Some other photos from SoxFest 2020

Here's a rundown on some of the people I got to meet at SoxFest:

White Sox pitcher Dylan Cease was a big fan of my shirt, which referred to the Sox as "The Good," the Detroit Tigers as "The Bad," and the Kansas City Royals as "The Ugly."

Hanging out with somebody closer to my own age on Saturday morning -- the man who was the starting and winning pitcher in Game 1 of the 2005 World Series, Jose Contreras.

As mentioned in an earlier blog, Danny Farquhar is back with the Sox organization as a pitching coach. He'll be at Class-A Winston-Salem this season.

Hall of Famer Tim Raines was in the house Saturday. Some of Raines' best seasons came in the 1980s as a member of the Montreal Expos. He was on some talented teams there with Andre Dawson and Gary Carter. But he was still a pretty damn good offensive player when he came to the Sox in the early 1990s.

This is the first time I've ever met Tom Paciorek. I'm just old enough to remember Paciorek's career as a player -- he was a member of the 1983 American League West Division champion White Sox. That's the first season I remember -- I was 7 years old at the time. But I'll always recall "Wimpy" best for his years in the Sox broadcast booth with Ken Harrelson. He was the perfect complement to Hawk for many seasons in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

And here's me with former Sox outfielder and current radio broadcaster Darrin Jackson. For some reason, DJ wanted to know if I was a former catcher. No, actually, I played quite a bit of center field. Jackson was intrigued, saying, "So you've got some wheels, huh?" Well, not at age 43. Maybe in my younger years.

Finally, new Sox relief pitcher Steve Cishek, who is one tall dude. We've noted in the past that Cishek may have been overused the past couple of years with the Cubs, so I asked him whether he has another 70 or 80 appearances left in him for this year. His response: "I'm ready. Let's go."








I'm ready, too. March 26 can't get here fast enough.

Harold Baines Day at Guaranteed Rate Field

In the American League, a team needs good production from its designated hitter. The 2019 White Sox don't get anything from their DHs, who have combined to post a .178/.264/.301 slash line this season.

That makes you appreciate the career of Harold Baines a little more, doesn't it? Baines was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame this year, and the Sox honored him for his achievement this past Sunday before a game against the Oakland A's.

Baines prepares to speak at Guaranteed Rate Field.

Humble as always, Baines spoke softly, for four minutes and 43 seconds, thanking his family, former teammates, the Sox organization and its fans.

The ceremony also featured speeches by Hall of Fame manager Tony La Russa and two of Baines' closest friends and former teammates, Ron Kittle and Ozzie Guillen.

Other Sox Hall of Famers were on hand, including Frank Thomas, Tim Raines, Jim Thome and Carlton Fisk.

Among the other former Sox players present were Robin Ventura, Dan Pasqua, Ron Karkovice and John Cangelosi.

I was pleased to have the opportunity to attend this game, because the highlights of Baines' career shown on the scoreboard took me back to my childhood in the 1980s. Baines' best years with the Sox were from 1982-89, when he made four All-Star teams. Sure, the Sox weren't very good in those years -- except for 1983 -- but Baines was the best player on the team during the days when I was becoming a Sox fan and learning about baseball.

Baines' election to the Hall has been shrouded in controversy. Some people don't think he belongs, and to be honest, if I had a vote, I'm not sure I would have voted for him. That said, as a Sox fan, I refuse to apologize for being happy for Baines and his family. He was an outstanding player, and he's well-respected by any person he has ever been around.

And when I went to the Hall of Fame this summer, I enjoyed some of the Baines memorabilia on display. Take this locker of stuff:

Here's the bat Baines used to hit that famous home run in the 25th inning on May 9, 1984, against the Milwaukee Brewers:

Check out this old-school edition of Baseball Digest. I subscribe to this magazine, and did so when I was a kid, as well. I'm pretty sure I received this edition in the mail as a youngster:

Here's the poster next to the Baines' locker, detailing his career highlights:

And, of course, here's the plaque that will hang in Cooperstown, N.Y., forever. Not a replica, folks:

Congrats, Harold, and thanks for the memories!

Some other photos from SoxFest 2019

I mentioned in Monday's blog that I didn't get a great shot of the five Hall of Fame players on stage, but my girlfriend, Jen, did capture Harold Baines, Tim Raines and Frank Thomas together after that seminar.

Me with Manny Machado's brother-in-law (Yonder Alonso). I told him he would like Chicago better than Cleveland. (Who wouldn't?)

I tried to get in line to meet Ken Harrelson. That didn't work out. I was person No. 126, and he was only taking 125 photos. So, I got in the back of the line for Bo Jackson instead. Too bad Bo doesn't know Yaz.

Proof that SoxFest photographers aren't the best. I zoomed my phone in for this woman, and apparently, she zoomed it back out to take this photo of me and Jace Fry.

And then there is this very zoomed in photo of me with Reynaldo Lopez ...

Ozzie Guillen was at SoxFest for the first time since his last year as manager in 2011. Even though the feud between Guillen and former GM Ken Williams cost the Sox an opportunity to contend in that season, eight years probably is long enough to say that's water under the bridge.

I joked that I should try getting a haircut like Daniel Palka's. OK, maybe that's not such a good idea.

Sure, more than 13 years has passed, but the 2005 World Series trophy still is being displayed. Maybe the Sox should think about winning another one these sometime soon, huh?

5 takeways from SoxFest 2019

After months of anticipation (I booked my hotel package in September), SoxFest 2019 has come and gone in the blink of an eye.

A few thoughts and opinions from the three-day event at the Chicago Hilton.

1. 5 Hall-of-Fame members on one stage: Easily the coolest moment of the weekend for me came Friday night when the White Sox had a seminar featuring five Hall-of-Famers and a Cy Young award winner on the same stage.

I wish I could have gotten a little closer for a better picture, but you can see Harold Baines, Jim Thome, moderator Steve Stone, Frank Thomas, Tim Raines and Carlton Fisk in the picture above.

I wonder how many organizations in baseball could put together a star-studded panel such as this for their fans. That's more of a rhetorical question than anything. ... I'm sure there are a few other teams that could, but credit the Sox for getting all these guys in the same room.

It had been a couple years since I had seen Thome at SoxFest, even though he works for the organization. A recorded message was shown last year at SoxFest, with Thome thanking Chicago fans for their support on the occasion of his election to the Hall. It was good to see the man in person this time.

2. The Machado pursuit is real: Not surprisingly, GM Rick Hahn fielded a lot of questions about the team's pursuit of superstar free agent Manny Machado. Hahn can't speak specifically about negotiations, of course, but in a rare moment of candor, he said he would be personally disappointed if the Sox fail to bring Machado into the fold.

I remain skeptical, and I'll award Hahn no points unless he gets Machado to sign on the dotted line. Trying isn't enough, but it's quite clear that the Sox are really trying. Hahn went out of his way to detail the organization's top-to-bottom effort to get Machado on the South Side of Chicago. Everyone is involved from the front office to players to community relations staff.

At a seminar Sunday, players were asked whether they were involved in the Machado recruitment. Michael Kopech answered first and said he was not. But right after that, Yoan Moncada raised his microphone to his mouth and immediately began speaking rapid-fire Spanish. Through an interpreter, the second baseman noted that he and teammate Yonder Alonso had face-timed Machado right before the start of SoxFest opening ceremonies Friday, and they basically told him that he needs to get up here and join the Sox.

The saga continues.

3. Fifth starter? The Sox don't have one: Are you ready for Manny Banuelos to be a member of the 2019 starting rotation? I asked Hahn about it Friday night. I said the Sox have four starters: Carlos Rodon, Reynaldo Lopez, Lucas Giolito and Ivan Nova. I don't see a fifth. Who might it be?

Hahn did not rule out an acquisition from outside the organization. Thank goodness, because I think they need one. He said right now the competition for the job would be between Banuelos and Dylan Covey, who failed in the role last season.

It was quite clear from Hahn's answer that Banuelos, who was a top-30 prospect seven years ago before injuries curtailed his career, has the inside track. Apparently, some scout "pounded the table" and told Hahn that Banuelos could help the Sox win right now, so they acquired him in a swap of minor-leaguers with the Los Angeles Dodgers three months ago.

Personally, I think it will take a lot more than Banuelos to cover the 204.2 innings that James Shields pitched as a member of the Sox's rotation last season.

4. Moncada's struggles: On Saturday, I asked manager Rick Renteria about Moncada. The "Jason from Wheeling" in the first sentence of this Chicago Tribune story? Yep, that was me.

I want Moncada to continue taking his walks. I don't want him to swing wildly at bad pitches, but he needs to be more aggressive. He needs to put the ball in play more often. He makes hard contact, so there's every reason to believe his production will go up if his strikeouts come down.

Renteria told me that Moncada was working with him and hitting coach Todd Steverson in Arizona a few weeks after the season ended. They are making a physical adjustment in the way Moncada grips the bat. Previously, his grip apparently limited his plate coverage, making it difficult for him to get to pitches on the outer half as both a left-handed and right-handed hitter. Renteria also wants Moncada to accept the idea that a productive out every now and then isn't the worst thing. They've been going over situations to try to improve his mental approach to hitting.

I also asked whether Moncada might be moved down in the lineup, with the arrival of veteran outfielder Jon Jay. It sounds as though the answer to that is no, because Moncada wants to bat leadoff and told Renteria so. But, the manager did acknowledge that Jay's presence on the roster gives him another option for the top spot in the batting order.

5. Don't worry about Madrigal: There's a Baseball America article out that made note of Nick Madrigal's struggles in hitting the ball to the pull side of the field during his professional debut last season.

I wasn't real concerned about it, given the small sample size, and when Madrigal was asked about it, he didn't express concern either. But since it's being talked about, I decided to ask player development director Chris Getz and amateur scouting director Nick Hostetler about it during a Sunday seminar.

Hostetler noted that Madrigal suffered a broken wrist during his season at Oregon State last year, and that he had seen the 2018 top draft pick the day before the injury. And, Madrigal had turned on a fastball and cranked it over the left-field bullpen. So, maybe that wrist wasn't 100 percent at the end of 2018, and maybe that was sapping him of pull-side power.

Getz made note of Madrigal's consistent approach and elite bat-to-ball skills, and it's expected that he'll make adjustments to the inside pitch as we go along.

Random thoughts from the goings-on at SoxFest

Few people spend a whole weekend at SoxFest and come away with zero autographs.

Me, I've been attending the event for the past few years and have never gotten a single signature.

I don't care for standing in line for autographs at all, but I'm not adverse to standing in line to take a picture with a former White Sox player:

Jon Garland was apologetic about forgetting to bring his 2005 World Series ring to SoxFest. I told him my "2005 happened" shirt would make up for it.

SoxFest was as crowded as I've ever seen it Saturday afternoon, so I was stunned to walk past the photo stage and see no line whatsoever to chat with a Hall of Fame player, Tim Raines. That's an opportunity I couldn't pass up as a baseball geek.

Everything they say about Jose Contreras is right: He's one of the nicest people you will ever encounter. He's gracious to fans, much like another former Cuban Sox player, Minnie Minoso. Contreras was hired as a team ambassador for good reason.

Aside from these three pictures, I spent most of my time hanging out in the seminar room, listening, learning and asking questions. A few things I found out:

1. General manager Rick Hahn said if there's one move left to make this offseason, it would be to add one more relief pitcher to stabilize the bullpen. Hahn said he's looking for the next Anthony Swarzak, who made the Sox's roster last year as a nonroster invitee and ended up being traded for a useful prospect (Ryan Cordell) at midseason. Since Hahn made that comment, the Sox have signed right-hander Bruce Rondon to a minor-league contract. I doubt he's going to pitch like Swarzak did last season, but hey, at this time last year, did any of us think Swarzak would amount to anything?
2. I asked Hahn how the outfield situation might sort itself out to start the season. Avisail Garcia, of course, is the right fielder. The other two starting spots and the backup outfield spot seem open, with Leury Garcia, Nick Delmonico, Adam Engel, Willy Garcia, Charlie Tilson and Cordell competing. Hahn did not rule out a veteran acquisition when I asked, but the Sox seem content to go with what they have. He noted that Tilson and Cordell missed significant time with injury last year. Both likely need more time at Triple-A, which is good news for the other four men on that list. Interestingly, Hahn said Cordell has been asked about by three different teams during offseason trade talks.
3. Hahn and Renteria shared some thoughts on relief pitching and bullpen use in response to one of my questions Saturday. Renteria said he tells his relievers not to worry about what inning they are going to be used in. Rather, he wants them to be thinking about getting outs. He doesn't want to place guys in set roles -- a sixth-inning guy, a seventh-inning guy, etc. He did note that he considers himself to be old school in the sense that he wants starting pitchers to go as deep into games as possible. He isn't necessarily going to adhere to the theory that a starter's job is to get through the batting order two times and hand it over to the bullpen. He's aware that batting averages go up the third time through the order, but he's not going make decisions solely upon that. I asked Hahn if the organization in their scouting process is looking for "super relievers," guys who come in and work two or three innings in the middle of game -- the way Cleveland uses Andrew Miller, for example -- or do the Sox just try to stockpile starters, and whoever isn't one of the five best ends up in a bullpen role? Hahn's answer: yes and yes. If they find a guy who they think can be a dominant reliever in the middle of a game, they might draft him and try to develop him as such. But it's also likely that a sixth or seventh starter could end being that guy who works in middle relief.
4. I asked director of player development Chris Getz about outfield prospect Luis Robert, who will be playing in the U.S. for the first time in his life. I'm wondering what minor-league level he'll start at, and Getz said that decision has yet to be determined. It depends on what Robert shows in spring training, of course, but it remains to be seen how the 20-year-old Cuban adjusts to life in a new country and a new culture. Getz said the organization will err on the side of caution with Robert, meaning if there is a debate over whether to start him in Low-A or High-A, they are going to put him in Low-A. The thinking being, if he destroys Low-A pitching, it's an easy adjustment to move him up to High-A. Better that than having him struggle at High-A and face a possible demotion to Low-A. Also, Getz said the organization sees Robert as a center fielder. 
5. The optimism was overflowing all weekend long. There was one fan who wondered how the Sox could trade Fernando Tatis Jr. in the James Shields deal, but there wasn't a cross word uttered otherwise. Coaches, players and fans alike seem excited for the second year of the rebuild, and there was a lot of talk about how well the current players and prospects in the system enjoy being around each other. Players have an overwhelmingly positive view of Renteria and his leadership capabilities.  I'm not a big believer in chemistry -- I think you win with talent and execution -- but it doesn't hurt that the players in the Sox organization actually want to be with this team and want to win here. Time will tell whether they have enough talent and the ability to execute in pressure situations.

Former White Sox outfielder Tim Raines, two others inducted into Hall of Fame

Tim Raines with the Sox in 1995

Congratulations go out to former White Sox outfielder and coach Tim Raines, who was one of three people elected to baseball's Hall of Fame on Wednesday.

Raines, a six-time All-Star who ranks among the best leadoff hitters in the history of baseball, received support on 86.0 percent of the 442 ballots cast in his 10th and final year of Hall eligibility. He easily cleared the 75 percent threshold required for induction.

The switch-hitter finished with 808 career stolen bases, including a 90-steal season in 1983 as a member of the Montreal Expos. He also won a batting title with Montreal in 1986, hitting .334

Raines will no doubt go into the Hall wearing an Expos cap, but he was a productive player for the Sox from 1991-95. In those five seasons, he posted a .283/.375/.407 slash line with a combined 50 home runs, 98 doubles, 28 triples, 143 stolen bases and 277 RBIs.

His best individual season with the Sox came in 1993. He hit .306/.401/.480 with 16 home runs, 54 RBIs and 21 steals and was the left fielder and leadoff hitter for the AL West Division champions.

Raines will be joined in the Class of 2017 by former Houston Astros first baseman Jeff Bagwell and catcher Ivan Rodriguez, who played 21 years with six different teams, most notably with the Texas Rangers.

Bagwell received 86.2 percent of the vote, while Rodriguez received 76 percent of ballots in his first year eligible for induction.

There were two narrow misses. Relief pitcher Trevor Hoffman (74 percent) and outfielder Vladimir Guerrero (71.7 percent) are trending toward probable induction in 2018.

As Sox fans, we should probably get used to seeing former Sox players going into the Hall wearing a different cap than the Silver and Black. Last year, Ken Griffey Jr. went into the Hall as a Seattle Mariner. This year, Raines goes in as an Expo. Next year, Jim Thome's name appears on the ballot for the first time, and his 612 career home runs (134 with the Sox) will be hard for voters to ignore. However, he'll be going to the Hall as a Cleveland Indian.

The Hall of Fame voting is broken

The Baseball Writers Association of America announced it's 2014 ballot on Tuesday, so this is as good a time as any to point how derelict in its duty to elect worthy players the BWAA has been in recent years.

Among the first-time candidates are former Cubs and Braves ace, Greg Maddux, a four-time Cy Young Award winner with 355 wins to his name, and all-time White Sox great Frank Thomas, who collected two AL MVP awards and belted 521 home runs to go along with his .301 batting average and .419 on-base percentage.

With fellow first-timer, 300-game-winner Tom Glavine, it looks like there are three no-doubt Hall-of-Famers added to this year's ballot.

But what about the rest of the ballot?

Jeff Kent and Mike Mussina are two more additions who I think have pretty strong Hall cases. Kent ranks among the best-hitting second basemen of all time. Mussina didn't collect as many wins or pitch as many innings as Glavine, but you could argue they were better innings.

How much traction Kent and Mussina -- or even Maddux, Thomas and Glavine -- receive really depends on how the BWAA approaches the backlog of candidates on the ballot.

Among the holdovers are Craig Biggio, Tim Raines, Alan Trammell, Edgar Martinez, Curt Schilling, Jeff Bagwell, Mike Piazza, Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa. I mention those players by name because they are the players I would vote for if I were a BWAA member. And if you could include more than 10 players on your ballot.

That's ignoring Rafael Palmeiro, Jack Morris, Lee Smith, Larry Walker, Fred McGriff and Don Mattingly. None of whom I'd vote for, even as a Big Hall supporter, but are other guys who have a strong statistical case (Palmeiro, Walker) or support from other corners (Smith, Morris).

How is it so many obviously qualified guys are getting left out?

If it were just a matter of the BWAA voters being stingy with who gains entry, that would be a good explanation. Except the voters have enshrined guys like Jim Rice (not that good), Tony Perez (also not that good) and Kirby Puckett (not good for long enough).

Part of it might also be a reluctance to render any verdict on baseball's Steroid Era, particularly with regard to Bonds, Clemens, McGwire, Sosa, Palmeiro and others.

This is another area where the logic gets fuzzy. Some of those players are suffering the steroid stigma when the evidence of PED use is flimsy and anecdotal at best (Bagwell, Piazza). Sometimes it's downright convoluted ("I think Bagwell was a 'roider, and that Biggio guy must have been, too!").

Other writers feel like it's just a great opportunity to grandstand, so submit ballots with no selections, thus demonstrating they don't really take the vote all that seriously. At least not seriously enough that we should pay attention to their nonsense. Just abdicate the duty if you don't want it.

Perhaps it will take a Veterans Committee to sift through some of these candidacies once more time has passed, though for my part, I don't think you can whitewash any steroid era, or pretend like it never happened.

The games were played, and for the most part they were with none of those players violating any MLB rules. They can't be replayed with any retroactive standard in place.

Though baseball, by and large, hasn't tried to follow professional cycling down that rabbit hole to nowhere, stripping its former champions of hardware with the largest effect being to taint the entire sport, the Hall of Fame seems willing to let column-writing voters test the institution's relevancy.

So it goes, I guess.