ChicagoSportsBlogs : Non Compete

Orton sent packing as Bears trade for Cutler

Perry — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 11:39:00 GMT

Wow. Simply Wow. I couldn't believe it when the news trickled into the office yesterday. The Bears traded for Jay Cutler. It is official. We have completed our set of Vanderbilt commemorative glasses! The 25 year old quarterback whose ego was bruised when Denver tried to trade for former Patriots backup Matt Cassel got what he wanted.

He got out of Denver.

Jerry Angelo has to be given credit this morning. Angelo put em on the table folks. He is all in. This move is his legacy in Chicago. With the transfer of 2 first round draft picks(this year and next year), Kyle Orton, and a 3rd rounder this year, Mr. Angelo has erased all of his previous draft picks. Rex Grossman is an afterthought. Dan Bazuin? Never heard of him. Every single one of the bust-outs or mild successes he has brought to the franchise are dwarfed with the Cutler deal. I'm going to applaud this move only on the basis that the Bears did something. Inactivity in this league eventually catches up with you. Go ask the Rams, Lions, or any of the other floundering franchises in the NFL. You can't stand Pat. Pun intended.

I still don't think Cutler is the next coming of Joe Montana. I'm skeptical. And you should be skeptical too. A healthy dose of skepticism can go a long way Bears fans. I understand Cutler's "great potential". I know he is 25 years old, coming off a ProBowl, and has a cannon for an arm. I get all of that. I'm also fully aware of how terribly he handled himself in regards to the business of the NFL. I'm not concerned if he can't handle the trade talk. I care if he can throw more touchdowns than interceptions. I care if he can do better than 17-20 in his NEXT 3 years.

Cutler comes to Chicago and is going to be welcomed by a decent tight end that we never throw to, a young running back who carried us last year, and his new best friend Orlando Pace. And that's it. It has been pointed out by a lot of sports writers in this town, Cutler will quickly realize that the cupboard is bare after that. Where are Eddie Royal and Brandon Marshall? Sorry Jay! You get Devin Hester who has yet to learn the playbook and your old buddy Earl Bennet. Reality hits you like the windchill in this town.

We have been searching for this elusive franchise quarterback as if it were the magic pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. It has haunted this franchise for a generation. I've spend the better part of my young blogging career complaining about the horrible QB play. I'm kind of lost without that bit. If this deal works out, Jerry Angel has put me out of business. The cynical tone I've taken all these years has to evaporate like a fart in the wind. I won't be able to do the "I told you so" bit either. There is no point. All I wanted to see as a Bears fan was a committment to winning. The additions of 2, count them, 2 PROBOWLERS sent the message loud and clear.

Wow. Simply Wow.

Jerry Angelo was right when he slipped up after the season ended:

"It starts with the quarterback. It's all about the quarterback," Angelo said. "You don't win because of wide receivers. You don't win because of running backs. You win because of the quarterback. We've got to get the quarterback position stabilized."

I couldn't agree more. I just didn't know you had it in you Jer.

BEAR DOWN

The one where I tell you why we don't need Cutler

Perry — Tue, 17 Mar 2009 02:15:00 GMT

I started this site years ago to capture the water cooler talk me and the guys were having at the office. This is a common story. I'd bet my $10 NCAA tourney challenge fee that most of the independent sports blogs were started for the same reason. I'll give you 3 guesses as to what the most common topic has been. If you said Bears quarterbacks, you'd be dead right. This post is no different.

The news out of Denver that rookie head coach Josh McDaniels was unable to mend fences with quarterback Jay Cutler is music to a lot of people's ears in Chicago. Everyone is all over this story. Opinions on whether or not Jay Cutler should be a Bear, is skewing 50/50 in my opinion. Let's take SunTimes writer Neil Hayes for example. (go read it, I'll wait) He's got us trading anything and everything to Denver to get Cutler. Urlacher, 2 picks this year, 2 picks next year, Forte, Orton, and deep dish pizzas. Send it all! Do whatever it takes! I have to admit, that a few days ago I was saying pretty much the same thing. I was willing to give Denver anything but Forte and Olsen. You have to have something to work with if you're Cutler, right? But the more I think about this move, the more I'm thinking we stick with Orton. MJ has already listed all the things this team needs, and I agree with him Quarterback isn't one of them. Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying that Orton is the answer. But he most certainly isn't the problem.

It basically boils down to wins for me. Wojo said it best on ESPN.com

Why call Denver and ask about Cutler? Because the Broncos haven't reached the playoffs since the 2005 season. Because Cutler's record as a starter is 17-20.

Yea, he's from Indiana. Sure, he's a Bears fan. But wasn't Sexy Rexy from Indiana too? Wasn't he a Bears fan? (actually I think it was the Colts, but you get the picture) What exactly does this guy bring to the table? Potential. A quantifiable amount of potential because he's been in the league for 4 years and gone to a Pro-Bowl. At least that is what everyone is thinking. Drafting a QB this year is going to be a huge crap shoot. Hell, it's always a crap shoot. We should know, we've cornered the market in drafting bust outs.

Jerry Angelo and the Bears should give up trying to draft a quarterback. At least with the intent of landing that guy who works under center for 15 years. It ain't going to happen. Besides, with the fiscally challenged (or responsible) Bears organization, we'd rather land a diamond in the rough like Tom Brady on the second day of the draft. It would be cheaper and there would be less pressure. Who wants to spend all that money on an unproven quarterback? They can't bring anything of value to the table except for POTENTIAL.

Free Agency or a blockbuster trade are our best chances at getting that elusive franchise quarterback in Chicago. The problem is I don't think it's Cutler. The "wise" Mel Kiper has called Cutler overrated. He believes he has delusions of grandeur. Kiper went so far as to compare Cutler to Jeff George. Uh-oh. I want nothing to do with that! But Kiper is going too far in my opinion. While Hayes is willing to give up everything to get Cutler in a Bears uniform, Kiper is asking for his money back. The truth lies somewhere in the middle.

I'm running out of steam tonight. More on the Cutler Saga tomorrow. Let's just hope he doesn't end up in Green Bay or Minnesota while we're all sleeping. Especially since Jerry Angelo has been sleeping in this offseason.

Bear Down!

Shaking off the rust

Perry — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 02:15:00 GMT

I think I may have forgotten how to write. It's been a terribly long time since I have written on this blog and as a result I am sure I have lost both of my loyal readers. That's the bad news. The good news is that while I was off on my sabatical from writing about Chicago Sports I finished another semester towards my Masters and the wife and I had a kid. So, that's my excuse. What's yours?

There has been a lot of news lately surrounding the various Chicago sports teams. First, you've got the Bulls. They're fighting for a spot in the NBA playoffs. I still don't care. Don't get me wrong, I love Derrick Rose. I just can't get into NBA basketball. Call me a fair-weather fan if you must, but I just can't sit and watch this team for 4 quarters. I will say that I love how the Chairman makes trades to bring back guys who used to play for the Bulls. Second tours of duty are common for the White Sox, and now, common for the Bulls too. Welcome back Brad Miller. What's next, bring back Ron Artest? He was a Bull once right?

We've also got the mighty Blackhawks doing well this year. (ok, maybe not as of late. They've won only one 1 game in their last 5) They're doing well enough that I may have to reach out and get a Hawks writer to help cover them. I love hockey, and I love the Blackhawks, but we all know that I'm an inconsistent contributer to this site as of late. The Blackhawks, in my opinion are the second most likely team in this city to win a championship within the next 3-5 years. Which leads me to the Cubs!

Aaahhh yes. The Cubbies! What fun does this team have in store for us in 2009? I'm not sure what the hell is going on with the Northsiders except for the minor grumblings I hear out of MJ every-so-often. The bottom line with the Cubs is that they should run away with the division this year. Watch me go out on a limb here: If they stay healthy and their pitching is solid, they can't be stopped in the NL Central. Anything after that is just gravy on a biscuit.

I'm going to reserve any judgement on the White Sox as I am still trying to collect my thoughts from the few spring training games I have seen these past 2 weeks. I'll get you a pre-season White Sox post SOON. And I don't mean in April. There is a ton to talk about with the Sox. We don't have Crede at third any more, Bartolo Colon is back(second tour of White Sox duty, thanks Chairman Reinsdorf!), Jose Contreras pitched today and looked pretty damn good, Chris Getz, the kid we drafted from Georgia, Owens, Anderson, JD is still on the team, Thome has back problems, will the rotation be solid again, and on and on and on...

You get the picture. I'll wrap this return up by saying that the NFL draft is coming in a month and the Bears are hopelessly trying to figure out how not to spend more than $500k at a time for any given player. You have to love the moves we've made this offseason. MJ has the breakdown here.

Finally, today was Selection Sunday, and it came and went without an appearance from my beloved Ramblers. I'm wondering if I'm going to be alive long enough to see Loyola ever go dancing. It's going to take a miracle, but thankfully, the NCAA continues to support conference championships. They're our only hope of getting into the tourney. Loyola will never have an RPI high enough to get into the dance. Their RPI this year was a stout 222. Winning 3 or 4 games in a row during a conference championship is clearly the only way little Loyola gets invited to the dance. Here's to hoping for that last miracle. And that's all I have for you tonight!

Come back this week kids, and tell your friends. It's going to get interesting.

Bears host the Saints tomorrow

Perry — Wed, 10 Dec 2008 04:53:00 GMT

I've never been a big fan of Thursday night football. It grinds my gears. I'm a traditionalist. I like my Bowl games on New Years Day, and I like my NFL football on Sundays. I let Monday Night Football slide because, well, Monday's suck and ESPN is right about this one fact.MNF makes the horrible pot of stink-stink otherwise known as your 9 to 5 disapear witha 7:15 kick off. Thursdays are just wrong. It causes people across the country nothing but stress. Who amongst us hasn't forgotten about the Thursday night game and what it means to our confidence pools or our fantasy team? I know most sites send nag emails to remind us, but this just isn't good enough for me. There are only two Thursday NFL games that I can ever remember in my pea sized brain. Turkey Day and any Thursday the Bears are playing.

So the Saints come marching into frigid Soldier Field this Thursday, in what I describe as a must win game for the Bears. It's crunch time kids, and the Bears are most likely going to miss the playoffs if they don't win this game. I know that with Minnesota's 4th quarter push past the woeful Lions last week the job gets tougher for the Bears. A lot of people are saying we have to win out to actually make the playoffs. MJ subscribes to this line of thought, but Not So Fast My Friends. I'm going with the old coaching stand by - one game at a time. Let's beat the Saints. We'll start with figuring out who the Saints are.

They have a record of 7-6. They rank 3rd in points scored, 1st in pass yards, and 27th in rushing yards. I'll give you 3 guesses what the Saints game plan is going to be on Thursday. Drew Brees comes to Chicago with a gaudy number of touchdowns thrown (26). The Bears secondary is going to be tested early and often by the QB out of Purdue. Speaking of Purdue QBs (yes, this is the battle of Boilermakers) our very own Kyle Orton has nothing to worry about with the Saints defense.

The Saints D is 24th in points allowed, 21st in total yards, 26th against the pass, and 20th against the run. This should translate to a great game for both Orton and New Orleans native Matt Forte. I'm looking for Forte to break 120 yards against the Saints defense. This is going to be a big game for the young man, and if my guess is right it will get him another few points on the road to finishing in second place for the rookie of the year award. Sorry Matt, but I think Matt Ryan from the ATL is a lock for the rookie honor. But who cares about individual accolades, right? We're hoping for a win.

The Bears defense is going to have a very tough time with the Saints. Corey Graham is going to be tested often and I wouldn't be surprised if this is the game we lose Mike Brown. I hate to jinx it for you Mr. Brown, but you are like that old carton of milk in the fridge. Way past your expiration. I anticipate a long winter of hot baths and Ben-Gay for Mike Brown after this game. I don't know why, but I just have a bad feeling. The feeling gets stronger each time I see who goes on IR. (Dusty Dvoracek is the latest addition to the "I have an ouchy" list)

And just think, December just started!

I'm not too confident that the defense can get any pressure on Brees, and as a result I'm picking against the Bears at home. The Saints take this shoot out, but the Bears will have to come on strong to make it look interesting in the end: Saints 32 Bears 21. I hope I'm wrong, but there ya go.

BEAR DOWN

Bears heading up to face Vikings tonight

Perry — Sun, 30 Nov 2008 20:30:00 GMT

I'm anxiously awaiting the biggest Bears game of the year tonight. The Bears are visiting the Vikings tonight in an NFC showdown! How exciting. Well, at least on the surface. The Bears are trying to win a game on the road, in the garbage bag, to distance themselves from the Packers and the Vikings. This is a big game because if we do get the win, then I'm pretty sure we're going to win the division. The Packers have already lost to the Panthers today and a win over the Vikings would leave the division looking like so:

Bears (7-5, 6-4 division)
Vikings (6-6, 4-4 division)
Packers (5-7, 4-5 division)
Lions (0-12, 0 for the rest of my life)

Not bad. Is it an unlikely leap of faith on my part to predict that the Bears would win this division if they win tonight? Sure, but I don't see how a win in Minnesota tonight doesn't build some tremendous momentum for the Bears. I didn't expect the Bears to win more than 5 games, but a win tonight puts them in the driver's seat for the division. Now, we're going to be the weakest division winner in the NFC, but it doesn't matter. Kyle Orton, and Matt Forte have done a tremendous job getting this team back on track. If the defense can rise to the challenge that is Adrian Peterson, we're going to be even better situated for the remainder of the season.

And that's the key. The defense. The non-existent defense. The defense that showed up and actually stopped the run against the Titans will have to make the trip to Minnesota tonight if we are to win this division. The injuries are going to start pilling up on us too. Nate Vasher is out for the rest of the season. Corey Graham is going to start in his place. Is this a drop off in skill and talent? You bet. But in the end, I don't think it matters. I think the defense has been playing soft all year long. It won't matter that Graham is starting instead of Vasher. How could it when our corners are being asked to give receivers a 7 yard head start? You watch. Regardless of the cover 2, you won't see any bump and run. No catch and release. Nope. You will guys back off the ball, and thus the receiver. You'll probably also see Mike Brown being sent on an occasional blitz too, but at entirely the WRONG times.

The only hope I have for this game is going to come in the form of a Devin Hester kick return. He is long overdue, and considering we probably won't see much of an air game (Forte v Peterson), this will be the only real excitement in this game. It will be a close one, but I'm going to take the Bears on the road to beat the Vikings tonight:

Bears 17 - Vikings 10.

Bear Down

At the half: Bears can't stop the run against the Packers

Perry — Sun, 16 Nov 2008 17:15:00 GMT

Trying something new here kids. Not so new over at the Bears website though. Some half time reporting for you. I'm writing this as Brian Urlacher FINALLY makes a play and intercepts Rodgers. Too bad the Bears defense couldn't do anything with it. Another 3 and out.

So far the story of this game is the Bears defense. We can't stop the run. This is a surprise to everyone as the Bears defense did a number on Chris Johnson and the Titans last week. With 4 minutes remaining, the Bears defense has already given up more yards on the ground to the Packers than last weeks entire game! It's over 80 yards on the ground. If the Packers continue to run so effectively against us, we're going to be in trouble. They have gobbled up time of possession in this first half. We're only down 7-3 but with 3 minutes or so left they are driving on us. It's 3rd down and 4. This is a big 3rd down. We could get the ball back before the 2 minute warning. But then the Tampa-2 lets us down as Rodgers finds a wide open James Jones for the first down. The Packers are still driving...

Offensively, just like games in the past, Matt Forte is the only bright spot. Orton is still hobbling around and clearly isn't 100%. In fact, we almost lost him on the first drive when one of the Packers defenders stumbled into his shin. A handful of his throws have been off the mark this afternoon which leads me to openly question if it was a wise move to have him start this game. I know I don't like Grossman, but losing Orton for longer than a few weeks would be devastating.

So to summarize, the Bears defense can't stop the run. Either the schemes have been totally wrong, or the fact we are missing tackles are the causes. No sooner do I type that..the Packers actually score. On the ground. Ryan Grant. He made it look easy. Time to see what Babich and Lovie Smith can do during the half to get this game under control.

Bears drop tough game to undefeated Titans

Perry — Tue, 11 Nov 2008 04:23:00 GMT

There isn't much to say about the Bear's 21-14 loss to the undefeated Titans. It was your typical cold day in Chicago. Some people lend themselves to hyperbole and call it "Bear weather". It came complete with the mid-game cheer for the year's first flurries. That's a requirement in this town. No matter how far the league moves away from Bear football, we Chicagoans hold onto it as if we were a baby with a blankie. Snow means we win. Right? I mean, we still play outdoors and on real grass! That's got to count for something. Nevermind that our backup quarterback, Rex Grossman got the start instead of our most recent beloved savior, Kyle Orton. Let's forget the fact that Orton had an opportunity to play in this game if his pre-game workout passed his own scrutiny. To no one's surprise, it didn't.

Kyle is a lot smarter than he looks. Why would he risk further injuring his ankle against a Titans defense that ranks 5th in total defense? I understand his logic. What I don't understand is how Rex Grossman hasn't gotten any better sitting on the bench. You'd think that the time away from the pressures of being the starting quarterback would have him working hard on his fundamentals. The fact is, Grossman hasn't improved at all. He still throws off his back foot, throws into double coverage, and has the worst pocket pressence of any quarterback I've seen since Moses Moreno. That's right, I named dropped Moreno. Don't act surprised. You all know we have a HUGE list of incompetants to compare Rex against. To be honest, no one really remembers Moreno except for Bear's savants like MJ. This game could be a win if Rex Grossman wasn't playing. I stand by my assesment. Rex had a bad game. He missed a lot of open receivers. The most painful inaccurate throw had to be the one to Devin Hester. Hester was cutting across mid-field on a slant and Grossman missed him by a good couple of feet. How do you overthrow the fastest guy on the field? Do you blame that on rust? I don't. I blame it on Grossman being Grossman.

There isn't anything surprising about Rex's performance. I don't believe in good-Rex and bad-Rex anymore. It's just Rex. He is a decent backup quarterback, but if you want to get the win, you have to find ways to hide his deficiencies. That job is left to Ron Turner. Turner had to be wondering how much longer he could continue to avoid giving every play to Matt Forte on Sunday. The only positive yards I saw for the Bears came from the young back out of Tulane. He is a great all-purpose threat and I'm curious as to why we didn't give the ball to Forte on a number of our possesions in the 4th quarter.

The defense is another matter all together in this match up. I'm not happy with the defense. I understand that we only gave up 21 points, but our defense has to get it together. I did not hear Urlacher's name mentioned even once on the telecast. I take it back, he did shoot the gap on an all out blitz which ended up with Mike Brown getting a sack. The secondary was piss-poor again. (go ahead, argue with me) Kerry Collins threw for 289 yards and 2 touchdowns. With all due respect, the Titans were known for their run game. Specifically, the Titans are known for the great Chris Johnson who has been tearing the league apart. Credit should go to our defense for stuffing him all game long. Johnson finished with 8 yards on 14 attempts. But I'm greedy. I didn't see enough pressure on Collins. Wouldn't you think the defense would blitz a little bit more to keep the pressure up on Collins. Maybe we should have been "hurrying" him a bit more to get a turnover or two?

The bottom line on this one is that the Bears probably could have avoided the 8 straight posessions of straight punts if Orton would have played. But that is why the play the game right?

I'm running out of steam on this one. I've got a ton of points I still need to get down on paper, but for tonight...that's all. BEAR DOWN.

If the NFL was cool - they would allow me to just embed their video's into this post.

But since they continue to be uptight about their content, I give you the links to the Bears/Titans game highlights here.

Chicago's President

Perry — Wed, 05 Nov 2008 03:13:00 GMT

One could argue I've taken a lot of breaks on this site this year...but this is sort of big news.

Chicago is the center of American politics tonight as Senator Barack Obama just won the 2008 Election. You read that right. Your next President is from the Chi.

And he's a White Sox fan. And probably a CSB reader. :)

Now that we got that out of the way, it's time to start talking about:

How/why the Bears are going to go 2-2 without Kyle Orton.
How the Blackhawks are a better team without Denny Savard
How the White Sox should shape their team next year (hint - get rid of all the old slow guys)

Until then, I'm waiting to see if he name drops the Pale Hose.

(Credit the picture to Therese Flanagan via Flickr)

Bears maul the Vikings in a close shootout

Perry — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 02:10:00 GMT

That's right. A close shoot out. How else would you explain the Bears 48-41 victory today over the Vikings? I haven't had this much fun watching a Bears game in years. Unlike MJ I wasn't having flashbacks of the 1995 Wanny/Turner Bears. That could be because I can't remember yesterday, let alone a Bears season over 10 years ago. This team doesn't remind me at all of that 1995 offensive juggernaut. For starters, I think Orton is better than Erik Kramer ever was, and our defense isn't as bad this year. Then again, I'd have to check the stats. Huh. I guess the 95 Bears defense finished 19th at the end of that season. This year's team is sitting at 16th in total defense. Maybe MJ is on to something...

Don't get me wrong, the 2008 Bears defense stinks like French cheese. There is nothing special about our D this year. We gave up over 40 points today to the Gus Ferotte led Vikings. That is nothing to be proud of. We should ask Ferotte which Bears defense is better, the one he saw back in his Redskins days or the Brian Urlacher led team that makes Adrian Peterson look like he should be wearing the #34. I swear AP gets another endorsement deal every time he plays the Bears. He's great. No doubt. But you get the feeling his hall of fame tape is going to consist of nothing but Bears highlights. AP had 22 carries for 121 yards and 2 touchdowns. His longest run was for 54 yards in which he proceeded to make Mike Brown look like a fool. Other than that, we kept him in check.

It goes without saying that the Cover-2 defense doesn't seem to work when you can't rush the quarterback. I guess I shouldn't get greedy. The Bears did sack Ferotte twice. That's 2 more sacks than we have seen in the previous 2 games. It concerns me a great deal that we can't get to the quarterback more often. Is it because Babich isn't being as aggressive as he was last year with his play calling? Is it because Tommie Harris has mental problems? Maybe we need to send Urlacher after the quarterback every so often to keep quarterbacks honest? I'm not sure what the solution is, but I do know that I was getting nervous watching the Vikings stampede down the field with 4 minutes left in this game. The only bright spot I saw on defense, scratch that, the only consistent play I saw today came from Alex Brown. He was terrific today.

I shouldn't complain about the defense too much. They did end up with 4 picks thanks to Corey Graham and Trumaine McBride. Both were filling in for Peanut and Vasher. I was worried that former Bear Bernard Berrian, who I am on record as saying was not worth all that cash, would pound us. He had 81 yards and a touchdown. His replacement, the much older and cheaper Marty Booker had 79 yards on 3 catches and a touchdown. He should have had 3 touchdowns, but he is an old dude and his hands aren't as good as we remember them being. He dropped 2 DARTS from Kyle Orton today. I'm going to cut Marty a break tonight because after he made his first catch, which wasn't in the end zone, he looked around astonished. It seemed as if he was saying, "Thank God. I finally caught a pass". I appreciate the frustration and more specifically, the acknowledgment of his struggles. Booker is all class and I'm happy to report he tore up the Vikings secondary on his touchdown pass. It was a brilliant maneuver that split the safety and got him out in the open. It was like watching the 25 year old version of Marty Booker burn right down the field for a score.

This was a good win. There were some down moments that I'll cover in depth tomorrow (yes, I will be back tomorrow. I've got my shit together again) like Matt Forte's lack of carries, the inability of Ron Turner to find his tight ends, and why we always sit on 3 point leads. But for now, I'm like that fat dude at McDonalds who just realized that apple pies are 2 for $1 - elated!

BEAR DOWN

White Sox Ramirez Rockets Team Past Detroit

Perry — Tue, 30 Sep 2008 18:50:00 GMT

I swore off baseball this year after the Sox crapped the bed against the Twins last week. I'm getting a lot of shit from White Sox-Nation about that. I'm even getting it from our very own MJ. "Fair weather fan, like all White Sox fans." Yea, I'm afraid I don't have the stomach to sit through this team's struggles anymore. That magic number was stuck on 5 for a week. It was pathetic that we couldn't get a win in Minnesota. Listen, I understand that their stadium is crap, but you can't use that as an excuse. We looked like we had it figured out that last game up in the garbage-bag, but we blew a 5 run lead instead!

Wha?

So I had that glass of vodka Ozzie recommended and said to myself, Good night Irene. Those little piranha got us again. Good luck to them. What else could I do? Tip my cap and chalk this season up to a bit of overachieving and a ton of what could have been! Does that makes me less of a fan? In some people's eyes, for sure. But I am tired. I'm so VERY tired of having to watch a team stumble in the last 2 weeks that I don't know if I can muster the energy to watch these last two games of the season....but I couldn't help myself...

I was stuck in class last night when I noticed the score go up on the game-cast. It's hard not to get excited when this happens:

The Cuban Missile strikes again! I couldn't believe it. There is a slim bit of hope on the horizon for this team. The Twins are back in Chicago for a do-or-die playoff game tonight. I guess I've got just enough energy to lift my fat ass back onto the bandwagon. Good luck to Johnny Danks. He goes on 3 days of rest and faces the Twin's Blackburn....the same Blackburn that Ozzie threw under the bus when he beat us last week in Minnesota. Ugh, lets hope it doesn't bite us ALL in the ass.

White Sox blow it against the Twins. We're out of first place

Perry — Fri, 26 Sep 2008 01:48:00 GMT

I haven't posted anything about the White Sox for weeks. You know why? Because the world is going to hell, I was close to losing my job, and well, shit my house is a mess. But you know what? I want to to vent a little, and I'm going to take it out on the White Sox.

WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU PEOPLE?!

We had a 6-1 lead in tonight's game against the Twins in that God-forsaken garbage bag of a stadium and we blew it. The Sox have nothing left. I am so disappointed in this team. I know that no one expected us to win the division, myself included, but this is completely out of hand. We had a GREAT chance at winning this division because our pitching was 1000% better than ANYONE expected this season.

The offense has been HORRIBLE, and if it wasn't for Quentin we would probably be buried in 4th place like all the pre-season predictions. This team is not balanced. We can't run the bases, our defense had to be the WORST I've seen of any Sox team in recent memory and our "big boppers" have been no bigger than a rabbit turd. If anything it was a struggle the entire season. It's true what they say: good pitching always beats good hitting. I would have settled for mediocre hitting on the South Side. Am I taking this sweep hard? You damn right I am. The White Sox make too many excuses for why they can't beat a Twins team that will most likely get swept in the first round of the playoffs this year. The Twins aren't that good of a team. They have speed, which is important when you play on slabs of concrete, and some timely hitting. Shit, they have solid hitting...who am I crapping. They have guys who make contact, and GOOD contact. Not this little "duck snort" bullshit I've been forced to endure from the likes of Thome, Konerko, and Swisher. Dirty 30? How about Pathetic Pauly, or Hit-it To-Me on the first pitch?

We wasted 2 good outings by Buehrle, and Floyd. Vasquez is a lost cause, so that first game isn't a surprise. He is a mental midget. The Rex Grossman of the team if you will.

Carlos Gomez beat us tonight? Seriously? He went 4-4 tonight. We just lost this division because no one on our staff knew how to get Carlos Gomez out.

Great. Nice work guys. I can't handle it anymore. So much for October basball. The Royals are heading to the garbage bag next and they won't throw Grienke. The only pitcher they have who could beat the Twins, and he sits. Why? Because the Royals want to save him for next year? What a bunch of crap. The Sox on the other hand come home and face the Cleve. Oh! And guess what? Cliff Lee, this year's (so they say) Cy Young Award winner is pitching the third game against us.

I need a drink.

White Sox drop 2 Against the Blue Jays

Perry — Wed, 10 Sep 2008 12:30:00 GMT

I was getting comfortable and I wasn't alone. The radio guys in this town started taking about magic numbers yesterday. I think it is a bad thing to talk about magic numbers when you are still in the double digit range. But I guess you have to forgive the sports media in this town. It has only been 100 years since both the White Sox and the Cubs have been this close to making the playoffs.They're excited, but they might be counting those proverbial chickens before they hatch. My biggest fear is that both teams lay an egg. The Cubs are struggling as of late with an abysmal 2-8 record in their last 10and the White Sox are just as bad at 4-6. Both teams avoided the June swoon, but this might turn into the September to remember - for all the wrong reasons. I'm afraid of a collapse.

Not so much for the Cubbies. They are in one of those slumps you just shake off. You know what they say! It's always better to slump now rather than in October. The White Sox went through the exact same thing in 2005 and that turned out ok. The Cubs should still make the playoffs. They have great pitching, great defense and they eventually will realize that Derek Lee needs to be moved down in the order. The White Sox on the other hand, are hurting both mentally and physically. Ozzie has started to tag players as if they were specemens who belong in storage. It started with Joe Crede. Guillen has no confidence in Crede because of his bad back. It doesn't seem to be stable even after surgery. The amount of errors the traditionally solid fielding Crede committed skyrocketed this year. That was the first sign. The fact he couldn't get out of his rehab stint in a week was the second. Ozzie tag: Broken. Next we saw Carlos Quentin crack his wrist against his bat. I don't believe that story for a second, but it doesn't matter. Quentin was the engine that drove the White Sox this year. He of Lego-like-hair and tremendous power at the plate was a young version of Paul Konerko! He still leads the league in home runs! He was in the running for MVP. You don't lose an MVP and sleep walk into the playoffs. That's not going to happen. The injury to Quentin just quickens the pace of this wilting team's offense. Ozzie Tag: Cracked. And then there was last night's injury....

The White Sox are home this week hosting the troublesome Blue Jays. I say that without confidence because I spent the morning trying to find the Sox's current record against the Jays this season. It isn't as easy as it sounds. You'd think one of these sports blogger-type-geeks would get to writing an easy to use stat searching interface. Maybe this is something Google would like to do. They like data, they like simple searches, and they have tons of cash. Maybe I'll just do it. But I digress...

I seem to recall the Sox got swept in their previous meeting with the Blue Jays while visiting Toronto. A quick glance at the bottom of this awesome head-to-head page from CBS Sportsline proves my memory isn't failing me. The Blue Jays have the White Sox's number. That number would be 6-0. The Toronto Blue Jays are undefeated against the White Sox this year. If you take a look at the right column of this head to head page you'll notice that the Blue Jays have us beat on every pitching stat known to man. That explains the majority of the reasons why the Sox just can't get a grip on the Jays. It actually gets worse when you dig deeper and examine what the White Sox record is against the AL East. The Sox are 13-22 against the AL East this year. That doesn't bode well for us if we get matched up against this year's Cinderella, the Rays.

I missed the first game yesterday afternoon as I was running around getting the house ready for our new addition. Javi Vasquez dropped another game in which he had 5 strike outs. He only gave up 2 runs, but that was enough for the Jays to win the game 3-1. I feel bad for Javi. The team just can't score when he pitches. The second game of the double header was a complete joke. Not only did the Sox pitching explode, but we sustained yet another injury. This time it was the hot hitting Paul Konerko. Pauly was actually lifting himself out of that season-long slump. He was batting something like .350 since August 1st. That is a complete turn around from the pathetic start he had. And then his knee gave out on him. Pauly slipped on the grass last night and strained his MCL. Ozzie gets to put Konerko on the shelf next to his other power hitter. Ozzie Tag: Done. I hate to say it, but this could be it for Pauly as a White Sox player. Even if he doesn't get cut or traded, he doesn't start next year. You just get the feeling that Konerko is breaking down right before our eyes. It's like that weird Black and White face progression trick in the Michael Jackson video. Pauly started off a baby, and ended up a shriveled up old prune. The Sox lost the night cap, thanks to rookie pitcher Clayton Richards, 8-1. This kid isn't ready and we're in the middle of a playoff race. What the hell is Ozzie doing? I'm hoping he takes Richards and put's him on the shelf too, this time with the tag:Half Baked.

The Sox attempt to reverse this 2 game losing streak tonight against the Jays. Maybe tonight we'll see some changes in the line up. I'll be back later today with how I would fill out the lineup card tonight.

Go-Go-White Sox!

Of the Bears and the 2008 season

Perry — Sun, 07 Sep 2008 12:00:00 GMT

Time to shake the rust off kids! It's football time. There is going to be a lot to talk about and analyze this season and I'm going to start with the pre-season questions I need answered before I will be comfortable with this team. None of this should be new to any of you, but you can consider this as an airing of grievances.

Can Kyle Orton carry the offense? I don't see how else to put this, but we have some problems on offense. There is no question that the offensive line is going to suck. The receivers are anything but spectacular, and the running game is left to Kevin Jones, a former Lions running back who was cut because of knee issues and a 2nd round pick out of Tulane. If we are going to be successful on offense, it starts with the cliche, the quarterback. We need an EPIC performance from Orton. Not only because I've been waiting my entire life to see a competent quarterback in a Bears uniform (my apologies to Hardbaugh and McMahon) but there are no other options. We need a quarterback that has the ability to overcome the pass rush of an opposing team's defense just as much as the inept play calling. Ron Turner is not your friend Kyle. Listen to the play he calls, and then call your own play when you know it will just end in a 2 yard gain when we need 7. This is a lot to ask of a quarterback. It isn't realistic to expect Orton to do what quarterbacks like Brett Favre have done recently - win with no help. Shit, win with true obsticles! Nope, I don't think Kyle has that special quality to overcome the ineptness of his organization.But like Lovie says, Kyle is our quarterback. That will have to do.
Is the defense as bad as it looked in the preseason? Only time will tell, but it doesn't look good. First, the face of the franchise held us hostage for more money AFTER he had neck surgery in the offseason. We gave it to him because not only does Urlacher play his balls off, but we don't really have that much stability on defense. Who would have taken his spot? I didn't see the Bears draft a middle linebacker this year. Regardless of the team politics, the linebackers are probably the healthiest and best part of our defense. Hillenmeyer, Urlacher, and Briggs are great together. Hillenmeyer is underappreciated in the group, but he does a solid job on the outside. Briggs is our best linebacker. I base this simply on the number of plays he makes, his health, and his his age. Besides, Urlacher plays so damn hard he has to be wearing down. No one can keep up the pace he has been on. The back problems were an early indication of this. Now he has a neck issue. Briggs has to prove that the big money he got was warranted. The defensive line is still anchored by Tommie Harris. Harris is an amazing talent, but he has to stay healthy for the defense to be relevant. That initial push up the middle has to come from Tommie Harris. The game planning people make for the Bears includes heavy double teams for Tommie Harris. Off the edge we have Ogunleye, and opposite him the forgotten Alex Brown. Brown has solidified his position as a starter, reclaiming the job from Marc Anderson who proved to be a freak 2 seasons ago with all those sacks. The more I look at the line, the more my confidence increases that what we saw this preseason wasn't the real D. Then again, remember what Frank Gore did against the first team. It wasn't pretty.
Can Matt Forte be a difference maker? I vote yes. He can catch the ball out of the backfield, and he seems to always be falling foward. He actually gains yards on the ground! This is important for a Bears team that cut the ineffective Cedric Benson in the offseason. Benson had a lot of problems off the field, but even bigger problems on it. He just wasn't that good. I don't know if it was the play calling or his motivation or both. If it was the play calling, then Matt Forte is going to look just as bad. I guess the reason why I think it won't matter is because he has the ability to be creative, regardless of the horrible calls. This is something Cedric Benson was never able to pull off. I'm expecting big things from Forte, and like the defense back in Orton's rookie season, I think Forte is going to be real reason we win games.
Will Ron Turner finally figure out how to run an offense? No. Next question.

I'm going to stop there. I'll leave you with this tidbit to chew on. Both baseball teams are in first place and are decent candidates for the post season. This may be the best thing ever for Angelo and the Bears. No one will notice how bad the Bears are going to be because the Sox and the Cubs are going to keep us captivated. It's the 100 year miracle. The new Bears' ad campaign likes to point out how both the Northside and the SouthSide of the city come together at Soldier Field. That's a nice sentiment. If I was Jerry Angelo and Lovie Smith, I wouldn't be counting on this distraction to save my job.

Bears 2008 Preseason - 49ers Make Bears Look BAD

Perry — Fri, 22 Aug 2008 13:49:45 GMT

I rushed home tonight. Bears games will do that to a man in this town. Even for preseason games. Tonight's game was against the 49ers. Aaaah the Niners! They should have been an easy victory for us. But alas, the Bears lost this meaningless game 37-30. Don't let the score fool you. As I write this sentence, Hanie unloaded a hail mary that was actually caught to bring the Bears within 7 points. Too bad there is no more time on the clock.

There are some interesting comparisons between the beloved Bear and the Niners. Both teams are struggling to figure out which way is up. Both have quarterback issues. The 49ers, like the Bears, have decided to go away from their highly drafted (first round) QB. Alex Smith is the west coast version of Rex Grossman. Ok, that's not fair. Grossman is worse. Tonight proved that point. Smith and Grossman have amounted to pretty much nothing. (all you Grossman lovers who want to remind me that Alex Smith NEVER ONCE sniffed a Superbowl should just shut the F up already. Grossman COST US the Superbowl win.) Smith's best year was when Norv Turner was the offensive coordinator for the 49ers. Today, the offensive coordinator/ hired gun Mike Martz is in San Francisco and he wants no part of Alex Smith. It's so bad in Niners land that JT O'Sullivan is going to be named their starting quarterback. Remember him? O'Sullivan was once a Bears quarterback. He never really got a chance here, so I guess we shouldn't be too bitter if he turns out to be the next Tony Romo. (slow down, I know...)

The Bears looked like a completely different team when Grossman was at the helm. A bad team. Orton won this job with ease as far as I am concerned. I can't believe that this was even a true competition after watching Orton hit Davis for 2 nice touchdowns tonight. If you wanted to get picky, that first touchdown was all Rashied. Orton stepped into the pocket while feeling the rush (good), but he threw that pass into triple coverage (bad). I guess we'll have to take it.

So the good news is that Orton showed his potential tonight. The line held up much better, and Matt Forte actually moves FORWARD when he runs. I can't tell you the last time I saw a Bears quarterback actually gain 7 yards on a single carry. Neil Anderson maybe? Forte is going to be great, if we don't get him killed out there. He is another night and day difference when compared to last year's pathetic running back, Cedric Benson. So what did we learn from this preseason game against the Niners? Here is the list of takeaways:

Alex Smith and Rex Grossman have to be traded. Their careers are over in each respective city. Perhaps we should do a "change of scenery" trade and swap the two for each other. (This is actually a CDub idea, I can't take credit)
Orton isn't bad. He actually has a good looking arm on the short routes. Since that is all Ron Turner calls, we might as well go with Orton.
Forte is an upgrade at running back. A dramatic upgrade. He needs to stay healthy. I consider him the only true bright spot on this offense
Our offensive line is old. It shows. We need to plan accordingly.
Rashied Davis is the best wide receiver on this team. Davis and Hester should start with Booker. We actually may be able to make some plays with these guys. (if we can protect Orton)
The defense isn't as good as we think. Did you see the Pam Oliver, sideline interview of old # 54? He told the nation that the Bears defense just SUCKED tonight. And that was against the Niners and JT O'Freaking-Sullivan! If the defense is this bad, we are in serious, serious trouble this year.
It is confirmed, no one is going to kick to Devin Hester
Hanie came back down to earth tonight, but then again he still looked better than Grossman
So Norv Turner made Alex Smith look good (even with a career best 16 TDs and 16 INTs) and Ron Turner made Grossman look like, well...me. What would happen if we swapped Turners?
Does anyone have any idea why it took so long for Troy Aikman to find Wrigley field?

That does it for me. My nice extended summer break is over. It's time to get ready for football (both Northwestern and Bears) So Bear Down and spread the word.

White Sox drop game to the Red Sox. Lose Contreras and Trade for Horatio Ramirez

Perry — Sun, 10 Aug 2008 01:00:00 GMT

I'm getting messages from SarahN about the Sox trading for Horatio Ramirez from the Royals tonight. The Royals continue to be a sort of breeding ground for Kenny Williams' plan-Bs. I'm not sure what they traded to get this guy, and I'm not sure I want to know. The Sox were doing fine thanks to DJ Carrasco who came in for Jose Contreras.

Contreras blew an achilles tendon and is most likely done for the remainder of the season. I'm not sure if this would have made a difference to the White Sox, IF they made the playoffs because Contreras was already falling apart enough to be left off of the playoff roster. More news on these White Sox developments as I get the info...

[Update]

It seems that Boone Logan and Josh Fields have been sent down. This means a couple of things. Uribe is handling third until Crede comes back. So Fields is odd man out. I guess keeping Wise and Anderson on the roster is a must, considering we have two old, and slow outfielders covering center and right. (sorry JD, but you aren't moving as well as you used to. Same goes for you Jr.) Logan has been sent down because his ERA has jumped over 5. He got himself into a jam today against the Red Sox. Entering the game with a 1-1 score, and not being able to get an out before they come and get you is BAD TIMES. The Red Sox pounded Logan and as a result the White Sox are now staring UP at the Twins.

Go-Go-White Sox!