Congrats to the White Sox

[dalgreen]

I'm probably more upset because of the way they play baseball. Their fans and the fact that they're rivals make it much worse, but the main reason I hate that they've advanced is the same reason as if the Nationals had made it thus far. They aren't the most talented team, and they play a stupid brand of baseball that gets celebrated because of their flukish success.

 

Pitching, defense, capitalizing when given four or five outs and actually getting hits with RISP is a stupid brand of baseball?

[Derwood]

Some of my good friends are Sox fans, and to them, I say congrats. The City of Chicago deserves a World Series championship. I just wish it was being played on the north side of town.

 

Why do I hate the Sox? A simple example of many in my lifetime......

 

Every day I walk to the Metra station on my way home. Since the playoffs began there has been a t-shirt vendor selling t-shirts in front of the Metra station on Madison. Do you think his t-shirts say "Way to go Sox!", or "Sox 2005 AL Central Champion!".....alsolutely not. His t-shirts say BS like "Wrigley Field, Home of the worlds largest gay bar" and "Cubs Sox" and a nice little picture of th cubs bear full of bullet holes. That is why I hate the Sox.

 

To my Sox fan friends that have essentially waited as long as we have for a pennant, I say congrats, and have a drink or two on me. To the rest of the ignorant trolls and wife-beaters, I say go screw yourselves.

 

C'mon, it's not like those T-shirts are officially liscensed by the Sox. When I went to DePaul, we had "ND Sucks" t-shirts for homecoming (with a clover leaf crossed out on the other side) but they weren't sold at the bookstore.

 

My explanation of the rivalry is this:

 

South Side inferiority complex thinly disguised as "neighborhood pride". Whether it be the town's love for the Cubs, disparities in income, local media's portayal of north vs south or whatever, South Siders have a chip on their shoulder. And like a petulant child who feels like the older brother is getting all of the attention, they "act up" to get attention. They bully, they behave badly, they gloat and taunt. How many people do you see wearing baseball caps or knit hats with "North Side" embroidered on them?

 

How many Cubs fans will go down to US Cellular to boo the Sox during the World Series? The thing that makes Sox fans the maddest is when they try baiting Cubs fans into this silly rivalry and their attempts are met with complacency and a general lack of interest. The best way to deal with a bully is to ignore them, but every time a Cubs fan (on this board or elsewhere) bitches and moans about Sox fan behavior, it only feeds the fire. I liked the suggestion to go and congratulate all your Sox fan friends before they can gloat. You take away their fun that way.

[Mark_R]

Written in many stalls at Wrigley Field:

 

October 14, 2003, the greatest day in White Sox history.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I'm probably more upset because of the way they play baseball. Their fans and the fact that they're rivals make it much worse, but the main reason I hate that they've advanced is the same reason as if the Nationals had made it thus far. They aren't the most talented team, and they play a stupid brand of baseball that gets celebrated because of their flukish success.

 

I wish the Cubs could play this brand of baseball well enough to make it to the World Series.

 

I am NOT advocating small ball, but if the Cubs went that route, and made it to the WS, then hooray hooray!

 

I agree that I'd take it any way I get it, but when it's not us then it really upsets me because it gets celebrated.

 

Now that's sour grapes. They are winning the same way the Cubs did on 03': great pitching, "timely" hitting, good defense.

 

Funny, but that's how the best Yankee teams won (see: Brosius, Scott and O'neil, Paul), how the 03' Marlins won, how last year's Red Sox won...are we seeing a pattern here?

 

Baseball isn't all about stats: sometimes things just have to go your way. Frustrating, but true.

 

No, that's not what I'm talking about. I'm talking about Guillen's obsession with wastes like sac bunts and excessive SB attempts, or "Grinderball". It's stupid baseball, and it's part of the reason they didn't score as many runs as it is. Any postseason success shouldn't change this fact. I'm not talking about pitching and defense. It most certainly isn't the way the Cubs won in '03, and not the way any of the teams you mentioned did it either.

[Derwood]

Much like the way Dusty gives up outs in the 1st EVERY time the leadoff man gets on?

[Transmogrified Tiger]

Much like the way Dusty gives up outs in the 1st EVERY time the leadoff man gets on?

 

Dusty doesn't do that every time. He's done it before sure, but it's not even close to the scale in which Guillen wastes outs.

[erik316wttn]

Congrats to them, and I'll be rooting for them to win if they play the Cardinals.

 

But if they play Houston, it doesn't really matter to me who wins. But if the White Sox do win, I hope Jim Hendry and Dusty Baker are forced to attend the parade down Michigan Avenue. And I hope it hurts like hell.

[frostwyrm]

http://photos1.blogger.com/img/203/2268/320/sour%20grapes%20by%20sally%20minker.jpg

[WindyCity]

Would White Sox fans be supportive of a Cubs pennant? I think not. I hope they lose the World Series in a very painful way. There isn't a fanbase in baseball more deserving of having their hearts crushed.

 

 

GO ASTROS!

[treebird]

i hope the white sox win the world series, and ozzie follows through and retires, and the bbwaa realizes that he must be the greatest manager of all time since he won the world series AND he invented smartball, and they induct him into the hall of fame.

[leatherguts]

Some of my good friends are Sox fans, and to them, I say congrats. The City of Chicago deserves a World Series championship. I just wish it was being played on the north side of town.

 

Why do I hate the Sox? A simple example of many in my lifetime......

 

Every day I walk to the Metra station on my way home. Since the playoffs began there has been a t-shirt vendor selling t-shirts in front of the Metra station on Madison. Do you think his t-shirts say "Way to go Sox!", or "Sox 2005 AL Central Champion!".....alsolutely not. His t-shirts say BS like "Wrigley Field, Home of the worlds largest gay bar" and "Cubs Sox" and a nice little picture of th cubs bear full of bullet holes. That is why I hate the Sox.

 

To my Sox fan friends that have essentially waited as long as we have for

a pennant, I say congrats, and have a drink or two on me. To the rest of the ignorant trolls and wife-beaters, I say go screw yourselves.

 

 

You must use the same Metra station I do. I wish they'd run all those people off.

[AI]

I congratulate the White Sox for their success. But mostly, I am happy for Sox fans like my dad, who is approaching his 55th birthday and just celebrated seeing his first pennant since he was nine. He's forgotten more about baseball and its history than most folks here will ever learn. I know you guys that live in Chicago hate the young punk Sox fans that give you hell, but don't forget the legion of classy old heads that are celebrating like they are little kids.

 

Maybe this is too personal for me to matter to anyone else. But I say, congrats Dad. Thanks for teaching me the game. I know how much this means to you. I hope your guys win the whole [expletive] thing.

[UMFan83]

The Cubs and White Sox is personal. It's hard to wear a Cubs hat in the Cubs home city because of the crap given by Sox fans. I'm not kidding. I've had Sox fans stop me in the street and give me grief for being a Cubs fan over the past two weeks. Imagine that multiplied if the Sox win the World Series. It's also tough seeing your own citys media go crazy over the White Sox, seeing tons of Sox hats on people who were probably wearing Cubs hats two years ago. It divides the city really.

 

I mean maybe in December we are all Bears/Bulls/Blackhawks fans in a unified city. But from April-October, we are truely a divided city. It's the hardest thing I've had to get used to living in Chicago.

[sweetpeteman]

My uncle (who is a White Sox fan) said it best when he said something like, "No matter what, Chicago will always be a Bears town."

 

Yep, come the Sunday after the WS is over, no matter who wins, everyone will only care about the Bears.

[Rich2123]

Watching the White Sox get to (and possibly win) The World Series is like going to your ex-girlfriends wedding without a date. You can lie and tell people how happy you are for them, or you could be honest about things. Me, I'll be honest. Screw them, I hope they lose. Go Houston....

[rickrolled]

Watching the White Sox get to (and possibly win) The World Series is like going to your ex-girlfriends wedding without a date. You can lie and tell people how happy you are for them, or you could be honest about things. Me, I'll be honest. Screw them, I hope they lose. Go Houston....

 

agreed

[Chris]

No matter what, Chicago will always be a Bears town."

 

At the Saturday Cubs/Sox game at Wrigley, a guy sitting next to me said the exact same thing.

[CuseCubFan69]

My uncle (who is a White Sox fan) said it best when he said something like, "No matter what, Chicago will always be a Bears town."

 

Yep, come the Sunday after the WS is over, no matter who wins, everyone will only care about the Bears.

 

 

And since the NFL moved the Bears to the NL West they have a chance to finish first. :D

 

I congratulate the White Sox on a very good season.

[J.R.]

No matter what, Chicago will always be a Bears town."

 

At the Saturday Cubs/Sox game at Wrigley, a guy sitting next to me said the exact same thing.

 

I doubt a Sox title would do anything to change that. If the Cubs ever win, though, that's going to be some kind of party. People's lives would be changed forever, changed in ways nothing else - even another Super Bowl - could deliver.

 

 

Hmm ... "that's going to be" ... I must be feeling better.

[RynoRules]

I'm not talking about pitching and defense. It most certainly isn't the way the Cubs won in '03, and not the way any of the teams you mentioned did it either.

 

So your statement is that the 03' Cubs, mid-90s Yanks, 03' Fish, and 04' Red Sox succesful playoff runs did not rely on or have anything to do with very good pitching and nearly error-free defense. I am sorry, but if that is your point, than I completely disagree.

[Transmogrified Tiger]

I'm not talking about pitching and defense. It most certainly isn't the way the Cubs won in '03, and not the way any of the teams you mentioned did it either.

 

So your statement is that the 03' Cubs, mid-90s Yanks, 03' Fish, and 04' Red Sox succesful playoff runs did not rely on or have anything to do with very good pitching and nearly error-free defense. I am sorry, but if that is your point, than I completely disagree.

 

No, I'm not saying that they didn't do any of those things. I specifically mentioned before that quote that I was talking about Guillen's out-wasting antics on offense. Smartball is stupid, and I hate that it's receiving praise for relying on an unreal pitching staff to have success.

[Andy]

I'm not talking about pitching and defense. It most certainly isn't the way the Cubs won in '03, and not the way any of the teams you mentioned did it either.

 

So your statement is that the 03' Cubs, mid-90s Yanks, 03' Fish, and 04' Red Sox succesful playoff runs did not rely on or have anything to do with very good pitching and nearly error-free defense. I am sorry, but if that is your point, than I completely disagree.

 

No, I'm not saying that they didn't do any of those things. I specifically mentioned before that quote that I was talking about Guillen's out-wasting antics on offense. Smartball is stupid, and I hate that it's receiving praise for relying on an unreal pitching staff to have success.

For all the BS about smart ball, the Sox have SEVEN fifteen home run hitters this season. Is that small ball?

[CubbieRich]

I'm not talking about pitching and defense. It most certainly isn't the way the Cubs won in '03, and not the way any of the teams you mentioned did it either.

 

So your statement is that the 03' Cubs, mid-90s Yanks, 03' Fish, and 04' Red Sox succesful playoff runs did not rely on or have anything to do with very good pitching and nearly error-free defense. I am sorry, but if that is your point, than I completely disagree.

 

No, I'm not saying that they didn't do any of those things. I specifically mentioned before that quote that I was talking about Guillen's out-wasting antics on offense. Smartball is stupid, and I hate that it's receiving praise for relying on an unreal pitching staff to have success.

 

I wish the Cubs had some 'smartball' in 2006 and so do you. Listen to many of the yahoos who don't want to trade Wood, CPat or anybody else. They want Dusty, Rothschild and Hendry back no matter what. For what? Another year of frustration.

 

At least Kenny Williams had a plan and has a manager that will execute that plan. Does Dusty? Does Hendry? You may think it's hype or whatever you want, but the Cubs are sitting at home now again in October.

[badger1679666666]

I wish the Cubs had some 'smartball' in 2006 and so do you. Listen to many of the yahoos who don't want to trade Wood, CPat or anybody else.

 

I don't want them to trade Wood. I guess that makes me a yahoo huh?

 

And Wood and C-Patt aren't even comparable. When healthy, Wood is a dominating ace (yes I know he hasn't been since Baker burned him out in 2003). When healthy, C-Patt is still just downright awful.

 

And who would you get for C-Patt? A bag of balls? I'd rather try and get him back to some place of value and then trade him, rather than just giving him up for nothing.

[DurbanJer]

I congratulate the White Sox for their success. But mostly, I am happy for Sox fans like my dad, who is approaching his 55th birthday and just celebrated seeing his first pennant since he was nine. He's forgotten more about baseball and its history than most folks here will ever learn. I know you guys that live in Chicago hate the young punk Sox fans that give you hell, but don't forget the legion of classy old heads that are celebrating like they are little kids.

 

Maybe this is too personal for me to matter to anyone else. But I say, congrats Dad. Thanks for teaching me the game. I know how much this means to you. I hope your guys win the whole [expletive] thing.

 

I'm with you 100% on this. My Dad, too, is a Sox fan. I'm very happy for him and my Sox fan friends who are true fans of the game and their team.

 

And I can promise you that if they win the WS, I'll be getting an infernal White Sox WS Champs t-shirt for Christmas.

 

... stupid Alex Gonzalez.....