The Sox got shut out today by the Yankees. Final of 4-0 and the offense just had nothing. As much nothing as they had something last night.

Jake at least only was giving up single runs to the Yankees. Three of those runs were by the long ball. They did get eight hits off of him in the game. He also pitched another complete game on 109 pitches with 78 being strikes.

While the Sox lost, charity won big today. As you may know, Jake lost his close friend, mentor and former bullpen coach with the Padres Darrel Akerfelds last Sunday to pancreatic cancer. Jake, in Darrel’s honor is donating $100 for every strikeout recorded in Major League Baseball today. Between Jake and New York’s Hideki Kuroda, there was a $2,400 donation made in Darrel’s honor.

Tomorrow, the Yankees will try to split the series while the Sox will try to win the series. My favorite, Mr. Consistently Inconsistent will be pitching for the Sox against Phil Hughes. Should be interesting to see what happens.

In the meantime, I hope there are a TON of strikeouts in baseball today. I’m sure Dirt Bag won’t mind parting with a lot more money today in his friend’s honor.

Happy Super Bowl Sunday. I can’t say I really have a team I am rooting for as my team failed to make a repeat performance. No matter as I am sure I will tune in for some time before I decide I just HAVE to watch my latest British obsession, Downton Abbey. If you haven’t been sucked into this British Drama, you are lucky. I find myself having to watch each episode twice because it is that good.

In any event, there is still not much going on at 35th & Shields this off season. THANK GOODNESS the 23rd is coming up soon. At least then we will have thing to discuss. In the meantime, here are a few stories worth your time to read so you stay on top of the Sox. Sure, the off season has been mostly uneventful, but there are a few things to take notice of. » Continue reading “South Side Hits: February 5, 2012″

A couple of business things on Valentine’s day:  First, don’t forget, with spring in the air (it’s been like 40 degrees out with SUN. So balmy in fact that you want to run around with shorts on — at least maybe in Chicago where it has been sub-artic like recently), the White Sox tweet-up at Bob’s Inn on March 1, 2011. Go here and RSVP. Hope to see you at Bob’s Inn. And for all you runners out there, who just happen to be Bulls, Blackhawks and / or White Sox fans, registration is open for the Home Team Charity 10K race which begins at the United Center and ends at the Cell. Even if you happen to like the Cubs you should still come and run the race! Go Here for more details on the race.

In other news, I listen to a LOT of different music styles. At times, I feel I need to justify my musical tastes because I listen to things that are just not taken seriously. However, when I get too much crap, I do remind people that I majored in music so I feel I’m entitled to my “bad” musical tastes on occasion because I also have exceptional tastes as well. That is only relevant because today’s title is from “Boys Boys Boys” by Lady Gaga. Yes, she is viewed by many as beyond annoying, but I find her beats to be fun, particularly when running. » Continue reading “We Love Them!”

KC Royals hanging out in the visitors bullpen pre-game

On January 18, 2011, Gil Meche of the Kansas City Royals retired. At the time, he was in the last year of a $55 million contract and for a lot of his contract, he was injured and therefore spending most of his time on the disabled list instead of helping his team to win games. Unlike football, contracts in baseball for the most part are guaranteed money. For the 2011 season, Gil was to earn slightly over $12M, this was whether he was able to play or on the disabled list. In something that never happens however, when he retired, Meche told the Kansas City Royals to keep that money. He had every right to retire and collect his money, but instead he said “I didn’t want to go try it again for another season and be the guy making $12 million and doing absolutely nothing to help this team,” he said. Part of the reason for retiring is that he has been dealing with a shoulder injury and back problems the last couple of seasons and it would require surgery to fix. Even if he were to get the surgery, he still might end up spending time on the disabled list. » Continue reading “Living with Myself”