By Thomas Chambers

Somehow, all seemed right with the planet Saturday.
The cats didn’t flinch an inch as yells of “Go, Jose, GO” bounced off the walls. Maggie keeps getting younger after what seems all these years. Acacia proved that beauty seems all, but she still needs to know the work tab. And but for those knees, Gary would still be riding. Even today, don’t eff with him.
You already knew, but these horses have a way.
It started with delicious discussion as Hall of Fame and retired jockey Gary Stevens really did get into it with New York Racing Association analyst Andy Serling about the track bias being unfavorable to those who chose the one or two paths on the rail.
Serling was strong on the death valley that was the rail Friday and Saturday. Stevens basically said “NAH!” as if he was saying with the right horse under him . . . no matter. These aren’t perfect quotes.
“Gary, I can show you. The rail is dead and it was yesterday too.”

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Posted on July 28, 2019

By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes

Ten games from now, they’ll be in the same position they are in today. (It will still be fun, though.) Plus: Giant Flop; Addison Russell Sent Down To Learn The Signs; Boy Scout Kris Bryant Piling Up Merit Badges; Mea Culpa: Maybe Maddon Was Right About The Happ-Almora Platoon; Pedro Strop Is Carl Edwards Jr. Jr.; Robel Garcia Is Not Totally The Answer; Daddy BenZo Speaks; Road Woes; Darvish Delusions; Roadish Games; White Sox Suck; What’s Really Behind The Home Run Surge; The Only Real News From Training Camp, Ever; Andrew Shaw’s Crab House; and DePaul Finally Trying To Win.

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Posted on July 26, 2019

By Brian J. Love and Michael L. Burns/The Conversation

At the 2019 All-Star Game, Houston Astros pitcher Justin Verlander griped that too many home runs had been hit so far this season. He accused the league of altering, or “juicing,” the balls, making it easier to hit home runs.
Among players and fans, Verlander’s “juicing” claim has gained momentum.

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Posted on July 26, 2019

By The NCAA

A former DePaul associate head coach violated NCAA ethical conduct rules when he knowingly directed the former assistant director of basketball operations to provide impermissible recruiting benefits to a recruit, according to a Division I Committee on Infractions panel.
Further, the committee said the men’s basketball head coach violated NCAA head coach responsibility rules when he did not stop or prevent violations from occurring in his program.

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Posted on July 24, 2019

By Jim Coffman

Time for a positive column on the Cubs.
They won two of three over the weekend. And they did so despite the good work of a young Padre shortstop, Fernando Tatis, Jr., who looks like he will be torturing White Sox fans for the next decade-plus.
The Cubs (54-45) now lead the Brewers in the NL Central by three games in the loss column. Yes, they need more hitting, but Theo is on the case. And he still has a week-and-a-half to make moves before the July 31 trade deadline. Trades or no trades, at the end of the day Sunday the Cubs boasted an 85.6 percent playoff probability, according to Fangraphs.

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Posted on July 22, 2019

By Roger Wallenstein

If Friday night’s 9-2 pasting of the Tampa Bay Rays wasn’t enough to assuage your consternation about the White Sox’s post-All-Star Game slide, consider the following.
The two most recent successful rebuilding schemes, those of the Cubs and Astros, suffered very similar spells on their way to World Series titles in 2016 and 2017, respectively. This all happened during the 2014 season when the two future champions were at about the same stage of their development that the White Sox presently find themselves.

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Posted on July 21, 2019

By Jim Coffman and Steve Rhodes

Just see the team in front of you, please. Plus: The Candy Man, Where Will Willy Play, Theo’s Trades & Bad Baserunning; Rested White Sox Wither; Bears Angry At Video Game Ratings; Mark Potash vs. Stan Bowman; and Best Offseason Ever?

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Posted on July 19, 2019

By Jim Coffman

Willson Contreras is not good enough defensively. He is a terrible pitch framer and almost as bad at the fundamental task of stopping pitches in the dirt.
He is not a championship catcher, plain and simple.

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Posted on July 17, 2019

By Roger Wallenstein

Last Tuesday’s All-Star Game in Cleveland, televised by Fox, had the lowest ratings ever, according to Nielsen. Even worse than last year, which had been the previous low-water mark.
Last season’s World Series suffered a 23 percent drop in viewership from the year before. Attendance at major league parks last season was down 4.1 percent, and it’s lagging another 1.5 percent so far this season. Since 2007, turnstiles are clicking more than 14 percent less often.
It’s all so bleak, so depressing. Kids aren’t watching. Millennials think the game is boring. Thirty- and forty-somethings are into the NFL and cage fighting. Some old people still enjoy watching baseball, but what do they know? They even watch golf on TV.
Well, not so fast.

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Posted on July 15, 2019

By Steve Rhodes

Reality check!
Plus: Player Notes (Alzolay to Zagunis).
And: Hate The Grate.

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Posted on July 14, 2019