Author: Teddy Ballgame

by Tabletalk Teddy

Started playing our series at a little after seven, it
takes about 1/2 hour per game, and my alarm was set
for four for a 7:15 AM flight home. The Chicago
Champions were ten games up on .500, the Gamblers were
eight up, going into this nine game set. Chicago took
three out of the first four, then the Gamblers kicked
the Champs to make it 3-2 Good Guys. Dontrelle
Willis, Gambler Ace, was starting for Three Rivers, so
I matched him with our best Mark Buehrle. Buehrle no
hit the Gamblers, then Brett Myers posted a shutout,
22 straight shutout innings, before the Gamblers won
game #8, but the Champs put away the series 6-3 with a
win over the overmatched Kirk Rueter in the series
finale.

Scott Podsednik

Joe Crede

Tadahito Iguchi

Although the Chicago White Sox actually lost ground on the first place Detroit Tigers over the weekend, it was still a three game series full of excitement as Chicago took two of three from the Houston Astros. Believe it or not I didn’t make it to the two wins. Friday was my Dad’s 72nd birthday, we celebrated with dinner at Wishbone. Saturday we hosted the 56th Lindskoog Family Reunion. Sunday went to see a play with my brother, ate some sushi, before FINALLY hopping the El to the Cell. It was quite a comeback even though the White Sox eventually lost 10-9 in (unlucky) 13 innings. Houston had a 9-1 lead heading into the bottom of the 7th, as Roy Oswalt had it, and Javier Vazquez didn’t. Astros skipper Phil Garner, feeling the game was hand, pulled Oswalt with a 9-2 lead through seven in favor of Russ Springer. After Springer allowed three hits to consecutive hitters in the 8th, Iguchi’s three run home run being the third, it was a closer 9-5 ballgame. Houston closer Brad Lidge was brought on with a four run 9th inning lead, but Tadahito Iguchi’s Grand Slam tied it up. Brandon McCarthy allowed the go ahead run in the 13th as ugly man Adam Everett hit a ball to RF off Ross Gload’s glove, then a fan grabbed it, Everett was awarded a triple, and he scored on a Willy Taveras single to left.

Friday was the first of a three game series rematch of last Fall’s World Series pitting Jose Contreras against Andy Pettitte. The Sox jumped out to a 2-0 lead when Joe Crede doubled home Jermaine Dye, and scored on Rob Mackowiak’s RBI single. But then the momentum seemed to change when Chicago left Scott Podsednik stranded after a leadoff 3rd inning three bagger. Pettitte was on the ropes in the 4th as the Pale Hose loaded the bases with nobody out, but the crafty lefty retired the next two hitters leaving the sacks drunk, and up stepped Podsednik. Scott didn’t hit a home run all last season, has one this year, but had two in the 2005 Playoffs & Series. He was Grand Slamless before this at bat, I did say was. Watching the game on TV I had a sense the Sox might not win if they allowed Andy off the hook again. They didn’t as Scotty fouled off a bunch of pitches before driving one over the RF wall. Contreras allowed two Houston home runs and three runs in the 5th, another in the 7th, but the Sox scored again in the 8th, and Bobby Jenks pitched a 1-2-3 9th to nail it down for Jose 7-4. It was Jose Contreras’ 16th consecutive regular season win without a loss, a White Sox record. Congrats Jose!

After enjoying a beautiful day for our Lindskoog Family Reunion, I came home, and flipped on TIVO to see what the White Sox had done. I must admit things didn’t look good for our heroes, in fact I was pretty much zipping through the game on TIVO. Jon Garland and our boys were behind 5-1 heading into the bottom of the 7th. Houston rookie Taylor Buchholz had it pretty much on cruise control, but when two guys got on for Jermaine Dye I slowed TIVO down to watch the action. A few moments later after a Dye single to right Joe Crede stepped to the plate versus Astro reliever Chad Qualls. Crede took Chad’s first pitch for a game tying Grand Salami, it was deja vu for Qualls as he allowed a first pitch Salami to the White Sox in last year’s Fall Classic. You knew it was over in favor of the Good Guys, but I had to catch the WGN News to see the result. My TIVO ended after nine innings, but the game didn’t. I switched over to live WGN just as they were recapping the game and I got to see the Sox win it in 10 when Alex Cintron plated the winning run, 6-5 White Sox.

Funny thing is I’m a vegetarian, but I sure did enjoy these Grand Salamis!!!

Miguel Cabrera hit what was supposed to be one of four pitches outside the strike zone from reliever Todd Williams for an RBI single scoring Hanley Ramirez with what proved to be the winning run. This game was played on June 22nd between the Baltimore Orioles and the Florida Marlins. Florida was trailing 5-1 to Baltimore in the 9th before coming back against Ken Ray who was a perfect 18 for 18 in saves before allowing the Marlins back in the game. The Marlins came back to win 8-5 in ten innings.

The Florida Marlins are rebuilding with a rookie skipper at the helm. Yet they had one nine straight games before losing 4-0 to Baltimore. Dontrelle Willis & Brian Moehler are the only Marlins who’ve answered affirmatively to the question, “Who wants to be a millionaire?”, $4,350,000 for DW and $1,500,000 for BM. Florida’s payroll is 30th among MLB teams at $14.3 million. The NY Yankees rank #1 at $198.6 million. Joe Girardi is the rookie manager for these overachievers. Girardi learned his smarts at Northwestern University and learned his winning ways from Joe Torre & the Yankees. It won’t be long before the Marlins are back in the playoff picture for years to come, built on a solid foundation. But they may have to change locations, as there seem to be a lot of distractions in South Florida, and fans have too many other things to do, go figure.

I know the issue is all about profanity and the word fag to describe Sun Times writer Jay Mariotti. Don’t get me wrong, Ozzie Guillen should have chosen better words to describe Mariotti. I do understand however what ticked Ozzie off. Jay has jumped on Ozzie Guillen from the word go. Recently Mariotti was all over Guillen because Ozzie had relief pitcher Sean Tracey farmed out for refusing to follow orders and hit Hank Blalock. Guillen was trying to protect his hitters, his job is to win ballgames, and in this game Texas pitcher Vicente Padilla hit A.J. Pierzynski twice with pitches. Padilla does have a propensity for hitting batters, but still has only hit 59 batters among the over 3,600 batters he has faced.

Lately sports guys on TV, radio, and in the newspaper have taken to controversy. It shouldn’t surprise these guys when their subjects explode. Makes for good copy and sells papers, I guess. Writing in the last issue of the National Jay Mariotti is the same guy who wrote off the Bulls after they lost their first game to the Lakers in the 1991 NBA Playoffs, the Bulls rebounded to win the next four straight, and six championships in the next eight years. More recently Jay was counting down to when the Bulls would lose their 73rd game after they opened the season 0-9, they came back to make the playoffs that year. And just the other day Mariotti said Miami was too old and overmatched for the Dallas Mavericks, but that was when Dallas was up 2-0. His latest victim is Mark Cuban, saying Cuban’s big mouth has run its course. At the risk of offending weasels, Jay is one!

For the 2nd night in a row White Sox hitters smacked the crap out of Cardinal pitchers, well actually Cardinal pitcher, as starter Jason Marquis allowed thirteen earned runs (isn’t that bad luck?) in five innings. There were more Cardinal fans in the stands for this game than for the first contest. And they were more vocal than during the 1st ballgame(?). But then again, hope springs eternal, and the fans actually thought their boys were going to come back after their butt beating from the previous night. So Taguchi took Mark Buehrle over the leftfield fence in the first inning to give the Redbirds an early 1-0 lead, after the Sox scored four in the bottom of the frame, St. Louis responded with two in the top of the 2nd, but after two full innings the World Champion Chicago White Sox were up 9-3. Remarkably Marquis was left in there to surrender four more runs over the next three innings.

Paul Konerko knocked one out in the first with two runners aboard, later he fouled a ball off his leg to the delight of Cardinal fans (who really had nothing else to cheer about at that point). The fans in red behind the plate stood, clapped, and were saying, “poor baby got an owie”. Later Paulie was replaced by Ross Gload, but by then the goofballs were off at some local watering hole drowning their sorrows. In the 3rd they were still in their seats when Jim Edmonds tried in vain to keep Joe Crede’s blast in the park. He hit his head, was helped off the field, someone who sounded alot like me screamed, “SEE YOU IN FIFTEEN DAYS JIM! IT MUST BE THE BASEBALL SEASON, EDMONDS IS HURT AGAIN!” My comments were more aimed at the Redbird fans than Edmonds. The White Sox knocked four balls out of the yard (Jim Thome, Juan Uribe, Joe Crede, & Paul Konerko). St. Louis hit three out (Jim Edmonds before being knocked silly and So Taguchi & Timo Perez). What are the odds the Sox would score 33 runs in back to back games, probably not higher than Taguchi & Timo hitting longballs in the same game. On a serious note, if the Chicago kicker misses another extra point in game three his job may be in jeopardy.

Not even Albert Pujols would have made a difference in this series thus far. A cutie Cardinal fan asked, “when’s Albert coming back?” I told her that he was out looking for some JUICE. She replied, “don’t even”. I said, “he was a 19th round draft choice that turned into the Incredible Hulk”. Things that make you go HMMMM.

Took the El to the Claddagh Ring after the game where I met up with my sister in law who got Hammered & Nailed. Incredibly NickyV called it a night at the Cell, he didn’t want to be hungover when he picked up his daughter the next morning. I might be in a rut, but it’s a good rut. Weather permitting, I’m going to the Cell again for game three (wonder if I’ll need to bring my broom).