I'm feeling strangely chipper after a 5 a.m. wakeup call for a 6:30 am flight out of Logan this morning, and I'm cranking out this blog entry in a decidedly unique and some might say flamboyant Internet cafe in downtown Chicago while techno/salsa music is cranking out all around me.I will have to just block it out and power through while the undeniable allure of Burrito Beach taunts me from across the street...

Should be an interesting series here for Boston against the White Sox as the Olde Towne Team attempts to widen their five game lead over the Yankees prior to their three game showdown in the Bronx next week -- and the Pale Hose might be just be the team to do it.

Not only are the White Sox dead-last in the American League with a .246 batting average and a .319 on base percentage, but they're also third from the bottom in the AL in stolen bases. I can't think of any worse combination than an unathletic team that can't hit or get on base and simply relies on home runs and worn-down starting pitching to get them by.

Anyway, here are a couple of observations while waiting for baseball to get started here in Chi-Town (I wonder if they actually call it Chi-town here, or if this is similar to Beantown in Boston where absolutely no one that's from there calls it that). Without further ado:

 

--Mike Mussinais D-O-N-E...done. It was almost sad watching Garret Anderson and the rest of LA Angels of Anaheim offense slapping old Moose around in California the other night, and word out of the Yanks camp is that Mussina might be replaced in the rotation by Kei Igawa. If that's not a slap in the face to "The Accountant" then I don't know what is. Guess he'll never have that 20-win season he'd always hoped for.

--The Sox are doing the right thing by easing Eric Gagne back into the pressure-packed role as Jonathan Papelbon's set-up guy after the former Cy Young Award winner "spit the bit" in his first couple of weeks with the Sox. It's good to see Gagne getting a few "lesser" outings to regain his command and change up before they'll most certainly need him in Yankee Stadium.

--A huge and resounding mea culpa to third baseman Mike Lowell after I basically led the parade during this season's first half that his second-half decline was a virtual certainty this season. Lowell's off-season conditioning work and his approach at the plate -- and his health -- have allowed him to continue to rake at a .342 clip with a .479 slugging percentage since the All-Star Break. I don't think his strong second-half is going to win him a two-year contract extension while the season is still underway, but I would be willing to bet that the Boston front office is re-thinking their strategy to let Lowell walk after the season is over.

 

More from the City where Cops patrol the streets on those crazy hand-powered, two-wheel thingamajiggies...

They certainly make me feel safe, and many thanks to the little mama for remembering they are called T-3 scooters...