After Tuesday’s 3-1 loss to Minnesota, manager Ozzie Guillen said that he would sit Paul Konerko in Wednesday afternoon’s game, as the slumping first baseman is also battling with a dinged up hand.
Nick swisher will start at first, while Brian Anderson gets the nod in center field.
The only other change planned is Toby Hall for A.J. Pierzynski behind the plate.
Art Kusnyer will undergo yet another eye surgery on Wednesday afternoon, but the news may finally start getting better from the long-time Sox bullpen coach.
Kusnyer – known as “Cave’’ – said on Tuesday that if all goes well with the surgery on his left eye, he could be fitted for a lens that would give him most of his vision back. The right eye is still a big question mark at this point.
“Cave’’ has been dealing with torn retinas in each eye since last season.
Jermaine Dye is back in the starting lineup, after missing four games with a strained left groin, and the club announced on Tuesday that completion of Monday’s suspended game with Baltimore will be played on Aug. 25, in Camden Yards.
--Jim Thome’s fifth-inning solo home run was the 513th of his career, moving him solely into 18th place on the all-time homer list, passing up Ernie Banks and Eddie Matthews. Next in his sites? Frank Thomas at 516.
--Jermaine Dye left the game in the seventh inning with what is being called a strained left groin.
--The Sox bullpen is starting to get that “Oh no’’ look to them, again blowing a lead as May approaches. Can you say 2007?
Thursday’s game between the Sox and Yankees is in a rain delay, with the Sox hoping to get the tarp off at about 7:45 p.m. and have the first pitch ready to go by 8:30 p.m.
The Yankees and White Sox haven’t had many problems with each other on the field.
Off the field? That’s a different story.
There has been a cold war going on between the security at U.S. Cellular Field – many of them current or former Chicago cops – and the wanna-be CIA agents that travel with the Bronx Bombers and deem themselves security.
It got so heated a few years back, that a certain U.S. Cellular security guard in the visitors’ clubhouse to this day has to be moved out of that post when New York’s in town for fear of what he would do to the Yanks’ rent-a-cops if tempers escalated.
Even manager Ozzie Guillen was mystified with the amount of security New York has when they come to the South Side.
“You know what's funny?’’ Guillen said on Wednesday. “Why were there so many security people? I leave [Tuesday] night to my car, and I got 30 people from here to the garage. What are you doing here? New York is in town. Nothing is going to happen to those guys walking through the tunnel. That's embarrassing. Because it's kind of weird. We go to New York and don't get that kind of treatment. And we're a big league team, too. Nothing against them, but it's funny how the security works. Make sure those guy are in Rush Street or somewhere. Nothing is going to happen at the ballpark, believe me."
It was vintage Ozzie before the big showdown with New York on Tuesday, especially when the topic of Yankees co-chairman Hank Steinbrenner criticizing the way they are using pitcher Joba Chamberlain came up.
“Thanks God Jerry Reinsdorf is my owner,’’ Guillen said.
As far as not having to face Alex Rodriguez and his injured quad for at least the first two games of the series, Guillen said, “I don't know how long he's going to be out, but hopefully for the next few days we won't have to see him.’’
Considering the Sox are down 2-0 in the second inning, maybe a missing “A-Rod’’ isn’t such a big deal.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Looks like the White Sox’ version of Kevin Arnold is finally maturing.
Starting pitcher John Danks threw seven scoreless innings on Sunday, dominating the Tampa Bay lineup in the process. The southpaw allowed just three hits, while fanning eight – one shy off of tying a career-high.
Danks, who just turned 23, has now thrown 14 2/3 scoreless innings, after he threw 7 2/3 scoreless innings against Oakland last week.
As far as the Jekyll and Hyde act that Danks pulled far too often from start to start last season, he has now thrown at least seven-plus innings in back-to-back outings for the first time in his career.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. – Home run No. 511 for Jim Thome was memorable for several reasons, as the White Sox slugger launched the ball into the “C-Ring’’ catwalk hanging from the right field roof of Tropicana Field.
They don’t give distances here because, well, they can’t. This place is more like the arcade of a carnival than a ballpark, with home run poles hanging from different objects attached to the roofing.
Besides being a tape measure blast, however, it also moved Thome into 21st on the all-time homer list, tying Mel Ott.
Next on the horizon for Thome is No. 512, where Ernie Banks and Eddie Matthews reside.
BALTIMORE – Being a baseball manager isn’t exactly like being a surgeon, but there’s no doubt that both jobs have guts involved.
Ozzie Guillen showed his on Wednesday, refusing to drop Jim Thome in the batting order because of a gut feeling he had that the veteran DH would “come out of his shell pretty soon.’’
Like in his first at-bat.
Thome ended a string of 43 consecutive at-bats without clearing the fence, as his third home run of the season gave the White Sox the early 3-0 lead. In his second at-bat, he doubled off the wall.
So while that .156 batting average going into the series with the Orioles might have had the South Side pushing the “Get Thome Outta There’’ button, Guillen made it known that he was staying the course.
“If I'm going to make any movement in my lineup, I've got to talk to him personally, explain why I'm going to do it,’’ Guillen said of Thome. “It's not fair for a Hall of Famer, all of the sudden you struggle at the plate but you're giving good at-bats.
“If Jimmy was somebody else, [Carlos] Quentin or a kid, I think I would worry about it. He knows what he's doing.’’
You hear that Dionne Warwick?
Following the loss to Oakland on Monday, Sox manager Ozzie Guillen said that Jim Thome will not be in the starting lineup on Tuesday.
But Guillen said it had nothing to do with the slugger’s 0-for-4 performance in Monday’s 2-1 loss. The plan before the start of the series with Oakland was to rest Thome a day, especially with a day game after a night game.
“I already talked to him and he’s not going to play [Tuesday],’’ Guillen said. “Give him one day off so he can rest mentally and physically.’’
It’s almost unfathomable to believe that Joe Crede will finish the season hitting the .341 he was sporting at the start of Monday’s game with Oakland. There are too many holes in his swing for that.
Can he hit 30 homers and hit about .300? Very doable.
But that’s not why I’m starting to lean toward the school of inking the free agent-to-be to a contract extension ASAP.
With two on and one out in the second inning, Oakland’s Chris Denorfia ripped a ball down the third base line that was screaming extra-base hit and at least a one-run deficit for Sox starter Mark Buehrle. Crede dove to his left, gloved it and then jumped to his feet for the fielder’s choice at third.
In Tuesday’s box score it will read as an out, but it’s the kind of play that wins games. Does Josh Fields get to that ball? Maybe, but why chance it?
Look, we all know that the Sox would rather deal with Bob Sugar than Scott Boras. As a matter of fact, they’d rather deal with Satan than Boras. But it might be time for the club to bite the bullet and bring a substantial deal to the table, rather than nibble around and wait for feelers from the Crede camp.
Major League Baseball fired back at White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen today, fining him an undisclosed amount for his comments about umpire Phil Cuzzi. The fine was announced by Jimmie Lee Solomon, Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations for Major League Baseball.
Keep in mind, Guillen has said he set aside $100,000 for the fines he expects to draw this season.
Before the Sox faced the Minnesota Twins on Wednesday — coming off his first ejection of the season — Guillen blasted Cuzzi, saying:
“I don't like that guy behind the plate. And I'm going to let him know. I don't like him. He don't like me, I don't like him. It's one reason is, if you don't like me as a man and what I do, I respect that. But if you don't like me, and all of a sudden you're going to take it out on my players, you're wrong. That's unprofessional.
“And I just let him know I don't like him the first day I see him, and I think he feels the same way about me. And we have to move on. Every time he's behind the plate, we might have a problem. We might. We have. I think the last couple times behind the plate, we have a problem. And he tried to be smart with me, and I do what I have to do, and he does what he has to do. But I don't like him, and he don't like me. And I got a good sleep last night. I will spend all my money for him. I don't care. But obviously, we don't like each other.’’
Guillen and Cuzzi butted heads on July 31 in New York over a check-swing, which Guillen admittedly said he deserved to be thrown out for that because “[Cuzzi] had reason.’’
The incident Monday, however, was a different story, in Guillen's mind.
“I asked where the pitch was,’’ Guillen recalled. “He said, ‘I don't want to hear anymore.’ That's the first thing I said to him. It's not professional.’’
Guillen said that he has informed Major League Baseball of Cuzzi making it personal, but didn’t expect much in return.
“I'm not going to win that one,’’ Guillen said. “But I want to make it clear, I don't like him.’’
Cuzzi didn't seem to mind on Wednesday.
“It may be personal to him, but I'm just doing my job,’’ Cuzzi said. “It's as simple as that. The pitches he complained about, they were good pitches. The ones I called balls weren't. It's a simple as that. He may have it in his mind, but I don't.’’
Prior to Wednesday’s game with the Twins, Ozzie Guillen was asked about umpire Phil Cuzzi and the fact that he’s been responsible for Guillen’s last two ejections. As usual, the White Sox manager pulled no punches.
“I don't like that guy behind the plate,’’ Guillen said. “And I'm going to let him know. I don't like him. He don't like me, I don't like him. It's one reason is, if you don't like me as a man and what I do, I respect that. But if you don't like me, and all of a sudden you're going to take it out on my players, you're wrong. That's unprofessional.
“And I just let him know I don't like him the first day I see him, and I think he feels the same way about me. And we have to move on. Every time he's behind the plate, we might have a problem. We might. We have. I think the last couple times behind the plate, we have a problem. And he tried to be smart with me, and I do what I have to do, and he does what he has to do. But I don't like him, and he don't like me. And I got a good sleep last night. I will spend all my money for him. I don't care. But obviously, we don't like each other.’’
Guillen and Cuzzi butted heads last July 31 in New York over a check-swing, which Guillen admittedly said he deserved to be thrown out for that because “[Cuzzi] had reason.’’
Not on Monday, however.
“I asked where the pitch was,’’ Guillen recalled. “He said, ‘I don't want to hear anymore.’ That's the first thing I said to him. It's not professional.’’
Guillen said that he has informed Major League Baseball of Cuzzi making it personal, but didn’t expect much in return.
“I'm not going to win that one,’’ Guillen said. “But I want to make it clear, I don't like him.’’
Not that Cuzzi seemed to mind one way or the other.
“It may be personal to him, but I'm just doing my job,’’ Cuzzi said. “It's as simple as that. The pitches he complained about, they were good pitches. The ones I called balls weren't. It's a simple as that. He may have it in his mind, but I don't.’’
Leave it to Ozzie Guillen to tick off an entire country.
News of the White Sox manager insisting in Detroit over the weekend that both Ivan “Pudge’’ Rodriguez and Roberto Alomar were the two best players to come out of Puerto Rico, ahead of icon Roberto Clemente, have started a backlash, according to the Associated Press.
Guillen made that statement, even though he has been a life-long collector of Clemente memorabilia, as well as giving his son, Oney, the middle name of Roberto, after Clemente.
“If Clemente had to squat behind that plate like Pudge does every day, he would have been out of the game in two years,’’ Guillen insisted on Monday. “People just want to be politically correct because of the way Clemente’s life ended [in a plane crash].’’
According to the AP story, Clemente’s son, Luis Roberto Clemente, learned of Guillen’s comments and said, “I am very certain and very at ease about what my father has accomplished. That is history that will never change.’’
It wasn’t all negative for Guillen, however, as a local Puerto Rican sports historian named Jorge Colon felt Guillen had a right to express his opinion.
“What happens is that Clemente is the most admired and loved, and we tend to be overprotective,’’ Colon said. “But there is nothing wrong in saying that other players have surpassed him.’’
Ozzie Guillen couldn’t wait to get back home and play games back in the friendly confines of the Cell, but he sure had a funny way of showing it on Monday.
In the third inning and trailing the Twins by a 2-1 score, Guillen seemed to have words with home plate umpire Phil Cuzzi after a called second strike on Paul Konerko. Seconds later, Guillen sprinted out of the dugout and Cuzzi tossed him.
It wasn’t the first time these two had problems, with Cuzzi also ejecting him on July 31 of last season, in New York.
As for the skipper, it was his 13th career ejection.
