Tag / White Sox

by jim

Opting Out

The White Sox announced tonight that pitcher Michael Kopech, who had yet to report to camp due to personal issues, has decided to opt out of the 2020 season.  Kopech, who missed the 2019 season while recovering from Tommy John surgery, will not accrue service time and will not be paid for the season.  Assuming the 2021 season starts on time, opening day will be 939 days since his last outing in September of 2018,

Kopech becomes the first Chicago player to opt out and the first major league player to opt out for whom the missed service time would make a discernible difference.  I doubt he will be the last.

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Book 11 (of 52) – Stuck On The Sox

Stuck On The Sox – Rich Lindberg

This rather light-hearted history of the White Sox, focused primarily from the early 50s until its publication in 1978, comes from noted Chicago historian Rich Lindberg.  I was intrigued when I saw the cover in a Twitter post by one of the NBCSN flunkies, so I ran out to Amazon and found a used copy for a reasonable price.

Truth be told, this really wasn’t worth it.  Aside from 1977, the mid-to-late 70s was not really a great time in White Sox history, and, because of my age, it isn’t a time that I really relate to.  Yeah, there were some names in there, but, for the most part, my life isn’t improved by having read this book.  That said, it was less than 200 pages, so if you happen across it, why not give it a shot?

 

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iTunes Top 200: #1

itunes_image4 years ago, we last counted down the Top 200 songs in my iTunes library. Since my iTunes stats are still intact, across multiple PCs, iPods, iPads, and iPhones, I figured it was time to take another look at my most listened to songs, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2020.

Today, we wrap things up with the two songs that are tied for the top spot, each with 224 plays since my stats began in late 2007.  While on their face, the two songs have nothing in common, they have been linked together on the south side of Chicago for many years.

#1: Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers – Let’s Go-Go-Go White Sox
iTunes stats: 224 plays, most recently on 9/29/2019
Previous ranking: #1

On June 18, 2005, the White Sox were hosting the Dodgers in inter-league play, the first time the two teams had faced each other in Chicago since the 1959 World Series.  The Saturday night tilt celebrated the occasion, with the Go-Go White Sox celebrated prior to the game and both teams wearing 1959 throwbacks.  During the game, the stadium crew dusted off a fight song that hadn’t been heard in nearly 50 years, creating a video montage with the words as part of the night’s festivities.  Down 3-1 in the bottom of the 9th, the White Sox rallied for 4 runs, capped off by A.J. Pierzynski’s two run shot to end the game, and a new tradition at US Cellular Field was born.

The song was written by former White Sox minor leaguer Al Trace and his friend Walter “Li’l Wally” Jagiello during the 1959 season as the White Sox battled for their first pennant since throwing the World Series in 1919.  They brought the song to Tom Fouts, leader of Captain Stubby and the Buccaneers, a popular local band best known for performing on WLS Prairie Farmer Radio and writing and performing advertising jingles.  The song and the team were both a success, as the White Sox did indeed win the pennant, but lost the World Series to the Dodgers in 6 games.

Following that June night, the song became a rallying point for the remainder of the 2005 season.  It received national exposure, as Fox included clips of it in their coverage of the team’s trek through the post-season.  WGN utilized it during their coverage of the World Series victory parade, over clips of highlights of both the 1959 and 2005 teams.  While not as ubiquitous today, the song does still show up on occasion at the ballpark, when the White Sox go on a big rally.

I managed to download an MP3 of the tune at some point, and it has had a place on every White Sox victory playlist I’ve created ever since.  A distinction it shares with our next entry.

#1: AC/DC – Thunderstruck
iTunes stats: 224 plays, most recently on 10/25/2019
Previous ranking: #3

The 12th studio album from AC/DC, The Razor’s Edge, was released in September of 1990, with Thunderstruck released as the first single.  It peaked at #5 on the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks chart.

The White Sox started taking the field to the song during the 2004 season, and it has been used off and on ever since.  Because of that, it has held a place on every version of my victory playlist since.

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Changes In The Radio Booth

Now that the start of the baseball season is set, WGN and the White Sox have announced that Andy Masur would replace Ed Farmer in the radio booth for the 2020 season.  Masur, who was the pre-game host and had filled in for Farmer last season and was planned to fill in again when Farmer stepped away in spring training before the sport shut down because of the corona virus pandemic, spent 8 years at WGN, starting in 1999, before leaving to become the voice of the Padres in 2007.  He returned to the station in 2014 and started working with the White Sox when they moved to WGN in 2018.  He will join the returning Darrin Jackson, who has been the color man in the booth since 2009.

Farmer, who had spent 28 years in the White Sox radio booth and was the main play-by-play man since 2006, passed away following a long illness on April 2nd.

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Celebrating Independence

Danny takes the spotlight as we enter the second half of 2020.  The main shot of him is after corralling a foul ball at the May 17th game between the Blue Jays and the White Sox at Guaranteed Rate Field.  Next, he is posing in the outfield at Baltimore’s Camden Yards, followed by him and Michael at Washington’s Nationals Park.  Finally, he stands on the balcony outside the top floor of the Newseum in Washington DC.

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iTunes Top 200: #3

itunes_image4 years ago, we last counted down the Top 200 songs in my iTunes library. Since my iTunes stats are still intact, across multiple PCs, iPods, iPads, and iPhones, I figured it was time to take another look at my most listened to songs, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2020.

Today, we come to our penultimate entry, with the song with the third highest total of listens, 215, since my stats began in late 2007.

#3: Steam – Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye
iTunes stats: 215 plays, most recently on 10/16/2019
Previous ranking: #4

Originally written as a blues shuffle in the early 1960s, the song was recorded and released in 1969 by the then-fictitious band called Steam.  It reached #1 for two weeks in December, finishing as Billboard’s final multi-week number 1 hit of the 1960s.  The song got a second life in 1977, thanks to the South Side Hitmen and their organist, Nancy Faust.  With the White Sox hitting the cover off the ball and finding themselves in a surprising first place, Faust started playing the song after home runs.  Eventually, she also started playing it when the opposing pitcher was chased from the game.

The song became a hit once again, and Faust was awarded a RIAA gold record from Mercury Records to acknowledge her contributions.  It was a mainstay at Comiskey Park and its successors until Faust’s retirement in 2010.  Since then, the song is still performed, though not as often.  The high play total is a result of the songs inclusion on all of my White Sox victory playlists.

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Indians All Time Leaders – Through 2019

With baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look back at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. We continue today with the Cleveland Indians.

The Indians, then known as the Bluebirds, were one of the charter members of the American League in 1901.  After a few name changes, they settled on the Indians name in 1915.  I’ve seen them play 52 times, including games 4 and 5 of the 2016 World Series and 2 games against the White Sox in their home stadium last September.

Home Runs

Name Total
Victor Martinez 6
Jason Kipnis 5
Travis Hafner 4

Hits

Name Total
Victor Martinez 24
Jason Kipnis 21
Michael Brantley 20
Carlos Santana 20

Runs

Name Total
Grady Sizemore 14
Shin-Soo Choo 13
Jhonny Peralta 13

RBI

Name Total
Victor Martinez 16
Carlos Santana 14
Jason Kipnis 14

Doubles

Name Total
Victor Martinez 4
Jhonny Peralta 4
Jamey Carroll 4
Carlos Santana 4
Michael Brantley 4

Triples Continue reading →

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Pirates All Time Leaders – Through 2019

pirates-primaryWith baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look back at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. We continue today with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Pirates began life in 1887 as the Alleghenys, before taking on the Pirates moniker in 1891.  I’ve seen them play 46 times, including a double header sweep in 2003, enabling the Cubs to clinch their first NL Central title and a work outing in 2008 against the White Sox.

Home Runs

Name Total
Brian Giles 3
Jack Wilson 2
Nate McLouth 2
Carlos Garcia 2
Craig Wilson 2
Andrew McCutchen 2

Hits

Name Total
Jack Wilson 27
Jason Kendall 14
Aramis Ramirez 14

Runs

Name Total
Jack Wilson 16
Brian Giles 10
Nate McLouth 9

RBI

Name Total
Jason Kendall 12
Brian Giles 11
Jack Wilson 8

Doubles

Name Total
Freddy Sanchez 5
Aramis Ramirez 4
Abraham Nunez 4

Triples Continue reading →

by admin

iTunes Top 200: #4

itunes_image4 years ago, we last counted down the Top 200 songs in my iTunes library. Since my iTunes stats are still intact, across multiple PCs, iPods, iPads, and iPhones, I figured it was time to take another look at my most listened to songs, based on number of plays as of January 1, 2020.

Today, we move up to the fourth most listened to song in my library, with 175 plays since my stats began in late 2007. It is the top ranked instrumental and also the top ranked soundtrack entry.

#4: Klaus Badelt – He’s A Pirate
iTunes stats: 175 plays, most recently on 10/25/2019
Previous ranking: #1

Klaus Badelt was a relatively new composer when Hans Zimmer recommended him for Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl.  That score earned him the ASCAP Award for Top Box Office Film.  He’s A Pirate is the final track of the score, played at the beginning of the end credits.

Starting with the 2005 season, the White Sox incorporated the song into their game presentation, using it along with a string of highlights on the video board at the beginning of each game, leading into Thunderstruck as the team takes the field.  The song remained in use through the 2012 season, when it was replaced with a generic sound-a-like that never really caught on.  The song had a long run on my White Sox victory play lists, but has been removed in recent versions, which accounts for the drop seen here, from 1st place down to 4th.

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Brewers All Time Leaders – Through 2019

With baseball shut down because of the corona virus, I thought it would be an interesting time to look at the all time leaders in both offensive and defensive categories for all 30 teams. We continue today with the Milwaukee Brewers.

The Brewers began life in 1969, joining the American League as the Seattle Pilots.  After one year, they moved to Milwaukee and were re-christened the Brewers.  In 1998, the Brewers became the first team to switch leagues when they moved to the National League as the expansion Tampa Bay Devil Rays joined the American League.  I’ve seen them play 41 times, first in 1993 battling the White Sox at their old home of Milwaukee County Stadium and most recently last July, battling the Cubs at Miller Park.

Home Runs

Name Total
Richie Sexson 4
Prince Fielder 4
Ryan Braun 4

Hits

Name Total
Ryan Braun 29
Prince Fielder 23
J.J. Hardy 19
Corey Hart 19

Runs

Name Total
Ryan Braun 14
Prince Fielder 14
J.J. Hardy 11
Rickie Weeks 11

RBI

Name Total
Ryan Braun 23
Prince Fielder 17
Richie Sexson 13

Doubles

Name Total
Prince Fielder 9
Corey Hart 6
Ryan Braun 6

Triples Continue reading →