A few quick hits, since I just got back standing 3 1/2 hours at a Reverend Horton Heat concert:
Hey, look at me! Crazy man on the loose! That's basically what
Ozzie Guillen's rant about Chicago sports coverage boils down to. My favorite part:
Tired of ''all the managers in the press box and at home, watching the game on TV and spilling food on themselves..."
For the record, I finished today's game with a clean shirt. Moving on to what Ozzie's trying to distract people from...
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Nick Swisher's slump has people wondering whether he's cut out for the leadoff spot, but
Ozzie's not inclined to make a change:
"I don't think we can do too much. We have the same type of
players if we made a change. Everybody is struggling."
He did mention that he did think about moving Carlos Quentin up in the order, and
today's loss seemed to indicate that might not be an awful idea. The game ended with Quentin on deck as A.J. Pierzynski grounded out to second, and considering
Quentin has hit righties better than lefties throughout his young career, there doesn't seem to be any disadvantage to flipping them.
While I'm suggesting lineup and roster changes (sorry, Ozzie), today's game also illustrated why I wanted Josh Fields on the bench while the Sox had the opportunity instead of Adam Russell.
In a one-run game with two outs in the eighth, Jim Thome had no shot against Jesse Carlson, who is looking like a killer LOOGY. That would have been the perfect time to use Fields. Even though John Gibbons would've likely pulled Carlson for Jeremy Accardo, the Sox would've stood a better chance of getting the tying run across.
At the very least, Fields would have been far more useful than Adam Russell, whose name hasn't been mentioned once the start of the Toronto series. Why the Sox need 6 feet, 8 inches more of Nick Masset is beyond me.
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Brian Anderson received another big vote of confidence
at the expense of Jerry Owens:
"People have to understand our point ... is not to bring a guy just to bring a guy. I don't think Jerry Owens can be like [Brian Anderson].
B.A. can play all three outfield spots, he can come off the bench and
start, he can pinch run. It's not that we don't want Jerry Owens. Of
course we want him. But this kid shouldn't come up here and ruin his
career because he's only playing once a month.''
This makes plenty of sense, but as long as Owens stays healthy, he'll receive a shot when Jermaine Dye makes his annual trip to the DL.
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Minor league roundup:
- Buffalo 6, Charlotte 4 (Game 1, 7 innings)
- Jack Egbert was roughed up for four runs in the first, then held Buffalo scoreless for the next four.
- The Dewon Day we all came to know took the loss, allowing two runs in the bottom of the sixth.
- Dewayne Wise went 3-for-4 with a pair of doubles; Jeff Liefer also had three hits.
- Jerry Owens went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts.
- Buffalo 1, Charlotte 0 (Game 2, 7 innings)
- Rob Bell allowed one unearned run over five innings, lowering his ERA to 9.43.
- Jason Bourgeois went 1-for-2 and threw Andy Gonzalez out at home.
- Owens went 2-for-3 with his seventh stolen base; Josh Fields went hitless in three at-bats.
- Mobile 8, Birmingham 4
- Brian Omogrosso gave up five runs on six hits and four walks over three innings.
- Cole Amstrong hit a solo homer, his second of the year.
- Winston-Salem 7, Wilmington 3
- Paulo Orlando went 2-for-5 with a homer and two RBI.
- John Shelby, Salvador Sanchez and Lee Cruz each had two hits; Javier Colina had three.
- Michael Dubee lasted seven innings, giving up three runs on nine hits. He struck out three and walked zero.
- Kannapolis 1, Lake County 0 (Game 1, 7 innings)
- Johnnie Lowe pitched six shutout innings, allowing only two hits and a walk while striking out four.
- Levi Maxwell (0.47 ERA) picked up his first save.
- Dale Mollenhauer tripled and scored the lone run on the game on Sergio Miranda's sac fly.
- Lake County 6, Kannapolis 5 (Game 2, 7 innings)
- Making his first start since April 24, Charlie Shirek lasted only two innings, giving up three runs on three hits and two walks. He didn't strike anybody out, and threw a wild pitch.
- Jose Martinez went 2-for-3 with a double and an RBI.
- Christian Marrero had two singles and an RBI as well.