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White Sox Smartly Silent on International Signing Day
by The Cheat
on Jul 2, 2009 1:56 PM CDT
19 comments
Today marks the first day of baseball's international signing period, the designated time period when clubs can legally sign international amateurs most of whom are just 16 years old. The White Sox are not expected to make any significant splash, with some speculating that they will not hand out a single 6-figure bonus.
A couple of years ago, that statement might have sent me off on a mini tirade bemoaning the Sox cheap ways and the inefficiency of ignoring an entire method of acquiring talent. Not anymore. I'd still like the Sox to participate more (smartly) in the international market, but recognize that they're not in a position to do so right now.
Dave WIlder was the Sox point person on international signings and as I'm sure you're aware is no longer with the club following a federal investigation involving the skimming of bonuses (and laundering those bonuses through a failing Phoenix gay bar).
The Sox gave Juan Silverio a club-record $600k bonus -- though there's no way of knowing how much actually made it to Silverio -- in the summer preceding the Wilder fiasco, and there have been questions about his age ever since. Silverio struggled in the Appalachian League last summer and found himself back in the Dominican Summer League this year, where he has dominated what might be much younger competition. I stress that's just speculation, but there are pending investigations by MLB and the federal government which have very recently turned up other high-profile age/identity cheats who've slipped through the cracks before.
Anyway, my point wasn't to dwell on Wilder and Silverio. I simply wanted to state that the Sox need to get their own house in order, get their international operation up and running with law-abiding, good baseball people... and then they can start dabbling back in the international market. That process might take another year or two, to build the relationships with the potential signees and (ugh) buscones.
There's no point in rushing back into the international market without the proper team in place. I'd rather the Sox sit out a year or two if it means they're doing everything right when they do eventually jump back in the fray.
19 comments
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Contreras & Castro Combine To Topple Tribe
by The Cheat
on Jul 1, 2009 10:17 PM CDT
in Recaps
178 comments
White Sox roll to season-high 5-game win streak, 2 games over .500
Hey, guys! Come look! Quick! I can see first place from up here!
Jose Contreras continued his surprising return with another strong 8-inning performance Wednesday night. He's gone 8 innings in all of his victories this season, all 3 of them. I kid.
The Sox are 3-2 in Contreras starts since his return from self-imposed AAA exile, with 4 quality starts and both losses coming by just one run. Contreras, like Floyd (and, to a lesser extent, Danks) has turned his season around. Suddenly the Sox look like serious contenders in the underwhelming AL Central. (We're all Tdogg, now)
A certain amount of credit has to go to Ramon Castro, who delivered the big blow at the plate tonight with a game-breaking 3-run HR. Contreras has thrived with him behind the plate, mostly because he has improved command of all his pitches. But there's still some credit that needs to be given to Castro, who boosted Jose's confidence with some encouraging words from Livan Hernandez, and maybe, just maybe, makes him beam with Cuban Pride simply by being named 'Castro.'
178 comments
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In Search of Higher Ground
by The Cheat
on Jul 1, 2009 5:30 PM CDT
in Game Threads
528 comments
528 comments | 0 recs
The June Files - "I Want to Believe," White Sox monthly review
by Tdogg
on Jul 1, 2009 1:41 PM CDT
107 comments
Fox Mulder: Are you asking me to give up?
Dana Scully: No. No, I can't ask you to do that... But I can tell you I won't be coming home tonight.
Its that time of month again. By now you know the drill. A quick recap and a nice place to look at a few advanced stats in one place.
Not a huge fan of the X files sequel but I could not help but feel a lot like Mulder; confused, searching and wanting to believe.
107 comments | 5 recs
See You in September - Pitching Wrap-up From Cubs vs. White Sox
by Harry Pavlidis
on Jul 1, 2009 1:31 PM CDT
7 comments
This has been fun, thanks for sharing the space. Wrapping up means stats, and I'm covering all five games the Cubs and White Sox have played in 2009.
We talked about run value, run value per 100 pitches (rv100) and run value above average (rvaa) earlier, but now I'm introducing Expected Run Values (rv100e and rvaaE). Using park adjusted rates for batted ball outcomes (liner, fly, grounder, pop), I applied the expected outcomes rather than real outcomes when calculating run values for batted balls. So, a line drive was part double, single, homer, triple and out, and the values are adjusted for The Cell and Wrigley Field.
To add to the mix, I'm including a whole lotta of breakdowns, by pitch type, by pitcher, plus whiff rates, in wide zone (IWZ) rates, fastball speed, heater/change gaps and I think that's it. Some of the tables have a little split in them, that's when I'm showing the leaders and trailers. Last thing - negative means good for run values (when it comes to pitchers).
7 comments | 2 recs
Mother Nature, White Sox 11; Indians 4
by U-God
on Jun 30, 2009 10:08 PM CDT
144 comments
- Paul Konerko, Gordon Beckham, and Josh Fields all went yard
- We are above .500 for the first time since May 2
144 comments | 0 recs
Mediocrity Matters
by The Cheat
on Jun 30, 2009 5:30 PM CDT
in Game Threads
770 comments
Stat of the Day: The White Sox record is 33-22 in games not started by C&C Rehab Factory.
770 comments | 0 recs
Neyer: White Sox not in AL Central conversation
The Tigers might be fine if they don't do a thing. If the Twins don't catch them, who will?
2 days ago
The Cheat
167 comments
0 recs
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Current Series
4 game series vs Royals @ Kauffman Stadium
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Chicago White Sox
Thursday, Jul 2, 2009, 7:10 PM CDT Partly cloudy,rain. Game time temperature around 80. |
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| Fri 07/03 | 7:10 PM CDT | |
| Sat 07/04 | 12:10 PM CDT | |
| Sun 07/05 | 1:10 PM CDT | |
AL Central Standings
| W | L | PCT | GB | STRK | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Detroit
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43 | 35 | .551 | 0 | Lost 1 |
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Minnesota
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41 | 39 | .512 | 3 | Won 2 |
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Chicago
|
40 | 38 | .512 | 3 | Won 5 |
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Kansas City
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33 | 44 | .428 | 9.5 | Lost 2 |
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Cleveland
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31 | 49 | .387 | 13 | Lost 5 |
(updated 7.2.2009 at 2:56 PM CDT)
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