Sports
Sox Might Win Us Back With Sweep of the Twins
The three-game series that begins Tuesday night at the Cell has an unmistakeable sense of urgency.
I know we're all giddy with Bears Euphoria after the Monsters of the Middle Screen won their opener in a fashion that left no doubt as to their championship viability.
But let's put off the Super Bowl party planning just a little while longer — at least until the White Sox and Twins have finished this week's important series (that just a few weeks ago figured to be so much more important).
Sure, the Sox are six games behind the Twins with 19 games left to play, giving them a 3.5 percent chance of making the playoffs, according to some formula ESPN uses. But considering the thrills the Sox provided by roaring into the race beginning in June, we shouldn't be waving the white flag just yet.
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Simply put, if the Sox sweep the Twins in the three-game series that begins Tuesday night at the Cell, they'll be three games out of first. And that would quicken a few pulses.
The pitching matchups are good ones:
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Tuesday: Liriano (13-7, 3.24 ERA) vs. Danks (13-10, 3.54)
Wednesday: Duensing (8-2, 2.02) vs. Floyd (10-12, 3.92)
Thursday: Pavano (16-11, 3.47) vs. Buehrle (12-10, 3.99)
A Sox sweep looks unlikely, especially since the Twins have won 13 of their last 16, while the Sox have lost four of their last six. But this has been a head-scratcher of a season, so let's throw logic and all the percentages out the window.
The Sox have been nothing if not resilient this season, with the latest example coming Sunday. Trailing the Royals 6-0 in the first inning, only to storm back for a 12-6 win? All right, maybe that one's not such a shocker, considering the pitchers K.C. kept sending to the mound. But come on; this team does have some fight in it, with Paul Konerko supplying the biggest blows.
In any case, the Sox know what's riding on this series against the Twins:
Win two of three and you're five games back with 16 to play. Not promising.
Win one of three and you're seven games back. Ouch.
Get swept and you're nine games back, and the Brent Morel era immediately begins in earnest.
But a sweep? That might convince the average fan to put his Matt Forte jersey back in the closet and proudly wear the Konerko shirt for a few more weeks.
