As of late Thursday Cora said that he had not been contacted by the Brewers but the request to talk to him has been confirmed.

Aside from the possibility of Cora becoming their manager, Bob Melvin is considered a favorite to win the position.

As I said in a previous post, the only other option Cora has to become a manager this season is with the Mets but they haven’t made any attempts in contacting potential candidates yet since they are working on getting their general manager first.

So it still looks like the waters are pretty calm in terms of Cora becoming a manager and it’s likely that he will be returning as the bench coach for the White Sox next season.

Once believe to be on the list of potential candidates for the vacate manger position for the Seattle Mariners, the Mariners announced that Joey Cora is not and has not been on their preliminary list of candidates. It’s also believed that he is not on the list for the manager position for both the Florida Marlins and Pittsburgh Pirates as well.

Cora was the runner up for the Seattle position a couple years ago but lost out to recently fired manager Don Wakamatsu. Seattle is believed to have no interest in him this time around because they want a manager with Major League experience.

The one real shot he has left in the Mets manager position. The Mets are looking to their general manager before they look for their manager. White Sox assistant GM Rick Hahn is scheduled to interview with the Mets for that position and if he were to get that job then there could be a good chance that the Mets look at Cora for their manager position.

If nothing works out, then expect Cora to be back next to Ozzie Guillen next year making lineup and in-game decisions for the White Sox.

Recently Konerko talked about contract length not being much of an issue when it comes to free agency because he’s not sure how much longer he wants to play. To me, this sounds like Konerko is saying that anyone and everyone has a shot of getting his services for a couple years and there is no advantage for the White Sox.

Also GM Kenny Williams has been dropping hints as if Konerko isn’t going to come back. He said that there might not be enough money to sign Konerko to any type of deal. He also said that this becomes even more of a long shot if the White Sox try to obtain a left handed bat.

It sounds to me like Kenny is just throwing out comments so that people start getting the mindset that Konerko isn’t coming back so that it isn’t totally new and shocking news when Konerko signs elsewhere this winter.

While I’d prefer to see Konerko come back for 2 more years or so, it just looks like it isn’t going to happen more and more as time goes on and more teams show interest in him.

The White Sox tried to acquire Berkman this past season but were shot down in any attempted deals by either the Astros or by Berkman himself. He felt like he could go to a better team and ended up on the Yankees and is currently in the playoffs with them right now.

Most teams are kinda hesitant to look at Berkman because he hasn’t had a stellar year and because he is already 35. The White Sox don’t seem to mind that considering they tried to acquire him this past season.

Berkman seems to be running out of fuel in the tank but as we saw with Konerko this year, another great year is more than possible for Berkman (especially if he’s hitting at U.S. Cellular Field)

This is just the first of what I expect to be many rumors of possible first base/DH replacements for the White Sox so we can’t assume anything is for sure for quite some time but it’s nice to know the White Sox are already trying to see how to improve the team with the postseason nowhere close to being over yet.

The idea for this meeting came about after the Major League Baseball Players Association had received an increased number of complaints this season over the calls being made by umpires.

Both sides were contacted but refused to speak to reporters and refused to give any details about what may be talked about and what will happen there.

Various MLB players have stated that they have increased tensions towards the umpires and that they think they should be allowed to know when an umpired is evaluated, fined, and so on since the public knows all about that when it comes to players.

There has already been two umpire errors this postseason on  a missed out call on a fly ball in the Yankees game 1 and Buster Posey was called safe on a stolen base attempt even though replay showed he was out. It was especially important because he later came around to score the only run of the game. These errors have caused my players and coaches to openly say that they feel instant replay needs to be expanded to stop these bad calls from continuing.

Personally, the umpires have been getting worse and worse in my opinion. Now granted, every team has had the benefit of a bad umpire call going their way (A.J. Pierzynski and Jermaine Dye in the 2005 postseason for example White Sox fans) but it’s getting to be a real problem. Just this season alone, the balk calls against Mark Buehrle that clearly weren’t balks to anyone except Joe West’s crew, the blown call that cost Armando Gallarraga a perfect game, and the two errors in the postseason so far is something that needs to stop. I’m all for more instant replay because if we all see the same things watching at home and we know the call is wrong, why can’t we use the same during the game. People complain that games will be delayed but I’d rather delay the game and get a call right then not delay the game and teams getting screwed over left and right because of poor umpires.

Let’s face it, regardless of what this meeting is about and what happens, it’s safe to say that expanded instant replay isn’t too far off in the future.

The two key pieces that we may lose this year are A.J. Pierzynski and Paul Konerko. While no one really wants to see either of them leave, there is a chance that they will. If that’s the case, then we are going to have one of the youngest infields in baseball, if not the youngest. We would more than likely have Dayan Viciedo at first, Gordon Beckham at second, Alexei Ramirez at shortstop, Brent Morel at third, and Tyler Flowers doing the catching.

The downside to that infield is that Viciedo and Flowers both need some touching up on their skills and they may not be ready for that kind of role just yet. Ramirez and Beckham have both proven to be very valuable assets and Morel showed us that he can more than take over for Teahen at third, some even going as far as saying Morel can be the next Joe Crede if not better than Crede. So the future there definitely has an upside offensively.

It’s going to be an off season full of rumors and potential trades and all that good stuff and I wouldn’t be surprised to see the White Sox take a shot at a couple of the big name free agents that will be out there this year. But even if we don’t end up getting one of those guys, if Viciedo and Flowers can produce like everyone knows they can, then the White Sox are going to be fine for many years to come.

Task #1: Resign Paul Konerko

While many people say he is old and past his prime, his 39 home run, MVP like season he had this year is proof enough that Konerko can still post big numbers at his age. He has been the captain of the team for years now and to lose him would be a huge blow to the chemistry of the team because there aren’t too many other people qualified to take the role he has. Take into account the small field that U.S. Cellular Field is and Konerko could be guaranteed 20 home runs or more for at least the next couple seasons and that is good production in my eyes. Losing him would be a huge blow to the team so resigning him has to be one of the team’s top priorities.

Task #2: Make A Decision On Bobby Jenks

We all have seen the struggles that Bobby Jenks has had this season and has brought his ability to close into question numerous times. He is up for arbitration this year and is expected to have a more than modest pay raise given to him so this brings up the question of whether he is worth the money or not. Personally, he isn’t worth the money in the slightest and the White Sox are better off getting rid of him or signing him and trading him so they can get something in return. He was a huge part of winning the World Series in 2005 but he just isn’t the same player he was back then. I’d feel much more comfortable with someone like Matt Thornton or J.J. Putz as the closer. Hell, if he doesn’t work out as a starter this year, I’d even be comfortable with Chris Sale taking a shot at closer as well. Regardless of who takes his place, it needs to be bye-bye to Bobby Jenks.

Task #3: Resign A.J. Pierzynski

A.J. is a proven veteran catcher and has huge success here in Chicago. While he is getting up in age and his offensive production is declining, we have no other option at catcher that is proven. While Tyler Flowers is almost ready to play in the majors, he isn’t fully there yet and there is no sense in rushing him when he isn’t ready. We need to resign A.J. for one year and give Flowers one more year to prepare and then bring him up to the majors full time.

Task #4:Resign Matt Thornton

This is going to happen so there isn’t much need to explain it. The White Sox will exercise his option and he will return to the White Sox. I mean he is one of the best, if not the best left handed relief pitcher in the game today so why wouldn’t they resign him?

Task #5: Roster moves

The White Sox clearly showed that they needed a legit DH since losing Jim Thome. Manny Ramirez was supposed to help at the end of the season and that failed and the rotating DH spot was just the most foolish decision the White Sox could have made. There are many options out there in free agency and trades including big names such as Luke Scott, Adam Dunn, Prince Fielder, Carl Crawford, Hideki Matsui, Adam LaRoche, and Bobby Abreu. Any of those players could help the White Sox tremendously so the White Sox need to acquire one of these players if they want to contend with the Twins next year.

So that’s just a taste of what the White Sox need to take care of in the off season. It’s going to be filled with lots of rumors so it will be a fun filled couple of months. Let’s hope that Kenny Williams can pull the trigger on a move or two that can make the White Sox contenders for years to come.

Starter Gavin Floyd had an outing very similar to John Danks’ outing last night, which isn’t very good in either case. Floyd went 5.1 innings, giving up 6 runs on 9 hits with 4 strikeouts and 2 walks. Twins starter Brian Duensing pitched much better going 6 innings, giving up 2 runs on 9 hits with a walk and 4 strikeouts. The White Sox bullpen didn’t fare much better with Chris Sale going 2/3 of an inning giving up a run on 2 hits and Sergio Santos giving up 2 runs on 2 hits with 2 walks and didn’t record an out. Matt Guerrier gave up a run in relief of Duensing for the Twins and the rest of the bullpen gave up just a hit and a walk.

The Twins started the scoring in 5th on a 3 run homer by Joe Mauer to give the Twins the 3-0 lead. The Twins tacked on another 3 runs in the 6th on a sac fly by Delmon Young and infield singles by Danny Valencia and Denard Span. The White Sox cut into the lead with Carlos Quentin’s 25th homer of the year making it a 6-2 game. The Twins would score another 3 runs in the 7th on a 2 run single by Jim Thome and a sac fly by Danny Valencia. The White Sox would pick up one more run in the 7th on an infield single by Alex Rios but that is all they would get and would lose 9-3.

This is just showing how much the White Sox are struggling. The division is gone so now it’s just trying to gain a little respect before the end of the season.

Tomorrow we send Mark Buehrle to the mound to face off with Carl Pavano for the Twins. It’s a good pitching match-up and was considered the most likely shot we had at winning a game in this series. Let’s just hope the White Sox can at least win one and avoid the sweep.

And as always……… GO WHITESOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Starter John Danks had a poor outing going 7 innings but giving up 4 runs on 9 hits with 3 strikeouts. Minnesota starter Francisco Liriano didn’t fare much better going 6 innings, giving up 3 runs on 6 hits with 3 walks and 7 strikeouts.

Both starters kept the game scoreless until the 5th when Delmon Young homered and Denard Span singled in a run to give the Twins the 2-0 lead. The White Sox came back in the 5th with a 2 run single by Alexei Ramirez to tie the game at 2. The White Sox would briefly take the lead in the 6th on a bases loaded ground out by A.J Pierzynski that scored Paul Konerko and gave the White Sox the 3-2 lead. The Twins would come back to take the lead in the 7th on a RBI single by Danny Valencia and a RBI double by J.J Hardy to give the Twins the 4-3 lead. Matt Thornton came out of the bullpen in the 8th and had his worst outing at the worst possible time, giving up 4 runs in give 2/3 of an inning and giving the Twins the 8-3 lead. J.J Putz would come in relief of Thornton and give up a run to make the score 9-3 and that’s the way the game would end.

The White Sox had all the chances in the world and just couldn’t capitalize. They had bases loaded on two separate occasions with only 1 out and they got the double play that scored a run on one occasion and the other ended when both Konerko and Manny Ramirez struck out. Manny turned out to be a waste of money because he still hasn’t gotten an extra base hit, he hasn’t got an RBI, and he struck out in a situation that he has thrived in for most of his career.

So the White Sox chances are all but over but alas the season continues. Tonight we send Gavin Floyd to face off against Brian Duensing. The only thing really left to watch now is to see if Konerko can hit 40 home runs and to hope he’s considered a major contender for the AL MVP. Other than that, there’s not much left to hope for unless the Twins lose almost every game from here on out (which is almost assured that it won’t happen).

The White Sox put up a good fight but in the end it looks like the better team is going to win.

But as always………. GO WHITESOX!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Regardless, this is what to expect from the Twins in terms of a lineup:

• Denard Span CF
• Orlando Hudson 2B
• Joe Mauer C
• Jason Kubel RF
• Michael Cuddyer 1B
• Jim Thome DH
• Delmon Young LF
• Danny Valencia 3B
• J.J. Hardy SS

The Minnesota Twins as a team have had a good time offensively against the White Sox this year. Joe Mauer leads the bunch with a .421 average against the White Sox this year to go with 9 doubles, 2 home runs, and 12 RBI. The rest of the Twins stats are as follows:

• Michael Cuddyer: .355/.394/.500 4 doubles, 1 triple, 1 home run, 10 RBI
• Jim Thome: .353/.439/.588 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 5 RBI
• Delmon Young: .333/.379/.537 5 doubles, 2 home runs, 9 RBI
• Danny Valencia: .290/.303/.387 3 doubles, 3 RBI
• J.J Hardy: .282/.326/.410 2 doubles, 1 home run, 5 RBI
• Denard Span: .273/.324/.318 3 doubles, 3 RBI
• Alexi Casilla: .273/.273/.364 1 double
• Orlando Hudson: .271/.348/.424 3 doubles, 2 home runs, 3 RBI
• Jason Kubel: .269/.356/.538 1 double, 2 triples, 3 home runs, 12 RBI

So unfortunately for the White Sox, there isn’t any give up and down the entire lineup with every player hitting above .260 against the White Sox this year.

The White Sox are expected to put out the same lineup they have for most games:

• Juan Pierre LF
• Omar Vizquel 3B
• Alex Rios CF
• Paul Konerko 1B
• Manny Ramirez DH
• Carlos Quentin RF
• A.J Pierzynski C
• Alexei Ramirez SS
• Gordon Beckham 2B

The White Sox have had similar offense against the Twins, with all batters above .200 but are not hitting as well as the Twins are as a team. Paul Konerko has had the most success against the Twins this year posting a line of  .390/.455/.644 with 3 doubles, 4 home runs, and 12 RBI. With his current hot streak, especially with hitting the home run ball, there is a good chance that Konerko will be a major factor in this series. The rest of the White Sox stats against the Twins are as follows:

• Alexei Ramirez: .345/.371/.586 8 doubles, 2 home runs, 9 RBI
• Juan Pierre: .333/.391/.349 1 double, 5 RBI
• Gordon Beckham: .313/.400/.479 2 doubles, 2 home runs, 6 RBI
• Alex Rios: .297/.309/.375 5 doubles, 7 RBI
• Omar Vizquel: .279/.295/.349 3 doubles
• Carlos Quentin: .256/.389/.465 3 doubles, 2 home runs, 9 RBI
• A.J Pierzynski: .245/.275/.388 7 doubles, 8 RBI

Mark Kotsay, Ramon Castro, Mark Teahen, and Andruw Jones have also had success against the Twins this season and could be very valuable off the bench late in games if the situation arises, just like Jones hit the grand slam against the Royals in a pinch hitting situation.

Pitching match-ups:

Game 1: John Danks (13-10 3.54) vs Francisco Liriano (13.7 3.24)

Francisco Liriano has been pitching very well since the All-Star break. Since then, he is 7-0 with a 2.21 ERA so it’s easy to say he’s been on a roll. He hasn’t lost a game since July 9th when he went only 1.2 innings against Detroit. He’s had a couple of rough starts since then but has given up 2 runs or less in 8 of his last 10 starts. He is 2-0 with a 4.07 ERA in 4 starts against the White Sox this season so he’s pitched well against us as well.

John Danks has had a couple of rough starts lately but has managed to go 6-4 since the beginning of July. He’s given up 5 or more runs 4 times over that period and went 1-2 over those games. He’s coming off a loss to Detroit where he gave up just 2 runs in 6 innings. He’s 2-1 with a 4.24 ERA in 5 starts against the Twins this year which shows he has had some success but he’s also given up runs which to spell doom for the White Sox in game 1.

Game 2: Gavin Floyd (10-12 3.91) vs Brian Duensing (8-2 2.02)

Duesing started out the season as a reliever. He was put into the starting rotation in the middle of July and has gone 6-1 since then. He’s coming off of an 8 inning win against the Royals where he gave up just 1 run on 6 hits. He hasn’t given up more than 4 runs in any game all season so there’s a good chance the White Sox may not score too many runs on him. He’s 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA in 4 games against the White Sox this season.

Floyd has had a rough time over the past month, going 4-4 since the beginning of August. He’s had his good outings where he’s given up just a couple runs and gotten the win and he’s also had outings where he has given up 6 or more runs and taken the loss so it’s anyone’s guess which version of Gavin Floyd we will get. He’s pitched horribly against the Twins this year with a 0-3 record and a 7.41 ERA so if there is one game where the White Sox should definitely worry about, it’s this one.

Game 3: Mark Buehrle (12-10 3.99) vs Carl Pavano (16-11 3.47)

Pavano has had a rough time since starting off the season so well. He’s 3-5 since the beginning of August and is coming off of a loss to the Cleveland Indians. He is 16-11 this year so there’s no question that he could overwhelm the White Sox with his pitching and dominate the game. He is 2-1 with a 3.50 ERA against the White Sox this season so he’s pitched well more than half the time against us this year.

Buehrle has been pitching okay recently but has picked up 3 straight no decisions. He’s given up 3 or more runs in 19 of his starts this season so it’s a safe bet to assume he will give up at least a couple runs against the Twins. He’s 2-1 with a 2.74 ERA against the Twins this season so just like with Pavano, he’s pitched well against them more than half the time this year as well.

When it comes to the bullpens, they are pretty much evenly matched but the advantage has to go to the Twins. Even though their closer Matt Capps has had some issues against the White Sox this year, Bobby Jenks has pitched much worse than he has. Aside from that, both bullpens have at least 3 players with a 0.00 ERA against the opposing teams and they both have other players that have inflated ERAs against the other team and have been roughed up a bit.

Prediction:

As much as I hate to say it, even with their backs against the wall, I see the White Sox taking 2 of 3 at best. I know all you White Sox fans are going to hate me for that but I’m not going to sugar coat everything and lie to myself and the rest of you by saying they will sweep without a doubt.  I wouldn’t be surprised if they only win 1 game this series because the Twins are just playing better baseball right now and they have been since the All-Star break (Twins are 22-9, White Sox are 16-15). The season is more than likely going to end here but I’d like to see the White Sox fight and give it their all and at least make it interesting.

So here’s hoping that the White Sox make me eat my words and prove me wrong and sweep the Twins to make this a real interesting last few weeks.

And as always……… GO WHITESOX!!!!!!!!!!!!