Jose Contreras's Job in Jeopardy?

That's the word according to Mark Gonzales. After a third straight subpar start, the Sox might be taking a look around the organization for a replacement while he gets his head and arm screwed on right.

My take... The grass isn't always greener on the other side, despite what this Sox-fan blogger may believe. Yes, Jose is going through some troubles, but look at our organizational depth. Is there really anyone there that you can say has a better chance of being a quality MLB starter in 2009 than The Count has of figuring out his problems? I really don't know if I'm willing to trust Richard, Egbert, Broadway, or Marquez any more than I am willing to believe Contreras can overcome his early season struggles (a belief that, admittedly becomes shakier and shakier with each passing start). After three starts, I believe it's too early to start yanking guys.

That said, you can't completely pin this loss on Jose, the three runs the Sox scored off Bergesen tonight were 1 more than the Knights scored off him last week in Charlotte, and the Knights are probably the worst team in the International League. Yes, the curse of the "MLB Debut" continues for the Sox.

Whatever. Sometimes you lose. At least Alexei swung the bat well today.

Chicago Tribune recap / Chicago Sun-Times recap / MLB.com Wrap / B-R.com Box Score & PBP

Poor End in Detroit, Good(ish) Start in Tampa Bay

Yeah, I'm a day late on the Tigers/Sox game from Wednesday, but there's not much about that affair I want to relive. Sometimes you just lose, and it looks like Wednesday's series ender in Detroit was just one of those games.

It'd be easy to pin that loss on another tough day at the plate for the Sox, but I don't think that paints the whole story. Armando Galarraga is just a good pitcher, and it's time people start realizing that. The more dissapointing aspect of that 9-0 loss was Jose's collapse toward the end of his outing, however, I remain optimistic. After his first two starts last year, Jose was 0-1 with a 6.17 ERA, with a .340 BAA in 11.2 IP. This year, he is 0-2 with a 6.97 ERA and has a .267 BAA in 10.2 IP. In 2008, he went 6-2 over his next 10 starts, posting a 2.19 ERA and holding opposing teams to a .191 BAA in 70 innings until arm problems started affecting him in early June. I think he just needs some time to work this out.

I don't have much else to say about that game, so I'll leave you with this good piece from South Side Sox, especially focus on the part about Jose's forkball. I've noticed he doesn't seem to be throwing it much so far this year. In fact the only thing he's been doing has been dropping his arm down for some reason, because every time he does it seems like he lays a fastball right in someone's wheelhouse.

WEDNESDAY: Tribune recap \ Sun-Times recap \ MLB.com Wrap \ B-R.com Box Score & PBP

I'll update this post later today with some thoughts on yesterdy's win. Check back!

Don't fuck with the White Sox & Sobering News from the Infirmary (even more!)

Let's get one thing straight before I begin... These are season-defining wins. This isn't just a "flash in the pan." or "give us some hope for next year," type shit that all of us are so used to (remember Kip Wells' audition at the end of the '99 season when he looked like the stud pitcher we'd been waiting for since Black Jack?).

No, the White Sox aren't just finding exciting ways to win, they're finding ways to win that make you want to believe that they're up to something special. I don't like using the cliche "oh, it's 2005 all over again!" line because there are already so many differences between these White Sox and their World Champion predecessors, however, I'll be damned if this doesn't feel like a little like most other championship seasons I've been privy, too. And of course, as a Chicago sports fan, that's like asking a Martian to describe water and I know that despite the dramatics and improbably comebacks, it's only 2 games, but sometimes two games transcend the standings and calendar because of the way they make you feel. The confidence they instill in you that, no matter how terrible the defense may look or how overmatched they may look at the dish, they're not going to go down until they've played every trick in their bag and ace up their sleeve.

If Quentin's 3-run bomb on Wednesday wasn't clutch enough for you, how about JD tonigt? Bottom of the ninth, down by a run, facing Detroit's closer (who, granted can be a gascan, but does have 319 career saves), and one strike away from ending the game. Wow. Wow, wow, wow.

To douse the party with some cold water, Gavin Floyd had himself a so-so game, but the defense has been atrocious in both wins. The errors and mental mistakes the Sox have been making the field need to be corrected ASAP, but for now, everything is good in White Sox-ville.

Wednesday's recaps: B-R.com Box Score & Play-by-Play | Chicago Tribune | Associated Press | MLB.com Wrap | Soxmachine.com

Tonight's recaps: B-R.com Box Score & Play-by-Play | Chicago Tribune | Associated Press | MLB.com Wrap | Soxmachine.com

Clayton Richard looked good in his MLB debut Wednesday against the Rangers. I mean, he didn't look great, but considering he was starting his first game against the American League's best offense, I can't complain too much. The shoddy defense behind him surely didn't help, but he worked very quickly and looked poised enough to throw his fastball and breaking balls for strikes. Ozzie was impressed, and Richard earned a second start against Minnesota.

And now, I need to mention Alexei Ramirez, and not for his 3-4 performance tonight against Detroit but for the play he made Wednesday afternoon against Texas. I'm sure you've seen it, but if not, here it is again. It's jaw-dropping, and as good as any defensive play I can remember someone on the Sox pulling off... From Durham's back-to-the-infield running catch in the home opener of 2000, to Uribe's dive into the stands during the World Series, and Tadahito's gravity-defying assist last season, that ranks up there, and his play has rightfully earned attention and praise both locally and nationally.

More bad news, as you're probably aware, Joe Crede was placed on the 15-Day D.L., Josh Fields was brought up from AAA Charlotte, and he started at third tonight. Josh went 1-3 with a walk and run scored tonight, but he did commit an error. Hopefully Joe is fine for personal reasons, but it's a shame because this injury probably will cost him a fortune; Crede's stellar play at the start of the year silenced the doubters about his surgically repaired back, but now those questions will be raised. Barring a miracle October (which I wouldn't mind), Joe's wallet will be much lighter.

Joe Cowley is also reporting that Scott Linebrink may join Contreras and Crede on the Sox's ever-growing Disabled List. No decision until tomorrow morning.

Elsewhere around the Central, the Twins dropped a 5-4 decision to the Indians at the Prog. Twins centerfielder Carlos Gomez had to be carted off the field in a neck brace after crashing into the left/center wall in Cleveland while making an outstanding catch in the first inning. Luckily, it sounds like Gomez will be OK (or at least, there's no serious nerve injuries), and I wish him the best. Though we're in a tight race with the Twins, you don't want to see it come to that. Cleveland's win keeps them at pace with the Royals for last place in the Central, as the Royals beat the Rays 4-2 in Kansas City. Both the Royals and Twins are 13 games behind the Sox.

Trade rumors continue to swirl around the White Sox, and it's getting to be too much to keep up with, so here's a quick run down of some stories regarding the White Sox:

• The White Sox are believed to be a suitor for Seattle's Jarrod Washburn.
• Don't expect to see the Red Sox and White Sox make a trade involving Juan Uribe.
• The White Sox are making a push for Justin Duchscherer, but an asking price of Josh Fields and Aaron Poreda is way too high.
• Peter Gammons says the White Sox are also looking seriously at Huston Street.
• Finally, the big deal that was being rumored was a deal with the Dodgers in which the Sox would acquire a pitcher like Derek Lowe in exchange for Orlando Cabrera.
  
• Don't get excited/worried about seeing Damaso Marte return to the South Side. Pittsburgh's LOOGY and Xavier Nady were dealt to the Yankees (I'm sure he won't wilt under the pressure).

Despite Kenny Williams' warning that the Sox might be quiet this deadline, they've been very active behind the scenes, but so far nothing to really report. I guess the Sox cut Esteban Loaiza, but that's not really shocking after watching him pitch a few weeks ago with nothing on any of his pitches.

Buehrle Delivers, Good and Bad News from the Infirmary, and Clayton Richard Doesn't Need to Learn Chinese

Mark Buehrle = Gamer. While it would be trivial to constantly harp on the fact that tomorrow he'll be home in Missouri to attend his grandfather's funeral, even he admitted to being emotional before tonight's start. So, even if you take all that out of the equation, and just know that Buehrle opted to pitch on short rest and help his struggling team maintain their slim division lead, you have to admire his huevos. And then all he did was go out and shut down the best offense in the American League. Texas honestly threatened to score once tonight with a few minor threats sprinkled in there for good measure. In the 2nd, only leading 1-0, Buehrle allowed a lead-off triple to Hank Blalock and then proceeded to keep the next three Rangers on the infield, retiring Brandon Boggs, Chris Davis, and Jarrod Saltalamacchia on two infield groundouts and a popout to second. The White Sox offense took care of the rest, pounding Luis Mendoza, the same young righty who shut them down last week in Arlington, to the tune of 10 runs on 12 hits. The offense was fueled tonight by Jermaine Dye's 3-4 night in his return from that nasty looking HBP Sunday against Kansas City, a 3-run bomb by Nick Swisher in the 4th, and Alexei Ramirez's first career grand slam in the 7th inning.

Its hard to quantify what Mark Buehrle has meant to this team over the years. From the 2001 season, when he went from unknown 22-year-old to the staff ace, to his brilliant season in 2005 that was topped when he came out of the bullpen on short rest to close out Game 3 of the World Series, to his no-hitter, and now to tonight. I don't remember exactly when, but a while ago Mark said he didn't expect to pitch into his 40's the way guys like Greg Maddux and Tom Glavine have and he'd never make a serious push at 300 wins. Maybe that's easy to say when you're in your late-20's and maybe minds change over time, but if it's true, its likely we've already seen the majority of Mark's career pass. He's never had overpowering stuff, he doesn't have an eye-popping page at baseball-reference.com, and he's never been a "me-first" athlete that is so typical today. He's been a consistent winner, the consummate team-first player, and a treasure for Sox fans to watch this past decade.

Let's remember to appreciate him while we still can.

B-R.com Box Score & Play-by-Play | Tribune recap | MLB.com Wrap | Associated Press recap | Soxmachine.com recap

Elsewhere, in the Central, the Twins lost again to the Yankees, 8-2 tonight. The loss drops them 1½ games behind the Sox and 21-26 on the road this year. The Tigers, however, kept pace with the Sox by beating Kansas City for the 2nd straight night, 7-1. Cleveland dropped a 3-2 decision to the Angels, keeping them in a statistical tie for last place with the Royals. Both teams are 12 games behind the Sox.


On the injury front, the Sox received mixed news. Joe Crede was a late scratch from tonight's game with back stiffness. Juan Uribe filled in admirably for Crede, going 2-4 with a double and run scored, plus he played a great third base, making a few very nice plays in support of Buehrle. Ozzie said Crede is expected to miss tomorrow's game against Texas, so Crede will have 3 days off with Thursday's travel day, before this weekend's critical series in Detroit kicks off Friday night.

Jermaine Dye was back in the lineup today and didn't miss a beat. As mentioned, Dye was 3-4 with a pair of runs scored and an RBI on a nice double, just inside the third base line in the 1st inning that scored Carlos Quentin from first base. Jose Contreras also had good news for the Sox, throwing before tonight's game and feeling no discomfort related to the elbow tendonitis that landed him on the 15-Day D.L. The move was retroactive to July 14, so Jose would be eligible to start just before the Trade Deadline, giving the Sox one last look at him before they decide whether or not to put all their chips in with his cards. No word yet, however, if he'll come right back to the Sox or will make a rehab start in the minor leagues somewhere.

I sure hope Clayton Richard didn't invest in that Rosetta Stone language learning software because A) it costs more than $500 per language (!), B) you can find them for half that price on eBay, and C) his call up the White Sox will cost him his roster spot on the American Olympic team. No surprise, of course, and I'm pretty sure almost any player would take a promotion to the Show in the middle of a pennant race over a week-long, meaningless international tournament, but that means now you'll have no need to watch the baseball segment of the Beijing Olympics (if you were actually going to watch them, anyway).

Bullpen Blows (Again), Update on Dye, and Thank God the Twins Lost

That ugly taste in your mouth is the unsavory taste of bad bullpen, with maybe a dash of no offense. As noted yesterday, the Rangers can hit but their pitching leaves so much to be desired, and they even had to scratch their starter only a few hours before the game! Hello, Scott Feldman! In typical Sox fashion, when they're bad, they're not just bad, they're frustratingly bad. Javier Vazquez finally busted out of his slump and of course, the Sox fail to supply him with any run support. Vazquez pitched 7 innings and only allowed 3 runs on 4 hits, usually good enough stats when your going head-to-head with the worst pitching staff in the American League, but Feldman and a reliever trio of Frank Francisco, Eddie Guardado, and Jamey Wright held the Sox to a lone run on 5 hits.

The White Sox bullpen looks more and more human every day. Boone Logan allowed 3 runs in an inning of work; a 2-run homer by Hank Blalock in the 8th and then was responsible for Chris Davis when he scored on a sacrifice fly in the 9th.

B-R.com Box Score & Play-by-Play Tribune recap Associated Press recap MLB.com wrap Soxmachine.com recap

Elsewhere in the Central, the Sox maintain their slim division lead over Minnesota, thanks to a 12-4 drubbing at the hands of the Yankees. Detroit is routing Kansas City, 19-0 right now with an inning and a half left to play. If the Royals pull off one of the greatest comebacks in baseball history, I'll let you know, but otherwise, the Tigers will again be a game over .500 and pull to 5½ games of the White Sox. Cleveland is in Los Angeles and are knotted with the Angels at 1 going into the 4th.

You can expect to see Mark Buehrle start tomorrow night despite the fact that his normal spot in the rotation is Wednesday. Buehrle will be back in Missouri to attend his grandfather's funeral, and according to the official site, neither he nor the Sox were interested in skipping a start. So he goes tomorrow on three days rest and Clayton Richard will make his MLB debut Wednesday against Texas.

Mark hasn't started on three days rest since August 15, 2004 when he shut down the Red Sox to the tune of 2 runs allowed over 7 innings of work.

A rundown of the rest of his 3-day rest starts:

1. May 5, 2004 - White Sox beat the Orioles 6-5 in Baltimore. Buehrle didn't pitched particularly well, but luckily for everyone he was facing Sidney Ponson.
2. September 23, 2003 - In his final start of the year, Buehrle loses to the Yankees, 7-0. Mark pitched well, but the Sox bats were shut down by Jose Contreras and the Yankees score 5 runs in the 9th inning against Scott Sullivan, Kelly Wunsch, and Billy Koch.

That would be it, so if we were to use Phil Rogers math, that'd be 2 up and 1 down, and those are odds I can live with.

Despite the fact he looked like he'd need his leg amputated, Jermaine Dye expects to be back as early as tomorrow. I'm no medical specialist, but this is surprising news, and while the Sox do have good backup outfield options, Jermaine's bat is sorely missed. Dewayne Wise, who took his place, went a solid 0-3, but don't feel too bad, only 4 guys actually got a hit today.

Even though everyone and their uncle believes the Sox need to add an arm, Kenny Williams says the moves may not be coming. You can't blame him, the blue chips this trading season were CC Sabathia, who the Indians were not going to trade within their division anyway, and Rich Harden, a walking injury risk. Joe Blanton is a nice consolation prize for Philadelphia, but there's no way the Sox could have matched the offer the Phillies made to acquire Blanton.

Now, as I said earlier, there's no attractive starting pitchers that realistically look to be available. A.J. Burnett is the best arm out there but he's as big an injury risk as any pitcher in baseball and the Blue Jays recently said they're not looking to deal him. Whether or not that is true, its unlikely the Sox will be able to come together with the package to outbid the other teams reportedly interested in Burnett, namely the Yankees and Cubs. Freddy Garcia still says he could be available, too, but given the market for pitching, somebody's going to overpay for him in terms of salary and years.

Sox drop 2 straight to Kansas City, Dye OK... for now, and plenty of roster moves

Yikes.

Two straight losses to the Royals and suddenly a happy-go-lucky weekend when baseball is back has turned into the day before the apocalypse.

In a tight division race that got a little tighter this weekend, the Sox could ill afford to lose a game to the Royals (the fucking Royals!), but to lose the series is completely unacceptable. Did I mention these games were at U.S. Cellular Field, were the Sox had taken something in the range of 60 of the last 70 against Kansas City, and had a 32-13 record (winning percentage .711... I wonder if they can bleed any sponsorship money out of that, too) during the first half of the season?

What makes these losses particularly painful is that the Sox's pitching staff, the rock that carried this team through a prolonged offensive slump early in the year, looked particularly bad. The fucking Royals! A team averaging less runs per game than anybody in the American League except for fellow cellar-dwellers Toronto and Seattle tagged the Sox for 9 runs yesterday and 8 today.

Gavin Floyd took the loss yesterday but he didn't look particularly bad but fell victim of a disease many White Sox pitchers know, the medical term being lackofrunsupportitis. Mark Buehrle has battled with this terrible affliction for the better part of the last few years and John Danks has developed it since being traded from Texas. Symptoms include, but are not limited to, a noticeable lack of wins despite a healthy ERA and going Ed Farmer Crazy. It's a terrible, terrible illness that needs your support to make donations, please call 1-800-SCOR-MOR.

Saturday's Recaps: B-R Box Score/Play-by-Play | Tribune | Sun-Times | MLB.com | Soxmachine.com

Of course, when the Sox pound out 7 runs in support of Danks, he has to go and pitch like crap. He gave up 6 runs in 4 innings on 9 hits and a pair of walks, ballooning his ERA to 3.03 (that's up almost 1/2 run from where it was at the start of today's game). Give credit to D.J. Carrasco, who was recently called back up from Charlotte (we'll talk about that later), who pitched well in extended relief of Danks, kept the Sox in the game, and was even in line for the win when he departed after the 7th inning (which would have been his first win in the Majors since July 24, 2005). Instead, it was all undone by a bullpen which looked very shaky both today and yesterday. Matt Thornton allowed a 2-out, 2-run double to Esteban German that put the Royals up 8-7, though Octavio Dotel was responsible for one of those runs, as he got the first 2 outs of the inning but hit Jose Guillen with a pitch. Thornton was called to pitch to Ross Gload for the lefty-lefty matchup (because we should all be intimidated by the bat of Ross Gload), but he blew that deal by walking Gload and without Scott Linebrink (who was out again... we'll talk about that a little further down), or let Bobby Jenks go for the 4-out save, Thornton was allowed to pitch to German who finished the day 3-3 with 2 doubles, a walk, run, and 2 RBI.

Sunday's Recaps: BR Box Score/Play-by-Play | Tribune | Sun-Times | MLB.com | Soxmachine.com

So where do we stand right now, Sox fans? I think Joe Cowley put it best:

Jose Contreras now on the DL, Gavin Floyd shaky and the Twins closing... It might be time for Kenny "Dee" Williams to do what he does best.

Speaking of that, yes, Jose Contreras was placed on the 15-Day Disabled List before Sunday's loss, and recalled DJ Carrasco from Charlotte. That would explain how Carrasco was able to to pitch and nearly win today's game despite being optioned to Charlotte about a week ago. And, if you recall, at the time the Sox were debating whether to send Carrasco or Adam Russell back to AAA, and ultimately decided on Russell. Well, here we are a week later and Carrasco is back in Chicago while Russell was sent back to Charlotte today and recalled starter, former Michigan backup quarterback, and future Olympian Clayton Richard was called up.

Around the Central, the Twins finally lost, dropping their series finale with Texas, 1-0, to remain ½ game behind the Sox. They'll pack their bags for New York for a three-game series with the Yankees that starts tomorrow. The Tigers beat Baltimore today, 5-1 and move to .500 and 6½ games of the division lead. They're in Kansas City for three games starting tomorrow. Cleveland beat Seattle for the 2nd straight game and are 12 games behind the White Sox.

And in even more health-related news, Jermaine Dye was helped off the field today, after being drilled by Horacio Ramirez, a once promising pitcher for the Braves earlier this decade whose career has fizzled to the point that he's throwing out of Kansas City's bullpen. Dye was hit in the knee and was in obvious pain, but thankfully X-Rays were negative and Dye is listed as day-to-day. Ozzie said he doesn't expect Dye back for a few days. Hopefully the worst that will come of all this is I'll have to listen to Ed Farmer's corny "aren't we all day-to-day?" joke for the better part of this upcoming week, but JD should be fine. The Sox are blessed with a deep and versatile outfield so expect to see Nick Swisher at one of the corners and a platoon of Brian Anderson and DeWayne Wise in center.

And in even further health-related news, you may have noticed Scott Linebrink hasn't pitched in a while. Linebrink has been suffering from what he's calling arm fatigue and tendonitis. Though Ozzie and the Sox were hopeful he'd be ready to go again this weekend, its obvious he's still not there, as he would have obviously faced the right-handed Esteban German in the 8th inning after Matt Thornton walked lefty Ross Gload to put the go-ahead run on base. I don't know when Linebrink is expected to return, but I'll pass it along when I find out. If you must blame someone for Linebrink's continued absence, you may try the Tribune's Dave van Dyck who published this report on Scott's medical woes and the cures he's found in Eastern medication.

Very suddenly, one of the Sox's strengths in their good first-half run, their health, has crept up as a very large question mark. Though Bobby Jenks pitched a perfect 9th (and was reportedly throwing the ball great and in the upper-90's by Steve Stone), suddenly a starter is on the Disabled List, the Sox's primetime setup man hasn't pitched in a few weeks, and their All-Star caliber right fielder is being headhunted by prospects-turned-Royals.

Reportedly, the White Sox are looking for more bullpen help. The Sox have been linked to both Huston Street of the Oakland A's and former Sox farmhand Jon Rauch, now of the Washington Nationals. Hard to tell right now if the Sox are more concerned with the health of Scott Linebrink than they're letting on or if the general bullpen anti-productivity as of late is getting to Williams and the Sox brass.

Finally, Pablo Ozuna has been signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Good luck, Pablo.

White Sox beat Royals 9-5, JD Gets Some MVP Love, and 2nd Half Wish Lists

Last night at 12:01, I caught The Dark Knight (go, by the way... It is a tremendous film), so I was exhausted at work all day today and I basically came home at 5 and passed out for a few hours. To make a long story short, I haven't seen much of the Sox's 9-5 win over Kansas City, but it's nice to see that the Sox hitters jumped out on Greinke, who owned the White Sox last Thursday in the Royals 4-1 series salvage. 6 runs in the first inning, Buehrle with another good outing moved his record to 7-8 and the longer than usual 4-day All-Star Break was all worth it.

B-R Box Score/Play-By-Play | Chicago Tribune recap | Sun-Times recap | MLB recap | Soxmachine.com recap

Elsewhere in the Central, Minnesota shut out the Rangers at the Metrodome, 6-0, to keep pace with the Sox and stay 1½ games out. The Tigers lost to Baltimore, 7-4 to drop back to .500 and 7½ games behind the Sox. Cleveland lost to Seattle and are now 14 games back.

Harold Baines will be honored in Sunday's series finale, when the White Sox will unveil a Baines statue in the outfield concourse. Though he spent a lot of time away from the South Side in his career, the #1 pick of the 1977 Draft is still prominent on the franchise's all-time leaderboard. Some notable highlights include:

• Tied for 6th most games played with Hall of Famer Eddie Collins (1,670)
• 4th most Career At-Bats (6,149)
• 7th most Runs Scored (786)
• 5th most Hits (1,773)
• 3rd most Home Runs (221)
• 3rd most RBI's (981)

Congrats, Harold. You deserve it.

MLB.com surveyed all of its writers and Jermaine Dye got the 2nd most 1st Half AL MVP votes, behind (of course) Josh Hamilton. Nice to see that the guys that cover the game have noticed Dye is having another tremendous year and nice to see that Dye recovered from that terrible first half he had last season that really torpedoed his entire season. Barring injury or a complete 2nd-half meltdown, Hamilton will win the AL MVP, but I'm glad that Jermaine is getting some props for what he's meant to the Sox so far this year, especially considering Carlos Quentin has probably been the most talked about member of the team for his break-out season (and rightfully so).

Kyle Long, one of the pitchers I really liked from June's draft, looks like he's headed to college. I remember reading something on Long (of the football-playing Longs... Howie Long is his dad and recent NFL 1st round draft pick Chris is his older brother), that said he would need to be blown away by an offer to reconsider dropping his scholarship to play at Florida State University next year. The Sox took a flyer on him in the 23rd round, but Mark Gonzales reported tonight that Long told Sox scouts that he's going to Tallahassee. A power throwing lefty, I would have liked to see him develop for a few years in the Sox system, but oh well. The two other players I really like, Beckham and Danks, are good bets to sign by August 15, and considering how well the Sox's 2 Rookie ball teams have started this season, hopefully this draft will go a long way to replenishing the Sox's farm system.

As it stands right now, Long would be the 5th draftee who will not ink a deal with the Sox; 16th round pick Brett Basham will return to Ole Miss for his senior season, 31st round pick James McCann will attend the University of Arkansas, 35th round pick Harold Riggins will attend North Carolina State, and 43rd round pick Cory Farris will be attending the University of Kentucky.

Thanks to their 3-3 road trip to close out the 1st half, the Sox dropped 3 spots in ESPN's Power Rankings. They are now ranked the 4th best team in the Majors, behind the Cubs, Red Sox, and Angels. Yeah, they don't mean shit, but it's nice to see the Sox get all the national attention they've deserved. I'm going to try and keep track of the Sox's progress in the power rankings over the 2nd half, just to keep a finger on the pulse of what the World Wide Leader thinks of the Beloved.

Although the White Sox haven't expressed much interest, Freddy Garcia and his agent are targeting a September comeback for the former Pale Hose. The article is from New York, so it specifically mentions the Yankees and Mets as teams that are interested and could use Garcia, but Garcia's name has been a popular hit on MLB Trade Rumors, and I think at last count at least 1/2 of the 30 teams in the Majors have been looking at or expressing some interest in the rehabbing righty.

The White Sox have owned the Royals at home. I know, that's not really news, but the Kansas City Star noted in it's post-game coverage of tonight's win that Zack Greinke personally dropped to 0-6 in his career at U.S. Cellular Field and the White Sox have only lost 18 of the last 70 times the Royals and Sox have played on the South Side. Intra-division dominance... Yes!

Both Joe Cowley and the White Sox blog each published a Top-5 Wish List for the final 70 or so games of the 2008 and season. Both are worth a read and make some pretty good points, though they do mirror one another a bit. So, in the spirit of things, here's my Top 5 Wishes for the 1/2 Half of 2008.

1. Long term contract extensions for Carlos Quentin and Bobby Jenks - Quentin especially has been a diamond that Kenny Williams unearthed from Arizona and not only has been the best offensive player the Sox have had all first half, he's quickly become a fan favorite and gotten a lot of media attention. Jenks, on the other hand, has proven his worth as a closer, both when he's on the field and when he's off (I think we all remember the Misadventures of the Bullpen in Bobby's absence). With the current core of this team aging, the Sox would be well advised to follow in the footsteps of many other teams in locking up their young stars. Along with Buehrle, Floyd, Danks, Alexei, and Josh Fields, I think the Sox have a great core of talent to build around in the next few years.
2. Not overpaying for another starter - In lieu of Contreras and Vazquez's struggles, the Sox have been mentioned as a buyer in this year's Trading Market. While some intriguing names out there are still possibly available such as A.J. Burnett or Justin Duchscherer, one of the pillars of the last few years of the Williams era has been making smart acquisitions, especially in terms of starting pitching. While I wouldn't mind some insurance for Contreras or Vazquez, we've seen this before out of the streaky starters. While in a perfect world, they would both get their heads screwed on straight and take the pressure off the front office, I'd rather see the Sox buy low on another project starter rather if they make a move at all by the trading deadline.
3. Some Individual Hardware - If the season ended today, the Sox would obviously be in the play-offs, but they'd also be shut out of the major awards. OK, I'd take a division title over a sweep of the MVP, Cy Young, Rookie of the Year, and Manager of the Year, but this is a wish list. Unfortunately, barring injury or unexpected collapse, it looks like Hamilton is in control of the MVP race, Evan Longoria is the prohibitive favorite to win the Rookie of the Year, and smart money is on Joe Maddon to be named Manager of the Year, and while these are all good choices, well, I'd like to see Dye/Quentin, Ramirez, and Ozzie steal one of these. I'd like to think Mark Buehrle, John Danks, and Gavin Floyd would be in the conversation for a Cy Young Award, but the fact that none of them were selected to the All-Star Game should let you know what kind of competition they're going to be dealing with.
4. Twins Collapse - Even though everyone points to the 2nd half surge by the Indians in 2005 as a critical reason the Sox were able to tear through the play-offs in 12 games, I wouldn't mind seeing the Twins fall off the pace and leave the Sox with some breathing room by September. There are simply more concerns with this team than in '05, especially in the rotation. I think Ozzie Guillen is a good enough manager and the veteran core of this team is experienced and hungry enough to be able to stay competitive even if the Sox are essentially playing meaningless games the last few weeks of the season, but I'd like them to be able to rest young starters like Floyd and Danks and possibly work with Contreras in the last few weeks of the season, so they're all fresh and ready to go come October.
5. Paul Konerko revival - Ok, I've got to mention this like the two other lists I linked to. If Konerko can find his swing in the last 2½ months of the season then the Sox will have added another big power bat in the middle of their lineup at no cost, which would do wonders in making the Sox one of the more potent offensive teams in baseball and take a lot of pressure off the Sox's already excellent pitching staff.

Finally, in keeping up with former Sox farmhand Gio Gonzalez, he is one of the top candidates to fill the hole in the A's rotation voided by the newest Philadelphia Phillie, Joe Blanton. The A's current starting staff can pitch on regular rotation until Tuesday, so the A's are in no rush to make a decision, but if Gonzalez gets the call, his first start will be sometime by then and with MLB Extra Innings available for free preview to all digital cable and satellite dish customers (I believe) until next Wednesday, the 23rd, everyone should have a chance to see his first MLB start.