Gonna pass today but I thought I'd pass on a pretty informative article to consider the next time that Buerhle goes out at US Cellular. A lot of additional pressure for a guy whose market value is dropping with every additional loss who turned down an offer to extend his contract this past off-season.
Count the Sox as no-shows
June 12, 2003
BY DOUG PADILLA Staff Reporter
Barry Bonds was the only show in town Wednesday as the White Sox took the night off in an 11-4 San Francisco Giants victory.
That positive energy surrounding a potential turnaround--whether it be Mark Buehrle's or the team's--was lost in a good old-fashioned butt-kicking in which the Sox gave their fans nothing to feel good about.
For the second consecutive night, Bonds homered as he took Buehrle out of the park in the fifth inning with a 430-foot shot down the right-field line. When Buehrle was removed after Bonds' at-bat, the fans let him hear it with boos after an eight-run, six-hit, 41/3-inning outing.
GIANTS 11
WHITE SOX 4
''I can understand, but some of these fans don't realize that I've gone out there and thrown three or four quality starts,'' Buehrle said. ''I've ... done my job these last three or four times, and it was just one of those days today.he must not have read my write-up yesterday. I understand, Mark
''It's expected here. You go out there and throw a ball, and these fans start to boo you. They don't want you to give up a hit or throw any balls, so you just have to throw strikes every pitch.''
By the eighth inning, the only suspense left was whether Bonds would go deep for the third time in two games. Fans booed a called second strike on Bonds when he faced reliever Rick White in the eighth. When he eventually was retired on a comebacker, many in the crowd of 19,114 headed for the exits.
When asked again about the boo instinct, Buehrle clearly seemed ticked off over the lack of support.
''I understand that they want to see your team win and go out there and try to do well for them, but everybody is going to have a bad day,'' said Buehrle, whose 52 quality starts since the start of the 2001 season are third-most in the American League. ''I've had three or four bad days this year. But I've put a string together, and a day like this happens and they boo you.
''I don't know if these fans don't understand baseball or what, but I'm going out there doing the best I can to try to give this team the best chance to win, and it just didn't happen today.''
Buehrle (2-10) has lost his last nine decisions and hasn't posted a victory in 12 consecutive starts dating to April 10. He was coming off three consecutive quality starts in which he gave up a combined five runs and 15 hits.
Buehrle's losing streak matches one by Jim Parque during the 1999 season. He now has a 6.45 ERA over his last 12 starts compared to a 1.23 ERA in his first three starts when he opened the season 2-1. The left-hander saw his overall ERA rise to 5.18, and his 10 defeats are second in the major leagues to the Detroit Tigers' Mike Maroth, who has 11.
''He just happened to have a bad outing,'' manager Jerry Manuel said. ''He's been pretty good other than tonight. ... When he doesn't pitch well, we don't pick him up--and when he pitches well, we don't hit or we don't defend. It's been kind of tough for him.''
The Sox finally came alive in the eighth as Giants starter Jesse Foppert (4-5) began to tire. Josh Paul walked and scored on a Jose Valentin double to end the shutout bid. After an error on a ground ball by Frank Thomas, Aaron Rowand delivered a three-run home run.
It was Rowand's first at-bat since returning from Class AAA Charlotte on Tuesday. Thomas saw his 12-game hitting streak end, while the Giants' Ray Durham extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a first-inning single.
NOTE: Sox reliever Kelly Wunsch strained a back muscle while retiring Barry Bonds on a sixth-inning ground out. Wunsch said it responded to treatment and will wait until today for a diagnosis.he's the best 1- to 2-inning guy the Sox have. Keep an eye on this
Count the Sox as no-shows
June 12, 2003
BY DOUG PADILLA Staff Reporter
Barry Bonds was the only show in town Wednesday as the White Sox took the night off in an 11-4 San Francisco Giants victory.
That positive energy surrounding a potential turnaround--whether it be Mark Buehrle's or the team's--was lost in a good old-fashioned butt-kicking in which the Sox gave their fans nothing to feel good about.
For the second consecutive night, Bonds homered as he took Buehrle out of the park in the fifth inning with a 430-foot shot down the right-field line. When Buehrle was removed after Bonds' at-bat, the fans let him hear it with boos after an eight-run, six-hit, 41/3-inning outing.
GIANTS 11
WHITE SOX 4
''I can understand, but some of these fans don't realize that I've gone out there and thrown three or four quality starts,'' Buehrle said. ''I've ... done my job these last three or four times, and it was just one of those days today.he must not have read my write-up yesterday. I understand, Mark
''It's expected here. You go out there and throw a ball, and these fans start to boo you. They don't want you to give up a hit or throw any balls, so you just have to throw strikes every pitch.''
By the eighth inning, the only suspense left was whether Bonds would go deep for the third time in two games. Fans booed a called second strike on Bonds when he faced reliever Rick White in the eighth. When he eventually was retired on a comebacker, many in the crowd of 19,114 headed for the exits.
When asked again about the boo instinct, Buehrle clearly seemed ticked off over the lack of support.
''I understand that they want to see your team win and go out there and try to do well for them, but everybody is going to have a bad day,'' said Buehrle, whose 52 quality starts since the start of the 2001 season are third-most in the American League. ''I've had three or four bad days this year. But I've put a string together, and a day like this happens and they boo you.
''I don't know if these fans don't understand baseball or what, but I'm going out there doing the best I can to try to give this team the best chance to win, and it just didn't happen today.''
Buehrle (2-10) has lost his last nine decisions and hasn't posted a victory in 12 consecutive starts dating to April 10. He was coming off three consecutive quality starts in which he gave up a combined five runs and 15 hits.
Buehrle's losing streak matches one by Jim Parque during the 1999 season. He now has a 6.45 ERA over his last 12 starts compared to a 1.23 ERA in his first three starts when he opened the season 2-1. The left-hander saw his overall ERA rise to 5.18, and his 10 defeats are second in the major leagues to the Detroit Tigers' Mike Maroth, who has 11.
''He just happened to have a bad outing,'' manager Jerry Manuel said. ''He's been pretty good other than tonight. ... When he doesn't pitch well, we don't pick him up--and when he pitches well, we don't hit or we don't defend. It's been kind of tough for him.''
The Sox finally came alive in the eighth as Giants starter Jesse Foppert (4-5) began to tire. Josh Paul walked and scored on a Jose Valentin double to end the shutout bid. After an error on a ground ball by Frank Thomas, Aaron Rowand delivered a three-run home run.
It was Rowand's first at-bat since returning from Class AAA Charlotte on Tuesday. Thomas saw his 12-game hitting streak end, while the Giants' Ray Durham extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a first-inning single.
NOTE: Sox reliever Kelly Wunsch strained a back muscle while retiring Barry Bonds on a sixth-inning ground out. Wunsch said it responded to treatment and will wait until today for a diagnosis.he's the best 1- to 2-inning guy the Sox have. Keep an eye on this
