers, and I don't doubt his ability to understand and master baseball strategy as a manager.

The big issue for me however, is that managing in MLB is not simply implementing strategy, but it's also dealing with 25 different ego's and personalities in that locker room, not to mention dealing with a combative and sometimes blood-thirsty media and fan base. Can Ventura handle those types of pressure and expectations, in addition to making big time managerial moves during games? We'll have to wait and see on that one.

Has something like this been successfully done before? The good news is yes it has. Larry Dierker was the color commentator for the Houston Astros from 1979-1996, when he suddenly found himself managing the Astros in 1997, with zero coaching experience prior. In 1998, Dierker was named National League Manager Of The Year. So there is some precedent for something so random as this being successful.

Ultimately though, Ventura - like every manager in the big leagues - will only be as good as his roster allows him to be. If the Big 3 Disasters of Rios, Dunn, and Beckham have seasons like they did in 2011, it will make life very difficult for Robin as a manager. On the other hand, if just one of those Big 3 rebound to a normal season, life will be easier for Robin.

Either way though, the White Sox certainly got people's attention today. They still managed to shock people outside of their fan base, while sticking to their trademark pattern of hiring a first-year manager.

Will it work like it did the last time with Ozzie Guillen? Hope springs eternal...

2011 Chicago White Sox Preview

“All In”. It’s the mantra, marketing slogan, and philosophy the White Sox have been operating under since the start of the offseason. General Manager Kenny Williams has increased the payroll to an all time franchise high of $128 million with some splashy acquisitions and re-signings. While it has never been Kenny Williams M.O. to rebuild, or stand pat, this is still pretty ballsy even for him. Williams has dramatically reshaped the White Sox into a slugging lineup with the acquisition of Adam Dunn. Kenny retooled the bullpen by acquiring Jesse Crain and Will Ohman, while also removing Scott Linebrink and Bobby Jenks from the equation. Williams also did right by re-signing team captain and perennial fan favorite Paul Konerko to a lucrative 3 year contract.


The message from Williams and The Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf is loud and clear: “Win Now”. Will it work? In my opinion, it won’t depend on what the new players’ do, but rather what production the certain established veterans already on the team will provide.

The Good –

Good Vibrations: It appears that all of the B.S. drama between Kenny and manager Ozzie Guillen has been buried, or at the very least taken a big back seat to the larger task at hand. Konerko admitted in a radio interview, that the tension between Williams and Guillen last season WAS in fact a distraction that affected the ballclub in a negative way. Kenny and Ozzie seem determined for that to not be the case in 2011, and so far there has been nothing but harmony between the two. That harmony will need to continue for this season to be a success.

Other than the freakish case of Jake Peavy, the White Sox had a very injury free Spring Training. I believe that’s a very positive sign. If you don’t believe that sort of thing is important, go ask the St. Louis Cardinals or Philadelphia Phillies if health in Spring Training matters. The overall team won-loss record of Spring Training doesn’t look good, but I’ll take the relatively dull Disabled List any day.

Balance: While Adam Dunn theoretically gives the Sox tremendous On Base and Slugging Percentages, specifically from the left side of the plate, they still aren’t a one dimensional, station-to-station base running team thanks to players like Juan Pierre, Alexei Ramirez, and Alex Rios. So while they should be able to hit close to 200 home runs again, the lineup will also have the ability to manufacture runs, should the need arise.

The Bad –

Bullpen Questions: For as much affinity that I have for Matt Thornton, he is still an unknown now that he’s the official White Sox closer. He has the stuff to be the closer, but I can’t consider him “bankable” simply because he hasn’t done it full time. I also feel the same way about Chris Sale. While Sale certainly was impressive last season, he’s also far from “bankable” in his role especially since his role has not been clearly defined for him yet. Jesse Crain should be ok, but I’m distrustful of Will Ohman. It will be very interesting to see if this bullpen equation works the way it’s been designed.

Teahen/Morel: The two-headed monster that will occupy third base for the White Sox this season. Morel has been named the starter, and he’s been instructed not to worry about his hitting, but he instead should focus on maintaining his excellent defense. That sounds EXACTLY like what they told Brian “She’s New” Anderson in 2006, and we obviously know that movie didn’t have a happy ending. I’m concerned the same thing will happen with Morel. Teahen has been one of Kenny Williams failures thus far. I didn’t mind that Kenny traded for him, but there was no need to give Teahen a three year extension when he didn’t have to? Teahen can hit, but he’s a butcher in the field, while the opposite appears true for Morel. Personally I think going with Morel is the right way to go, but I’ve been wrong before…

Prediction –

This White Sox team has been predicted by some to win the AL Central this season. I will not be one of them. For the past ten seasons now, the Twins always find a way to make life hell for the Sox. I have no reason to believe that won’t continue in 2011.

Still for the White Sox to get over the hump, I believe it will come down to not only the bullpen performing at a high level, but Gordon Beckham taking the next step and becoming an All-Star this season will need to happen as well. I’m convinced that Beckham is the lynchpin of this team, and it’s not a coincidence in my view that as he struggled in the first two months of last season, so did the White Sox. I’ve got the White Sox down for 85 wins, on the caveat that if Beckham fulfills his promise (and to a lesser degree Carlos Quentin), and the bullpen does what it needs to, I believe the Sox finally win the division for the first time since 2008.

Starting To Get The Itch

For those who may not have noticed, barely a week after the Super Bowl and a week before the NBA All-Star Game, Spring Training is about to begin. For the Cubs pitchers and catchers report tomorrow 2/14, while the White Sox pitchers and catchers report Thursday 2/17. You can find a complete list of all the other teams report dates here. It's hard to believe in many respects for us baseball fans, but it's that time of year. Both teams have plenty of questions heading into the regular season, and spring training can provide some answers to those questions. On the other hand, Spring Training can also provide new questions to be asked, due to possible injuries or poor performance. Here's a list of things I'll be keeping an eye on for both teams :

CUBS :

• New Faces : The Cubs weren't too splashy this offseason, but made interesting moves nonetheless. The Carlos Pena rental is intriguing. Even in a down year last year he still hit 28 home runs and still nearly drew 100 walks. Pena's teammate in Tampa Matt Garza is an interesting move too. While not popular in the clubhouse, Garza can be effective with flashes of dominance. Really all he needs to be is a better pitcher than the recently departed Tom Gorzelanny, and the Cubs rotation should improve. While not technically a new face, Kerry Wood took a huge discount to re-sign with the Cubs. Wood pitched very well in an 8th inning role with the Yankees last season. All three players are worth watching this spring.
• Looking For Comeback Years : Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano were huge disappointments for the Cubs. Zambrano had a roller coaster of a season, but I'll say this for him, he finished really strong. If the Cubs get the Zambrano they had from August 9 on, that will be big....but honestly that's nothing new. Ramirez however is a bigger worry, as he posted one of the lowest OPS' since his Pittsburgh Pirate days. He was flat out awful last season, much of it blamed on a slow start and an injured thumb. Ramirez is going to have to have a huge comeback season for the Cubs lineup to work. I will be watching Zambrano's velocity, and Ramirez's bat-speed this spring to see where they're at.
• Tyler Colvin? Hey, he's earned a spot. .816 OPS in 358 At Bats is nothing to sneeze at. Colvin looks like a good hitter, but there's nowhere to put him as long as Pena is at first and Fukudome is in right field. This will be fun to watch Mike Quade handle this situation this spring.

White Sox :

• New Faces : The White Sox were shockingly aggressive this offseason. The most splashy move the White Sox made was the signing of Adam Dunn, but they also signed Jesse Crain and Will Ohman to bolster their bullpen. Dunn is expected to be a Jim Thome type of hitter only much younger and much more of a free swinger. My main concern with Dunn is his ability to hit American League pitching. Will Ohman will be the "loogy" (Left handed relief pitcher that gets one out) while Crain's goal is to be what the Sox hoped Scott Linebrink was going to be when the signed him in 2008. The expectations being a solid 7th inning option with occasional closer duties. Crain has done that throughout his career, and we'll see if it continues. Dunn's ability to recognize pitches, and Crain/Ohman's pitching location are what I'm looking forward to seeing.
• Lineups and Staff : I'll be very curious to see how Ozzie handles the bullpen, and mildly curious to see how Ozzie will stack the batting order. If he has Chris Sale closing games, it looks like they've made up their minds that Sale will enter the regular season as the closer. If he tries Sergio Santos as closer, that may indicate that Sale will be the 5th starter. Lineup wise, I'll be curious to see how Ozzie stacks 3-4-5. Rios-Dunn-Konerko, or Konerko-Dunn-Rios, or some other combination? It'll be interesting to see what Ozzie does this spring in terms of him tipping his hand.
• Paul Konerko : Paulie came off an incredible season. A career season quite frankly. A season which I personally thought priced him off the White Sox. He thought so too judging by certain interviews he's given recently, but here he is ready to finish his long career with the White Sox. I'll be interested to see what kind of shape he's in this spring.

So there you go. Spring Training by in large is pretty nebulous, and unless you're at the games it can be pretty boring. More than anything it serves as a way to slowly get our minds ready for baseball while concurrently decompressing from football, and I say "VIVA"!

Rapid Car-Bombs

I apologize for the gap between posts. Time Management is really tested during the Silly Season, and a lot has happened since the last posting. With that in mind, I'll do my best to shoot from the hip and spray to all fields:

• It appears that Notre Dame went 3 for 3 in their attempt to shed no more light on the Elizabeth Seeberg case than has already been released, as the St. Joseph County Prosecutors Office announced that it will not prosecute Notre Dame. The County Prosecutor also will not reveal the name of the person who sent Seeberg the threatening text of "Don't do anything you would regret. Messing with notre dame football is a bad idea." Obviously Seeberg's family is not happy about this, nor am I. Before you Notre Dame defenders start saying "See I told you so, Notre Dame does NOTHING wrong!", you should understand that the only reason the Prosecutor will not pursue this is because Seeberg's death makes her statements inadmissible. That is not even close to what would be considered "innocent". Mark my words though, this won't be the last of this, and Notre Dame is FAR from being out of the woods.
• There's been some loud baseball activity on both sides of Chicago the past couple weeks. For the White Sox it was the retention of Paul Konerko and the recently signed Jesse Crain to supplement a weakened bullpen. For the Cubs, it was acquiring the statistically enigmatic Carlos Pena from the Tampa Bay Rays, and welcoming with open arms the return of Kerry Wood to their bullpen. Regarding the Cubs moves, I actually think both are good decisions. For as up and down as Pena has been over his career, he's worth the risk for one year. Getting more fastballs thrown at him in the NL should help him. As for Wood, there's really not much to dislike about it as Kerry gave the Cubs a HUGE hometown discount, while simultaneously giving them a proven bullpen arm and opens the door to Andrew Cashner joining their rotation. If Jim Hendry can pull of the impossible and make this Zambrano to the Yankees rumor happen, that would REALLY be amazing. I'll believe that when it happens though. With the White Sox transactions, I think it was brilliant how they made Konerko cave to the pressure from Dunn and AJ back loading their deals to make room for him. Paulie has been the face and captain of this team for the better part of 10 years and keeping him along for one more "go for it" season was the right thing to do, even though it involved some public peer pressure. Crain could be good, but he could be Linebrink too (please god I hope he's better than that).
• Brett Favre...Eff your record. Yeah it's impressive, yeah you played through a lot of pain to get it, but your still a douche, and you really should thank Goodell for waiting until your streak was over before making a decision on whether or not to suspend you. Bye-Bye Ass-Face...
• And now to the Bears. I'd personally like to thank the Vikings for having a hole ripped through their dome to shift the focus on where this upcoming Monday night's game will be played, rather than how awful the Bears were last Sunday. As for how this situation is being handled, The Beard thinks this is the biggest fustercluck he can remember seeing in the NFL since the New Orleans Saints had to play games in Baton Rouge and San Antonio in the wake of Hurricane Katrina 5 years ago. I can't remember whether or not Beer was sold for those games in Baton Rouge, but I DEFINITELY know they won't be served at TCF Bank Stadium! Not to mention there are 15,000 people that had tickets to this game that will not have seats, and even though they are working like hell to melt the 2 inches of ice and snow covering the field at this moment, the weather forecast calls for more SNOW this weekend! In summary this is really a dumb way to handle this by the league. Who gives a crap that it's the 50th anniversary night for the Vikings Franchise? That poor piece of scheduling is really worth having to go through all of this garbage at the risk of player and fan safety? In my opinion...I've got another place you can put that snow shovel...

In the meantime please click on the picture to enjoy some outtakes of Ozzie Guillen shooting a Christmas Commercial! Haaaaaaappy Holidaaaaays...Haaaaaaaaappy Holidaaaaaaaaaays...

All In

Color Me Impressed as well as Confused...

 In case you missed it, the White Sox - after lying in the weeds this off-season - leaped out of the brush to make bold and swift moves today, principle among said moves is the surprising signing of free agent Adam Dunn to a 4 year $56 million dollar contract.


Before signing Dunn however, the Sox decided to pick up Alexei Ramirez's club option of $2.75 million for 2011, and virtually gave a "don't let it hit you in the ass" gesture to 2005 World Series hero Bobby Jenks by non-tendering him for 2011. Both of those moves are very logical in The Beard's mind.


Then seemingly out of nowhere, not only does Kenny Williams sign Adam Dunn after word quickly got out that Dunn and the Oakland A's were not going to be able to make a deal, but Williams decided to shock everyone who has followed this team by saying:

"I've made no secrets that we have strong interest in bringing him back,'' Williams said of Konerko. "Not only is there room for it, but it would be the ideal fit from our perspective. The one thing Paul and I talked about at the end of the season is being mindful of each other's process. It's a fine line I have to walk right now where I am respectful of his process, but where we are also putting the best baseball team on the field.''



But wait, Kenny didn't stop there, with reports emerging late that the White Sox have resigned A.J. Pierzynski to a 2 year $8million dollar contract. This is significant because Kenny has said that talks with A.J. were put "on hold" because there needed to be progress made with Konerko first before A.J. situation could be addressed. Sounds like whatever sort of progress with Konerko Williams was talking about, has been made to me...

As for my take on all of this, as I mentioned earlier I am equal parts impressed and confused. Confused, because all season long as well as this offseason, the underlying understanding from the White Sox front office has been "We don't have the money to resign Konerko".

Now it seems that they looked under ALL the couch cushions and have found whatever money they needed plus some extra cash to land a big free agent like Adam Dunn, and by all accounts seem ready to spend more! Going into today the Sox had $83 million committed to the 2011 Payroll. They've cut loose $7.5 million by saying bye to Jenks, but are seemingly headed right back to the $103 million they spent on last years payroll. So why did they say they didn't have the money?

While that question may or may not be answered with the upcoming press-conference that's scheduled for Friday afternoon, one thing is for certain. The White Sox have made it clear that they are "going for it" in 2011, and I admire the fashion in which they are doing so. 

They went out and signed most likely the best available Lefty slugger they could get, while retaining fan favorites Paul Konerko and A.J. Pierzynski. This will be the final time they will be able to go for it with this group of veterans since Ozzie Guillen has one more season left on his contract, as does Mark Buehrle.

Will Adam Dunn provide the left handed firepower the White Sox have been looking for? I'm not really sure. Obviously Dunn can hit and get on base. Since 2004 the only player who has hit more home runs than Dunn is Albert Pujols. Sabermatricians love Dunn's numbers, but I've never looked at building a championship team being as simple as solving an Algebra Equation like the Dateless Wonders Living In Their Parents Basements that call themselves Sabermatricians.

I guess we'll find out eventually, but all we know right now is that if these moves work, the Sox will win the division. If these off-season moves don't work, and the White Sox aren't in contention by the trading deadline, you will most likely see Dunn, Konerko, and Buehrle traded, with the youth movement taking over at that point.

In terms of risk-reward, it's as solid bet as any to be made. Either way as the White Sox often say they are NEVER boring...

Tidbits And Nuggets

Just a quick shot at some things I've noticed in the past couple days:

• The best NBA Bigfoot in the business Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports gave us a scathing story about how bad the LeBron-Spoelstra conflict has gotten, and that really Spoelstra is in a no-win situation even though the only thing he's guilty of is holding LeBron accountable. It really is amazing that for 8 years of being aware of who LeBron James is, we had no idea how much of a child he has always been. There is such a disconnect with LeBron's perception of reality and lack of overall maturity that it's scary it took us this long to figure it out. Thankfully we as Bulls fans aren't finding this out with James in a Bulls uniform.
• Here's a copy of the all the Free Agents this baseball offseason with up to the minute updates on who has signed where. There hasn't been much activity yet, but of those free agents that have signed, I noticed something strange. Not counting Omar Vizquel, 31% of the Free Agents who have signed are Ex White Sox players. Juan Uribe, Javier Vazquez, Jon Garland, Jose Contreras, and Geoff Blum making up that 31%. I have no clue what that means, but I just find it interesting, especially since there are more Ex White Sox still on the market, namely Magglio Ordonez and Miguel Olivo.
• Speaking of Baseball Free Agents, I'm so SICK of the non-story that is the Derek Jeter-Yankees "will they or won't they" movie. I'm not even going to waste time writing about who's right or who's wrong and the reason is simply this. Any reasonable and rational thinking baseball fan knows, that Derek Jeter isn't even CLOSE to being the #1 most sought after free agent. Matter of fact, I wouldn't even put him in the Top Ten like Yahoo did. Forget that he's Derek Jeter for a second and pretend it was someone else who's 36 years old, just hit .270 with a .710 OPS and despite the worst Gold Glove ever issued since Rafael Palmeiro in 1999, is a butcher defensively. Would anyone who follows baseball care where that guy ended up? I didn't think so...
• Finally, I just wanted to share something I read that far better articulated my outrage at what a Scum Of The Earth program Notre Dame has become in the wake of Declan Sullivan and Lizzy Seeberg's deaths. Not only is the column well written by Editor In Chief of politicsdaily.com Melinda Henneberger, but it particularly gives me hope because Melinda is a Notre Dame grad, and it doesn't stop her from having Brains as well as a Conscience strong enough to be on the right side of this. Give it a read here.

"Here I Come To Save The Daaaaaay..."

Many of you young readers might not get the Mighty Mouse reference in the title. Frankly I feel like Chris "You're With Me Leather" Berman for making a reference to a TV show that aired nearly 60 years ago. Be that as it may, the deal is now done and done under the best of terms. Manny Ramirez is officially a member of the White Sox roster. No players were given up for him. No contract extension was issued. No extra money was exchanged. Just a straight waiver claim was all it took to get him, and that's really the only way it should be.

The reaction so far has been pretty mixed. David Haugh is one of many that are already tsk-tsking the White Sox for acquiring a known steroid user. I honestly can't blame people of his line of thinking for objecting to it. I would just caution them to realize that Manny is hardly the first White Sox player that was a steroid user, and he certainly won't be the last. Anyone remember who Jose Canseco played for in 2001?

I'm not going to pretend that I've reconciled any feelings of guilt about this, because I haven't. I still feel pretty conflicted about this. There are two things I keep reminding myself over and over again that help me get through this. The first thing is that The Steroid Era is bigger than Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, or Manny Ramirez. The true price we are paying from the Era itself, is that level of trust and benefit of the doubt from the fans is forever gone for any player who has success in the big leagues now. The second thing that helps is reminding myself that this is strictly an Alliance Situation. We don't like Manny, and Manny doesn't like anyone not named "Manny Ramirez", but that's OK. In order for both the White Sox (playoff baseball in 2010) and Manny (one last big contract) to get what they want, they both know and understand that they will have to work together for it to happen.

One thing I also would like people to understand is that Manny Ramirez is still a really damn good hitter. This point is clearly and concisely articulated here. I understand that there is a tremendous amount of theater with this Alliance, but for right now The Beard is just going to enjoy the ride and hope the movie has a happy ending. With that said, after seeing my Uncle Joe this past weekend, here are some "fun facts" you may not know about Manny Ramirez :

• In 1991 Manny Ramirez was take 13th in the MLB Draft by the Cleveland Indians. Do you remember who picked 12th? That would be your Chicago Cubs. You know who they picked instead of Ramirez? Doug Glanville. My oh my how that pick could have changed Cub history...
• Manny Ramirez has made nearly $205 million dollars in his career. Not bad for a 19 year old high school dropout...
• Why does Manny wear #99? According to wikipedia : Ramirez has always worn uniform number 24, but the Dodgers have retired that number in honor of Hall-of-Fame manager Walter Alston. Ramirez countered the Dodgers' suggestion of 28 by suggesting 34, but no Dodger has worn that number since Fernando Valenzuela. Ramirez finally accepted number 99, but the next day asked for 28, the Dodgers' original suggestion. However, the Dodgers' marketing department had already begun producing merchandise with number 99, so Ramirez stuck with that number.

So there you have it. One of the most unlikeliest moves the White Sox could have made is now reality. Where they go from here, will be the answer to the $3.75 million dollar question of "Which Manny will the White Sox be getting?"

Deal With The Devil

The White Sox - to their credit - have continued to fight their way through the schedule. Last night's needless nail-biter was a microcosm of what has plagued this team for the better part of the past two weeks, and that would be their suddenly quite touchable bullpen. Now with the health of both Thornton and Putz in serious jeopardy, the Sox will now have to rely on the very green yet impressive rookie Chris Sale, the even greener Sergio Santos, and the closest thing to Octavio Dotel in a White Sox uniform - Scott Linebrink, until Putz and Thornton recover. I don't know about you, but I am REALLY uncomfortable with those three at the back end of our bullpen...

Which now begs this question : would picking up Manny Ramirez be worth it? Obviously there has been multiple reports that the White Sox will make a waiver claim once Ramirez is inevitably put on waivers by the Dodgers. There's some debate as to what exactly the White Sox would have to give up, but the general consensus (Incidentally I served under General Consensus in Viet Nam) is that the Sox wouldn't be giving up a player for him. Also, at 38 years old even though his power numbers are way down, Manny can still hit. So it's quite a debate.

To be perfectly honest with you, I am really conflicted about this. I've never liked Manny Ramirez nor his Me-First-Manny-Being-Manny B.S., which has caused him to have the baseball reputation of a leper. He's quit on several teams over his career, and now because he's quit on the Dodgers is the only reason the White Sox are in a position to get him in the first place. Not to mention he's a known steroid user as well.

That being said, the White Sox are in a bind. Their bullpen is on life-support, as is their season. They aren't going to be able to pick up any pitching help, so that means the White Sox are just going to have to out-slug teams the rest of the way. Manny Ramirez would definitely help with that effort.

Bottom Line : The Beard officially hopes Kenny rolls the dice (when he's not bringing some random chick that's definitely NOT his wife to comedy clubs in Schaumburg) and signs him thus completing the White Sox most Faustian acquisition since Albert Belle. Look at it this way, if it doesn't work the White Sox only have this idiot for 5 weeks, the first two of which would involve him going to his old stomping grounds in Cleveland and Boston. If it WERE to work however, and Manny helps the Sox score enough runs to get into the postseason, they look like geniuses.

Either way, it'll be a helluva show to watch.

A Different Answer To A Common Question

Earlier today, my cousin Joseph asked me a question regarding the 2010 White Sox. As easy as it is for me to write his question off as a question designed not to seek answers, but rather bust my balls, I chose not to dismiss it in this case because it seems to be a question on the mind of a lot of Sox fans. The question was "Do you miss Jim Thome yet?" My brother Steven and I have shared numerous discussion on what exact value Jim Thome would bring to this years White Sox team, and we're pretty much in complete agreement on the matter. After listening to talk radio, and hearing the question asked from Joseph, I decided to share my views on the open forum that is Whitey Guccionne.

My answer to the question is still a resounding "no". I do not miss Jim Thome....not in the least, and I'll give you my reasons why. Now look, before I hear Dan Bernstein over-simplify with the "Would the White Sox be a better team with Jim Thome in the lineup?" question, let me share some numbers with you. Obviously, the White Sox started playing red hot baseball on June 9. Since June 9, they have averaged 5.05 runs scored per game. To give you an idea of how good that is, the only two teams that average more runs per game than the Sox have, are the Red Sox at 5.13, and the Yankees at 5.24. So looking at those numbers, it begs the question, how badly are the Sox really missing Thome, when they've been scoring runs at a very satisfactory clip?

Here are some other numbers that should be examined. This recent tailspin began with a trip to Baltimore on August 6. They won on August 7, 4-2 and at that time, the Team ERA was 3.84. Nine games later, the team ERA has skyrocketed to 3.97, and has given up double digit runs in a game twice! The last time I checked, Jim Thome was not a pitcher. So that's begs the other question and provides my rebuttal for the over-simplifying Dan Bernstein's of the world. What would make the White Sox a better team? Jim Thome in the lineup, or the entire pitching staff returning to form? I'd like to think the latter would be much more beneficial to the White Sox.

Right on cue, baseball-reference.com's blog has a post regarding Jim Thome's remarkable season. You can see it for yourself here.

Rk OPS+ G Year Age Tm PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO SB BA OBP SLG OPS Pos


1 Barry Bonds 169 126 2007 42 SFG 477 340 75 94 14 0 28 66 132 54 5 .276 .480 .565 1.045 *7/D

2 Ted Williams 190 113 1960 41 BOS 390 310 56 98 15 0 29 72 75 41 1 .316 .451 .645 1.096 *7

3 Barry Bonds 156 130 2006 41 SFG 493 367 74 99 23 0 26 77 115 51 3 .270 .454 .545 .999 *7/D

4 Willie Mays 158 136 1971 40 SFG 537 417 82 113 24 5 18 61 112 123 23 .271 .425 .482 .907 *83

5 Ted Williams 179 129 1958 39 BOS 517 411 81 135 23 2 26 85 98 49 1 .328 .458 .584 1.042 *7

6 Babe Ruth 161 125 1934 39 NYY 471 365 78 105 17 4 22 84 104 63 1 .288 .448 .537 .985 *97

7 Barry Bonds 263 147 2004 39 SFG 617 373 129 135 27 3 45 101 232 41 6 .362 .609 .812 1.422 *7/D

8 Jim Thome 163 81 2010 39 MIN 253 209 31 57 14 1 17 44 42 62 0 .273 .391 .593 .985 *D

9 Hank Aaron 177 120 1973 39 ATL 465 392 84 118 12 1 40 96 68 51 1 .301 .402 .643 1.045 *79


Looking at this list, and looking at the picture of Jim Thome's rookie card above, do you get the feeling that not all is right in Denmark? I'm not saying...I'm just saying.....it's REALLY amazing that at 39 years old Thome is still producing like this............REAAAAAAAAAAAAALLY amazing...

Mayday, Mayday We're Going Down...

I'm having quite the strenuous debate between my mind and my soul. Intellectually, I know there's a ton of baseball left to play, and the White Sox are far from out of it (technically). Soul wise though, I can't help but feel so deflated, after the results over the past week. The White Sox got the crap beat out of them two out of three times by the Twins AT HOME, and then threw away two games against the Tigers that they had won. Those are very tough results to take when you're in a pennant race.

I haven't delved too deep into the stats, other than noticing that the Twins are 22-8 after the All-Star Break, and the White Sox have posted a 16-15 mark since the break. Offensively, the White Sox have been OK over the past week, scoring 6 runs in a game twice, 8 runs in a game twice. Their pitching on the other hand has abandoned them both among the starters and relievers. The Sox have given up 46 runs in their last 8 games for a 5.75 clip. That's quite a departure for them. In the meantime the Twins are on fire having won 7 of their last 8 games. They've scored a modest 34 runs in 8 games, but they've given up 22 runs in 8 games for a 2.75 clip. That's also quite a departure from their normal pitching metrics, thus far.

Essentially what it comes down to is, the Twins are a hot team right now, and the White Sox have come back to reality for the time being. Thankfully, there's a day off before the two go head to head again in Target Field. So for the White Sox it's real simple : continue to score runs at the pace they have been scoring against Twins picthing, and hope that the pitching staff returns to normal - particularly among the front end of the bullpen.

As well all know is true about baseball however, there's a HUGE difference between "Simple", and "Easy".

Parting Shots

The Beard will be taking his act out on the road starting Thursday. I shall return Monday with fresh thoughts and perspectives, but before I go here are some quick hits:

• I absolutely LOVE that USC is sending Bush's Heisman Trophy from 2005 back! Good luck with Pat Hayden as the new Athletic Director. Not sure what he's going to do? Maybe nothing, or maybe he just needs to be some B.S. Face of Integrity for the university? Either way, I love that USC is being forced to pay the piper. Believe it or not, I'm hearing from these ignorant, arrogant, and self-indulgent USC fans and alumni claiming that they are being "unfairly singled out". If by unfairly singled out, they mean, "It sucks that we got caught cheating" then yes, my hemmorhoids bleed for you Trojan Nation. Go screw yourselves.
• Imagine that, Bobby Jenks blew another win for the White Sox tonight. Jenks gave away the Sox best chance of sweeping the Mariners in Seattle since 1994. So congrats to him on another dubious milestone achieved. I've already shared my thoughts on how much he needs to be removed as the closer post-haste. Hopefully tonight gives Ozzie enough cause to do exactly that as the Sox head into Oakland.
• The rumor mill is circling and candidates Ryne Sandberg, Bob Brenly want to manage the Cubs, and hell even Joe Torre won't rule himself out as a possible candidate. Again, it's going to take more than a good manager to make a winner out of this bunch, and I still don't care what Ricketts said, I don't believe Jim Hendry is back next year.
• The Bulls are supposedly working out Tracy McGrady. YAWN. McGrady is so washed up parents tell their kids to "Tracy McGrady" before they go to bed.

See you guys soon!!!

CLOSE THE DOOR!

Today's loss made me absolutely sick! Sick! Just absolutely inexcusable. Yeah Rios gave the game away with a throw that would be worthy of a 9:15 PM Thursday Night softball game at Clarendon Park centerfielder, but the truth is, Rios should have never been in that position in the first place. Rios as well as his other teammates should know that a three run lead is safe when the closer is put in the ball game. That didn't happen today though did it?

It's decision time for Bobby Jenks. While I'm not ready to committ to Sergio Santos as the full time closer, I'm very confident Jenks is no longer able to be trusted as the closer of this team anymore especially when J.J. Putz or Matt Thornton are right there for you. Sorry guys, but this isn't 2005 and more importantly this isn't the 2005 version of Bobby Jenks.

The first thing that people must remember is that Jenks didn't start out as the closer of that team. That was Shingo Takatsu (remember him?). After that, it was Dustin Hermanson until his back gave out. THEN Jenks took over. So it's more than realistic for a team fighting for the postseason to change closers in the middle of the season.

The second thing people need to understand is that the 2005 version of Bobby Jenks had a fastball that routinely touched 98 MPH, and consistently threw his curveball and slider over for strikes. The 2010 version of Bobby strains to throw 96 MPH and when he hits 96, it's usually for ball one. He can't locate his curve and slider for strikes and when he does they are hangers which are appropriately killed. I don't want to hear about 20/22 save conversions being an acceptable ratio. Jenks is just not reliable anymore, and if he can be moved (which I don't think is possible) it should happen.

If not, he can sit right next to Scott Linebrink in the bullpen and take comfort in the fact that he won't be used in any significant games.

Rumors and Innuendo

Nothing like the All-Star Break to interrupt a historic making run by your favorite baseball team. I needed something to scratch my White Sox itch besides that silly-ass Home Run Contest tonight. Hearing Chris Berman screaming his NOOTS off and acting like he's never seen a home run before doesn't really do it for me, but hey don't worry Chris, "You're With Me Leather"...

So I hit one of my favorite websites, mlbtraderumors.com, and they gave me a little White Sox fix. There's some interesting nuggets in the past couple days about the White Sox attempts to land Cliff Lee. Essentially any deal the White Sox would have struck with Seattle would have involved giving up Gordon Beckham - which I'm very glad the White Sox are unwilling to part with Beckham, as I'm loathe to acquire pitchers over 30 years old, and I don't believe Beckham is this bad a ball player. 

In terms of the other options the Sox have to try and land, Roy Oswalt is the first name on the list, but it seems both the Sox and Oswalt don't really want each other since Kenny Williams said he's reluctant to get pitchers from the National League (Funny how he didn't feel that way a year ago when he traded for Jake Peavy...), and Oswalt has said he would veto any trade to the Sox. That's fine with The Beard. The one name that I REALLY hope doesn't come up in Zambrano. Don't get me wrong, it's not that I don't want Zambrano because he's a lunatic - even though that would be more that enough. The main reason I don't want him is quite simply put, he's just not that good anymore.

As for the Dan Haren, Ben Sheets, or Jeremy Guthrie's of the world....YAWN. I'd rather take a chance on any minor league pitchers other teams don't have a scouting report on yet.

Man it's nice to be "buyers" again...

First Place

And no I'm not talking about the World Cup or LeBron James pathetic and legacy-shattering decision. Incidentally, here are two of the best written reactions the conclusion of the LeBron-stakes I saw posted here and here. Both pieces logically, eloquently, and succinctly call LeBron out for wilting under the pressure and passing at the chance at becoming one of the all time greats in NBA History.

That's neither here nor there now, as my focus has shifted to how the White Sox have risen from the ashes all the way to first place at the All-Star Break. On June 8 the Sox were 24-33 9.5 games out of first place. After that, the Sox have gone 25-5 including winning their last 8 straight games. It's also worth noting just how fitting it is that on June 9th they beat the Tigers by scoring 15 runs. After today's win which qualified them for first place, they also scored 15 runs including a 3 run bomb by Andruw Jones for his 400th career home run. "Turnaround" isn't a strong enough word. The Sox were dead in the water in the view of this observer as well as many others, and I fully admit to calling for a blowup several times this season. Even though I'm still not sure about Kenny Williams being with the team after this season, we're all eating our words now, as the White Sox have entered the discussion of post season possibilities.

In terms of franchise history, the comparison that keeps coming up is the 1983 White Sox. The 83 team's biggest deficit was 7 games out of first place however, versus the 9.5 games the 2010 team was. In terms of who's been the biggest difference maker? You could argue Omar Vizquel's defense, and Freddy Garcia's cunning and guile approach on the mound as two big culprits. You could also point to the steady outstanding play of Alex Rios - who is someone else I owe an engraved apology to, and Paul Konerko. You could point to the emergence of young players like Dayan "The Tank" Viciedo and Brent Lillibridge hitting the ball hard every time as well as Sergio Santos' outstanding relief work during his feel good story season. Those are all outstanding nominations, but for my money I believe the biggest difference maker has been Carlos Quentin. Carlos was hitting .205 7 home runs, 32 RBI's for an OPS of .697 as of June 8. Since that time, he's hit .326 12 home runs, 29 RBI's over the month since. I don't believe that it's a coincidence that since he's gone on a roll, the White Sox have as well.

What's even more remarkable about this roll they've been on, is the Sox don't even seem to be rattled by the news of Jake Peavy and his detached Lat Muscle being out for the year. They trotted out Daniel Hudson today - who I don't believe is a starting pitcher at the big league level- watched him get roughed up by the Royals, and still won in a blowout. The Sox still need another starter in the rotation, and their options of acquiring a pitcher via trade are very limited - even though I don't think they realistically had a shot at getting Cliff Lee. The beauty about being a roll like this, allows them to not really have to worry about it for now.

So cheers to the White Sox during this roller coaster of a first half of the season. Are they for real or not? I think they are. I want to dismiss this as "baseball magic" but I can't. Nobody is THIS lucky in baseball. You have to have some skills that are better than most teams in baseball to go on these types of multiple winning streaks they've had in this short amount of time. The Sox will be tested right out of the shoot with four straight at the Twins after the All-Star Break in Target Field. They've answered every challenge thus far. It will be fun to see if this unreal play continues. One thing that's for sure, it's going to make for great television when "The Club" makes it's debut on MLB Network.

Weekend Cuppage Roundup

• Tough loss for the US Soccer team as they once again found themselves being eliminated by Ghana for the second World Cup in a row despite the presence of Team Mascot Bill Clinton hanging out with Mick Jagger during the game. Ghana scored early in the contest which set the tone for the rest of the game. Watching the match, it was very apparent that Ghana was faster and way more athletic than the US, but what the US lacked in athleticism, they made up for in determination. The US had two BIG chances to score which would have given them the victory. Unfortunately the dreaded label of "woulda, coulda, shoulda," will be attached to their efforts in the 2010 World Cup. We will see if Bob Bradley will come back to coach the US for the next World Cup in 2014. Personally speaking I think Diego Maradona is proving that it really doesn't matter who the coach is in soccer, as long as you have great players like Argentina does.
• Baseball was very good this weekend to The Beard as the surging White Sox took another series against the Cubs and won that stupid and pointless BP Crosstown Cup that I'm really hopeful mysteriously goes missing before 2011. It seemed only fitting that the third longest winning streak ended against the Cubs, since the last time the Sox lost was against the Cubs two weeks ago. The Sox are driving in runs in clutch situations while the rotation has finally started pitching like it was supposed to (Thank you Jake Peavy for finally getting checked out and figuring out what the problem was). Who knows how far this will go, but I give the White Sox a ton of credit for doing what they had to do to climb back in the division race, and I'm now actually back to a state of looking forward to watching the next White Sox game.
• As for the Cubs, the story of the weekend was obviously Carlos Zambrano being Carlos Zambrano once again. Now Big Z finds himself suspended indefinitely awaiting the MLB Players Union to weigh in on it. On top of which, Zambrano is also in hot water with his team for dining with Ozzie Guillen after Friday's game/meltdown, and even when he does come back he'll be in the bullpen again. Paul Sullivan did a nice job here of putting together a list of incidents and apologies Zambrano has made over his mercurial career. I'd like to ask my Cub fans out there, isn't this story kind of dull? Obviously this is hardly the first time something like this has happened, and obviously the same thing will happen again down the line because Zambrano simply can't help himself. I honestly don't think he's like Milton Bradley though. Bradley thinks the world is out to get him. Zambrano doesn't give off a vibe of paranoia, but rather has very little self control and little regard for formality, politeness, or rational behavior when he's on the mound. In terms of trading him? I can never say never. I never would have thought someone would trade for Milton Bradley but that shockingly happened. What I know for sure is that Zambrano has a full no-trade clause, and four (including this one) more seasons at roughly $18 million per. I don't really know who would be interested in that - especially for an 8th inning specialist, nor do I know what teams would be willing to give up for that? It seems to me like the Cubs are in bed with Big Z for the duration of their short sighted yet way too lengthy contract they gave him in 2008. Maybe it's time the Cubs ask Zambrano, "What can Paxil, do for YOU"?

"...LOOK AT YOU NOW!"

By request I was asked what I thought of this fun piece of fiction that Phil Rogers wrote today about the suddenly red hot White Sox. In it, he speculates (and for some reason points out he's been speculating this for a while) that with the Florida Marlins firing of manager Fredi Gonzalez today, it will open the door for Guillen to become the manager of the Marlins next season. It should immediately be pointed out that Ozzie quickly denied wanting the Marlins job when he was asked about it, so let's get that out of the way before I really pick this one apart.

Rogers' web of speculation has it that when Bobby Cox retires this season, Fredi will be named the Braves manager. Why is that a foregone conclusion? Fredi lives in Georgia, he was a coach on the Braves staff in 2003, and he benched Hanley Ramirez for not hustling this season. I guess those three pieces of information make it a lock that he would take the Braves job no matter what? I'd have to believe he would have other manager offers next season, and wouldn't immediately jump at the Braves job. Not to mention Fredi seems smart enough to know that you don't replace the Legend, you replace the REPLACEMENT for the Legend.

Rogers also speculates that Guillen would want the Marlins job should it be available...ignoring that Guillen is still under contract and that Reinsdorf has no intention of firing him. Phil pointed out that Guillen "...a personal favorite of Reinsdorf's even though he savagely criticized the team when his Chicago stint as shortstop was over..." Ummmmm WHAT?! PHIL...Ozzie ripped the organization when was cut in 1998. Do you know what's happened since that time? He's been the damn White Sox Manager since 2004 and in case you also don't remember this, he got Jerry his coveted World Series Trophy 5 years ago. I THINK REINSDORF HAS GOTTEN OVER GETTING RIPPED BY OZZIE IN 1998! My Goodness are you an idiot, but you don't stop there do you Phil?

Indeed he doesn't stop there because the third piece of this Fiction Trifecta involves the vastly overrated Tony LaRussa becoming a part of the White Sox organization in 2011. Rogers' sites an interview with the Chicago Tribune done in February where he said he would "love" to work for Jerry Reinsdorf again....but NOT as the manager. OK Phil....what would Tony be doing then?! Is he head of scouting? Is he Assistant GM because they will fire Rick Hahn? Is the the General Manager because they will fire Kenny and NOT hire Rick Hahn? Is he a bench coach because Joey Cora is going to be the manager or will he just cave in and be the White Sox manager when Ozzie is allowed to go to Miami? What's Tony going to do in the White Sox organization?! Show me where he's going to have a place?

This whole piece is absurd and fundamentally flawed from start to finish. Phil should be ashamed of himself for allowing this diarrhea of consciousness to be expressed via the printed word. Phil has been employed by the Chicago Tribune as their baseball "bigfoot" since 1997, but I still for the life of me cannot figure out why? Unless a real journalist like Joe Cowley of the Suntimes reports this, I'm going to assume this is absolute drivel.

Let's hope everyone else does the same...

A Lesson In "Stroke"

I meant to get to my thoughts on this article written a couple of days ago by the best White Sox Insider in the business Joe Cowley. It's been long reported that Kenny and Ozzie have had a pretty substantial fallout over the past couple years, but it's been especially ramping up in the past five months with everything from Kenny throwing Ozzie under the bus at Soxfest for not retaining Jim Thome, to the attempted Twitter Page shutdown, the firing of Oney Guillien, and most recently the reports of Ozzie and Kenny nearly coming to blows over the White Sox selecting Ozney Guillen in the 22nd round of this years draft. In case you were wondering why Ozzie would be upset about his kid being drafted, there are two things you should know. First, Ozzie had been assured that Ozney would be picked by the 10th round, not the 22nd. Second, Kenny drafted his son Kenneth Williams Jr in the 6th round in the 2008 Draft and gave his son a $150,000 bonus. Williams Jr went on to reward his father's belief in him by becoming an injury case while hitting .227 at Single A Winston-Salem at post time.

Add all of the above mentioned drama on top of a reality show that is filming this season called "The Club", and you have the makings of a classic case of Push coming to Shove. From what Cowley writes, that's exactly what nearly happened as Kenny approached The Chairman Jerry Reinsdorf and brought up the idea of firing Ozzie. Reinsdorf told Kenny to "go get his shine box" and made it very clear to Kenny that he will not be able to fire Ozzie. The next thing we see, is Kenny on the team flight (for the first time this season) to Pittsburgh where he sat next to, and played nice with, Ozzie. Both Ozzie and Kenny confirmed that they are on better terms and tried to downplay the friction between the two after the flight. It also bears mentioning that independent of all this, the White Sox have managed to win some games against the underbelly of the National League.

Well I am simply amazed that Reinsdorf said what he said to Kenny, and I'm convinced that when this season is over, Rick Hahn will be the new White Sox General Manager no matter what. First of all as an owner, when you hire a General Manager you have to give him complete autonomy to do what he feels is in the best interest of the Organization. It completely defeats the purpose of having a GM if you tell him who he can and can't fire. That type of behavior is called "Steinbrenner-ism" because even if it has the best of intentions, it is nothing more than meddling and undermining. Reinsdorf knows this. So for him to tell Kenny he can't fire Ozzie indicates to me that he's had enough of Williams and he's either trying to force Williams to quit, or he really meant it when he said Ozzie will be the White Sox manager until he doesn't want to be anymore, no matter what.

Whatever Reinsdorf's intentions may be, the lesson here is crystal clear. Ozzie has more power than Kenny even though Kenny is his boss. Say what you want about Ozzie being "crazy", or a "loose cannon", but he has proven himself to be a very good manager who is obviously capable of winning a championship and most importantly he curry's favor with the Owner. On the other hand according to multiple sources, Kenny is not the same guy he was when he built the 2005 team. The word is that Kenny's ego has gotten out of control to the point where some within the organization have been referring to him as "Hollywood Kenny Williams" due to the constant presence of cameras in the White Sox clubhouse this season.

All of it has lead to a situation that is untenable, something has to give and if I had to guess who it will be it's Williams. Rick Hahn has been named by many publications as the number 1 candidate to become a General Manager next season (even though Danny Evans had similar accolades ten years earlier). He's a Harvard Law and Kellogg Business School of Management graduate as well, and obviously is very familiar with the White Sox organization. Williams contract is one that rolls over annually, and Reinsdorf would only be on the hook to pay him a years salary if he decides to fire Kenny.

It would make complete and total sense to make this move especially with the rise of MBA Cerebral Types being hired as General Managers more and more every season. Don't believe me? Just answer this question. Besides Kenny Williams, name the ONLY other current General Manager that was a former MLB player? Hint : He's received a whole lot of fanfare, but his team has won 1 playoff series during his lengthy administration...

You answer that, and other answers start to materialize.

Meatball Time

I'd be remiss to create a blog with Whitey Guccione on the front of it, and not mention the upcoming White Sox - Cubs series. I'm not going to waste a whole lot of time breaking down matchups, or reading into anything that simply isn't there because neither one of these teams are any good. There's something about this besides the Blackhawks Parade taking place tomorrow that makes this weekend series seem even more perfunctory. It's the sense of over-saturation really. I'm beginning to wonder if we've reached the point where there are too many games between the two, or better yet should they play each other every other year?

That said though, while I continue to poo-poo the series the night before it takes place, the same thing always happens the day of the first game. Those old reflexes and Inner Meatball come back the moment I see a Cub fan say the word "Cuuuuuubbieeeeeesss...." on TV, and I immediately become focused on the games at hand. All of a sudden there are no three more important baseball games being played than this weekend at Wrigley Field.

I know it will happen to me again tomorrow. I'm hoping to hell the Sox don't get swept, and Whitey Guccione doesn't get the crap kicked out of him at Wrigley, as he tends to take these games as serious as the World Series...

White Sox Nuggets

• In an somewhat unexpected, yet completely necessary development MLB handed out fines to Ozzie Guillen, Mark Buehrle, AND Joe West. Apparently Jeff Passan of Yahoo Sports reads my blog and agrees with The Beard that Joe West has become the exact thing umpires should never be....High Profile. According to Passan, MLB has indeed had enough of  the "Country Joe" act and took him out to the proverbial woodshed with a tongue-lashing phone call in addition to the fine. Score one for MLB for getting this one reasonably right. A suspension would have been more appropriate in my opinion, simply because West is lucky to even have a job considering he was one of those umpires that resigned in 1999 while trying to negotiate a better labor agreement. West was re-hired in 2002, although I'm sure MLB can't remember why now, and for him to still not understand what his role as an umpire is supposed to be, a suspension might have hammered home the point better. Either way though, good for MLB for recognizing a problem and instilling discipline.
• Even with West getting his comeuppance, all is not right in Ozzie Guillen's world apparently, with reports once again surfacing that Guillen and Kenny Williams' relationship has deteriorated even further. To be fair, mlbtraderumors.com is reporting that Ozzie isn't going to be fired anytime soon, but they also echoed the report of the friction two hours later. Whatever...I'm really just tired of this entire story. To see the two guys who are responsible for the greatest White Sox team in history, unable to act like a professional baseball organization because they can't stand each other so much is very disheartening. It reminds me of the Phil Jackson-Jerry Krause fallout 12 years ago. Reinsdorf wasn't able to save that sports marriage, will he be able to save this one? Is it worth saving, let alone even possible to be saved? I don't know...I just hate that it's come to this since I can't think of another baseball team having these types of stories surrounding them.