White Sox - 7/22/02

BY MARIO SCALISE
LATEST TEAM INFO
RECORD: 46-54
PLACE: 2nd
GAMES BACK: 13
Rumors are floating and floating and floating. Whether it's Durham to the A's, Valentin to the Dodgers, Thomas to the Red Sox, or Clayton to the Braves, the rumors are out. The Sox struggles this season are prompting a look at next season, which has the Sox looking at available pitchers on the market such as Ponson, Wilson, Lidle, and Parris who can strengthen a young staff. The Sox will be starting a three game set with the Twins today, which will be do or die. The Sox are already 13 games out and can't afford to fall out any further if they plan to make a late run.

QUICK VIEW
Who to Watch/Add/Drop
#1- RAY DURHAM- @B (ADD)
Whether he is going through his hot streaks or showing his value to potential buyers, Durham is hitting the ball. Durham is now batting .293 thanks in part to July in which he has so far hit .350 with 5 homers and 11 RBI's. He's getting on, scoring, and coming up with clutch hits. Durham is on pace for 77 RBI's, two more than his career high set back in 2000. Got him, start him. Don't, get him. He'll likely get dealt to a contender and is still a FA after this season.

#2- PAUL KONERKO- 1B (WATCH)
As expected, Konerko has found himself in a rut. He went from tops in the league in RBI's, to in the top 5 with teammate Magglio Ordonez not too far behind. He's batting .279 in June with 2 homers and 6 RBI. The reason? Konerko has played in 97 of the 100 games the Sox have played and wasn't fortunate to have the three days off as he was at the All Star game. This shouldn't take a long term affect so no need to panic.

ROTATION OUTLOOK
7/22 - T.Ritchie (5-13, 5.98) 2002 Versus Twins: 0-1, 9.00
vs. R.Reed (7-5, 4.57)
7/23 - M.Buehrle (12-7, 3.63) 2002 Versus Twins: 0-1, 9.00
vs. J.Santana (4-1, 2.62)
7/24 - J.Garland (8-7, 5.12) 2002 Versus Twins: 0-0, 5.40
vs. K.Lohse (9-5, 4.80)
7/27 - G.Glover (3-5, 4.62) 2002 Versus Royals: 1-0, 0.93
vs. S.Sedlacek (1-0, 3.05)
7/26 - D.Wright (6-8, 5.52) 2002 Versus Royals: 1-0, 13.50
vs. D.May (2-6, 4.54)
7/22 - T.Ritchie (5-13, 5.98) 2002 Versus Royals: 0-3, 7.36
vs. J.Suppan (8-7, 4.77)
Although Gary Glover has been looked at as a clog in the rotation, he's pitched fairly well his past starts giving up 11 runs in his last 24 innings of work. Hold off both Ritchie and Wright again this week as usual, while starting Buehrle is a safe bet considering he'll be in Comiskey where he is 7-3 with a 2.91 ERA. Garland said he felt "uncomfortable" in Friday's game against the Orioles. Not sure what it means, but don't risk it.

OFENSIVELY SPEAKING
The Sox hit Reed for 4 runs in 2 innings earlier this season with Durham, Ordonez, and Konerko doing the most damage. Carlos Lee has a career .625 average against Lohse with 2 homers and 3 RBI's. Jeff Suppan has struggled against Ordonez, Konerko, and Thomas. The three have a combined 6 homers and 13 RBI's against Suppan. Durham and Lofton are different stories. They are a combined 9-67 against him.

LOCAL PERSPECTIVE
The poor play of the Sox has passed as most of the talk around the Sox revolves around next year and what trades will be made before July 31st. Jerry Manuel is still on the hot seat with the fans, but not Kenny Williams, while pitching coach Nardi Contreras is expected to be fired in the coming days.

THE MINOR REPORT
Joe Crede injured himself earlier this week, but it isn't considered serious. D'Angelo Jimenez, who was acquired over a week ago, is batting .217 in 7 games with no homers and 2 RBI's. He's walked 4 times and has stolen a base. Brook Kieschnick has now pitched 17 scoreless innings, while batting .272 with 5 homers and 24 RBI's.

CHECK BACK NEXT WEEK FOR MORE WHITE SOX NEWS, OR E-MAIL ME AT rio255@yahoo.com WITH ANY QUESTIONS YOU MAY HAVE