White Sox Flag
I am sick as shit of the baseball pundits talking about the disappointing baseball season in Chicago and how the season is over for both clubs.
I will concede a coupla points fright from the get go...
1.) Sure I picked the cubs to play the Indians in the World Series. I am disappointed, but not surprised in my pathetic prognostication abilities
2.) The WhiteSOX will almost certainly not make the playoffs. I think the Tigers have their pitching holes filled and a great lineup to make hold off the SOX no matter what sort of run they have left in 'em
Puds...er, pundits can talk about another operatic collapse by the cubs and that's fine. They'll always be the biggest baseball story in Chicago and the second biggest sports story, right behind the Bears. I admit that with no sense of bitterness. The biggness of the cubs is why I follow them as much as I do. I'm not an ambulance chaser. I love baseball and I love high stakes, high pressure and the dizzying success or colossal failure that comes with expectations.
The point is the SOX story should not get mixed up in that mess. They were two different teams at the beginning of the season and now down the stretch they have two very different futures. It is important that the young players work hard and make improvements down the stretch...not at the plate - we know some of what Nix, Getz, Ramirez, Bacon and the other youngsters are capable of at the plate - but on defense and on the bases. The recent bad stretch for the SOX underscored a season riddled with errors in the field and on the base paths. Alex Rios also needs to have good at bats and get acclimated to playing in Chicago. Last night was an ok start but he's got a way to go.
I know many would like to predict gloom and doom for Rios, but I remember a veteran outfielder coming to Chicago and having a terrible first month only to go on to lead the team to its first World Series in 88 years and find himself the WS MVP. I'm not saying Rios will do anything similar, but I remember people calling Dye a bust and saying the SOX won in spite of him early in the 2005 season. But he found a way to play to the back of his baseball card.
In the long run, I hope for something similar for Rios...if not this year then during an important stretch in the summer of 2010.
Disappointment over the Rios trade is another example of people confusing the SOX story with that of the cubs. If Rios shows no sign of turning around thru next year, he is movable.
For now, I'd like to see him get some stuff figured out at the plate. I want to see Hudson pitch in late innings like he did this weekend, or even make a spot start. I want to see Peavy pitch one game near the end of the season if his elbow and ankle are up to snuff.
In light of the SOX expectations for this year (posted on this blog) my cousin picked 'em to win between 72 and 74 games. I was a little more optimistic and picked em to be about .500. But the most important thing is, the team seems like it is rebuilding the right way with other teams' talent and a mix of a few of their own draft picks.
Hope Bacon's back is ok
Back bacon?
Never mind. More later
I will concede a coupla points fright from the get go...
1.) Sure I picked the cubs to play the Indians in the World Series. I am disappointed, but not surprised in my pathetic prognostication abilities
2.) The WhiteSOX will almost certainly not make the playoffs. I think the Tigers have their pitching holes filled and a great lineup to make hold off the SOX no matter what sort of run they have left in 'em
Puds...er, pundits can talk about another operatic collapse by the cubs and that's fine. They'll always be the biggest baseball story in Chicago and the second biggest sports story, right behind the Bears. I admit that with no sense of bitterness. The biggness of the cubs is why I follow them as much as I do. I'm not an ambulance chaser. I love baseball and I love high stakes, high pressure and the dizzying success or colossal failure that comes with expectations.
The point is the SOX story should not get mixed up in that mess. They were two different teams at the beginning of the season and now down the stretch they have two very different futures. It is important that the young players work hard and make improvements down the stretch...not at the plate - we know some of what Nix, Getz, Ramirez, Bacon and the other youngsters are capable of at the plate - but on defense and on the bases. The recent bad stretch for the SOX underscored a season riddled with errors in the field and on the base paths. Alex Rios also needs to have good at bats and get acclimated to playing in Chicago. Last night was an ok start but he's got a way to go.
I know many would like to predict gloom and doom for Rios, but I remember a veteran outfielder coming to Chicago and having a terrible first month only to go on to lead the team to its first World Series in 88 years and find himself the WS MVP. I'm not saying Rios will do anything similar, but I remember people calling Dye a bust and saying the SOX won in spite of him early in the 2005 season. But he found a way to play to the back of his baseball card.
In the long run, I hope for something similar for Rios...if not this year then during an important stretch in the summer of 2010.
Disappointment over the Rios trade is another example of people confusing the SOX story with that of the cubs. If Rios shows no sign of turning around thru next year, he is movable.
For now, I'd like to see him get some stuff figured out at the plate. I want to see Hudson pitch in late innings like he did this weekend, or even make a spot start. I want to see Peavy pitch one game near the end of the season if his elbow and ankle are up to snuff.
In light of the SOX expectations for this year (posted on this blog) my cousin picked 'em to win between 72 and 74 games. I was a little more optimistic and picked em to be about .500. But the most important thing is, the team seems like it is rebuilding the right way with other teams' talent and a mix of a few of their own draft picks.
Hope Bacon's back is ok
Back bacon?
Never mind. More later
posted by edP | 7:24 AM
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