5 months and a week after he was shipped off to the Angels, Gordon Beckham re-signed with the White Sox on a 1 year deal worth $2 million. Beckham will be used off the bench, and possibly in a platoon role with Conor Gillaspie. To make room on the 40-man roster, Dayan Viciedo was designated for assignment. More to come when he gets moved.
Category / Baseball
Let’s Play Two
A week before his 84th birthday, Ernie Banks passed away Friday. Nicknamed Mr. Cub, Banks, who was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1977, played his entire 19 year career with the Cubs, earning back-to-back MVP honors in 1958 and 1959. When he retired following the 1971 season, he ranked 9th all-time in home runs, with 512.
Never seen without a smile on his face, Banks became a team ambassador after his playing days. He unexpectedly missed last weekend’s Cub Convention, which led to speculation that he must be ill. I never had the opportunity to meet the man, which is a shame since, by all accounts, he was twice the man that he was a player.
As work continues on the renovation of Wrigley Field, installing video screens for the first time, it is somewhat ironic that one of the first things to be shown on those screen will be a tribute to the player who poularized the building’s nickname as the Friendly Confines.
RIP Ernie Banks.
#174 – Orlando Cabrera
Name: Orlando Cabrera
Rank: 174
Position: SS
Year With White Sox: 2008
On November 19, 2007, Orlando Cabrera was traded to the White Sox from the Angels in exchange for Jon Garland. The thinking was that Cabrera, fresh off a Gold Glove season, would help to stabilize the left side of the infield. Unfortunately, stabilize is not quite what he did.
In May, Cabrera made waves by calling the press box to complain about two errors that were charged against him. When questioned about the calls, Cabrera claimed that he had no choice as manager Ozzie Guillen was not supporting him.
In July, he got in to a dugout confrontation with Jermaine Dye over stealing third base while Dye was at bat. Cabrera had to be restrained by Jose Contreras before the argument spilled in to the clubhouse.
As September was coming to an end, and the White Sox were the Twins for the AL Central title, Cabrera again became a distraction, this time calling out his teammates for not having the right attitude going in to games. A little more than a week later, Cabrera tried to start something with Ray’s pitcher Grant Balfour in the 7th inning of game 1 of the ALDS. Down 6-3 with the bases loaded and 2 out, Cabrera, for reasons that I’m sure made sense to him, took exception to an outside pitch, causing a bit of a brouhaha. Once tempers calmed, Balfour struck out Cabrera and the Rays went on to win the game, and, eventually, the series, ending Cabrera’s tenure with the White Sox. He left as a free agent after the season.
Cabrera’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
#175 – Adam Russell
Name: Adam Russell
Rank: 175
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 2008
Adam Russell joined the White Sox as their 6th round draft pick in 2004. He was called up to the major leagues in early May, 2008, but did not make it into a game before being returned to the minor leagues. He returned and finally made his major league debut on June 17, pitching a perfect inning in the White Sox 16-5 drubbing of the Pirates.
As the year continued, Russell bounced back and forth between the White Sox bullpen and Triple A. He finished the year with a 4-0 record and a 5.19 ERA in 22 appearances. He was left off the playoff roster as the White Sox lost the ALDS to the Rays.
Russell spent all of 2009 in Triple A until July 31, when he was traded, along with Dexter Carter, Aaron Poreda, and Clayton Richard, to the Padres in exchange for Jake Peavy.
Russell’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
No Place To Sit
To the surprise of nobody not wearing blue and red-colored glasses, the Cubs announced yesterday that the rebuild of the bleachers, being done to support the new video boards and outfield signage that is key to the renovations of Wrigley Field, will not be complete by opening day. Or anytime soon after.
The current plan, announced during the Cubs Convention, is for the left field bleachers to be ready by the May 11 game against the Mets, the start of a 7 game homestand. The right field bleachers are not expected to be open until late May. While they are not part of the renovations, the center field bleachers will not open until the left field portion is available, due to safety concerns.
Assuming they meet the new deadlines, there will be 15 games, including the nationally broadcast opening night game against the Cardinals, that will be without any bleachers whatsoever. If the right field bleachers open for the Memorial Day game against Nationals, that would mean the Cubs will play 22 home games, over 27% of the season, without their full capacity.
Season ticket holders in the bleachers will be given the option of getting a refund for the missed games, getting credit for future ticket purchases, or relocating to the main seating bowl. Single game tickets will not be sold for those 15 games.
#176 – Greg Norton
Name: Greg Norton
Rank: 176
Position: 3B
Years With White Sox: 1996-2000
Greg Norton was the 2nd round draft choice of the White Sox in 1993. He made his major league debut on August 10, 1996, appearing as a pinch runner for Harold Baines in the 8th inning of the White Sox 8-7 loss against the Brewers. The next night, he got hits in his first 2 plate appearances against the Tigers. He appeared in only 11 games for the big league club that year, finishing with a .217 average.
He returned to Triple A Nashville in 1997 and made another token appearance with the White Sox. He appeared in 18 games this time, putting up a .265 average in his limited playing time.
Norton stuck with the big league club in 1998, appearing in 132 games, mostly at first base as Frank Thomas transitioned to strictly being a DH. In his first shot at extensive playing time, Norton struggled, hitting a lowly .237 with only 9 home runs and 36 RBI.
When Robin Ventura left as a free agent, Norton became the team’s starting third baseman in 1999. He improved his average to .255 and hit 16 home runs while driving in 50. Norton ran into some problems trying to replace a legend, as he was subjected to taunts from the fans. Things boiled over in early September, when he committed 2 errors in one inning, leading to chants of “We want Robin” from the crowd. Norton responded by hitting his second homer of the game, glaring at the fans as he ran to first and bowing to the crowd after crossing home plate.
2000 saw the White Sox run away with the Central Division title, but things continued to not go well for Norton. His playing time diminished, and he was sent back to Triple A for a bit. He finished the year with a .244 average, hitting only 6 home runs with 28 RBI. Norton was left off the playoff roster in place of, ironically, Harold Baines, the same player he pinch ran for to start his career 5 years earlier. Following the season, Norton was allowed to leave the organization as a free agent.
Norton’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
#177 – Rusty Kuntz
Name: Rusty Kuntz
Rank: 177
Position: OF
Years With White Sox: 1979-1983
Rusty Kuntz, possessing one of the finest names in recent baseball history, was drafted by the White Sox in the 11th round of the 1977 draft. He made his major league debut 2 years later, as a September call-up in 1979, starting in left field and going 0-3 in a 4-3 victory over the Tigers. He appeared in 4 other games over the course of the final month of the 1979 season, finishing up with an anemic .091 average.
Kuntz split time between Triple A Iowa and Chicago in 1980. He had slightly better results, finishing the year with a .226 average in 36 games. He spent the entire strike-shortened 1981 season with the White Sox, appearing in 67 games and batting .255 in 55 at bats.
1982 saw Kuntz back splitting time between Triple A and Chicago, appearing in only 21 games with the White Sox. His batting average fell to .192.
As the White Sox raced to their first division title in 1983, Kuntz again was shuttling between the major leagues and Triple A, appearing in 28 games through June 21, when he was traded to the Twins for a minor leaguer.
Kuntz’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
#178 – Luis Vizcaino
Name: Luis Vizcaino
Rank: 178
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 2005
On December 13, 2004, Luis Vizcaino, along with Scott Podsednik and a player to be named later, was traded to the White Sox from the Brewers in exchange for Carlos Lee. Vizcaino had a decent year in the bullpen, appearing in 65 games and putting up a 6-5 record with a 3.73 ERA for the AL Central champions.
Vizcaino sat out the ALDS and ALCS, and made one appearance during the World Series. He pitched 1 inning of scoreless relief during the 14 inning marathon that was Game 3.
Following the season, nearly a year to the day that he was acquired, Vizcaino was packaged along with Orlando Hernandez and Chris Young in a deal with the Diamondbacks for Javier Vazquez.
Vizcaino’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Election Thoughts
The votes were tallied in Cooperstown and, for the first time since 1955, four former players were elected to become members of the Hall of Fame. Ballot newcomers John Smoltz, Pedro Martinez, and Randy Johnson, along with third-timer Craig Biggio, became the newest members of baseball’s greatest fraternity, garnering more than 75% of the votes. Only three other candidates, Mike Piazza, Jeff Bagwell, and Tim Raines, managed to top 50% of the vote.
The news for players with PED connections was mixed, with Roger Clemens and Barry Bonds gaining a little ground, while Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire lost votes. Don Mattingly falls off the ballot after 15 tries. 17 candidates who were eligible for the first time will drop off the ballot due to not receiving 5% of the vote.
As for the newest Hall of Famers, I’ve somehow seen 755 baseball games over the past 30 years, none of which included Pedro Martinez or Randy Johnson. John Smoltz I saw twice, during his closing phase. Craig Biggio, as an everyday player, was the enshrinee I saw most often, including Game 2 of the 2005 World Series.
Craig Biggio’s numbers in games I attended were:
#179 – Dennis Lamp
Name: Dennis Lamp
Rank: 179
Position: P
Years With White Sox: 1981-1983
Dennis Lamp joined the White Sox organization as spring training was winding down in 1981, acquired from the Cubs in exchange for Ken Kravec. During the strike shortened season, Lamp appeared in 27 games for the White Sox, starting 10, and finished the year with 7-6 record and a 2.41 ERA. In August, he gave up the first career hit to Cal Ripken Jr. and, 9 days later, he took a no hitter into the 9th inning against the Brewers, before Robin Yount broke it up with a leadoff double.
1982 again saw Lamp splitting duty between the starting rotation and the bullpen. He appeared in 44 games, starting 27 of them. He finished 11-8 with a 3.99 ERA and 5 saves.
In 1983, Lamp had mostly moved to the bullpen full time, although he still started 5 games. He appeared in 49 games overall and lead the team with 15 saves. He pitched in 3 out of the 4 ALCS games against the Orioles, giving up no hits or earned runs in 2 innings of work.
Following the season, Lamp became a free agent, drawing his White Sox career to a close.
Lamp’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were: