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| Photo courtesy of whitesox.tumblr.com |
Baseball is back! And after an opening day gem from new
$32M man Chris Sale (7.2 IP, 7 H, 7 K, 1 BB, 104 pitches), and a 417 foot blast
from new everyday catcher Tyler Flowers led to a 1-0 win for the Pale Hose,
things are looking up on the South Side! Or are they? Well, that’s what we aim
to find out. So come join us here at Ghostride the WHIP as we take a look at
Manager Robin Ventura’s 2013 White Sox. Read on for my preview, predictions,
and drinking fun!
MLB Overview:
So what’s new in the MLB? First, as was evidenced on
Opening Night, the Houston Astros are in the American League now! For those of
you keeping track at home, this makes 15 AL teams and 15 NL teams. In years
past, the 14 (AL) to 16 (NL) balance of teams led to an even breakdown of NL
and AL matchups on any given day. This year, however, things will be different,
as the uneven number of teams in each league will result in interleague
matchups nearly every day. This means the “cross-town classic” or “BP cup” or
whatever you’d like to call it between the Sox and Cubs will be trimmed down
from two 3-game series to two 2-game series in 2013 and future years. While
there are mixed views on this, I always loved the Cubs/Sox rivalry and will be
sad to see those 3 game sets go.
The other bit of under the radar news is that the MLB
begins testing for Human Growth Hormone (HGH) this year. Baseball got a
(deservedly) bad rap in the late ‘90s/early 2000’s when Sammy Sosa, Mark
McGwire, Rafael Palmeiro, and some other guy named Barry were pretty clearly
using performance enhancing drugs. But lately, the MLB should be commended for
increasing its drug-testing, as in-season HGH testing marks a big step in PED
awareness. Last year, Melky Cabrera was having a great year for the San
Francisco Giants and tested positive for testosterone, resulting in a 50 game
ban. Keep an eye out for the effects of HGH testing, whether it’s more players
getting suspensions or a decline in overall power numbers. (Decline in overall
power numbers is also referred to as the “Adam Dunn,” but we’ll get to that
later.)
Sox Season Overview:
