Danks eager for tonight's game

I still don’t buy it.

[Jim @ SoxMachine]

Paul Konerko avoided his second golden sombrero in three days when he flew out to right in the ninth inning off Eddie Guardado. Up until that point, he had struck out three times in three at-bats, and seven times in his last 11. Not that I’m a hitting expert or anything, but he appears to be pulling off the ball.

Fortunately, the Sox have some options when it comes to giving Eeyore a break. There are cases to be made for Saturday and Sunday:

Day off Saturday: Puts Dewayne Wise in against Kevin Millwood, which is a better offensive option at this point. John Danks is on the mound, and since he doesn’t give up that many flies, having Wise in center shouldn’t be as big a liability as normal.

Day off Sunday: Facing a lefty that they’ve never seen before in Matt Harrison, and if his performance against Luis Mendoza was any indication, he might want to rest. Also, Brian Anderson’s glove would be in center and Nick Swisher’s at first, which would help Jose Contreras.

Of course, there’s the option of giving him both days off, too. It’s not like he stands a chance of getting in a regular rhythm anyway, what with the All-Star Break coming Monday. If I had to pick a day, though, I’d go with Saturday.

BTW, Josh Fields went 2-for-4 with a solo homer and two runs scored yesterday at Charlotte.

White SOX: Cabrera ss, Pierzynski c, Quentin lf, Dye rf, Thome dh, Konerko 1b, Swisher cf, Crede 3b, Ramirez 2b, Danks p

TEXAS: Kinsler 2b, Young ss, Hamilton rf, Bradley dh, Byrd cf, Boggs lf, Davis 1b, Saltalamacchia c, Duran 3b, Millwood p

joe says:

Final line for Gavin Fraud – 2.6 IP, 6 ER, 5 hits, 7 walks and of his 84 pitches thrown only 46 were strikes. In other words, he stunk.

nietzsche takes the mound tonight…

video: http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/fan_forum/babyruth/index.jsp?vid=6d709c57da86435db873b357d8efff87

Just as fans vote in players for the All-Star Game, singer Robert Huffman’s fans and friends will send him to Yankee Stadium on July 15.

He’s at least in the ballpark, as one of the three top vote-getters in the "Take Me Out to the Ballgame" contest, sponsored by Baby Ruth on the song’s 100th anniversary.

The phone call came late in the day when he was expecting an early e-mail announcing results, so Huffman had braced himself for disappointment.

"I was thinking, Too bad I don’t have more friends," he said, laughing.

But when he got the word, he was "pretty elated, actually."

Huffman and others submitted videos of themselves performing the song. The Web site http://www.mlb.com/babyruth posted the videos. Viewers could vote up to 25 times per e-mail address.

When the dust settled, Huffman’s "Katie Casey Harmonica" was standing in the on-deck circle. The longtime Tuscaloosan, who now lives in Birmingham, was featured in the sepia-tone video. He wears a vintage White Sox jersey, strums his acoustic guitar and chimes in on harmonica. ...

A major part of the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox’s success this year has come from a magnificent performance from the bullpen. When the Pale Hose placed reliable linchpin closer Bobby Jenks (back) on the 15-day DL Wednesday, July 9, with left scapula bursitis, many fantasy owners had to be holding their breath.

Scapula bursitis is a fairly common injury with a normal return of a week to 14 days, if rested. However, if rushed back, the player could aggravate and worsen the injury. The repetitive throwing motion could present a moderate risk of infection and adhesive capsulitis (commonly known as “frozen shoulder”), a potentially permanent injury that results in limited mobility and can emerge if not dealt with correctly.

With the closer down, damage control is a plausible plan of action for a bullpen that boasts 17 wins and an American League-best 2.83 ERA. The committee of relievers assembled by manager Ozzie Guillen to plug the gap includes Scott Linebrink, Octavio Dotel and Matt Thornton.

Jenks is expected to return after the All-Star break, but could this injury affect the rest of his season? Who is the best option in the interim? ...

Triple-A Charlotte infielder Chris Getz has a reasonable shot at earning a utility role in 2009 that Pablo Ozuna filled for three seasons before his release Tuesday.

“It’s too early to talk about next year, but he will get a legit shot to take Pablo’s role,” Guillen said of Getz, who is batting .301 for the Knights and is playing shortstop and left field in addition to his normal position at second base.

“Yes, he’s the No. 1 guy to take Pablo’s spot.”

Paul Konerko was impressed with Getz’s ability to play different positions with ease when Konerko was on a minor-league rehabilitation assignment last weekend.

“He’s a good hitter and he drew a lot of walks,” Konerko said.

“He definitely looks like he’s one of the best players, not only on the team, but in the league. It was coming very easy to him.”