Sunday, September 30, 2012
Collapse nearly complete
Today's 6-2 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays puts the Sox 3 games back in the A.L. Central with three to play nearing the completion of their late season meltdown.Just two weeks ago the Sox seemed to have a hold on the division getting out to a 3 game lead after a win over the Tigers on a Monday afternoon makeup game.
You would've thought the Sox could, at the very least, go .500 the rest of the way keeping them in first. Nope. A 3-10 stretch coupled with the Tigers playing their best baseball of the year puts the Sox were they are today and the blame all on them.
The Sox seemed to play uninspired baseball the last few days for their home fans as today was the final home game of the year. The Sox dropped 5 of 7 at home capping their home schedule and providing no excitement for a fan base that was getting ready for postseason play.
Tomorrow will start the final road series in Cleveland. Nothing short of a miracle of the Tigers losing their last three against the Royals and the Sox winning their last three will keep this season alive. Even if that happened, the Sox would have to go to Detroit and play a tiebreaker game against Justin Verlander. Ain't happening.
Monday, September 24, 2012
Adam Dunn prevents mass suicide - MAGIC NUMBER: 9
Already having hit a solo shot to center field in the 6th inning that cut the Indians' lead to 3-2, Adam Dunn blasted an 0-2 pitch into the right field seats. The three run shot gave the Sox a 5-3 lead in the 8th inning.
Naturally things got a bit interesting in the 9th, but after an RBI double off the bat of Shin-Soo Choo, Donnie Veal recorded his first save to keep the Sox alone in 1st place with the 5-4 victory.
Chris Sale gave up 10 hits in his 7 innings of work but kept the Indians down to 3 runs. He threw a lot of pitches but battled to keep the Sox in the game allowing for the comeback. Add in a few key double plays turned by the Sox infield and you have a receipe for success the Sox have seemed to forgotten the last week.
As expected, no help came from the Royals who lost 6-2 to the Tigers tonight keeping the Sox 1 game in front of Detroit. The magic number does drop to 9 as there are just 9 games left for both the Sox and Tigers.
Hawk line of the game: 9/24/12
"If we don't start scoring some runs I'm going to get me some of that Smirnoff."
Sunday, September 23, 2012
Somehow Sox end weekend in 1st
In the last five games the Sox have done everything in their power to give up their A.L. Central lead.
Losing 2 of 3 to the Royals and now getting swept by the Angels this weekend seemingly should've put the Sox in 2nd place. But the Minnesota Twins helped our cause. And really, after all the years of screwing the Sox out of the playoffs, it's about time the Twins do us a solid. They took 2 of 3 over the Tigers including a sweep of a doubleheader today in Detroit.
So with 10 games remaining in the 2012 season the Sox have a 1 game lead over the Tigers with a record of 81-71.
The offense, which has been pathetic, needs to kick it into gear as the team heads home to start a seven game homestand against the Cleveland Indians and Tampa Bay Rays. The homestand will complete the home portion of the schedule.
With the two losses by the Tigers today the Sox magic number drops to 10.
Losing 2 of 3 to the Royals and now getting swept by the Angels this weekend seemingly should've put the Sox in 2nd place. But the Minnesota Twins helped our cause. And really, after all the years of screwing the Sox out of the playoffs, it's about time the Twins do us a solid. They took 2 of 3 over the Tigers including a sweep of a doubleheader today in Detroit.
So with 10 games remaining in the 2012 season the Sox have a 1 game lead over the Tigers with a record of 81-71.
The offense, which has been pathetic, needs to kick it into gear as the team heads home to start a seven game homestand against the Cleveland Indians and Tampa Bay Rays. The homestand will complete the home portion of the schedule.
With the two losses by the Tigers today the Sox magic number drops to 10.
Thursday, September 20, 2012
Seriously, I hate the Royals
Should I be pissed that the only team the Royals can beat is my beloved White Sox? Or should I be pissed that my beloved White Sox can beat the shit ass Royals?
Either way, it's annoying.
Tonight's 4-3 walk off win is their 12th win against the Sox this year. They've only won 68 games. That's about 18% of their wins. Thank God the two teams no longer have to face each other.
Unfortunately, I don't think the Royals will return the favor in the seven games they have remaining against the Tigers.
The Sox are going to have to earn this. Their remaining games are against the Angels, Indians, Rays, then closing out with the Indians again on the road.
The Tigers now square off at home against the Twins and Royals, then close out on the road to Minnesota and K.C.
The Sox magic number to win the A.L. Central did drop to 12 before the game even started as the Tigers were pounded 12-4 by the A's.It's too bad a 3-0 lead after four innings wasn't enough to keep the Royals down.
It's going to be a stressful final 13 games...
Either way, it's annoying.
Tonight's 4-3 walk off win is their 12th win against the Sox this year. They've only won 68 games. That's about 18% of their wins. Thank God the two teams no longer have to face each other.
Unfortunately, I don't think the Royals will return the favor in the seven games they have remaining against the Tigers.
The Tigers now square off at home against the Twins and Royals, then close out on the road to Minnesota and K.C.
The Sox magic number to win the A.L. Central did drop to 12 before the game even started as the Tigers were pounded 12-4 by the A's.It's too bad a 3-0 lead after four innings wasn't enough to keep the Royals down.
It's going to be a stressful final 13 games...
Tuesday, September 18, 2012
Just embrace it, boys
The White Sox are a home run hitting team. When hit the long ball, for whatever reason, they can do more with the bat.
Tonight, three solo home runs off the bats of Alejandro De Aza (on the 2nd pitch of the game), Gordon Beckham (in the 6th to tie the game 2-2), and Alex Rios (in the 7th) were enough to take care of the Kansas City Royals.
Gavin Floyd also pitched very well in the 3-2 win. Floyd went 7 innings giving up two first inning runs and just five hits.
A good win for the Sox as they will square off Bruce (Cy) Chen tomorrow night and because the Tigers pounded the Oakland A's to stay 3 games behind our Sox.
The win puts the Sox at 81-66 on the year and reduces their magic number to 13.
Tonight, three solo home runs off the bats of Alejandro De Aza (on the 2nd pitch of the game), Gordon Beckham (in the 6th to tie the game 2-2), and Alex Rios (in the 7th) were enough to take care of the Kansas City Royals.
Gavin Floyd also pitched very well in the 3-2 win. Floyd went 7 innings giving up two first inning runs and just five hits.
A good win for the Sox as they will square off Bruce (Cy) Chen tomorrow night and because the Tigers pounded the Oakland A's to stay 3 games behind our Sox.
The win puts the Sox at 81-66 on the year and reduces their magic number to 13.
Monday, September 17, 2012
Sox extend A.L. Central lead to 3 games!
This afternoon's 5-4 win over the Detroit Tigers was not without it's faults. The Sox left 10 runners on base and went 2-13 with RISP. Not to mention a bonehead base running mistake Dewayne Wise in the 8th all could've made for a disastrous afternoon. But, the Sox showed some stones today with stellar defense and excellent work by the bullpen, namely Nate Jones, to pad their A.L. Central lead.
The Tigers led 3-0 going into the bottom of the 4th. The Sox had left the bases loaded in the 3rd inning and now found themselves with the bags loaded again in the 4th with two outs. Gordon Beckham was hit by a pitch from Doug Fister to get the score 3-1. Next batter Dewayne Wise then singled to tie the game 3-3 but with Beckham standing at third base, Kevin Youkilis lined out to end the inning.
Quintana's day was done after he gave up a lead off double to Miguel Cabrera and then a single to Prince Fielder to start the 5th. Nate Jones came on and gave up an RBI single to Sox-killer Delmon Young which gave the Tigers a 4-3 lead. Nate was able to get Jhonny Peralta to ground into a double play then Brennan Boesch to ground out on a nice play by Alexei Ramirez to end the inning.
The Sox bats went back to work in the 5th. With the bases loaded again and one out, Dayan Viciedo hit a routine ground ball that should've been an inning ending double play. But, Alex Rios, who in my opinion has been the team's MVP this year, went in hard to second base forcing a bad throw from Omar Infante that Price Fielder wasn't able to scoop up causing the ball to pass first base and scored two Sox runners giving the Sox a 5-4 lead!
When all is said and done, the play could be considered one of the big moments of the 2012 season. We'll see...
Nate Jones worked a 1-2-3 6th and recorded the first two outs of the 7th inning keeping the Tigers off the board. Robin Ventura atoned for not using Donnie Veal last Wednesday against Prince Fielder and called on the lefty to strike out the big bat. He did and was able to hand over the ball to Brett Myers in the 8th who also recorded a scoreless frame.
Robin used Myers, Matt Thornton, and Addison Reed in the 9th to close out the game. Each reliever got their man as Detroit didn't put any on base.
The 5-4 gives the Sox their 80th win of the season. A win total a lot of people didn't think they would reach at all. They now hold a 3 game lead in the A.L. Central heading to Kansas City to play the pain-in-the-ass Royals as the White Sox magic number goes down to 14.
The Tigers led 3-0 going into the bottom of the 4th. The Sox had left the bases loaded in the 3rd inning and now found themselves with the bags loaded again in the 4th with two outs. Gordon Beckham was hit by a pitch from Doug Fister to get the score 3-1. Next batter Dewayne Wise then singled to tie the game 3-3 but with Beckham standing at third base, Kevin Youkilis lined out to end the inning.
Quintana's day was done after he gave up a lead off double to Miguel Cabrera and then a single to Prince Fielder to start the 5th. Nate Jones came on and gave up an RBI single to Sox-killer Delmon Young which gave the Tigers a 4-3 lead. Nate was able to get Jhonny Peralta to ground into a double play then Brennan Boesch to ground out on a nice play by Alexei Ramirez to end the inning.
The Sox bats went back to work in the 5th. With the bases loaded again and one out, Dayan Viciedo hit a routine ground ball that should've been an inning ending double play. But, Alex Rios, who in my opinion has been the team's MVP this year, went in hard to second base forcing a bad throw from Omar Infante that Price Fielder wasn't able to scoop up causing the ball to pass first base and scored two Sox runners giving the Sox a 5-4 lead!When all is said and done, the play could be considered one of the big moments of the 2012 season. We'll see...
Nate Jones worked a 1-2-3 6th and recorded the first two outs of the 7th inning keeping the Tigers off the board. Robin Ventura atoned for not using Donnie Veal last Wednesday against Prince Fielder and called on the lefty to strike out the big bat. He did and was able to hand over the ball to Brett Myers in the 8th who also recorded a scoreless frame.
Robin used Myers, Matt Thornton, and Addison Reed in the 9th to close out the game. Each reliever got their man as Detroit didn't put any on base.
The 5-4 gives the Sox their 80th win of the season. A win total a lot of people didn't think they would reach at all. They now hold a 3 game lead in the A.L. Central heading to Kansas City to play the pain-in-the-ass Royals as the White Sox magic number goes down to 14.
Sunday, September 16, 2012
Remember when the Sox could never beat the Twins?
Not too long ago a series against the Minnesota Twins would be infuriating. But luckily, with the Twins being God awful this season the Sox have come away with easy wins when they've needed them the most.
Today's 9-2 win gives gives the Sox a weekend sweep and a 14-4 season record over the annoying Twins. More importantly, it keeps the Sox in first place as the Tigers dropped their Sunday afternoon contest. The Sox now hold a 2 game lead in the A.L. Central with their 79-66 record.
The Sox exploded for six runs in the sixth after already leading 3-2. The inning was highlighted by Adam Dunn's lead off monster home run, Dayan Viciedo's two run jack, and Dunn singling in Gordon Beckham on his second at bat of the inning.
A strong offensive effort backed Jake Peavy who gave up two runs and four hits in six innings of work. Not bad, Jake. Although I would've liked to see that in one of his two starts against the Tigers this month.
The first place Sox will head home to make up last Thursday's rain out with the Tigers. Jose Quintana will face off against Doug Fister. A win will go a long way in helping the cause to win the division. The Sox magic number now stands at 16.
Today's 9-2 win gives gives the Sox a weekend sweep and a 14-4 season record over the annoying Twins. More importantly, it keeps the Sox in first place as the Tigers dropped their Sunday afternoon contest. The Sox now hold a 2 game lead in the A.L. Central with their 79-66 record.
The Sox exploded for six runs in the sixth after already leading 3-2. The inning was highlighted by Adam Dunn's lead off monster home run, Dayan Viciedo's two run jack, and Dunn singling in Gordon Beckham on his second at bat of the inning.
A strong offensive effort backed Jake Peavy who gave up two runs and four hits in six innings of work. Not bad, Jake. Although I would've liked to see that in one of his two starts against the Tigers this month.
The first place Sox will head home to make up last Thursday's rain out with the Tigers. Jose Quintana will face off against Doug Fister. A win will go a long way in helping the cause to win the division. The Sox magic number now stands at 16.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Devine intervention
I, like most Sox fans, felt pretty shitty about this team after last night's game. Knowing that the Sox had a 1 game lead in the division heading into Thursday's game against the Tigers with Verlander throwing made last night's loss even worse.
But, there's someone watching out for us.
Tonight's game was rained out and will be played on Monday afternoon at U.S. Cellular Field. The Sox will make a stop at home between their series in Minnesota and Kansas City to make up tonight's contest.
Early word is that Gavin Floyd and Doug Fister will make the starts for their respective clubs. Doug Fister was no slouch against the Sox on Tuesday night but I'd rather take our chances against him than Verlander.
So for now, the Sox hold on to their 1 game lead in the A.L. Central getting ready to face the Minnesota Twins this weekend. Hopefully a game or two can be gained as the Tigers will face the Cleveland Indians.
Wednesday, September 12, 2012
They're just making it so much harder for themselves
An 8-6 loss to the Detroit Tigers puts the Sox record against their A.L. Central foes to 5-12 which is truly pathetic considering the Sox are now just a game up on the second place Tigers.
Just a few more wins against the Tigers and this series and last few weeks of the season could be very different.
I won't go in to much detail about this one because really, the 8-6 final score makes this seem much closer than it actually was.
Detroit had an 8-1 lead heading into the 8th inning when the Sox were able to push across one run off Joaquin Benoit. Then, a three run home run off the bat of Kevin Youkilis who - GASP - wasn't bunting with runners on 1st and 3rd with one out, provided brief hand clapping by the 30,000+ in attendance.
Another meaningless run came across in the 9th but the damage was already done.
It seemed that Gavin Floyd was on a pitch count as he only threw 69 pitches through 4 2/3 innings. He threw well enough but Robin thought he should bring out a cavalcade of guys from the bullpen tonight. Hector Santiago, Brian Omogrosso, Leyson Septimo, and Dylan Axelrod threw a combined 3 1/3 innings giving up five runs on ten hits.
Brutal.
The Sox A.L. Central lead is down to 1 game as Chris Sale will try and keep the Sox in sole possession of first place tomorrow night against Justin Verlander.
Just a few more wins against the Tigers and this series and last few weeks of the season could be very different.
I won't go in to much detail about this one because really, the 8-6 final score makes this seem much closer than it actually was.
Detroit had an 8-1 lead heading into the 8th inning when the Sox were able to push across one run off Joaquin Benoit. Then, a three run home run off the bat of Kevin Youkilis who - GASP - wasn't bunting with runners on 1st and 3rd with one out, provided brief hand clapping by the 30,000+ in attendance.
Another meaningless run came across in the 9th but the damage was already done.
It seemed that Gavin Floyd was on a pitch count as he only threw 69 pitches through 4 2/3 innings. He threw well enough but Robin thought he should bring out a cavalcade of guys from the bullpen tonight. Hector Santiago, Brian Omogrosso, Leyson Septimo, and Dylan Axelrod threw a combined 3 1/3 innings giving up five runs on ten hits.
Brutal.
The Sox A.L. Central lead is down to 1 game as Chris Sale will try and keep the Sox in sole possession of first place tomorrow night against Justin Verlander.
Tuesday, September 11, 2012
Total buzzkill
Two hits through 7 innings and those being solo home runs generally won't win you many games.
Dewayne Wise and Gordon Beckham hit solo shots in the 1st and 3rd innings giving the Sox a 2-0 lead over Doug Fister and the Detroit Tigers. But, Jake Peavy's rough 5th and Francisco Liriano's bullpen debut in the 8th equaled a 5-3 loss for the Sox putting the Tigers back two games in the division.
Jake Peavy gave up a two run home run to Austin Jackson then a solo home run to Miguel Cabrera giving the Tigers a 3-2 lead in the 5th. Peavy then had thrown 117 pitches through 5 2/3 so Robin left the game in the bullpen's hands to keep it at a one run deficit.
Leyson Septimo, Nate Jones, Donnie Veal, and Brett Myers where able to work in and out of jams but Francisco Liriano made horrible use of the 4 pitches he threw in his White Sox bullpen debut.
I'm just going to copy the play by play...
Avisail Garcia hit by pitch. (First pitch)
Jhonny Peralta singles on a soft fly ball to center fielder Alejandro De Aza. Avisail Garcia to 3rd.
Alex Avila singles on a line drive to right fielder Alex Rios. Avisail Garcia scores. Jhonny Peralta to 2nd.
Coaching visit to mound.
Pitching Change: Jesse Crain replaces Francisco Liriano.
Bravo Francisco, bravo!
Crain surrendered an RBI single to Andy Dirks that gave the Tigers their fifth and final run of the night.
Those two runs charged to Liriano proved to be big as the Sox were able to score a run in the bottom half of the 8th but nothing more.
You can also call Robin Ventura's managing decisons into question in this one.
With the Sox fighting back in the their half of the 8th, Kevin Youkilis came up to bat with nobody out and runners on 1st and 2nd. Youk was following up an RBI single by Alejandro De Aza and in a moment of Ozzie Guillen-esque managing, Robin (as it would seem) gave the sign for Youk to bunt. What makes it puzzling is that Youkilis HAS NEVER RECORDED A SACRIFICE BUNT IN HIS ENTIRE CAREER. Youkilis seemed out of place and ended up striking out for the first out of the inning.
Thanks, Robin.
It would be nice to get at least one of the next two to guarantee sole possetion of first place after this series. It will be tough seeing that Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander are waiting for the Sox tomorrow and Thursday.
Dewayne Wise and Gordon Beckham hit solo shots in the 1st and 3rd innings giving the Sox a 2-0 lead over Doug Fister and the Detroit Tigers. But, Jake Peavy's rough 5th and Francisco Liriano's bullpen debut in the 8th equaled a 5-3 loss for the Sox putting the Tigers back two games in the division.
Jake Peavy gave up a two run home run to Austin Jackson then a solo home run to Miguel Cabrera giving the Tigers a 3-2 lead in the 5th. Peavy then had thrown 117 pitches through 5 2/3 so Robin left the game in the bullpen's hands to keep it at a one run deficit.
Leyson Septimo, Nate Jones, Donnie Veal, and Brett Myers where able to work in and out of jams but Francisco Liriano made horrible use of the 4 pitches he threw in his White Sox bullpen debut.
I'm just going to copy the play by play...
Avisail Garcia hit by pitch. (First pitch)
Jhonny Peralta singles on a soft fly ball to center fielder Alejandro De Aza. Avisail Garcia to 3rd.
Alex Avila singles on a line drive to right fielder Alex Rios. Avisail Garcia scores. Jhonny Peralta to 2nd.
Coaching visit to mound.
Pitching Change: Jesse Crain replaces Francisco Liriano.
Bravo Francisco, bravo!
Crain surrendered an RBI single to Andy Dirks that gave the Tigers their fifth and final run of the night.
Those two runs charged to Liriano proved to be big as the Sox were able to score a run in the bottom half of the 8th but nothing more.
You can also call Robin Ventura's managing decisons into question in this one.
 |
| Ozzie sharing his bunting philosophy with Robin. |
With the Sox fighting back in the their half of the 8th, Kevin Youkilis came up to bat with nobody out and runners on 1st and 2nd. Youk was following up an RBI single by Alejandro De Aza and in a moment of Ozzie Guillen-esque managing, Robin (as it would seem) gave the sign for Youk to bunt. What makes it puzzling is that Youkilis HAS NEVER RECORDED A SACRIFICE BUNT IN HIS ENTIRE CAREER. Youkilis seemed out of place and ended up striking out for the first out of the inning.
Thanks, Robin.
It would be nice to get at least one of the next two to guarantee sole possetion of first place after this series. It will be tough seeing that Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander are waiting for the Sox tomorrow and Thursday.
American League Central Standings:
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chi White Sox | 76 | 65 | .539 | - |
| Detroit | 74 | 67 | .525 | 2.0 |
Monday, September 10, 2012
Bombs away!
For the first five innings of the first game of this big time four-game series against the Detroit Tigers, the Sox offense was doing their usual run and hide. But after the 2nd error of the night by the Tigers, the door was open for the Sox to shell Tigers' starter Rick Porcello.
Porcello was cruising through 5 1/3 only having giving up two hits and leaving Sox runners in scoring position in four of the first five innings. With one out in the sixth, Dewayne Wise reached 1st on a fielding error by Omar Infante. Paul Konerko then singled setting the stage for Alex Rios. Alex rocketed the second offering from Porcello into the left field seats giving the Sox a 3-1 lead. Next batter A.J. Pierzynski bombed a solo shot on the first pitch he saw to dead center field making it 4-1. Gordon Beckham added a two run shot in the eighth providing Addison Reed enough cushion to work with to get the Tigers' hitters 1-2-3 in the 9th.
Not enough can be said about Jose Quintana who threw the biggest game of his young career. After a shaky first three innings, Quintana settled down only giving up the one run in 7 2/3 innings.
The bullpen was strong as well. Donnie Veal got a huge third out in the eighth with Prince Fielder at bat with runners on second and third with the Sox holding onto three run lead at the time.
In other news, Gavin Floyd will start Wednesday's match-up against the Tigers and the guy who has been loving to give up runs, Francisco Liriano will be moved to the bullpen.
Tomorrow night, Jake Peavy and Doug Fister will match up for game 2.
Porcello was cruising through 5 1/3 only having giving up two hits and leaving Sox runners in scoring position in four of the first five innings. With one out in the sixth, Dewayne Wise reached 1st on a fielding error by Omar Infante. Paul Konerko then singled setting the stage for Alex Rios. Alex rocketed the second offering from Porcello into the left field seats giving the Sox a 3-1 lead. Next batter A.J. Pierzynski bombed a solo shot on the first pitch he saw to dead center field making it 4-1. Gordon Beckham added a two run shot in the eighth providing Addison Reed enough cushion to work with to get the Tigers' hitters 1-2-3 in the 9th.
Not enough can be said about Jose Quintana who threw the biggest game of his young career. After a shaky first three innings, Quintana settled down only giving up the one run in 7 2/3 innings.
The bullpen was strong as well. Donnie Veal got a huge third out in the eighth with Prince Fielder at bat with runners on second and third with the Sox holding onto three run lead at the time.
In other news, Gavin Floyd will start Wednesday's match-up against the Tigers and the guy who has been loving to give up runs, Francisco Liriano will be moved to the bullpen.
Tomorrow night, Jake Peavy and Doug Fister will match up for game 2.
American League Central Standings:
| Team | W | L | PCT | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chi White Sox | 76 | 64 | .543 | - |
| Detroit | 73 | 67 | .521 | 3.0 |
Tuesday, September 4, 2012
If you watched after the fifth inning, you're better than I am
 |
| About the right face most Sox fans had while watching this game |
The Sox were abused tonight in their 18-9 loss to the Minnesota Twins. I tuned out during the 10-run Twins fifth.
It started off well enough. The Sox scored 3 in the first but Jose Quintana imploded giving up 7 runs to the Twins in the second inning. Phil Humber provided nothing to get the weak crowd excited about in the fifth. 8 of the 10 runs scored were off Humber when the Twins took a commanding 17-4 lead.
From there on out the likes of Jose Lopez, Hector Gimenez, Dan Johnson, and Ray Olmedo took over and rode out the embarrassing loss in front of only 15,000+ at the game.
It would've been nice to get this one too seeing the Indians again pulled out another victory over the Tigers meaning the Sox will still hold on to their 1 game lead in the division heading into tomorrow afternoon's series finale against the Twins.
It's never easy with this team.
Monday, September 3, 2012
It's a 29 game season
For whatever reason Detroit has become "one of those places" for the Sox. This year, they have lost 8 of 9 played in Comerica Park (including this past weekends sweep) and last year the Sox were 2-7 at the Tigers ballpark.
Yes, it was a pathetic showing over the weekend for our Sox. Losing three straight and now sharing the A.L. Central lead with the Tigers. All the Sox had to do was win one game this weekend and they would've been two games in front heading home. The sweep by the Tigers erases a hard fought five months of baseball that saw the Sox struggle in April and parts of May before getting their act together and surprising the baseball world and Sox fans by spending much of the season, 103 days of the season, in first place. Now, with the two teams tied for first, it doesn't matter how much the Tigers underachieved this year and how well the Sox have played, there are 29 games to decide the A.L. Central.
The Sox took over first place on May 29 and remained there until mid-June where a series loss to the Cubs of all teams took them down for a bit. The resilient Sox didn't waste any time getting back to the top. An extra inning 1-0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers put the Sox back in first and it wasn't until a loss to the Tigers on July 21 that sent them 1/2 game back. The Tigers were able to sweep the Sox that weekend in July and gained a 1 1/2 game lead in the division. Many thought that would start the downfall of the team but again, the Sox fought back. They went on to win five in a row and regained first place, a spot in which they held on to and still do heading into the final stretch of games in September.
So it's not the ideal situation for the Sox to be in, but if someone said they would be 72-61 and tied for first place on September 3, I think we all would take it. Especially with everyone's expectations of this year's squad.
Before the Sox and Tigers play a four game series next week at The Cell, the Sox will have to take care of business against the Twins and the annoying Royals this week. A 10-game homestand is hopefully a good way to get back to their winning ways as the Sox have lost 7 of their last 10.
There is one long road trip in the middle of September where the Sox will travel to Minnesota, Kansas City, and Anaheim. The final homestand will be against the Indians and Rays before they close out the regular season against the Indians on the road.
Yes, it was a pathetic showing over the weekend for our Sox. Losing three straight and now sharing the A.L. Central lead with the Tigers. All the Sox had to do was win one game this weekend and they would've been two games in front heading home. The sweep by the Tigers erases a hard fought five months of baseball that saw the Sox struggle in April and parts of May before getting their act together and surprising the baseball world and Sox fans by spending much of the season, 103 days of the season, in first place. Now, with the two teams tied for first, it doesn't matter how much the Tigers underachieved this year and how well the Sox have played, there are 29 games to decide the A.L. Central.
The Sox took over first place on May 29 and remained there until mid-June where a series loss to the Cubs of all teams took them down for a bit. The resilient Sox didn't waste any time getting back to the top. An extra inning 1-0 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers put the Sox back in first and it wasn't until a loss to the Tigers on July 21 that sent them 1/2 game back. The Tigers were able to sweep the Sox that weekend in July and gained a 1 1/2 game lead in the division. Many thought that would start the downfall of the team but again, the Sox fought back. They went on to win five in a row and regained first place, a spot in which they held on to and still do heading into the final stretch of games in September.
So it's not the ideal situation for the Sox to be in, but if someone said they would be 72-61 and tied for first place on September 3, I think we all would take it. Especially with everyone's expectations of this year's squad.
Before the Sox and Tigers play a four game series next week at The Cell, the Sox will have to take care of business against the Twins and the annoying Royals this week. A 10-game homestand is hopefully a good way to get back to their winning ways as the Sox have lost 7 of their last 10.
There is one long road trip in the middle of September where the Sox will travel to Minnesota, Kansas City, and Anaheim. The final homestand will be against the Indians and Rays before they close out the regular season against the Indians on the road.
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