Random thoughts from a disappointed fan
by thekever on Sep 19, 2006 11:47 AM CDT
16 comments
>When was the last time Konerko (or Thome or Crede) had a clutch hit?
>How is it that the White Sox, since August 15, made the following pitchers look like Cy Young candidates (WS runs scored in parentheses)?
Runelvys Hernandez, KC (2 runs)
Adam Bernero, KC (4 runs)
Pat Neshek, MN (3 runs)
Jesse Crain, MN (4 runs)
Ruddy Lugo, TB (3 runs)
Runelvys Hernandez (again), KC (5 runs)
Mark Redman, KC (3 runs)
Mike Timlin, BOS (2 runs)
Kason Gabbard, BOS (ZERO RUNS)
Hector Carrasco, LAA (3 runs)
Joe Blanton, OAK (4 runs)
[editor's note, by thekever] (Some of the pitchers listed above are relievers that won the game. None are household names that should have earned a victory against the Sox).
If the Sox win five of these eleven games (against MARGINAL pitchers), they are still in the thick of the playoff race. And everyone still says Greg Walker is a good hitting coach.
>Does anyone still think Brandon McCarthy is "untouchable"?
>Podsednik...GONE
>Uribe...GONE
>Cotts...???
>Buehrle...???
>Vazquez...GONE
>Garcia...???
>Logan...GONE
>Riske...GONE
>Hermanson...GONE
>Alomar...GONE
>Mackowiak...???
>In 2007, Ozzie will have a much tighter leash.
>As of today, Brian Anderson deserves the starting position in CF.
>Kenny Williams deserves a lot of credit for assembling a team that should have taken it all...
Thome for Rowand was a great trade.
Frank Thomas was a pariah in Chicago and needed to go.
Thornton was a great pickup.
McDougall was a great pickup.
Cintron was a great pickup.
Mackowiak was a good pickup.
In almost every position, the 2006 WS were better than the 2005 WS.
>I think I owe each of you an apology. It seems that all of my prayers during the 2005 playoff run are now coming due.
>Maybe it is now time to stop believing. Sorry, Joe Perry.
SouthSideSox is a community driven site. As such, users are able to express their thoughts and opinions in a FanPost, such as this one, which represents the views of this particular fan, but not necessarily the entire community or SouthSideSox editors.
0 recs |
16 comments
Email
Print
Comments
I'm sure Joe Perry doesn't mind
Steve Perry, on the other hand...
by Sox Machine on Sep 19, 2006 11:52 AM CDT reply actions 0 recs
The numbers are almost all off
The Sox only scored 2 runs against Blanton a few days ago, but that was in 5 innings, hardly a Cy Young performance.
Totally agree re: KW. He did a fine job assembling this team. On paper, we're the 3rd best team in baseball (after the NY teams) at worst.
Uribe and Logan aren't going anywhere.
by Bull Pain on Sep 19, 2006 12:55 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
wait a minute, captain
I do
>Podsednik...GONE
Yes
>Uribe...GONE
No. No way you can find a better SS.
>Cotts...???
Keep
>Buehrle...???
>Vazquez...GONE
>Garcia...???
Keep, unless you get a good offer
>Logan...GONE
No
>Riske...GONE
>Hermanson...GONE
>Alomar...GONE
Probably
>Mackowiak...???
Gone so ozzie can't stick him in CF.
Not his fault, Mack's OK
>In 2007, Ozzie will have a much tighter leash.
I don't see it
>As of today, Brian Anderson deserves the starting position in CF.
Yes
>Kenny Williams deserves a lot of credit for assembling a team that should have taken it all...
Yes
JIM THOME
THE PEORIA POUNDER
by The Wizard on Sep 19, 2006 1:15 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
Is it just me...
As far as your list, I think Pods, Riske, Alomar and Hermanson are the only people that need to go. And Hermie may be able to put himself back together by the Spring. We all know that one of the starters is gone, but honestly, the rotation can't be as bad as this year if you kept it together. Despite the twinkerbells, ligers, and the (Cleveland) steamers looking great for next year, I think the Sox have a good team in place with some minor adjustments to be made. They should be able to make some noise next year despite missing a great opportunity this year. Maybe I'm delusional?
At any rate, they won the world series last year and all the championship t-shirts are soon to be on sale. Sweet!
by rhythm on Sep 19, 2006 1:17 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
Approx. salaries
(in millions)
Buehrle, 8.0
Contreras, 9.5
Garcia, 9.0
Garland, 7.0
Vazquez, 12.0
Cotts, 0.4
Hermanson, 3.1
Jenks, 0.34
Logan, 0.32
McCarthy, 0.33
Riske, 1.8
Thornton, 0.35
Alomar, 0.65
AJ, 4.0
Cintron, 1.6
Crede, 2.6
Gload, 0.35
Gooch, 2.4
Konerko, 12.0
Uribe, 3.1
Anderson, 0.33
JD, 5.0
Mackowiak, 2.2
Ozuna, 0.5
Pods, 2.1
Thome, 14.1
Obviously, there are some bargains. There are also some busts.
by thekever on Sep 19, 2006 1:52 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
maybe i'm off here
for me, our problems began when we decided to rely on hermanson being healthy this year. a bullpen of jenks, thornton, hermanson, and mccarthy doing long/mop up work would have been relatively solid. problem with that line of thinking was that hermanson apparently never had the chance to be healthy. the loss of hermanson caused us to go to other guys in the righty set-up role (politte, nelson, mccarthy, etc) who weren't up to it for a variety of reasons. i can't help but think if KW knew going into the season that hermy wouldn't be available, he would have filled that role in the offseason with someone competent. instead, we've been scrambling the whole year.
adding macdougal obviously helped but, as i mentioned early this season (and got yelled down by others on here), we were using bobby a whole lot this season to paper over our bullpen problems - a guy who hadn't pitched a full season at this level and had injury probs in the past - and i was concerned about him wearing down. i think that occurred.
by larry on Sep 19, 2006 2:02 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
here's joe cowley's take
JIM THOME
THE PEORIA POUNDER
by The Wizard on Sep 19, 2006 2:17 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
those players have high market value?
by larry on Sep 19, 2006 2:50 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Blow up the team?
This team, despite it's horrible second half, is going to win at least 90 games. I'd say that 70% of the time, 90 wins is enough to get you into the playoffs. Hell, there's a chance that we finish with the sixth best record in baseball.
Make the changes that need to be made. A new LFer is the obvious one. Getting McCarthy into the rotation an trading Garcia is another (to me) obvious move.
I still like the core of this team for next year, but over the next two years, I'd like to see Kenny start to infuse some younger talent into the lineup. LF is the obvious spot to do that, with 2nd base a close second (no pun intended).
After that, it'd just be too much speculation. Obviously in two years, you're going to have to look at possibly revamping the whole middle of the lineup, with Dye/Konerko/Thome all into their mid-30s, but, as I said, that's just too much speculation for now.
by CWSKeith on Sep 19, 2006 3:26 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
KABOOOM!!!
90 wins is enough (90-72)? Sorry, not when you go 14-4 against the weak National League.
Take that record away and the White Sox are 76-68. Not exactly intimidating. And the Sox are merely 36-32 against the AL Central. It's tough to win the division when you can't beat up the other teams.
The reality is that the Sox were expected to do much more. An excellent team was assembled. There were no significant, long term injuries.
As Hawk said, they are underachievers...
by thekever on Sep 19, 2006 4:09 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
which NL division is the one that isn't weak?
your point about the AL central is far more salient. i said a couple months ago that this division - pretty much like all divisions - is won or lost within the division. we beat up on the central last year and we failed to do that this year. detroit succeeded. the twinkies have a similar record as us right now but, from the look of things, will probably end up 5 or so games. there's your difference.
by larry on Sep 19, 2006 4:16 PM CDT up reply actions 0 recs
Next year
Uribe is tough because if his head is in the game hes damn good defensively. A heart to heart is probably needed with him.
Anderson in center. No brainer and leave him the hell alone. Ozzie is probable gone after next year. If Brian can maintain for 1 more year we will have an avg hitter with a top notch glove in center for years. Im beginning to think many of the stories and quotes about Brian's closed door meeting with Oz and Kenny really rubbed Ozzie the wrong way. I remember thinking they were funny and a show of confidence in self..... wrong.
by Tdogg on Sep 19, 2006 3:23 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
kenny
JIM THOME
THE PEORIA POUNDER
by The Wizard on Sep 19, 2006 4:32 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
crede
So, despite that fact that I love having Joe on the team, I think it would be a good idea to explore the trade market for him, especially given his dodgy back and the Sox's chilly relationship with Scott Boras.
However, I absolutely wouldn't make the rumored trade for Chone Figgins (who is really just Pods part 2). I would see what kind of prospects (especially pitchers) Crede could bring in return and then weigh them against his likely production and cost over the next 4 years, while keeping in mind that the Sox want to be a playoff-caliber team every year and can't afford to downgrade the major-league club too much.
Presumably, Fields would take Crede's place, which would obviously be a defensive downgrade and, at least at first, an offensive downgrade as well. It looks like Fields's ceiling would be Troy Glaus-esque, which would be just fine, but if he doesn't pan out, losing Crede could be disastrous. But I think it's still worth at least looking into it.
by Ryno on Sep 19, 2006 6:55 PM CDT reply actions 0 recs
Comments For This Post Are Closed
Secondary Sidebar
FanPosts
Community blog posts and discussion.
Recommended FanPosts
Recent FanPosts
FanShots
Quick hits of video, photos, quotes, chats, links and lists that you find around the web.
Recent FanShots
Certain photos copyright © 2009 by Associated Press or Getty Images. Any commercial use or distribution without the express written consent of Associated Press and Getty Images is strictly prohibited.
