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Book 28 (of 52) – Super You

Super You: Release Your Inner Superhero – Emily V. Gordon

As I’ve mentioned once or twice, I had some difficult months earlier this year.  So what better way to prepare for 2017 than to read a self help book, especially one by a former therapist who now is part of the LA comedy scene?  Emily V. Gordon, executive producer of The Meltdown, authored this tome, couching self help techniques in nerd dressing to help people process their shit and come out on the other side as a healthier, better version of themselves.

To be honest, I wasn’t expecting this to be such a straight forward self help book.  I figured it would be more of a memoir with some interesting life lessons strewn in along the way.  So, I wasn’t exactly prepared for the deep thoughts that would follow.  Some of the behaviors she identifies as things to be overcome I identified with so much.  Things that I had literally shared with only one other person in this world.  To know that 1) other people are experiencing the same thing and that 2) it is possible to overcome it fills me with hope that next year will be better than this one.

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FB2: Week 46

A mostly down week, that only managed to beat my goal thanks to Saturday pulling in the highest total of the week.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, where I finished below 4500 steps.  Monday was the first official day of vacation and I fell 72 steps short of my daily goal.  Tuesday I headed up to work for a free breakfast, which helped me to top my daily goal for the first time.  Wednesday just barely surpassed my goal, thanks in part to a trip to the mall for pizza.  Thursday involved another trip back up towards work for lunch with Hayley and Val and I managed to just eke past my daily goal.  Friday was a down day, falling 360 steps shy of my goal.  Facing an overall down week, Saturday turned in to the best day thanks to shopping trips for groceries and Christmas presents.

Total steps: 42,140

Daily average: 6020

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Autographed Books – Finder

finderIt’s week 11 of our look back at the novels I’ve gotten autographed over the years and we return once again to Greg Rucka and his second novel Finder, continuing the Atticus Kodiak series.  Published in 1997 and read in 2000, this is the sixth Rucka novel that I’ve covered in this series to date.

Thanks to Mr. Rucka, who put the date along with his signature, I can say that the source of the autograph was the San Diego Comic Con.  2000 was my second trip out to San Diego for the nation’s largest con.

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Team Stats: Home Runs Surrendered

With 4 months until baseball in Chicago returns, I thought it would be interesting to look at the all time rankings in both offensive and defensive categories for all iterations of the current 30 teams for the 833 games I’ve identified that I have attended. We continue today on the defensive side of the ball with home runs surrendered.

Based on the raw numbers, the White Sox and Cubs are far and away the leaders in this category, as they are the teams I’ve seen the most.  When you adjust the numbers per game, the Expos jump to the top (or bottom, depending on your point of view) of the heap, with an even 2 home runs given up per game.  The Braves, Giants, Phillies, Diamondbacks, Miami Marlins, Nationals, and Devil Rays are the only teams below 1 home run per game.  The remaining teams fall in between.

Home Runs Surrendered
Team Name Home Runs Surrendered
Chicago White Sox 565
Chicago Cubs 399
Minnesota Twins 73
Kansas City Royals 51
Pittsburgh Pirates 49
Milwaukee Brewers 48
Cincinnati Reds 47
Houston Astros 47
Cleveland Indians 46
Detroit Tigers Continue reading →
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#49 – Matt Thornton

Name: Matt Thornton

Rank: 49

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2006-2013

Matt Thornton was acquired by the White Sox from the Mariners towards the end of spring training in 2006 in exchange for Joe Borchard.  Thornton moved in to the bullpen and, working with pitching coach Don Cooper, started to harness the potential that was in his left arm.  He finished the 2006 season with a 5-3 record and a 3.33 ERA in 63 appearances.

2007 was a down year for the White Sox, and Thornton was no exception.  In 68 appearances, his ERA skyrocketed to 4.79.

Thornton, and the White Sox, bounced back in 2008.  He finished the regular season with a 5-3 record and a 2.67 ERA in 74 appearances.  He made 3 appearances in the ALDS, throwing 3 and 1/3 scoreless innings as the White Sox fell to the Rays in 4 games.

2009 saw Thornton continue to be successful in the bullpen.  He finished the year 6-3 and notched his second straight sub-3.00 ERA while appearing in 70 games.

Thornton earned his first All Star nod in 2010, despite being a set-up man.  In only 61 appearances, his lowest total since joining the White Sox, he finished 5-4 with a 2.67 ERA.

In 2011, Thornton started to show some chinks in the armor.  His ERA rose above 3.00 for the first time since 2007, rising to 3.32, and he finished the year with a 2-5 record in 62 appearances.  He was given the opportunity to close, but 4 straight blown saves between April 6 and 13 moved him back to the set-up role.

2012 was more of the same for Thornton.  His ERA rose again, to 3.46, and his record dropped to 4-10 in 74 appearances, surpassing Bobby Thigpen for the team record in career relief outings.  On April 11, he made Travis Hafner the 500th strikeout victim of his career.

Thornton went winless for the White Sox in 2013, and again saw his ERA go up, now to 3.86.  He made 40 appearances before July 12, when he was traded to the White Sox for minor leaguer Brandon Jacobs.

Thornton’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: Continue reading →

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#50 – Warren Newson

Name: Warren Newson

Rank: 50

Position: RF/LF

Years With White Sox: 1991-1995

Warren Newson was acquired by the White Sox from the Padres, along with Joey Cora, for Adam Peterson and Steve Rosenberg on March 31, 1991.  After starting the year in Triple A and putting up an OBP over .500, Newson made his major league debut on May 29, pinch hitting for Sammy Sosa in the 8-4 loss to the Angels at the new Comiskey Park.  Despite hitting .295 for the season with a .843 OPS, Newson was limited to only 132 at bats.

Newson returned to the bench for the 1992 season, getting an extended look when Dan Pasqua went down with an injury in June.  Newson hit .286 with a .756 OPS during Pasqua’s absence, but was relegated back to the bench when Pasqua returned, despite his superior stats.  For the year, Newson hit a disappointing .221, but still managed a .387 OBP.

1993 was a difficult season for Newson.  While the White Sox were putting together their first divisional title in a decade, Newson missed months to look after his wife following a life-threatening car accident.  He only appeared in 26 games during the regular season, getting only 40 at bats.  He did manage to hit .300 with an .879 OPS.  Newson went 1-5 with a home run in 2 appearances during the ALCS against the Blue Jays.

Newson returned to the White Sox full time in 1994, but again was relegated to backup and pinch hitting duties.  He appeared in 63 games before the season was cut short due to the strike.  Newson finished the shortened year hitting .255 with a .345 OBP in 102 at bats.

When baseball resumed in 1995, Newson’s average suffered, dropping to .235, but his OBP was a very healthy .404.  Despite this, he only managed 85 at bats in 51 games.  On July 18, he was traded to the Mariners for a player to be named later, who eventually became Jeff Darwin.

Newson’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

Continue reading →

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#51 – Jim Abbott

jimabbottName: Jim Abbott

Rank: 51

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1995, 1998

As baseball resumed following the strike that ended the 1994 season and the ensuing lockout in 1995, Jim Abbott signed with the White Sox on April 8, 1995.  He started 17 games, putting up a 6-4 record with a 3.36 ERA.  On July 27, he was traded, along with Tim Fortugno, to the Angels in exchange for McKay Christensen, Andrew Lorraine, Bill Simas, and John Snyder.

On May 27, 1998, Abbott came back from a brief retirement and re-signed with the White Sox as a free agent.  He appeared in 18 games at 4 different levels of the minor leagues before making it back to the big leagues.  He started 5 games for the White Sox, going 5-0 despite a 4.55 ERA.  Following the year, he became a free agent.

Abbott’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

Continue reading →

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Book 27 (of 52) – Pretty Baby

Pretty Baby – Mary Kubica

Last December, I read the debut novel from Chicago-based novelist Mary Kubica.  Based on the strength of that work, I purchased her next two offerings over the past year and finally decided it was time to break in to one.  Sadly, it was a bit of a let down.

Pretty Baby tells the tale, slowly, of a Chicago family, a runaway with a baby, and the slow descent into madness that comes from their intersection.  The only plot point that comes as something of a surprise is the parentage of the baby, but the twist wasn’t all that interesting.  Also, and I don’t know if this was an issue with the print version as well as the eBook, but the name of Halsted St. was consistently misspelled.  I’m sure this bothered nobody outside of the Chicagoland area, but bother me it did.

I still have Kubica’s latest waiting on the Kindle, though I’m not particularly looking forward to it at this point.  I can only hope that she returns to the promise of her previous work and that this isn’t an indicator of what is to come.

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FB2: Week 45

The week got off to a slowish start, thanks to a snow storm, the season’s first, that rolled through the area on Sunday.  Needing to dust off the snowblower got me just over 5000 steps.  Monday came close to 7000 steps, thanks in part to a blowout on the tollway that necessitated an after work trip to NTB for a new tire.  Tuesday was over 7700 steps, in part due to a morning meeting in North plaza.  Wednesday was the high point of the week, as I finished over 11,000 steps after taking a lunch time trip to The Glen to purchase a Christmas present followed by a trip to the Ram after work for Rod’s retirement party.  Thursday was back down to just under 6400 steps thanks to a trip to Rosemont and Fogo de Chao for our division holiday party.  Friday was my last day at work for the year, and it was a bit of a disappointment step-wise, ending up just under 5000 steps.  Saturday started off good, with a trip to the car dealer and the grocery store, but a pulled muscle in my side limited me to 4800 steps.

Total steps: 47,133

Daily average: 6733.3

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Autographed Books – Sox And The City

soxandthecityRichard Roeper appears for the second time in our look at the hardcover books I’ve gotten autographed over the years with his look back at his White Sox fandom and the history of the south side franchise leading up to their World Series title in 2005.

This is the one of the only books I didn’t get autographed in person.  I bought the book pre-signed from the Borders in Matteson.