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#130 – Daniel Hudson

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Name: Daniel Hudson

Rank: 130

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2009-2010

Daniel Hudson was the White Sox fifth round pick in the 2008 draft.  He quickly worked his way through the minor league system, making his major league debut on September 4, 2009, pitching 2 innings of scoreless relief in the White Sox 12-2 victory over the Red Sox.  He moved in to the starting rotation when Gavin Floyd went down with a hip injury, earning his first major league victory in his second start on September 27.

Hudson returned to Triple A to start the 2010 season.  He was called up on July 11 after Jake Peavy tore his right latissimus dorsi muscle.  Hudson made 3 starts for the White Sox through the end of July, when, at the trade deadline, he was sent to the Diamondbacks in exchange for Edwin Jackson.

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

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2015 Final Batting Leaders

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersAnother season has come to an end, with yet more disappointment on the south side while things finally started to look up on the north side.  Let’s take a look back at the offensive leaders for the 39 games, including the post-season, that I attended this season:

Home Runs

Name Total
Alexei Ramirez 6
Brian Dozier 3
Melky Cabrera 3
Geovany Soto 3
Gordon Beckham 3
Jose Abreu 3
Jorge Soler 3

Hits

Name Total
Melky Cabrera 39
Alexei Ramirez 38
Adam Eaton 34
Jose Abreu 27
Avisail Garcia 26

Runs

Name Total
Alexei Ramirez 15
Adam Eaton 15
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2015 Final Standings

baseballs3Now that the Cubs have been swept from the NLCS by the Mets, the physical attendance portion of the 2015 baseball season, for me, has come to an end.  I made it to 39 games this year, in 4 stadiums (1 new) across 2 countries.  Here are the final standings for those games, and the 15 different teams that I saw in person this year.

2015 Team Records
Team Won Loss Winning Pctg
New York Mets 2 0 1.000
Kansas City Royals 3 1 0.750
Detroit Tigers 3 1 0.750
Toronto Blue Jays 2 1 0.667
St. Louis Cardinals 2 1 0.667
Minnesota Twins 4 3 0.571
Seattle Mariners 1 1 0.500
New York Yankees 1 1 0.500
Cincinnati Reds 1 1 0.500
Chicago White Sox 16 18 0.471
Chicago Cubs 3 5 0.375
Baltimore Orioles Continue reading →
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Fitbit Week 37

Week37_FBA pretty good week, although my first without a 10,000 step day in 4 weeks.  The week got off to a decent, if unspectacular, start on Sunday, followed by a day off on Monday which garnered a high total thanks to a trip to Wrigley Field for Game 3 of the NLDS with Michael.  Tuesday was back to work, with Wednesday garnering the week’s highest total thanks to meetings in North Plaza.  Saturday just barely passed the 5500 step plateau, with the day spent working through the backlog on my DVR caused by playoff baseball and the night spent watching Garbage at the Riviera Theatre.

Total steps: 53,014

Daily average: 7573.4

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20 Years Queer

garbage-riv20 years ago, on August 15, 1995, the self-titled debut album from Garbage was released, starting an odyssey that would encompass 5 studio albums, 1 greatest hits package, and 1 live DVD concert video.  To celebrate, the group scheduled a small tour for this fall, called the 20 Years Queer tour, where they would perform the first album in its entirety along with other B-sides and rarities from that era.  Saturday night, that tour rolled into Chicago.

The show was at the Riviera Theatre, which was the site of my first Garbage show all the way back in 2002.  To gear up for the show, I listened to a recent Nerdist podcast with singer Shirley Manson, which got me in the mood without having to listen to the same songs I was about to hear.  The opening act was Torres, a band I had never heard of before.  Shockingly, I actually liked some of what I heard, so I may try to listen to their music going forward.  To date, though, I haven’t found a playlist from them, so I don’t know which songs I enjoyed.

The Garbage portion of the show started with a short video, with accompaniment by the B-side Alien Sex Fiend, projected on the curtain, followed by a mixture of songs from their debut album.  The order was mixed up, mostly, I would assume, to avoid burning through the hits halfway through the show.  The main portion of the show ended with a rendition of #1 Crush, from the William Shapespeare’s Romeo + Juliet soundtrack.  The encore consisted of 2 more B-sides, including a cover of a Vic Chestnut classic, followed by later hits Cherry Lips and, to close the show, Push It.

This was my 5th Garbage show, and my first since 2012.  Rumor has it that they are also working on a new album due out next year, so they may be coming through town again next year.  Assuming my poor feet recover from the experience, I hope to be there to see them again.

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LCS Pitching Leaders

baseballs2With game 1 of 2015 NLCS in the books, with the Mets taking a quick lead against the Cubs, it’s time to take our first ever look at the pitching leaders from the 5 LCS games I’ve attended since 2003, featuring the White Sox, Cubs, Marlins, and Angels.

Wins

Name Total
Mark Buehrle 1
Brad Penny 1
Ugueth Urbina 1
Chad Fox 1
Paul Byrd 1

Losses

Name Total
Jose Contreras 1
Mark Guthrie 1
Kerry Wood 1
Mark Prior 1
Kelvim Escobar 1

ERA (> 4 IP)

Name Total
Jarrod Washburn 0.00
Mark Buehrle 1.00
Paul Byrd 3.00
Carl Pavano 3.18
Jose Contreras 3.24

Strikeouts

Name Total
Josh Beckett 8
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#131 – Jorge Fabergas

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Name: Jorge Fabergas

Rank: 131

Position: C

Year With White Sox: 1997

Jorge Fabergas was acquired by the White Sox, along with Chuck McElroy, from the Angels on May 18, 1997 in exchange for Chad Krueter and Tony Phillips.  He became the regular catcher and put together a fine season, hitting .280 and driving in 48 runs in only 100 games.  Unfortunately, his time on the south side was cut short, as he was left unprotected in the expansion draft and was selected by the Diamondbacks.

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

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LCS Batting Leaders

baseballs3The ghosts of 1969 will be in full force this year as the Cubs will battle the Mets in the NLCS.  The Cubs will be looking to end 70 years of World Series frustrations against the rival who came from 9 1/2 games back in early August to catch and surpass the Cubs in that fated summer, finishing 8 games ahead as the Cubs en route to their first World Series title.  With the series scheduled to kick off tomorrow night in the Big Apple, let’s look at the offensive leaders in the 5 LCS games I’ve attended, games 1, 6, and 7 of the 2003 NLCS and games 1 and 2 of the 2005 ALCS.

Home Runs

Name Total
Miguel Cabrera 2
Moises Alou 2
Robb Quinlan 1
Ivan Rodriguez 1
Mike Lowell 1
Kerry Wood 1
Juan Encarnacion 1
Garret Anderson 1
Alex Gonzalez 1
Troy O’Leary 1
Joe Crede 1
Sammy Sosa 1

Hits

Name Total
Juan Pierre 6
Jeff Conine 5
Luis Castillo 5
Miguel Cabrera 4
Moises Alou 4
Sammy Sosa 4
Ivan Rodriguez 4
Alex Gonzalez 4
Mark Grudzielanek 4

Runs

Name Total
Juan Pierre 4
Miguel Cabrera 4
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#132 – Timo Perez

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Name: Timo Perez

Rank: 132

Position: OF

Years With White Sox: 2004-2005

Timo Perez came to the White Sox from the Mets in the waning days of spring training in 2004 in exchange for Matt Ginter.  Acquired to be a backup outfielder, Perez saw more action than anyone bargained for when Magglio Ordonez went down with a knee injury following a collision with Willie Harris.  Perez finished the year with a .246 average in 103 games.

Perez returned in 2005, though he saw much less action.  He only appeared in 76 games as his average dropped to .218.  He went 0-2 in the playoffs, getting one at bat each in the ALDS and the World Series.  Following the season, he left as a free agent.

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

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Heading To The LCS

FlyTheWFor the first time since 2003, the Chicago Cubs are headed to the NLCS, having defeated the Cardinals in the NLDS in 4 games.  They await the winner of the Dodgers/Mets series, who will host game 1 of the NLCS on Saturday.  The Cubs, who last appeared in the World Series in 1945, have never won an NLCS, losing in 1984, 1989, and, of course, 2003.

Yesterday was also the first time in franchise history that the Cubs won a post-season series at home.  In 1907 and 1908, the team clinched their World Series victories in Detroit against the Tigers.  In 2003, the NLDS wrapped up in Atlanta, with the Cubs taking game 5 against the Braves.