2008 AL Central Division Champs

Cait Higgins, Sox Superfan

I was at the game tonight. I got celebration champagne in my hair. It is the best feeling in the world.

Since school has been kicking my butt, I am going to keep this short and sweet. I will write more after Game 1 of the ALDS.

Grinder Ball Rule # 1: WIN OR DIE TRYING.

GO WHITE SOX.

No Heart, No Drive, No Division

Michael Bottigliero, Sox Superfan

I am not a big fan of Orlando Cabrera, but he hit the nail on the head the other day when he said the Sox do not know how to come back.  When they trail in a game, even if it is by one run, they have no urge to gain the lead. 

When they went to Minnesota, they knew they had to take at least one of the three game set.  Well, two games later, and the Twins have all the momentum only being back by a half game!  The Sox trailed practically the whole game Wednesday night by one run and could not muster a comeback.  I am not thrilled with the makeup of this team, but everyone can admit they have more talent than the Twins.  This team has championship experience, and this is the time when it should be shining through.

All is not lost.  All the Sox have to do is win the last game of this set tomorrow and do well against Cleveland this weekend and we are in.  Sounds simple, but the Sox arent making it.

No love lost

Cait Higgins, Sox Superfan

Hello dear, patient readers. I feel that this season has been a beautiful rollercoaster. All things considered, much too good of a season for me to have been putting this blog on the backburner for much of it. For that, my sincerest apologies. I would like to use the excuse that work and school have been taking up so much of my life that I haven’t found the time to write about my beloved White Sox. While this has been the case, I find that when I reflect upon it, that I have had a few minutes here and there to write. As you may or may not know, I work for the Chicago Blackhawks, and the preparation for the season has been crazy! It has been excellent to have two great Chicago teams pairing up for 6th inning “shoot the puck/baseball.” I have really enjoyed seeing so much support for our teams. I am sad, however, that the great Blackhawks have chosen the least neutral place in the city to hold the Winter Classic. Seeing as that it may not be played again in this city, it would have been nice to keep both sides of the sports spectrum happy and hold it at Soldier Field. However, things must be done a certain way when you have former Cubs employees making the decisions.

Anyway, this past month has been terrifying for me. Every time I watch a starting pitcher have a stellar outing, I have to hold my breath and pray that the bullpen is able to close them out. And, every time our starters surrender enough runs to put us behind, our bullpen seems to hold it together and our hitting dies. I was so scared when Konerko went down with his knee injury, but have been pleasantly surprised that he has been able to recover so quickly in hopes of making the playoffs. I feel that the rest of the season and the postseason will be interesting. Considering, the last time the Sox played the northside minor league team was 1909.

I think McDougal needs to be cut loose. For real. I cannot stand to see my team give up a run or more every time he comes in. He. is. AWFUL. Boone Logan hasn’t been much better. I think that we are going to live and die with our starters in the final week of the regular season. It is sink or swim, and with the bullpen playing the way they have been, I am ready to get my white flag out (But not quicker than I hang up my dark blue ‘L’ flag). Thornton has shown that he may be our only semi-reliable guy in the later innings. I am starting to get nervous when Bobby comes in, but I think that will pass. I also think that Linebrink may be playing injured, and that scares me. He was shut down before his arm started to bother him, and now he is giving up back to back homers. Finally, I am not-so-patiently awaiting the return of the guy who should have been MVP this season, (THE) Carlos Quentin.

1909 was another reason I felt that I could no longer stay silent on this blog. The Cubs have clinched their division, much to my dismay. I am patiently waiting, hoping and looking forward to a repeat performance of last year’s playoffs for them. I find that their fans are getting less and less tolerable. I’m hoping that their demise will be quick, painless, and effortless. The Sox, on the otherhand, better get it together quick if we think we have a shot against a DOMINATING American League. The Rays, BoSox, and Angels are going to all be tough matches. I am not expecting two first round sweeps like last season.

Let’s not count our chickens before they hatch. We still have the Twins to take care of after our day off tomorrow.

I promise you, dear readers, that after I get done with tests this week, there will be regular updates until the end of the season.

LET’S GO WHITE SOX!!!!!

Imposters in a Hurry

Michael Bottigliero, Sox Superfan

Somebody please tell me if the Sox are still here in Chicago?  Or did Wise, Buerhle, and Cabrera travel with a plane full of street bums to the Big Apple?  I vote for the second question.

Those players looked lethargic as only the three aforementioned athletes gave any effort.  I especially like how Rivera was able to only throw seven pitches to get the save- almost like the Sox couldn’t wait for the game to be over- probably why they put Buerhle on the mound with his notorious rep for fast pitching performances.

Hope they can come back and act like a team in search of a World Series title, and less like a team backing into a playoff spot.

Sense of Urgency?

Michael Bottigliero, Sox Superfan

With the Minnesota Twins having trouble winning games and just coming off a horribly long road trip, anyone would have guessed the White Sox would be up in the division by at least 6-7 games.  Wrong.  The Sox hold a miniscual one game lead and were just beaten up by the Toronto Blue Jays.  I know alot of other teams have been recently beaten by the Jays, but this is a first place team with it’s sights set on another World Series.  It is time to feel that sense of urgency, rally the troops, give everything you got, WIN ONE FOR THE GIPPER!  I don’t know anything more to say to get this team moving other than they should have a weird feeling on their backside- Ozzie’s foot! 

I know about the injuries to Konerko and Quentin.  But this only opens up opportunities for Nick Swisher, Brian Anderson, Jerry Owens, and Josh Fields to step up.  I know Kenny Williams failed yet once again at the trade deadline.  But even though we don’t have a fifth starter (where are you Jon Garland?!) our current starters have to buckle up and get ready to go on 3 days rest.  Pitch and hit like there is no tomorrow.  Go Go White Sox!

My Favorite Season: Part II- The Fight

Mike Steadman, Sox Super Fan

Second in an occasional series on the 2000 White Sox; what they meant to one fan and what impact that season had on the franchise.

Saturday, April 22, 2000 dawned with the young, unheralded White Sox riding a three game winning streak and holding a one game lead in the American League Central. Jim Parque took the hill against the Tigers’ Jeff Weaver in front of 16,000 plus at Comiskey Park that afternoon. The Sox spotted Detroit a 1-0 lead but rallied to put up three runs in the fourth keyed by two RBI’s from surprising rookie centerfielder (and future Sox broadcaster) Chris Singleton. Trouble began to brew in the sixth when Weaver plunked Carlos Lee immediately before getting pulled from the game by Detroit manager Phil Gardner. Unpleasant words were exchanged between Lee and Weaver as Carlos made his way to first base.

Now cruising with a seven run lead Jim Parque hit Dean Palmer of the Tigers in the arm with the first pitch of the seventh inning. Next all heck broke loose. Palmer charged Parque and threw his helmet at the diminutive Sox hurler on the way. Both benches and bullpens cleared in an unusually violent baseball brawl. I’d instruct you to check it out yourselves but the very uncool folks at Major League Baseball had it taken off YouTube. One lowlight of the incident was three Tigers players repeatedly punching Sox closer Keith Foulke in the face. Foulke was alone in the outfield and had little ability to defend himself. Some Sox fans will remember Tigers backup catcher Robert Fick screaming at the outfield crowd on his return to the visiting bullpen and getting completely doused with beer and/or other beverages. Detroit first-base coach Juan Samuel threw himself into the melee…his wild punches ultimately leading to the longest suspension (15 games) of any player or manager involved.

The Pale Hose went on to win the baseball game by a score of 14-6. But the impact of this brawl wasn’t truly felt until the suspensions were handed down by Major League Baseball six days later. Manager Jerry Manuel was ordered to sit out eight games and Jim Parque three. These suspensions presumably indicated that MLB believed Parque hit Palmer on purpose. I believe they were correct on that belief. Emerging stars Magglio Ordonez and Carlos Lee were suspended for five and three games respectively for their roles in the altercation. Sox Pitchers Keith Foulk, Bobby Howry, and Tanyon Sturtze were lost for three games apiece.

Following the announcement of the suspensions the Sox lost nine of their next twelve ballgames. This stretch led to a 13-14 record for May; which would stand as their only month under .500 that season. Following the fight I recall fan sentiment over Miller Lites generally expressing belief that the brawl would “bring the team together” and would ultimately be a beneficial experience for the young club. May proved otherwise as the team may have missed the steady hand of Jerry Manuel but certainly missed the services of its suspended front-players.

At risk of over-emphasis however, this fan believes that the 2000 Sox showed some mettle through this experience. Jim Parque never had outstanding stuff and certainly never had much velocity to his fastball. His career following 2000 was short but he proved to be an old-fashioned pitcher who believed in sticking up for his teammates. Whether Carlos Lee was hit on purpose or not by Jeff Weaver Parque made sure by plunking Palmer that the Sox would not be mistaken for a team that could be easily intimated. Its debatable what, if any, effect the melee had on the team as a whole. After a difficult May during the suspensions the Sox rebounded quite nicely. But that game-turned-streetfight certainly became one of the more memorable moments in a special season.

Thanks to CNN/SI.com for archiving their reports of both the game and the announcement of the suspensions. Each installment of this series would not be possible without the game reports and statistics found on www.baseball-reference.com