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Postseason Phonies

By The Cheat

I guess we can end the Bears/Sox comparisons now. I didn't write one here, but they were everywhere, and with good reason; the teams had a lot in common.

  • Both were lead by stellar defenses.
  • Both featured only mediocre offenses.
  • Both were lead by second year head coaches.
That's where the similarities end, however. You see, the White Sox defense showed up in the playoffs.

The Bears talked too much, and couldn't back it up. The Sox said all the right things, then took care of business on the field.

When the Sox finished stomping the Bean-Eaters in game 1 of the ALDS, they didn't start proclaiming themselves the best ever. When they were up 2-0 headed to Fenway, they talked of Boston's comeback the previous year. It wasn't until after they finished the job with a sweep that they got even the slightest bit chesty. This pattern repeated itself in each series as the Sox marched to their first World Series title in 88 years.

The Bears got outplayed and out-coached in every phase of the game on Sunday. During the whole game, I couldn't help but think it had something to do with how the Bears had conducted themselves during the week.

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Also from the I Don't Know When To Shut Up Department: Bobby Howry, who we last heard from complaining about the US Cellular Field attendance, is still taking shots at the White Sox.

"We have four number one starters in the rotation," he said, referring to Mark Prior, Carlos Zambrano, Greg Maddux and Kerry Wood. "I don't think another team can say that."

Howry took it one step farther, suggesting the Cubs own the best rotation in baseball if healthy. Better than the White Sox?

"They don't have four No. 1s," he said. "They had great years last year, but they were career years. They don't match up with us."

"I'm not bagging on them (Sox)," he said. "They had a great year, but it's one year. You have to look at the big picture. Last year they were better, but the difference is consistent numbers."

Maybe he was talking about simulated games. In which case, Garland is the only Sox player with such experience; and that was in the middle of the playoffs.

As for pitchers with career years, apparently their weren't any mirrors nearby Howry. After all, his 2005 ERA was more than a full run below his career ERA. Thanks to the superb Indians defense behind him, and a lot of luck, he had just a .215 BABIP. Guess what, Bob? Your 2005 was the definition of a career year.

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I apologize for not being around lately. I was under the weather. I didn't realize how run down I felt until I was feeling back to normal today.

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