Tag / Red Sox

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Turning The Page To Next Year

baseballs3Major League Baseball released their tentative 2017 schedule yesterday.  While the local squads have differing goals in mind as 2016 winds down, with the Cubs currently sitting pretty with a magic number of 1 and the White Sox playing out the string while trying to avoid their 4th straight losing season, it’s time to turn our attention to next summer for both teams.

The White Sox open their season at what will then be known as Guaranteed Rate Field on April 3 against the Tigers, with 28 of their first 34 games coming against AL Central foes.  Given their lack of success in this arena over the past few years, it will be a tough test to start the new campaign.

The interleague schedule pits the White Sox against the NL West, with trips to Arizona, Colorado, and Los Angeles and home series against the Padres, Giants, and the Dodgers.  The rivalry with their north side foes continues the last week of July, with Monday and Tuesday games at Wrigley Field before moving back to the south side for Wednesday and Thursday.

The season ends with a 7 game homestand against the Royals and Angels before heading to Cleveland for the final weekend.  Assuming the team finds itself in contention, it could be an interesting last week.

Meanwhile, on the north side, the Cubs open the season down in St. Louis, for the first time since 1986, on April 3.  They kick off the home portion of their schedule the following week against the Dodgers.

The interleague schedule pits the Cubs against the AL East, with trips to Boston, Baltimore, and Tampa Bay and home series against the Yankees, Blue Jays, and the Rays.

The Cubs end the year with a 4 game stint against the Cardinals in St. Louis before returning home for the final weekend against the Reds.  One can only assume they will be celebrating their second straight NL Central crown.

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#70 – Tony Graffanino

graffaninoName: Tony Graffanino

Rank: 70

Position: 2B/SS/3B

Years With White Sox: 2000-2003

Tony Graffanino joined the White Sox on May 31, 2000, acquired via trade from the Devil Rays in exchange for Tanyon Sturtze.  He appeared in 57 games for the White Sox after the trade, hitting an acceptable .270 as the White Sox took home their first division title in 7 years.  Graffanino made only one appearance in the ALDS, as a defensive replacement, as the White Sox were swept by the Mariners.

Graffanino returned in 2001 as a backup infielder, hitting over .300 in limited playing time.  2002 saw increased playing time for Graffanino, but his average suffered, dropping to .262 in 229 at bats.

Graffanino’s playing time increased again in 2003, as he appeared in 90 games and hit .260 in 250 at bats.  Following the season, he became a free agent.

Graffanino’s biggest contribution to the White Sox came in the 2005 ALDS, while he was a member of the Red Sox.  During Game 2, he committed an error in the fifth inning on what should have been an inning ending ground out.  The next batter, Tadahito Iguchi, hit a 3 run homer to give the White Sox the lead en route to their 3 game sweep.

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

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#74 – Brent Lillibridge

lillibridgeName: Brent Lillibridge

Rank: 74

Position: 2B/OF

Years With White Sox: 2009-2012

Brent Lillibridge was acquired by the White Sox, along with Tyler Flowers and 2 minor leaguers, from the Braves in exchange for Javier Vazquez and Boone Logan on December 4, 2008.  He split the 2009 season between Triple A Charlotte and Chicago, hitting an anemic .158 in 95 at bats spread across 46 games.

Lillibridge stuck with the White Sox in 2010, improving his average to .224 in only 64 games.  2011 was his best season, setting career highs in home runs, RBIs, batting average, and OPS.  On April 11, he hit the 10,000th home run in White Sox history off Dallas Braden and the A’s.

Lillibridge struggled again in 2012, with his average dropping down to .175 before the June 24th trade that sent him, along with Zach Stewart, to the Red Sox for Kevin Youkilis.

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

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#75 – Donn Pall

thepopeName: Donn Pall

Rank: 75

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 1988-1993

Chicago native Donn Pall joined the White Sox organization via the 23rd round of the draft in 1985.  He made his major league debut 3 years later, throwing a mop-up inning of relief at the end of the Sox 10-2 loss to the A’s on August 1 at Comiskey Park.  Pall appeared in 16 additional games down the stretch for a miserable White Sox squad, finishing the year with a respectable 3.45 ERA.

Pall returned to the White Sox bullpen in 1989, earning his first career win on April 27 in a 16 inning victory over the Red Sox.  He finished the year 4-5 with a 3.31 ERA and 6 saves in 53 appearances for the last place White Sox.

The surprising White Sox found themselves in a pennant race in 1990 as they said goodbye to Comiskey Park.  Pall continued to be a mainstay in the bullpen, going 3-5 with a 3.32 ERA in 56 appearances, including one appearance during the final weekend at the park he grew up attending.

Pall and the White Sox moved across the street for the 1991 season, where Pall put up the best numbers of his career.  He finished the year 7-2 with a sparkling 2.41 ERA in 51 appearances, including a scoreless inning of relief in the first game at new Comiskey Park.  Pall struggled in 1992, seeing his ERA jump to 4.93 and his appearances drop to 39 despite a 5-2 record.

In 1993, as the White Sox headed towards their first division title since 1983, Pall bounced back to put up 3.22 ERA in 39 appearances heading into September.  However, he found himself in a roster crunch and, to make room for the re-acquired Ivan Calderon, he was traded to the Phillies on August 31 for a player to be named later.  Pall, along with Carlton Fisk, who had been released earlier in the year, came to Comiskey Park before game 1 of the ALCS to wish their former teammates well.  Sadly, they were both turned away, souring Fisk’s relationship with the organization for years.

Pall returned to the White Sox organization in 1995, spending the entire year in Triple A before leaving at the end of the year as a free agent.

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

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2016 All Star Break Standings

baseballs2As the baseball world turns its sights to San Diego for tomorrow night’s All Star Game, it’s time to take a look at the team records for the 18 games I attended in the first half of the baseball season, a mish-mash of excitement, followed by disappointment, giving way to uncertainty about what the second half will hold.

2016 Team Records
TeamName Won Loss Winning Pctg
Los Angeles Angels 1 0 1.000
Chicago Cubs 1 0 1.000
Boston Red Sox 1 0 1.000
Kansas City Royals 3 1 0.750
Cleveland Indians 2 1 0.667
Toronto Blue Jays 1 1 0.500
Atlanta Braves 1 1 0.500
Chicago White Sox 8 9 0.471
Texas Rangers 0 2 0.000
Minnesota Twins 0 2 0.000
Cincinnati Reds 0 1 0.000
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#81 – Geoff Blum

geoff-blum

Name: Geoff Blum

Rank: 81

Position: 1B/3B

Year With White Sox: 2005

Acquired at the trade deadline from the Padres in 2005, Geoff Blum made little impact for the White Sox during the regular season, hitting an even .200 in 31 games.  He went 0-1 during his sole ALDS appearance, pinch hitting in the Game 1 blowout against the Red Sox.

Blum sat on the bench until the 14th inning of Game 3 of the World Series, when he pinch hit for Bobby Jenks.  On a 2-0 count, Blum pulled the next pitch from Ezequiel Astacio into the right field stands, giving the White Sox a 6-5 lead.  Later that day, the White Sox clinched their first World Series title in 88 years.  4 days later, Blum became a free agent.

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

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#88 – Steve Lyons

stevelyons

Name: Steve Lyons

Rank: 88

Position: 3B/OF

Years With White Sox: 1986-1990

Steve Lyons was acquired by the White Sox at the end of June in 1986 in the deal that sent Tom Seaver to the Red Sox.  “I’ve liked him since he came into professional baseball,” GM Ken Harrelson said.  “The only reason we were able to get him is that Boston is in a divisional race.”  Lyons appeared in 42 games for the White Sox following the trade, starting 35 of them, and hit a disappointing .203 while finding his way into manager Jim Fregosi’s doghouse.

Lyons saw his average improve in 1987, though it didn’t necessarily add up to additional playing time.  Splitting time between Hawaii and Chicago, he appeared in only 76 games and saw a mere 193 at bats.

With an improved relationship with Fregosi in 1988, Lyons stepped in to become the regular third baseman after the Kenny Williams experiment came to an end in May.  While his offense was serviceable enough, he struggled defensively, finishing the year with 25 errors.  “It’s a huge embarrassment,” Lyons conceded.  “I’m just not doing the job. I hate to think that our pitchers are scared of me playing third base, but that would be a natural thought.”

1989 saw Lyons move primarily to second base.  The biggest moment of his season came at Yankee Stadium in June when a woman ran onto the field and accosted Lyons in the on-deck circle, giving him a big kiss.  He finished the year hitting .264 with a career high 50 RBI.

With the White Sox returning to contention in 1990, Lyons saw himself out of a starting job.  He clashed with new manager Jeff Torborg over his diminished playing time, due to the arrival of Robin Ventura at third base and the commitment to Scott Fletcher at second base.  He managed some late-inning duty at first base, until Frank Thomas joined the big league club in August.  In his new role, his average dropped to .192.  The most famous, or infamous, moment of his career came on July 16 against the Tigers, when, after sliding into first base for a bunt single, he lost track of where he was and dropped his pants to remove the dirt from his slide.  He quickly raised them back up, but the damage was done and a legend was born.

Despite his clashes with Torborg, Lyons managed to break camp with the White Sox in 1991, but lasted 4 games into the season, without getting in to any of them, before being released to make room for Charlie Hough, who was coming off the disabled list.  “I started seeing there wasn’t an opportunity for me to get on the field anywhere,” said Lyons.  “They had other guys to do the same kind of things that I was going to do.”

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

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#90 – Neal Cotts

neal-cotts-whitesoxName: Neal Cotts

Rank: 90

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2003-2006

Neal Cotts was acquired by the White Sox, along with Billy Koch and Daylan Holt, from the A’s in exchange for Keith Foulke, Mark Johnson, and Joe Valentine in December of 2002.  He made his major league debut on August 12, 2003, lasting only 2 1/3 innings in a start against the Angels, walking 6 and giving up 2 hits and 2 runs.  He made 3 additional starts, finishing the year with an 8.10 ERA in only 13 1/3 innings pitched.

Under new manager Ozzie Guillen, Cotts moved to the bullpen in 2004.  Appearing in 56 games, he managed to lower his ERA somewhat, to a still-horrid 5.65.  He did manage to pick up his first major league hit, against the Expos on June 18.

Things clicked in 2005, both for Cotts and the White Sox.  He appeared in 69 regular season games and posted a sparkling 1.94 ERA as the White Sox took the AL Central crown.  He faced one batter in the ALDS, getting Trot Nixon to flyout in Game 1 of the sweep against the Red Sox.  He was the only White Sox reliever to appear in the ALCS, getting the final 2 outs in the Game 1 loss to the Angels.  As the White Sox moved on to their first World Series since 1959, Cotts appeared in all 4 games, winning Game 2 and giving up only 1 hit in an inning and a third.

Cotts reverted back to his previous form in 2006, appearing in 70 games and seeing his ERA balloon back up to 5.17, though he did earn his first career save.  Following the season, he was traded across town to the Cubs for fellow relief pitcher David Aardsma.

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

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FB2: Week 14

FB2_Week14I posted my highest step total since the Disney trip last week, despite 2 days falling short of my 6000 step goal.  Things got off to a slow start on Sunday, as I barely hit 3500 steps.  Things picked back up on Monday and Tuesday thanks to normal work activities.  Wednesday had a pretty good total, good enough for my 14th highest total to date, thanks to a post-work trip down to US Cellular Field for a pre-game session with White Sox GM Rich Hahn followed by a tilt between the Sox Red and White.  Thursday also had a decent total due to post-work activities, this time a trip down to the Adler Planetarium for an exciting science lecture with Val.  Friday, I failed to hit the 6000 step mark after working from home then making a return trip to US Cellular Field to watch batting practice and then a tilt between the White Sox and the Twins.  Saturday’s regularly scheduled baseball game enabled me to surpass the 6000 step mark for the day and 54,000 steps for the week.

Total steps: 54,080

Daily average: 7725.7

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#99 – Brian Anderson

Name: Brian Anderson

Rank: 99

Position: CF

Years With White Sox: 2005-2009

Brian Anderson joined the White Sox organization as the 15th overall pick in the 2003 draft.  He made his major league debut on August 16, 2005, going 2-7 in a 9-4 loss to the Twins at US Cellular Field.  He appeared in only 13 games for the big league club in 2005, as the White Sox battle for the division crown went down to the final weekend.  Anderson was left off the playoff roster, but still spent the time with the team, joining Aaron Rowand in doubting the walk-off home run Scott Podsednik hit in Game 2 of the World Series.

When Rowand was traded to the Phillies prior to the 2006 season, Anderson became the new starting center fielder.  Unfortunately, he was unable to reproduce his minor league success at the major league level, eventually losing playing time to Rob Mackowiak.  He finished the year with a .225 average, striking out 90 times in only 365 at bats.

2007 turned in to a lost season for Anderson, as he lost his starting job to Darin Erstad and appeared in only 13 games, with an anemic .118 average, before being sent back to Triple A Charlotte.  He managed to boost his average back up in the minors, but an injury ended his season early.

Anderson returned to the big leagues in 2008 with a renewed focus, but it did not translate to better results in the field.  He spent most of the year as a backup and as a late inning defensive replacement for Ken Griffey Jr.  The highlight of his season was the diving catch he made to end the tiebreaker game 163 that sent the White Sox to the playoffs.  This time, Anderson made the playoff roster, but he went hitless in 5 at bats across 3 games in the White Sox loss to the Rays in the ALDS.

Anderson found himself in the same position in 2009, until the trade deadline approached, when he was traded to the Red Sox for Mark Kotsay.

Anderson returned to the White Sox organization on January 15, 2015, signing a minor league deal, but he was released on April 2nd, ending his professional career.

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

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