"Carlos Gomez is a stud."

I didn’t watch the entire game. After the Sox went up 6-1 I thought we had it. Floyd on the mound, a significant lead, the game was in the bag.

But as the Twins do best, they chipped, and chipped, and tied, and there, the guy hitting two something with RISP singles-in the winning run.

Sure there was another blown call by the umpiring crew (third in the game, if I believe the threads in the sox blogosphere).

This time around, however, the biggest of the Sox flaws was front and center. No bullpen. Technically, the Sox are still in it but now they have to regain the lead they once had. And that’s only if the Twins are willing to relinquish it.

As I noted in my first post previewing this series, the Twinkies have been a better hitting team than the Sox; and in all honesty, it surprises me that this didn’t happen earlier in the latter half of the season.

As much as I hate to admit that the Sox don’t deserve it, we’re still tied in the loss column. Let’s go!!

Well here we are, two games down, one to go in the “decisive” Twins-White Sox series and the Twinkies have done the impossible, they’ve made this an interesting race!

I guess the Sox see urgency of a (shrinking) half-game lead becoming larger in the rear view mirror with a mere three (or four) games to play after tonight’s final game between Pale Hose and Mellizos. Who knew such a slim lead in late September would be interesting?

Last night’s game exposed the White Sox as a team that lacks punch, clutch hitting, and swagger. They stranded eight runners, and the only offensive production came off Ken Griffey, Jr.’s bat. Two double plays, one by Jermaine Dye and another by Orlando Cabrera; Alexei Ramirez caught in a run-down between third and home; and a very overwhelmed Dewayne Wise going 0fer, and leaving four runners in scoring position all on his own.

For what it’s worth (and at this point, it’s a lot), the Twins did what they do best, bloop singles, running out infield squiblers, slapping the ball the other way, hitting up the middle when it counts; pitching and defense (Carlos Gomez, I hate your freakin’ guts).

But keep in mind, the final score was 3-2. A one-run game. I’m sorry, the Twins deserved to win because the White Sox simply do not (and have not had) the will to win this thing.

So, let’s gather some more he said, he said from the webs:

“I think it does a little bit.”

– Mark Buehrle speaking on the notion that the Twins and their Metrodome are gnawing at the Sox’ collective psyche.

“If we lose this thing, it’s not because we’re scared or we’re tired or we panicked,” Guillen said beforehand. “We’re going to go out there and fight. Some people fight better than others in some situations.”

– Ozzie, on hoping his team catches a spark in these last few games.

I love Hawk Harrelson, but blaming the White Sox’s latest embarrassment in the Metrodome on Wednesday on a bad call at second base is just silly.

Sure, Mark Buehrle had Carlos Gomez picked off. Orlando Cabrera did a great job of blocking the base. Umpire Andy Fletcher blew it.

But guess what? Buhrle could’ve gotten a couple outs after that. I’m not bashing my favorite Sox pitcher here. He was just about everything the Sox needed. It just wasn’t enough, and the reason is the offense.

– Steve Rosenbloom, on the apparent insitence (it’s a habit) by the Sox broadcaster to blame losses on blown calls by the umpires.

I agree with Rosenbloom 100%. I was watching the game with my friend Joeff, and yes, that was a blown call. But I keep going back to the goose eggs our Big Boppers kept putting up. No excuses Hawk.

”We’re where we want to play,” first baseman Justin Morneau said, ”and we’ve got them where we want them.”

– Morneau on having the Sox against the ropes.

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With all that said, here’s a little poll action:

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White Sox and Twins begin a "decisive" series tonigth. That is, unless, Twins win two outta three, and then we're pretty much back where we started.

As I’m sure all of you were eagerly anticipating the showdown of showdowns, tonight is game número uno of the final, and decisive, series between the Twins and the White Sox. A minuscule two-and-a-half games separate them in the standings and with this three-game series, it could all be said and done come Friday morning. Or the Twins could win two of three and this thing would literally come down to the wire (but don’t blame me for the apathy, that’s exactly where we were two months ago).

And so, to preview tonight’s match in the Dome of Doom (as melissa would say), a fun game of he said, he said:

”He hasn’t been,” Guillen said Sunday of Vazquez as a big-game pitcher, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. “That’s the bottom line.”

– Ozzie calling out Tonight’s starter, Javier Vazquez

“One thing Ozzie said, and it has been in my head the whole year, and I think in one of the meetings I mentioned it, we don’t act like we are in first place,” Cabrera said. “We don’t look like the team to beat. It seems like we are hoping for a win every day, and I don’t think that that’s the right attitude. Once the other team scores before us, that’s what it seems like.

“There are a couple of things that we are missing, but at the end of the day, we have done a pretty good job so far. I think we have enough to go to the postseason. We will see what happens after that.”

– Orlando Cabrera on the Sox lack of hunger for the pennant.

“That’s our goal,” Guillen, the Chicago White Sox manager, said during a weekend series against Kansas City. “I hope that happens. I’ve seen Minnesota clinch in my ballpark once. I hope we can clinch in theirs.”

– Ozzie on the want to clinch in the Metrodome.

”I’m never going up there,” Williams said. ”Bad things happen whenever I go up there. Twelve more games [until the Twins get a new ballpark in 2010]. Twelve more games.”

– Kenny Williams, back in August, speaking of his disdain of said Metrodome.

“This is what it’s all about — big games in September,” Twins catcher Mike Redmond said. “Who’d have thought we’d be playing big games in September when we were in spring training after losing all those guys [Torii Hunter, Johan Santana, etc.]?”

– Twins catcher Mike Redmond on the improbability of either team being in the pennant race this year.

And of course, from the same Star-Tribune article:

“I think we’re ready,” Guillen told reporters Sunday in Kansas City. “Mentally, these guys should be prepared to go out and play hard and play well. That’s all you can do.

“And make sure you grab a big net and get those piranhas and put some poison in the water to make their teeth fall out.”

–

And for the record: The White Sox are 1-5 at the Metrodome in 2008. They’ve been outscored 33-23, they’re hitting .264 and their starting pitchers have a combined 5.40 ERA.

Goooo Sox!

The secondary story line from last night’s Twins-Rays game was the very apathetic AL Central race. Sure the Rays clinched their first ever playoff berth and all, but what continues to amaze me is how, as the season winds down, I’m slowly coming to the realization that I could’ve guessed the outcome of this pennant race two months ago simply by thinking nothing was gonna change.

Ain't it a bit premature, Twins fans?

The Twins are a team that seems to be running on fumes, but then the White Sox can’t figure out the Royals’ Kyle Davies, a 8-7 pitcher who threw 65% of his pitches last night for strikes.

At least the Twinkies are making their postseason plans, selling “postseason strips,” as opposed to Ozzie’s hesitation on setting the playoff roster (yes, I know, the Sox are also planning their playoff ticket sale, but Twins’ strips are on sale now). You’d think the White Sox knew this was a pennant race.

OK maybe I shouldn’t come down too hard on the Sox; to their credit, as opposed to previous seasons, they’re hitting homeruns with runners on base, but because of that, you have a game like last night’s, where the tying run is mere inches away from coming home off the bat of Jermaine Dye. Instead the ball ends up in Mark Teahen’s mitt and the game ends with Thome, another “big bopper” as Ken “The Hawk” Harrelson would say, striking out swinging.

So where are we now? Exactly where we were on Thursday, with a two-and-a-half game gap between Pale Hose and Twinkies, and their “decisive” three-game series looming on Tuesday.

Sure, Juan Uribe has been a pleasant, defensive surprise at third, but he still swings for the fences on pitches in the dirt (62 Ks in 286 ABs).

After Wednesday night’s loss to the Yankees, the White Sox were two and a half games ahead of the Twins in the AL Central. The Indians finalized a three-game sweep of the Twinkies, highlighted by  Joe Nathan’s first-ever allowed, walk-off home run Tuesday night.

Tonight, the Sox lost again and the Twins managed to come back and win against the Rays. They’re now one and a half games out. With 11 games remaining, however, it’s becoming less likely that the Twins will overcome Chicago and win the pennant.

But don’t think the White Sox are playing like they deserve it.

It’s not news the Sox have been a .500ish team in the second half, but what’s caught my attention is that the Twins haven’t taken advantage of it, and as a result have been two games or less behind first place for a good month and a half.

The truth is you can attribute most of the Sox’ woes to the injury bug. Their pitching suffered setbacks early on with Jose Contreras’ torn Achille’s tendon and setup man Scott Linebrink’s sore shoulder.

At the same time the bullpen hasn’t been the same rock-solid crop of guys that overachieved in the first-half, and as such, the team has barely manage to hang on to frst place.

”Our bullpen is struggling right now,” Guillen said, ”and that’s why I’m trying to keep the starters in as long as I can.”

It's there for the taking, Twins' fans, you just gotta want it more...

On top of all that, the offense took a couple of hits lately with Carlons Quentin (and his MVP-like numbers) and Paul Konerko going down.

Sure the injury bug has hurt the team, but that doesn’t excuse the lackluster seasons that the offseason acquisitions are putting up. Orlando Cabrera (.281/.336/.369) took a while to get his offensive numbers up, and Nick Swisher’s numbers are slightly down in comparison to last year’s (but nothing that’ll carry a team to the promised land).

In other words, the Sox are barely chugging along, getting some occasional offensive brilliance from people like Cuban rookie Alexei Ramirez and clutch hitting from Jim Thome (and some of the bench guys), but they’re not running away with it.

In fact, it almost seems like it’s the Twins that don’t want to win it. They’re 13-17 in the past 30 games (Sox are 16-14).

It’s actually curious, both Sox and Twins have been more or less in sync in the second half. The Sox would go on a winning streak, threatening to run away with it, and then lose two or three in a row, allowing the Twins to catch up. But then, Minnesota stays right there. What’s more, as a team they’ve scored more runs, have more RBI, have a better team average, and a better on-base percentage than the Sox.

I don’t get it.

But as many a Sox fan, I’ve resorted to a silly game of scoreboard gawking, hoping the Twins manage to lose, and lose, and lose.

I’ll worry about the playoffs when we get there.

Alright, let’s figure out what these teams need to win it all (or make me look like a genius, whichever comes first). I’ll go down the order reflecting today’s standings.

Cleveland Indians: Play some make up games…

Really. The Indians have been very good this year, they’ve scored runs when needed and they’ve pitched effectively when the run support hasn’t been there. But it’s the offense that’s been the catalyst this early in the season – they’re second in the league in runs scored, second in runs batted in, and third in on-base percentage.

Their starting pitching has been there too. Though they’ve employed the services of six starters, three of those have been quality material. Staff Ace C.C. Sabathia has been a stud, going 6-1 with a 3.51 ERA, while Fausto Carmona (2.77 ERA) and Paul Byrd (3.81) have identical 5 and 1 records. Cliff Lee, 2-1, has had brushes with success, but he’s also been disastrous, posting a bloated 5.93 ERA. Their other two starters, Jeremy Sowers and Jake Westbrook might be the prototype fifth starter, destined only to chew-up innings, while keeping the team in the game, hoping the offense pick them up in the end. Their records, 1-4, 1-2, and their ERA, 6.29, 7.90 respectively, though, are not inspiring.

The only problem has been the bullpen; out of the seven relievers that have pitched more than 11 innings, only two have an era under 2.00, while the rest have a 3.10 or higher earned run average.

The Indians have to keep it consistent all season long and they’ll be right there when it’s all said and done. Considering the fact that they still have to play those make up games with Seattle, they might even have a better record than they do now.

Detroit Tigers: Have patience….

The Tigers are anticipating a return trip to the playoffs. The air in this weekend’s series with Cleveland has been filled with aromas of contention, and keep in mind that yesterday’s was the first of 18 meetings between these two teams. Again, it’s the offense that has this team half a game out in the division, and leading the way is a reinvigorated Magglio Ordóñez, he leads the team in average, home runs, runs batted in, runs scored, and on-base percentage.

Gary Sheffield has picked up the pace after a disastrous start, hitting a few points below .300 in May. But if we’re going to point out “what they need,” I’d say their corner infielders have to provide a better offensive presence. Third baseman Brandon Inge has a depressed .218 average, with 17 RBI, while Sean Casey has a meh .259 average, zero home runs and only 9 RBI in 147 AB.

Though the team had a scare due to Jeremy Boderman’s trip to the DL, he returned in top form, blanking out the Angels in 8 innings of work. He would’ve finished the complete game gem, but manager Jim Leyland decided to play it safe.

Chicago White Sox: Ozzie Guillen to shut. Up.

And let the team do it’s thing. I have to say, Ozzie’s been a distraction; first there was his rant on Mike North’s show, which then turns into A.J. Pierzynski getting into some weird thing with Mark Buehrle. Now Ozzie’s been issuing warnings for the past two weeks; the hitters, the bench, then the relievers. Good thing the starters have done their job, otherwise Guillen would be pointing the finger at everybody.

But really, what the Sox need is to stop relying on the long ball and start hitting for average. Yes, Thome was out (and Podsednik is still out), but the Sox are dead last in runs scored (and far behind KC); dead last in RBI (and far behind Baltimore); dead last in batting average (and far away behind Texas); dead last in on-base percentage –do we see a pattern?– and yes (way, far behind Baltimore). Scottie Pods is not going to be the difference in any of those categories.

The Sox had a recent offensive outburst, scoring 10 runs for the first time, following that with an 8 run performance. But that’s all we Sox fans have seen. If your offense doesn’t produce, your relievers are going to have to be perfect almost every time out. That’s just not going to happen.

Ozzie, shut up (at least some); Sox, score some runs.

Minnesota Twins: A new stadium, like, NOW (AKA, money, money, money)

Watching a Sox-Twins game recently, I was listening as their TV people discussed the opening of the new Twins stadium in 2010. They culled figures as to how many people were going to be there every day, packing the new ball park and providing the Twinkies with much needed cash flow, ensuring the team a chance to sign proven free agents, and to keep their talent at home. Wait… it’s not as if the Twins play before a field of cornstalks every day now; people do come out to the games – so what gives? I’m not sure, and I better leave all the stadium economics to Nick.

But really, had the Twins opened their new stadium this year, and thus lined their pockets with some more cash, they might not be facing the prospect of having their Ace Johan Santana opting to test the free agent market, or their veteran leader Torii Hunter for that matter.

In actual baseball terms, aside from their stars (well, Morneaou really), the Twins have no offensive weapons (I mean, c’mon, how long did you thing the whole piranha thing was really going to last? Nick Punto?!). Plus, Joe Mauer’s been hurt.

Combine that with the necessity to sign Sidney Ponson (Sidney Ponson!) and Ramon Ortiz to be the back of their rotation, and the prospects are bleak at best. The Twins have started to slide, but, of course, they’ll probably find a way to win as they always do. I’m just not sure how they’ll do it this year.

Oh and when one of their star bloggers, Bat Girl, calls it quits, then you know the shit’s hit the fan.

Kansas City Royals: Are you serious?

The Kansas City Royals need… well, they need to stop signing “super subs” to be their every day players; the need to stop signing overpriced, unproven veterans to front their rotation, and they need to keep their young talented stars.

You can start by moving to another city, or perhaps coaxing the locals to pay up for a new stadium, or, better yet, spend those revenue sharing dollars on things other tan Gil Meche. Then you guys will contend.

We all knew coming into the season that the AL Central was going to be one tough division. Last year the Tigers roared to an incredible start and were able to hold on to first place up until the very last day of the season when the Twinkies, surging as they always do, took over the AL Central crown.

Meanwhile, though they won 90 games, the White Sox saw themselves as not quite up to task with their division rivals, finishing third.

Well, the difference this year is that after one month of play, the contending teams in the toughest division in baseball have put out a collective press release announcing that they’ll be here all year long, thank you very much, and it’s up to the rest (read, White Sox) of the division to keep up.

As of April 30, the ChiSox were fourth but only 2.5 games behind division-leading Cleveland, and 1.5 games behind Detroit and Minnesota.

After last night’s 5-2 loss to the Mariners, the ChiSox are 3.5 games behind first.

“It’s Appprrillll,” my brother would say.

It’s actually May, and this is the AL Central. If we’re going to learn anything from last year’s experience, the ChiSox, the last team from said division to win the World Series, matched the Tiger’s hand up until the All-Star break.

If they can’t keep up with two other excellent clubs, in April, then forget it.

It’s actually surprising the Sox have a .500 record. Their offense ranks second to last in runs scored in the AL, third to last in RBI, fourth to last in OBP, second to last in Extra Base Hits, and dead last in Team BA with runners in scoring position.

Of the only three players who’re hitting above .250, two, Thome (.340) and Podsednik (.303) are on the DL. The other, Darin Erstad, is hitting eight grams over .250.

In fact, the only reason los Medias Blancas are where they are is the long ball. They’re tied for second with four other clubs and only two dingers behind Tampa Bay (?).

The bats will get hotter, you say?

Center fielder Darin Erstad has a glass-half-full view of the White Sox’ April hitting struggles.

”Survival,” he said of the team’s 12-11 record in April despite having the lowest team batting average (.229) in baseball. ”We could have done better, but we didn’t dig ourselves too big a hole. It’ll turn around.

”There’s no question the hitting will come around. Every team goes through it. It happens to be the first month for us. It’s just the way the game works. One thing about being down early, there are good things to come.”

[...]

”It’s good because it will make us stingier,” Cooper said. ”Everyone knows the reality of it. But this is not unlike 2005 [when the Sox ranked 11th in the 14-team American League in batting and first in team ERA]. All we can control as pitchers is the ball in our hands.”

[...]

”Unfortunately, it’s happened this month that we’re not hitting the ball well as a group, but we’ve been winning games because of clutch hitting and doing the little things,” Guillen said. ”When you’re not hitting well, it’s the pitchers’ jobs to pick it up a notch and try to keep us in the game.

”The pitching staff has to remember we’ve come back in a lot of games. We’ve been down 4-0 in the first inning and come back to win the game. It’s a team game. One hand helps the other. Same way when we’re not pitching — we have to pick up the hitting.”

[...]

”I looked at the schedule for the first month and thought, ‘This is going to be a tough one,”’ Guillen said. ”We haven’t been hitting. When we start hitting, we should be better.

Yea, but…

“I definitely think it’s the best division in baseball from what I’ve seen,” Mike Redmond said.

It hasn’t been an easy road for the Twins in the AL Central so far as the team is 5-7 against their division opponents while 9-4 when facing other AL teams. That isn’t a surprise though, as the belief all along has been that this will be a division that’s going to be a dogfight until the end.

After the first month of the season, the logjam at the top of the AL Central division has the top four teams separated by a total of just 2 1/2 games. Yes, it’s still early but knowing the type of talent that each club brings to the table makes it seem like the fun is just starting.

“Every team is loaded,” Johan Santana said of the division. “They can pitch, they can hit and do the little things. It’s going to be very interesting to see what happens and at the end of the season where each team is going to be. Whoever takes advantage early in the season and does everything they are supposed to do is going to have a good chance to be in the playoffs.”

Is that Travis Hafner and the Indians pulling away at the top?