Name: Rod Craig
Rank: 366
Position: OF
Year With White Sox: 1986
After spending time with the Mariners and the Indians in the late 70s and early 80s, Rod Craig resurfaced for 10 games with the 1986 White Sox, getting 2 hits in 10 at bats. He was granted free agency following the season and that was it for his career.
Craig’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
The rumor around town is that the Cubs are about to move their Single A affiliate from the Peoria Chiefs to the Kane County Cougars, which I see was a smart business move. The Cubs have benefited for years in attendance by having their minor league affiliates close to home, and moving from Peoria to 35 miles west of Chicago should help even more. Not to mention the ability to send a player on a rehab assignment while still keeping him close enough to the big league facilities for treatment.
While I know it won’t happen, mostly because it would make too much sense, I would like to see the White Sox move to take over for the Cubs as the parent club for the Peoria Chiefs. Downstate seems to be mostly split between the Cubs and the Cardinals and the White Sox don’t seem too concerned about it. While the Cubs enjoy the busloads of fans coming in from Iowa or Peoria, the Sox seem content to keep their minor league affiliates at an arms length, with the closest one being in… Virgina? Or maybe Montana.
As hard as it may be to believe following this weekend’s disaster in Kansas City, the time has come to start preparing for the post-season, and the White Sox have done just that by sending out their post-season invoice to season ticket holders. The first thing that jumps out at you is the $30 non-refundable fee just for the privelidge of purchasing these tickets. Sadly, that has become normal at this point. The second thing that seems a little off is the seat locations. My normal seats are down the first base line, but for any potential playoff games, I will be down the third base line. Not a big deal for night games, but the sun can make that an unpleasant location to sit for day games. On the plus side, I am closer to the field for all of the games than I am normally.
While the ticket prices themselves are increased from the regular season (and are set by Major League Baseball, not the White Sox), it is nice to see that the parking fee is the same for all series. I’m sure the posted price will be increased for the fan off the street, so it is one additional perk for us season ticket holders.
Name: Sean Tracey
Rank: 367
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 2006
Sean Tracey’s White Sox career nearly came to an end on June 14, a mere 6 days after it started. After AJ Pierzynski had been hit by 2 pitches and with the White Sox down by 8 against the Rangers, Sean Tracey was brought in to the game with one mission: retaliate against Hank Blalock. Tracey threw to inside pitches to Blalock, before getting him to ground out. He was quickly removed from the game, berated in the dugout by manager Ozzie Guillen, and demoted the next day. He returned later in the season, and then his career actually did come to an end.
Tracey’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
Not one, but two pictures of my day, at least my weekdays. The first is my desk, with my computer monitor and the different Purdue and White Sox knick-knacks that adorn the wall of my cube. The second picture is my shelf and cube wall, with more knick-knacks and pictures of Angelina, Danny, and Michael.
Name: Steve Mura
Rank: 368
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 1983
Steve Mura came to the White Sox from the Cardinals following the 1982 as a free agent compensation pick after losing outfielder Steve Kemp to the Yankees. Mura opened the season in the bullpen, and nothing good to say about manager Tony LaRussa or pitching coach Dave Duncan. “I’m not doing any good throwing 5 minutes of batting practice,” Mura said to The Sporting News. “I wish they would make up their mind and trade me or something instead of letting me rot.”
After 6 appearances, they did do something: demoting him to Triple A, where he went 3-11 with a 4.82 ERA in 19 starts. The following season, he competed for the 5th starters role, and even LaRussa conceded that he was much improved. Unfortunately for Mura, he was released towards the end of spring training.
Mura’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:
After a day of rest following the 5K, it looked like a good week was in the works. Monday started things off with a nice walk around the campus at work followed by a bowling outing with Danny and Michael. Tuesday was our area picnic, which included some volleyball, which the tool translated in to nearly 9000 steps. From there, things leveled off to their sad normal levels on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday benefited from Elvis Night at the Cell, as a different parking lot led to post-game ramps instead of the escalator. Saturday was another wasted day, with only another Sox game, this time with escalators, on the docket.
Name: Tim Fortugno
Rank: 369
Position: P
Year With White Sox: 1995
Tim Fortugno joined the White Sox prior to the 1995 season after being claimed off waivers from the Reds. He had a tough time in the bullpen, but did manage to make his way into 37 games before being included in the July 27th trade that sent Jim Abbott back to the Angels for McKay Christensen, Andrew Lorraine, Bill Simas, and John Snyder.
Fortugno’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:
For August, Danny impersonates the future manager of the White Sox from an April trip to US Cellular Field.
Name: Todd Rizzo
Rank: 370
Position: P
Years With White Sox: 1998-1999
Todd Rizzo did little to impress anyone in his 12 game career spent over parts of 2 seasons with the White Sox. Following the 1999 season, he was granted free agency and never sniffed the big leagues again.
Rizzo’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: