baseball: August 2008 Archives

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

Former White Sox reliever Bobby Thigpen's MLB record of 57 saves in a season is in serious jeopardy after the Angels' Francisco Rodriguez picked up his 50th of the season on Sunday.

The Angels don't so much have their sights set on making the playoffs so much as they do on what they're going to do once they get there. That means I wouldn't be surprised to see them rest Rodriguez down the stretch more than if they were in a tight race. But Rodriguez is now so close, I think he can't help but shatter Thigpen's mark. Rodriguez made to 50 faster than anyone else ever, and by a big margin.

Here are the other guys on the single-season list and the number of saves each guy collected by the end of the day on Aug. 24. Take note of the two Cubs on the list.

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

SI.com is reporting that former White Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia is going to the Tigers on a minor-league deal.

I know the radar readings are down for Garcia, and that likely scared some teams away, but I'm still surprised Garcia didn't get a richer major league contract for two years. Teams have done it before. Jon Lieber's deal with the Yankees after elbow surgery a few years back comes to mind.

Part of me is disappointed the Sox didn't make a harder push for Garcia, especially after Jose Contreras' season-ending injury. While Garcia could be frustrating to watch labor at times, they called him Big Game Freddy for a reason. Game 5 of the 2005 of the World Series, and his one-hit loss to Johan Santana were just two of my favorite Garcia performances.

We'll have to see what Garcia has to give a team the rest of this season.

By the way, aren't the Tigers out of it yet?

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

...White Sox left fielder Carlos Quentin, at least up to this point according to ESPN's Jayson Stark.

Stark runs the numbers, and leaning heavily on OPS (on-base percentage and slugging) favors Quentin over Texas' Josh Hamilton, viewing those two sluggers as the main contenders.

I'll add to the equation this: Quentin is fourth in the AL in OPS, but has also played more games than any of the guys ahead of him. (Milton Bradley, Alex Rodriguez and J.D. Drew).

By Erik Jacobsen
Staff Writer

Everyone has their favorite sports weekends of the year. Some love the first weekend of the NCAA Tournament, others love the opening weekend of the NFL and some really get excited about Daytona 500 weekend.

Although this isn't traditionally thought of as a great sports weekend, for those of us in Chicago it certainly deserves a look this year. Simply put, there's something for every sports fan over the next three days.

On the local front, Chicago's two first-place baseball teams are both at home in a pair of high-profile series. The Cubs host arch-rival St. Louis with a chance to bury the Cardinals' hopes in the NL Central. Meanwhile, the defending champion Red Sox are paying a visit to U.S Cellular, where the White Sox will try to prove they have what it takes to make a lengthy run in October.

The excitement extends well beyond Chicago, though, as Phil Mickelson, Sergio Garcia and others are vying to win golf's final major of the season at the PGA Championship at Oakland Hills in Michigan.

As if that isn't enough, the Beijing Olympics are also starting up on the other side of the world. NBC will be providing sports nuts with around-the-clock coverage, so there will never be a moment when you can't catch come some action. Who's up for some air rifle Saturday morning?

Throw in Saturday's Arlington Million at Arlington Race Track, the continuing NASCAR Nextel Cup chase and the building excitement over NFL training camp and it's clear there's plenty to keep an eye on this weekend. So find your favorite spot on the couch and make yourself comfortable because it doesn't get much better than this.

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

I love baseball's Aug. 31 trade deadline. It doesn't provide the rampant speculation the July 31 non-waiver deadline does, but I think it's much more interesting because of the waiver process.

Teams put almost all of their players on waivers, both to gauge interest from other teams and to sometimes slip guys through under a smokescreen of names. But the claiming team has to be careful, because if they're not they could be awarded a player and his bloated contract.

The best example I can think of is when the Blue Jays unloaded former Cubs closer Randy Myers on the Padres in 1998. The Pads put in a claim to make sure the Braves wouldn't get the lefty. The Jays, after giving him an ill-advised deal the previous offseason, said "Go ahead and have him."

For less than 15 crappy innings of work from Myers, the Padres ended up having to pay more than $14 million.

So teams think twice before putting in claims, and that's why the Cubs were able to squeeze a decent relief prospect out of the Phillies for Scott Eyre. While Eyre's price tag wasn't nearly as high as Myers' was, it was high enough to keep other teams from blocking the trade.

With paychecks in baseball now bigger than ever, I expect a couple more big contracts to change hands this month.

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

If the White Sox beat the Tigers tonight, does it put an end to Detroit's season? The Tigers would be 9.5 games back and chasing two teams. I think it does.

In 2005, the Indians were 13 games behind the Sox at the end of the day on Aug. 7. As we remember, the Tribe almost caught up, coming as close as 1.5 games with less than two weeks left in the season.

So while it's not impossible for a team to get hot and storm back into the race, I feel comfortable writing off the Tigers. Besides being behind the Sox AND the Twins, this team isn't clicking on all cylinders like the Indians were a few years ago. In fact, Detroit will be the loser of seven straight if they can't avoid a sweep tonight. The pitching just isn't there for the Tigers in the rotation or the bullpen.

Now if only the Twins can take a similar nosedive.

By Tim Masmar
Staff Writer

Warning: The kids were napping and I had some time to kill. Besides, Chris "blogger" Pummer needed a break.

What if Green Bay sabotages Brett Favre's physical? Can't play, sorry. Maybe you should go home now. Please? I'll give you money.

Maybe Aaron Rodgers will be the one that gets traded.

Does anybody know the Web Site for Green Bay's practice webcam?

Brett Favre to the Minnesota Vikings by the end of the week -- 60% chance.

Let's just say Manny Ramirez hits 10-15 homers and drives in 30 runs the remaining two months with his new team, my beloved Los Angeles Dodgers. Without a clear-cut NL MVP standing out right now, could he win the league's award if he leads the Dodgers to the playoffs?

I have no doubt the Dodgers would have just been swept by the Diamondbacks without his acquisition (the steal of the century). In three games, he's already saved OUR season.

You can keep the hair Manny! It works!

I would have said Philly's Chase Utley (.292, 28 HR, 77 RBIs) until recently, but he's just too streaky (trust me, I have him on my fantasy team). Manny's current stats (combined AL/NL) -- .310, 22, 73.

In my book, Josh Hamilton (.308, 26, 106) is the front-runner for the AL MVP regardless of how crappy the Rangers are. I have a feeling Tampa Bay's Evan Longoria (.279, 21, 67), the clear-cut ROY, also will deserve some consideration when it's all said and done, especially if the surprising Rays win the division. This could be the year a starting pitcher wins the MVP, in either league. What about K-Rod (45 saves)?

Wouldn't a Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Boston Red Sox World Series be interesting?

That two-run slide at home plate the other night by the Astros involving Mark Loretta and Hunter Pence, the trailing runner, was awesome!

Can we just name Ron Gardenhire and Tony LaRussa the Managers of the Year every season?

I love it. Crazy Ozzie when talking about beanball: "I wonder why the guy thought we're going to hit the guy with the bases loaded, with a pitch in on the hands. I'm not going to bring in a guy who throws 85 mph to hit somebody. I will bring [Octavio] Dotel, I'll bring [Matt] Thornton. Then I will tell them to hit 'em. That's the way I do business."

Dodgers second baseman Jeff Kent after Sunday's victory: "I didn't know whether or not to give Manny a high-five after he struck out in the seventh, because they were cheering him pretty good out there. That just puts it in perspective. There is a lot of excitement going on right now with the fans."

Hey, R.J.: "I'm going to need Aug. 12th off (Madden '08 release date)."

R.I.P. Skip Caray. Unfortunately I had to listen to your funny voice a bunch of times growing up (TBS), but I grew to like you.

I'm going to start this by saying I'm a Vikings fan. So as an outsider looking in at the Chicago Bears I feel sorry for the devoted fans who are holding out hope that this team will ever win more than six games this season, and that will be in large part to defensive scores and Devin Hester.

A quarterback "battle" between Rex Grossman and Kyle Orton (who I once covered as a senior at Altoona High School in Iowa) is laughable and downright disgusting.

Fans of this storied franchise deserve better options than what this team is running out there, particularly with a championship-worthy defense -- and Devin Hester. Bottom line, when your kicker is your best offensive threat, outside a bomb to Devin Hester, or a diving catch in the back of the end zone by Mary Booker (lol), you've got some serious problems.

The way I look at it, it's Kyle's job to lose. How depressing is that?

Then again, I am a Vikings fan. I know you could say the same thing about Tarvaris Jackson and Gus Frerotte, but at least Jackson has some upside. As for Frerotte, I'd still take him over Rex and Kyle, or Kyle and Rex, depending on the day.

Cris Carter (1,101 rec., 13,899 yards, 130 TDs) should have been a first-ballot Hall of Famer. He was better than Art Monk (940, 12,721, 68). I have to say I was a little miffed about Carter getting slighted. He is one of the greats.

That's it. The monitor is flashing. Somebody's up from their nap.

By Erik Jacobsen
Staff Writer

Cubs fans might be somewhat gleeful over the news that the White Sox fell out of first place with their ugly loss to the Royals on Sunday. But I suggest that fans on both sides of town pull hard for both teams to reach the postseason.

It's time for Chicago baseball fans to put aside their differences for a few months and look out for the best interests of both teams. In my opinion, the two squads would without a doubt benefit from having their crosstown rival in the playoffs.

The way I see it, instead of having the intense media focus on just one team, it would take pressure off both teams if playoff baseball were being played on both the South Side and North Side. Instead of hysterical headlines about one squad's rise or demise, the teams would have to share Chicago's consciousness, which probably wouldn't be a bad thing as the first round or two of the postseason could have a business-as-usual atmosphere.

Of course, the Sox didn't need the Cubs around three years ago when they won the World Series. But for a Cubs franchise 100 years removed from its last title, any little advantage could help, and having the Sox around come October might just ease the mind of the team's players and fans.

With those practical rationales aside, who in their right mind could argue against having both teams in the playoffs, simply based on the sheer spectacle such a situation would provide. And who knows, maybe the competitive juices would make both teams refuse to lose for fear of letting down their fan bases, setting up the dream scenario of a meeting between the Cubs and Sox in the Fall Classic.

By Chris Pummer
Staff Writer

I could rip Ken Griffey Jr.'s defense in center field, but that's already happening all over the internet here and here.

Unless you think Rob Mackowiak did just fine playing CF in 2006, you have to be concerned about Griffey patrolling the biggest part of the ballpark.

Griffey might only have two MLB games at first base under his belt, and on-the-job training during a pennant race is never ideal. But it's still probably the best place to hide his glove.