lofton will play tonight...
==
Despite an 8-11 record in June entering Saturday's game, the Sox pitching staff ranked third in the American League with a 3.31 ERA for the month. ... Right-handed-hitting Aaron Rowand started in center field in place of lefty-swinging Kenny Lofton on Saturday against Atlanta southpaw Damian Moss. Lofton will be back in the starting lineup today.
===
Series vs. Twins could make or break Sox' season
June 24, 2002
BY DOUG PADILLA STAFF REPORTER
byline:
Doug
PADILLA
The Sox
ATLANTA--Finally, the White Sox get a shot at the Minnesota Twins with so much to ponder regarding the four-game series that starts today at Minneapolis.
If they sweep, will the Sox finally have the momentum they need? If they get swept, are they done? And does a split mean they are spinning their wheels or keeping things close until they get the Twins at Comiskey?
Manager Jerry Manuel studied the angles and came to a conclusion.
"Until you are out of it, you will use it as a positive one way or another,'' Manuel said. "We are. I know y'all [reporters] ain't.''
Forget about finding positives, things look bleak already.
The Twins have a 42-33 record, the second-worst winning percentage (.560) of any division leader in baseball. And still the Sox have had trouble keeping pace.
The Twins are slightly better than the Sox in every major category. The Twins are fifth in the AL in team batting average (.276), while the Sox are seventh (.263). The Twins lead the AL in hits (720), while the Sox are seventh (651). The Twins are seventh in team ERA (4.33), while the Sox are ninth (4.53).
Here's a positive. The Sox should feel fortunate they don't play in the American League East, where they would be trailing the first-place Boston Red Sox by 101/2 games.
"We have 19 with [the Twins], but the first four are going to be big,'' Paul Konerko said. "Obviously, from where we sit in the standings, it could be a big swing either way.''
Konerko is looking to take three games minimum, with a sweep being an added bonus. And considering each contest creates a two-game swing, it would be a huge bonus.
"I'm sure they are looking just to split the series,'' Konerko said. "I would like to think we obviously have to win the series or better. We just have to set the tone against them. We can't get too up or down no matter what happens. It's a long season and there will be a lot of momentum changes within the division.''
Jose Valentin is not looking at last season's struggles against the Twins to get motivated for this week. There is enough to think about with this year's underachieving squad.
"Whatever happened last year is over,'' Valentin said about the Sox' 5-14 record against the Twins last season. "It's a new year for us. It will be the first series against them, the first time we're going to see them. We have to go up there and show it right away. We have to show we are good enough.''
In trying to find those positives that Manuel was talking about, the manager created one to make second place sound like more of an advantage.
"If I was in their position I wouldn't like it,'' Manuel said. "I've always said, when you're behind, you want time. When you're ahead, you want it to end. You want the end to be close. We're behind and we play them a number of times so it's up to us.''
Konerko agreed that the Sox have to take control of their own destiny. He wants results, but also is being cautious about expectations.
"Other than the first game [tonight], you don't really look past it and sit there and go, 'We need to sweep these guys or we're not going to have a good series,' '' Konerko said. "Because if you lose the first game, then you will be real down about it.
"We just have to play the games. Forget about everything and play the games and see what happens.''
==
Despite an 8-11 record in June entering Saturday's game, the Sox pitching staff ranked third in the American League with a 3.31 ERA for the month. ... Right-handed-hitting Aaron Rowand started in center field in place of lefty-swinging Kenny Lofton on Saturday against Atlanta southpaw Damian Moss. Lofton will be back in the starting lineup today.
===
Series vs. Twins could make or break Sox' season
June 24, 2002
BY DOUG PADILLA STAFF REPORTER
byline:
Doug
PADILLA
The Sox
ATLANTA--Finally, the White Sox get a shot at the Minnesota Twins with so much to ponder regarding the four-game series that starts today at Minneapolis.
If they sweep, will the Sox finally have the momentum they need? If they get swept, are they done? And does a split mean they are spinning their wheels or keeping things close until they get the Twins at Comiskey?
Manager Jerry Manuel studied the angles and came to a conclusion.
"Until you are out of it, you will use it as a positive one way or another,'' Manuel said. "We are. I know y'all [reporters] ain't.''
Forget about finding positives, things look bleak already.
The Twins have a 42-33 record, the second-worst winning percentage (.560) of any division leader in baseball. And still the Sox have had trouble keeping pace.
The Twins are slightly better than the Sox in every major category. The Twins are fifth in the AL in team batting average (.276), while the Sox are seventh (.263). The Twins lead the AL in hits (720), while the Sox are seventh (651). The Twins are seventh in team ERA (4.33), while the Sox are ninth (4.53).
Here's a positive. The Sox should feel fortunate they don't play in the American League East, where they would be trailing the first-place Boston Red Sox by 101/2 games.
"We have 19 with [the Twins], but the first four are going to be big,'' Paul Konerko said. "Obviously, from where we sit in the standings, it could be a big swing either way.''
Konerko is looking to take three games minimum, with a sweep being an added bonus. And considering each contest creates a two-game swing, it would be a huge bonus.
"I'm sure they are looking just to split the series,'' Konerko said. "I would like to think we obviously have to win the series or better. We just have to set the tone against them. We can't get too up or down no matter what happens. It's a long season and there will be a lot of momentum changes within the division.''
Jose Valentin is not looking at last season's struggles against the Twins to get motivated for this week. There is enough to think about with this year's underachieving squad.
"Whatever happened last year is over,'' Valentin said about the Sox' 5-14 record against the Twins last season. "It's a new year for us. It will be the first series against them, the first time we're going to see them. We have to go up there and show it right away. We have to show we are good enough.''
In trying to find those positives that Manuel was talking about, the manager created one to make second place sound like more of an advantage.
"If I was in their position I wouldn't like it,'' Manuel said. "I've always said, when you're behind, you want time. When you're ahead, you want it to end. You want the end to be close. We're behind and we play them a number of times so it's up to us.''
Konerko agreed that the Sox have to take control of their own destiny. He wants results, but also is being cautious about expectations.
"Other than the first game [tonight], you don't really look past it and sit there and go, 'We need to sweep these guys or we're not going to have a good series,' '' Konerko said. "Because if you lose the first game, then you will be real down about it.
"We just have to play the games. Forget about everything and play the games and see what happens.''
