Tag Archives: MLB

Upates from Glendale: Burger undergoes surgery, Giolito and Jimenez start hot

Mar 12, 2018 | Web Team

By Cat Garcia

It’s been anything but dull for the first few weeks of White Sox training camp in Glendale, Arizona. Sox fans have been able to catch a glimpse not only of live action baseball, but of their stars of the future.

With that being said, it certainly hasn’t been a Spring Training for the faint of heart. Multiple injuries have mounted on the field, Miguel Gonzalez struggled in his first outing back in a White Sox uniform, and folks caught a glimpse of the less refined version of their future superstar pitcher Michael Kopech.

From Jake Burger to Nicky Delmonico, let’s take a look at the biggest takeaways from camp so far.

Jake Burger Out For 2018

White Sox first-rounder Jake Burger ruptured his Achilles during a sprint to first base during a game against the Athletics on February 27th. Burger underwent successful surgery on his Achilles on March 1st in Chicago and is expected to miss the entire 2018 season. Despite the shocking turn of events, Burger has a positive outlook on the situation. “I can focus on nutrition, focus on my diet, focus on my body,” Burger told the media in Glendale after the injury occurred. “I actually texted my academic guy back at Missouri State, and I’m going to go back for an intersession course, get three hours in.” Burger said he spoke with newly appointed White Sox ambassador and former starter Jose Contreras, who suffered the same injury in 2008. “He was like, ‘Look, man, it’s a tough recovery, but you’ll get back,’” Burger said of Contreras. “He said he lost 30 pounds while going through it. I’m looking forward to that and I’m looking forward to being back with my family for a couple of weeks.”

Lucas Giolito Impresses

The future is bright for young White Sox starter Lucas Giolito, who showed flashes of brilliance in his short debut with the big league club at the end of 2017. But in training camp, Giolito seems to be picking up where he left off. Giolito has started two games and pitched a total of six innings, while accumulating nine strikeouts, and eight of those nine punchouts came on Saturday afternoon against the Chicago Cubs. Giolito walked two on the afternoon and pitched four solid innings. “I was just trying to mix my it up a lot,” Giolito told the media after his outing on Saturday. “I was throwing the slider pretty much for strikes and was throwing the curveball a bit sharper, which is what I have been working on. With two strikes, I was able to get guys out with it. Overall my breaking stuff was working pretty well.” Giolito allowed just one earned run on Saturday, a homer off Cubs backup catcher Victor Caratini.

Nicky Delmonico and Tyler Saladino Suffer Outfield Collision

As if the White Sox stockpile of injuries could mount any higher — two most players were added to the heap on Sunday. Outfielder Nicky Delmonico and shortstop Tyler Saladino collided trying to catch a pop-up in the seventh inning, and the collision prompted manager Rick Renteria to remove Saladino from the game and place him on the 7-day concussion list, while Delmonico has suffered a separated shoulder. “Just extended it,” Renteria said of the Delmonico injury. “Didn’t pop it. Didn’t do anything. Just got extended and jammed it a little bit.” With just two weeks until Opening Day, it is possible that for precautionary reasons, Delmonico will open the season on the disabled list. Delmonico was slated to be the White Sox starting left fielder, which now leaves the club ready to test the waters with Ryan Cordell, Leury Garcia and other options to fill that role.

Eloy Jimenez Returns

Not all of camp has been exceptionally gloomy in the way of injuries for the White Sox this spring. After being sidelined for two weeks with left knee tendinitis, the infamous Eloy Jimenez played his first full game of the spring on Sunday against the Diamondbacks. Jimenez first stepped up to the plate as a pinch-hitter in Saturday’s game, only to hit a go-ahead home run that tied the game 4-4. Sunday, Jimenez continued his success, hitting another home run in his first at-bat off Diamondbacks starter Patrick Corbin. Jimenez went on to hit a triple on a line drive to centerfield and walked in his final plate appearance of the day. Despite the success, Jimenez has only played a handful of games above Class A and will begin the season in Double A Birmingham, even if the stay there is short before he ventures up to Charlotte. The show will go on for Jimenez, just not with the big league club for right now.

Mike Moustakas Could Be A Last Minute Fit

Feb 23, 2018 | Web Team

By Cat Garcia

While fans prepare for warmer weather and Opening Day festivities, ball players have begun to welcome a new season by get back into the groove of everyday play.

But not everyone is hearing the crack of bats at Spring Training camps just yet.

From Jake Arrieta to Lucas Duda, there are still a handful of free agents left to be signed before Opening Day, and while the White Sox may not be looking to add a big name or contract to the fold just yet, there have been some interesting rumblings as we head into the first live action games of the year.

MLB.com’s Jon Morosi reported earlier this week that an MLB executive noted third baseman Mike Moustakas may still have a good chance of landing with the White Sox.

In a vacuum, a reunion with the Royals would seem to be the most likely outcome for Moustakas. But the Royals have commited to starting fresh with a young core after winning their first World Series title in 30 years with Moustakas, Hosmer, Cain, etc — all of which have not be resigned yet or have moved on.

Moustakas had a strong season in 2017, hitting a career high 38 home runs in Kauffman Stadium. Moustakas also batted .272/.314/.521 while sporting a 114 wRC+. Not bad for a third baseman who is about to enter his age 30 season.

The question now is simple. Are the White Sox uncomfortable enough with running out Matt Davidson and Co. everyday that they feel the need to sign a player such as Moustakas? After all, White Sox GM Rick Hahn was calculated enough to make it clear to folks pestering him with Manny Machado questions all winter that they were going to do what was best for their long term plan. Would that be to sign Moustakas to a one-year deal, and go after Machado in free agency next offseason?

Considering Moustakas made just $8.7 million with the Royals in 2017 and is likely sitting at home waiting for his phone to ring, he could come at a bargain for the White Sox to add last minute, one that wouldn’t really jeopardize their financial plan for the future, but make the 2018 team considerably more solid on all fronts.

Signing Moustakas for a year and even potentially flipping him at the trade deadline to finish out the season with Davidson or perhaps even a call up for Jake Burger could also be a route the White Sox are looking to take. They would be able to upgrade at third base for a while and cash in on prospects, should Moustakas have as successful of a season has he did with the Royals in 2017.

Going into the season, the dust seems to have settled on which players will be starting at each position, and though it won’t be a brilliant crop on all accounts, it’s passable for a likely non-contending season that’s fresh on the heels of a rebuild. But when it comes to third base, it’s been a bit hazy for several seasons now.

Davidson is obviously the leading candidate for the starting role, but considering he hit just .220/.260/.452 last season, the idea of him taking of the bulk of the playing time isn’t exactly ideal — even in this landscape. Davidson feels more suited to a bench role, where he can hone his best tool — his power — when the situational need arises. But there is no real reason to be running out a player who owned a very characteristic 37 percent strikeout rate in 443 plate appearances last season. Perhaps a possible last minute upgrade to the hot corner has been Hahn’s creative thinking at work all along, or perhaps this is simply a case of “Hey, we need a third baseman and you haven’t been signed yet”.

Whether there will be any truth behind the speculation that Moustakas could land with the White Sox remains to be seen for now, but the main takeaway is that should a transaction come together in the next few weeks, it wouldn’t jeopardize the White Sox’s long term plans to be more active on the free agent market next offseason, but would lock in a solid starting third baseman for the coming season.

89 Seconds with 890: Ed Farmer

Apr 21, 2017 | Rachel Brady

In the hot seat this week for 89 Seconds with 890 powered by #Xfinity, we have Chicago White Sox favorite and play by play announcer Ed Farmer answering some rapid fire questions by reporter Rachel Brady. Press play to find out which hitter Ed would not want to face today at the plate!

89 Seconds with 890: David Robertson

Apr 14, 2017 | Rachel Brady

On this edition of 89 Seconds with 890 powered by Xfinity, White Sox reporter Rachel Brady asks pitcher David Robertson some rapid fire questions on his 32nd Birthday. Find out here who David was starstuck by! (HINT: his name is on the box of food you ordered at 12AM last night)

White Sox visit to Luke Air Force Base

Feb 24, 2017 | Rachel Brady

Jake Petricka, Nate Jones, Kevan Smith and David Robertson’s family meet with military members at Luke Air Force Base during spring training. The White Sox toured the jets, the facility and bomb equipment. David Robertson tried on a 70 pound bomb suit! Check it out!

 

MLB: Cook County Sheriff tries to enter World Series using credentials

Dec 23, 2016 | WLSAM Staff

By Don Kleppin, WLS AM 890 News

(CHICAGO) Deputy Chief Mike Anton is under investigation by the Cook County Sheriff’s Department and the MLB, after baseball investigators say he used his police credentials to try and get a teenage relative into Game 5 of the World Series.

Sheriff’s Department Spokesperson Cara Smith told the ABC7 I-team this is NOT why officers are given access.

“They’re not given a credential to go watch the baseball game…they’re given it to assist with keeping the peace. The mere having that credential is not a problem. The concern is if it was…if a credential was provided to someone who wasn’t authorized to have it.”

Anton’s still on the job with his full salary of 120,000 dollars a year and hasn’t said anything publicly.

Sheriff’s officials said shortly after Game 5, Anton let his superiors know he’d tried to get into the game using police credentials and was turned away.

‘108’ is the Magic Number for the Chicago Cubs

Oct 14, 2016 | WLSAM Staff
Nick Gale, WLS-AM 890 News

(CHICAGO) The Chicago Cubs will take on the Los Angeles Dodgers Saturday at Wrigley Field in the National League Championship Series.

Dodgers ace, Clayton Kershaw, got the final two outs to earn his first major league save, and finish the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 4-3 victory over the Washington Nationals in Game 5 to win their National League Division Series.

The Cubs last won the World Series in 1908…108 years ago. And the number 108 seems to keep turning up along the journey to the world series.

Grant DePorter, president and managing partner of Harry Caray’s Restaurant Group, says there is significance to the number 108.

DePorter told ABC-7 that for instance that the number of stitches on a baseball are 108. Also, the numbers of the last two Cubs inducted into the Hall of Fame, Ron Santo and Andre Dawson, add up to 108.

Some other instances to note: the first World Series game at Wrigley was on Oct. 8, or 10/8, and the Cubs’ last World Series game win was also on 10/08.

If that isn’t persuasive enough, the Cubs’ playoff games are all scheduled to start at 7:08 p.m. which converts to 19:08 in military time.

DePorter believes all of this adds up to the Cubs winning this year’s World Series.

Dear God, Thank You for making Tim Anderson

Sep 22, 2016 | WLSAM Staff

(CHICAGO) Ten-year-old Catholic school student, Danny Saracini, came home from one of his first days of school with an important homework assignment. He was asked to write down the things he was most thankful for and from those items create a prayer.

Having back-to-school writer’s block, he was frustrated and defeated. His mom, Jane, suggested, “Danny, why don’t you just write about baseball?”

Danny did just that.

Jane got a kick out of the prayer and sent it over to WLS-AM to show Ed Farmer and White Sox player, Tim Anderson.

 

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Dear God, Thank you for helping mankind discover baseball and the White Sox. Thank you for making Tim Anderson because he makes a big difference on the team.

 

Well, we did more than that. We brought Danny and his family to the ballpark for a little meet-and-greet!

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Danny watches the game as dad Jim, sister Ellen, WLS-AM 890’s Jen DeSalvo, mom Jane and brother Jimmy smile for the camera.

 

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Danny meets Ed Farmer!

 

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Jimmy, Danny & Ellen in the Press Box

 

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An Ed Famer-Danny fist bump.

 

Little did we know, Jane and Jim Saracini were actually married at the Stadium Club 15 years ago!

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jim-and-jane-saracini-got-married-at-uscellular

The Saracini Family meets Tim Anderson

Jen DeSalvo, WLS-AM 890 News

89 WLS Sports Pre Game Show – Tuesday, August 6th – Producer’s Log

Aug 6, 2013 |

WLS Baseball Commissioner, Steve Stone, joined the WLS Sports guys as they discuss Alex Rodriquez's play last night after MLB said they would suspend him for 211 games. ARod is appealing this decision by MLB, he is still able to play. He went 1-4 with a single.

Dionne Miller, FOX 32, joined the guys from Bears camp to discuss the latest happenings in Bourbannais. Jay Cutler threw 4 interceptions but in good news many of the injured players are making their way back to the field. The Bears were desimated by injuries on both sides off the ball earlier in training camp.  

89 WLS Sports Pre Game Show – Wednesday, July 16th – Producer’s Log

Jul 17, 2013 |

Another hot day in Chicago here's what was on tap for today…

HENRY MELTON, Defense Tackle for the Chicago Bears, joined the show to discuss handing out tickets to Bears season ticket holders. Melton's excited about the defense from a pass-rushing stand point. Other teams don't have what the Bears do on their roster. Melton's neutral on being on the franchise tag, “I can’t control it. I wanna be here long term .. all I can do is play.” Melton says the Bears are ready for the season to start.  

Listen to the podcast here: http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=1201&c=9991&f=1639481 

STEVE STONE, WLS Baseball Commissioner, joined the show to discuss last night’s MLB All-Star Game. Specifically, Mariano Rivera.  Stone says Mo epitomizes hard work and that it's absolutely magnificent he's having one of his best years and understands how game should be played.  Stone liked the fact Rivera was given an appearance in last night’s game in the 8th inning. Rivera was also named the Most Valuable Player of the game. Steve had a bone to pick with Tigers Outfielder, Torii Hunter: Hunter said (It's) still impressive players like Barry Bonds would still hit, even if they did use performance enhancing drugs. Stone said that this disrespects the guys who currently play the game. 

Listen to the podcast here: http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=1201&c=9991&f=1639481

89 WLS Sports Pre Game Show – Tuesday, July 16th – Producer’s Log

Jul 16, 2013 |

Hope you’re staying cool on this scorching Tuesday!

The guys talked about the fantastic show last night that was the Home Run Derby. Young stars Bryce Harper and Yoenis Cespedes put on a show in the final round last night and Oakland’s Cespedes took home the title. Watch the MLB All-Star Game tonight on FOX at 7PM Central.

White Sox announcer Steve Stone joined the show. Stone discussed the All-Star game and the recent comments by Commissioner Bud Selig. Selig went on Letterman last night and discussed Alex Rodriguez and the other players implicated in the Biogenesis case. There could be over $100M on the line if A-Rod doesn’t play this season because of injury or perhaps suspension.

You can listen to the podcast here: http://www.stationcaster.com/player_skinned.php?s=1201&c=9991&f=1634331

Tune in tomorrow at 5PM to hear the top sports stories in Chicago and around the country!

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