Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Captain Konerko Says “Don’t Give Up on Us Yet”

White Sox fans, myself included, are beginning to lose hope, if not patience, as the team continues its downward slide. In a private meeting with GM Kenny Williams and manager Ozzie Guillen on Monday, first baseman and team captain Paul Konerko asked for more time for the team to come out of its slump before making any trades. Konerko said he felt that once Scott Podsednik and Darrin Erstad returned to the team from the DL, hopefully sometime within the next two weeks, the team could pull together for a strong stretch run. I know a lot of fans won’t be too thrilled with the decision from the Sox camp, but then again, there might be some wisdom in what they’re doing.

As recent MLB history shows, a resurgence isn’t out of the question. Last year, the Minnesota Twins were 12 games out of first place in late June, and won the AL Central by one game over the Tigers on the last day of the regular season. In 2005, the Cleveland Indians closed to within 1 ½ games behind the White Sox after falling behind by 15 games in late July. Granted, there are a lot of ifs, ands or buts involved. The Sox need to begin playing better – soon, and the other teams in the AL Central would have to play mediocre baseball a good part of the way. But if the Sox can hold the fort for a week or so, I believe it’s possible that fans’ – and Kenny Williams’— patience will eventually pay off in a big way.

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