Now that the All-Star Game is behind us and we await the start of the second half of the season, let’s take a look at the first half leaders on the defensive side of the ball for the 21 games I attended:
Wins
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Reynaldo Lopez | 3 |
| 17 tied with | 1 |
Losses
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Johnny Cueto | 2 |
| 18 tied with | 1 |
ERA (> 6 IP)
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Clayton Kershaw | 0.00 |
| Dylan Cease | 0.00 |
| Reynaldo Lopez | 0.73 |
| Marcus Stroman | 0.79 |
| Kendall Graveman | 0.90 |
Strikeouts
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Michael Kopech | 20 |
| Continue reading → |
The All-Star Game is on tap for tonight in Los Angeles, with four total representatives from the Cubs and White Sox. As we get ready for the stars to come out, let’s take a look at the first half offensive leaders for the 21 games I attended, starting with:
Home Runs
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Luis Robert | 4 |
| Gavin Sheets | 3 |
| Jose Abreu | 3 |
| Jake Burger | 2 |
| Joey Gallo | 2 |
| Tim Anderson | 2 |
| Jorge Polanco | 2 |
| Josh Naylor | 2 |
| Andrew Vaughn | 2 |
Hits
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Luis Robert | 19 |
| Jose Abreu | 16 |
| Tim Anderson | 16 |
| Gavin Sheets | 15 |
| Andrew Vaughn | 11 |
| Adam Engel | 11 |
| A.J. Pollock | 11 |
Runs
| Name | Total |
|---|---|
| Luis Robert | 15 |
| Tim Anderson | 9 |
| Continue reading → |
For the first time since 1980, the Midsummer Classic returns to Los Angeles and Dodger Stadium. As the stars of the baseball world gather in Tinsletown, it’s time to take a look at the team records for the 21 games, featuring exactly half of the teams in the league, that I attended in the first half of the baseball season, a disappointing one, for different reasons, on both sides of town.
2022 Team Records
| Team Name | Won | Loss | Winning Pctg |
|---|---|---|---|
| Los Angeles Dodgers | 2 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Texas Rangers | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| New York Mets | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Cleveland Guardians | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 1 | 0 | 1.000 |
| New York Yankees | 2 | 1 | 0.667 |
| Chicago White Sox | 10 | 8 | 0.556 |
| Minnesota Twins | 1 | 1 | 0.500 |
| Chicago Cubs | 2 | 5 | 0.286 |
| Continue reading → |
In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees. By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues. Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.
Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #1. 50 different players have donned #1 while playing in Chicago, 30 for the White Sox and 20 for the Cubs.
Lance Johnson, along with Ricky Horton, was acquired by the White Sox from the Cardinals for Jose DeLeon just before spring training in 1988. Despite earning Most Valuable Player honors in the American Association the year before, Johnson struggled mightily after being given the starting center fielder job, hitting only .185 in 33 games before being sent back to the minor leagues. Johnson started at Triple A in 1988, before finally returning to the White Sox, and the major leagues, for good. In 1990, Johnson hit .285 and managed 36 stolen bases, despite leading the league with 22 caught stealings, and hit his first career home run all while patrolling centerfield for the final season at Comiskey Park.
As the team moved across the street in 1991, Johnson continued his steady presence in the lineup, hitting .274 while stealing 26 bases and hitting 13 triples, leading the American League. Johnson hit .279 in 1992, with another 12 triples, leading the league again, and 41 stolen bases while setting a new career high with 3 home runs. 1993 saw Johnson and the White Sox finally put everything together. Johnson raised his average to .311, hitting 14 triples and stealing 35 bases while the White Sox won their first divisional title in a decade. Unfortunately, Johnson struggled in the ALCS against the Blue Jays, hitting only .217 in the 6 game series, though knocking in 6 runs and hitting his only home run of the season.
The strike-shortened 1994 season cut down what could have been a tremendous season for Johnson. He again hit 14 triples, but in only 106 games, becoming the first player in Major League history to lead the league for four consecutive seasons. When baseball resumed in 1995, Johnson turned in his finest season in a White Sox uniform. He hit .306 and set a career high with a .766 OPS. He led the league in at bats and hits, though he saw his streak of triples crowns end despite hitting a solid 12. He set a career high with 10 home runs, 3 more than his previous career total. On September 23, he became the first White Sox hitter to get 6 hits in a game since Floyd Robinson in 1962. Following the season, he became a free agent and his White Sox career came to an end.
On the north side of town, Doug Glanville wore #1 when he made his major league debut for the Cubs in 1996, posting a .241 average over 49 games. He became a full time presence for the Cubs in 1997, primarily in left field, hitting .300 and swiping 19 bases. He switched from #1 to #8 at the end of August when, ironically, the Cubs acquired Lance Johnson from the Mets.
Last August, the Cubs threw themselves a party to celebrate the end of the 1060 Project and the completion of the remodeling of Wrigley Field and the build out of the surrounding area. The event also included the premiere of a new documentary about the renovations titled Saving Wrigley Field and the unveiling of two new plaques outside of the main gate: one to commemorate Wrigley Field’s official designation as a National Historic Landmark and the second to, and I quote, “commemorate the Ricketts family’s commitment to preserving Wrigley Field.”
Today, the honeymoon period came to an end as the U.S. attorney’s office in Chicago filed a lawsuit against the Cubs, claiming the renovations violated federal law by failing to make the park “appropriately accessible” to fans with disabilities. The lawsuit, filed in U.S. District Court, comes nearly three years after federal authorities had launched an investigation into whether the Cubs’ $1 billion, five-year renovation of Wrigley Field met the standards of the Americans with Disabilities Act. The suit claims that the renovations of the bleachers and the lower grandstand did not provide wheelchair users with adequate sightlines when compared to standing patrons.
Per the suit, In the grandstand, “a wheelchair user can barely see any of the infield when spectators stand up—often during the most exciting parts of the game.” The wheelchair areas in the lower bowl are usually directly behind the last row of a section, with no riser to put them higher than the standing fans in front of them. In the bleachers, wheelchair seating is similarly clustered in the last row of seating sections, according to the suit.
The lawsuit also claims that the design failed to remove architectural barriers to access in unaltered portions of the ballpark and that premium and group seating areas, such as the Catalina Club in the upper deck and the Budweiser Patio in the right field bleachers, do not support wheelchair seating.
In a statement, Cubs spokesman Julian Green said the team had been cooperating with the probe and was “disappointed” with the Justice Department’s decision to move forward with the suit. The Cubs “hope the matter can be resolved amicably, but we will defend Wrigley Field and our position it meets accessibility requirements for fans,” the statement reads. “The renovation of Wrigley Field greatly increased accessibility of the ballpark and was completed in accordance with applicable law and historic preservation standards consistent with the ballpark’s designation as a National and City of Chicago landmark.” The team also says that Wrigley Field “is now more accessible than ever in its 108-year history” and “has 11 more elevators than it did prior to the start of the renovation, more accessible restroom facilities, assistive listening technology for fans with hearing impairments, enhanced audio speakers and sound systems throughout the ballpark, and upgraded ticketing and online systems for purchase of seating, including accessible seating.”
So, what’s the likely outcome here? It could end up going a number of ways, with a best-case scenario of a dismissal following initial legal arguments to a worst-case scenario of a lengthy trial, with settlements of cash or structural fixes in the middle.
Five years ago today, the White Sox continued their selloff and pulled off the trade that many said couldn’t be done, sending Jose Quintana to the Cubs in exchange for Eloy Jimenez, Dylan Cease, Matt Rose, and Bryant Flete. At the time, the Cubs were looking for a boost to their starting rotation as one of the strengths of their championship season the year before had turned into a question mark during the first half of 2017. For the rebuilding White Sox, Jimenez, who was the 8th ranked prospect in baseball, and Cease, who was the 63rd, gave them nine out of the top 100 prospects.
So how did it work out, five years later? You can say the White Sox were the runaway winners of the trade, but not for the reasons you would have thought five years ago. After a slow start in his rookie campaign in 2019, Jimenez seemed to figure things out down the stretch and followed that up with an pandemic-abbreviated 2020 campaign that earned him the Silver Slugger. Unfortunately, he’s played less than 75 games since, with major injuries keeping him on the shelf for large portions of the 2021 and 2022 seasons. When he has played, he hasn’t yet been able to put together the type of production he showed in previous years.
Dylan Cease, on the other hand, has turned into the ace of the White Sox staff. After a slow start in 2019 after making his debut in early July, Cease has improved each season. He currently leads the American League in strikeouts and is widely considered one of, if not the biggest, snub for this year’s All Star team.
Quintana, meanwhile, spent parts of four seasons with the Cubs, going 33-23 with a 4.24 ERA. He was decent, but not great, and the Cubs never were able to replicate their 2016 success. In the postseason, he appeared in four games in 2017, two each in the NLDS and NLCS,
Unseen – Karin Slaughter
When Agent Will Trent goes undercover in Macon, his future with Sara Linton intersects with her past as a raid by Lena Adams goes bad, resulting in her husband, Sara’s stepson, being shot. Agent Trent tries to investigate the crime, and find out the identity of the new big bad in town, while keeping his cover. Once Sara learns the truth, can he keep his relationship intact while finding the truth?
Unseen, the seventh entry in Karin Slaughter’s Will Trent series and my eighth overall, once again crosses over Slaughter’s previous Grant County series with her current work, checking back in on Lena Adams, who was last seen in Broken, book number four. Once again, there is a preponderance of interconnectedness within the characters in the tale, but, being a pseudo-crossover, I guess that is to be expected. The next entry in the series, The Kept Woman, was the first one I read, so from here on out I will be current with the series. Looks like, as of today, there are only two entries left to go.
A nice bounce-back with a pretty solid week, as I posted my highest weekly total since Hawaii in February. Things got off to a decent start on Sunday, as a late afternoon White Sox game on the television helped me finish just 13 steps shy of 5600. A trip to Guaranteed Rate Field on Monday for Independence Day put me over 6300 steps and was the high point of the week. Tuesday saw a big drop-off, down to 4700 steps, as I used a day off work to visit my old friends at Superdawg for lunch. Another day off on Wednesday and another White Sox game helped me jump back up to 6200 steps. Going back to work on Thursday saw a slight drop-off, coming a single step short of 5700. Friday saw another decline, falling down to 4700 steps. A third trip to the ballpark on Saturday helped to end the week on a high note, finishing with 6100 steps.
Total steps: 39,456
Daily average: 5636.6
In 1929, uniform numbers appeared on the back of baseball jerseys for the first time, thanks to the Indians and the Yankees. By 1937, numbers finally appeared across all uniforms, both home and away, across both major leagues. Since that time, 81 distinct numbers have been worn by members of the White Sox, while the Cubs boast 76.
Today, we continue our look at those players, picking our favorite, if not the best, player to wear each uniform number for both Chicago teams with #2. 50 different players have donned #2 while playing in Chicago, 28 for the White Sox, who retired the number in 1976, and 22 for the Cubs.
Acquired from the A’s for Joe Tipton following the 1949 season, Nellie Fox switched to his familiar #2 starting with the 1953 season. The White Sox finished in third place in each season between 1953 and 1956, followed by second-place finishes in 1957 and 1958 before finally breaking through in 1959, thanks in part to Fox’s best season. He batted .306, leading the AL in singles en route to a .380 OBP. He also started and had four hits in two All-Star games and won his second Gold Glove on his way to winning the MVP for AL champions.
In the World Series, which turned out to be his only postseason experience, Fox led the White Sox with a .375 average with three doubles. In Game 5, Fox scored the only run when Sherm Lollar hit into a double play in the fourth inning, only the second time that a World Series game did not have an RBI. Unfortunately, the Sox dropped the next game, and the series, to the Dodgers.
All told, Fox spent 14 seasons with the White Sox, making 12 AL All-Star teams and 15 of 16 AL All-Star Game selections beginning in 1951, with two All-Star games played between 1959 and 1962. Following the 1963 season, he was traded to the Houston Colt .45s. He died on December 1. 1975, at the age of 47, following a bout with cancer. His #2 was retired by the White Sox in 1976 and he was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1997.
On the north side of town, Ryan Theriot wore three different numbers after making his debut on September 13, 2005 before settling on #2 in 2007. That year, he made the opening-day roster as a utility player, but the early-season struggles of César Izturis led to Theriot taking over as the starter. Theriot was notably versatile throughout the 2007 season, playing multiple positions defensively and hitting all over the batting order. Despite impressive numbers from Theriot in the lead-off spot, albeit a small sample size, the return of Alfonso Soriano resulted in Theriot returning to second in the batting order.
In 2008, Theriot had the sixth-best batting average in the National League. While not expected to hit for power, Theriot was asked to try to drive in more runs early in 2009 as the Cubs dealt with injuries and poor performance from their power hitters. He quickly went on a tear and smacked seven home runs, including his first two ever outside Wrigley Field, as the other players regained their health. On February 19, 2010, the Cubs went to salary arbitration with Theriot, the first time they had done so since 1993, as the two sides were separated by $800k. He appeared in 96 games with the Cubs in 2010, hitting .284, before the July 31 trade that sent Theriot and Ted Lilly to the Dodgers for Blake DeWitt.
In the midst of disappointing seasons on both sides of town, both the White Sox and the Cubs managed to get one player each elected to the starting lineup for the upcoming Midsummer Classic set to be played in Los Angeles. Tim Anderson will start at shortstop for the American League, beating out Toronto’s Bo Bichette in the final round of voting by nabbing 55% of the tally. Willson Contreras beat out Atlanta’s Travis d’Arnaud to start at catcher for the National League, garnering 65% of the vote.
Anderson, making his second consecutive appearance, is the first starter from the White Sox since Jose Abreu manned first base to start the 2018 and 2019 games and the first shortstop from the White Sox to start since Luis Aparicio in 1970. He’s only the sixth White Sox shortstop to make an All-Star team, following Alexei Ramirez, Ozzie Guillen, Aparicio, Chico Carrasquel, and Luke Appling.
Contreras, who started for the NL squad in 2018 and 2019, becomes the second catcher in Cubs history to make three or more All-Star Games, following Hall of Famer Gabby Hartnett. Contreras may get to share the honor with his younger brother William, who lost out to Bryce Harper in the final round of voting for NL DH, but Harper’s broken thumb may open the door for the younger Contreras to step in as a replacement.