So, it’s both very surprising and not-at-all surprising that the White Sox won the opener against Detroit. On one hand, Verlander has been unrelentingly brutal on hitters and it’s no secret that our offense has been somewhat… lacking. On the other hand, for some reason, the White Sox seem to do better against team over .500 and worse against sub-.500 teams. So, really, you never know what you are going to get.
Sure, I spent the first 3+ innings just praying SOMEONE would get a hit. I really didn’t want to watch a no-hitter. But, then when Gordon Beckham (!!!? I know, right) came through, followed by Mark Teahen (again, what??!), it was off to the races.
Firstly, and most importantly (other than Beckham initially calming my nerves and being my hero of the game by breaking up the no-no), was the return of the good Gavin Floyd. Gavin Floyd is as good as anyone else out there, but he’s so inconsistent (I think he probably needs to borrow Adam Dunn’s sports psychologist sometimes), you never know what you are going to get. But, last night, he out-pitched Justin Verlander and it made me a very happy sports fan (and, okay, a Gavin Floyd fan) and, aside from the one bad pitch, he was a pleasure to watch. I fully acknowledge the fact that he can have an utter meltdown any day of the week and he can be incredibly frustrating, but I’m still convinced that he has no-hitter stuff in there somewhere and I can keep hoping. :)
And, it was nice to see a happier mood around the White Sox camp after the game today. Rumor has it that ‘The Most Interesting Man in the World’ made it into Gordon Beckham’s locker after the game, but he moved it to Gavin’s locker. Both of those sound about right to me.
It was a good game. At the very least, I’m just happy that (almost) everyone got in on the action and there was actually offense. It’s definitely a step in the right direction. I would be thrilled if they didn’t feel like they had to rely so much on the home run to win ballgames.
There was a lot of good baseball last night: the Charlotte Knights won (White Sox AAA team) with John Danks on mound in a fantastic rehab start, the Jays won, the Rays won, KC made a late comeback against the Twins, and Juan Rivera hit a HR in his first at-bat as a Dodger.
It was good to be back.
Hopefully, it’s the start of a lot of good things for the second half.
Watching the Dandelions Grow 
If Adam Dunn is relying on a sports psychologist, I think he needs to get a new one ;)
But two wins versus the Tigers! Definitely like the sound of that.
Catherine
I’ve stopped pondering Adam Dunn, because it’s become incomprehensible. I have no idea what his issue is, it seems to be tragically permanent and we appear to be continuing to play him come hell or high water, so I’ve thrown in the towel on that one.
But, in better news, my boy Gavin was looking like his old self again AND we got two wins. Definitely a few steps in the right direction.
Kristen – Congrats on the new studio! You’ve cetnairly put it to good use as these shots are AMAZING! Love the little girl on the blanket and little man peeking through the chair. Good job Keri.
You’re right. The good Gavin Floyd is a nasty weapon. Been a while since we’ve seen him. Hope he gets locked in.
–Jeff
If the Sox could come back and make the playoffs after the rough start, that’d be one heck of a come back. Playing like this against the Tigers is a good way to start.
http://bluejaysnest.mlblogs.com/
Your optimism is very much appreciated. I have watched a lot more Blue Jays baseball in the last couple of weeks and I’m trying to figure out how to get some of your offense onto my team.
We need an EricThames (or, heck, a Travis Sinder). Someone young and enthusiastic who just wants to play big league ball and to kick our offense into gear. :)
The Sox are just lucky that no one wats to win the AL Central.
San Francisco parking meerts may start at 7am as well. I got screwed for a $50 ticket for parking at Mission and 5th at 7:20am. Never in my LIFE have I seen a meter start at 7am and the irony is I looked on the meter for hours, looked to make sure there wasn’t street cleaning etc. The sign was on the back of the meter which I discovered after getting the $50 ticket.Totally screwed up.
If the Sox can get good outings from Floyd and Jackson consistently in the second half they will be tough to beat. As for Dunn….who knows???
Ron
That would be amazing. I’ve decided to accept that we are essentially a NL team. In the middle of our order (instead of 9th), we have the pitcher’s spot. Sometimes, there’s a base hit – sometimes, maybe more – but, mostly it’s just a relatively easy out.
I’m now focusing all of my annoyance on Alex Rios. I find it to be much more therapeutic.
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