First Win in the Books

Well, it was worth the wait. The Sox opened the 2009 campaign one day behind schedule, but with results like this I won't complain. Great pitching and some timely hitting overshadow a few miscues on the basepaths and some other less than stellar performances at the plate for a 4-2 Opening Day winner.

Chicago Tribune recap Chicago Sun-Times recap MLB.com Wrap B-R.com Box Score & Play-by-Play

If all's well that ends well, then you couldn't have scripted today's game much better. Mark Buehrle didn't have his A-game stuff, but he pitched well enough to win today. A final line of 6 hits, 3 walks, 2 runs, and just 3 strike outs over 5 innings won't wow anyone, but the Royals had a runner in scoring position every inning he was on the mound. If you want to criticize Buehrle's efforts for allowing so many baserunners, I won't try and stop you, but there's still something to be said for bending but not breaking.

Of course, the hero of the game is good ol' #25, Jim Thome, who launched a 2-out, 3-run homer off Kyle Farnsworth in the 8th inning to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 4-2 lead. Youngsters Chris Getz and Josh Fields also had significant parts of today's win; both had a pair of hits and each scored a run. And if you're looking to truly feel good about today, note that all 4 runs the Sox scored today came with 2 outs.

Now for the bad, and believe me, there was plenty to go around. For one, Gil Meche more or less had his way with the Sox bats. Yes, he gave up 7 hits, but 5 of those came in the 2nd and 3rd inning. Meche retired the final 11 of 13 batters he faced, and one of those hits (Pierzynski in the 7th) got himself thrown out trying to stretch a single into a double. And speaking of bad baserunning, the Jermaine Dye looked particularly bad on the basepaths today, getting thrown out at the plate (by a good 10 feet... Nice call, Cox) in the 2nd and then was caught stealing to end the 8th... Why Jermaine Dye is testing arms of outfielders on short singles and trying to steal bases I have no idea, I know the Sox are pushing this whole speed/youth thing, but you still have to work with what you got.

Oh well, I can't complain too much. A win is a win.

Despite the outcome, even Royals fans are finding solace today.

From Upon Further Review, a Kansas City sports blog published by the Kansas City Star,

The Royals ran Buehrle out of their after five innings because of their solid
collective approach at the dish. Hope to see lots of that this year.

I guess hope really does spring eternal. Though, I'll admit the Royals have the look of a frisky team that's going to be a pain in the ass for somebody. Luckily, we have Jim Thome who absolutely murders the Royals.

New Jermaine Dye Rumors and Other Notes

I'll begin tonight with the standard Jermaine Dye rumors. Of course, as everything else apparently does, this directly ties into the Mark Teixiera Mega-Sweepstakes that has currently swallowed everything baseball-related. The lastest news on Teixeira is that his most previous employer, the Los Angeles Angels officially pulled their offer off the table after they tired of waiting, and in his latest blog update, ESPN's Peter Gammons says,

We don't know ... there really might be a three-way deal among the White Sox, Angels and Reds that would put Jermaine Dye in Cincinnati, Joey Votto in Anaheim and Chone Figgins in Chicago.

The deal makes sense for the Sox who, fill a hole at third base and at the top of their lineup and it makes a lot of sense for the Angels, who pick up a young first baseman to fill their new hole on the right side of the infield. I have no idea how trading a young, cheap player with major upside for 1 year of Jermaine Dye makes any sense for Cincinnati, but hey they haven't had a winning season since 2000 so who knows what's going on at Big Red Headquarters.

Meanwhile, the Sox seem to be schmoozing free agent Bobby Abreu... Who just so happens to play the same position as Jermaine Dye! Talk about coincidences.

If you remember, back in July (when it wasn't zero degrees out), I posted that I wouldn't mind seeing the Sox take a flyer on Daniel Cabrera at the trade deadline. Cabrera was released by the Orioles this off-season, but he just signed a deal with the Nationals. So that's that.

Fox Sports' head baseball guy, Ken Rosenthal published this snazzy slideshow of the 11 (I don't know how he settled on that figure, either) best free agents still available as well as where he felt they'd sign. #9 on his list is Orlando Hudson, who the Sox reportedly coveted earlier in the year and who just so happens to play a position that we don't have a definitive answer at the Major League level currently. Talk about coincidences. The Hudons situation feels more and more like a standard KW-style signing... A proven veteran that's been getting little publicity recently because of some nagging side issues (injuries) that fills a definite hole in this team/lineup, and will hopefully accept a lower than desired contract because of said issues. Something to keep your eyes on, but while I wouldn't be shocked if Hudson wasn't the Sox's starting second baseman in 2009, I'd say he's the frontrunner for the job, despite not being employed here yet.

Finally, in case your worried that you've been fixating too much on this whole free agent class, I've got good news for you. The guys at MLB Trade Rumors.com published this list of available (and potentially available) free agents in the 2009-2010 off-season. Headliners include Indians C Victor Martinez, Mets 1B Carlos Delgado, Orioles 2B Brian Roberts, Devil Rays OF Carl Crawford, A's OF Matt Holliday, Sox RF Jermaine Dye, Angels RF Vladimir Guerrero, Tigers RF Magglio Ordonez, Sox DH Jim Thome, Mariners SP Erik Bedard, Sox SP Jose Contreras, Cubs SP Rich Harden, Braves SP Tim Hudson, Angels SP John Lackey, Indians Cy Young SP Cliff Lee, Diamondbacks SP Brandon Webb, and Sox RP Octavio Dotel.

You're welcome. Merry Christmas, Sox fans.

Three Up, Three Down.. 0-2 Series Hole Style!

Oh god.

I was still confident after Game 1. It was more or less meaningless, the Sox are a veteran team and they basically sacrificed the game when they trotted Javier out there in an effort to reset their taxed rotation. Game 2 was supposed to make everything all right, but after tonight's ugly 6-2 loss, the Sox are once again, on the brink of elimination.

On the plus side, the last time we found ourselves in this situation, the Sox ripped off three straight wins, but methinks taking 3 from Tampa (including another one in their Dome) will be a bit more difficult than winning three straight over the Indians, Tigers, and Twins.

Anyways, here we go.

ONE UP: Clayton Richard
Wow. After Richard allowed an RBI single to Carl Crawford, the first batter he faced, he went on to strike out the next 5 Rays he faced. His line from yesterday is a bit inflated by the fact that Clayton wore down toward the end of his appearance; the last three batters he faced either reached base via the single or walk. Had Ozzie called on Octavio Dotel a few batters earlier, Richard conceivably could have retired 10 Rays and allowed only 2 baserunners. Nice.

Richard was so impressive in his post-season debut, Guillen is seriously considering starting Clayton if the series somehow makes it to a fifth game.

ONE DOWN: The Sox on Fake Field

Metrodome. Rogers Centre. Tropicana Field. Call them whatever you want, but as has been well documented this season, the Sox simply suck in domes and on fake grass. 4-16 this season, the worst record in the American League. I can't say why, maybe it's the teams, maybe it's the way the field plays, but the Sox struggles on turf are more than just a psychological thing at this point, I believe. The plus side is that, even though to advance now the Sox would need to win 1 more game at Tropicana Field, none of the other teams in the postseason play on artificial turf. The Sox are 85-58 on grass this year, a winning percentage over 59%.

TWO UP: Mark Buehrle

Despite the opening pic and his line from Game 2, Mark Buehrle pitched a real nice game. By now, we should all know that he's a guy that pitches to contact, a strategy that doesn't lend itself to turf or hard grass surfaces, where ground balls explode rather than slow down. Yes, he gave up a 2-run, go-ahead homer to Akinowri Iwamura and then was saddled with a few more runs in the 8th, but he still came out and pitched like the bulldog he was, especially considering the Sox found only 2 runs to support him. Here's hoping we get to see #56 at least one more time this year.

TWO DOWN: Wasted Opprotunites

The Sox left 12 runners on base in Game 2, obviously far too many, especially when you're in a tight battle. They left the bases loaded in the 1st, runners at first and second in the 2nd, 4th, and 7th, and a runner on third in the 6th. So many chances, and so many of them wasted. In the 1st inning, when they had Kazmir on the ropes and scored their 2 runs, they were 3-5 with Runners in Scoring Position. They had 7 more at bats with a RISP and failed every single time. You can't win if you can't hit with men on or hit home runs.

THREE UP: Dewayne Wise

Give the guy props, his three-run homer in Game 1 is currently responsible for 50% of the runs the Sox have scored. Wise has had a nice season here for the Sox. Considering he's been a career minor leaguer, I don't know if he's likely to reproduce his numbers, but he's another nice option off the bench and is better at every facet of baseball than Jerry Owens.

Of course, despite the fact he was pretty much the only guy who came through in Game 1, he was on the bench in Game 2, watching Nick Swisher have an OK game, but flying out and striking out in his last two at bats, both times with the potential tying run on base.

THREE DOWN: Jim Thome

For all the press Thome and Griffey have gotten about wanting that elusive World Series ring, neither had done much to show that on the field. The reason I pick on Thome more than Griffey is that Thome is still an intergral part of this team. He bats in the middle of the lineup, and while Junior has clearly lost a step from his prime, Thome still can play at a pretty high level. Yeah, his .245 BA this season was 30 points lower than his career BA and easily the lowest of his career when he wasn't limited to less than 60 games in a season either because he was a 21-year-old rookie still breaking in with the Indians or suffering from back problems in Philadelphia. Thome still his 34 homers, drove in 90 runs, and slugged over 100 points higher than Junior during Griffey's brief stay in Chicago.

This postseason? 1-9 with an RBI, and that easily would have been 0-9 had the Rays had their usual shift on for Thome.

Look, I know Thome was critical to the Sox, and was the only offense in their win over the Twins in the Tiebreaker game, but if you want to do more than just get there again, more production will be required.

Milestone Watch: Jim Thome 2 Hits Shy of 2,000

I'm sure this was mentioned during last night's win over Kansas City, but Jim Thome's RBI single in the first inning was his 1,998th career hit. So, it's time to roll out the Milestone Watch. Like everyone else over the past 10-15 years, Thome has hit the Royals well and owns a career .330 BA in 108 plate appearances against the current Royals pitching staff. Kansas City will start Gil Meche tonight against the Sox. Here's Thome's career PA-by-PA breakdown against Meche.

Unless the Royals simply refuse to pitch to Thome (and considering the way Konerko's been hitting since... April, that's not entirely out of the question), it looks like the Pride of Peoria will be celebrating another career milestone this weekend at the Cell.

Interesting stat; of the 24 current members of the 500 Home Run club, Thome has the 3rd highest percentage of hits that have been homers. 525 of his 1,998 career hist have been long balls, good for 26.28% of the total. Only Mark McGwire (583/1,626 = 35.85%) and Harmon Killebrew (573/2,086 = 27.47%) have higher percentages.