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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Couch: Thome at crossroads: At 37, it’s fine line between slump and being washed up

Much like Robert Pollard at 50…and out plops “Gratification to Concrete”.

Jim Thome is old. Let’s just be blunt about it. Thirty-seven years on a big body that has been hurt over and over through the years. That’s a dangerous moment for a baseball player, even one likely headed for the Hall of Fame, such as Thome.

So he’s 37 and hitting just .206. It’s an unsure moment when a slump isn’t just a slump anymore, but maybe the beginning of the end.

Or maybe not. You just don’t know.

So I asked Thome before the White Sox’ game Tuesday against the Cleveland Indians how he can tell. Is the bat speed still there? ‘‘It’s there; I know it’s there,’’ he said. ‘‘I know it for a fact. You see it in some of the things you work on. As you hit in the cage, you find where you are.’‘

...And then in his first at-bat, he homered to left against reigning American League Cy Young Award winner C.C. Sabathia.

‘‘I tried to prove you wrong,’’ he told me afterward, laughing and hitting me in the stomach.

Repoz Posted: May 21, 2008 at 05:01 AM | 6 comment(s) | Login to Bookmark
Related News: General, Chi White Sox, Hall of Fame

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1. Slinger Francisco Barrios (Dr. Memory) Posted: May 21, 2008 at 11:25 AM (#2789265)

His swing looks pretty good to me. If he's not in a slump, maybe he just needs vision correction.

2. Quiet Flows the Don Taussig Avenger (Edmundo)

Posted: May 21, 2008 at 11:32 AM (#2789268)

I can hear Jon Lovitz in front of Congress. "Steroids? No, I never did steroids. Uh... I had vision correction surgery, Senator. Yeah, that's the ticket, vision correction surgery."

3. Slinger Francisco Barrios (Dr. Memory) Posted: May 21, 2008 at 12:55 PM (#2789316)

Steroids? 2008 would be a funny time to quit, I'd say.

Thome 2007: .275/.410/.563
Thome career: .280/.408/.562

4. Stately, Plump Buck Mulligan Posted: May 21, 2008 at 02:26 PM (#2789416)

A few observations/questions for White Sox fans:

1. Thome is less of a concern to me than Konerko, Swisher, and Cabrera. At least Konerko, Thome and Swisher are getting on base.

2. Carlos Quentin is awesome -- 1021 OPS, 174 OPS+, and a nice baserunning move in the 9th yesterday. Offensively, four guys (Quentin, AJ, Dye and Crede) have been great thus far, and five guys (the above four plus Uribe - surprise surprise) have been mediocre/bad.

3. Is Contreras back, or is his success just due to the great, unsustainable HR rate (only 2 allowed in 59-2/3 innings)?

4. More rumblings about interest in Chone Figgins from Joe Cowley, here. I don't know what in the world the Angels would want for him. Alexei Ramirez is starting to hit a little, instead of looking absolutely clueless at the plate, but I'd still like to see him playing every day in AAA.

5. Weird fact: Linebrink and Jenks have almost exactly the same line this year:

19-1/3 innings pitched, 15 hits allowed, 1 HR allowed, 5 walks, 12 Ks

The only difference is that Jenks has allowed one more earned run.

5. Slinger Francisco Barrios (Dr. Memory) Posted: May 21, 2008 at 05:37 PM (#2789605)

1. Agree.
2. Agree.
3. He doesn't look like he's pitching particularly well to me. Also Guillen seems to have little confidence in his ability to get out of even mini-jams.
4. I don't get it either. As for Ramirez, sheesh, are his clothes ever going to stop looking like they're wearing him? He needs to learn how to bunt if he's always gonna have those narrow shoulders.
5. Five walks for Jenks in 19 IP is unusual, but maybe he's sacrificed K's for fewer BB's. Haven't seen him enough to judge whether his stuff is up to previous years' standards.

6. Dewey, Steven Wright Wannabe and Soupuss Posted: May 21, 2008 at 05:41 PM (#2789607)

Haven't seen him enough to judge whether his stuff is up to previous years' standards.

He's still got that big curve, but his fastball is now in the 94-96 MPH range instead of the 97-99 MPH range. He's definitely sacrificed velocity for location.q

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Wednesday, May 21, 2008

Couch: Thome at crossroads: At 37, it’s fine line between slump and being washed up

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