Is there hope?

Sox Record: 30-34; The Sox have a -27 run differential. 

Place in the A.L. Central and Games back:  Third place and 4.5 behind the Tigers. 

Most annoying person in the Sox organization: Still Josh Fields.

Member of the White Sox I love the most at the moment: You hit a home and keep the Sox in the game on the mound, you become my favorite player for the moment.  Come on down, Mark Buehrle!  Yesterday's game was crazy... featuring a pitcher who scored the winning run as a pitch runner.

Rhetorical Question of the Day: Okay, I was way off.  Konerko won't be out for a while.  Missing only Friday's game, Konerko was back in the line up on Saturday and also played Sunday.  The Sox had one big inning on Saturday and a great pitching performance from Contreras leading to an easy win.  Then yesterday enough went right for them to pull out a win.  Add a bad weekend for the Tigers and the Sox are all of a sudden 4.5 out with 98 to play.  So... do the Sox have a chance?

Let's do some easy math.  Last year, the Sox won the AL Central with 89 wins.  In order for the Sox to win 89 games this year... well they have to go 59-39 (.602).  And seeing how this team has played thus far I don't think that's going to happen.  The run differential alone says that this team isn't going to get it done unless the offense finds another run a game.  And in order for that to happen St. Carlos has to get healthy, Pods has to keep it up, Beckham has to keep hitting like he hit this weekend, and probably get someone else (Anderson? Nix? Getz? Fields?) to start hitting much better than they are.  I'm not holding my breath.

HOWEVER, the Tigers are on pace to win 87 games and that means the Sox only need to go 57-41 (.582).  Oh wait, that would still require the Sox offense to turn things around and Carlos... Pods... Beckham... Someone else...

In other words, one weekend set against the Brewers isn't changing my opinion about the Sox.  I still think they're an 80 win team.  

But it's also nice to take two or three from the Brewers--former rials turned now sort of Great Hopes for Sox fans who want the Cubs to lose.  I'm not sure what to make of the Brewers now a days.  They've been out of the American League for over ten years now and in that time my dislike of them has abated.  But I still find it hard for me to root for them... let's go Reds... maybe one of these days I'll be able to get behind the team that represents the fine people of Wisconsin.

Tomorrow... Cubs preview.