Can the White Sox change their offensive personality?
Sounds like the making of a sports reality show.
“I think we have to pick up the slack as a team,” manager Ozzie Guillen said. “Obviously, we have to keep manufacturing runs because we’re not going to outslug people like we did [Tuesday night with 12 runs]. That was one game.
“We’re swinging the bat better, but we still have to do the little things to win games. We cannot go out there and score 20 runs every game.”
Wednesday night was another game in which the Sox struggled offensively. They managed just two hits against the worst team in the American League and one of the least successful pitchers, left-hander Brian Anderson (2-9).
The first-place Twins, meanwhile, continue to play well. Minnesota beat Anaheim 6-3 to increase its lead to six games in the AL Central.
“They’re playing pretty good baseball,” Guillen said. “They’re a pretty good baseball team. Hopefully we’ll get a break here and there. I don’t think they’re going to win 60 games in a row–I hope.
“But I just have to worry about us winning games. No matter what they’re doing, if we’re not winning, it doesn’t mean anything.”
Everett returns
Carl Everett returned to the lineup Wednesday as the designated hitter, going 0-for-3. He had strained his quadriceps Friday.
“He said he was ready to play,” Guillen said. “Hopefully, he was telling me the truth. I hope he just doesn’t go out there trying to help his team win the game, and then he gets hurt worse.”
A strong pitch
Jon Garland (7-7, 4.59 ERA) will try to bounce back from a loss in his last outing when he starts Thursday night against the Royals’ Zack Greinke (3-8, 4.81).
“He’s throwing the ball real well, but the results are not what we want them to be,” Guillen said of Garland. “He always has one or two bad innings, that’s it. I just want him to be aggressive and throw strikes.”
Guillen seems to have come to terms with Garland’s personality.
“A lot of people think that Garland doesn’t care when he’s on the mound, but that’s just his attitude and you can’t change that,” he said. “That’s the way he is, and that’s the way he acts. When he’s in the dugout he’s disappointed, but the body language on the mound looks like he doesn’t care. This kid cares a lot, and he wants to win.”
Davis on a tear
Catcher Ben Davis is 9-for-19 (.474) with a double, two home runs, four RBIs and four runs scored in his last eight games. But Sandy Alomar Jr. got the start Wednesday night.
“[Scott] Schoeneweis thinks about so many things, pitching, throwing from behind in the count,” Guillen said. “He’s a college man, and the guy that can handle him better is Sandy. He’s been catching him since spring training. But Ben Davis is going to play more and more.”
