The Chicago Shite Sox

[Saul Goodman]

They're a 79-83 team without him, an 82-80 financially hamstrung team with him. The second option is more fun.

That's probably about right. But that's their best bet at this point -- build an 82-win true talent team, hope for a bit of good luck and get into a playoff series with Sale, Quintana and Rodon.

I can see Rodon pitching a big playoff shutout just as easily as I can see him walking the world Dempster style and getting Hammel'd in the first inning.

I think the Rodon start vs the Cubs at Wrigley was the most maddening game of the year. He just kept walking everybody, and then every ball they actually put in play went right to someone.

I thought Hamels' no-hitter was.

I think it's a tie between games 1-4 of the NLCS. But the ones you guys mentioned sucked too.

Eh, I define maddening a something other than your usual irritating loss. The NLCS loss was irritating as all get out but it wasn't inexplicable. The Mets had great pitching and the Cubs bats finally went cold.

The Rodon Game was maddening as in nothing about it made sense. He walked 6 guys and I think he even plunked a dude and got away with it becuase the Cubs kept hitting and running into an increasingly absurd series of double plays. It was one of those games where baseball just fucks with you because it can.

Dick Beard the Pirate's inexplicable hot streak made me angry. Every hard hit ball finding the glove of a New York Met made me angry. The Cubs' outfield defense going straight to hell made me angry. I got down on the floor and smacked the hardwood and swore on multiple occasions. If you handled the suffering differently, cool. I was mad.

Man of course I was mad. Who do you think you're talking to? I didn't mean to say the Rodon game was the single most infuriating game of the year, or whatever. For that matter it doesn't even compare to the May series in St. Louis or when Strop gave up that dong to Peralta.

I meant the Rodon game was the most bizarre, Curse of the BABIP God game they had all year. Rodon pitched like absolute garbage, walked six guys, and yet every bit of contact he gave up somehow went straight to somebody. Avi Garcia is like the worst defender in baseball and he made an amazing leaping catch. Alexei Ramirez was pretty close to the worst defender in baseball at the time that game was played and yet he made an amazing diving play/glove flip to double up Starlin. It was just a game where the inexplicable happened over and over.

I have no recollection of that game unless Lester started it, then I think I do. That's how huge that one was.

Lester started the second game against Chris Sale in that series. He gave up 2 runs in the first, then posted 5 scoreless innings and 8 strikeouts, then in the 7th Kris Bryant made an error trying for a double play that led to 1st and 3rd, no outs instead of a man on second and 1 out and Lester gave up 3 more runs. DipShitInHydePark lost his fucking mind over Lester not being elite and stuff.

And on Sunday Arrieta was the very essence of elite and stuff. I must have been working on that Friday and only following the score of the Rodon game. I attended the Hamels no-no and I was more angry at the Cubs fans cheering for Hamels than I was at the team's inability to scratch out a hit against him.

But yeah. Entire Mets series = Anger and Hate until I finally got drunk and went to bed.

Don't lie.  You and Al were high-fiving in left field having witnessed history.

[SKO]

And on Sunday Arrieta was the very essence of elite and stuff. I must have been working on that Friday and only following the score of the Rodon game. I attended the Hamels no-no and I was more angry at the Cubs fans cheering for Hamels than I was at the team's inability to scratch out a hit against him.

But yeah. Entire Mets series = Anger and Hate until I finally got drunk and went to bed.

Here's the box score: http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN201507100.shtml

First inning: Rizzo walked with one out, Bryant GIDP, which was irritating because it rarely happens and if I remember correctly he hit the ball very hard, but oh well, shit happens.

Second inning: Denorfia walks with one out, Castro smokes a ball up the middle, and Alexei Ramirez who had been worth like -720 DRS to that point, give or take a few, managed an amazing diving stop and then glove-flipped the ball to 2B to get the DP. RAGE.

Third inning: Hendricks singles and advances to 2B with one out, Russell walks, then Fowler hits a ball to RF and Avi Garcia and his -30 DRS somehow makes an amazing diving shoe-string grab, then doubles off Hendricks.

Fourth inning: Bryant is on 2nd, Jorge on 1st with one out, Denorfia strikes out swinging and Kris Bryant is caught stealing 3rd base because fuck me who cares

Fifth inning: Cubs go 1-2-3 and I'm almost relieved because they didn't invent a new double play.

Sixth inning: Rodon walks two Cubs, but induces two hard lineouts from Rizzo and Soler that both went directly at Sox defenders.

Cubs ended up losing 1-0 on a sac fly by some fucker named JP Shuck or whatever.

[Saul Goodman]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

[Quality Start Machine]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

[SKO]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

I think Rosenthal made the mistake of thinking Phil Rogers knew what he was talking about because he parroted Phildo's line about the Sox being pretty much a guarantee to land Gordon, Upton, or Cespedes.

They'll probably sign Fowler and while he won't make them good it'll still make me kind of sad. I like Dex. He deserves better.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

I think Rosenthal made the mistake of thinking Phil Rogers knew what he was talking about because he parroted Phildo's line about the Sox being pretty much a guarantee to land Gordon, Upton, or Cespedes.

They'll probably sign Fowler and while he won't make them good it'll still make me kind of sad. I like Dex. He deserves better.

Yeah, nobody deserves that, least of all Dex, without whose contribution vs. Pittsburgh in the coinflip game the Cubs may well not have moved on.  I wouldn't be able to look at the guy in a Sox uniform I'd feel so bad for him.

[InternetApex]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

I think Rosenthal made the mistake of thinking Phil Rogers knew what he was talking about because he parroted Phildo's line about the Sox being pretty much a guarantee to land Gordon, Upton, or Cespedes.

They'll probably sign Fowler and while he won't make them good it'll still make me kind of sad. I like Dex. He deserves better.

Yeah, nobody deserves that, least of all Dex, without whose contribution vs. Pittsburgh in the coinflip game the Cubs may well not have moved on.  I wouldn't be able to look at the guy in a Sox uniform I'd feel so bad for him.

He and his millions of dollars to play baseball and live in Chicago will be ok. And we'll have a White Sox player to give a standing O to in his first AB at Wrigley like a bunch of total jags.

[SKO]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

I think Rosenthal made the mistake of thinking Phil Rogers knew what he was talking about because he parroted Phildo's line about the Sox being pretty much a guarantee to land Gordon, Upton, or Cespedes.

They'll probably sign Fowler and while he won't make them good it'll still make me kind of sad. I like Dex. He deserves better.

Yeah, nobody deserves that, least of all Dex, without whose contribution vs. Pittsburgh in the coinflip game the Cubs may well not have moved on.  I wouldn't be able to look at the guy in a Sox uniform I'd feel so bad for him.

He and his millions of dollars to play baseball and live in Chicago will be ok. And we'll have a White Sox player to give a standing O to in his first AB at Wrigley like a bunch of total jags.

Most important to take everything super serious here. We absolutely expect a professional athlete to have the same childish attitude we have about our team's rival, you were right to come in here and correct us.

[World's #1 Astros Fan]

Lmao at the Mets getting Cespedes for the Sox's desired three years.

They whiffed on Upton too.

I think Rosenthal made the mistake of thinking Phil Rogers knew what he was talking about because he parroted Phildo's line about the Sox being pretty much a guarantee to land Gordon, Upton, or Cespedes.

They'll probably sign Fowler and while he won't make them good it'll still make me kind of sad. I like Dex. He deserves better.

Yeah, nobody deserves that, least of all Dex, without whose contribution vs. Pittsburgh in the coinflip game the Cubs may well not have moved on.  I wouldn't be able to look at the guy in a Sox uniform I'd feel so bad for him.

He and his millions of dollars to play baseball and live in Chicago will be ok. And we'll have a White Sox player to give a standing O to in his first AB at Wrigley like a bunch of total jags.

I laffed at this.

[SKO]

The Sox signed Jimmy Rollins to a minor league deal. Tyler Saladino most likely can't outhit Jimmy Rollins corpse so Jimmy probably wins the SS job for them.

I see a lot of Sox fans saying there's "no downside to this", which is true if you don't count being stuck with either Jimmy Rollins' corpse or Tyler Saladino as your starting SS as downside. The same could be set for the Latos move. They're banking on a lot of dead cat bounces from LaRoche, Cabrera, and Rollins (and also getting literally anything from the turd that is Avi Garcia) in order to contend.

I usually try not go full meatball on Jerry Reinsdorf but this whole offseason smells of him not being willing to commit the money they need to win. They claim it's because see the next 2-3 years as their window while Sale and Abreu are still good and they don't want to commit beyond that, but that excuse got shot to shit with Cespedes signing for three years, Fowler supposedly talking 2/24 with the Orioles, and Desmond seeming like he might be willing to sign a one year deal to try and reestablish his value. The whole offseason became a buyer's market pretty quickly and they still refuse to actually buy anything. I call bullshit, Jerry.

[CBStew]

I am impressed with the amount of knowledge you folks have about the Sox.  I know of only two guys who are playing for them, Appling and Minoso.

[Brownie]

I am impressed with the amount of knowledge you folks have about the Sox.  I know of only two guys who are playing for them, Appling and Minoso.

And Nellie Fox.

[SKO]

I am impressed with the amount of knowledge you folks have about the Sox.  I know of only two guys who are playing for them, Appling and Minoso.

I find them interesting because it feels like watching the Hendry Cubs from the outside looking in. It's interesting to compare and contrast their way of doing things with the Cubs. Also I'm really bored.

[Quality Start Machine]

The Sox signed Jimmy Rollins to a minor league deal. Tyler Saladino most likely can't outhit Jimmy Rollins corpse so Jimmy probably wins the SS job for them.

I see a lot of Sox fans saying there's "no downside to this", which is true if you don't count being stuck with either Jimmy Rollins' corpse or Tyler Saladino as your starting SS as downside. The same could be set for the Latos move. They're banking on a lot of dead cat bounces from LaRoche, Cabrera, and Rollins (and also getting literally anything from the turd that is Avi Garcia) in order to contend.

I usually try not go full meatball on Jerry Reinsdorf but this whole offseason smells of him not being willing to commit the money they need to win. They claim it's because see the next 2-3 years as their window while Sale and Abreu are still good and they don't want to commit beyond that, but that excuse got shot to shit with Cespedes signing for three years, Fowler supposedly talking 2/24 with the Orioles, and Desmond seeming like he might be willing to sign a one year deal to try and reestablish his value. The whole offseason became a buyer's market pretty quickly and they still refuse to actually buy anything. I call bullshit, Jerry.

If it were any other team I'd think they were taking flyers on these guys hoping they can flip them at the deadline. But they'll probably get just hot enough to pull within a game or two of .500 by then, so they'll stand pat.

[SKO]

The Sox signed Jimmy Rollins to a minor league deal. Tyler Saladino most likely can't outhit Jimmy Rollins corpse so Jimmy probably wins the SS job for them.

I see a lot of Sox fans saying there's "no downside to this", which is true if you don't count being stuck with either Jimmy Rollins' corpse or Tyler Saladino as your starting SS as downside. The same could be set for the Latos move. They're banking on a lot of dead cat bounces from LaRoche, Cabrera, and Rollins (and also getting literally anything from the turd that is Avi Garcia) in order to contend.

I usually try not go full meatball on Jerry Reinsdorf but this whole offseason smells of him not being willing to commit the money they need to win. They claim it's because see the next 2-3 years as their window while Sale and Abreu are still good and they don't want to commit beyond that, but that excuse got shot to shit with Cespedes signing for three years, Fowler supposedly talking 2/24 with the Orioles, and Desmond seeming like he might be willing to sign a one year deal to try and reestablish his value. The whole offseason became a buyer's market pretty quickly and they still refuse to actually buy anything. I call bullshit, Jerry.

If it were any other team I'd think they were taking flyers on these guys hoping they can flip them at the deadline. But they'll probably get just hot enough to pull within a game or two of .500 by then, so they'll stand pat.

Yeah they're trying to compete. If they are 9 games back come the deadline this year I think they'll be smarter about trading pieces than they were last year, but if they're a game or two under .500 and 5 games back I'm still not sure they'll have the balls to tear it down.