Posts Tagged ‘White Sox’
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Playoff Misery 101October 8th, 2008
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Pity the poor fans of the Chicago Cubs. After a great regular season where they were arguably the most dominant team in the National League, they go out and get bounced from the playoffs after only three games. The Dodgers win two at Wrigley and one at Chavez and the loveable Cubbies’ span between World Series titles will be at least 101 years now.
After watching the Red Sox and the White Sox both erase decades-long World Series title droughts/generation-crushing curses, the overwhelming opinion was that it would be the Cubs turn to lose their identity and host a parade. So a baseball nation mourns as the Northsiders losing streak continues. Can any franchise match that kind of futility?
Oh, wait, maybe I can think of one. Read more
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Post SeasoningSeptember 30th, 2008
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I’ll be honest, I’m no math whiz. But when I tried to figure out what the Rangers’ Magic Number was earlier today, the computer suggested something about a Mr. Peabody and a WayBack Machine. That doesn’t sound promising. But there will be time for an in-depth analysis and name-calling session about the 08 Rangers in a couple of weeks. Right now, with the playoffs bearing down on baseball fans, the most important thing is to figure out who you will cheer for this year.
(By the way, I checked my calendar from last year AND for next year. They are lying to us. There’s not only one October. I call for a full apology.)
Part of the danger in jumping in with a team at this point of the season is the very real chance that they’ll go three and out and then you have to start all over again. I don’t recommend buying a cap or jersey for your new post-season ride. Over the years, I’ve developed a simple system, with points assigned for various categories. Then I decide who I am cheering for and, more often than not, who I am cheering against. (Die, Yankee Scum!) And while a carefully weighted system of pluses and minuses would be ideal, again, no reason to stress the limited math resources available in my head. As such, here you go: Read more
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When Bad Things Happen To Good PeopleJuly 31st, 2008
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Pudge in pinstripes? That doesn’t just look wrong. That looks “Ramon Vazquez moustache” wrong. That looks “Solid Gold Brett Favre Commemorative Retirement Coin” wrong. That looks “Rosanne-Barr-in-a-thong” wrong.
Like Julio Franco, Pudge is one of our guys, even if the Hall of Fame plaque has a Tigers or a Marlins cap on the man. He grew up here, he was our hero, and he was a main cog on the best teams the Rangers ever trotted out there. For a little while, we were all sure that he was going to stay with Texas, finding a way to finish his career here, ending up with what the purists call a “clean” baseball card, only one team listed on the back.
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Wild Card FeverJuly 27th, 2008
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American League - Wild Card Standings
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Team |
W |
L |
PCT |
GB |
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59 |
42 |
.584 |
- |
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60 |
43 |
.583 |
- |
|
|
56 |
45 |
.554 |
3.0 |
|
|
55 |
46 |
.545 |
4.0 |
|
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52 |
49 |
.515 |
7.0 |
|
|
52 |
49 |
.515 |
7.0 |
|
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52 |
50 |
.510 |
7.5 |
|
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51 |
51 |
.500 |
8.5 |
|
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48 |
53 |
.475 |
11.0 |
|
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46 |
57 |
.447 |
14.0 |
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44 |
56 |
.440 |
14.5 |
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38 |
63 |
.376 |
21.0
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That’s right. Read it and weep. If you are watching the scoreboard, you already see the future. Here come the Rangers, out of the gate after the All-Star break like a “Ron Paul for President ‘08″ campaign wagon. After crushing the Twins and the WSox, taking one out of three in each series, Texas is sitting right where they want to sit, on the fringes of the Wild Card race, lulling the 8 teams in front of them into a false sense of security and waiting to pounce. Read more
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Me and Julio, Down At The BallparkMay 7th, 2008
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So, Julio Franco finally retired, eh? Well, there’s only one way you can really describe him now: Quitter.
Okay, maybe not. This week, Julio retired at the age of 47, 50, or 54, depending on which baseball card and/or birth certificate you checked. I remember my grandfather telling stories of seeing Franco hit when he was just a kid. And of course, there are a lot of teams out there that can put claim on Julio: Tampa, the Mets, Atlanta, Milwaukee, the White Sox, Cleveland, and the Phillies, not to mention teams in Japan, Mexico, South Korea, and the Ottoman Empire.
But in my heart, he’ll always be a Ranger. Franco came to Texas at the league meetings in December of 1989. In the span of just a few days, the completely unremarkable losers that we had all known as the Texas Rangers were totally rebuilt, becoming a much, much more interesting bunch of losers. 42-year-old legend in the making Nolan Ryan was signed from Houston. Raffy Palmeiro was aquired from the Cubs. And Texas traded local hero Pete O’Brien along with Oddibe McDowell and Jerry Browne to the Indians for their new 2nd baseman. Franco went on to win the All-Star Game MVP in 1990, lead the league in batting average in 1991, and provoke hundreds of thousands of back injuries in the Dallas-Fort Worth area as impressionable children tried to imitate his batting stance.
The stance is what remains clearestin my mind’s eye. Knees together, hands held over his head, bat slung horizontally off in the direction of the nearest nacho stand, menacingly waving back and forth. I would compare it to a young jedi who didn’t want to stop training no matter how bad he had to go to the bathroom, but the man played in the majors for 26 years, so maybe we’ll cut him a little slack. And then, after all of that, Franco would take the first pitch, every time. (Well, almost every time. Occassionally, he’d take a rip and scare some pitcher who knew that Franco wasn’t going to swing at the first pitch.)
Wikipedia, the Earth’s own Hitchhikers Guide, tells us that in 2006, Julio Franco became the oldest pinch runner in baseball history. It sadly does not report what Carlos Delgado thought when he was lifted so that a possibly 47-year-old man could run for him.
It always made me happy when I’d see Francobouncing off the bench for the Mets or the Braves in the last few years. He left Texas 14 years ago, and he was old when he left. I’ve always thought that I can’t possibly be old yet: Julio Franco is still playing ball.
Thanks, Julio. Thanks for sticking around…
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My PredictionsApril 3rd, 2008
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Here’s a rundown of the AL teams and how I think they will fare this year: (NL will come tomorrow)
Baltimore Orioles: Last year, they lost 93 games, but I see improvement this year. I think they reach at least 100. The pitching will help them immensely in this category, as Cabrera, Trachsel, and Burres are good for at least 40 losses combined. And, once they pawn off Roberts for 30 cents on the dollar, it’s “2010 here we come!” Outlook: last place.
Boston Red Sox: In what might be a classic let down year for the Red Sox, well, it might actually happen. Beckett could be hurt, Dice-K could be average, and Ortiz, Ramirez, Lowell, and Drew are another year older. Then again, they have an influx of stud youngsters in Ellsbury, Pedroia, Buchholz and Lester, and I don’t see the Yankees dominating this year. Besides, if Beckett gets hurt, the Red Sox have Bartolo Colon waiting for the wing-eating contest in the wings, so that’s gotta count for something, right? They’ll win the division.
Chicago White Sox: The White Sox are filled with aging veterans who “know how to play the game.” Unfortunately, with age comes forgetfulness, and most of them forgot how to play last year en route to a 72-90 record. This year, they’ll prove the theory, “you-can’t-remind-an-old-dog-how-to-do-tricks-he-once-knew-but-has-since-forgotten,” and finish fourth in the Central. They’ll be lucky to win 75 games.
Cleveland Indians: I love this team. The depth is outstanding. In the rotation, Sowers, Laffey, and Adam Miller could fill in for an injury (or an HGH suspension). Ben Francisco, Shin-Soo Choo and Josh Barfield are all major league ready minor leaguers right now, not to mention Kelly Shoppach is a pretty good backup catcher. The bullpen is outstanding, save for Borowski, who does just that. The Indians could win 100 games this year, and are my pick for the Central title, the Pennant, and the World Series. Then again, I am a bit of a homer…