As summer winds down, we return to last spring and Michael’s graduation ceremony from Joliet Junior College, which, yes, took place prior to his high school graduation.
Author / admin
Book 31 (of 52) – Scorched Grace
Scorched Grace – Margot Douaihy
A heavily tattooed nun investigates when a fire breaks out at her school, killing a janitor and injuring two students. As more fires break out, she finds multiple clues that point towards someone trying to frame her for the crimes. A chance sighting during a court hearing for one of her students leads her to the surprising culprit.
Scorched Grace, by Margot Douaihy, is the first release from Gillian Flynn’s new imprint. It is a tight mystery with a somewhat over-the-top protagonist. A sequel has already been released, and I’m interested to see where the story goes, as there does not seem to be more to credulously occur in the halls of a Catholic school.
Sour Sixteen
After a busy day watching teammates getting traded away, rookie Jonathan Cannon took the mound last night looking to stop his team’s record fifteen-game losing streak. He did his part, throwing 7 innings of 1-hit ball, leaving with a 2-1 lead. Unfortunately, rookie Fraser Ellard, making his major league debut thanks to those earlier trades, couldn’t hold down the fort and the White Sox fell to the Royals once again, losing 4-3 and extending their losing streak to a franchise-record sixteen games.
Only five other teams have lost sixteen consecutive games in a single season since 1994: the 2005 Royals (19 losses), 2011 Mariners (17 losses), 2021 Diamondbacks (17 losses), and 2021 Orioles (19 losses). The 2024 White Sox now join this list, while now racking up more blown saves (28) than wins (27). They will once again try to snap this losing streak this afternoon against the Royals.
Busted Promise
The White Sox wrapped up the trade deadline action with two final moves: trading Eloy Jimenez and Tanner Banks. Jimenez, the 27-year-old DH who was one of the centerpieces of the last rebuild, was sent packing to the Orioles, in a move that mostly gives the White Sox salary relief. The team did receive Trey McGough, a 26-year-old left hander who has split time this season between the Double A and Triple A bullpens for the Orioles.
After a promising start to his career with the White Sox, Jimenez has suffered from repeated injuries and declining output ever since the 2021 season. This year, he has been hampered by a left adductor strain and a left hamstring and has managed career lows in all three slash numbers. Rumors abound about his commitment and preparation, or lack thereof, so maybe this will be the kick in the backside he needs to reboot his career.
Tanner Banks, 32, heads to the Phillies. In return, the White Sox receive William Bergolla, a 19-year-old second baseman known for his strong bat-to-ball skills. He was ranked as the 10th best prospect in the Phillies system by Baseball America
Some Minor Deals
The Cubs struck first today, sending Mark Leiter Jr. to the Yankees for Ben Cowles and Jack Neely. Leiter’s father, Mark Sr., and uncle, Al, both pitched for the Yankees during their major league careers, so this is something of a homecoming for the right-handed reliever. Cowles, 24, is a middle infielder currently in Double A. Neely, also 24, is a 6’8″ relief pitcher who has shone at both Double A and Triple A this season.
On the other side of town, the White Sox shipped Paul DeJong to the Royals, their opponent in tonight’s game, in exchange for Jarold Rosado. DeJong signed with the White Sox this November and currently leads the team in home runs. Rosado, 21, has made 27 appearances at Class A, putting up a 1.85 ERA with 4 saves and 45 strikeouts.
Sad History
Things were looking good for the White Sox as they tried to snap their franchise-record fourteen game losing streak last night, as they carried a 5-2 lead into the 8th inning. Two solo shots and a grand slam later, the Royals led 8-5 and, for the second time this season, the White Sox had set a new franchise record for futility with their fifteenth consecutive loss in a single season. They also tied the overall franchise record, set across the 1967 and 1968 seasons.
Thanks to off days and the All-Star break, it has been 20 calendar days since the White Sox have won a game. They are now 3-20 in the month of July and 27-82 on the season, guaranteeing them a losing season. On July 29th.
A Blockbuster Deal?
Despite having the worst record in baseball, the White Sox do have some pieces to move at the trade deadline. Looking to take the easy route, GM Chris Getz decided to bundle them all in the same move. Erick Fedde, Tommy Pham, and Michael Kopech are all leaving as part of a three-team trade, with Fedde, Pham, and cash considerations heading to the Cardinals and Kopech going to the Dodgers. In return, the White Sox receive Miguel Vargas, Jaral Perez and Alexander Albertus, all from the Dodgers, along with either a player to be named later or cash considerations. The Cardinals are also sending Tommy Edman and Oliver Gonzalez to the Dodgers,
Vargas, 24, is hitting .239/.313/.423 over 80 plate appearances this season while playing left field in his third go-around with the Dodgers. He has also spent time at first base, second base, and third base in the past. Albertus, a 19-year-old third baseman, is the Dodger’s 16th-ranked prospect per Baseball America and the 23rd according to MLB Pipeline. He is currently hitting .229/.317/.329 for Low-A Rancho Cucamonga. Perez, also 19 and playing in Rancho Cucamonga, ranks as the 17th-ranked prospect on Pipeline’s top 30 and 18th on BA.
A change of scenery should do Kopech some good, who has had bright spots and not so bright spots during his White Sox tenure. Fedde, signed to a two-year deal after dominating the South Korean league last year, was solid in his return to MLB. Pham was basically signed to be traded at the deadline, so no surprise to see him going elsewhere.
Did Getz get enough back in this trade? Early word in the baseball Twitterverse says no, but it is hard to tell when a majority of the return are still in their teens.
Fedde’s, Kopech’s, and Pham’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Losing 14 Again
The White Sox tied their franchise record for consecutive losses in a single season yesterday, dropping their second straight game to the Mariners by the score of 6-3 for their fourteenth straight defeat. Over the course of their 125-year history, the franchise’s previous fourteen game losing streak came less than two months ago.
The overall team record is fifteen straight losses, which happened with five losses to end of the 1967 season followed by another ten straight to start the 1968 season. The 2024 incarnation will attempt to avoid tying this mark tonight, as the Royals come to town for a three-game series.
Fifty Years Of Music – 2001
Fifty years ago, I made my first appeared on the Earth. In celebration, we are going to take a look at the year-end Billboard Hot 100 singles chart for each year of my life and see what songs resonated with me at the time and if they continue to do so to this day.
We continue our look back at the music of my lifetime with 2001, the year the world changed on a Tuesday morning in September, I celebrated my 27th birthday, and Danny joined the family. 22 of these songs remain familiar to me today, with just nine of them appearing in my collection in one way or another.
#99: Enrique Iglesias – Hero
iTunes stats: N/A
Released less than two weeks before 9/11, it peaked at #3
#75: U2 – Beautiful Day
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from the group’s tenth studio album, it reached #21 on the Hot 100.
#47: Aerosmith – Jaded
iTunes stats: 26 plays
Topping out at #7, the song made Aerosmith the first act to have an actively charting single when they were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
#44: 3 Doors Down – Kryptonite
iTunes stats: N/A
The group’s debut single, it spent nine weeks atop the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, eleven weeks on top of the Modern Rock Tracks chart, and went to #3 on the Hot 100.
#43: Nelly Furtado – I’m Like a Bird
iTunes stats: 22 plays
The debut single from the Canadian singer-songwriter, it became her first top ten hit, peaking at #9.
#39: Creed – With Arms Wide Open
iTunes stats: N/A
Spending a single week atop the Hot 100, it remains the group’s sole #1 hit.
#35: Missy Elliot – Get Ur Freak On
iTunes stats: 20 plays
Reaching #7, the track was the lead single from her third studio album.
#33: Moby featuring Gwen Stefani – South Side
iTunes stats: 15 plays
Spending 32 weeks on the Hot 100, it topped out at #14 in May.
#29: Crazy Town – Butterfly
iTunes stats: N/A
The group’s third single, it spent two non-consecutive weeks at #1 in the spring.
#27: Faith Hill – The Way You Love Me
iTunes stats: N/A
The song spent four weeks atop the Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in May, becoming her eighth #1 hit on that chart, while later peaking at #6 on the Hot 100 in December.
#26: Jennifer Lopez – Love Don’t Cost a Thing
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from her sophomore effort, it reached #3 for two weeks.
#25: Outkast – Ms. Jackson
iTunes stats: 25 plays
The Grammy winner for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, it spent a single week at #1 in February.
#24: Christina Aguilera, Lil’ Kim, Mya, and Pink – Lady Marmalade
iTunes stats: 26 plays
Recorded for the soundtrack to Moulin Rouge!, it spent five weeks atop the Hot 100, making it just the ninth song to hit #1 when recorded by different artists.
#23: Destiny’s Child – Survivor
iTunes stats: N/A
Inspired by a joke that compared the group, who had already lost three members, to the reality show Survivor. it went to #2 on the Hot 100.
#19: Uncle Kracker – Follow Me
iTunes stats: N/A
Peaking at #5, it was the debut single for the former Kid Rock hanger-on.
#18: Nelly featuring City Spud – Ride wit Me
iTunes stats: 14 plays
The third single from his debut studio album, it reached #3.
#17: Shaggy featuring Rayvon – Angel
iTunes stats: N/A
His second straight chart-topper, it spent a single week at #1 in March.
#14: Staind – It’s Been Awhile
iTunes stats: N/A
The group’s sole top ten hit, it went to #5.
#12: Shaggy featuring Rikrok – It Wasn’t Me
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from his fifth studio album, it spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 in February.
#8: Dido – Thank You
iTunes stats: 17 plays
Sampled for Eminem’s hit Stan, it spent three weeks at #3, her first and only top ten hit to date.
#7: Eve featuring Gwen Stefani – Let Me Blow Ya Mind
iTunes stats: 31 plays
Eve’s highest charting single, it peaked at #2 in August.
#4: Train – Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)
iTunes stats: N/A
The lead single from the group’s sophomore album, it reached #5.
Buying, Not Selling
The Cubs, who are a mere percentage point out of last place in the NL Central as of this moment, should, by all rights, be selling off as we approach the trade deadline, are instead stocking up on major league assets. They struck this afternoon, acquiring Isaac Paredes from the Rays in exchange for Christopher Morel, Hunter Bigge, and Ty Johnson.
Morel has supplied many big moments over the past two seasons but has struggled to turn those moments into sustained success. Paredes, who originally signed with the Cubs as an amateur in 2015, made his first All Star team this year and is still under team control for three more years, which means this is likely a move for 2025 and beyond rather than an expectation that the Cubs will jump back into contention this year.