June 4, 2024June 2, 2024 by admin

Your Latest Crosstown Batting Leaders

The battle for the 2024 Crosstown Cup kicks off tonight at Wrigley Field, with the Cubs looking to take retain possession of the cup after winning it back last year. The White Sox currently hold a slight edge in the overall series, going 74-68 over the past 27 years. Let’s take a look at the offensive leaders for the now 89 (out of 142) crosstown games I have attended since the start of interleague play in 1997:

Home Runs

Name	Total
Paul Konerko	15
Carlos Lee	9
Aramis Ramirez	8
Sammy Sosa	8
Jermaine Dye	7

Hits

Name	Total
Paul Konerko	50
Carlos Lee	41
Jose Abreu	36
Sammy Sosa	29
Derrek Lee	28

Runs

Name	Total
Paul Konerko	26
Magglio Ordonez	19
Continue reading →

May 5, 2024 by admin

Setting A New Standard

Don’t download that Stadium app just yet. A little over two weeks ago, news broke that the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks were expected to announce they were moving their game broadcasts from NBC Sports Chicago to Stadium, a multi-platform sports network controlled by Jerry Reinsdorf. Turns out that was a bit premature. Yesterday, news broke again that the three teams would instead partner with Standard Media Group to create the new television broadcast home for all three teams, starting in October. The currently unnamed network is expected to be available across multiple platforms, including over-the-air and carriage agreements with cable and streaming providers.

Based in Nashville, Standard Media Group is a local broadcast and digital media company that, according to its website which looks to have not been updated since 2022, operates television stations in Kentucky, Missouri, Nebraska and Rhode Island. Compared to them, Stadium, owned by a digital and media investment subsidiary of the White Sox with offices and studios at the United Center, looks like a major player.

Why the change? Maybe Reinsdorf is looking to start greasing the wheels in Nashville ahead of a potential move. Maybe the thought of spending money, even if the majority of it was coming back to him, offends the chairman to his core. Maybe the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks draw better in Rhode Island than anybody realizes. We may never know the truth.

April 25, 2024 by admin

Free Fallin’

With a little more than 15% of the 2024 baseball season in the books. the new look White Sox, the first squad put together by new GM Chris Getz, have a 3-22 record. They are currently on-pace to surpass the 1899 Cleveland Spiders, who went 20-134, for a .130 winning percentage, before the team disbanded in the offseason.

Through their first 24 games, they have put up the sixth worse offensive production in the history of organized baseball. They have already been shut out eight times in just 25 games. The highest total in the Wild Card era is 22. The all-time record, set by the 1908 Cardinals, is 33. The White Sox are currently on pace to be shut out 56 times.

I guess if you are going to be bad, being historically bad does give the fanbase something to follow and talk about. And at least all this losing will lead to a high draft pick next year. Oh wait, no it won’t, thanks to the new anti-tanking rules. This franchise is screwed.

April 16, 2024 by admin

Building A New TV Home

The White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks are expected to announce this week that they are moving their game broadcasts from NBC Sports Chicago to Stadium, a multi-platform sports network controlled by Jerry Reinsdorf. Stadium, which already has a streaming platform n place that could potentially offer a direct-to-consumer product through its app, would then convert into a regional sports network and attempt to find distribution with cable and satellite providers, in an era where viewership is declining. The teams, specifically the White Sox and Bulls, are also looking for traditional over-the-air broadcasters to carry some, if not all, of the games locally.

Presumably, most, if not all, of the on-air staff would move to the new channel, as this would seemingly spell the end of the road for NBC Sports Chicago. Some of the behind-the-scenes staff will likely need to move over as well to enable Stadium to make the transition.

Stadium, of course, is owned by Silver Chalice, a digital and media investment subsidiary of the White Sox with White Sox VP Brooks Boyer listed as CEO. Their offices and studios are currently located at the United Center.

April 13, 2024April 14, 2024 by admin

End Of The Road?

Five years ago, expectations were high as the fruits of the White Sox rebuild were starting to pay dividends and the team, looking to contend for years to come, inked third baseman Yoan Moncada to a five-year extension. Through an interpreter, Moncada said, “With all this happening, I can say I’m going to play alongside (left fielder) Eloy (Jimenez) and (center fielder) Luis Robert for a very long time, and that’s going to be a key for the success of this team.” Since that time, the White Sox have played 557 games. Jimenez, Robert, and Moncada have played together in just 161 of them.

Eloy Jimenez and Luis Robert were already on the IL with leg injuries when Yoan Moncada came up lame while running to first base during the second inning of Tuesday’s contest against the Guardians. He was diagnosed with a left abductor strain, which is expected to keep him on the shelf for 3-6 months, likely ending his White Sox career. That contract extension, signed days before the global pandemic shut down spring training in 2020, is up after this season and the White Sox seem unlikely to exercise the $25 million option for 2025.

Moncada, who was part of the haul received from the Red Sox in the Chris Sale deal that kicked off the last rebuild, was ranked as the #1 prospect in all of baseball. After some initial struggles, he seemed to turn the corner in 2019, hitting .315 with 25 home runs and 79 RBIs, but that has been the high point of his career. A bout with COVID knocked his 2020 season off course, and injuries have been a constant concern ever since. Will he ever take the field in a White Sox uniform again? If he does, it will be to play out the string in what was going to be a long, arduous season even if everything went right.

April 4, 2024 by admin

Heading To Vegas… Via Sacramento

Baseball
A's, Kings, MLB, Oakland Coliseum, Orioles, Pacific Coast League, River Cats, Sutter Health Park, Tigers
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Last November, MLB owners approved the relocation of the A’s from Oakland to Las Vegas, where the team hopes to have a stadium built by the 2028 season. A fine plan all around, except that the team’s current lease in Oakland expires after this season, leaving them in a bit of a bind for the 2025-2027 seasons. After failing to reach a deal with Oakland for an extension, the Sacramento Kings announced today that the A’s will play the next three seasons in Sacramento.

Sutter Health Park, the current home of the Sacramento River Cats of the Pacific Coast League, will house the A’s for through the 2027 season, with an option for 2028. The River Cats are expected to continue to use the stadium as well, which I’m sure will cause no scheduling issues whatsoever.

The move will end the team’s stay in Oakland at 57 seasons, after previously calling Philadelphia and Kansas City home. Assuming they ever make it to Vegas, and that seems less likely now than it did in November, the A’s will become the first franchise to have played in five different municipalities while using the same name. On a personal note, removing Oakland Coliseum from my active stadium count means I would now have eleven parks to get to in order to finish off the set. I’ve made two trips to the stadium once known as Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum, first in 1999 and again in 2008, seeing the Tigers and Orioles respectively.

March 27, 2024February 27, 2024 by admin

All Time Team Records

Baseball
Angels, A's, Astros, Blue Jays, Braves, Brewers, Cardinals, Chris Getz, Craig Counsell, Cubs, Devil Rays, Diamondbacks, Dodgers, Expos, Giants, Guardians, Indians, Mariners, Marlins, Mets, Nationals, Orioles, Padres, Phillies, Pirates, Rangers, Rays, Red Sox, Reds, Rockies, Royals, Tigers, Twins, White Sox, Yankees
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After a long, disappointing winter, the 2024 baseball season is set to get underway tomorrow. To celebrate, it is time once again to look at the all-time team records for games that I have identified as having attended dating back to 1984. Last year, I tied 2011 for my eleventh highest game total of all time, an increase of ten games from the year before, and managed to see 21 out of the 30 teams, so there should be some nice changes.

The White Sox just may be worse this year following a disappointing 2023, with new general manager Chris Getz treading water by bringing in defensive upgrades who can’t hit their way out of a paper bag. On the other side of town, the Cubs brought in Craig Counsell to push a team that overachieved back into playoff contention but didn’t do a whole lot to improve the roster to help him do so. The 2024 season may just be a maddening year on both sides of town.

All-Time Team Records

Team Name	Won	Loss	Winning Pctg
California Angels	2	0	1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks	16	4	0.800
Florida Marlins	15	8	0.652
New York Yankees	19	12	0.613
Colorado Rockies	11	7	0.611
Cleveland Guardians	3	2	0.600
Philadelphia Phillies	13	9	0.591
Toronto Blue Jays	17	12	0.586
Los Angeles Angels	20	15	0.571
Boston Red Sox	19	15	0.559
Washington Nationals	7	6	0.538
Cleveland Indians	31	27	0.534
Chicago Cubs	235	213	0.525
Chicago White Sox	366	342	0.517 Continue reading →

March 26, 2024March 25, 2024 by admin

2024 Predictions

Baseball
Aaron Nola, Astros, Blue Jays, Braves, Cardinals, Cubs, Dodgers, Fernando Tatis Jr., Guardians, Julio Rodriguez, Mariners, Padres, Phillies, Rays, Tristan McKenzie, Yankees
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The North American portion of the 2024 baseball season is scheduled to kick off on Thursday, with a full slate of games featuring all 30 teams. For the fourteenth consecutive year, I’ve looked into the crystal ball to make my picks for the upcoming season.

American League

East: Rays

Central: Guardians

West: Mariners

Wild Cards: Astros, Blue Jays, Yankees

AL Champion: Yankees

Cy Young: Tristan McKenzie

MVP: Julio Rodriguez

National League

Continue reading →

March 23, 2024March 23, 2024 by admin

Active Pitching Leaders – Through 2023

Last weekend, we looked at the active leaders in games I’ve attended through 2023 on the offensive side of the ball. With spring training winding down and Opening Day just a few days away, let’s take a look at the defensive side of the ball and the active pitching leaders.

Wins

Name	Total
Chris Sale	21
Lucas Giolito	12
Reynaldo Lopez	10
Jose Quintana	8
Lance Lynn	7

Losses

Name	Total
Jose Quintana	17
Carlos Rodon	13
Chris Sale	12
Lucas Giolito	9
Kyle Hendricks	9

ERA (> 35 IP)

Name	Total
David Robertson	2.13
Taijuan Walker	2.25
Liam Hendriks	2.88
Johnny Cueto	2.97
Chris Sale	3.09

ERA (> 70 IP)

Name	Total
Johnny Cueto	2.97
Chris Sale	3.09
Dylan Cease	3.33
Reynaldo Lopez	3.64
Michael Kopech	3.94

Strikeouts

Name	Total
Chris Sale	313
Jose Quintana	208
Lucas Giolito	185
Continue reading →

March 17, 2024March 9, 2024 by admin

Active Batting Leaders – Through 2023

Last month, we looked at the overall leaders on both sides of the ball from all of the games I’ve attended between 1984 and 2023. With the end of spring training in sight, Opening Day is right around the corner. Let’s take another look at those numbers, limiting it to players that are still active heading in to the 2024 season.