tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-57408202011-08-16T22:12:31.101-05:00Notes about the White Sox and Chicago sportsBudahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comBlogger3561100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-89103926657931946372009-01-19T21:40:00.002-06:002009-01-19T22:03:27.372-06:00

White Sox's Bobby Jenks gets big raise but is still a bargain -- chicagotribune.comCongrats to Bobby Jenks on his big payday. The Sox agreed to $5.4 million for one year in Jenks first year of arbitration. He has come a long way from that log cabin in Idaho.Bobby has quickly become one of my all time favorite White Sox players, and not just because of the results. I appreciate the way he

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-92229700137764287762009-01-18T21:47:00.004-06:002009-01-19T21:24:17.690-06:00

Maybe I shouldn't use the phrase "rebounding" as that is the one thing the Illini haven't done well this year. Everything else has gone better than expected as the Illini look like they will be headed back to the tournament after a one year absence.Ironically, it is the 2007 recruiting class that is leading the resurgence. For a while it looked the 2007 class would be best known for the one that

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-6966580669954836032008-09-03T22:17:00.002-05:002008-09-03T22:34:18.312-05:00

Boston Red Sox beat Chicago White Sox 8-2 -- ChicagoSports.com: "'We have a powerful ballclub; it's all or nothing,' Guillen said after the Sox didn't hit a home run in consecutive games for the first time since June 25-26. They hit 96 homers during a 55-game span before this drought, but 114 of their 198 homers this season have been solo shots"But 114 of their 198 homers are solo shots? That was

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-58188320767754841682008-07-25T16:53:00.002-05:002008-07-25T16:57:11.622-05:00

Josh Fields get called up to replace Crede and gets the start at third tonight. The good news is probably can't do much worse than Crede when it ocmes to fielding percentage. The bad news is that he can't make many of the plays Crede makes look routine. Let's just hope he hits.The line-up:SOXCabrera ssPierzynski cQuentin lfDye rfThome dhKonerko 1bSwisher cfFields 3bRamirez 2bFloyd

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-80507503271385186932008-07-17T21:09:00.003-05:002008-07-17T21:49:02.430-05:00

I've been pretty confident at three out of the last five all-star breaks that the White Sox would make the playoffs: 2003, 2005 and 2006. But hey, they say 1 out of 3 is good in baseball so I;m not doing too bad.Lately I've been trying to lower my own expectations so I can't say I expect the Sox to make the playoffs this year. But without a doubt a playoff spot is there for the taking. And it

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-63625847523891072412008-07-10T20:01:00.003-05:002008-07-10T20:10:58.926-05:00

I didn't pick a great time to take a break. This year's White Sx are a fun club to watch. I think the biggest surprises this year have to be the contributions from Quentin, Ramirez, Linebrink, Danks and Floyd. Throw in Cabrera, Swisher and Dotel, and it's quite amazing the talent that Kenny has brought in over the last two years. Who needs a farm system?I have been critical of Williams in the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-24651682486764314482008-03-13T20:10:00.005-05:002008-03-13T21:15:44.415-05:00

It's a bit eye opening to see some of my favorite bloggers take the side of Geraldine Ferraro in her awful comments about Barack Obama. I think the argument they make can be summed up as "hey Geraldine Ferraro is right. A big part Obama's appeal is the fact he is black". Kaus even links Andrew Sullivan, in what he thinks is some type of Gotcha!.But of course, Ferraro said no such thing. She said

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-4485091176264738872008-02-29T20:45:00.003-06:002008-02-29T21:05:19.856-06:00

Many observers think the Clinton campaign has sunk to a new low with this ad:But it's not the fear-mongering that bothers me. It's the relentless spinning that comes from the campaign that is completely divorced from reality.From Ben Smith at Politico.com:Clinton aide Howard Wolfson called the suggestion that her ad today constitutes fearmongering "ludicrous," and quoted Obama's words back at him

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-29718171551563566552008-02-28T21:20:00.004-06:002008-02-28T22:02:15.032-06:00

Back in mid-January, I wrote that Western Digital (WDC) was a bargain at 25.27 and stated that there was no way that this stock was staying below $30/share. Then the very next day, a caller on Mad Money asks Jim Cramer if it was a good time to buy the stock and I started to get excited. Cramer would give a plug and I would see a nice bounce in the stock. But he said "don't buy!" and called hard

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-58289935385312441912008-02-28T20:59:00.003-06:002008-02-28T21:18:24.676-06:00

Yesterday, Clinton's chief strategist, Mark Penn, gave an interview basically stating that he wasn't responsible for the campaign's implosion. Today, Harold Ickes, one of Clinton's top advisers, gave a scorching interview in response. Among the many juicy quotes he states, "Besides Hillary Clinton, he is the single most responsible person for this campaign."First, the fact that these guys are

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1571386244345467732008-01-15T22:48:00.000-06:002008-01-15T21:34:54.529-06:00

I did better in my stock picks than my baseball picks last year. I hit a couple homers with Helmerich & Payne (HP, 64% gain) and Western Digital (WDC, 79% gain) and a few doubles with Coca Cola (KO, 27%) and Ternium (TX, 41%). Surprisingly, all these gains were from value and not growth stocks.I did have a couple stinkers but really don't want to rehash them, although I'm still bullish on Marvel

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-32874790299241362452007-12-21T21:03:00.000-06:002007-12-21T21:29:49.271-06:00

I'll have to do a little bit of research to find out since I don't remember the last time at least one state team didn't make it the NCAA tournament. We are looking at a very real possibility of this happening in 2008.Not a single team looks like they will be worthy of an at-large bid at season's end. Illinois State and Bradley might have a chance to win the MVC conference tourneys, and that

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-57371281327880917242007-11-29T20:03:00.000-06:002007-11-30T14:14:39.807-06:00

No, I'm not talking about the White Sox. Their future is probably a bit bleaker. I'm talking about the Fighting Illini basketball team. Is it too late to take back all the nice things I said a couple of weeks ago?My optimistic projections were based on three premises:a.) Shaun Pruitt learned how to pass out of a double team instead of forcing bad shotsb.) Chester Frazier improved his shooting

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-43979399667706857152007-11-19T21:28:00.001-06:002007-11-19T21:54:51.724-06:00

A year ago at this time, the Sox needed a center fielder, a left fielder and a shortstop. So Kenny Williams went out and traded his fifth starter, Brandon McCarthy, for a bunch a prospects and ignored the gaping holes in his lineup. OK, he did sign Darin Erstad, but I'm trying to erase the Erstad era from my memory.After predictably bad years from Podsednik, Uribe and Erstad, Williams again

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-20055818875065408462007-11-12T20:49:00.000-06:002007-11-12T21:17:42.395-06:00

Illinois's opening game win over Northeastern was hardly a thing of beauty. The final score was 63-55. Even though the game wasn't as close as the final score suggested, Illinois did not have a good day. Like last year, there were missed free throws, bad outside shooting, and long scoring droughts.I don't want to make too much of one game as they did get the win. But I don't know if I can take

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-73515803287375684522007-11-09T22:58:00.001-06:002007-11-09T23:11:22.603-06:00

Who's ready for some college basketball? I watched Illinois scrimmage at Glenbrook North last week and there is a lot to be excited about. Illinois has a few good young bigs, Chester Frazier looked good shooting the three, and Pruitt is a beast down low. I think they can be better than expected this year and they have a solid freshman class that will be a good foundation for the next few seasons.

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-30524529236477091512007-11-09T21:50:00.000-06:002007-11-09T22:04:46.407-06:00

I've always been a Dennis Miller fan. While he didn't quite fit on MNF, he was no worse than Kornheiser is now. Of course you would think Kornheiser would be better, being a sportswriter and all. But he will never get the criticism Miller did since his sport section colleagues don't have the balls to call him out.Anyway, Miller has a new show on the Versus channel on Tuesday nights. I'm not sure

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-12908922352426811892007-10-25T20:25:00.000-05:002007-10-25T20:47:36.587-05:00

I don't normally watch the Best Damn Sports Show, but the other night, as I raced through channels, I stumbled across one of their "lists" shows. Since I'm a sucker for any type of "list", I watched it for a few minutes. This show was called something like "Most Best Damn Memorable Damn Sports Moments... Damn" or something like that.This list was actually compiled of different athletes and

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-25349757079061774312007-10-25T20:24:00.000-05:002007-10-25T20:47:09.162-05:00

The Worst Football Coach in the UniverseNot really into Jonathan Chait's politics, but he is one heck of a writer. He rips Charlie Weis to shreds here, and on this subject, I couldn't agree with him more.

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-66106734644010548072007-10-19T21:31:00.001-05:002007-10-19T22:01:04.098-05:00

Wow, my last post was over four months ago! Like the Sox, I decided to take the summer off. Maybe I'll be motivated to post a little more often with college basketball around the corner.As for the Sox, I don't hold much hope for them. Of course, I didn't before the 2005 season either. But looking back, a lot of things broke the right way for the 2005 Sox. Things look a little bit bleaker now.I

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-71734259915024698232007-06-13T20:56:00.000-05:002007-06-17T15:22:41.257-05:00

Sox fans need to look at the bright side of this complete mess of a season. For the first time since 2002 you don't have to spend the summer worrying about the Sox chances of making the playoffs. No more emotional roller coasters. No more spending countless hours in front of the television when you should be spending time with your family.I've decided to take a few minutes of my newly found

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-74567924140213521992007-05-23T00:01:00.000-05:002007-10-25T20:25:50.323-05:00

While the Sox came into Tuesday night's game against Oakland with a 22-19 record, their Pythagorean won loss record is the exact opposite at 19-22. The Sox have been outscored 168-182 despite their winning record.If you break it down by innings it looks like the Sox have started games slow and ended them worse:Runs Scored/AllowedInnings 1-3: 41-57Innings 4-6: 69-50Innings 7-9: 54-71Now Jenks has

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-65669133242783942032007-05-21T00:01:00.000-05:002007-05-20T21:32:01.291-05:00

Sox fans are displaying a lot of angst after dropping 2 0f 3 against the Cubs and watching the offense sputter for 4o games. But from my perspective the glass is definitely half-full.Konerko and Dye started swinging their bats better this weekend and Thome returns to the everyday lineup tomorrow. This is a team that can average five runs per game and I think they will going forward. And for

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-16084464265291335722007-05-02T00:01:00.000-05:002007-05-02T10:29:25.033-05:00

The Sox struggled in the opening month but at least they finished above .500. That's quite a feat given their horrendous offense.Offensive Player of the Month - There were so many offensive players it's hard to just pick one. But seriously, I have to go with Darin Erstad. Only Jim Thome has put up better numbers, but since he is on the DL, I'll give POM honors to the grinder.His 261/312/375

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-39369613647534338812007-04-13T07:44:00.000-05:002007-04-13T09:12:41.292-05:00

Those Under Armour advertisements on the outfield wall at Wrigley look horrible. They would have been better off going with something more elegant rather than white paint on the green background. Now the Trib not only looks greedy for putting ads on the outfield walls, but also cheap for putting up ads that are plain and ugly. Of course, cheap and greedy is how the Trib has always run the club,

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-34190908840265469872007-04-05T21:41:00.000-05:002007-04-05T22:26:21.903-05:00

Well, it only took a three games but the Sox finally got a W. Nearly everyone places way too much emphasis on the start of the season, but it's only natural after waiting all winter for the season to start.I went to today's game and the weather wasn't that bad. If you had a seat on the sun it was comfortable without gloves or a hat - even with cold beer in hand.The Sox are now 1-2, the same

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-91657605517731124832007-03-30T15:26:00.000-05:002007-03-30T15:34:23.685-05:00

Just a reminder that the Trib's annual baseball preview comes out with Monday's paper. I was sent the following press release for those interested (full disclosure: they are sending me a poster that will appear in select copies of Sunday's trib. What can I say, I'm a cheap date.) Also, Illinois' Mr. Basketball (presumably Derrick Rose) will be published in tomorrow's paper.IN PRINT· Select copies

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-24947133022644507332007-03-30T00:01:00.000-05:002007-03-30T08:58:30.961-05:00

After giving this 30 seconds thought, and then spending 30 minutes building the tables, here are my predictions for the two Central divisions:AL CentralTeamWLDET9468MIN8874CHW8577CLE8379KC6894I'm going with Detroit since they are the only AL Central team to improve themselves over the winter. Minnesota should threaten, but a lot of what they do depends on how long they wait to bring up Matt Garza

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-39925024233539666692007-03-28T00:01:00.000-05:002007-03-27T22:30:53.060-05:00

2006 was a pretty strange year in the AL Central. Cleveland had good hitting and solid pitching yet still managed to finish below 500 at 78-84. Detroit was the most consistent team all year but lost the division on the last day of the season after being swept by the Royals. Minnesota had the privilege of being outscored by more than two runs per game and April then turning around and doing the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-10275219775503107512007-03-14T00:01:00.000-05:002007-03-14T09:08:46.504-05:00

Here are the charts for runs allowed last season. As you can see below, the Sox pitching ended up right around league average. I guess it only seemed worse. Actually, it started out fine but got worse as the season went along. I plan on looking at that in more depth in a future post. For now, I'll just say that the pitching was below average after April and May and you can't see that in the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-12247538846199404732007-03-13T00:01:00.000-05:002007-03-12T21:31:45.536-05:00

Well, I procrastinated a bit posting the run distributions. It wasn't all laziness. The numbers didn't really show anything that we didn't already know, so I wasn't motivated to put the charts together. Hmm, I guess that would still qualify as laziness.Anyway, on to the charts.Runs Scored DistributionAs you can see, the Sox offense did better than the league average in putting runs across the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-91420779317253286292007-02-28T20:57:00.000-06:002007-03-02T11:15:55.322-06:00

The boys basketball Class AA playoffs started on Tuesday night. It will be the last two class tournament as the IHSA decided to expand into four classes in 2008.There was controversy when the tournament divided into two classes back in 1972, but the tournament continued to be successful. However, I think the latest change may have a lasting effect on the tournament's popularity.Back in 1972, the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-15975132228717188102007-02-28T20:04:00.000-06:002007-02-28T20:04:32.649-06:00

CHICAGO SUN-TIMES :: Colleges :: Illinois among five NCAA locksNot quite. I'm not quite sure why Herb Gould would make such a statement. If he pays any attention at all he would know that Illinois is probably in right now but far from a lock.If Illinois loses Saturday and in their opening round BT tournament game they will not be an at-large selection. I don't think this will happen, but it is

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-83697875417586064992007-02-16T00:01:00.000-06:002007-02-15T21:11:45.650-06:00

I plan on posting the 2006 run distributions in three phases: against the 2005 team; against the AL average; and against the rest of the AL East.Run Scored Distribution - % of GamesI posted these charts at the end of August but wanted to post the final numbers. Obviously, the 2006 did a much better job scoring runs. The 2005 squad was able to score fives and six runs many more times than the 2006

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-9407553225436990112007-02-02T08:58:00.000-06:002007-02-02T11:29:13.488-06:00

Bill Plaschke, Jay Mariotti, and others, have taken their turns ripping into Tank Johnson. They believe the Bears, the NFL, and the legal system, have been too lenient on Tank. Not only do they not believe he belongs in Miami, but I get the feeling they would be happy to see him in jail.But for what exactly? I don't want to minimize his legal problems, but the least you can say is that they are

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-40917373290275386262007-01-26T09:32:00.000-06:002007-01-26T09:43:11.446-06:00

Sox GM Prepares to enter lions' denBy any measure, Darin Erstad has been a pretty bad baseball player over the past six seasons. You do not have to be a stats geek to come to this conclusion. I'm not sure if Mark Gonzales looked at any stats before writing the garbage. Here are some choice selections out of his column today:Erstad signing may take some of the heat off KenWilliamsGeneral manager

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-8392332700937710792007-01-25T21:18:00.000-06:002007-01-26T09:43:54.526-06:00

I wanted this to look better but unfortunately Google spreadsheets don't quite work like I thought they would. Anyway, in the future I will include a chart of the teams that should be in but for tonight I will just list my bubble teams and how I would rank them right now. I know you can get this information in a lot of places but my main focus is to see where the Illini stack up.At most, eight of

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-42149262434786098482007-01-19T10:59:00.000-06:002007-01-19T22:36:20.464-06:00

I was going to write a snarky post about how the city was a lot more excited about the baseball playoffs in 2003 and 2005 then they were about this years Bears team. There were even 6,000 no shows for last week's game against the Seahawks. Now that had a lot to do with the huge price tag - but I can't imagine the same thing happening to the Sox or Cubs in the playoffs.But this week was different.

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-31676866019212684892007-01-18T21:47:00.000-06:002007-01-19T09:50:21.912-06:00

There is no movement in the rankings of the state teams as they all continue to tread water (or sink at the bottom). In reality, there is not much difference between the top four teams. If they played a four team tournament I would be hard-pressed to predict who would come out on top. Illinois and DePaul have the biggest upside and both teams have a chance to prove their worth in upcoming games

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-31632857361472236082007-01-11T23:05:00.000-06:002007-01-12T10:06:16.798-06:00

The state has seen better years when it comes to college basketball. Illinois will be lucky to have one team make the tournament in 2007 as the top teams all look pretty mediocre. None look like a top 25 team. Here are my rankings of the state's division I programs:1. Southern Illinois (12-4 overall, 1-1 in-state) The Salukis have been the most consistent team in the state although their resume

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1167323166695893842006-12-28T10:24:00.000-06:002007-01-12T10:05:35.533-06:00

Wow, I agree with Jay Marriotti.The big story after the Bull’s victory last night over the Heat was the flagrant takedown of Luol Deng in mid-air by Miami thug scoundrel James Posey (editors note: you are longer allowed to use racist code words like thug when discussing the NBA). At least in Chicago that was the big story.It was the third cheap shot Posey has given the Bull sin the past year. In

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1166912472767740062006-12-23T16:21:00.000-06:002007-01-12T10:07:15.967-06:00

ESPN.com - MLB - Rangers get McCarthy from ChiSox in five-player dealIs this the move of a man who thinks the White Sox will win the division in 2007? It certainly didn't make the current squad any better.I was excited to see McCarthy in the rotation this year. He's pitched some great games as a starter and it would have been interesting to see what he could do with a full year in the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1162530097702499402006-11-02T22:51:00.000-06:002007-01-12T10:07:32.110-06:00

The Big Ten Wonk starts his college basketball previews by looking at Illinois here.The Wonk provides an amazing amount of insightful and informative college basketball analysis during the college basketball season. If you want stay on top of Big Ten basketball (with some national tidbits thrown in) please be sure book mark his site.

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1162186040003004912006-10-29T22:24:00.000-06:002007-01-12T10:08:00.217-06:00

I know most liberals would like to ignore good economic news in the weeks running up to the election, but to pretend like to economy has been anything but remarkably strong is absurd.Daniel Gross, in Slate, tries to take Republicans to task for touting the Dow Jones record highs as they prepare for November elections. His article is not exactly false, but it is a complete non sequitur. The stock

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1161748505060154242006-10-24T21:58:00.000-05:002007-01-12T10:08:17.705-06:00

I've been watching of bunch of new television shows now that the White Sox season has ended. Unfortunately the remote mostly ends up on TLC, HGTV or the Travel Channel. My wife enjoys home improvement and traveling, and since we can afford neither, the least I can do is let her watch a few tv shows.Of the three, the Travel Channel has the most interesting shows. Anthony Bourdain can be fun to

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1161402579256187972006-10-20T22:23:00.000-05:002007-01-12T10:08:44.680-06:00

Recently, five UCONN fotball players were kicked off the football team for purchasing beer. Coach Randy Edsall showed no mercy in giving this quintet of would-be inebriants the boot even before they had the chance to open up a cold one.Coach Edsall is far cry from shis basketball counterpart at UCONN, Jim Calhoun, who let's convicted criminals play for his team. I would say Edsall's actions show

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1161400988045517262006-10-20T22:08:00.000-05:002007-01-12T10:09:14.581-06:00

First a Sting Ray, a creature known to be non-threatening towards humans, kills well-known wild animal showman Steve Irwin. Now comes news that a Sting Ray jumped in a Florida man's boat and proceeded to stab the poor man in the chest.I believe only those who are willfully blind cannot see what is happenning out there. The oceans are too damn hot! Global warming is no longer some abstract concept

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1158856634883168122006-09-21T11:21:00.000-05:002006-09-21T12:37:28.026-05:00

Fun while it lasted, but it sure didn't last longLast night's loss to the Tigers dropped the Sox playoff chances from improbable to infinitesimal. The last two months have been a frustrating grind and there is some relief in the season's finality. No more hoping and the accompanying disappointments.A lot of things broke down for the Sox this year (something I'm sure will be talked about at length

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1158376278754364602006-09-15T22:11:00.000-05:002006-09-15T22:20:39.823-05:00

ChicagoSports.com - Who'll have last laugh in Thome vs. Thomas?Let me start off by saying Frank Thomas is my favorite baseball player. But man, he seems to have no clue how the media works. For example, when asked to compare your chances to win comeback player of the year compared Jim Thome, the following answers are acceptable:"I don't care about individual awards, I'm just worried about helping

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1157777989036939422006-09-08T23:23:00.000-05:002006-09-09T00:08:18.050-05:00

I've been posting irregularly on this blog for just over 3 years now and this is the first time I've ever been compelled to jump on the computer to write about a just completed game.Watching Bobby Jenks blow a two run ninth inning lead in the middle of pennant race (ok, wildcard) was probably the low point of the season. Four doubles in row?But you know what, I keep watching. When they blew a 3

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1157517367669444052006-09-05T22:43:00.000-05:002006-09-05T23:57:25.836-05:00

Well, the Sox may still have a pulse (although I heard a dead man once got a hit off Kason Gabbard), but I want to get a head start on the autopsy. Here's a quick look at the Sox run distribution this year compared to last year. First let's take a look at the distribution of runs scored (percentage is of all games played):There's not much to complain about here. The offense has struggled lately,

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1156478230512213492006-08-24T22:32:00.000-05:002006-08-25T11:23:18.966-05:00

I honestly expected to the Sox to take three out of four in Detroit. The Buehrle loss wasn't a surprise but I didn't see the Contreras meltdown coming. The last thing this team needs is another unreliable starter.The Sox end up losing a half game in the wildcard standings to the Twins after the split as Minnesota took two of three against the Orioles. The Sox are now only a half game up on the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1155874214716008832006-08-17T22:42:00.000-05:002006-08-21T11:58:08.493-05:00

Joe Mauer is getting some buzz in the AL MVP race despite some pretty weak power numbers. Yes, he does have a slugging percentage .516, but that is being propped up by his abnormally high batting average of .359 (abnormal because that .382 BAPIP isn’t sustainable). Mauer’s Isolated Power number is a much more modest .159, good enough for 45th in the American League, sandwiched between Curtis

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1155839528033823222006-08-17T13:27:00.000-05:002006-08-17T22:42:26.273-05:00

Both Brian Roberts and Johnny Damon led off with a home run in the Yankees/Orioles game this afternoon, Roberts fifth of the year and Damon's eighteenth.An hour later, David DeJesus and Pablo Ozuna do the same in the Royals/Sox game. It was even more unlikely in the White Sox game as it was the seventh homer of the year for DeJesus and only second for Ozuna.UPDATE: The Sox/Royals game also had

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1155611191554148722006-08-14T21:49:00.001-05:002006-08-14T22:06:31.593-05:00

The White Sox starting pitching has started to come around and the team is looking like a World Series contender again.Apropos of the resurgent staff, Jeff Angus has multiple posts of an interview with Don Cooper over at his Management by Baseball blog. The interview gives you a good idea of the White Sox organization's pitching philosphy and some insights into what Cooper has his starters

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1153858004559479382006-07-25T14:55:00.000-05:002006-07-25T15:09:14.190-05:00

Wild card races are fun. Wild card collapses - not so much.I've only been to two baseball games this year but have been lucky enough to witness the beginning of the collapse for both of the city's baseball teams.I went to a Cubs game way back in April when they actually had a winning record of 14-10. They lost 8-0 to the Pirates that day and went on to a 4-21 meltdown over the next month.My first

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1153406718455768362006-07-20T09:16:00.001-05:002006-07-20T09:45:18.486-05:00

Home-Run JavyBig-Inning JavyJav "Yourself a Hanging Breaking-Ball" VazquezThe Peripherals ManWhatever you want to call him, please don't let it be "starting pitcher". Many people argue that Vazquez peripheral stats (K's, WHIP) suggest Vazquez' high ERA is the result of bad luck. These people are stupid.I, for a long time, was a stupid person. But I have seen enough. I am now convinced Vazquez is

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1153193380551369892006-07-17T21:43:00.000-05:002006-07-17T22:29:40.680-05:00

Even after losing two out of three before the break, the White Sox still found themselves comfortably positioned for the playoffs as they were six games ahead of the Yankees in the wild card race. All they had to do was win one game in NY and leave the city with a five game lead.Unfortunately, they picked a bad time to stop hitting the ball with runners on-base, as they consistently failed to to

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1152851747060422412006-07-13T22:00:00.000-05:002006-08-21T12:59:07.393-05:00

There is no doubt that Joe Crede is having a great, if not quite spectacular, year. His current batting line of 294/331/512 would give him career highs in average, on-base and slugging percentage. His 50 runs and 58 rbis at the break are both just 18 short of his career highs.However, the way in which he has improved his numbers lead me to question how much is luck and how much of the improvement

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1152809127543788262006-07-13T11:34:00.000-05:002006-07-13T12:11:21.520-05:00

The Sox start the second half tomorrow against the Yankees two games back of the Tigers who start a four game set against the Royals tonight. The two teams have a similar schedule for the second half of the season (schedule sorted by winning percentage in descenging order).TeamCHIDETDET/CHI1313BOS33NYY63TOR33MIN1210OAK33TEX36ANA43SEA43CLE79BAL34TB34KC1010Total7474The two teams play each 13 times

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1151092827920541712006-06-23T14:37:00.000-05:002006-06-23T15:00:28.046-05:00

All baseball teams, even good ones, go through some tough stretches. However, good teams tread water through their tough stretches, while others watch their seasons sink.Last year the Sox played 500 ball for stretches than would go on a few long winning streaks. The only exception was their nerve-wracking 7 game losing streak in August.This year's team seems to be following a similar pattern. The

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1150472874774623182006-06-16T09:51:00.000-05:002006-06-16T11:04:37.276-05:00

Baseball Prospectus had a White Sox Notebook entry yesterday (no subscription required) focusing on Brian Anderson's defense.Anderson is producing on defense at a RATE of 124, meaning that if he keeps up his current play he'll have saved an astounding 24 runs above the average centerfielder (think the once-spectacular Andruw Jones since 2004) over 100 games. Since 1900, no centerfielder has kept

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1150171958214449962006-06-12T22:39:00.000-05:002006-06-12T23:17:39.473-05:00

The Sox carried over the offense from Sunday night's 9th inning and beat the Rangers tonight 8-3. The Sox may not have won Sunday night, but by finishing the game strong with 6 runs in the ninth they were able to carry some momentum into the start of their seven game road trip.Sunday night's loss reminded me of a similar comeback by the Twins in September 2003. The Sox were on the winning side

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1149796919770439782006-06-08T14:30:00.000-05:002006-06-08T15:07:40.373-05:00

The last two victories over the Tigers rekindled memories of the many one run victories the Sox had last season. They have been a little bit harder to come by this year.Although both games ended with the Sox on top 4-3, the games differed greatly on how the final outcome was achieved. The first game had the huge mometun swing provided by Cintron's 3 run-homer in the eighth. The guys at

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1149737437843511532006-06-07T22:20:00.000-05:002006-06-07T22:50:24.753-05:00

Although Bobby Jenks started the year slowly I didn't think he pitched as badly as his numbers suggested. Sure he had a couple of bad outings that shot his ERA up to 5.53, but for the most part he was getting the job done, blowing just one of his first eleven save opportunites.Since his last blow-up on May 10th, Jenks has been almost unhittable, striking out 17 batters in the last 10.2 innings

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1149689698715186572006-06-07T08:54:00.000-05:002006-06-07T09:19:09.373-05:00

The Tigers looked like they were on there way to an important series opening victory last night as the White Sox squandered a number of scoring opportunities.The Sox would again put two men on base with one out in the eighth. To be honest, I was expecting another rally to end without any runs scored. As the count went full to Alex Cintron I started to hope for a walk to load the bases. I did not

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1149343314710088232006-06-03T08:42:00.000-05:002006-06-03T09:01:57.150-05:00

Jon Garland pitched well last night, only making one mistake in the second, giving up a 2 run homer to Brad Wilkerson. He was charged with a third run after two outs in the seventh when Jeff Nelson came in and gave a double that scored Gary Matthews Jr. from first.The bullpen again had issues last night and again they were not give any help from Ozzie. With the scored tied at three in the

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1149275018378210952006-06-02T13:55:00.000-05:002006-06-02T14:03:38.453-05:00

It’s up to Jon Garland tonight to be a streak-buster. Yikes. Garland’s main problem this year has been giving up the long ball and the Rangers are not a good match-up for him in that department. Garland can go a long way towards turning around his season by shutting down the Rangers tonight.But just in case Garland falters again, the offense better be ready to go. They should be able to score

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1148400522811542882006-05-23T11:03:00.000-05:002006-05-23T14:29:17.010-05:00

Wow, it’s been a crazy few days at the Cell. Michael Barrett made a complete ass out of himself on Saturday but has gotten a free ride from the media. I guess MacFail and Hendry’s dressing down of Cubs beat writer Paul Sullivan had the desired effect.As everyone who does not drink the blue kool-aid knows, Barrett got off the sucker punch of the year on A.J. Pierzynski. The only instigating AJ

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1148052434992660902006-05-19T10:19:00.000-05:002006-05-19T10:27:15.070-05:00

After a hot start the Sox have been struggling a bit. Here are the records for each turn through the rotation:1-45-04-14-14-13-22-33-2The Sox are 5-5 in their last 10 games. They losttwo games in what would have been Contreras turn in the rotation. Both games were winnable but the bullpen let each one get out of hand (12-6 against the Angels and 10-7 against the D-Rays). Still, I can't help but

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1147900252263724582006-05-17T15:48:00.000-05:002006-05-17T16:10:52.336-05:00

I guess the World Series spoiled me a bit because I am not comfortable with the thought of the White Sox potentially falling out of first place tonight. The Sox are still tied for the best record in baseball, but that won't be the case for long if changes aren't made to the bullpen. McCarthy heads back to the bullpen with Contreras coming off the DL which provides the pen some relief. But other

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1146581738687992722006-05-02T09:39:00.000-05:002006-05-02T09:57:55.356-05:00

The Sox have gone through the rotation five times now and have records of:1-45-04-14-14-1One of those doesn’t look like the others.Cleveland fans sure showed some class last night. Jim Thome is a great hitter and seems to be a real good guy. He left Cleveland after being offered a contract that was about $20 million less than what he received from the Phillies. Cleveland was going into a

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1146505236359998612006-05-01T12:36:00.000-05:002006-05-01T12:53:58.410-05:00

Wow, can the Twins really be this bad? The Twins are in fourth place in the AL Central and falling fast. So far they are 0-9 against the three teams ahead of them in the division.They were swept by the Indians three weeks ago and outscored in the three game set 17-8. Eight runs in a three game set is usually good enough for the Twins to pull out one win in a series but this year their pitching

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1145975613926976652006-04-25T09:08:00.000-05:002006-04-25T12:23:57.383-05:00

I have mixed feelings about the 9:05 starts the Sox have on the West Coast. It usually means that I go a week without a good nights sleep. But on the plus side it is one of the few opportunities I have to watch a game from start to finish.I guess it's only worthwhile when they win. And about the worst possible outcome would be for the Sox to lose in extra innings, which they they did last

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1145593071635396332006-04-20T22:57:00.000-05:002006-04-20T23:25:29.903-05:00

I have a confession to make. I used to be a Cubs fan. I never liked them more than the Sox, but I did root for them in 84 and 89. A combination of things happened in the nineties - interleague play, the glorification of Sosa who pretty much represents everything I don't like in a baseball player, and the rude dismissal of Mark Grace, one of my favorite players - that turned me into a Cubs

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1145484186455188782006-04-19T16:50:00.000-05:002006-04-21T09:17:38.466-05:00

The Sox finished a sweep of the Royals, holding them to one run and 11 hits in the three game series. I would be more excited if the Royals weren't 2-12 right now, with both of those wins coming against the Sox. After the sweep, the Sox are 4-2 against KC for the year. I don't think Cleveland and Minnesota will have too hard of a time matching that record.The Sox have gone through the rotation

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1144724907546231312006-04-10T22:00:00.000-05:002006-04-11T09:06:57.553-05:00

The Big Hurt started the season with a home run in his first at bat with the A's. Unfortunately for him he hasn't done much since.He has a line of 091/200/273 with 1 home run and 4 rbis.Thome has been crushing the ball since Arizona and had a great opening week. Through today's victory over the Tigers, Thome has a line of 318/519/909 with 4 home runs and 7 rbis.Adantage Thome (and Kenny Williams

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1144724286449862842006-04-10T21:28:00.000-05:002006-04-11T09:18:04.146-05:00

The Cheat posted a rundown of White Sox blogs the other day and after a slow start the Sox are now well represented in the blogosphere.Baseball blogs started to take off in 2003 during what was a great season in Chicago. The Sox fell short in great race against the Twins and the Cubs - well they had very memorable season too.Both the Twins and Cubs seasons were being chronicled by some very good

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1144077772156132462006-04-03T10:05:00.000-05:002006-04-03T10:47:12.500-05:00

The Sox got off to a great start last night beating the Indians 10-4. I was able to catch most the game despite it being interrupted by a three hour rain delay. I finally headed to bed at 1am but not before watching Jim Thome hit a monster blast and Brandon McCarthy pitch three perfect innings.Unfortunately, I was unable to stay awake and watch new Sox lefty Matt Thornton finish off the game with

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1143777839135480852006-03-30T22:00:00.000-06:002006-03-31T15:57:28.866-06:00

Oh boy, did this start to feel like homework. Oh well, I finally wrapped it up a month late.Part IPart IICleveland led the league in preventing runs from scoring whole the Sox finished right behind them. The Tribe only let 642 runs cross the plate, three less runs than the Sox. But looking at Predicted Wins derived from league run distribution percentages show that the Sox pitching staff actually

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1143753032004899772006-03-30T14:58:00.000-06:002006-03-30T15:10:32.036-06:00

I was out on vacation last week and missed this bit of commom sense from Rich Lederer at the Baseball Analysts:To suggest that the White Sox weren't a great team is ignoring the facts. We can form our own opinions going into a season or quote Pythagorean records but the bottom line in measuring how successful--or unsuccessful--a team is (or was) is based on actual wins, place in the standings,

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1143738473949123662006-03-30T10:58:00.000-06:002006-03-30T11:07:53.990-06:00

There have been a few previews of the AL Central around the web:Phil Rogers in the TribuneGleeman and the Cheat joining the Baseball AnalystsSports IllustratedFox SportsTSN CanadaGiants and BeyondEsportsSportzNutz

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1142889944212457702006-03-20T15:11:00.000-06:002006-03-20T15:25:44.266-06:00

The Sox finally said goodbye to Joe Borchard by trading him to the Mariners for Matt Thornton. The guys at USSMariner seem happy about the deal, although many are just glad to see Thornton gone.But a few people over there seem to think that Borchard will actually help Seattle win a few games. One person called his 191/254/342 batting line a small sample size. Well, its not that small, coming

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1142444943398701562006-03-15T11:30:00.000-06:002006-03-15T11:50:26.133-06:00

Bill Simmons seems to be a polarizing figure in the sports world. He has some huge fans and just as many hardcore detractors. As for myself, I enjoy his writing, but will allow that some of his schtick can get tiresome (you know, the wide-eyed outsider act while he has been an insider for a long time now - the constant ass-kissing of his interview subjects). But I really look forward to each

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1140814257479314352006-02-24T14:38:00.000-06:002006-02-24T14:50:57.516-06:00

I wanted to post Part III of my look at run distributions today but it looks it will be over the weekend. In other news...Cubs tickets went on sale today. I get decent tickets for a Phillies game in August. Third row in section 215 at $46 a ticket (and that's not including then "convenience" charge). But no folks, they could not afford an extra $3m a year for 3 years to sign Furcal. Anyway, I

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1140191016099884862006-02-17T09:43:00.000-06:002006-02-17T10:10:08.510-06:00

So how does Cleveland score more runs than the Sox, allow less runs than the Sox, and finish 6 games back?Actual RecordsTeam WLGBSox9963-CLE 93696Pythagorean RecordsTeam RSRAWLGBCLE 7906429666-Sox 74164591715I've found that run distribution is part of the reason for this discrepancy. As you can see, runs scored accounted for the biggest difference in the pythagorean standings as the two teams

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1139593374271742382006-02-10T11:28:00.000-06:002006-02-13T13:07:25.526-06:00

It's well known that White Sox outplayed their expected Pythagorean record from anywhere from 7 to 10 games, depending on which system you use. Now many people chalk this up to "luck" and some people go as far to judge a team not by the amount of games they actually win but by their run differential alone - as if run differential represented some intrinsic value of a baseball team.It's actually

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1139586067217761442006-02-10T09:39:00.000-06:002006-02-10T09:42:20.976-06:00

I've been meaning to post this for months:

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1139344558420270182006-02-07T14:35:00.000-06:002006-02-07T14:35:58.433-06:00

2006 Chicago Cubs Promotional ScheduleApril 7: Home Opener and raising of the "Attendance Flag" to commemorate the magical 2005 season in which the Cubs were a bigger draw than any of their hated rivals. Not being raised: World Series Champions flag.April 8: Presentation of the "Nice Neighborhood" rings to members of the 2005 squad in commemoration of their capturing of the city's heart by

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1138205399182814872006-01-25T09:58:00.000-06:002006-01-25T10:09:59.276-06:00

Chris Penn had some great roles but the his best was probably "Nice Guy Eddie" in one of my favorite movies Reservoir Dogs. He also had some great parts in classic movies (at least in my generation) such as Footloose, All The Right Moves and True Romance and the classicly bad, Best of the Best.I'm not sure why he didn't appear in more quality movies, because he was certainly a talented and

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1134576399347472972005-12-14T10:01:00.000-06:002006-02-10T10:11:05.173-06:00

Most people who follow baseball closely from the outside (i.e. bloggers) tend to overvalue prospects. For those of us who follow the White Sox this is very unfortunate as Kenny Williams seems to give away prospects like an illegal alien passing out escort cards in Vegas.To Kenny’s credit, none of the prospects he has traded has yet come back to haunt the Sox. But this offseason he seems to be

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1134074153695326812005-12-08T14:10:00.000-06:002005-12-08T14:47:40.510-06:00

So Vince Carter wins a state title for his High School way back in the day and now generously agrees to donate $2.5 million for the construction of a new gym. And some assbag on the school board has the nerve to criticize the school for putting a statue (donated) of Vince in front it."There have been many students graduated from that school who have made wonderful contributions to their fellow

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1134063374577180042005-12-08T11:29:00.000-06:002005-12-08T11:37:04.270-06:00

ESPN Radio 1000 is reporting that the Sox have traded Marte to the Pirates for Oak Lawn Rob Mackowiak. Mackowiak has played a lot of 3B as well as the outfield. KW wanted a left handed 3B backup and he looks like he got one. A good move.I won't be sad to see Marte go. There is nothing more frustrating than watching a relief pitcher with control problems. Marte did pitch a scoreless 1 2/3

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1133561410949867332005-12-02T15:55:00.000-06:002005-12-02T16:13:57.330-06:00

The Twins made a good move by picking up the Marlins 30 year old second baseman Luis Castillo for two mid-level pitching prospects. Castillo's career numbers and good, especially when you take the park effects of Pro Player Stadium into account. Player Stadium. He had an OBP of over 400 on the road last year and will fill a huge void at the top of the Twin's order. The Twins have received

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1133381990523941682005-11-30T13:46:00.000-06:002005-11-30T14:30:07.530-06:00

The White Sox signed Konerko to 5 year $60 million deal that is a great PR move for the club. Whether it will turn out to be a great baseball move is yet to be determined.Konerko will turn 30 in March, so the Sox will have him for his age 30 through 34 seasons. According to Baseball Reference, players similar to Konerko through age 29 include Kent Hrbek, Jason Thompson, Fred McGriff, the Big Klu

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1132786706732420172005-11-23T16:53:00.000-06:002005-11-23T16:58:26.746-06:00

I guess I need to revise the table below. I have no problem dealing Rowand for Thome. What other position would the Sox be looking to fill? The only need is 1B/DH and Thome fills that role and brings much needed power from the left side. The only question that remains are the names of the two prospects that are being sent to Philly. I think you can send either Haigwood or Gonzalez, but not

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1132335165457793822005-11-18T11:27:00.000-06:002005-11-18T14:56:46.523-06:00

This is a little rough right now, but quite frankly, I can't waste any more time trying to pretty this thing up. Not a lot of analysis has gone into this other than assuming Rowand and Vizciano will not be playing for the Sox next year, and Paulie will. I think Rowand will be traded, Hernandez should be kept over Vizciano, and would like to see Paulie back at $13M/per year. Now Konoerko doesn't

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1131560911462040972005-11-09T12:24:00.000-06:002005-11-09T12:30:30.330-06:00

A lot has been made about the World Series being one of the closest sweeps in history. That's a somewhat fair assessment as all the games were close, but if you dig deeper into the stats you can see that the White Sox clearly outplayed the Astros.The Sox cranked out 15 more hits in the 4 games and had 5 more extra base hits, including 3 more homers (4 if you don't count Lane’s bogus home run).

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1130968590919124282005-11-02T15:45:00.000-06:002005-11-02T17:01:55.626-06:00

Last off-season the White Sox and Brewers turned a lot of heads by swapping outfielders. It was a questionable move by the White Sox at the time although I offered tepid support. No doubt, the Brewers got the best player in the deal. But the Sox got a useful outfielder who could take over the leadoff spot, a workhorse reliever, and most importantly, were able to dump salary. The salary dump gave

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5740820.post-1130513944942566242005-10-28T10:35:00.000-05:002005-10-28T10:39:04.943-05:00

There was an interesting article in the WSJ Online yesterday covering new ground on the 1919 Black Sox scandal. Things were not as simple as Eight Men Out would lead you to believe. Give it a read here.

Budahttp://www.blogger.com/profile/15227146500846981788noreply@blogger.com