Let the Speculation Begin

21.5 games out of the Wild Card lead with seven games left to play, there isn't much of interest left to follow in the White Sox season this year. Let the offseason speculation begin...

Chicago Tribune:

...But with Cleveland on the verge of clinching the division for the first time since 2001, emphasis has shifted to how the Sox and Twins will regroup, whether it's Minnesota surviving the potential loss of All-Star center fielder Torii Hunter or how Sox general manager Ken Williams will revamp his roster after a disastrous 2007.

Williams hasn't been shy about making bold changes, such as reshaping the lineup that produced a 2005 World Series championship. A retooled bullpen was 2007's major alteration, but it collapsed two months into the season.

Manager Ozzie Guillen expects Williams to make more daring moves, but he doesn't expect first baseman Paul Konerko to be involved.

"I don't think Konerko is going to be one of the guys [traded]," Guillen said. "We don't know, but I don't see that coming. I see [pitcher Jon] Garland saying, 'I'm going to get traded.' I don't think that's the right comment because we don't know that.

"One thing about Kenny, he will let you know what you need to know. If we put any one of our five starters on the market, someone will take it. You have to be careful of that and say, 'Well, why do these people want to take it and we cannot keep it?'

"I'm not just talking about Garland. I understand why he thinks about it because it seems like every year he's been [rumored to be] traded. But we're not going to play dirty with guys who were important for us. We're not going to lie to people."

AL Central

The second installment of my utterly un-researched predictions for the 2007 baseball season.

AL CENTRAL

The teams:
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
Minnesota Twins

The outlook: The AL Central is the best division in baseball -- period -- and this year's competition is going to be intense.

The please-don't-bunt-it-to-the-pitcher Tigers return basically the same lineup as the team that got them to the World Series last year, with the notable addition of Gary Sheffield. The loss of Sheffield is huge for the Yankees, as they will now have to find a different outfielder for Old-Timers' Day. Postseason innings can take quite the toll on a pitching staff (see Kenny Rogers), and it is a valid question as to whether the Tiger pitching staff will be able to hold up over another 162 game season and carry the tabbies deep into October. The Tigers will have a better first than second half -- look for them to get a slight lead, but fade down the stretch (your 2006 AL Central Champion Minnesota Twins anyone?).

The White Sox should be Detroit's main competition, and they could be a very capable or superior opponent. The 2007 White Sox team has a lot of ifs -- if Mark Buehrle can return to form, if Javier Vazquez can live up to his potential, if Scott Podsednik v.2005 not v.2006 shows up, and if John Danks can be a capable fifth starter. If all those ifs fall into place this White Sox team will be a handful. (Too many ifs? Remember 2005? If Orlando Hernandez can still pitch -- if Jon Garland can live up to his potential -- if this Tadahito Iguchi guy can play second base -- if Shingo Takatsu can remain a dominant closer without prototypical stuff -- and later, if this tall, wide guy named Jenks can take over the closer's duties).

Look for the White Sox and Tigers to slug it out all year, being pushed by the Cleveland Indians, and, to a lesser extent due to the loss of Liriano (injury) and Radke (retirement), Minnesota.

Spaulding prognostication:
AL Central champion -- Detroit Tigers
AL Central Wild Card -- Chicago White Sox

Tigers limp to a divisional crown, but don't get to live October to its fullest.

Up next: AL West

Why the Twins Don't Deserve It

This one should probably have been entitled why Twins fans don't deserve it.

AP:

The small crowd of 18,108 at the Metrodome cheered when Chicago's game was final, saving more screaming for the real celebration about 90 minutes later.

Wait, wait, wait! Your team is having one of the all-time great second halves of the season, and only a handful more than 18,000 make it out to the ballpark on the night they clinch a playoff birth? Twins fans, you just don't deserve this. And you didn't deserve it in 2002, 2003 or 2004 either. You've made four trips to the playoffs in the past five years. It is the end of the season and you're fighting for the division championship. Show up! Put some butts in the seats, and then we'll talk. Until then you don't deserve it.

Gut Check #2

Having pretty much failed Gut Check #1 by winning only one game of their three game series with Detroit after taking the opener, the White Sox now return home to face two decent teams (the Texas Rangers and the Minnesota Twins). Playing the next six games against the backdrop of a sold out U.S. Cellular Field, the White Sox have a lot of work to do.

On the plus side, the Detroit Tigers FINALLY play somebody with some level of talent in the Oakland A's and the disappointing-to-date, Cleveland Indians. (Detroit's schedule doesn't show it, but I'm pretty sure they get to play a Kansas City or a Tampa Bay at least twice a week).

Now 5.5 games behind the Tigers in the AL Central and a slim 2.5 games up on the Yankees for the Wild Card, the White Sox need to stop their downward spiral in what so has been an absolutely dismal second half that has delivered one win over the past six games (and only two in the last nine if you track it back before the All-Star break).

To correct course tonight the Sox send Mark Buehrle to the bump who could use his own course corrected.

The usually steady Buehrle has delivered a string of completely non-Buehrle-esque games in his last few starts that have done nothing but help fuel questions about whether this White Sox rotation is still gassed from last year's playoff run.

Tonight's press notes report that "Mark Buehrle is 0-3 with a 13.81 ERA (22 ER/14.1 IP) in his last three starts." Yikes! Typically stats that bad are put up by guys on the team NotGoodNotGoodAtAll covers.

One cannot help but hope that the Sox will remember that they are a good team after they get a good ol' dose of home cooking -- and based on their record so far this year, home cooking is exactly what they need. More from tonight's game notes:

Home Field Advantage -- At 33-14, the White Sox own the third-best home record in baseball and are on pace to finish with 57 wins at U.S. Cellular Field, matching the franchise record set in 1912 ... the Sox have won 32 of their last 43 home games, outscoring the opposition, 263-176.

Time to get it going 56.

No luck, just wins. Go Sox!

Sox-Tigers Game Notes

Some highlights from the White Sox's pregame notes for Tuesday. (Be sure to add in one more win -- YES! -- to be factually accurate, as these notes were written before the 7-1 win).

White Sox vs. Detroit — The White Sox lead the season series, 5-1 ... the Sox, who have won seven of the last eight games against the Tigers and 17 of the last 22, swept a three-game set at Comerica Park on 4/10-13, their fourth at Comerica Park ... three of the five wins have been by one run and a fourth by two runs ... the Sox are batting .259 (52-201) with a 4.33 ERA (26 ER/54.0 IP) and have outscored the Tigers, 32-26 ... Chicago won the 2005 season series, 14-5, going 7-2 at Comerica Park and 7-3 at U.S. Cellular Field ... the Sox trail in the all-time series, 949-971, but are 132-77 since 1992 ... since division play began in 1969, the Sox are 242-234, going 123-117 at home (68-44 at U.S. Cellular Field) and 119-117 in Detroit (35-21 at Comerica Park).

Central Command — The White Sox are 21-13 vs. the American League Central, going 5-1 vs. Detroit, 5-2 vs. Minnesota, 6-3 vs. Kansas City and 5-7 vs. Cleveland ... the Sox were 52-22 (.703) within the division last season, setting a club record for winning percentage against any division.