Tag / Mariners

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2015 Predictions Revisited

baseballs2Six months ago, as the 2015 baseball season was scheduled to kick off at Wrigley Field, I made my annual predictions as to who would win what.  Now that the regular season has come to an end, it is time revisit those predictions and see what, if anything, I got right.

American League

East: Blue Jays

After a middling first half, the Blue Jays turned things around after the All Star break, especially after acquiring David Price and Troy Tulowitzki at the trade deadline, earning them their first division title since 1993.

Central: Indians

Well, I correctly predicted the end of the Tigers reign after four seasons, but I wrongly assumed that the Royals would regress after their World Series appearance last year.  Instead, they went and ran away with the AL Central crown while the Indians struggled to stay out of the cellar.

West: Angels

It came down to the final day, but the Rangers, who finished in last place in 2014, managed to hold off the Astros and the Angels to win the division.

Wild Cards: Tigers, Mariners

I completely missed the boat here, as both teams failed to live up to their pre-season expectations.  The Yankees return to the post-season and so do the surprise Astros.

AL Champion: Angels

Cy Young: Felix Hernandez

MVP: Mike Trout

Only one of these seems like a possible choice at this point, with Mike Trout the frontrunner for the MVP award.  The Cy Young award is up in the air at this point.

National League

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Looking Ahead To Next Year

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersMajor League Baseball released their tentative 2016 schedule earlier this week and, while the 2015 squad focuses on taking the second Wild Card slot, let’s take a look at what’s on tap for next summer for the North Siders.

The Cubs open the season on April 5 on the road against the Angels, the first time they will start the year in inter-league play.  The home slate kicks off the following Monday with a night game against the Reds.

This year’s inter-league slate is against the AL West, with the Rangers, Mariners, and Angels making trips to Wrigley Field, while the Cubs hit the road to visit the aforementioned Angels, A’s, and Astros.  The club also has a 2 and 2 series with the White Sox during the last week of July.

The Cubs finish the season on the road against the Pirates and Reds, which should make for a great pennant race if the team is once again in contention.

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Fitbit Week 31

Week31_FBAnother successful week, saved by a very impressive day at the end to boost the totals above blah.  Things got off to an unassuming start with Kid’s Day at US Cellular Field on Sunday, where the White Sox managed to sneak past the Mariners in extra innings.  Monday’s afternoon coffee run helped to bump it up over the 7000 step mark.  Tuesday through Thursday were all touch and go, but did all manage to cross the 5500 step barrier.

Most of Friday was spent in a car driving to Canada, but I still managed to just barely cross 6000 steps, thanks to my running around in the morning to pack and then briefly walking around the city while looking for dinner.  Saturday, however, turned things around for the week, as I broke 15,000 steps for the first time with the Fitbit and notched my 4th best total of all time.  The morning started with a walk for breakfast, followed by a trip down to the waterfront for some exploring.  After that, it was over to the Rogers Centre for exciting Blue Jays baseball, then back to the condo and, eventually, a trip out for dinner.  All told, I finished just over 16,000 steps, my highest total in over 2 years.

Total steps: 55,488

Daily average: 7926.9

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#147 – Matt Merullo

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Name: Matt Merullo

Rank: 147

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 1989, 1991-1993

Matt Merullo was selected by the White Sox in the 7th round of the 1986 draft.  When Carlton Fisk broke his hand days in to the 1989 season, Merullo got his chance with the big league club.  He made his major league debut on April 12, 1989, going hitless in one at bat against the Mariners.  2 days later, he made his first start in the White Sox home opener, and notched his first hit, his first home run, and his first caught stealing behind the plate.   He got in to 31 games total that season, hitting .222 in 81 at bats with that lone home run.

A knee injury, plus the continued presence of Fisk and Ron Karkovice, kept Merullo in Birmingham in 1990.  He split the 1991 season between Double A and the big leagues, appearing in a career high 80 games despite hitting only .229.

1992 saw Merullo splitting time between Triple A and the White Sox, and he only made it in to 24 games with the big league club.  He spent the majority of 1993 back in Triple A, playing only 8 games with the White Sox, hitting an anemic .050.

With spring training winding down in 1994, Merullo was dealt to the Indians.

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

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Franchise Four – AL West

Major League Baseball is asking its fans to vote for the four most impactful players who best represent the history of each franchise.  The winners will be announced in July at the All Star Game in Cincinnati.  Today, I will give my Franchise Four picks for the American League West.

F4Astros

The Astros, around since 1962, have 2 obvious options, and both are from their World Series team in 2005: Craig Biggio and Jeff Bagwell.  After that, there is a bit of a drop off.  Nolan Ryan would seem to be a good pick for the third slot, having spent more years with the Astros than with any other team.  For the last slot, I’ll go with J. R. Richard, whose career was cut short due to a stroke, but still came to represent the franchise in the late 70s.

F4Angels

Despite existing since the 1961 season, the Angels have a complete lack of star power in their 8 nominees.  Garret Anderson?  Tim Salmon?  Brian Downing?  While fine players, none of them would be confused with an all time great.  Of the remaining 5, I will dump Jim Fregosi and take Chuck Finley, Nolan Ryan (again!), Vladamir Guerrero, and, despite being in only his 4th season, Mike Trout.

F4As

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Goodbye To The Q

Former White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin, who finished 5th in MVP voting in 2008 despite missing the final six weeks of the season with a broken wrist, announced his retirement after 9 seasons.  After being released in spring training after being acquired by the Braves in a trade, Quentin had been playing with the Mariners’ Triple A club, but was hitting only .176 in 17 at bats.

After spending parts of the 2006 and 2007 seasons with the Diamondbacks, Quentin was acquired by the White Sox in a December 2007 trade.  He earned the nickname “The Carlos Quentin” after general manager Kenny Williams was quoted saying that the team’s goals for the winter meetings were to “acquire Carlos Quentin, and not a guy like him but actually Carlos Quentin.”

Quentin played immediate dividends, breaking through in a big way for the 2008 White Sox.  He was leading the American League in home runs and was third in slugging percentage, OPS, and RBIs when he broke his wrist following a strikeout against Cliff Lee.  The injury likely cost him the MVP award, and certainly impacted the White Sox as they battled the Twins for the AL Central title before eventually losing to the Rays in the ALDS.

Quentin continued to struggle with injuries for the remainder of his White Sox career, never appearing in more than 131 games.  A shoulder injury ended his 2011 season, and his White Sox career, at the end of August.  That December, just over 4 years since he was acquired, Quentin was shipped to the Padres.

In 3 years with the Padres, injuries continued to plague Quentin, as he failed to appear in 90 games in any season.  His most famous (or infamous) moment with the Padres was the April 11, 2013 brawl against the Dodgers, where he broke Zach Greinke’s collarbone after being hit by a pitch.

This spring, Quentin was traded to the Braves, who promptly released him.  He had signed on with the Mariners in the hopes of working his way back to the major leagues, but his history of injuries had finally caught up to him and caused him to call it a day.

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

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#158 – Bob Howry

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Name: Bob Howry

Rank: 158

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1998-2002

Acquired in the infamous White Flag trade, Bob Howry joined the White Sox organization on July 31, 1997, along with Keith Foulke, Lorenzo Barcelo, Mike Caruso, Ken Vining, and Brian Manning, from the Giants in exchange for Wilson Alvarez, Danny Darwin, and Roberto Hernandez.  Howry made his major league debut on June 21, 1998, pitching 2 innings of scoreless relief in the White Sox loss to the Twins.

Howry stuck with the big league club and eventually became the closer, saving 9 games down the stretch.  He finished the year 0-3 with a 3.15 ERA in 44 appearances.

Howry remained as the closer for most of 1999, until he was replaced by Keith Foulke.  He finished the year with a winning record, at 5-3, and saw his ERA rise slightly to 3.59.  His 28 saves led the team and was 9th best in the AL.

His most infamous moment in a White Sox uniform came in early 2000, when the White Sox and Tigers were involved in 2 brawls during their April 23 game, which the Sox won 14-6.  Howry was ejected in the 9th inning after hitting Shane Halter, igniting the second brawl of the day and earning himself a 3 game suspension.  Many claim that the brawl united the young White Sox team, spurring them on to winning the AL Central title.  Howry finished the year with a 2-4 record and a 3.17 ERA, picking up 7 saves.  He appeared in 2 of the 3 games against the Mariners in the ALDS, giving up 1 run in 2 2/3 innings.

The White Sox faltered in their bid to repeat as division champs in 2001, and Howry was part of the problem.  His ERA ballooned to 4.69 and he blew more saves than he converted.  He finished the year with a 4-5 record and only 5 saves, giving up more hits than innings pitched for the first time in his career.

Howry bounced back somewhat in 2002, but was still above his career norms for runs and hits allowed.  As the White Sox were floundering at the trade deadline, Howry, despite still being under contract for 2003, was shipped to the Red Sox for Frank Francisco and another minor league pitcher.  “The opportunity presented itself and we told Bobby it was an offer we felt too good to pass up,” GM Kenny Williams said.

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

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Crosstown Competitors

cws-chiLast Saturday, Geovany Soto and Jeff Samardzija became the 25th and 26th people I’ve seen play in person for both the Cubs and the White Sox.  Here’s a look at those players, in alphabetical order.

DavidAardsma2David Aardsma

After posting a decent season with the Cubs in 2006, Aardsma was traded to the White Sox for Neal Cotts.  Aardsma lasted one season with the Sox, where he was unable to duplicate his success from the year before.

Jason Bere

Drafted by the White Sox in the 36th round in 1990, Bere debuted with the big league club in 1993, finishing 2nd in Rookie of the Year voting.  After an All Star selection in 1994, injuries marred the remainder of his tenure on the South Side, which ended in 1998.  He resurfaced with the Cubs in 2001 and had a decent season, but he went 1-10 in 2002 before being let go.

Neal Cotts

Acquired by the White Sox in the Billy Koch trade, he debuted with the team in 2003.  He was a key contributor in the bullpen during the 2005 championship season, and was the only relief pitcher to appear in all 3 rounds of the playoffs that season.  Following the 2006 season, he was traded to the Cubs for David Aardsma, and he spent the next 3 injury filled seasons on the North Side.

scott_eyre_autographScott Eyre

Joining the White Sox organization in a 1994 trade with the Rangers, he debuted with the big league team in 1997.  He split the next 4 seasons between the rotation and the bullpen, not to mention between Chicago and Charlotte, before being moved to the Blue Jays following the 2000 ALDS loss to the Mariners.  He joined the Cubs as a free agent for the 2006 season and enjoyed 2 seasons of relative success, before falling apart in 2008, when he was traded to the Phillies.

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2015 Predictions

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersThe 2015 baseball season is scheduled to kick off tonight at Wrigley Field, as the Cubs battle the Cardinals.  For the fifth consecutive year, I’ve looked into the crystal ball to make my picks for the upcoming season.

American League

East: Blue Jays

Central: Indians

West: Angels

Wild Cards: Tigers, Mariners

AL Champion: Angels

Cy Young: Felix Hernandez

MVP: Mike Trout

National League

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All Time Team Records

MLB: Cincinnati Reds at Los Angeles DodgersAnother exciting baseball season is upon us, and it is time once again to look at the all-time team records for games that I have attended.  Another disappointing season dropped the winning percentage for the White Sox 7 points, giving them a 16 point drop over the past 2 years.

All-Time Team Records

TeamName Won Loss Winning Pctg
California Angels 1 0 1.000
Arizona Diamondbacks 13 2 0.867
Florida Marlins 15 8 0.652
Philadelphia Phillies 10 6 0.625
Toronto Blue Jays 10 7 0.588
New York Yankees 11 8 0.579
Colorado Rockies 7 6 0.538
Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim 15 13 0.536
Chicago White Sox 234 204 0.534
San Francisco Giants 8 7 0.533
Chicago Cubs 194 172 0.530
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