15 from 2005 Intro

It's hard not to get excited about an upcoming baseball season.  As an eternal optimist, it's super easy to get excited at the beginning of any sports season.  But as much as I am looking forward to finally getting the 2020 MLB season underway tomorrow, I'm even more excited to looking backward at the magical 2005 White Sox World Series Championship season.  It has been 15 years since they won it all and I plan to share 15 stories from the season.  I'll be back in a few days with part I.  

White Sox defeat Cubs in exhibition game at Wrigley Field.

This past Sunday Evening in Chicago, a cross town rivalry resumed days before the covid 19 shortened baseball season got underway.  

Jason Kipnis homered for the Cubs in their half of the first inning giving them a one run lead.  Kipnis hit 12 homers against the White Sox as a member of the Cleveland Indians.  The Cubs added to their lead in the second as Wilson Contreras scored on a sacrifice fly in the second.  

The score remained 2-0 until the top of the 5th inning.  With one out, Adam Engel who is known more for robbing opposing batters of home runs, robbed Cubs starter Kyle Hendricks of a shut-out by homering himself.  

After the Engel homer, Tim Anderson singled and Eloy Jimenezflew out to right field and what happened next could only bedescribed as a good old fashioned 2 out rally.  Jose Abreusingle to right moving Anderson to 3rd and removing Hendricks from the game. Jharel Cotton came in to pitch for the Cubs and Andrew Vaughn came into run for Abreu. Yasmani Grandal then doubled in Anderson and  Vaughn giving the White Sox the lead. 

The south siders were not finished yet.  Grandals hit was just the first of three run scring doubles in succession. Edwin Encarnacion who made his major league debut for the Cincinatti Reds in the White Sox World Championship year of 2005 and is  right about to begin his 16th season in the major leagues and his first for the White Sox hit a double to left  plating Grandal.  Then Luis Robert, who has yet to make his major league debut and was 8 years old when the White Sox won it all in 2005 hit a ground rule double to score Encarnacion.  

 

 Luis Gonzalez came into run for Robert.  Leury Garcia  tripled to score Gonzalez.  This brought up Cheslor Cuthbert who just came over to the White Sox from the Royals who had the misfortune of making the first and final outs of the inning.  But when Cuthbert made out #1 his team was behind 2-0, when he made out #3 they were ahead 6-2. 

The White Sox added a run to that lead on a wild pitch in the seventh and the Cubs took that run away in the 8th as David Bote scored Josh Phegley in the 8th ending the scoring at 7-3 White Sox.  

White Sox set to open 2020 season on 7/24

 When the year began the Chicago White Sox were all set to have a record breaking season.  Maybe they wouldn't hit 242 home runs like they did in 2004 or strike out 1,359 opponents like in 2015, but when the umpire shouted "play ball" in their game on Thrusday, March 26th against the Kansas City Royals it would be their earliest opening day ever.  

This, of course did not happen.  The White Sox, none the less, will be breaking records this year if  their home opener scheduled against the  Minnesota Twins on July 24th doesn't get cancelled or delayed it will certainly set  the record for latest opening day ever. The planned 60 game schedule should contain many records even if many of them will come with asterisks.  Teams will certainly have the least errors and strikeouts and fewest hits and home runs allowed.  Attendance should be record breaking as well with most teams unsure if they will be able to sell any tickets.  .

With Covid numbers continuing to grow in the U.S.   I'm not sure how I feel about the season being played at all.  As a fan, I am eager for the sason to get under way,  but thher is part of me, like a true baseball purest,  that feels that  everyone should be safe at home.  

Ed Farmer 1949 to 1920

Ed Farmer was a hero of mine from childhood and for a few minutes in 2004 I was a hero of his. The former White Sox pitcher and raidio announce passed away on April 1st of this year. Hear his what his former radio partner Ed Rooney had to say about working with Ed. Here is a video from last year where farmer relected on his life in baseball.
 For Christmas 2003 my wife got me tickets to Sox Fest, an annual White Sox fan event held each January. The Sox had just hired Ozzie Guillen to manage their squad and I was very excited about meeting  the players and attending some of the panel discussions. During the panel discussions fans were able to go to the microphone and ask questions. During a White Sox media panel discussion I asked Ed Farmer, whon was a incredible advocate for organ donation and a recipient of a kidney from one of his brothers to talk a little about that. In asking my question I related that I had donated a kidney and appreciated his advocacy for organ donation. This is when Farmer turned the tables on me. I remember him saying something like let's hear it for this guy, he's a true hero. There in the middle of Sox Fest I got an ovation from a bunch of Sox Fan strangers.

 From all I've read and herad about Farmer,this was his way. Heexcelled at relating to people on a personal level. After the panel He talked with me for about 5 minutes even though other people were waiting to talk with Him. Farmer would often address his radio audience as his friends and he seemed to truly  treat and deem  each person he encountered as a friend.

 Farmer grew up on the south side of Chicago in Evergreen Park and was a life long Sox fan.He pitched in the big leagues from 1971 to 1983 in what some have called a nomic career,  splitting 11 seasons between 8 teams. Farmer was  a career long reliever with the occasional start.  He appeared in 370 games starting only 21 times ( 4 in his first season, 4 in his final season with 13 in between).

Prior to 1979 Farmer would fluctuate between the minors and the big clubs.  This changed when Farmer came back to the south side for arguably his best 3 seasons.  He filled the role of a closer for the Chisox with 54 of his 75 lifetime saves in a Sox uniform.  He had 30 of those saves in 1980 where he earned his first and only all star appearance. 

After Farmer  stopped playing he worked a short time as a scout and then in the White Sox front office and in 1991 started in the radio booth in a limited capacity.  In 1992 he became the full time color commentator aside play by play man John Rooney.  When Rooney left in 2005 after the world championship season, Farmer became the play by play announcer.  In total nearly 30 years behind the microphone.

In August of 1999 I brought our young adult group from church to a Sox game.  I had ordered the tickets in advance and had to go into the office to pick them up. While waiting for the tickets A tall lean tanned man strolled into the office talking with a few people on his way to the elevator. It took me a while to realize that this was Farmio.  In retrospect I should not have been surprised.  He displayed all the warmth , good humor and boyish exuberance that seemed to be his only gear.

I am confident that White Sox baseball will start again after the shelter in place lifts  and that games will again be broadcasted on e achieved on and off the field.  The few times I saw Farmer in person I was always taken aback about how tall he was.  At 6'5 He's nearly a half foot taller than myself and I'm no slouch.  Now I realized that he had to be that tall because his personality , zeal , and love for the game  would not fit in a smaller package.

2019 Hall of Fame - If I had a ballot

In just a few hours the Hall of Fame will reveal the results of the Baseball Writers of America Association (BBWAA) ballot selections for who will be inducted into Cooperstown this summer, .  This year 35 players are on the ballot and  The BBWAA allows writers to vote for a many as 10 of these candidates.  I am not a member of the BBWAA but I do like to pretend I'm one each year at this time.  Since The Writers association nor the hall of fame control my process I imagine what would happen if I had only 13 votes and then 12 and then down until I get to my OUB (Official Unofficial Ballot this year it will be 5 6 or maybe even 7.  As I write this I have not yet decided what the cutoff will be so I'll be as surprised as you will.  I then continue until I'm pretending I can only vote for 1 player this year.  In effect you get a ranking of who I think the 13 players most worthy of enshrinement are.

For 2019 ballot, I must say that there are many more players worthy of the Hall of Fame who have more impressive numbers than my 13th pick.  However,  the only number I was concerned about was 2005.  That is the year Jon Garland helped pitch the White Sox on to winning their first world series since 1917.  That gets him a vote in my book.

My 12th vote last year has a lot in common with my 12th vote this year.  Actually, they are the same person.  Gary Sheffield has the pedigree of a hall of famer yet like last year there are too many questions for me to really consider him further.

If I was advised that I could only vote for 11 players this year my 11th vote would be for Lance Berkman.  Berkman is probably the Killer B who will not B inducted into C town.  I thought his career  was worthy of some mention and 11 seems  appropriate.


As I state most years, I am a Chicago guy and I see my role as a Chicago guy to bring Chicago players to the attention of those who may not have seen them play regularly. If I were allowed to vote for exactly 10 players, my 10th vote would go to Freddy Garcia.  But not for the reason I just mentioned.  No for the reason I placed Garland 13th.  Freddy won the most important White Sox game in my life time that's reason enough for voting for him here.

It seems that Mike Mussina is going to make into Cooperstown.  He will probably make it this year or next in his 6th or 7th year on the ballot.  Last year I placed him 11th on my ballot and this year he is up to 9th.  To me he's a perennial fence sitter when it comes to enshrinement, it's a good thing for him that many of the actual voters don't view his career as I do,



I placed Jeff Kent 10th last year  and bump him up to 8th this year. To quote myself ...   " Kent is a very good player but I see him ultimately missing out of enshrinement to Cooperstown".

 If I was told I could vote for 7 and only 7 HOF candidates this year my 7th vote would go to Todd Helton. He has the highest career batting average of anyone on this years ballot at .316.  Sure he played his whole career in homer friendly Colorado but he still batted .287 on the road with 142 of his 369 homers when out of town.  I was very close to putting him on my OUB.

Speaking of which, If I was told that I could vote for as many or as few players on this years ballot  that I thought were worthy of enshrinement, I would vote for six players.  The 6th would be Roy Halladay.  As mentioned at the outset, I spent some time equivocating on this selection. equivocation being a euphemism on my part for over thinking. My over thinking went like this , When I first hear Halladay's name I don't instantly think hall of famer, and since he died recently am I just giving him a sympathy vote.  No.  The truth his his numbers speak well of him and his 2 Cy Youngs one in each league 7 years apart speak of his dominance.  This makes the late Mr. Halladay,  the first of 7 players on my official unofficial ballot (OUB)

If I could vote for only 5 players this year, my 5th vote would go to Larry Walker. Like Halladay,   Walker has not always been on my HOF radar.  As I mentioned last year when he was the 6th player on my ballot and my oub was 5, He has been going up in my estimation each year he has been HOF elgible.

If I could only vote for one Nickname to be included in the Hall of Fame this year it would have to be the Crime Dog.  This year Fred McGriff in his last year of eligibility get's a bite on my ballot.  If i could vote for only 5 players He would be 5th (jumping up from 7th last year.  Truth is I still think Walker more worthy than McGriff but have McGriff ahead this year since it is his last time on the ballot.

While votes nine through four are kind of Cooperstown fence sitters, I have no mixed feelings whatsoever about my final 3 votes.  2 of which were on my OUB last year and one is in his first year of eligibility.

If I was told that I could only vote for 3 players this year my third vote would go to Omar Vizquel. Vizquel was my 5th choice last year and is a player who is more than just the sum of his stats.  I saw Vizquel play many times against and for my beloved White Sox and have seen what a game changing shortstop he was. 

If it was decided that only 2 players could adorn my 2018 ballot, The 2nd name on that ballot would be Edgar Martinez.  (Edgar was 4 on my list of players last year.) I am one of the few people I know who thought Harold Baines should be in the Hall of Fame. With Baines now in the Hall of Fame, there is no earthly reason that Edgar should not be there as well.  Consider this he has a .312 lifetime batting average and hit .312 on the road.  He has a..515 career slugging percentage and slugged .514 on the road.  What consistency! He may have been a designated hitter,  but boy did he live up to that designation!

If I could vote for only 1 player on this years ballot.  It would be Juan Pierre because he played for both teams and was well liked by both teams which is a hall of fame achievement in my book.

I'm sorry my mind or my computer were just hacked.  No offense to Juan,  but if I had only one vote and even just 1/10th of my marbles that vote would have to go to Mariano Rivera in his 1st year on the ballot.  The most dominant relief pitcher in both the regular and post season.  Yes I hate the Yankees but only because of their greatness.  Rivera enhanced that greatness and is deserving of being on 100% of the ballots.

This year I think that 3 or 4 players will make the HOF.  Rivera and Martinez are perfect bookends, 2 positions that HOF voters aren't sure about in their 1st and last years of eligibility. In my mind they are locks.  I think either Mussina or Halladay or possibly both will also make it this year.  I am pretty sure Rivera will not be on every ballot because there are some writers opposed to a 100%ballot and some writers opposed to relief pitchers in the Hall of Fame.  So it's the perfect storm of stupidity that will keep Rivera away from ballot perfection.   The announcement is just minutes away, (procrastinate much?) So let's go see if I was right.