This is probably somewhat overdue, seeing how much ass the music thread kicks (it really does -- if nothing else it gives me some stuff to dabble with in my free time).  I know I'm always looking for good ("good" being, of course, an extremely subjective word, but I think most understand what I'm trying to get across) stuff to read, and I doubt that I'm the only one looking for new 'spots' to keep an eye on.  The thing is, I want more...  I've already articulated my frustration in not being able to find a music spot that really does what I want it to do (I really need to give AV Club more of a shot -- I liked one of the reviews I read there but haven't made a concerted effort to frequent it on a more-than-occasional basis).

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This past week I've been thinking a lot about the start of this season.  Up till about ten minutes ago, I have to admit that my thoughts were mostly on the gloomy side, stemming mainly from just a few 'decisions' that have irked the hell out of me (Fields/Crede and the Owens love-fest). 

Continue reading this post »

Marquette in five -- book it.

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Surprise picks, anyone?  Sleepers?  Overrated teams?

Big Ten appears to rule the day when NCAA is discussed, so I'll share my brief thoughts on each team (keeping in mind that I probably haven't seen these guys as much as some of you guys have).

- Wisconsin - Oh boy...  I might as well get it off my chest.  I think they're terribly overrated.  They deserve the seed they got, don't get me wrong -- they beat who was on their schedule and that win at Texas is great.  They seem to play fantastic defense, too, but I dunno...  freaking Marquette handled them at the Kohl Center, and we didn't beat anybody else on the road worth a damn in the Big East.  I know Pomeroy loves them, but they love Marquette too (relatively speaking) -- I think it has Marquette at something like 12, and I can't say with a straight face that Marquette is the 12th best team in the country.  The Big Ten just isn't very good, so I'm not sure how to judge them.  A USC/Wisconsin second round match-up would certainly be an interesting game of two contrasting styles.

(And with that I await whatever comes my way -- much love, fellas!)

The potential second round game -- if Marquette is lucky enough to get there -- versus Stanford sucks, but it's the NCAA tourney, so you're going to have to play (and beat) quality opponents.  Stanford's guards seem rather weak, so Marquette's plan would have to be to pressure the hell out of them and hope to run-run-run the whole game.  The Lopez brothers would almost assuredly combine for at least 40, though...

I don't care to speculate beyond that.  I'm not kidding myself into thinking Marquette is any great shakes in this field of 65, but they should win against Kentucky.  Crean hasn't done squat without Wade...  it's time for Crean as well as 'The Big Three' to -- at the very least -- play more than one game in the tourney.  If we play past the first weekend I will be satisfied.

[whitesox.com]:

Highway Robbery says wiz...

hired as a scout by the Diamondbacks.  I'm sure by now most of you guys have heard of Carlos Gomez, the guy who had done provided a lot of quality analysis over the past year.  

Congratulations to Carlos and kudos to Arizona for stepping up and hiring a guy who, in a short time, has taught me a lot about pitching.  I wish him the best and hope that being a 'scout' is just the beginning.

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/unfiltered/?p=554

Will Carroll is an unprofessional dolt.  Can we start compiling a list on everything he's gotten wrong?  Or how they've fucked up the White Sox projections the past two seasons and only this year got it right?

Surprised nobody posted this.  This, to me, is 'jackass-ery' at its finest.

http://www.dailysouthtown.com/sports/548844,091SPT2.article

"Oh, yeah," Reinsdorf said. "It might be more than that. That's a question I don't know the answer to right now, because we still have to do our budget for next year. We look at all of our income and all of our expenses, and whatever is left over is our payroll.

"The fans came out to support us, so we can afford it. I've always said that whatever money we have, we'll devote to building a winning team."

Just for you extreme pessimists out there, it looks like the Sox won't be dropping back in payroll even after the crappy season.  Obviously the Sox are still going to have to unload one of Garland or Contreras (preferably both), but the money will be there to add someone.

I'm not saying, BTW, that one player (Rowand, Hunter, Jones) is going to fix the mess that the Sox are in, but I still believe it's the right move to go after Jones this winter.  That's not to say the Sox should offer him C-Lee money, but you get my drift.

This quote seemed sort of odd, too:

The Sox aren't actually paying anywhere near that $109.7 number, are they?  I thought what the Sox were paying was much closer to $95 million.

In any case, the Sox should have some flexibility this winter, which is good to know...

maybe a little too beautiful for Scott Podsednik.  Podsednik provided another adventurous moment in the outfield when he dropped a line-drive that would've ended the eighth inning.  Toronto went on to plate four in the eighth for the 4-1 victory.

• Interestingly enough, perhaps the fans have started turning on Podsednik a little bit (NOTE:  I'm obviously not talking about a majority of the posters here.).  When he came to bat in the bottom half of the eighth, a small but audible percentage -- I'm in a numbers mood, so I'll say 15% -- actually booed Podsednik.  
• Up until that eighth innng, this was a very enjoyable game from a baseball sense.  Vazquez and Marcum were on their games, combining for 13 strikeouts and just seven hits allowed.  And it's not like hitters were lacing the ball right at defenders -- there were very few hard hit balls in this game.
• A small part of me thought Konerko had been traded today (I was at the game, if my earlier comments hadn't given that away).  Apparently there was an article out a few days ago that said Konerko would sit for a few games in this series, but I didn't see it.  And when I couldn't spot Konerko from section 115 anywhere on the bench, I figured I would see a message pop-up on the scoreboard that Konerko had been sent to Anahiem for Casey Kotchman, Ervin Santana and a prospect.  Needless to say he wasn't traded, although his name has been thrown around in rumors over the past couple days.
• From where I was sitting, I was impressed with Gavin Floyd's one inning of work.  It looked like he had a really good breaking ball working -- not the curveball we've heard so much about, but a slider that was registering at 85 MPH.  I will say I was a little dissappointed that he wasn't 'letting it loose' a bit more, only topping out at 91 MPH in his one inning of work, but hey -- I'm not going to be the one to nitpick a scoreless inning from the bullpen.

I know it's been a while since a White Sox position prospect has come up to Chicago and actually looked competent, but damn -- we're actually seeing that with Josh Fields.  I guess I shouldn't really be as surpsised as I feel I am -- afterall, ZiPS projected a .262/.336/.445, and although Fields sits a bit under that as of right now, I can't help but be very excited about what we've seen so far.  

Before I saw Fields play this season, all I could really look at were the high K numbers.  I was honestly fearing a Brian Anderson like (first half of 2006) performance, with Fields swinging at sliders low and away and changes in the dirt.  Apparently, however, Fields' improved walk rate that poster 3E8 harped on has really translated.  I know his IsODiscipline isn't that great right now, but Fields' discipline at the plate has impressed me (aesthetically speaking).  It looks like he has a plan every time time he heads to homeplate -- where he wants to hit it, what he's going to look for.  I also love the fact that we've already seen him drop down some bunts down the third-base line when the third baseman is playing deep -- I always wondered why more guys don't do that, especially in situations where a baserunner is all that's needed.

So I pose two questions.  The first one -- not really a question, but -- Fields' homerun total at the end of the year.  I'll put the over/under at 19.5.  Second...  where is Fields playing to start 2008 -- third base or left field?  I'm not at all suggesting that they move Fields to LF permanently, but I also don't necessarily believe non-tendering Crede is the right move -- cutting ties after the season is selling awfully low, and that isn't exactly Kenny's M.O.

Sleep and work got the best of me this weekend, allowing me to catch all of two innings of White Sox baseball.  I'm pretty sure that's a good thing, but...

• When I check out the box scores on my cell phone, I have to say that the first two guys who I need to check and see how they did are Jermaine Dye and Josh Fields -- Dye in hoping he can get hot in what may be his final weeks in a White Sox uniform and Fields for his continued development.  I honestly (a wink to winningugly) think to myself, "If those two shared great days at the plate, I'll be a reasonably happy person for the night."  Well, it looks like Dye is beginning to understand that the baseball season is, in fact, in full swing, as he launched two homers today for a total of three in the four-game set.  I asked for a week of "hotness" from Dye -- hopefully a 6-for-14 series at the Jake will convince a GM to give the Sox a B prospect.  On the other hand...
• Jose Contreras continues to stumble.  I did catch part of the first inning (before my eyes shut on me for the better part of four hours) and was somewhat happy to see his fastball back at 90-92.  Still, however, the end result doesn't look pretty.  What was the problem today -- getting hit hard when dropping down, no forkball?
• It is July 15th, just 16 days to that trade deadline.  It seems fairly obvious to me that Dye is a goner, but what about anybody else?  Will Kenny shock us (or me, at least) and trade Garland or Vazquez for a better package of players than he'd get if he traded Contreras?  Is Contreras even tradeable at this point and, if he is, is the better move to keep him until the winter hoping he bounces back a bit or trading him for anything right now?  And finally, is Iguchi going to be a sought after commodity?

I have to be totally honest here and say that my memories of anything about the White Sox before the turn of the millenium is vague, at best.  I have vague recollections of being an extremely shy ten (?) year old, hanging over new Comiskey's long-and-deep bullpens, watching my mom and dad converse with a distant relative (my mom's third cousin, IIRC).

Anyways -- because of my 'lack of information' about the 1990s White Sox, I want to know about Albert Belle.  What was the contract that he signed?  I see he was here only two years -- was it really just a 2/$20 contract, did he opt out, or did the Sox (somehow) opt out?  Was there deferred money on the contract?  How was he in a Sox uniform, both on and off the field?  

I look at the baseball-reference's page for Belle and see he gave the Sox an average year (for a RFer) in 1997 but, in 1998, gave the Sox one of the top season's that Chicago has ever seen.  I mean, I look at that second half of '98 and can't remember anyone putting up better numbers over half a season --  .387/.451/.816.  Maybe Bonds had a better half-season than that, but the point still remains -- that was one unbelievable offensive season.  

Yet all I (usually) hear about Belle's short career in a White Sox uniform has a negative slant.  Did he leave on bad terms (/note -- I just found out the reason he left on Wikipedia, so I see the Top 3 clause, but I'm still semi-confused...  Can somebody clarify?)?  Was the criticism unjustified, perhaps paralleling the Frank Thomas criticism -- ie, while the individual himself was tearing the cover off the ball, the team was teetering around .500, thus leading to blame of the team's superstar?

Any and all info is appreciated.

It was another bad weekend of White Sox baseball, brightened only by another great Mark Buehrle start on what is increasingly looking like Buehrle's farewell tour.  The Sox hit the ball a bit better than usual the past two days, but a mediocre start by Vazquez foiled any chance at two consecutive wins.

That being said...

The two guys that really need to start hitting the ball a bit are Josh Fields and Jermaine Dye, and both obliged by combining for a 9-for-22 weekend at the plate.  Fields in particular looked very good at the plate, flashing his power and turning  on a couple of inside pitches.  He certainly has some very unique power -- there are a few balls that look like routine flies but end up going a long way.  For example, I thought his double down the right field line today was a "ducksnort" that would've been caught by Xavier Nady -- it ended up going all the way to the warning track before bouncing over the wall in foul territory for a ground-rule double.

Jermaine has certainly picked it up at the right time, because...

the trade rumors have picked up.  The Newark Star-Ledger is reporting the Mets having interest in Mark Buehrle, and the Dye rumors are still looming.  I'm sure the value of a couple of months for Buehrle or Dye is what will be the main topic of discussion -- who am I kidding, it already has been -- over the next month-and-a-half.

News is per 670 AM, The Score. Not seeing anything in print/text yet but someone can post a link when it becomes "official". It's on the official site now:

BTW, the farmer that accused Uribe of shooting him ended the case after he received some coin:

Thanks to larry for all the links.

http://ussmariner.com/2007/06/11/best-ichiro-quote-yet/

Ichiro on going to play in Cleveland:

"To tell the truth, I'm not excited to go to Cleveland, but we have to," Ichiro said through an interpreter. "If I ever saw myself saying I'm excited going to Cleveland, I'd punch myself in the face, because I'm lying."

That's fucking awesome -- get this guy in a Sox uniform ASAP.

Here's another link to some other real good quotes, as Ichiro has his say on Tiger Woods:  the athlete, and steroids.

And here's another one that I posted in a different thread but it deserves to be posted again (via Deadspin):

"The ball became the same color as the sky,'' he said, through interpreter Ken Barron. "So, I wasn't able to see it ... I was sending mental signals for the ball not to come my way, because during that time of day it's impossible for me to see the ball so I lacked mental signals. I lacked in that area.'

"Usually, I don't send mental signals," Ichiro replied. "So, because this is the first time, I thought, please don't come my way."

Combined with his above average baseball ability, Ichiro has now become the guy I want the Sox to go after this winter.  These quotes are golden!

With Paxson Jackson's pimping of Pavement, I want to know more about the music taste of the folks around here.  Part of this is selfish -- with iTunes giving :30 second clips of just about every song without buying, I try and listen to most bands that might interest me.  But I also want to know just how diverse and whacky we Sox Rooters are.

So here are my random thoughts on my personal enjoyments and such -- feel free to criticize, poke fun at or add your own.

-The Strokes are without a doubt the best band in the history of the world.  Ever.

-I'm excited to see Albert Hammond Jr. perform at the Metro June 8th.

-I'm not an avid concert-goer, but Flogging Molly was the best concert I've ever attended.

-I'm embarrassed to say that I went through the college kid faze (in high school, actually) of liking those 'college' bands -- I'm looking at you, Dave Matthews Band.  I'm proud to say that I never hopped on OAR's bandwagon, however.

-The indie/alt. rock is what I've fallen in love with lately.  That includes The Killers, Kaiser Chiefs, Murder by Death, Neutral Milk Hotel (to a lesser extent) and most recently, the Arctic Monkeys.  I'm always looking to listen to new bands in this category, so...?

-I strongly dislike the "whiny teenager" emo-ish music.  

-I'm not proud to say that I never got into the Pixies.  I respect the hell out of them for paving the way for so many of the rock bands today, but I can't say I'm a huge fan.

-I'm not the biggest fan of the White Stripes, either, but I'm looking forward to their upcoming CD.  Icky Thump rocks.

Second inning.  After Mark Grudzielanek throws the ball into left-field on an attempted force out at second base -- the Royals fourth error in two days -- the Sox have runners on second and third with nobody out.  Tadahito Iguchi grounds to third baseman Alex Gordon, who gets Rob Mackowiak in a rundown.  Mackowiak is eventually tagged out, but Iguchi makes his way to second base with Joe Crede on third.  Ryan Sweeney walks, bringing up Darin Erstad, who promptly does the same thing he did yesterday, hitting a tailor-made double play ball to shortstop Tony Pena.  This time, however, Pena actually catches the ball, turning the double play.

For the second night in a row, the Royals tried to give the Sox the game in the early going, and for the second night in a row, the Sox said, "No thanks."  Tonight, however, it looked like the Sox' early-squandaring was going to cost them a ballgame...

...that is until two outs in the ninth inning.  Joakim Soria, a 23-year-old rookie from Monclova, Mexico, got two quick outs on a flyout and a strikeout from Iguchi and Sweeney.  Erstad kept the inning alive by lining a basehit back up the middle, and Juan Uribe rocketed a double off of the wall in right -- a ball that hit the yellow line at the top of the fence -- scoring Erstad.  From there, the Sox just had to finish off KC's patchwork bullpen.  They did that the very next inning on a Jermaine Dye single, scoring pinch-runner Luis Terrero.

• Mark Buehrle ran into trouble in one inning but was otherwise the Buehrle we've watched this year.  He didn't use his breaking ball very much tonight, but was effective with his cutter.  It seems to me like he's also pitching up in the zone more, getting guys to swing-and-miss at letter-high fastballs.
• It took five relievers and a lot of Ozzie LaRussa-ing, but the Sox bullpen tossed four innings of shutout baseball, striking out four while only allowing three baserunners.  It's been particularly pleasant watching Boone Logan, who has gotten some very good left-handers (Justin Morneau, Mark Teahen) to take some ugly-looking swings.  He really has a great breaking ball working.
• Uribe in the two hole -- yay or nay?  I don't really have an opinion on this yet, but I'd keep him there while he stays hot.  The past two days I feel like I've been watching 2004 Uribe, the one who hit the ball with authority to right field and ended up with a 107 OPS+ in over 500 at-bats.
• Sweeney continues his fight to hold on to that left-field job permanently with a 1-for-2 (two walks) night at the plate.  Unless Sweeney has a brutal stretch of at-bats, I don't see how Ozzie can send him down next week when Thome returns.  Also, congratulations to Sweeney on his first big league home run.

• Josh Fields is heating up at Charlotte, going 3-for-4 with two doubles in the Knights' 4-3 win over Norfolk.  He's now up to a .254/.358/.429 line.  Charlie Haeger is rebounding nicely from his rough April, tossing seven innings of two-run 'ball.  Toby Hall made his first appearance, going 0-for-3 with a walk.
• Kris Honel tossed six scoreless innings in Birmingham's losing effort against Mississippi.  His ERA sits at 3.34 in just under 30 innings on the season.
• Aaron Cunningham is scuffling after his hot start at Winston Salem, going 0-for-3 tonight.  His OPS, which was over .900 about a week ago, is now down to .851.

Danks has pitched well enough to get victory sooner than May 9th, but nevertheless, John earned his first career win tonight with an impressive performance tonight, going 6 2/3rds, striking out four while only allowing one run.  His ERA now sits at 4.33 during the season -- it should be lower than that, but he had a couple of runs charged to him that came on a pop fly that should have been ruled an error (this happened a couple of weeks back in Detroit).

Congrats John and keep up the good work!

...or Eric Karros' subtle sarcasm flew right over my head.

------------------------------------------------

The Sox scored a first inning run for just the fifth time this year.  The Sox scored six runs -- none via the longball -- and every Sox starter had a hit except for Pablo Ozuna.

• Darin Erstad keeps grinding along, going 2-for-4 with a walk on the day.  His two-out RBI single in the second was particularly crucial in getting the Sox ahead early.
• Ryan Sweeney hasn't been talked about a whole lot here, but I've been impressed with his approach at the plate.  He's patient and is generally swinging at good pitches.  I know he's only hitting .167, but I don't think he's overmatched.  The Sox have continually pushed Sweeney throughout his minor league career, despite the fact that he's never really dominated any level.  I wouldn't mind if  they did that with him this year, letting him take his lumps with the Sox -- after all, he is going to be a third of this outfield in the next decade, if things go well -- although I'm sure the only chance of that happening is if Sweeney hits .400 until Podsednik returns.  

* Garland's stuff looked better today than it has in his previous starts.  His curveball continues to be a key pitch -- he doesn't use it that often, but he's locating it well.  He's even getting some hitters to swing over the top of it, something I've never seen from Garland.  More important than his curveball, however, is his sinker, and he had very good movement on that pitch today.  

This doesn't need to be said, but Garland continues to do an excellent job fielding his position.

*  It appears Toby Hall will return by the end of May.  Personally, I don't care if he can't throw anybody out -- the Sox need any help they can get against southpaws, so Hall will be a welcome addition once he returns.

I know the consensus among most people -- myself included -- is that the Sox offense was going to be fine this year and that the pitching was the area to worry about.  

The Thome injury sure complicates things, but even with Thome, I'm not so sure that our offense would be that much better.  After some painless addition, I figured that the Sox have scored ~4.53 runs per game going back to August 2006.  That period of time, including August and September of last season and this year's opening month, covers a span of 81 games -- exactly half a season.  Cheat said over at Soxtalk that over the same span the Sox have hit .259/.328/.428.  

I don't know the league averages on either of those totals -- the 4.53 number or the team batting line -- but I would guess that both of those figures would have the Sox ranking below average in the AL.

So what can be done to fix an offense that might not be slumping but rather just below average?  For starters, there's certain guys on the offense who you're just going to have to live with (as there are no other viable options).  That includes Pierzynski, Konerko, Iguchi, Uribe (probably debatable), Crede, Dye, and Thome (obviously).  Unfortunately, that's most of the players.  And you know Erstad isn't going anywhere, although if he continues to hit, maybe Kenny will be able to convince Ozzie to get a real LFer.

Kenny Williams is in a tough spot.  If he wants this team to compete, he needs to improve the one obvious spot where improvement is needed most.  But getting a good LFer is probably going to involve giving up the prospects he acquired this winter, and I don't think he wants to do that.

Neither Fields nor Sweeney are ready yet, Terrero sucks, and Kenny can't just leave Ozzie in a position where he's going to DH Cintron every day.  Something needs to be done, although I'm not sure there are any answers that don't sacrifice 2008 and beyond.  

This next month-and-a-half are going to be very telling for Williams.  If the other three teams (in the division) continue to play well while the Sox float around .500, Williams might decide to have a mini fire sale, which pobably wouldn't be the worst thing in the world.  If Williams were to start fielding offers for Buehrle and Dye on June 15th rather than July 25th, the Sox might be able to grab a better package in return.

Comments?  Suggestions?

• Jose Contreras held the Angels to three runs last night, but his stuff still wasn't very good.  The fastball isn't where it was and the overhand forkball seemed non-existant.  I hope this isn't the Count we'll be seeing for the rest of the season,  because I fear his success will be limited.
• The Grind-o-Meter is working.  Darin Erstad has three extra base hits since the count started.
• I didn't catch the first few innings, but Jim Thome was pulled in his first at-bat.  I can't find an update on his injury status, but the chances of Thome spending some time on the DL just increased.  I brought up Eduardo Perez as an option, but I don't think they're going to resign him just to send him down a couple weeks later.  So, despite his slow start (.216/.359/.365), I'd guess Josh Fields is first in line for the DH spot.
• Speaking of the minor leagues, Gio Gonzalez continued his dominance of AA, striking out 13 in a seven inning, two run (both earned) performance.  Cheat commented that his ERA actually went up.

• Kudos to the Bulls for overcoming the Heat's antics to take a 3-0 lead last night.  I hate to bash him too much -- after all, he is a god at my university -- but Dwyane Wade was in great form yesterday, and I don't mean his actual basketball performance.  Add on some ridicilous calls from the coach -- the whole ability to intentionally foul Ben Wallace is beyond dumb, but I guess since the NBA allows it... -- and the home treatment from the refs, and I was very happy to see the Bulls take the commanding 3-0 lead.
• I'll now let you get back to the 18 hour first round of the NFL Draft.  You're with me, Chris Berman's not-so-subtle "hints"...

For those that don't know, the Sox picked up Amos Dewon Day this winter in the Rule IV Draft.  He was a 26-year old reliever who, IIRC, got talked up a bit by Sox brass and Phil Rogers.

He has been brilliant in his short time at Birmingham.  In just five-and-two-thirds, Day has struck out 16.  That's not a typo -- he has struck out 16.  Looks like just two possible outs have not been 'made' via the strikeout.

We bash the Sox scouts a lot -- or at least I tend to do so -- but hopefully they've found another bullpen gem here.  

Oh, and sample size issues apply here, but so far, so good.

-------------------------

Finally, any thoughts on Danks' start yesterday?  //shameless plug coming I was out seeing Grindhouse for the second time (go see it!).  Looks like he held his own again, but getting a little deeper than that...

http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=6068

Rany Jazayerli really did his research in this article, sort of putting into perspective how good Haeger has already been and (potentially) how valuable he could be.

Haeger is -- quite obviously -- a unique prospect.  He's not going to appear on any top 50 lists and many top 100 lists.  Yet I still think he's a guy the Sox need to be serious about holding onto.  He could probably step in and be a decent reliever right now, so I guess it's all a question of whether he can be that 220 innings a year, league average type in the majors.

On sort of a side note, today is a 'feel-good' day, with Masset pitching vey well, the Sox eventual win, and this Haeger article.  So far, Masset doesn't look like the guy that Kenny said he'd be (the set-up man throwing 95-98 with a nasty hook) but rather the starter that you heard rumblings about.  He's spotting his two-seam fastball very well right now, and he's showing more than just the hook we heard about -- I think he's throwing a changeup which is diving straight down.  The only other thing I want to see from him is his 'true' four-seam fastball -- I want to see how hard he can get that pitch to the plate.  I'd guess 93-94, which would work well with his other pitches.

Finally, since I seem to be making this a 'catch-all' type thread for the day, Charlotte opens up their season tonight against Pawtucket.  Jason Gabbard -- yep, that same soft-tosser that dominated our lineup last year -- makes the start for the little Carmines while Heath Phillips pitches for the Knights.  It's really a big year for our pitching prospects...  Haeger, Broadway and Floyd are opening the year at Charlotte; Russell and Gio Gonzalez open the year at Birmingham.  There's also last year's first round pick Kyle McCulloch -- anybody know whether he's starting at Winston Salem or Birmingham?  -- who had a cup-of-coffee in the minors last year (a little over 50 innings).

Gotta have a couple of those guys step up and have a big year.  Hopefully Russell and his new arm slot(s) will be effective, and Gio will be moving to a bigger park this year (as well as repeating AA) so we should expect his HR totals to drop.

Who's everyone rooting for?  Tourney starts in twenty minutes.  Gotta love these next two days...  luckily I'm on break so I won't have to cut any classees.

Ring out Ahoya with an MU RAH RAH!

Go Marquette!

This one is done in an 'interview' format, with Kansas City columnist Joe Posnanski speaking with Detroit Free Press columnist Michael Rosenberg.  

It's more laid back but overall well done.  Love the little Erstad/Mackowiak/Podsednik quip, too...

http://thesoulofbaseball.blogspot.com/2007/03/al-central-with-michael-rosenberg.html

http://www.minorleagueball.com/story/2006/12/23/061/36883

I posted in the thread that I feel bad for John even trying to rate 'em past eight or so.  It was tough for me coming up with ten...  From about 10-20, the prospects are pretty much interchangeable.

Freddy Garcia for Gavin Floyd and Gio Gonzalez.

Bleh.

whitesox.com - jim @ soxmachine - mlbtraderumors

Update [2006-12-7 0:4:45 by thewizardsofoz]:

[Mark Gonzales]

There could be more deals down the line this off-season, but the above quote does not mean that Williams is about to make rapid fire moves in very near future. (more later)

Neal Cotts heading north for David Aardsma and minor league reliever Carlos Vasquez (link).

Vasquez, for the first time, was a reliever this season, and put up decent numbers -- 91 Ks in a little under 85 IP (combined numbers between high-A and AA), and an ERA around 3.00.  Problem is, he's turning 24 very soon.  

I'll examine it in more detail a bit later, but a small thumbs up to Kenny as of right now, and it's pretty much a lateral move at this point.