Kuzul

Last night the Chicago Bears clinched the NFC North division and secured themselves a return to the playoffs for the first timce since their Super Bowl run in 2006. The players donned their NFC North title baseball caps. They smiled on the sidelines.  Lovie Smith wore his smug smile during the post game conference. I clapped.  High-fived my brother and drove home in a snow storm, and didn't really think twice about it. In 2005 when the White Sox clinched their division, it felt like a thousand pound boulder was lifted from my back and I could finally breathe.  The same was true when they won game 163 against the Minnesota Twins in 2008. And I'm a much bigger football fan than baseball. So what's going on here? Is it the monstrous MLB season of 162 games, where you watch the team almost every day, and just develop a more emotional response to them.   Was it ...

Three years, $37.5 million. A $500,000 per year raise. Not too shabby for having one of the greatest years of your career in a contract season. The table is set on the south side. With Adam Dunn now definitely playing DH, and A.J Pierzynski returning to his catching duties, the White Sox are "all-in" as Kenny Williams put it. We shouldn't be surprised that a poker metaphor is being used, as this is the same man who only a few months ago was letting it be known that the White Sox did not have the money to spend and that fans should prepare for a potential rebuilding process. So what happened?  Where did the money come from? The money was always there, but they looked at their starting rotation (with or without Jake Peavy) and realized it would be a damn shame to let it go to waste. Now comes the final steps in solidifying a team ...

With the signing of Adam Dunn for four years and $56 million, Kenny Williams asserted his power over White Sox manager Ozzie Guillen. Williams stood tall and in one fell swoop declared: This is the American League. This is the AL Central. This is U.S. Cellular Field. We will hit the ball. We will hit the ball far, and we will win. Take your National League, small ball crap and shove it. Now, don’t get me wrong here. I love Ozzie Guillen. There is no one I’d like to have managing my baseball team more than Ozzie Guillen. His crazed press conferences, his antics and his without-a-doubt ability to manage a major league ball club should keep him as a staple in the South Side dugout for years to come. But, Ozzie had it wrong. What seemed like small ball in 2005, or Ozzie ball, was a mirage. True, Scott Podsednik dazzled at the ...