The only pitcher who I didn't want to see coming out of the bullpen in the 6th was El Duque. When no one other than Ramirez and Ortiz can hit in the big spot, you can't win. Wells goes into this series 135-0 in his career with a 4 run lead, and can't hold a 4 run lead. Of course, when you blow a 5.5 game lead in August and a 4 game lead with 22 days left in the season, you deserve what you get. Still, this doesn't hurt nearly as much as Game 7 in '03. Maybe last year helped dull the pain. Maybe because in hindsight I probably had a minor heart attack during the 9th inning of Game 5 of the Oakland series in '03, thus causing the Yankees series to hurt even more. Time to go root for my second favorite team in baseball: Whoever is playing the Yankees.
Congrats again to the White Sox. I'll root for them the rest of the way. If it's against the Yanks; well I'll root for any team against the Yanks in the AL. If it's against the Angels; they last won a World Series in 2002, White Sox in 1917. Let the ChiSox get one. Plus if the White Sox win it all it will make Cub fans in Chicago feel even worse.
Originally posted by It's FalseAnd congrats to Tony Graffenino for his game two error. Bill Buckner's legacy lives on.
I know it's awful to just pile on the guy like this, but seriously, this really would be a totally different story without that error in the books.
(edited by It's False on 7.10.05 1955)
A totally different story? How? First, let's not forget that Wells left that curveball hanging so if youre looking to lay blame, he gets equal credit. Second, lets not forget that the error came early in the game (if memory serves and it's already hazy, the 4th).
More importantly, though, the White Sox were the better team and the Red Sox were clearly not capable of winning that series. I love Boston as much as the next guy, but that error had little to do with the outcome of this series. The White Sox outhit, outpitched and all around outplayed the Red Sox. Blaming Tony is simply overlooking just how mediocre this Boston team actually was...
I also congratulate the ChiSox, but bah... as far as I'm concerned they don't deserve to ever win the World Series ever again.
I know, the Black Sox scandal happened 63 years before I was born and therefore I should get over it.
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Originally posted by ekedolphinI also congratulate the ChiSox, but bah... as far as I'm concerned they don't deserve to ever win the World Series ever again.
I know, the Black Sox scandal happened 63 years before I was born and therefore I should get over it.
What does that "Black Sox" team have to do with the current team? All those guys are long dead.
Let the White Sox win this year, then over the next 4 seasons let the Cubs, Indians, Rangers, and Astros get World Series wins too. That would mean every team that was in existance prior to, and came into existance during, the first MLB expansion in the early 60's will have won at least 1 title in recent history, save for the Giants. Once Bonds no longer plays for the Giants then they can win one too.
Originally posted by PeterStorkEdgar Renteria can't catch a break. Grounds out to the BoSox to end the Cards' season. Grounds out to the ChiSox to end the BoSox season. Egads.
You forgot "leads all of Major League Baseball in errors at a position that really can't afford to have consistent costly errors."
It isn't bad luck. Renteria had a really awful season.
I saw this coming, but in 4 games (I assumed incorrectly that they'd win at least one in Fenway). What it all boils down to is a lack of balance in the team as a whole. While you had guys like Ortiz and Ramirez basically carrying the team offensively, you had other guys like Graffanino and Renteria who would hit okay at times but make costly mistakes. And while the White Sox don't have the best hitters in baseball, they have a handful of guys that are very consistent (and some that've been hot the past few weeks). Getting back to defense, though, that was the big difference maker. Chicago just completely owned them in the infield, and Boston's pitching looked pathetic.
I still think that rushing Schilling back like they did to be a closer not only cost them regular season games, but might have cost them the postseason. Just watching him pitch, he never seemed to get that ankle fully healed, and it vastly decreased his pitching power (it looked at times like he still couldn't push off on it at all).
Now, I'm not going to be one of those that's going to jump up and down screaming "THE CURSE IS BACK!", but there needs to be some serious evaluation of that team if they want to be contenders next season.
Originally posted by PeterStorkEdgar Renteria can't catch a break. Grounds out to the BoSox to end the Cards' season. Grounds out to the ChiSox to end the BoSox season. Egads.
My baseball history is a little shady, since I haven't payed attention in recent years, but didnt Rentaria have the Game 7 World Series-winning hit with the Marlins in 97? If so, no sympathy for him! He has the ultimate baseball moment on his mantle. Kind of like how Angle can lose every match the rest of his career and still be an Olympic Gold Medalist.
White Sox vs. Angels in the ALCS. If the White Sox don't win this series with the Angels starting rotation in complete shambles, they'll never go to a World Series. Now, onto taking at least a little joy out of the suffering of the Yankees: No A-Bomb from A-Rod, or Alexander the Great conquers again in the 9th as the tying run? He might get the AL MVP, but he will be the whipping boy in the New York press until spring training. The Yankees win 3 straight, 4 out of 5, and then they sign Mussina to a 6 year deal to ensure that the dynasty would flourish. Despite the line-up that has been thrown out there, no World Series titles for Mussina, and still no 20 win seasons five years into the six year deal. I'm sure the anal-retentive Mussina will blame the extra day of rest due to the rain-out for him spitting the bit. This might be the last great explosion by Steinbrenner. And, The Curse of Mattingly Lives.
Originally posted by PeterStorkEdgar Renteria can't catch a break. Grounds out to the BoSox to end the Cards' season.
I'm still pissed that they went for him over Cabrera. I liked Cabrera; I also like keeping the core of a winning team together. Why you would go for the SS of the losing Series team over the SS of the winning Series team when the losing SS costs more and has a statistical superiority only a sabrematrician would love, I just don't know.
That said, let's go White Sox. I'd love to see back-to-back exorcisms of old baseball demons in the 2004 and 2005 World Series.
Angels steal game 1 of the ALCS. First time this year the White Sox are going to have to play from behind after going wire to wire. Will be interesting to see how they react. This gives the Angels a house money game in game 2, because if Washburn can even give them 4 or 5 solid innings, the Angels can throw virtually the entire bullpen at Chicago with the off-day and try to take a stranglehold in the series. Great having home field, but it is much better to have it in a 2-2-1-1-1 format than the 2-3-2 format. Being a realist, the White Sox should win Game 2 at home, but the Angels should take 2 out of 3 at home. That would give the White Sox home-field back, but they'd have to win 6 and 7 to advance. Realistically to win this series, the White Sox need to take 3 of the next 4.
Contreras pitched a hell of a game. Three early runs were a little too much, but anytime you pitch into the ninth in the ALCS, you've done your job. There seemed to be a few curious decisions last night. On the Sox side, having Pierzynski thrown out stealing second in the Bottom of the 7th was bad. With the Angels, I thought Scoscia made the wrong pitching move a few times. Byrd was cruising with under 75 pitches in the 7th before he hit a batter, and they took him out. I know he was on short rest, but I thought that he could have easily finished out the 7th at least which would have allowed them to save the 'pen for when Washburn or Santana pitch. I was also a little surprised that KRod didn't come in to get the last man out in the eighth after Shields put two men on base. But then the Angles won, so this is why I'm not a manager.
You remember those "horseshit" teams I mentioned in another thread? The ones that caused the White Sox to not win for 87 years? Well, no matter how much Fox tries to make it the "curse of Joe Jackson", that was just pure horseshit baseball. No dead guys involved except for the corpses wearing Sox uniforms last night.
You KNOW that Rickey wants to enter the HOF all alone...plus he helps the Red Sox push even closer to the over 30 years old average line that the Devil Rays put up last year, between Carlos Baerga and Rickey...thats like 100 years right there :P
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