Wednesday, July 18, 2007

Dead in the Water

It certainly looked like the White Sox were due for a hot streak coming out of the All-Star break. Instead, we have been treated to a 2-4 start and some of the worst relief pitching in memory.

The offense has been horrible, but the biggest culprit this season has been the bullpen. Looking at the numbers, White Sox relievers are 3-14 with a 7.52 ERA and 10 blown saves over the last 59 games. That is basically two months of mind blowingly bad relief pitching. My mind is not the only thing that blows.

If things are going to improve in 2008, Kenny Williams is going to have to acquire some pitchers that have actually proven that they can get out major league hitters. Cheap guys with some potential are nice to bring in to spring training so they can compete for the last spot in the bullpen. Sometimes you get lucky with that approach and find a diamond in the rought. However, the White Sox cannot continue to rely on pitchers of that ilk to make up the bulk of the bullpen. It is a recipe for disaster, which the 2007 season has shown. Hopefully, Kenny Williams has learned his lesson.

Sunday, July 08, 2007

Sanity

The Chicago White Sox have reached a moment of sanity. They agreed to terms with Mark Buehrle on a deal worth 56 million dollars over 4 years. Buehrle will receive 75 million dollars over 5 years if traded. This will make it difficult to trade him and virtually assures that he will be with the White Sox for the next four years.

Friday, July 06, 2007

We Gone!

This should just about sew up the 2007 season. The Sox lost by a combined score of 32-14 against the Twins in today's double header. The thirty-two runs allowed in one day set a new franchise record. You cannot get much lower than this.

Another blow to Sox fans' aggregate solar plexis could be coming soon. WSCR has been reporting that Mark Buehrle was seen packing his things in the White Sox clubhouse today. This news is coupled with comments from the general manager, Kenny Williams, that Gavin Floyd will remain in the rotation after the All-Star break. I guess this is what it feels like to be a Cubs fan.

As for Floyd, he started game two tonight, and he was his usual self. He has a career ERA of 6.96 with twenty homeruns allowed in just 108.2 innings pitched. He allowed six earned runs and four homers in 5.2 innings against the Twins. This is pretty much exactly the way he has pitched throughout his career. Kenny had better be getting the next Sandy Koufax for Buehrle because there is very little evidence that Floyd is any better than Kip Wells, another AAAA pitcher with a big fastball and a tight curve.

When all is said and done, more has been said than done by the White Sox this season. Kenny Williams talked a good game in the off-season about all of the young power arms that he had brought into the organization as well, as the offense that was guaranteed to score a lot of runs. Instead, the power arms, who had never performed well in the past, have not performed well this season, either, and the offensive players who have had injury plagued careers have gotten hurt. The World Series was great, but Williams's rope is getting shorter by the minute. It is high time that he pulled a rabbit out of his hat.

Tuesday, July 03, 2007

Don't Look Now

I know it is hard to believe, but the Sox could conceivably catch the Twins by the All-Star break. They would need the Twins to lose tomorrow and to win their remaining five games before the break. The last four games are against the Twins. It kind of blows your mind. Doesn't it?

If the bullpen would ever get its act together, it is not out of the realm of possibility that they could still catch the Tigers and/or Indians for that matter. The offense seems to be finally hitting its stride since Konerko has caught fire. For the most part, they have been consistently putting up 5-6 runs per game since the Tampa Bay series, and that is a big improvement over the earlier part of the schedule. The only caveat if they are going to make a run is that they are going to have to make it within the next month, or Kenny Williams will have no choice but to blow the team up at the trading deadline.

Monday, July 02, 2007

Horrible!

Heading into the eighth inning, it looked like the Sox might be able to salvage this season. By the time the smoke cleared, they had blown a 6-2 lead and lost 7-6. There is just no excuse for this crap. Tonight should have been a night to be remembered. Mark Buehrle left the game with the lead and a standing ovation. Instead, he wound up with a no decision, and the last week's momentum is lost. Son of a Bukvich!

Sunday, July 01, 2007

A Frustrating Win

Last nights game was a typically frustrating win. Sure, John Danks pitched well and Tadahito Iguchi delivered a clutch two out game winning single, but the Sox failed to muster any offense between the first and tenth innings. Their unique ability to score early runs only to have all offense disappear by the middle innings is mind numbing and unexplainable. The White Sox have some good hitters, but they seem to go into a shell after their first at-bats.

In other news, some other blogs are saying that Baseball Tonight reported that the White Sox have pushed Mark Buehrle's negotiation date back until Wednesday. Hopefully, the two sides can still reach an agreement, but past actions suggest that the Sox are only trying to re-sign Buehrle to that they can trade him, anyway. I hope I am wrong, of course. I guess we will just have to wait and see what the future holds.