Wrapped up the Friday seminars with a look back at the ride in ’05: Beltin’ Bill w/Neal Cotts, Cliff Politte, Pablo Ozuna and Joe Crede.

WHEN THEY KNEW THEY HAD A CHANCE TO ACTUALLY IN THE WORLD SERIES

> Cliff: Going up 2-0 on Boston in the ALDS, “we knew after that, with our pitching, we’d take our chances in a seven-game series.”

> Joe: same – “I saw Boston win the World Series the year before, and they were good.  So to play them the next season and win on their turf was huge.”

WHEN THE DIVISON LEAD WHITTLED DOWN IN AUG/SEPT

> Joe: “We didn’t panic.  We felt OK because of our pitching.”

> Cliff: “When it was going bad, the bullpen phone was ringing all the time.  I was like ‘Stop ringing!’”

ON THE CAMARADERIE OF THAT TEAM

> Cliff: “I keep in touch with Neal, Paul, Buehrle.  I haven’t seen Joe in six years, but it’s like I saw him yesterday.”

> Pablo: “I still talk with Uribe, Timo Perez, Damaso Marte, Freddy Garcia, Contreras.” (To which Melton replied, “So all the Irish guys.”)

WHAT THEY REMEMBER MOST ABOUT WINNING THE WORLD SERIES

> Joe: “I didn’t realize the impact when we were in Houston,  But when we got to Midway and saw all those people…and then the parade.  I mean, it made the hair on the back of my neck stand up.  Then I go to my hometown, which has like 300 people, for a parade - and 2,000 people showed up. “

> Cliff: “It was surreal, and you guys were awesome. I remember thinking, ‘This kind of thing doesn’t happen to me.’  And we couldn’t have asked for a better place to do it.”

> Neal: “Living in Chicago full-time, that offseason I got to see how much it meant to White Sox fans. And the parade, that crowd, that moment, pretty special.”

> Pablo: “A lot of champagne, making me crazy.”

And somewhere in between, a fan got Joe to hug his wife because his wife always said ”Crede’s my sweetie.” (And after the hug, Joe said, “Well, now my back feels better.”) Only at SoxFest, indeed.

Plenty more SoxFest 2012 highlights to come; looking forward to seeing more of you throughout the weekend, and keeping the rest of you updated on all the happenings.  Make sure to keep track as well at www.whitesox.com/soxfest, on Twitter (@whitesox) and on the White Sox official Facebook page – lots of cool prizes, videos and updates all weekend long.

Until tomorrow…

Highlights from the 4th Friday seminar w/DJ, Paulie, Gordon Beckham and Alexei:

-Gordon on his struggles at the plate last season: “My struggles last year fall solely one me. I took a step back this offseason and really had to check myself. I feel like myself again, and I’ve done a lot of work on how I get prepared to hit the ball.”

-Alexei on trying to convince Cuban players to play for the White Sox:”My role is to let them know what a great organization this is. But I just give advice.” (Also said he got a lot of great advice on how to handle the big leagues and the US when he first came here from Jose Contreras.)

-Paul on Spring Training: “The main thing for us, start with day one of spring training. Pitch by pitch, inning by inning, to get back”

CHILDHOOD IDOLS

> Paul: “I grew up on the east coast, so Don Mattingly.”

> Alexei: “In my country, the first person you think about in baseball is Ozzie Smith.”

> Gordon: “Derek Jeter. (Then he added, “Also, when I was five, Paul started playing pro ball.”)

INFIELDING

-Gordon: “You’ve got to be ready for every play. I always think I’m about to make the greatest play in the world. It’s all about repetition.”

-Paul: “Always be ready. The second you think the ball isn’t coming your way, it always does.” (Followed by, “I’ve got the easiest job. I just go to the bag and catch it.”

-And finally, Paul on plans after he retires: “When I’m doing playing,the jig is up. I gotta go home and be a dad for awhile.”

Next up: Final Friday seminar with the ’05 guys…

Two-drink minimum for the “On the Mound” seminar with Farmer, Coop, Jesse Crain, Matt Thornton, Gavin Floyd, Will Ohman and Chris Sale. 

-Ohman on what Coop says when he comes to the mound: “The manager usually comes out for me.  I have a five-minute rule.”

-Coop was asked about acquiring Thornton prior to the ’06 season: “I told Kenny, “If you can get Thornton, we can help him.” To which Thornton replied, “What was wrong with me?”

-Thornton on the Tigers: “They have question marks, too. No doubt about it.  You know what, screw ‘em!”

-Chris Sale when asked if his wife can cook: “Are you saying I’m thin?”  (For the record: he’s at “178 pounds today.”)

-Thornton while looking at Gavin’s v-neck sweater: “Did you get that sweater for your birthday?”

-Coop on his plans for Gavin this season: “He’ll be a starter.”

Only at SoxFest…

More from the always entertaining seminars:

-Second seminar: Your 2012 White Sox w/Stone, Ken and Robin. Have a feeling some White Sox fans might be surprised by how funny Robin is – must’ve gotten off a solid 10 one-liners, including:

> “I’m going to do managerial things, because that’s my job.”

> “I just try to get my point across.  I don’t have to be PROFOUND” (as he looks at Kenny…) 

> On whether the White Sox will contend this season: “Well, I’m not doing this to lose.”

> “You should’ve seen my face when Kenny asked if I wanted to be the manager.”

> When asked how his managerial style differed from Ozzie’s: “I haven’t managed yet, just so you know.”

> On how the lineup will look this season: “Well, Paul Konerko won’t be batting lead off.” ( Ken’s reply: “Oh, you should do that for the first Spring Training game. Nobody tell Konerko.”) 

> On the White Sox running game in 2012: “I’m not running at all.”

> To a very passionate fan: “I have a new BFF!”

> ON SCOUTING (looking at Ken): “Don’t we have a guy for that?”

KEN ON HIRING ROBIN: “He was one of those people who I kept on a list for a long time – of people I respect, people who have a passion for this club, this city and our fans.  I felt like Robin had the qualities a manager needs: leadership, communication skills, the ability to deal with a variety of personalities and egos.  He thoroughly impressed me, and I think he’s perfect for the job.”

-Other Ken answers: dealt a “strength” in Santos  for a “potential frontline starter” in Nestor Molina; many options in the bullpen, “some of which you haven’t seen yet”;

-Robin on other Sox topics:

> WHY HE TOOK THE JOB: “When I retired, Jerry said I was always welcome to come back.  With the kids getting older and missing the baseball part of my life, so I was ready to do something, and I was thrilled to come back and work behind the scenes.  When Kenny asked about being the manager, well, I wasn’t expecting that at all.  Then I thought about it, and my wife said, ‘This is the place for you.’  And it’s true – this is the closest baseball family I have. This is where I belong.”

> ADAM DUNN: “You can’t play for the players. But the good news is every season is different. He just needs to be confident, and I think having this offseason to rest will be the best thing for him.”

> NEW COACHES: “These are guys I’ve known for a long time, guys I’ve played with.  We have a similar vision on how to play the game, and they have strengths that I don’t.” (When Ken said that Mark Parent and Joe McEwing would be future managers, Robin immediately responded: “Later, much later!”)

> ON BEING MANAGER: “I realize this is a huge responsibility. I have an obligation to the organization, Kenny, Jerry, everybody who buys a ticket. And trust me – I will work hard.”

Always nice to be back at Palmer House Hilton with fellow White Sox fans kicking off the season at SoxFest.  Some Friday highlights so far:

-As I walked in the lobby today, the first person I saw: a fan wearing a Robin #23 jersey.  Great start to the weekend.

-Up in the players’ suite, the guys couldn’t have been happier to see our former bullpen coach Art “Cave” Kusnyer.  Great “Cave” stories all around…though none suitable for print.  

-Saw a fan ask a long-haired Pablo Ozuna , “What’s with the hair?” Pablo’s answer: “It’s mine.” 

-Opening Ceremonies started with a SoxFest first: Commissioner Selig on hand to give Jerry Reinsdorf the Commissioner’s Award for all the amazing work the Volunteer Corpshas done.  As he said to Jerry with many of the VC members on the stage: “The White Sox won this award on merit.  Congratulations on making Chicago a better place to live.”

-Jerry: “This award is for all these people up here. It’s not because of us; it’s because of you.”

-Loud ovation for all the guys during Opening Ceremonies - which also featured our first video featuring this year’s “Appreciate the Game” tagline and the players tossing souvenir wiffleballs to the fans.  And so it begins…

-First seminar: Hawk and Commissioner Selig (which started with Hawk introducing Mrs. Selig in attendance).  Some key points from the Commissioner:

> WILD CARD: “I believe in giving theams hope and faith, and the Wild Card has produced some of the best games in baseball history.  As for the expanded Wild Card starting this season, I think it will make the races more exciting.”

>VOLUNTEER CORPS: “Baseball is a social institution with a social responsibility.  The fact that the Volunteer Corps has served more than 17,000 hours…it’s just amazing.”

> DH: “For the DH to be in both leagues, it would require overall geographic realignment, which is a ways away.”

> INSTANT REPLAY: “Not dramatically expanding it right now, but we’re looking at doing something involving trapped balls and down-the-line shots involving fair/foul balls.”

> STATE OF THE GAME: “We’ve gone from $1.2 billion in revenue when I became Commissioner to over $7 billion.  The game is expanding by leaps and bounds.”

Friday, January 20, 2012

With SoxFest being just a week away, we decided to release a few of the highlights from the schedule. This is just a glimpse of what we have planned for next weekend at the Palmer House. A finalized schedule with a complete listing of autograph sessions, photo sessions and seminars will be posted on whitesox.com next week.

If you don’t have your tickets or hotel packages reserved, there’s still time to do that here.

By the way, make sure you tune into @whitesox on Twitter all next week. We’ll be conducting hide and tweets and other contests each day leading up to SoxFest for great prizes!

Friday, January 06, 2012

As many of you may know, we released most of the 2012 White Sox promotional schedule yesterday afternoon. We are thrilled that this year’s schedule includes five Kids Days, seven Value Mondays, 18 fireworks nights, as well as popular theme nights such as Dog Day, Elvis Night and Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day.

In addition to theme nights, we’ve also announced some of our premium giveaway nights. Below are just a few of the giveaways that have been confirmed:

• White Sox Knit Bomber Hats (April 14)
• Mother’s Day Totes (May 13)
• Robin Ventura Bobbleheads (May 26)
• Southpaw Mini Plush Pals (June 3)
• Commemorative 2005 World Series Canvases (June 9)
• Kids XL 1972 Replica Jerseys (June 24)
• Kids Chest Protector Backpacks (August 5)
• White Sox Camouflage Hats (August 11

This year’s promotional schedule can be found at whitesox.com/promos and will be updated as additional events, theme nights and giveaways are finalized. You won’t be able to purchase individual tickets until Friday, February 3rd, but ticket packs and season tickets are available, here.

Tuesday, December 06, 2011

In an effort to bring the winter meeting to our fans, we have transcribed Ken Williams media session from today. Find out what he said on various hot topics below:

On Nestor Molina and trading Sergio Santos: “Nestor Molina is a guy that has a 90-96 mph fastball that bores in on right-hand hitters, that keeps the ball down in the strikezone, can hit outside corner, inside corner, take it upstairs if he needs to.  His secondary stuff…he has a swing-and-miss type split that drops off the table, his slider is a plus slider, and his changeup is equally as effective.  He obviously has a four-pitch mix.  He walked (16) guys in a 130-some odd innings and is in winter league right now and pitching with the same success.”

“We are very happy that we were able to acquire him.  He was on a short-target list to get some way, some-shape-or-form.  I did not anticipate it would take Sergio (Santos) to do it.  I was thinking more along the lines of starting pitching, but the opportunity presented itself and fortunately for us it is an area where we have a lot of depth, whether it be Matt Thornton or (Jesse) Crain or (Addison) Reed, (Jhan) Marinez, the guy we got from the Marlins, Josh Stewart – added stuff, added velocity from when you move him to the pen, (Brian) Omogrosso, (Gregory) Infante.  We have a lot of depth at that position so we felt we could afford to do this and take care of our future a little bit without sacrificing our present.”

On talking to Sergio Santos: “Sergio was caught off guard.  It is always a difficult conversation because he gained his success with us – in life and in baseball.  Both he and his wife are very good people, and I got to know them very well.  He took it very professionally and is looking forward to continuing to pitch in the major leagues.  The team wanted him so badly to give up such a prospect.”

On signing Sergio at the start of the offseason and what has changed: “We had no intention on trading him, but we have always said we are open to conversations on any ideas other clubs would like to present to us, and this was one that was presented to us.”

On the possibility of Molina in the starting rotation in 2012: “I would hope we give him a little more seasoning, but he has the kind of ability, that there are certain guys with ability that will force their way on to major-league rosters.  When you look at a young pitcher, you look at what kind of stuff he has, what kind of composure he has, and his ability to command the strikezone in a way that very few can do.  I am not going to say he can’t, he won’t.”

On who the closer will be in 2012 and who will decide:  “Robin (Ventura) was in the meeting and the Blue Jays guys asked who was going to close for you and I started rattling off some names and I looked over at Robin and he had a quizzical look on his face and he said ‘I will decide that.”

On start of a rebuilding: “It is a start of a rebuilding, and you guys know I have not used that word in 12 years.  It is a start of a rebuilding now, but is it a start of a falling domino-type rebuilding?  No.  Absolutely not because as we currently sit, I do not like what is currently offered for any of our valuable, veteran pieces.  I am of the mindset that while we may do a couple of more things, as we sit right now, we will probably keep the rest of the pitching intact, and we will focus on some peripheral things to continue to get a piece here and there that will help us in 2013 and 2014.  I don’t see it, as I sit here right now, deals for any of the other pitchers.”

On Jake Peavy as a closer: “You have about 1,400 IP to take care of as a pitching staff. He is now expressing he is as healthy as he has been with us.”

On status of position players: “I want to be very clear. As of today, this is where we sit. A lot of things can changes, as evidenced by this move. I don’t want to mislead you guys. There is still some interest in our positions players and we are going to listen but unless we get back what we need to continue the rebuilding process, we’ll just go into this season looking to compete at the same time as rebuilding.”

On starting outfield having Viciedo and Quentin: “It could. We have to have conversations and see what the overall interest is.”

On Mark Buehrle: “I hear he is a very popular man and he is going to be richer than he is.”

On whether Buehrle’s agent will come to him with a final offer: “It’s possible. Mark and I had a good conversation last week. I expressed to him how much he is valued in Chicago. At this point, it’s strictly finances over a desire not to have him and who wouldn’t want this guy. 200 good innings and so many peripheral things. On the bus, off the bus, on the plane, on the field; we don’t know who is going to catch the first pitch anymore. He will be missed unless something unforeseen happens.

Tuesday, December 06, 2011

Although we are all disappointed by Minnie Minoso coming up just a few votes short on the Golden Era ballot, we still celebrate his monumental career. As Jerry Reinsdorf told Minnie, “You are in our Hall of Fame. We love you,” and that goes for all of us here at the White Sox. I urge you to take some time to flip through the PDF of the book that we created for his bid to see for yourself what Minnie means to the game of baseball.

You can view it, here.

Wednesday, November 30, 2011

Curious as to what White Sox players have been up to since the season ended? Well, pitcher Gavin Floyd and his wife have been busy doing some good in their offseason community for a young man in need.

When Tim Smith needed two new legs, his health insurance company refused to pay the $31,000 bill. As a result, Smith was forced to use his old prosthetic legs which were being held together by duct tape and were causing him painful blisters.

The Trinity College community as well as the members of Smith’s church worked to raise $10,000, but unfortunately there was still a large gap. When Floyd heard about Smith through a relative he and his wife decided to fill that $21,000 gap. “We talked about it, prayed about it, and just felt led to do it,” Floyd said. “To know what he’s achieved in his life really moved us.”

For more on this story, click here.