Golf is supposed to be the most unfair sport, where even a good shot can yield unfortunate results due to a bad bounce. Yet during the first month of the baseball season the Chicago team that played the best baseball, won the most games, and entered May in first place was the one slighted and ignored where fans were concerned. The White Sox had every right to complain that life isn’t fair.
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The same apathy seemed to greet the cosmetic changes made to White Sox park over the winter. Pouring the money from the stadium’s renaming deal straight back into the structure, the Sox chopped off the top of the upper deck and put in a grillwork roof faintly reminiscent of the old Comiskey Park. This exchanged awful seats that weren’t selling anyway for a design improvement that makes the stadium look less like a giant chipped cereal bowl and more like a ballpark (even if the posts required to hold up the roof have created the first obstructed-view seats in the stands). The team also improved the area atop the hitting background in straightaway center field by adding tiers of seats, making it a popular gathering spot for those who do turn up.
Yet while the Cubs were selling out Wrigley Field on a daily basis, the Sox struggled to draw 15,000–even for a Saturday doubleheader followed by fireworks. Fewer than 10,000 were in the stands for that rally against the Indians. The Sox were doing everything right, but as they went on the road they had nothing but a 15-9 record to show for it.
But the Sox aren’t without hope. Baseball, like society in general, has separated into haves and have-nots, and while the Cubs and Astros led an NL Central salary drive almost as conspicuous as the efforts of the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox to outdo each other in the AL East, the Sox are in the bedraggled AL Central, where it looks to be a battle for best of the worst. Over the winter the Twins lost three top pitchers to free agency– including their closer and setup man–and traded away their catcher (but they still have enough left to be tied for first with the Sox at 17-13 going into this week). And for all their limitations the Sox have some reasons for optimism. Young catcher Miguel Olivo has stepped up, and third baseman Crede has begun to realize his power potential with a slightly altered batting stance–he’s gone from stiff, erect posture to a slight crouch, the better to level out his natural uppercut. Still, with aces Buehrle and Loaiza struggling–both pitched poorly on the road–Koch eliciting little confidence, and Harris showing no consistency atop the lineup, the team’s chances to actually win much of anything this year have to be considered doubtful.
