We had the opportunity to share some information with our sportsblogs friend over at South Side Sox. He answered our questions below. If you want to see how I answered his questions go here. Thanks to "The Cheat" for answering our questions.
Most of our understanding about the White Sox comes from Field of Dreams and Eight Men Out. That being said, Who was a better Shoeless Joe Jackson: Ray Liotta or D.B. Sweeney?
I liked Field of Dreams better than Eight men out, so I guess I'd have to go with Liotta. Also, the Sox drafted a guy named Ray Liotta last year. When they drafted him I couldn't really get any info on him, and I began to think that they may have actually picked the actor. The Sox look like they'll get the last laugh on that one though. Liotta had been injured, and hadn't really thrown since 2002. Now he's in low-A ball, looking for a promotion, with an ERA of about 2.50.
Who should we really be scared of on the White Sox? Honestly, the only White Sox that I can think of off the top of my head are Frank Thomas and Shoeless Joe.
Well, I've got good news and I got bad news for you. The good news is that Jackson is about as likely to see playing time versus the Padres as is Thomas, who can't play the field, so he'll be limited to only late inning pinch hitting duties. The bad news, for you anyway, is the Sox have quite possibly the most underrated starting staff in baseball. Jon Garland has won 9 games, Mark Buehrle never gets the respect that he deserves, and Freddy Garcia is going to love pitching in the spacious Petco park.
What's the singular of White Sox? Is it White Sock?
There is no singular for Sox. They travel in packs of 2, 6, or 12. If you ever see one isolated by itself, look out. The other is probably right
behind you about to bust your knee caps Jeff Gillooly style. Either that or it's busy getting lost in your dryer. Most likely the latter, but watch out for your knees just in case.
The Padres don't have any celebrity fans. Do White Sox fans resent the Cubs for having Bill Murray and Billy Corgan as celebrity fans? Do the White Sox have celebrity fans?
Most White Sox fans couldn't care less about the hole celebrity fan factor. It just doesn't affect how they view the team. In fact, I'd be willing to bet that if there was a sudden influx of celebrity fans to the southside, they'd probably be rejected as bandwagoners. That being said, I know Bernie Mac is a Sox fan. He famously sang "root, root, root, for the White Sox" last year at a Cubs game. That certainly endeared him to many of the Pale Hose faithful, including myself. Within the city, the mayor (pronounced Da
Maire to Sox fans) does his best to chide Cubs fans whenever he gets a chance.
The Padres first pick of the draft this season was Cesar Carrillo who's from the south side and is a White Sox fan. I don't have a question to go with that. I just thought it would be fun to rub it in a little.
There's not really much to rub in. The Sox pulled their usual routine. All week leading up to the draft they leaked that they were interested in
Carrillo, but when it came time for pick #15 they went with their real target instead. The last local product we drafted in the first round, Kris
Honel, has gone from top prospect to also-ran in the span of about a year, so they may be a little leary of going in that direction again. As a
pitcher, I know I'd be happier headed to Petco over homer happy-USCF anyday.
What do you think of Bat-Girl calling your guys the Bitch Sox? That's a little mean, right?
I first found Batgirl a little over a year ago, and I immediately thought it was hilarious. It was funny, creative, and different than everything else out there. Even the first few times I saw Bitch Sox in print I still laughed. At this point, however, the whole "bitch sox" thing has gotten tired and hackneyed. I know you've got to milk all the success you can out of something, but Bitch Sox is to BatGirl as the Night at the Roxbury is to SNL. Who's idea was it to make that into a movie anyways? Toonces the Driving Cat would have had a better plot. Better theme music too.
I got it the first time. It was funny. Now it's just sad. At some point you've got to come up with a new bit. Besides, putting the word bitch in a
team's name, then continually complaining about said team, is pretty much the definition of irony. I still read the site all the time, but I avoid it during the Twins/Sox series. All that being said, she still has her moments re: White Sox. The Return of Darth Thomas is a perfect skewering of the media's portrayal of the new rah-rah White Sox, and how they would deal with the integration of an old curmudgeon in Frank Thomas.
Finally, predictions for the series.
On Sunday, it may only take 1-run for the Sox to seal up a victory. Garcia loves big parks, pitches much better away from home, and during the day. Jon Garland has been more '04 Garland than new improved Garland lately, so that should be a good game on Friday. Mark Buehrle has been lights out for most of the season, but has gotten no-decisions in his last 4 outings. It's about time for the offense to really pick him up. -- Sox drop the first game, but come back to take the next two in convincing fashion.