Nathaniel Whalen

Last year I was pretty convinced that as Scott Podsednik goes, so go the White Sox.

That's why I was sure when Scotty finally got his first hit of the season today and scored the go-ahead run in the 8th inning, the White Sox would win. Instead they lost 4-3 after Mike Sweeney again killed the South Siders with a fantastic piece of hitting on what Darrin Jackson called a change up on television (I thought it was a slider, but I wasn't there).

So then I thought to myself, what's the other factor that could explain the Sox' losing?

Hmmmmmmmm, maybe Jermaine Dye. He hasn’t played the last three game because of a knot in his left calf and the Sox have lost all three. So . . . . . .

So I went to the record books from a season ago and checked it out. Lo and behold, the quiet right fielder who seems to blend in all the time had so much more to do with the White Sox winning and losing than I thought--or there were just a lot of coincidences.

When Jermaine Dye was in the lineup last season and did not get a hit, the South Siders were a paltry 21-28. Though the Sox were more along their overall record without Dye in the lineup (12-5), add those two together and the White Sox were 33-33 when Jermaine Dye did not get a hit last season, whether he played or not.

They were 66-30 (.688 winning percentage) when the right fielder got at least one base knock last year.

This year, Dye went 3-for-3 in the season opener and the White Sox won easily. However, he left in the first inning of the second game of the season because of a knot in his left calf and the White Sox haven't won since (0-4).

So, I have amended my statement: As Dye goes, so go the White Sox.