Nathaniel Whalen

Here’s an interesting one. The Sox press release:

“FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Saturday, September 29, 2007


WHITE SOX AND A.J. PIERZYNSKI AGREE ON TWO-YEAR EXTENSION


CHICAGO – The Chicago White Sox have agreed to terms on a two-year, $12.5-million contract extension with catcher A.J. Pierzynski. Pierzynski still will receive a salary of $5.85 million in 2008 as called for in the final year of the three-year contract he signed with the White Sox on December 19, 2005. Under terms of the extension, he will be paid $6.25 million each year from 2009-10.

Pierzynski, 30, is hitting .263 (124-472) with 14 home runs and 50 RBI in 136 games with the White Sox in 2007. He ranks third among American League catchers in games played and is tied for fifth in home runs. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound Pierzynski owns a current 89-game errorless streak.

Pierzynski is a career .284 (950-3,340) hitter with 85 home runs and 440 RBI over 10 major-league seasons with Minnesota (1998-2003), San Francisco and the White Sox (2005-). In three seasons with the Sox, he has batted .272 (392-1,441) with 48 home runs and 170 RBI.

Over the last seven seasons (2001-07), Pierzynski ranks fourth among major-league catchers in doubles (196), tied for fourth in extra-base hits (292), fifth in hits (914), runs scored (393) and games played (916), sixth in average (.284) and seventh in RBI (425).

Pierzynski, a two-time AL All-Star (2002 and 2006), set a White Sox record for catchers with 150 hits in 2006 and hit a career-high 18 home runs in 2005. He also set an AL record with 962 consecutive errorless chances accepted from April 18, 2005-May 19, 2006, breaking Yogi Berra’s mark of 950 set between 1957-59.

Pierzynski has played on teams that have a combined .552 winning percentage (534-434) since 2002, with five of the six teams winning at least 90 games. He was a member of the White Sox 2005 World Championship club.”

“I have a pitching coach, not a magician.”

That’s what Ozzie Guillen had to say about Mike MacDougal, who was charged with two runs in 1 inning in Tuesday’s 9-5 loss to KC. One of those runs came in on a wild pitch.

The thing about MacDougal is everyone on the Sox loves his stuff. They love his sinker and his fastball. They love that, when he’s on, he gets key strikeouts and can be dominant.

They hate the not knowing. They hate not knowing if he’s going to be on during any given game, or if he’ll implode. Clearly Guillen is getting sick of that, and just listening to him, he might be happy if MacDougal does not return in 2008.

Ken Williams, on the other hand, is enamored with the stuff and will probably want to bring him back.

This could be an interesting internal battle to watch this winter.

Ozzie Guillen is back through at least 2012.

This is, unequivocally, a great move.

He’s a good fit for this city, a good fit for this team and not afraid to trade away anyone who doesn’t fit in (ask Carlos Lee and/or Damaso Marte). He is over .500 for his career, won more than 90 games twice in four seasons and won the World Series in 2005. That's the good.

The bad: This year, he’s abused the bullpen – but I honestly believe that’s just because no one could get any outs and he’s trying to do something, anything that could work. He remained quiet too long, something he admits he screwed up and has vowed to correct. Not quite sure what he could have done about the offense, but no one really has any clue there.

Nearly every player will say this season is their fault for not performing.

But the interesting question about the extension is the timing.

So, really, why did the Sox just extend the contract of a man who has led them to a tie for the worst record in the majors as of 9:31 Tuesday night?

“This was an easy decision,” general manager Ken Williams said. “I suspect in some areas it’s going to be a popular decision and in some it’s not going to play so well. I really don’t care.
“I know what I have, and I know what we’re trying to accomplish. I’ve never been afraid of making a decision that’s a little unpopular. I don’t care. I care where we’re going.”

Williams went on to say, among other things, that the move is timed right now so that it can be over and done with heading into what figures to be a hectic offseason.

“I want to let everyone in that clubhouse know heading into the offseason. We always sit down with our players for a season-ending discussion. One by one the coaches will sit down, Ozzie will sit down with them. We've got plans to make. He's got to know, the players need to know, the fans need to know that this thing, we're far from done here. We've had a very disappointing year, but my coaching staff is getting better as the days go by.”

And . . .

“I have a lot of other things to tend to in regards to the organization and future planning. It was just matter of me getting back in the office and getting focused and getting Jerry in the room at the same time. Things came together pretty quickly.”

So, for all of you that are surprised by this move:

“I'm sure they are, but we've been down this road. Hell, I was a surprise too when I was named assume the position. We do things here that we think are right for our own reasons and we don't do things haphazardly. We've put a lot of thought into it, a lot of consideration of which way we're going. If people don't understand that, I can't do anything about that, because I'm not going to tell them of all the conversations that we have in the back rooms.”

I don’t claim to hear all of those conversations, but other than a few comments about his use of the bullpen and younger players, I haven’t heard any players question anything about Guillen’s managing. They love him, or at least respect him, which is more important.

No matter how many airhead columnists write it, he hasn’t lost the locker room, he doesn’t yell and rant at his players on a regular basis and they do genuinely enjoy playing for someone who’s a straight shooter.

“He’s pretty much a laid back manager,” Jermaine Dye said. “He expects you to go out there and give you 100 percent and if you don’t he’ll say something to you. But, pretty much he lets you go out there and play the game. Doesn’t have too many rules – just be here on time and be out there for the Anthem. Other than that, play hard and we win or lose as a team. He’s played the game before, he knows what the struggles are about and he just tries to keep us in an even keeled mindset of not getting too high or getting too low.”

So, is it nice to have someone who will tell you when you’ve done wrong, but also when you’ve done right?

“Oh yeah,” Dye continued. “You don’t want to be looking over your shoulders wonder what a manager’s thinking, constantly looking at the office wondering if you’re struggling if you’re not going to be in the lineup. He’s going to put you in the lineup and keep you there, give you a day here and there if he feels like you need it. That’s what good about managers who have played the game before, they understand the ups and downs of the game and how hard it is to play hard every day. He understands that.”

Let the criticism begin -- and it already has -- but I love this move.

A two-hour, 23-minute rain delay, the game ending at 12:36 a.m. on Tuesday morning in front of roughly 200 fans at the Cell.

Yeah, Monday’s game was useless.

The gist is the Sox lost 6-2 and no one knows why the umpires waiting that long to continue playing.

That is all from the press box . . . . for a couple of hours.

Friday’s game goes to show how absurd baseball is.

After a six-run top of the ninth and six-run bottom of the frame, the Sox and Twins headed into extra innings.

In the bottom of the 13th with men on first and second and one out, Scott Podsednik hits a chopper to second. Second baseman Nick Punto fields it and throws to second for the apparent force out. Instead, umpire Joe West said the throw pulled the shortstop off the bag and everyone was safe. Bases loaded one out instead of men on the corners and two outs.

Because of that, shortstop Jason Bartlett has to play up the middle to try and turn a double play and can’t field A.J. Pierzynski’s ground ball – which became the game-winning single. If there are two outs, Bartlett is playing at his regular position, fields the ball and the game goes into the 14th. Instead, 11-10 Sox win.

Oh well.

It was the first time in Sox history they were down by six runs or more in the ninth then came back to tie. The six-run deficit matches the largest they've overcome this season. They had a season-high 19 hits.

Thoughts after the game:

Ozzie: "That’s baseball, weird baseball. It was a crazy, ugly game."

“We showed a little bit we didn’t give up and maybe a few fans will wake up in the morning and say ‘wow, they won’ because they left in the seventh.”

He admitted that he sent Terrero to pinch-hit in the bottom of the 9th of what was a 10-4 game because he thought it was over and it was a good time for the utility outfielder to get an at-bat while he rehabs.

“I’m managing the White Sox, 2007,” Guillen’s thoughts after the six-run top of the ninth. “Another bad game we have. We weren’t ready for balls hit to us.”

Heath Phillips on his first major league win:
"I was up stretching as soon as we got all them runners on (in the bottom of the ninth). I was ready to go."

Thome, who hit a 3-run homer to make it a 10-9 game in the ninth:
"It was big, it is. Everyone is happy. I think we set a record, they announced, in the ninth. They battled, we battled."

Ever seen anything like that before?
“No, no, not the ninth. That was pretty special.”

“(The homer) felt good, it felt good. This one was kind of nice because we played a really good team. Hopefully this will give us a little momentum to end the season.”

Sorry about the long absence. I’m about as motivated as the Sox are right now.

Aside from the GM's comments on Guillen’s future and Floyd’s status (see Thursday’s stories), the most interesting part of Wednesday’s pregame was Ozzie Guillen’s reactions to former teammate Chipper Jones’ comments about the umpires.

“I’m not going to say he’s right because I don’t criticize umpires, strikes or balls, safe and out,” Guillen said. “Some umpires, not everyone, they have attitude and it’s not good for the game. Some umpires, you go out there and talk to them, you talk to them as a human being, you can understand them better. But when they give you attitude, all of a sudden both sides (have an) attitude (and that) is not a good combo.”

Guillen went on to say that the umpires’ attitudes have gotten worse in recent years.

“Oh yeah, I think so. Not everyone, but you go out there and they’re ready for you to say something and then they jump all over you. Believe me, I don’t think any manager in baseball is going to get thrown out of the game because safe or out, home run is fair or foul. They’re going to get thrown out of the game because the umpire comes at them. I’m not saying that an umpire has to take abuse from the players, coaches or managers, but hopefully the relationship gets better. There is nothing wrong with saying, ‘Hey, I thought I was wrong or I missed the play.’ When you start going back and forth that’s when a lot of problems start.’’

So, what if he were commissioner?

“Well I would take a look at it real well and make sure those guys work together and have the same attitude -- they have to be realistic with them. If they are going to suspend them, no one has to know about it. But it will be ugly with everyone talking about it. Every time you turn on the TV it’s ugly on the field between the two. There’s no shame in saying, ‘You know what? I think I missed the call and that’s it.’ You ask them one question and they jump out at you. They’re human beings, they’re going to miss calls and I’m fine with that. But the attitude is the thing we have to make better.’’

There’s one particular person in the press box who is anti-umpires, saying they’re pompous, think they can’t do any wrong and show players up when they wouldn’t put up with the same treatment themselves. I’m not sure I’d go that far, but it is pretty incredible how much they get away with on a regular basis.

Then again, it’s also pretty impressive how often they get the calls right.

I think it certainly needs to become more publicized when umpires get calls wrong or show players and/or managers up and are suspended for that. That might create some accountability that is otherwise missing.

GM Ken Williams made it sound in Wednesday’s story that it’s not a given at all that Joe Crede will be back. If he is healthy and does return, though, the question is what will the team do with Fields?

He will stay on the roster, Williams said. As far as moving to left field, well . . .

“I first need to get a read on Joe, then we really have to do some short range and long range planning . . .,” Williams said.
“When given the choice, generally I always lean towards what’s best for right now. That’s just the way I am. The good thing about it is Josh is such a good athlete that he’s not anchored to third base. But he’s shown improvement, he’s shown he’s going to play over there, but we also have a guy who has made World Series, Gold Glove caliber plays over at third. In fairness to everyone, we’re going to let it play out, see how josh finishes the season, take a look at how Joe’s progress is and make a decision.”

Guillen doesn’t sound too enthused about the possibility of Fields in left, but that’s because he stresses defense and the rookie isn’t as quick as the manager would like from a left fielder.

“Joe’s going to play third and this kid, I don’t know,” Guillen said. “I don’t think this kid -- he’s proven he can play in the big leagues and he’s proven he can be better. But, in the end of the day, we have a decision to be made and that decision’s not easy. It’s up to Crede’s contract, Crede’s health, how we can use him. The way we’re going to do it, believe me, it’s going to be the best for the ballclub. We’re not going to do anybody any favors, we’re not going to please anybody. We went through so much and blamed (for things), we’re not going to just make people happy and smile ‘okay, we do whatever they think we should do.’ Whatever Kenny, myself and the coaching staff do, it’s going to be the best decision for the club. What’s going to be the best decision. I don’t know that yet.”