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I've decided to move this blog to wordpress so you can find the same type of coverage at southsidepinstripes.wordpress.com

Everything will be the same and might even be better over there. If you really like this site, just head over there and see what I do.

What Youkilis Does for the White Sox

Kevin Youkilis was traded to the White Sox along with cash considerations (5.6 million) for Zack Stewart and Brent Lillibridge. While it is sad to see a player that fans endeared and a player that worked so hard to leave, Lillibridge will likely have a better career in Boston. White Sox fans have to realize that Youkilis is a great addition to the team and the White Sox didn't have to give up a whole lot in order to get him. Whether or not you like or liked Kevin Youkilis before this trade, you have to realize that he is an upgrade from the current third basemen on the White Sox. Let's take a look at what the current third basemen have done and what even a terrible Youkilis will do for the White Sox.

Let's start with the weakest stat, batting average. Kevin Youkilis is batting a mere .225 this season which doesn't sound impressive especially compared to his career average of .286, but none of the three current players that could play third base for the White Sox even have a batting average over .200. Orlando Hudson at .167, Brent Morel at .195, and Eduardo Escobar at .190.

Onto the stat that Kevin Youkilis is best known for, on base percentage. Youkilis only at .311 which also seems low compared to a .388 career OBP. Once again, Youkilis is much better than all three White Sox third basemen. Hudson with .247, Morel at .225, and Escobar at .299. Youkilis will get on base more often and is probably the perfect fit for the 2 hole problem the White Sox have.

Finally, perhaps the biggest problem for White Sox current third basemen, OPS. The White Sox third basemen went into the game today with an OPS of .466, the worst in Major League Baseball. That OPS is worse than Youkilis' OPS of .670 this season by far.

So if you are thinking that the White Sox got the bad end of the deal because Youkilis hasn't been good this season, he is still an upgrade and it didn't cost the White Sox very much. It's a good gamble for Kenny Williams to make and if it pays off, he will be praised.

John Danks Injury and What It Means for Sox

It was recently announced that what was believed to be just soreness in the shoulder was more than that. First it was declared as a grade 1 tear that would not require surgery. But most recently they are saying that it is not a tear, but only a strain. Danks will undergo rehab for the injury and will not be back very soon for the White Sox. So what does that mean for the White Sox and their pitching staff?

The White Sox already recently called up Dylan Axelrod and will probably send Zack Stewart down after a terrible start against the Cubs. Axelrod will be mainly the long reliever, but don't rule him out to get a start at some point. I personally think that Axelrod is much better than Zack Stewart, but my grandma is probably better than Stewart.

So that problem is solved, but no Danks leaves the rotation a little bare. Peavy and Sale have both been pitching great and will hopefully continue to do that. Quintana has been pitching well, but nobody knows how long that's going to last because he hasn't exactly been perfect. He's just been good enough. Floyd and Humber have both been struggling and neither will get taken out of the rotation like some have speculated about because Danks will be gone for so long. The White Sox rotation isn't going to be good is what I'm saying.

Without Danks, I think the White Sox will struggle. Being in first place probably won't last long unless the offense starts to play really well and it doesn't look like that will happen. Winning the division isn't out of the question, but a winning streak like earlier in the season won't happen again. They will have to fight to win every game and will have to play well against division opponents if they want a shot. If they can't do that, they are toast.

White Sox Draft Hawkins, Barnum

The White Sox went into the 2012 draft hoping that it would change the organization and be a big step in the right direction for the White Sox farm system. After day one, most fans didn't get what they expected but they shouldn't be too angry. The White Sox were expected to pick a pitcher. That pitcher would probably be a college arm that would be ready to be in the bullpen soon and would eventually be a starter. Names that come to mind include Marcus Stroman, Chris Stratton, and Michael Wacha. When the White Sox, with the 13th pick overall, named who they picked, it wasn't even close to what was expected. Maybe a few experts thought that there might be a chance that the Sox would take Hawkins, but it really wasn't what the Sox needed and certainly wasn't close to what most mock drafts expected the White Sox to take. Fans shouldn't think that it's a bad thing that the White Sox didn't draft a pitcher. Yes, it's what the White Sox really needed, but the Sox also need some athletic position players in their farm system. Both Hawkins, the first round pick, and Keon Barnum, the compensation round pick, are good athletes and both are players that have good power. Hawkins is a good outfielder that has been playing center field, but will probably be a corner outfielder in the big leagues. He has power and speed and has all the tools to be a really good player. His size is a little deceiving because you don't expect a big guy like that to be as fast or athletic as he is, but hey, the guy can do a backflip.

One of the advantages of the Hawkins being one of the five players that was drafted to actually be at the draft is that we get a first look at how he'll look in the White Sox uniform. I have to say that he looks good. His size reminds me a little of Dayan Viciedo and maybe he can live up to that expectation. The other player that the White Sox drafted today isn't a terrible player either. He plays first base in high school and is also known for his power. There's talk that he could move to being a corner outfielder, but he will probably stay a pitcher for his future with the White Sox. Maybe he'll be the guy that takes over for Paul Konerko when he eventually retires. I really like what I've seen from him.

So just because the White Sox didn't pick up a pitcher and maybe took a chance on some young and talented high school players doesn't mean that the first day of the draft wasn't successful. There's still a lot more picks to be taken and the Sox have a good chance to improve their farm system despite the thin draft this year. I think this year is the start of something good for the White Sox. They really need to focus on making their farm system better and I think Kenny Williams really considered that and believed that hitting was one of the things that the White Sox farm system really needed. There's still a lot of good pitchers left for the Sox, and I think they can make this draft a really good one despite the low amount of very good talent.

So I'll leave you guys with the short video that MLB put together on Courtney Hawkins. It doesn't say much, but I hope it gives you a good idea of what he can do. I also hope it makes you feel a little better about the White Sox not taking a big name pitcher.

Weekly Links

Weekly links continues, but it is a little early this week because I figured that I would include some articles on the draft which starts on Monday. And in other news, Gordon Beckham is hotter than ever so I think he has a permanent home as the Weekly Links picture. 

• Another week, another recap of the AL Central. Except this one is only covering half the week. That's beside the point though. It's a great recap from Aerys Sports. 
• One of the bigger storylines this week is whether Morel will get his job when he comes back. I read two good articles about it. Here and here.
• Another week of Chris Sale being awesome, another great article about why he's been such a good starting pitcher.
• A great article was written about Ventura and why he should get some respect for what he's done with the Sox so far this season. 
• Last but not least, the draft. The White Sox website put out an article about the draft and why the Sox are hopeful for what they might get with the 13th pick.

Series Preview. White Sox vs. Mariners

The White Sox are riding an 8 game winning streak into their next series against the Mariners. The Mariners are coming off scoring 21 runs in Texas. It's easy to see that both of these teams are playing great baseball right now. The White Sox are obviously the hotter team because they are 9-1 in the last ten and the Mariners are only 4-6 in their last ten, but that doesn't tell the whole story and won't dictate who will win this series. The White Sox did sweep the Mariners the only other time that these two teams have faced off so far this year. That does not mean it will happen again, but there is a good chance. The Sox are sending out some of their best pitchers against the Mariners who until lately have not been a great offensive team. The toughest game will probably be when the Sox have to go against Felix Hernandez in the first game of the series. The best thing about baseball is that you never know who is going to win any game on any night.

Game 1
Jake Peavy (6-1 3.07 ERA) vs. Felix Hernandez (4-4 3.17 ERA)
Both of these pitchers are great pitchers and their sort of high ERAs don't really show how good they can be. Peavy's ERA was excellent until he had a bad game against the Indians. He still got the win as he got great run support. Hernandez is storied for not having run support, but with the Mariners scoring 21 runs maybe that offense is ready to do some good things.

This is going to be the game that the White Sox are the closest to losing. The White Sox can still win this one if they get the offense going again and Peavy throws another gem like has been doing this entire year. The Mariners aren't going to be easy for the Sox and the White Sox will have to work hard and do a better job with runners in scoring position. If the offense can click again, the Sox can win.

Game 2
Gavin Floyd (4-5 5.02 ERA) vs. Hector Noesi (2-6 5.01 ERA)
You look at these two guys' ERA and you expect this game to be a high scoring game. That might be true, but both of these pitchers are capable of having really good games. We all know as Sox fans that Gavin Floyd is probably the most inconsistent pitcher in all of Major League Baseball. If Floyd has a good game, he gives the Sox a great chance to win the game. If he has one of his bad games, the White Sox will have to work hard to get the win.

I think the Sox have a great shot to win this game as long as Floyd doesn't put them in a really bad position. One again, the White Sox have to be better than they were in the last game of the Rays series with runners in scoring position. They can't leave runners on and then lose by a few runs. One of these games, leaving the bases loaded with no outs is going to bite them in the butt. They have to stop failing in those situations and need to score a ton of runs off of those situations. Continuation hitting is one of the reasons that the Sox beat the Rays in the second game and they need to play like that to beat the Mariners and other teams.

Game 3
Chris Sale (6-2 2.34 ERA) vs. Kevin Millwood (3-4 3.56 ERA)
Chris Sale has been one of the best White Sox pitchers this year. In his last game, he threw 15 strikeouts and completely dominated a good Rays lineup. If he can do something like that again for the Sox, he gives them a really good chance to win. Millwood isn't a great pitcher, but his ERA isn't terrible and it's not going to be easy for the White Sox.

For a final time I'm going to say it, the White Sox have to succeed when they have runners in scoring position especially when there is less than two outs. Right now AJ is the best player on the team with runners in scoring position and he will probably be playing tomorrow, but who knows how many of these three games he will play because he hasn't had rest in awhile due to how well he's been playing.

White Hot Sox

Check out my epic photoshopping, am I right?

Another sweep for the White Sox and they've won 8 in a row! There's no doubt that the White Sox are playing great baseball right now and they're finding ways to win games no matter what obstacle they're facing. The Sox have swept in 3 of their last 4 series; they are 9-1 in the last ten, and they don't seem to be stopping any time soon. The starters have pitched well, the bullpen has been solid, and the White Sox are playing great on offense right now. Not much is going wrong for them other than umpires throwing people out without a warning, but that's not a big deal. Right now the Sox are winning games and that's all that matters.

One of the biggest differences between this year and last year is that the White Sox no longer rely on Konerko to lead the team by having a big game every game or else the Sox lose. Konerko went 2-13 this series and the Sox still swept and scored 13 runs. That would have never happened last year. Now that the offense doesn't depend on Konerko for everything, the pressure is off of Konerko and he can just focus on playing his game. I think that is one of the reasons that this year has been different from every other year that he has played so far. If the White Sox offense keeps it up, Paulie will keep it up as well.

Another big difference in this series is that the White Sox did not depend on the long ball. Obviously it is how they won in Game 1, but that was a different game than the other two. The White Sox only had one home run in the last two games of the series and they still scored 11 runs. The White Sox offense has something that it hasn't had in awhile. That is the ability to hit in succession and score runs without necessarily hitting the ball out of the park. This is a big difference because when you depend on the home run ball, you're going to lose a lot of games when the ball just isn't going out. Now the Sox can win both with the home run and in other ways like they did on Tuesday.

Up next the Sox will play Seattle and will have to face King Felix in the first game of the series to try to improve their win streak to nine games. The series will be tough as the Mariners just put up 21 against the Rangers today, but the Sox can win this series and keep it rolling while staying in first place.

Weekly Links

As the blog is getting more and more active throughout the season, I decided to start a once a week link post. Basically giving you links to some of the things that I've read this week and some links on the White Sox action over the past week. 

• Konerko mania is going full blast right now especially after he hit his 400th homer in a White Sox uniform. Not only that, but he is floating around the .400 batting average mark which has gotten him a lot of press recently too. 
• Head over to Southside Showdown (a White Sox blog) to get a week in review of the entire AL Central. 
• Baseball Prospectus had a great article about the Indians and the difference between this year's hot start and last year's hot start. 
• Danks got sent to the DL this week, but should be back soon. For info on his trip, go here.
• South Side Sox, one of my favorite White Sox blogs, recently put out a great piece on Adam Dunn and Paul Konerko and how they compare to other 3-4 combinations in the league. 
• Everything you need to know about sabermetrics was put into a nice article by the ladies over at Aerys Sports. Check it out. 
• Last but not least, Snoop Dogg threw out the first pitch at the White Sox game on Thursday night. 

White Sox Pitching

Heading into this season, nobody thought that the White Sox pitching staff would be doing anything remarkable. Now that we are 45 games into the season, I think we can say that the White Sox rotation has gone above and beyond the expectations set before them at the beginning of the year. They may not be the most conventional group, but they each know how to get things done. As a team, the White Sox have a 3.88 ERA which is 18th in Major League Baseball. They aren't the best, but they are a unit that can get things done. At some times they can be inconsistent, but there are games when each and every one of these pitchers can shut a team down.

John Danks got a big extension this offseason and went into the season expected to be the ace of the staff. So far this season, he has not delivered in that role, but the recent announcement that he is headed to the DL for shoulder soreness could be the reason that he has been struggling. Looking at the past few seasons, fans can see that John Danks has the stuff and ability to get batters out and win games. He hasn't done that stuff yet this year, but he has the potential and if he is healthy then he can be the ace that everyone expected him to be at the beginning of the season. 3-4 with a 5.70 ERA is not what the Sox expected from their ace at the beginning of the year, but in the past two seasons he has ended with 8-12 4.33 ERA and 15-11 3.72 ERA. 2010 was his best year that he has ever had. Since then he has degressed, but his struggle the last two seasons has been understandable. If the conditions are right and he is healthy, Danks can be a successful ace for the White Sox.

Jake Peavy has been a great story this year. Ever since being traded to the White Sox, he hasn't had the same stuff as he did when he played for the Padres. This year is the one year where he has been pitching like he's back in San Diego. So far this season he is 5-1 with a 2.39 ERA. To prove my point that he hasn't pitched this way since he was playing in San Diego, go look at the stats. The last time that his ERA was close to what it is right now is his last season with the Padres. Peavy's comeback year is perfect timing for the White Sox because of the fact that Danks hasn't been the ace that the Sox needed him to be and because Floyd has been one of the most inconsistent pitchers I've ever seen. The Sox needed Peavy to step it up this season and he did just that in a very big way.

Gavin Floyd has been the biggest pitching disappointment for the White Sox this year. Every year, he has those starts when fans say "Hey, maybe this is the year that he'll figure everything out and finally be that guy." and then the next time he pitches, fans are swinging baseball bats at anything in swinging distance. Floyd can be the pitcher that the White Sox want, but he has to go out to every game he starts knowing that he can be that pitcher and he needs to execute every single time. The one thing that has been consistent is his bad ERA. Floyd hasn't had an ERA below 4.00 since 2008. He's going to need to be consistent and get better if he wants to stay in Chicago and stay as the 3rd starter in the rotation.

This is Chris Sale's first year as a starting pitcher and he has been the second best pitcher in the rotation this year. He has great stuff and many of the batters he faces haven't faced him yet, so he has that advantage over them. He was drafted to be in the Sox rotation and he has already accomplished that. His last start was a great showing of what he can do. He pitched well and got himself the win. I'm looking forward to the many years of Chris Sale as a White Sox starting pitcher to come.

Phil Humber is an odd case. He has games when he completely dominates the other team (perfect game) and he has games when he is just another pitcher in the rotation. I love him as the fifth pitcher of the rotation because he pitches well enough to be that guy and sometimes he pitches better than that guy has to which is a nice surprise when it happens. If the Sox can get a number one and number three guy, this rotation can be one of the best in the league. I like what Humber has done so far this season and it has been a reassurance that his breakout year last year was not a fluke and that Humber will be good for the Sox for years to come.

The White Sox rotation is not the best in the league, but it gets the job done. With a little maintenance, this rotation can be one of the best because they have some of the best pieces of a rotation. Each guy can give a quality start and with the help of the offense can win games. 

Series Preview. White Sox vs. Indians

The White Sox start a three game series against their division rival Indians today. This is a very important series because the Indians are leading the central right now and the White Sox are not that far behind them in the race. The Indians are a hot team coming off a sweep of the Tigers and they are 8-2 in their last 10 games. The White Sox are also hot as they are 7-3 in their last ten and just won a series against the Twins. This will be a tough series and will be a test for both teams in all three parts of the game. Whichever team wins the series will have a great advantage in the division heading forward.

Game 1
Jose Quintana (0-0 0.00 ERA) vs. Jeanmar Gomez (3-2 3.19 ERA)

Jose Quintana will get his first major league start because John Danks was recently put on the DL for having shoulder soreness. In AA, he pitched 35.1 innings and had a 3.06 ERA, 26 Ks, and 11 BBs. He made his big league debut in the bullpen for the White Sox and will now have a chance for his first start. Nobody knows whether or not he will have a good start, but the White Sox can hope that he comes out confident and by having stuff that none of the players have seen, he can fool some of their batters.

Gomez has been pretty good recently. In his last three starts he is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA. He had a pretty strong start against the Marlins on Saturday and hasn't allowed a run in his last 16 innings. The last time that he pitched against the Sox, he gave up 6 runs in one inning. His pitching could go either way against the Sox and if players like Konerko, De Aza, and Rios keep up their hot streaks the White Sox can easily win this game.

The key to this game will be whether or not Quintana has the stuff to beat a major league team. The White Sox offense will have to back him up by scoring quite a few runs, but I think the Sox have a great shot to win this game.

Game 2
Jake Peavy (5-1 2.39 ERA) vs. Derek Lowe (6-2 2.15 ERA)
Jake Peavy has probably been the best pitching story of the year. He had a terrible year last year and came back this year and is dominating teams. He isn't up to the level he was when he won the Cy Young, but he is doing a great job being the second pitcher in this rotation. In his last three starts, he is 2-0 with a 3.38 ERA and 16 strikeouts. If he continues to pitch like he has previously, he gives the Sox a great chance to win this game.

Derek Lowe has pitched well this season and recently. He's had two quality starts in a row, one in which he pitched a complete game shutout. In his last three, he is 2-1 with a 2.71 ERA and 5 Ks. He'll be a tough test for the White Sox offense, but since they are so hot recently that challenge might not be a challenge at all. In 64.2 innings pitched against the White Sox he has a losing record at 1-2 and has 3.34 ERA and 43 strikeouts. The White Sox haven't really struggled against him and if they can score 3-5 runs, they can win the game easily.

Game 3
Gavin Floyd (3-5 4.66 ERA) vs. Ubaldo Jimenez (5-3 5.02 ERA)
Floyd has been Mr. Inconsistent this year having a good start and then the next time he goes out, he is horrendous. If Floyd has one of his good starts, the White Sox have a good chance. If Floyd has a bad start it kills the entire team's momentum and they will probably lose.

Jimenez is having an alright year. He has a winning record, but his ERA isn't something to get worked up about. The same story goes for his last three starts (he is 2-1 with a 7.16 ERA). The White Sox will be able to score runs against him, but the key to winning will be stopping the Indians offense from backing him up like they have done so far this year.

Story of the Week
Paul Konerko is the story of the week for the White Sox. He has been extremely hot and is on a 10 game hitting streak. He leads the team in almost every hitting statistic and might even have a shot at MVP if he keeps hitting like he is. Right now he is .384/.462/.649 with 10 HR which is quite impressive and is obviously leading the team. In the last week he is batting .615 with 3 HRs and 6 RBIs which is the reason he is the story of the week.

Series Recap. White Sox win 2/3 against Twins

The White Sox had a tough series, but ended up winning 2 out of the 3 games. The first game was the worst of the entire series, but the only game that was even close to easy was the second game. The pitching by the White Sox was not stellar in the series, but Chris Sale did have a great start in the second game.

The power from the White Sox was the biggest story of the entire series. The players that hit home runs this series are Beckham, Rios (2), Konerko (2), Pierzynski, De Aza, and Viciedo. The power was especially helpful to the White Sox in their win in the third game of the series as they came back in the 6th after their terrible 5th inning.

The Indians swept the Tigers, so the White Sox did not gain any ground in the central division race. The Sox will have a great chance to do that though as they are going to play a three game series against the Indians starting tomorrow.

Game Preview. White Sox vs. Twins Game 1

The White Sox will play the first game of a series against the Twins today at 7:10. The Twins will pitch P.J Walters and the White Sox will send Gavin Floyd out to the mound. Neither pitcher has great statistics this year, but both have proved themselves in previous years. Whichever offense can be more productive and take more advantage of every situation to score runs will win the game.

Paul Konerko is back for the first game since getting hit in the head by Jeff Samardzija during the first game of the series against the Cubs. He is the biggest producer on the team offensively and will likely make a difference for the better of the White Sox offense today.

Other notable players in the lineup is the fact that Escobar will be playing third again as Hudson is not quite ready to start a game because he was officially signed today by the White Sox. Beckham has been on a small hot streak since the series against the Angels and will hope to continue that in this series against the Twins and maybe finally have the breakout season that has been expected of him since his rookie year with the Sox. Rios and Dunn have been much better this season than last year and both of them will look to continue their hot streaks.

One of the most surprising stories of the year is that Alejandro De Aza is one of the top offensive producers on the team. He is second to only Konerko in WARP, which is essentially the way to measure a player's worth to his team. He has a good average and has been adequate in the lead-off role.

The White Sox offense is not very good, but there are some bright spots. If the little offensive pieces can all come together to form a pretty puzzle the White Sox can be a successful team and win this game and series. The key to beating the Twins and having the possibility to win the division is offense. The White Sox can have that offense if each player produces the best that they can. The true test will be to see if the White Sox offense can actually do that.

Series Preview. White Sox vs. Twins

The White Sox and the Twins are the two hottest teams in the AL Central right now. Both teams are 6-4 in their last ten. The White Sox are coming off a big sweep of the Cubs and the Twins just took 2 out of 3 from the Brewers. Interleague is over and both teams are ready to face division opponents to try to gain some ground in the Central. Paul Konerko is hoping to be back for the first and all three of the games against the Twins. He missed the final two games of the series against the Cubs after being hit in the head during the first game. If he is back, that will be a huge difference-maker for the White Sox. Konerko leads the team in almost every offensive statistic. The Twins have a very productive offense and will be a tough test for the White Sox pitching staff.

Game 1
Gavin Floyd (3-4, 3.44 ERA) vs. P.J Walters (1-1, 3.65 ERA)

This should be an interesting matchup. Floyd has been better this year than he was last year, but still has the potential to be better. If he has a good start, the Sox have a good shot at winning, but if his start is lousy, the Sox will probably lose. Walters hasn't been too impressive this year and if Konerko is back, the White Sox offense could get sparked and score some runs to help the Sox get a win.

I think the winner of this game will probably end of winning the series because of the momentum that this game will give. Neither team has a huge advantage in this game and neither pitcher is a dominate pitcher that you can count on to win games. Whichever offense shows up and scores runs in the first game will get momentum and keep playing well during the rest of the series.

Game 2
Chris Sale (4-2, 2.91 ERA) vs. Scott Diamond (3-0, 1.40 ERA)

Both Chris Sale and Scott Diamond have had good seasons so far on the mound. Diamond has not recorded a loss yet and Sale has been dominant in many of his starts. This game will likely be low scoring and will go to the team that plays the smartest game and takes advantage of every chance to score runs.

The White Sox are not very good at taking advantage of chances to score runs, so the the Twins will probably win this game. If the Sox can somehow get at Diamond early in the game, they could win by giving Sale a lead and confidence and having the confidence at the plate that hitting this guy won't be very hard. This will be an interesting game to watch.

Game 3
Philip Humber (1-2, 5.31 ERA) vs. Carl Pavano (2-3, 4.91 ERA)

Both Humber and Pavano have good reputations as pitchers, but neither pitcher has impressive stats so far this year. This game could either be an offensive battle or a pitchers duel depending on how each pitcher performs.

If this game comes down to being an offensive battle, I think the White Sox will probably lose. The Twins have a better offense than the White Sox have and are better at taking advantage of every opportunity to score runs as I mentioned previously. If the White Sox can get better at being smart offensive players and hitting when it's most needed, they will win more games like this and more games in general.

White Sox Sweep Cubs, Clinch Crosstown Cup

The White Sox clinched the BP Crosstown Cup with a game 3 win over the Cubs to complete the sweep. The White Sox won the first game 3-2. The highlight of that game was centered around Paul Konerko. One highlight was him hitting a two run shot that gave the White Sox their first lead. The second highlight isn't so high for the White Sox. Konerko was hit by a pitch to the face and sat out both of the final two games of the series.

The White Sox won the second game of the series 7-4. They lead the entire game and at one point led 7-0 until they have up 4 runs from two different 2 run shots in the bottom of the ninth. Viciedo, Pierzynski, and Dunn all recorder home runs in this game. Danks improved his record to 3-4 on the season after getting the win during this game.

The final game of the series is when the White Sox finally achieved the shutout. They beat the Cubs 6-0. Beckham and Dunn both got their second home runs of the series. Jake Peavy got an RBI in this game on a fielders choice that scored Flowers who led off the inning with a double. Other players who got an RBI are Flowers and Rios. Both Beckham and Flowers had a great game. Peavy was brilliant and helped the White Sox complete the sweep in Wrigley Field for the first time since 1999.

The craziest thing about this series is that fans care about the Crosstown Cup. Maybe I'm wrong and nobody cares, but I'm sure there's a Sox fan out there that's jeering a Cubs fan for losing the Crosstown Cup. The trophy is the most pointless trophy in all of sports. It's a way for advertisement to be taken into the game of baseball. Some fans look forward to when the Sox and Cubs face off, but it's probably my least favorite time of the year. I never did and never will understand why Cubs and Sox fans don't like each other. I have no problem with Cubs fans because I understand what it's like to be a kid in Chicago. You hit that age that you have to decide whether you're a Cubs fan or a White Sox fan. Once you make that decision, it's who you are forever. That's the thing about Chicagoans, they're loyal. Once the decision is made between Cubs and White Sox, the person sticks with it through thick and thin for the rest of their life. So why can't the fans get along and share in each others misery and rejoice when fans stay true to their team?

The Crosstown Cup is a nice idea, but it makes this series into an advertisement. Both the White Sox and the Cubs are not the greatest teams. The White Sox are lucky to be in 2nd place like they are, and the Cubs are already pretty far behind in last place of the central division. Who wins or loses this series doesn't make a big difference towards either team's season, so why argue over something that's so dumb? Chicago fans should know better.

Congratulations to the White Sox for winning the cup, but they should know that winning that doesn't mean anything for their season. It was a great series and a good three wins for the White Sox, but they need to be ready to move on and get ready for the next two series which will be very important as they are facing two division rivals at home.

Game Preview. White Sox vs. Indians

The White Sox go from Texas to Cleveland without a day of rest as they play the Indians today. This might be a small problem because of the little rest, but I'm sure manager Robin Ventura has them ready to play today. Playing the Indians shouldn't be as much of a struggle as playing the Rangers was, but who knows because the White Sox weren't exactly stellar against division opponents last year.

Chris Sale is on the mound for the White Sox making his first Major League start. If he can control his pitches and not leave that slider hanging, he'll have a good game. During spring training, he looked like one of the best pitchers on the staff and he'll hopefully keep that going into the regular season today against the Indians.

The White Sox offense will need to back Sale up with a few runs. They had big troubles with runners in scoring position against Texas and need to do a better job of bringing those guys home in this series and game. Brent Morel, who is still without a hit, will probably start today and will hopefully get on track against the Indians. Rios and Dunn have been pretty good so far and they'll look to continue that. Konerko is solid as he always is. De Aza and Beckham haven't really gotten it going yet this season, so I'll look to them to have big games. Neither Pierzynski nor Flowers have been great at the plate so far, but whoever is playing today will hopefully get a base hit or two and get on track for the season.

The White Sox can win this game if Sale pitches well. The offense will have to score some runs because I don't think Sale will shut them out. The short rest could hurt the White Sox, but this game is still winnable for the Sox.

Series Prevew. White Sox vs. Indians

The White Sox will get almost no rest after their loss to the Rangers before they have to play the Indians in Cleveland. The White Sox didn't play very well against the Rangers, but Cleveland is not as good as the Rangers and I think the Sox have a good shot at winning this series. Right now, the Indians have the same record as the Sox, but the White Sox are going into Cleveland looking to change that.

The bottom half of the rotation will pitch for the Sox, but I expect them to do well. The Indians don't have a high powered offense nor do they have a dominant pitching staff. The White Sox can get their offense going against Cleveland and use that momentum in the series after this one against Detriot.

Game 1
Chris Sale vs. Josh Tomlin
I'm expecting Chris Sale to have a good start. He was good all through spring training and I think he'll carry that over into the regular season. He's ready to be a starting pitcher and he'll prove that today. The Indians won't be too tough of a test, but Sale will still have to work hard to get the W.

The White Sox offense should be able to take advantage of Tomlin. He isn't a well-known pitcher and I think the White Sox offense is capable of scoring enough runs to win this game.

This game will be tough because the Sox don't have much rest coming off the loss to Texas yesterday. They can still win this game if Sale pitches well and they score a couple runs, but I think this might be the one game of the series that they lose.

Game 2
Philip Humber vs. Justin Masterson 
Humber was excellent last year, especially in the first half of the season. If he can start the season off the right way in his first start, I think he gives the Sox a good chance to win. If he has 7 solid innings of good pitching, the Sox will win because I'm very confident in the bottom half of the bullpen.

Masterson is a good pitcher, but the White Sox can beat him. This will be a tougher test than Tomlin, but the Sox offense can take momentum from that game into this game.

I think the Sox will score just enough runs to back Humber up and help him get his first win of the season from his first start of the season.

Game 3
John Danks vs. Jeanmar Gomez
I'm expecting Danks to have another good start like he did in Texas on opening day. He wasn't fortunate enough to get the win from that game because he was not backed up by his offense. The story of Danks not getting a win early in the season can't happen again this year. The offense will have to back him up.

Gomez won't be too tough a challenge for the White Sox offense. If they can get some runs early in the game and just keep building, they can win this game. Offense is very important in this game because the offense never backs up Danks and will need to in this game.

I see Danks having a quality start, and I think the White Sox offense will step up and back Danks up. Danks will get his first win of the season as the White Sox win the series.


I think the Sox can actually sweep the Indians in this series. If they do so, that would be a big improvement and the Sox would have a 4-2 start. If the Sox don't sweep, I think they'll win 2 out of the 3. I don't see the Sox only one of these games.

Series Recap. Sox take 1/3 from Rangers

The first series of this season did not go the way the White Sox would have wanted, but I think they played well against one of the better teams in the American League. The Rangers came ready and they were good. The White Sox had to struggle and play a really good game just to beat them once. It was a good series and other than a few mistakes in the last game, the Sox were pretty close with the Rangers.

Opening Day didn't go the White Sox' way for the first five innings, but managed to score a run thanks to Dunn and his home run. (Wow, there was a lot of rhyming in that sentence). They scored another run that inning driven in by Alexei. For a first game it wasn't bad, but Danks could have used a little bit more run support. It's not fun losing when the other team only scores three runs.

The second game was by the far the White Sox best game. Peavy pitched well and only gave up 3 runs on 8 hits. Not bad for a guy that was a big question mark coming into the season. The offense played well, mostly led by Paul Konerko who drove in 3 of the 4 runs that the Sox scored. Only four players actually recorded a hit, but the offense seemed to be doing fine. The Sox did just enough to win the game thanks to the home run hit by Rios in the ninth inning.

The third game was not good at all for the White Sox. They didn't play good offense and Floyd didn't pitch a very good game. The Rangers came ready to hit Floyd's fastball and they sure did hit it. The Rangers had three home runs and scored 5 runs off Floyd. The bullpen did pitch well and fans got a nice taste of what Nate Jones can do. There were positives in this game, but the most important thing it did was point out the weaknesses in the team.

The story of this series was the White Sox continued struggles with runners in scoring position. In the second game, it wasn't as much of a problem as the Sox were 2-4 in that game with RISP. In the other two games they were 0-7 and 0-8, respectively. They aren't going to win games if they keep leaving runners on second and third with one or less outs. They have to get better at getting clutch base hits and bringing runners home. That's the key to this offense.

Game Recap. White Sox lose 5-0 to Rangers

The White Sox did not play a very good game today. They didn't score a single run and gave up 5, including three homers. The Sox end up losing the series 1-2.

The first few innings of the game were great pitching. The problem is that Floyd made three mistakes and all three of them were driven out of the park. The Rangers only scored one run that didn't come from a home run. After Floyd got out of the game, the bullpen was good. Nate Jones got to play in his first ever MLB game. His first two batters were a little shaky and he walked both, but then he got a double play and struck out Josh Hamilton. The thing that worries me most about this game is that Floyd didn't pitch well. If the White Sox want to be successful, Floyd has to pitch well.

The offense was a big problem in this game. Not a single player on the team had more than one hit. Everyone was equally bad. Konerko had two bad at bats today. Dunn didn't get a single hit and neither did Rios. Pierzynski really struggled today because for the entire game he had to face a left handed pitcher. I'm not sure why Ventura played him instead of Flowers against the lefty.

Right now everyone is to blame for this game. Neither pitching or offense was good and when neither is good,  it's hard to win games. The Sox should be able to get back on track against a team that's not as good in the upcoming series. They'll play the Indians in Cleveland next.

Game Preview. White Sox vs. Rangers Game 3

The White Sox aim to win the series today against the Rangers after tying the series last night thanks to the Alex Rios solo shot in the the ninth.

Eduardo Escobar will start in place of Brent Morel today. I like this change because Morel hasn't been good and because Ventura is being smart. He has said that he wants to get everyone in during one of the two first series.

This is what separates Ventura and Ozzie. Ventura knows that guys can't sit on the bench forever. He'll need more than one guy at certain positions and you can't expect a guy that has been sitting on the bench for six or seven days to just play a good game.

The White Sox can win this game as long as Floyd pitches well and the Sox get some runs early. Beckham hitting in the 2 hole could change things a little. He could either not play well or he could flourish in that spot. I like Ventura testing him there because if he does hit well there, he's a great 2 spot hitter.

Game Recap. White Sox win 4-3

Alex Rios was the hero in last night's game against the Rangers. Yes, Alex Rios. This game was very promising because both Adam Dunn and Rios had good games. They are both much improved compared to last year already. Rios looks a lot more comfortable playing in right field and won't make as many errors this year.

The first few innings of the game were kind of rough. The Sox started off well by scoring in the first. The Rangers scored to tie it in the 2nd and then in the third they both scored 3 runs to keep it tied until Rios' ninth inning heroics.

Paul Konerko had a great game getting 3 RBIs. Adam Dunn was good again and scored a run. Morel still hasn't gotten a hit this season. For that reason, he won't be playing today.