By Ricky O’Donnell
This was a tough week to be a White Sox fan, partly because they hardly played. Nothing is worse than a rainout, because a rainout means a day without baseball. Especially in times like these, when the AL Central race has never been tighter, no White Sox baseball makes for an excruciating day. Such is particularly the case when the Twins keep winning.
But lost in all the rain was this: Joe Crede has played his last game in a White Sox uniform. It’s not official yet, obviously, but it seems like a reasonable assumption now that the Sox have totally cleaned out his locker. Yes, name card included. (second item)
Crede was hardly a perfect player for the Sox, but you’d be hard-pressed to find one more beloved by fans.
Once this season ends, whenever that is, the tributes to Crede will start to roll in. People will remember him as a stellar defender and the man who introduced to the Sox to Journey. Some may even bring up his epic run in the 2005 playoffs. And for that, sure, Crede should go down in South Side lore. But count me as one of the few who isn’t sad to see him go.
When Crede played, he was a great defender and reliable home run threat. For that, we can forgive his poor patience and even forget his unofficial record for “most pop outs ever,” set in 2007. But Crede’s greatest downfall was always his bad back, which was ruthlessly cruel to him over the entirety of his White Sox tenure.
Crede always tried to play through the pain, but it constantly hindered him. That was never more evident than this season, when he led all American League third basemen in errors at the All-Star break.
That back pain hindered the Sox as well. They were clearly a better team with him on the field, but if the constant guessing game regarding his health was mind-numbing for fans, I can only imagine how those within the team felt.
In the short term, Crede’s absence means we get more of Juan Uribe, which can never be considered a good thing. In the long term, it means the Sox will no longer face constant health questions with one of the their premier players. While it always hurts to see an ’05 hero go, this time it makes sense.
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The Week in Review:Thank God for Dewayne Wise. If you were to combine blowing a seven-run lead and a Cubs no-hitter, well, that would just be too much to handle.
The Week in Preview: Can we just fast forward to next Tuesday? Yeah, this week’s games against the Yankees and Royals are crucial, but we all know it comes down to a three-game set in Minnesota.
Fields on the Farm: After seeing what Kyle Orton did yesterday against the Panthers, it isn’t out of the question that Fields, a former Oklahoma State quarterback, could be the best signal caller in Chicago. I think even Uribe could have hit Marty Booker on that bomb.
The Missile Tracker: Is the Missile your 2008 AL Rookie of the Year? According to ESPN’s Joe Morgan, yes. I’m sure that’s comforting to just about everyone.
Over/Under: 100: How many times we’ll have to hear how much Ozzie respects the Twins leading up to the series in Minnesota.
Magic Number: 4: The amount of games the Sox have remaining outside the division. Inside the AL Central, the Sox are 39-23.
Beachwood Sabermetrics: A complex algorithm performed by The White Sox Report staff using all historical data made available by Major League Baseball has determined that Steve Stone will be a huge upgrade over DJ in the TV booth next year.
The White Sox Report: Read ’em all.
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Ricky O’Donnell is the proprietor of Tremendous Upside Potential , a contributor to the Sun-Times’s Full Court Press and a lot of other things.
Posted on September 15, 2008