CLEVELAND – After fighting back from a five-run deficit to tie the game in the seventh, reliever Octavio Dotel gave up three runs in the eighth, courtesy of a base-loaded double by Casey Blake.
Considering the veteran didn’t look real sharp this spring with a 10.45 ERA in Cactus League play, not a real surprise.
CLEVELAND - Thanks goodness for Jim Thome, because if it wasn’t for the DH, the Sox would still be down a touchdown.
Despite a growing choir of boos, Thome connected on his second home run of the game in the third inning, giving him 41 multiple homer games in his career. Again, it was a two-run shot for the former Indian, and again, it was a tape-measure shot.
Meanwhile, all that’s gone wrong for Cleveland besides Thome’s bat is catcher Victor Martinez leaving the game with left hamstring tightness. He is day-to-day.
CLEVELAND - GM Ken Williams obviously envisioned a different start to the season. Made obvious in his comments hours before the first pitch.
“I saw the schedule and I was actually happy we opened up in the fashion that we opened up,’’ Williams said “We can take a look at our competition head up, assess where we are and they can get a good look at us too.’’
Cleveland must like what they see, because after two innings and a seven-run second, it was defending division champs 7, Sox 2.
And as far as Sox starter Mark Buehrle “changing some recent history’’ with the Indians, that won’t be happening on this day, with the lefty in the showers after just 1 2/3 innings of work, to go along with seven runs on seven hits.
The southpaw did very little to change his history against Cleveland, considering he entered the day a career 8-11 with a 4.61 ERA.
CLEVELAND – First the lineups: LF Swisher, SS Cabrera, DH Thome, 1B Konerko, RF Dye, CF Ramirez, C Pierzynski, 3B Crede, 2B Uribe and of course Mark Buehrle on the mound.
The White Sox might have caught a break with the weather, with the forecast calling for 57 and cloudy. If the game goes long, rain could be a problem, however.
Finally, Cleveland looks like its usual embarrassing self. Snake Pliskin thought he had it bad trying to escape from New York? At least he got out within 24 hours. Try staying in my former hometown until Thursday. And at least the futuristic Manhattan - turned prison – had better-looking people, as well as buildings that were in better condition.
Joe Crede was taken for precautionary X-rays after the game with Arizona, following a foul tip that hit his left foot in the fifth inning.
The initial reports were good, but the White Sox wanted to make sure the third baseman didn’t have any setbacks before they leave Tucson on Friday morning for their game with Texas in Oklahoma City.
Crede had been named the starter on Tuesday, beating out Josh Fields.
The Sox announced after the game with Colorado that projected starting outfielder and leadoff hitter Jerry Owens has a small tear of the right adductor and will be placed on the 15-day disabled list retroactive to Sunday’s game.
According to a team spokesman, Owens needs seven to 10 days of rest and then can return to the lineup.
What that means for the Sox right now is that both Brian Anderson and Carlos Quentin have likely made the roster, rather than one or the other.
TUCSON, Ariz. - To the surprise of almost no one- including Josh Fields – the White Sox announced before Tuesday’s game with Colorado that the second-year player would be starting the season in Class AAA Charlotte.
That means Joe Crede will be the Opening Day third baseman, with the Sox unable to land any substantial trade for the free agent-to-be this spring.
General manager Ken Williams put the writing on the wall two weeks ago when he told the Sun-Times that he had spoken to two teams about a Crede deal and came away very unimpressed at what the return would have been.
He knew “that difficult talk’’ would be coming, and on Tuesday it came.
Fields plans to address the media on Wednesday, but knew that the deck was stacked against him as late as Sunday.
“I would feel a lot better if I was on an even playing field, because I do feel good about what I did last year and what I’ve done this spring,’’ Fields said Sunday. “I mean to a certain extent, there isn’t much I could do because Joe is established. He’s shown what he can do. I mean this guy has performed on a big stage, he’s a Silver Slugger winner. In that aspect it is a little harder to accept because I feel I put myself in as good a position as I could and I deserve to be in the big leagues, but I guess when it’s your time, it’s your time.’’
As far as second base, the plan is to give Juan Uribe the first look there as the regular starter.
The outfield logjam won’t be decided until the club gets the final results from a Jerry Owens MRI this afternoon, and neither will the final bullpen spot.
The club also announced that infielder/outfielder Jason Bourgeois, right-handed pitcher D.J. Carrasco and catcher Paul Phillips were reassigned to minor-league camp.
With the moves, the Sox roster is down to 28 players.
PHOENIX - It was a calm eruption as far as manager Ozzie Guillen is concerned, but nonetheless, he did let his team have it after the 8-2 loss to Los Angeles on Thursday.
“[Thursday] was the worst game we played all spring training,’’ Guillen said. “I don’t see the intensity. It’s time to put the gas on the pedal and step it up. I don’t see the push to be out there. That’s not going to happen. If I have to push the pedal myself I will do it.
“You’re not going to flip the switch on just like that. I know what kind of club I have and that’s why I’m a little disappointed with the way we’ve played the last couple of games.’’
Guillen was then asked if he plans to continue to play his regulars all nine innings in Cactus League games and said, “If they keep playing like that, they’ll be there all day for nine innings. If they’re tired, so am I. I ask them every day before we stretch, ‘Is anyone tired, anyone sick, anyone need a rest, let me know.’ I don’t have any answers, so they play, but they play like they’re tired. I mean, [bleep], I’m not going to put up with that [bleep] this year.’’
PHOENIX – The White Sox announced on Thursday that second baseman Danny Richar has a stress fracture in the first rib on his left side and will be sidelined four to six weeks.
Richar cannot partake in any baseball activity while the injury heals, and in all likelihood will start the season out on the disabled list.
It hasn’t exactly been a great spring for Richar. First, he was delayed with visa problems, and once he did arrive, the back injury he suffered in the winter resurfaced.
He was finally sent for an MRI/CT Scan on Wednesday, with the club announcing the results of those tests before the game with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
With Richar out of the running for the starting second base job, that leaves Juan Uribe and Alexei Ramirez still battling … for now.
The Sox placed Uribe on waivers Wednesday, and according to a source, pulled him back off waivers on Thursday to work out a trade with at least one team that showed interest. Talks were still ongoing and there is a chance that the trade has already fallen apart, but even manager Ozzie Guillen insisted before the game, “get back to me tomorrow,’’ when asked about the ongoing Uribe saga.
TUCSON, Ariz. – The body count continued to pile up for the White Sox on Wednesday, as Josh Fields left the game with Colorado after getting plunked on the right forearm by pitcher Ubaldo Jimenez.
The Sox said that the injury did not require an X-ray and the third baseman was day-to-day.
Earlier in the morning, the Sox had to scratch scheduled starting pitcher Jose Contreras as he battled flu-like symptoms for a second consecutive day, and second baseman Danny Richar was erased from the lineup with his injured back flaring up. Richar was sent for an MRI to see if there is more damage than first thought.
TUCSON, Ariz. – Reports continued to circulate around the White Sox camp that the club placed former starting shortstop Juan Uribe on waivers prior to Wednesday’s game with Colorado.
The first news of this move came on The Score 670 AM.
If it was true, it would be news to Uribe’s agent Martin Arburua, who said, “I haven’t heard anything like that.’’
Arburua, who is in Florida, also went on to say, “Everything I’ve been told by the club was positive about Juan. I heard he was hitting well, playing great defense, that would be a shock.’’
Depending on what type of waiver it was, the club could be either testing the waters to measure his value or could be flat-out distancing themselves from their leading second base candidate. If that is the case, according to major league rules, if another team doesn’t claim him in 72 hours, the Sox will have to release him and pay him the $4.5 million salary for the 2007 season.
Could this be a prelude to a trade general manager Ken Williams has up his sleeve or are they that confident in rookie Alexei Ramirez to just hand him the job?
Danny Richar certainly isn’t an immediate option, considering he was scratched from Wednesday’s start, and sent for an MRI on the injured back that has had him on the shelf most of spring. Richar could likely start the season on the 15-day disabled list at this point.
TUCSON, Ariz. – The organization’s meetings the last two mornings have heated up, as tough decisions now need to be made.
White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen continued showing his hand a bit on Tuesday, especially as far as their plans for second base.
“The last few days have been crazy for me, [general manager] Kenny [Williams] and the coaching staff,’’ Guillen admitted Tuesday. “We have a lot of good problems, some tough decisions to make. That’s what we’ve been talking about it. The thing we want to make sure is we aren’t changing our minds every day. That’s why we really, really have to be careful and go really deep when we make these decisions.’’
Starting with Cuban rookie Alexei Ramirez, who has gone from unknown international player to the man that has transformed the organization’s morning meetings from one pot of coffee to two.
“He’s done some good things this spring, and to be honest with you I’m a little shocked,’’ hitting coach Greg Walker said.
The debate the last few mornings? If Ramirez is not the starter at second base, can he still make the team because of his versatility to also play shortstop and center field?
“Yes he can,’’ Guillen said with little hesitation. “Our concern right now is how many at-bats we can find him? Now we’re putting Ramirez in the outfield to see how he handles it. We still don’t know if it would be better for him to play every day [in the minors] to develop or if we can get him the at-bats.’’
Guillen has already stated that Pablo Ozuna will be one of the reserves, as well as back-up catcher Toby Hall and a fourth outfielder. That leaves one vacancy.
With Juan Uribe taking the lead in winning the second base job, decisions will have to be made with Danny Richar and Ramirez. Richar, who has been suffering with an injured back, would likely start the season as the Class AAA Charlotte second baseman.
TUCSON, Ariz. – The White Sox made it official on Friday morning – Opening Day in Cleveland will now be finished under three hours.
That’s what happens when starting pitcher Mark Buehrle is on the mound – win or lose.
Buehrle, who will now have started six of the last seven openers for the South Siders, called it an honor, but is also well aware of the fact that he will have to get past hefty lefty C.C. Sabathia if he wants to start 1-0.
Not an easy task, considering he is 0-2 with a 6.08 ERA, allowing 16 earned runs and 31 hits in 23 2/3 innings of work in his last four starts against Sabathia.
“I don’t think it’s just the first game,’’ Buehrle said of opening with the Tribe. “The start of the season we need to get off to a hot stretch. Obviously the first game kind of leads you in the right direction, but if we lost or get blown out in that opener, it’s not going to show what we will do for the rest of the year.
“If we go out and beat them up, we don’t win the division. It’s a good way to start, but doesn’t mean everything.’’
As far as the rest of the rotation, Javier Vazquez will start Game 2, followed by John Danks, Jose Contreras and then Gavin Floyd.
The only way that changes is if there’s an injury or a trade, and the latter is very unlikely at this point. According to pitching coach Don Cooper, the club is sold on what Danks and Floyd have shown them this spring.
“The last few months [of the 2007 season] were good for Gavin,’’ Cooper said. “He's throwing the ball well down here. The first part of the season was very good for Danks and he's throwing the ball well down here, so they're our [third] and fifth guy. We believe in them.’’
Center fielder Jerry Owens, the man tabbed to replace Scott Podsednik as the White Sox leadoff hitter, has been troubled for most of camp with a strained right groin. With 2 1/2 weeks before opening day, this has become a major concern for the Sox, who don't want a repeat of the struggles they endured last season with the oft-injured Scott Podsednik.
Plan B would be nudging switch-hitting Nick Swisher into the top spot. Manager Ozzie Guillen is reluctant to move speedy No. 2 hitter Orlando Cabrera up a notch. Swisher has never hit leadoff during his career — batting in all of the other eight spots — but had a .381 on-base percentage last season that intrigues Guillen. The Sox aren’t looking for a stolen base threat atop the lineup, just someone to set the table for Jim Thome, Paul Konerko and Jermaine Dye.
A day after making his first appearance in a Cactus League game since March 4, Owens was scratched from the lineup Wednesday because of soreness.
‘‘I’m concerned because you give him a couple of days to recover, then play him and the next day he can’t be in the lineup,’’ manager Ozzie Guillen said of the strained groin that has bothered Owens since the team’s first intrasquad game last month. ‘‘It’s not something I want to deal with during the season.
‘‘Those kind of injuries can be OK or they can be really bad. We went through that last year with [Scott] Podsednik.’’
Meanwhile, the Sox have explored the idea of batting switch-hitting Swisher in the leadoff spot if Owens’ soreness persists. Guillen is resisting the urge to lift speedy No. 2 hitter Orlando Cabrera up a notch, even though Swisher has never hit leadoff. He has hit everywhere but leadoff during his major-league career, but his .381 on-base percentage last season impresses Guillen.
‘‘I lean toward Swish,’’ Guillen said. ‘‘I know Nick is not a typical leadoff hitter. But the only thing I need from a leadoff hitter is to get on base and score some runs. I don’t want to move [Cabrera] because he is a real good second hitter — he can make a lot of things happen. The only thing I worry about with a leadoff hitter is get on base. If you can steal bases, that’s a plus. But if you get on base, the guys behind you can do the job.’’
Ideally, the Sox would prefer to keep Owens in the leadoff spot and bat Swisher sixth or seventh. But Guillen wants some stability from the leadoff spot and Owens has yet to inspire confidence in that area.
‘‘We’ve seen signs that he can accomplish it, but I don’t know that any of that’s set,’’ hitting coach Greg Walker said. ‘‘[Owens] might be in the starting lineup and not hitting first. We love Swisher’s on-base percentage, we love Cabrera in the two-hole. There are a lot of things to be determined yet. This leg injury has not helped him. This nagging, little thing that he has had going on has not helped. But when he has been on the field, he has performed very well.’’
Before their game today against the Colorado Rockies, the White Sox announced their first round of roster cuts.
Right-handers Lance Broadway, Dewon Day, Charlie Haeger and Oneil Perez were optioned to Class AAA Charlotte.
Right-hander Lucas Harrell was optioned to Class AA Birmingham. The Sox requested waivers on left-hander Carlos Vasquez for the purpose of granting his unconditional release.
Infielders Chris Getz, Royce Huffman, Jeff Liefer and Mike Rouse, along with outfielder Miguel Negron and catcher Ryan Smith were reassigned to the minor-league camp.
The Sox have 39 players left in major-league camp — 18 pitchers, five catchers, 10 infielders and six outfielders. The 40-man roster now sits at 39.
Mark Buehrle did his best trash-talking, or at least trash-texting, sending former White Sox teammate Jon Garland a warning Thursday night that the “A-lineup’’ was headed his way for the Friday showdown with the pitcher – and hell was coming with them.
Problem was Garland stuffed it down their throats.
“[Buehrle] was texting me, saying they were going to send the A squad to make a statement,’’ Garland said. “If that was the case, I think it backfired a little bit.’’
Considering Garland picked up the win, allowing just a Jermaine Dye solo home run in three innings of work, it sure did.
But Garland also spoke about a few other topics.
--The offseason trade that sent him from the White Sox to the Angels in exchange for shortstop Orlando Cabrera:
“You always have to give to receive,’’ Garland said. “To me, I was a little boggled because [Cabrera] is a free agent at the end of the year. And they had just signed Juan [Uribe] back, so I was a little boggled by that. I just looked at as the Angels wanted me more.
“When you talk about pitching and defense wins championships, I always felt that’s what you are going to stick with. To trade a pitcher, I feel like I did a pretty damn good job over there the past three or four years, putting up innings and getting out there every day and giving the team a chance. There was some shock there.’’
--Talk of a multi-year deal with the Sox last season:
“There was not one, unless there were talks between my agent [Craig Landis] and he just never brought it up,’’ Garland said. “I was kind of shocked when everybody thought, ‘He just wants to go West. That’s all he wants.’ It wasn’t the case. I was never asked, never talked to. Nobody really asked me and got the truth.’’
--Coming back to the Sox:
“Why wouldn’t I?’’ Garland said. “But I couldn’t imagine it because they had their chance. I’m not going to shy a team away because they traded me. It’s part of the game. It’s business.’’
--The Sox’ chances in 2008:
“It’s tough with the team Cleveland has right now in the Central. They brought everyone back and they are young guys. They got a taste of it and they will be more hungry this year. And what Detroit did. I mean, if you are a person who likes baseball and you don’t open your eyes and see what they did, then you are blind as a bat. It will be a rough path for them.
“And then trying to get back on track from last year. If things don’t get off to a good start out that way, they might just jump on them right away. But I wish them the best, but not too much.’’
