Hawk Harrelson, manager extraordinaire?

DAAAAMN!

Wow. Williams' response was cold. This is going to be interesting.

Barry Bonds to Chicago????

aren't the white sox in first place?

CHICAGO: As a coda to his career, player-manager Barry Bonds of the Chicago White Sox hoisted his first and presumably last World Series trophy, after Jim Edmonds's crucial tenth-inning error led the Cubs to give up the lead in Game 7 of a riveting Subway El Series.

and here I thought the Tigers were never going to have a chance....maybe Ozzie will sink this ship on his own.

They're in first because they've gotten some surprisingly decent pitching and the rest of the Central is mediocre to horrid. The White Sox offense is putrid, once again.

aren't the white sox in first place?

Yes... And they're 7-6 in their last 13 thanks exclusively to their pitching, which sports a 2.58 ERA over that stretch. The bullpen, in particular, has been extraordinary. Yet took two walkoff-HR losses in the Rays series. Those were the only two earned runs the bullpen allowed in the last two weeks. Two runs, two losses. a bullpen ERA of 0.58.

Meanwhile, the offense, to which Ozzie was directing his ire, has hit .250/.303/.380 during that stretch. And more importantly has been a ####### brutal .182 w/RISP while showcasing the unique skillset of being unable to "productive" out their way into free runs. For example, they have 5 times in the last two games had a runner on second and nobody out and scored ZERO runs in the inning, including once in the 10th inning of an extra-inning game.

Minutes later, Ozzie exploded.

This could get bad really quickly. Then again, the Sox's offense has been bad for almost two seasons now, so perhaps this blowup will just make things more interesting. In a bad sort of way. In fact, when you're talking about the White Sox's offense, the word 'bad' should always be somewhere in the sentence.

Also, could this be the end of Greg Walker since he's singled out by name?

And could this be the beginning of the end for Guillen?

I don't understand Swisher at all. Did hitting leadoff mess up his head?

I don't understand Swisher at all. Did hitting leadoff mess up his head?

He's had some extraordinarily bad luck. A ton of at-'em balls (and Crawford made a diving catch on a liner to the gap today), and even when he gets a hit, he's unlucky. He roped what appeared to be a double or triple down the first-base line -- except it hit the bag and bounced straight up, resulting in a single.

His line drive rate has never been higher, and his BABIP has never been lower. That's probably the root cause of his struggles, and I wouldn't be surprised if frustration has set in.

as a fantasy owner of Konerko, Thome annd Swisher .. I agree with every expletive that comes from that mans lips

the last 28 days have been real hard to watch

#6. Why did Edmonds try and turn a routine catch into a diving catch?!? Stupid drama queen. He left himself no room for error. When divine providence sent along that little gust of wind and the ball went just beyond his grasp, his vanity cost the Cubs the series!

But, wait. I thought they won in 2005 by playing "smart ball"? They don't need a ton of production from those middle of the order guys to play smart ball. Single. Bunt. Out. Single. Bam. There's a run.

Okay, they won with home runs and great pitching in 2005.

and here I thought the Tigers were never going to have a chance....maybe Ozzie will sink this ship on his own.

Nobody, I mean nobody, can sink a ship like the Tigers -- starting with the '06 double choke and continuing through (and including) '08 ("let's pretend we're playing fantasy baseball!").

As a White Sox fan, this weekend was incredibly frustrating from an offensive perspective. 9 runs scored in a 4 game series? and 5 of those in game #1? Of course they only allowed 9 runs, but still -- Ozzie is right. Something has to change, especially with the performance today. And Nick Swisher unlucky? Pulease. The guy stands there and watches strike after strike go by.

Realistically, what are the chances of the Twins winning the division if Liriano comes back and is effective?

And Nick Swisher unlucky? Pulease. The guy stands there and watches strike after strike go by.

You act like it can't be both. One deals with balls in play, the other doesn't.

His walk and strikeout totals are in line with the rest of his career. He's patient to a fault -- or at least when he is now, it's exacerbated by the lack of results -- but I'm guessing he watched a lot of good pitches in his Oakland days, too. It's his game.

C'mon Royals, make up some ground in the Central!

Realistically, what are the chances of the Twins winning the division if Liriano comes back and is effective?

This would certainly help, but the Twins biggest problem has been and continues to be scoring runs. If the Twins could get consistent effectiveness out of Cuddyer and Kubel I think their chances increase more than adding Liriano.

They're in first because they've gotten some surprisingly decent pitching and the rest of the Central is mediocre to horrid. The White Sox offense is putrid, once again.

They're in first because they've gotten some surprisingly terrific pitching and the rest of the Central is mediocre to horrid. The White Sox offense is medicore, once again.

The staff ERA+ is 126, that's not "decent" that's almost awe inspiring
A 126 ERA+ team with a league average offense will have a pythag of 99-63

The Sox current pythag is 32-24 (a 93 win pace)
Their OPS+ is 97, but they seem to be missing a few runs... but for the year they are not hitting badly with RISP: .261/.340/.421 (Toronto is at a putrid .239/.328/.335)

I think by the end of the year they'll have weaker pitching but signifcantly better offense than
this team

BTW, did Williams really say this?

''Very interesting, very disappointing,'' Williams said. ''It's never a good idea to throw your boss under the bus, especially when that boss has had his back as much as I have. I guess that lineup will be real interesting to see on Tuesday.

Wow. I know dealing with Ozzie must be trying...

Please God, no Jerry Owens.

Please God, no Jerry Owens.

If your problem is lack of offense, surely nobody who's paid to understand major-league baseball could think that Jerry Owens is the answer.

If your problem is lack of offense, surely nobody who's paid to understand major-league baseball could think that Jerry Owens is the answer.

You've obviously never listened to Ozzie. He lives for 1960's baseball. Guy on, steal, bunt, sac fly. He loves that ####. Remember, the OF the Sox wanted to start the season with was Swisher-Owens-Dye. That's why Quentin isn't on the All-Star ballot.

I think the moves that should be made would be:
1) cut Uribe. He serves no purpose
2) DL Konerko.
3) Bring up Fields.
4) Start a weird sort of rotation with Fields/Anderson/Swisher/Thome between 1B/CF/DH to see if any of them are going to hit.

BTW, did Williams really say this?

Yes, Williams really said that. Sometimes, Ozzie and Kenny try to out crazy each other in the press.

Guy on, steal, bunt, sac fly.

Of course, the problem for Owens is that first step.

4) Start a weird sort of rotation with Fields/Anderson/Swisher/Thome between 1B/CF/DH to see if any of them are going to hit.

I'll tell you this right now, the day they rotate Thome into CF, I'm watching the Sox game.

Realistically, what are the chances of the Twins winning the division if Liriano comes back and is effective?

This would certainly help, but the Twins biggest problem has been and continues to be scoring runs. If the Twins could get consistent effectiveness out of Cuddyer and Kubel I think their chances increase more than adding Liriano.

I'm stunned to learn that their offense hasn't been as bad as it seems....the Twins are currently 4th in the AL in scoring. Fourth! They look terrible. Their stats are terrible. But somehow they are scoring more runs than most other teams. If they could get any production at all from Cuddyer, Kubel, Young and Lamb, they might have a chance to keep that up.

A healthy Liriano might help, but I can't imagine that he'll ever be the Liriano of 2006. If was good enough to make the Twins rotation, that would help them in other ways. Maybe they could trade away Livan Hernandez for a hitter. Or they could just use Livan as a hitter....he can hit almost as well as some of the Twins hitters.

Of course, the problem for Owens is that first step.

That doesn't matter to Ozzie. He loves the fast guys that look good in a uniform. Podsednik, Owens, Alexi Ramirez. Eventually, bucking over 100 years of history, he's convinced one of the fast guys will steal first base.

If your problem is lack of offense, surely nobody who's paid to understand major-league baseball could think that Jerry Owens is the answer.

I think he could help. The White Sox problem is that they are like a beer-league softball team. Everything is station to station, and no one knows how to bunt or steal a base. (Chicago is tied for 25th in the majors in steals, and tied for last in the majors in sacrifice bunts.) That may be wonderful to some statheads, but in situations where there's a pitchers' battle (or where offense league-wide is way down), it means that the White Sox are at a distinct disadvantage. They can't manufacture runs. That's why they get in situations where they have runners on first and third with no one out, and don't score.

I'm not suggesting that the White Sox bench Thome for Owens, but they do need some guys who can provide a different skill set from "slow dude who hits for power and occasionally walks."

The White Sox problem is that they are like a beer-league softball team. Everything is station to station, and no one knows how to bunt or steal a base

No, the White Sox problem is that Swisher/Konerko/Thome have OBPs of .327/.320/.338. Add in that Swisher's OBP in May was .272, Konerko's was .283, and Thome's was .302 and you have major problems. It doesn't matter how many runs they "manufacture", when the guys who were suppose to bat 1, 3, 4 are hitting like Luis Rivas, you're going to struggle to score runs.

I'm not suggesting that the White Sox bench Thome for Owens, but they do need some guys who can provide a different skill set from "slow dude who hits for power and occasionally walks."

That might be true, but the solution can't be "fast dude who hits for no power and walks even less than occasionally."

I don't think Ozzie meant to throw KW under the bus, I think he meant to throw the players under the bus and was implying KW was going to help Ozzie lift the especially heavy carcasses for this purpose. I happen to think Ozzie and KW do fine work, but, man, are they both so quick to take offense. Freakin relax, guys.

> somehow [the Twins] are scoring more runs than most other teams

Absurdly good (and unsustainable) hitting with RISP. Start with Mike Lamb; he only seems to hit when there is someone on base. I think the Twins have some room to improve though. The only hitter who is ahead of reasonable expectations is Carlos Gomez and he probably has the talent to keep it up. Of course losing Mauer or Morneau for an extended period of time would be devastating to the Twins. Pitching depth is keeping them in the race. They don't have Liriano, Neshek or Baker and they haven't seemed to miss them.

The Twins might deal Bonser, Livan and Rincon at the deadline and improve their pitching by using Baker, Liriano and Korecky.

I don't think Ozzie meant to throw KW under the bus, I think he meant to throw the players under the bus and was implying KW was going to help Ozzie lift the especially heavy carcasses for this purpose. I happen to think Ozzie and KW do fine work, but, man, are they both so quick to take offense. Freakin relax, guys.

They don't use the style of management that I would use, but it seems to work for them, in their environment.

That being said, I'm not sure -- Ozzie MAY have meant to throw KW or Greg Walker under the bus. In his tirade, he referenced "the last year and a half." The team OPS in the first half of 2007 was UNDER 700 (it was 697). And, while I think that Williams is a pretty good GM, he has of late shown an almost total unwillingness to fix things mid-stream (or, if you prefer, mid-season). Williams retools during the off-season, and then tends to sit back and see what happens. That was unacceptable last year, when you had a number of positions that were simply dead all season long (CF, SS, 3B, LF), and Kenny did nothing to fix them. Even worse, when he had the chance to get rid of Uribe, he brought him back.

As frustrating as the last 3 games have been, Ozzie and KW (and fans like me) need to remember that...

1. the team is still in first

2. they've still played only 22 of their 56 games at home

3. they've yet to play Kansas City (and have played 7 games, all on the road, vs. the team with the best record in the AL)

June is key -- 17 home games, and 9 games vs. last place teams (KC, Colorado, Pittsburgh -- all at home). If the Sox are going to pour it on, this is the time to do it.

They look terrible. Their stats are terrible. But somehow they are scoring more runs than most other teams.

Absurdly good (and unsustainable) hitting with RISP. Start with Mike Lamb

Twins overall:.267/.325/.383
Twins with RISP: .307/.383/.447

Lamb overall: .250/.279/.339
Lamb with RISP: .432/.426/.541

Yep.

Then there's Morneau:
.364/.463/.636 with RSIP and .287/.314/.465 with bases empty

As frustrating as the last 3 games have been, Ozzie and KW (and fans like me) need to remember that...

And, they faced one of the best teams in baseball the last four games. They had to face Shields, Kazmir, Edwin Jackson, and getting a break by facing Sonnastine - who they didn't hit. So, it's not like they lost 3 of 4 to Texas or KC.

And, they faced one of the best teams in baseball the last four games. They had to face Shields, Kazmir, Edwin Jackson, and getting a break by facing Sonnastine - who they didn't hit. So, it's not like they lost 3 of 4 to Texas or KC.

Agreed. If a traditionally superior club had done this to them, it's doubtful it would generate the reaction. But people (including many here) have yet to accept the fact that the Devil Rays are in fact good, perhaps the best team in the AL at the moment.

Please God, no Jerry Owens.

No offense to the Sox (chuckle), but my Hacking Mass team could really use his (lack of) contributions.

That doesn't matter to Ozzie. He loves the fast guys that look good in a uniform. Podsednik, Owens, Alexi Ramirez.

Anyone paying halfass attention knows Ozzie did not like Podsednik.

But people (including many here) have yet to accept the fact that the Devil Rays are in fact good, perhaps the best team in the AL at the moment.

Even so they outdid themselves in offensive ineptitude.

Even so they outdid themselves in offensive ineptitude.

That was certainly my first reaction, considering that they scored 9 runs in the 4-game series, but Tampa Bay also scored 9 runs in the 4-game series. And no one is talking about them outdoing themselves in offensive ineptitude.

I think, in part, that it hurts because the Sox outhit the Rays 36-26 in the series.

and getting a break by facing Sonnastine -

Yeah, they're pretty weak after laying off all those guys at their Chicago office.


/lawyer joke

Yeah, they're pretty weak after laying off all those guys at their Chicago office.

Scott Turow aside, Sonnenschein was pretty weak (3rd tier?) even before the layoffs. Now, if you're a young lawyer, there's absolutely no reason to work there.

Scott Turow aside

He's not as good a writer as Meltzer

Yes... And they're 7-6 in their last 13 thanks exclusively to their pitching, which sports a 2.58 ERA over that stretch. The bullpen, in particular, has been extraordinary. Yet took two walkoff-HR losses in the Rays series. Those were the only two earned runs the bullpen allowed in the last two weeks. Two runs, two losses. a bullpen ERA of 0.58.

Meanwhile, the offense, to which Ozzie was directing his ire, has hit .250/.303/.380 during that stretch.

The Angels over the last 13 games have an ERA of 2.72 and a line of 219/302/335. Of course, they're 9-4 over that time. Still, only a two-game difference.

And yet, you don't see Mike Scioscia ######## about the offense in the paper. You hear the Angels saying, "This is great, our pitchers are really picking us up while the offense struggles. We are a team."

It will be interesting to see how the two teams end up.

And yet, you don't see Mike Scioscia ######## about the offense in the paper. You hear the Angels saying, "This is great, our pitchers are really picking us up while the offense struggles. We are a team."

Mike Scioscia's also boring as ####. The Sox can't score runs, but at least Ozzie makes you laugh.

And yet, you don't see Mike Scioscia ######## about the offense in the paper. You hear the Angels saying, "This is great, our pitchers are really picking us up while the offense struggles. We are a team."

Orlando Cabrera agrees.

This team is getting basically no offensive production from first base, center field, or either of the two middle infield positions. They've basically got four guaranteed outs in the lineup. That makes it hard to score runs.

Despite the 9 runs, the problem was not solved last night, at least not by the guys most responsible for it.

Thome-Konerko-Swisher-Dye: 2 for 15 (Swisher's homer, Dye's single), 1 walk and 2 Ks. 10 men left on base.

Everyone else: 9 for 18, with 3 homers, 3 walks and 2 Ks. 2 men left on base.

Thome-Konerko-Swisher-Dye: 2 for 15 (Swisher's homer, Dye's single), 1 walk and 2 Ks. 10 men left on base.

Dye's got a 119 OPS+ this season (prior to last night's game), which would tie for the 3rd highest of his career. He's not really a problem. And, to be fair, Swisher put up a 1.250 OPS last night. Thome and Konerko continued to suck, however, I'll grant you (0-7, 1 BB, OPS of .125).

Ah, the Royals will solve whatever problems that ail ya!

AG's #1 fan has it right. 7-0 since this rant.

There is a method to Ozzie's madness.

There is a method to Ozzie's madness.

or vice versa