Ozzie and Peanut Need Hugs

What I Hate...

No Love For The Pale Hose

You don't need to lecture me on the issues the White Sox have within the City of Chicago. Growing up a Sox fan in a Cubs town, I'm well aware of the fact that the city will always belong to the Lovable Losers. I understand that. I don't like it, but I've gotten used to it and it no longer irks me.

What I don't understand, however, is why no one in the national media seems to see anything news worthy coming out of the South Side, save for the weekly outburst from Ozzie.

I try and steer clear of being a total homer, but in light of the regular season winding down, allow me to vent.

If the Sox suck, like they have oh so many times in their history, then as a whole, they are scoffed at by the national media and rightfully so. The problem I have with the sports writing world happens when the Sox are occasionally good, like for example this season.

Everyone acts like they are all of a sudden the big bad team that needs to be upset.

All season long, every analyst and anchor from Buck to Kruck waxes poetic about how the Twins are the biggest suprise coming out of the AL Central. Yeah I get that they gave up Santana and Hunter, but are they really the most suprising team? They have Mauer and Morneau, better all around players then anyone on the Sox. They have hyper fast outfielders in Young and Gomez. They were picked to finish 3rd in the Central behind the Tigers and the Indians.

The White Sox were picked to finish either last or second to last depending on the expert. Worst to first is a more suprising leap then third to second or even third to first. Yet the Twins are the suprise? Look at the White Sox roster.

I mean really look at it.

How the Hell have they gotten this far?

It's a team of geriatric home run hitters and a couple guys who can field but can't really hit. Their bullpen WAS lights out but hasn't been in months. Our best player has been kissing bench for a month now because he is really smart and injured himself by bashing his forearm into a bat repeatedly.

Just because the White Sox were the really scary bad guy team in Angels in the Outfield AND one of the Major League movies (I think it was the second one) doesn't mean they are some sort of juggernaut. They suck usually. They sort of suck now. Yet across the Baseball world, the Twinkies are getting all the Aw-Shucks points and the Sox are treated like the heartless winning machine, ripe for an upset.

Did I miss something?

What I Love...

Charles Tillman

I know, I should be hating on him right? He showed no self control and cost the Bears the game right? Well firstly, he didn't. The Bears-Bucs game never should have gone to overtime. The Bears Defense blew a double digit lead in the 4th quarter to a Brian Greise ran offense. Ron Turner jumped back into his shell and stopped going to Brandon Lloyd for the kill. Robbie Gould missed a fairly easy field goal.

Tillman was slapped with a 15 yard penatly when he was caught throwing punches at the end of a drive ending play that would have forced the Bucs to punt out of their endzone in OT, giving the Bears fairly good field position to try and get a game winning drive going. It sounds bad. It wasn't, or at least I don't see it that way.

For one, it was a two team rumble and any good ref would have thrown multiple flags that would offset each other and everything would have been kosher.

But lets forget about that and look at the situation. Tampa Bay offensive lineman Jeremy Trueblood found himself on top of Bears defensive end Adewale Ogunleye at the end of the play, so naturally, he stars clubbing Ogunleye in the face repeatedly.

Tillman saw his teamate on his back taking cheap shots to the face, so he did what a good teamate would do and ran in to help him. I don't have a problem with this at all. Win or loss I'd rather pull for a team where the players have eachother's back.

I mean what should he have done? Said "Well I'm going to let this fat guy keep pounding my teamate in the skull, possibly doing some real damage, 'cuz gee wiz I there's a slim chance my teams demented offense could pull off a win."

And for all the morally outraged fans out their who are quick to call players who get in fights bad role models for the youngsters out their should ask themselves this; if your son is at the playground, and some kid is beating the crap out of one of his friends, should he just sit their and watch so he doesn't get in trouble?

Tillman, at the core of it, was sticking up for one of his friends, that's what I'm going to teach my kids to do, and I'm not going to hate on Peanut Tillman for doing so.

What I Don't Understand...

Quarterback Jumble

During last Saturday's Iowa-Pitt game, the Hawkeye coaching staff started Jake Christensen, pulled him and gave Ricky Stanzi the ball, and then pulled him and tossed Jake back in. They both pretty much accomplished the same, Ricky set up a scoring drive, Jake ran one in. Neither player really brings anything different to the table. It's not like one is the passer and one is a rushing threat. They are both pretty standard pocket passers. So pick one. Jake has looked equal parts great and terrible in his career at Iowa, and Stanzi played very well against Florida International and played very poorly against Iowa State.

What I'm saying is, pick one and stick with them. By flipping between them, all your doing is wrecking their confidence.

I wan't someone on the coaching staff to explain to me the reasoning behind the mid game flips, or in the case of the Pitt game, multiple changes of heart.

It didn't work for the Bears.

I doubt It will pan out for the Hawkeyes.