The Chicago White Sox have wilted in the summer heat. While it may be warm in Chicago, the Pale Hose' chances of making it post-season are all but done. The White Sox had a shot but blew it by playing poorly on the road in their last road-trip. And, they came back in a fog.
This team had enough talent to win, but I think there may be something else going on. The way the team has played in the past two weeks makes one wonder if these guys wanted it badly enough. Ozzie Guillen, the outspoken manager has told-it-like-it is in the press. He basically said he thought the team was mailing it in. How does a team get to that position?
Maybe Ozzie is under contract, but there will be talk about maybe cutting the cord here. Yes, he was the manager of the '05 Sox, but this is '09 and the team has spent gobs of money. I think the Sox will keep Guillen and if they get off to a slow start next season, the ax may fall. Alex Rios, the outfielder, has done nothing of note, since he was acquired in early Aug, for boatloads of money. Peavy won his only start with the Sox.
I think the team misses the leadership of Jim Thome. It may be that he brought the team together, and was a good influence in the clubhouse, besides hitting 20+ HRs. He seemed to like playing for the Sox. Perhaps the players miss him as well. Since he was moved to the Dodgers, the team has not played well at all. They have blown games, of note, the 9th inning meltdown of Bobby Jenks in Seattle. With the Sox leading 3-1 and the Tigers losing that night, he gave up 2 HR's in the 9th, and the Sox lost in 14 innings, 4-3. That was a brutal loss. But hey, if you can't close out those kind of games, maybe you don't deserve to be in the playoffs. The good teams make it the post-season, and this season, the Sox have been inconsistent, frustrating, and deficient.
