By Andrew Reilly
Yes, but what do four wins and nine losses really mean?
Maybe this is the plan all along, to lull the rest of the American League into a false sense of confidence by throwing away inconsequential games, later winning just enough to make it into the postseason through the Wild Card, then torching their way to an 11-0 postseason built upon legendary pitching and hitting so timely, so productive, so perfect the team can turn it on and off at will.
Maybe they’ve simply been up against this year’s inevitable champions, with Toronto poised to overthrow the evil dictatorship at work in the East and Minnesota and Cleveland set to stage a Central race for the ages.
Maybe they’re just getting all the bad baseball out of the way now, so they can enter the 2010 playoffs riding six months of unprecedented momentum, six months spent alternately clawing their way to unbelievable triumphs and crushing the opposition with their hammer of superiority.
Or maybe they’re actually worse than we imagined. Four and nine. There are two teams faring more poorly, and of those two, the Astros have at least won a series and the Orioles have the exact same road record as the Sox. On the other hand, the Sox are only 5.5 out of the Wild Card with 149 games left to play. That should not sound so insurmountable so early but with these White Sox, as we are quickly learning, nothing is truly impossible. Nothing, that is, except winning.
Week in Review: Bipolar. Split four in Toronto (yay!) then hand Cleveland a three-game sweep (boo!).
Week in Preview: Tough, apparently. Three at home versus the 10-3 Tampa Bay Rays, who have a better record than the Sox, followed by a visit from the 6-7 Seattle Mariners, who also have a better record than the Sox.
Hawkeroo’s Can-O-Corn Watch: “Well, that’s the thing about hitting: you never do it until you’ve done it. You have guys who everyone knows are always gonna hit, maybe your Grady Sizemores or Mickey Mantles, and you have guys who get just enough hits to stay ahead, like a Willie Mays or an Ichiro. But you put those two things together, that being able to hit without losing the ability to not hit and I tell you, you can give me a team like that any day of the week. That’s a heck of a team you’d have right there.”
Gordon Beckham Hall of Fame Update: Gordon Beckham currently sports a .240 batting average. You know how many times Sandy Koufax hit .240? None, that’s how many.
Alumni News You Can Use: Former White Sox leadoff man and defensive liability Scott Podsednik leads the American League with a .457 average, as his 21 hits are as many as those of A.J. Pierzynski, Mark Teahen, Mark Kotsay, Omar Vizquel, and Jayson Nix. Combined. There are no words.
The “H” in “DH” Stands For: Huh? Andruw Jones continues his miracle comeback yet remains a bench player. Prediction: this will ultimately not matter.
The Q Factor: After a series of very late nights at TCQ Labs, researchers finally discovered Carlos Quentin’s hitting woes actually began April 12, as he has not been hit by a pitch since that fateful Nick Blackburn slider. Realizing his unchallenged threshold of pain was causing his offensive skills to atrophy, Quentin left a voicemail for Tuesday Rays starter David Price, simply telling the young hurler “This ends now, whether you’re ready or not.” Price reportedly called several area costume shops and welders inquiring about how and where to acquire a suit of flame-resistant chain mail.
The Guillen Meter: In 1991, the first Blizzard of Ozz released a home video entitled Don’t Blame Me; Saturday, the Sox skipper set the Guillen Meter to 7.77 for “Ozzy spelled with an ‘i-e'” by instructing the public to do the opposite.
Endorsement No-Brainer: This past weekend of White Sox baseball for the last two Bulls playoffs games because sometimes, you just gotta go to Cleveland and lose.
Cubs Snub: These are sad times we live in when the Cubs are 5-8 and a Sox fan is in no position to laugh.
The White Sox Report: Read ’em all.
The Cub Factor: Funny because it’s true.
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The White Sox Report welcomes your comments.
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Andrew Reilly is the fabulous managing editor of The 35th Street Review and a contributor to many fine publications.
Posted on April 20, 2010