Category / Baseball

by admin

#214 – Dale Sveum

WhiteSox-dalesveumName: Dale Sveum

Rank: 214

Position: SS

Year With White Sox: 1992

In 1992, when Ozzie Guillen went down for the season with a knee injury in late April and replacement Craig Grebeck broke his foot in August, the White Sox were looking for a replacement and swung a deal with the Phillies to acquire Dale Sveum in exchange for minor league pitcher Keith Shepherd.

Sveum appeared in 40 games down the stretch for the White Sox, hitting a robust .219.  Following the season, he was allowed to leave as a free agent.

Sveum’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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by jim

A Cautionary Tale

brett-jackson-dejesusAs the Cub faithful await the arrival of Kris Bryant, Jorge Soler, and Albert Almora to join Javy Baez in leading the team to multiple World Series titles, they would be wise to think back all the way to Thursday night, when the previous centerpiece of a successful Cub future was traded to the Diamondbacks in the middle of the night with little to no fanfare.

Brett Jackson, the Cubs first round draft pick in 2009, combined speed and power and quickly became the highest rated prospect in the Cubs system.  He, along with 2007 first round pick Josh Vitters, were the latest in a long line of prospects that were expected to finally lead the Cubs to the promised land.  There was just one problem: Jackson’s bat had trouble finding the baseball when he swung at it.

His strikeout rate rose at each level of the minor league system, but the Cubs still decided to promote him to the big leagues in 2012.  He appeared in 44 games, had 120 at bats, and struck out 59 times while putting up a .175 average.  After that, things fell apart for Jackson, as he started to struggle at Triple A, striking out at an even higher rate, and he never came close to returning to the big leagues.

As the Cubs put together their so-called “Core Four”, Jackson found himself outside the plans for the Cubs future.  Wednesday night, he was traded to the Diamondbacks in exchange for a 26-year old pitcher who just made it to Triple A for the first time.

With Javy Baez already up in the major leagues and Bryant and Soler not far behind, many Cub fans are already looking forward to a successful future.  But, as Brett Jackson found out, the future is a nebulous place where nothing is certain.

by admin

#215 – Chuck McElroy

Chuck_McElroy_(1997_White_Sox)_3

Name: Chuck McElroy

Rank: 215

Position: P

Year With White Sox: 1997

Looking to shore up the bullpen a month and a half in to the 1997 season, general manager Ron Schueler turned to his frequent partner, the Angels, and sent Tony Phillips and Chad Krueter out west in exchange for Jorge Fabergas and Chuck McElroy, a proven left handed reliever.  He appeared in 48 games for a disappointing White Sox team that finished in second place despite being one game under .500.

Following the season, McElroy was left unprotected by the White Sox in the expansion draft and he was selected by the brand new Arizona Diamondbacks.

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

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by admin

#216 – Russ Morman

russmormanName: Russ Morman

Rank: 216

Position: 1B

Years With White Sox: 1986, 1988-1989

With their second selection in the first round of the 1983 draft, the White Sox selected Russ Morman out of Wichita State.  He made his major league debut on August 3, 1986 in a White Sox blowout against the Tigers, where he became the second player in major league history to get two hits in the same inning during his first game.  Morman finished out the year in the big leagues, appearing in 49 games and hitting .252.

1987 saw Morman back in Tripe A for the entire season.  He managed to have multiple stints with the White Sox in 1988, appearing in 40 games, but seeing his average and power numbers drop.

1989 was more of the same for Morman.  He again split time between Triple A and the big leagues, and his games played and average both continued to drop.  Following the season, he was released.

Morman’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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by admin

#217 – Kirk McCaskill

mccaskill175

Name: Kirk McCaskill

Rank: 217

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1992-1996

Kirk McCaskill signed with the White Sox as a free agent heading in to the 1992 season.  He entered the starting rotation and put up a respectable 12-13 record with a 4.18 ERA.

While things went better for the White Sox in 1993, as they finally broke through and won their first division title in a decade, the same could not be said for McCaskill.  He lost his spot in the starting rotation in June after going winless in 7 starts.  “I like to think Kirk can get it back together as a starter, but I’d like to say it won’t happen this year because if it does, that means something happened to our rotation,” manager Gene Lamont said.  McCaskill finished the year in the bullpen, even recording his first save.  During the post-season, he made 3 appearances in the 6 game ALCS against the eventual World Champion Blue Jays, pitching 3 2/3 scoreless innings.

In 1994, McCaskill posted his best season as a member of the White Sox, working entirely out of the bullpen.  He appeared in 40 games, racked up a career high 3 saves, and posted a 3.42 ERA.  Unfortunately for McCaskill and the White Sox, the season came to a premature end thanks to the players strike that wiped out the last month and a half of the season and the post-season.

When the work stoppage finally ended and the 1995 season got underway, things went south, for both McCaskill and the White Sox.  His ERA jumped by nearly a run and a half as the White Sox fell to third place.

1996 did not go any better.  McCaskill appeared in 29 games through the end of July and saw his ERA jump to nearly 7.00.  After giving up 4 hits and 2 runs in 1 inning of work against the Royals on July 20th, McCaskill was released by the White Sox.  “I don’t think you’re ever prepared for it,” McCaskill said.  “I’ve had a long career and it happens to a lot of people.”  Manager Terry Bevington said “It’s always tough to let someone go.  You don’t like seeing someone lose his job.  Kirk has had a good career with the White Sox.”  Thus endeth the major league career of Kirk McCaskill.

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

by admin

Back To The 80s

fauxbackThe Cubs celebrated the 1980s this weekend in their season long salute to Wrigley Field’s 100th birthday.  There was just one small problem: their opponent, the Tampa Bay Rays, didn’t come in to existence until 1997.

A few years ago, the Rays held a flashback night of their own, looking back to the 1970s.  To mark the occassion, the team created a fake throwback, or fauxback, of what the might have worn had they been around in the 70s.

When the Rays took the field today, they were decked out in uniforms that would appear to be the road set for the fauxback uniforms they wore for their own throwback night.  While not necessarily something any team would have worn in the late 80s, it was much more of a departure from their current set than what the Cubs wore, which was basically their current uniform minus the buttons and leather belt.

These uniforms were ridiculous, but its ok to remember that this a kids game every once in a while and be ridiculous.  While I have cut back on Cubs games dramatically the last few years, I’m glad I attended this one, if only so, years from now when someone brings up these uniforms, I can say that I was there.

by jim

Bring Back The Cub

Buh0Q-NCEAAyH2xThe Cubs returned home with rookie sensation Javy Baez today, and to mark the occasion, the grounds crew put a new design in center field for his Wrigley Field debut.  The cub head that was part of the Cubs jersey from 1979-1993 had reappeared, cut in to the grass in the outfield.  Which begs the question, why isn’t it still on the jersey?  It was replaced in 1994 by an angrier version for 3 years, and then the walking bear logo that the team uses today.  I think it would be a huge upgrade to switch back.

Speaking of Javy Baez, its good to see Cub fans have not overreacted to the arrival of the first of the so-called “Core Four”.  By which, I mean, of course they have.  I don’t think the Catholic church would react this strongly to the return of Jesus Christ.  Throughout his minor league career, Baez has struggled when he was first called up to a new level.  There will be a little more pressure on him now that he is expected to be the savior, at least until the next rookie is called up.

by admin

#218 – Phil Bradley

philbradley

Name: Phil Bradley

Rank: 218

Position: OF

Year With White Sox: 1990

With a surprising White Sox squad only 3 games behind the reigning champion A’s for the AL West crown in 1990, they swung a deadline deal that sent Ron Kittle to the Orioles in exchange for Phil Bradley.  “I have always liked the way Phil Bradley plays,” general manager Larry Himes said.  “He has good fundamentals, is very aggressive and a fine addition to our club.”

While Bradley was hitting .270 for the Orioles at the time of the trade, his average plummeted to .226 while with the White Sox as the A’s ran away with the division title.  He went 0-3 in his final appearance of the season, the last night game at Comiskey Park.

Following the season, Bradley left the White Sox to play in Japan and never again played in the major leagues.

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

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by jim

Guh

p-dunnLast night, for the second time in three days, the White Sox gave up 16 runs in a drubbing against one of the worst teams in the league.  Of course, this time, they deflected criticism of their lackluster bullpen performance this homestand by throwing Adam Dunn out to the mound to mop up the final inning.

Dunn gave up two hits and one run, the 14th consecutive appearance by a White Sox reliever with at least one run scored, before getting out of the inning.  The internet, and the Rangers, got a huge kick out of it, which I guess was supposed to take the sting out of giving up 32 runs in 2 games.  Dunn, meanwhile, became the pitcher with the third highest home run total at the time he took the mound, behind Babe Ruth and Jimmie Foxx.

by admin

Ballpark Tour – Target Field

targetfieldStadium Name: Target Field

Location: Minneapolis

Home Team: Twins

Years in Service: 2010 – Present

Visits: 2

After 28 seasons of indoor baseball at the Hubert H. Humphrey Metrodome, the Twins moved back outside starting with the 2010 season when they opened Target Field in downtown Minneapolis.  The first regular season game took place on April 12, 2010, with the Twins defeating the Red Sox.  This summer, Target Field hosted the All Star Game, the first in Minnesota since 1985.

I took the long trip up to Minneapolis last weekend, along with Danny and Michael, to see the White Sox take on the Twins.  We picked two good games to see, as the White Sox offense came to life and they won both games against the Twinkies.  We sat down on the first level, between home plate and third base behind the White Sox dugout for both games, so I didn’t get to sample the different areas of the ballpark, but I certainly liked what I saw.  The one thing I didn’t like about the park was the configuration of most of the outfield.  Between the large hitting background in center field and the high walls in left and right, there is a lot of dead space in the outfield that seems to put the fans far away from the action.  Besides that, though, a good time was had by all and I certainly wouldn’t mind returning one day.