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On Saturday, the Sox defeated the Cubs during their first televised Spring Training game. The following nine observations are more about the spring training season thus far than about the above-mentioned game:

1. Steve Stone, sportscaster and one-time player for both the Sox and Cubs, has joined Ed Farmer in the radio booth for this season of Sox baseball. I had forgotten who Steve Stone was until I heard his voice, and then I was taken straight back to my childhood and watching the Cubs on WGN. You see, Steve Stone was the color commentator with Harry Caray for 15 years. Stone’s addition is highly welcomed among many Sox fans. Although, many wish he had replaced the television sportscasters.
2. During the game, TV sportscasters Ken Harrelson and Darrin Jackson interviewed Sox manager Ozzie Guillen and general manager Kenny Williams. There was hardly a hard-hitting questions asked between the two. Most of the discussion felt like it was being presented by official PR personnel for the Sox.
3. The best story from Kenny Williams was about how outfielder Jason Bourgeois stuck his baseball glove in the microwave before each game. Kenny cautioned all children watching the game that he didn’t know how long Bourgeois left the glove in the microwave, so it was best not to attempt this at home. One more thing about Jason Bourgeois. He had a great game with a single, two walks, one run, one RBI, and 3 stolen bases.
4. When Ozzie Guillen was asked to comment about how good of a Spring Training season outfielder Brian Anderson was having, his response was “it’s about time.” I mentioned Brian during a previous post, but to sum it up, Brian has been fighting to stay a part of the Sox organization. Many fans speculate that Ozzie doesn’t care for Brian that much and wouldn’t hesitate to trade him or throw him back to the minors. Last season, Brian had only 17 AB with the Sox, spending most of his summer days with the Charlotte Knights. Well, with Brian’s impressive batting and fielding during this Spring Training, Ozzie is going to have no choice but to put him on the roster. Now, he did mention how all the players were really rooting for him, which is nice to hear. Here’s a funny cartoon expressing the Brian/Ozzie relationship. It should be noted that Brian often has great Spring Training seasons that somehow don’t translate to the regular season. I was actually excited to see Brian play, but he apparently had the day off.
5. Oh, Joe Crede. In the last Sox post I mentioned how Crede, one of my favorites, was more than likely going to be traded to make way for the young kid, Josh Fields. Well, it looks like the trade fell apart, and now fans are confused about what’s going to happen next. Ozzie said he can’t keep both 3rd basemen. So, who is it going to be? Crede has been having a rough Spring Training season, although he did get a double and a run during the Cubs game. Fields had the day off.
6. Jim Thome’s homer in the seventh turned out to be the game winner. This was nice to see since Thome hasn’t had the best Spring Training at the bat.
7. Because of the popularity of Cubs’ Kosuke Fukudome, the game was also being broadcast in Japan. His overseas fans got to see him go 1 – 4 with a single as well as collide into back-up 2nd baseman, Mike Rouse.
8. The Cubs were playing without Alfonso Soriano, Derek Lee, and Felix Pie. The less said about Pie’s absence, the better.
9. The next televised game for the Sox comes next week on WGN as the Good Guys take on the Royals.

“The Cubs have been approached by at least three companies interested in purchasing naming rights to Wrigley Field, and team chairman Crane Kenney said on Friday that it is likely they will sell those rights.”

So opens Carrie Muskat’s article on MLB.com. The article continues with Chicago’s mayor Richard Daley’s suggestion that Wrigley Field could be bought and operated by the Illinois Sports Facilities Authority. Basically, the ISFA is a government entity that builds and renovates sports stadiums in Illinois. It also happens to operate U.S. Cellular Field.

Ok, so here’s where the kicker comes in. If Wrigley Field is purchased and operated by ISFA (which won’t have an effect on the naming rights) then the stadium will get anywhere from a $250-$400 million dollar renovation. Where as The Cubs would have to play a part of their season at U.S. Cellular Field. Woah, wait! Are you kidding me? Not sure that either Sider (South or North) is going to be too pleased if that’s the case.

What the Tribune says.

What the Sun-Times says.

And what Chicagoist says.

There have been lots of talk around here on sports radio and local news about the possibility of selling the naming rights for Wrigley Field. Yes, I found it very hard to believe at first, too. But, it’s hardly an issue of “what if” much longer. The Chicago Cubs along with Wrigley Field are owned by the Chicago Tribune. And Sam Zell, chief executive owner of the Tribune Co., is ready sell the ballpark’s name to any corporation that can put up the money, and end the days of free advertising for the chewing gum company.

I’ve heard of suggestions that whoever purchases the naming rights should at least include Wrigley Field in the title, for example “Best Buy presents Wrigley Field”. Of course, what company is willing to share the name with another, even if it is an American icon. On sports radio, I’ve heard a number of Cubs fans that don’t care what the stadium is called as long as it brings more money to the ball team and gets them to the World Series. Still, I wonder what would be the consequences to Chicago tourism be since the park has got to be one of the top summer travel spots in city. Also, I wonder how much the renaming of Wrigley Field angers those outside of Chicago? Any thoughts?

More about this story can be read from the following articles in the Tribune, “Selling Wrigley Field naming rights OK with Sam Zell”, and the Sun-Times, “Cubdom must rally against The Evil Zell”.

– And speaking of Wrigley Field, the ball park is #30 of Stuff White People Like. Hilarious!

Well, since I’m a man of my word, I’m here to give you a recap of the Sox’s first spring training game against last year’s National League champions, Colorado Rockies. Now, while today’s game wasn’t televised (though it was available on MLB.tv, for a fee), it was broadcast on 670 The Score. So, here we go:

1. The game was played at the Electric Park in Tucson, AZ under weather conditions that were 50 degrees warmer than they were in Chicago. And, I’m pretty sure that they don’t have snow expected on Thursday night.
2. Today’s starting lineup was without Joe Crede (my fav) or Sox newcomer, slugger Nick Swisher.
3. Crede vs. Fields. Youngster Josh Fields got the starter over Joe Crede at third base. This was hardly a shocker since Crede is more than likely going to be traded before the start of the season. I really hate to see Crede leave but many Sox fans see Fields as the future of the team. While Fields might not be as good of a defensive player as Crede (in fact, Fields made an error during the first inning), Fields commands more power at the plate. While Crede was injured during much of the `07 season, Fields came up from the minors to hit 23 home runs in only 100 games. Since the Sox can’t afford both players, it’s ultimately going to be up to manager Ozzie Guillen to decide who’s going to be sporting a Sox uniform at the start of season. Most Sox fans believe Ozzie has already made up his mind to trade Crede while Crede is now healthy and has some value. Got to love the business side of America’s past time.
4. John Danks was the Sox’s starting pitcher. While he struck out the first batter, he gave up a home run to the very next batter Troy Tulowitzki followed by a walk to University of Tennessee alumni, Todd Helton. Which was then followed by an error from Fields that allowed Helton to score another run. Still, the Sox press seemed to be happy with Danks performance, striking out three batters in the two innings he pitched. During the third and fourth inning, Danks joined radio announcers Ed Farmer and Chris Singleton (both former South Siders) in the booth for an interview. You won’t get that during the regular season.
5. Poor BA. Brian Anderson that is. For some reason, Ozzie doesn’t seem to like the kid, and he’s seen as a bit of a disappointment for the Sox organization. After starting out with the team last year, he was sent down mid season to the minors in Charlotte. Sox fans seem to be split on whether to like Anderson or not. Frankly, I think he has to put with way more crap than he deserves. I see Anderson as an unappreciated player who’s just waiting for the chance to become a hero. Well, he had a good start today with a double, a walk, and a RBI. And he made a nice catch out there in right field. Though, I’m sure what everyone will remember with his performance today is that when the Sox had the chance to take the lead with bases loaded, Anderson struck out. Oh well. One more thing about Anderson. On the Sox message boards, everyone refers to him as BA. I thought it was a lazy, short cut around his name. However, when Danks was in the radio booth during the third inning, he also referred to Anderson as simply, BA.
6. For whatever reason, MLB.com stopped refreshing its online Game Day coverage during the 5th inning. So, it was bit tougher to keep up with all the substitutions. Non-roster invitees that got to play today include Mike Rouse, Brad Eldred, Miguel Negron, and Royce Huffman. I’ve never heard of them either.
7. During the game, radio announcers Farmer and Singleton spent some time talking with the baseball coach from Northern Illinois University. I’m sure I don’t have to remind you of the shooting tragedy that occurred on their campus a few weeks ago. Paying their respects, the Sox all wore NIU baseball caps.
8. The Sox’s 7 – 3 loss was the 11th straight loss to the Rockies. Ouch!
9. While we loss (even a ST loss is a bummer), it was still exciting to hear Sox baseball on the radio. I can’t hardly wait for the regular season to start up. In order to get really in the mood, I picked up a hot dog (extra char) at Hot Dougs. Ah, hot dogs and baseball. Is there anything more perfect?

– Tomorrow, the Sox get another chance for a win against the Rockies. However, I don’t believe the game is going to be broadcast on radio or television. Bummer.

Sure, there may be fresh snow on the ground here, but 1,800 miles away the Chicago White Sox are gearing up to play ball in Tucson, AZ. Believe it or not, the first spring training game of the season for the Sox starts tomorrow at 2:00pm. While I should be able to check out the game on the radio (not working tomorrow), I won’t get the chance to see a televised spring training game until March 15 when WGN broadcasts the Sox/Cubs game. Ugh. Even when I followed baseball as a kid, I have never been this excited for the start of the season. So, expect some type of wrap up post after tomorrow’s game. I warned you.

Until then, enjoy the Chicago White Sox official website in Espanol.

Hard to believe (especially with the amount of snow accumulated outside), but in twenty seven days the Chicago White Sox will start their spring training season in Tucson, Arizona. Of the 30+ games, thirteen are being televised on Comcast SportsNet, WGN and ESPN. Ready for my Game Reports? In fact, the Sox have made some nice lineup additions (Orlando Cabrera, Nick Swisher, Octavio Dotel, etc.) during the off season, which makes me hopefully for a far better season than`07.

However, the best news is that the Sox last game of spring training is going to be played in Memphis at the AutoZone Park! On March 29, the Sox will take on the New York Mets as part of the Civil Rights Game, which will be shown on ESPN. For some reason, I thought the Cardinals always played this game. But whatever. Now, is it silly for me to fly down for a single, spring training game?

Commercial Appeal article.

You may have noticed that there hasn’t been a Sox report in quite some time. Well, there is a good reason for that. Quite simply, I can’t stomach an entire game. Right now, we are the second worst team in MLB (how did we get to be worse than the Kansas City Royals?). Out of the last 10 games, we have lost 9. And there doesn’t seem like there will be any let up for the rest of the season. Believe me, September is going to be a rough one on the Southside. The team certainly has given up, including manager Ozzie Guillen who always seems a bit bewildered in the dugout, spitting out sunflower seeds in the dirt. Apryl says he looks drunk. Ugh. Here’s a recent quote from Guillen, “I finally have to admit it – we’re horse sh*t. I thought we were just playing bad, but, no, we’re horse sh*t”. At least he’s honest, I suppose. On the other side of town, the Cubs are tearing it up, making it to first place in the National League Central Division, even with the injured superstar Alfonso Soriano. Will this be the year the Cubs finally go to the World Series? Perhaps, if they can avoid the Cubs Curse.

As for the Sox, I still love `em. Go Sox!

(For a slideshow of all the Sox box score photos, click here.)