Chris Sale says you shall not walk

Sox @ Oakland:

Chi White Sox	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Sale	8.0	6	2	2	0	5	0	3.12
Reed	1.0	0	0	0	1	2	0	0.00
Thornton	1.0	0	0	0	0	3	0	0.93
Ohman	1.0	0	0	0	0	0	0	8.31
Jones, N	2.0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.00
Santiago, H(BS, 2)(L, 0-1)	0.1	5	3	3	0	1	1	8.53
Totals	13.1	12	5	5	1	11	1	2.96

Balk: Reed.
Pitches-strikes: Sale 101-71, Reed 16-10, Thornton 15-9, Ohman 13-8, Jones, N 23-14, Santiago, H 21-15.
Groundouts-flyouts: Sale 4-5, Reed 0-0, Thornton 0-0, Ohman 1-2, Jones, N 1-3, Santiago, H 0-0.
Batters faced: Sale 29, Reed 4, Thornton 3, Ohman 3, Jones, N 7, Santiago, H 6.

Pitch F/X for Chris Sale:

Pitch Statistics
Pitch Type	Avg Speed	Max Speed	Avg H-Break	Avg V-Break	Count	Strikes / %	Whiffs / %	Linear Weights
FA (Fastball)	88.10	88.5	11.17	3.87	4	4 / 100.00%	0 / 0.00%	-0.1916
CH (Changeup)	84.55	87.8	12.14	1.59	16	11 / 68.75%	1 / 6.25%	-0.0939
SL (Slider)	78.68	81.4	-3.86	-3.87	28	18 / 64.29%	2 / 7.14%	-0.2266
FT (TwoSeam Fastball)	91.60	94.8	11.24	4.20	53	38 / 71.70%	1 / 1.89%	-2.6304
Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm.

Inning-by-Inning Pitch Totals
Inning	Pitches in Inning	Strikes in Inning	Strike% in Inning	Cumulative Total Pitches	Pitch LWTS in Inning
1	8	7	87.50	8	-0.848
2	10	8	80.00	18	-0.072
3	15	10	66.67	33	-0.834
4	8	7	87.50	41	-0.848
5	18	13	72.22	59	0.149
6	19	14	73.68	78	0.978
7	10	6	60.00	88	-0.834
8	13	6	46.15	101	-0.834

More Pitch-F/X inside:

Frank Thomas swings a mean (hockey) stick at the United Center

Phil Humber’s ‘Late Show with David Letterman’ Top 10 (now with video)

C. Trent Rosecrans:

“Top Ten Thoughts That Went Through Philip Humber’s Mind During His Perfect Game.”

10. Don’t jinx it by thinking about it. Don’t jinx it by thinking about it — I’m thinking about it.

9. Thank goodness for my catcher, A.J. Pierzanky… Piernoftski… Pierzonski… Whatever.

8. Go sit in the truck!

7. Thank goodness I drafted myself for my fantasy team.

6. The only thing better than pitching a perfect game is making a perfect meatloaf every time with my new Perfect Meatloaf Pan.

5. Can Broadway’s “End of the Rainbow” really be like seeing Judy Garland in person?

4. Grab some pine, ducklips!

3. I see the Red Sox are up 9-0 on the Yanks — that’s an easy win.

2. I wish I could get me one of them dancing horses.

1. Humber? How about Humbest!

Video:

The video is also on whitesox.com.

And here’s a link to the video of the entire show [43:50].

Jake Peavy pitches a complete shutout

Sox @ Oakland:

Chi White Sox	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Peavy(W, 3-0)	9.0	3	0	0	2	5	0	1.88
Totals	9.0	3	0	0	2	5	0	2.96

Pitches-strikes: Peavy 107-71.
Groundouts-flyouts: Peavy 6-11.
Batters faced: Peavy 31.

Pitch F/X for Jake Peavy:

Pitch Statistics
Pitch Type	Avg Speed	Max Speed	Avg H-Break	Avg V-Break	Count	Strikes / %	Whiffs / %	Linear Weights
FF (FourSeam Fastball)	90.39	92.4	-5.60	9.36	41	24 / 58.54%	3 / 7.32%	-0.9550
CH (Changeup)	83.38	85.3	-7.06	5.02	16	12 / 75.00%	3 / 18.75%	-1.9945
SL (Slider)	83.10	84.1	2.86	3.62	11	9 / 81.82%	0 / 0.00%	-1.0647
CU (Curveball)	78.53	79.6	2.29	-2.48	3	1 / 33.33%	0 / 0.00%	0.5965
FC (Cutter)	85.58	90.4	1.59	4.22	16	9 / 56.25%	0 / 0.00%	-0.9954
FT (TwoSeam Fastball)	90.65	92.1	-9.04	8.16	13	11 / 84.62%	0 / 0.00%	-0.1497
Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm.

Inning-by-Inning Pitch Totals
Inning	Pitches in Inning	Strikes in Inning	Strike% in Inning	Cumulative Total Pitches	Pitch LWTS in Inning
1	10	7	70.00	10	-0.848
2	11	7	63.64	21	-0.862
3	16	13	81.25	37	-0.848
4	4	2	50.00	41	0.535
5	16	7	43.75	57	-0.532
6	14	9	64.29	71	-0.834
7	11	8	72.73	82	-0.004
8	7	5	71.43	89	-0.834
9	11	8	72.73	100	-0.335

BTW, here’s James’ recap.

Palehose 12: Hellbreak Part 2 [UPDATE]

Hellbreak Part 2; Pages 9, 10 and 11.

Hellbreak Part 2, Page 21

UPDATE:

Hellbreak Part 2, Page 22

Andre Rienzo struck out 8, walked 2 tonight (April 23)

Potomac @ Winston-Salem:

Winston-Salem Dash
Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Andre Rienzo (W, 3-0)	7.0	3	1	1	2	8	0	1.08
Justin Collop (H, 1)	1.1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0.84
Leroy Hunt (S, 4)	0.2	1	0	0	1	2	0	0.0

Groundouts-flyouts: Rienzo 7-3, Collop 1-3, Hunt 0-0.
Batters faced: Rienzo 25, Collop 6, Hunt 4.
Inherited runners-scored: Hunt 1-0.

Rienzo has a 31 K / 7 BB ratio in 25.0 innings (4 games). AA time?

Kevin Goldstein’s comments on Dylan Axelrod

Kevin Goldstein:

Dylan Axelrod, RHP, White Sox (Triple-A Charlotte)

The fact that Axelrod even reached the big leagues is quite an achievement. A 30th-round pick in 2007 by the Padres, Axelrod lasted a year and a half before landing in Indy ball, but all he did was get better. His primary skill is the ability to throw strikes. He pounds the strike zone with an 88-91 mph fastball, has a decent slider, and a somewhat-less-than-decent curve. He has no changeup, but he hits his spots and keeps hitters off balance; while that’s the kind of pitcher who should hit a wall, he just hasn’t yet. With 7 2/3 shutout innings on Sunday, he now has a 1.08 ERA in four starts for the Knights to go with 26 strikeouts and just four walks. He’s already a great scouting find for the White Sox, and has to upgrade that status by becoming a usable arm as a No. 5 starter or middle reliever, which exceeds any expectation ever put on him.

Axelrod struck out 6 and walked 1 on Sunday:

Charlotte Knights
Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Dylan Axelrod (W, 2-1)	7.2	4	0	0	1	6	0	1.08
Deunte Heath (H, 1)	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2.08
Brian Bruney (S, 4)	1.0	0	0	0	1	1	0	1.80

WP: Axelrod 2.
Pitches-strikes: Axelrod 97-67, Heath 1-1, Bruney 17-10.
Groundouts-flyouts: Axelrod 10-5, Heath 0-0, Bruney 1-1.
Batters faced: Axelrod 27, Heath 1, Bruney 4.
Inherited runners-scored: Heath 2-0.

No more Mr. Screwball?

Daryl Van Schouwen:

Video coordinator Bryan Johnson dug into the archives for rookie closer Hector Santiago to find video of former left-handed screwball pitchers Fernando Valenzuela, Tug McGraw and Willie Hernandez.

Santiago, who got his fourth save in five chances, threw only one screwball as he looks to rediscover the pitch he said was better for him last season. He attributes that, in part, to higher seams on minor-league baseballs, allowing for a better grip and more spin, but he wants to do everything in his power to make it an important part of his arsenal. Santiago watched the tapes to see how the ball came out of the aforementioned trio’s hands.

“I’m kind of a fastball guy now,’’ Santiago said. “Usually I’m a changeup guy trying to sneak a fastball in, but right now I’m just going after guys.’’

BTW, here’s a link to the Pitch F/X numbers for Santiago’s outing.

Other White Sox links:

• Chris writes a fantastic article on the quest of public subsidies by the Charlotte Knights.
• James looks at Jake Peavy. A.J. Pierzynski too.
• J.J. looks at Brent Morel.
• The White Sox take a stand against bullying.

Behind the scenes: Humber’s day (video)

More perfect game stuff:

• James’ first look. James’ second look.
• Phil Humber’s Career Profile by John Sickels.
• J.J. looks at the final at-bat of the game. So does BP’s Sam Miller.
• CSN’s Chris Kamka looks at all the White Sox perfect moments.

UPDATE: More Humber:

• Fangraphs’ Chris Cwik looks on what can we expect from Humber.
• DidBrendanRyanSwing.com.

BaseballInstinct updates Sox prospect 3B Rangel Ravelo’s scouting report

George Utter @ BaseballInstinct:

Rangel Ravelo, 3B White Sox – Age 19 – The soon to be 20-year-old (2 days) has been on our radar for a while now.  He appeared at #339° on our Baseball Instinct 360°  preview and while it’s early, the power is starting to develop.  He’s batting a healthy .386/.413/.561 through 57 at bats.  With the bigger hacks have come more K’s, though 10 is acceptable.  Where improvement is needed is working the count and taking a walk.  He has just 2 BB so far.

Ravelo’s Stats:

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB
2010	18	Bristol	APPY	Rk	CHW	48	187	173	17	44	9	1	1	21	0	2	9	25	.254	.291	.335	.626	58	7	0	5	0	0
2011	19	2 Teams	2 Lgs	A-Rk	CHW	63	252	234	21	79	16	1	0	34	2	1	14	31	.338	.381	.415	.795	97	2	3	0	1	0
2011	19	Bristol	APPY	Rk	CHW	20	78	73	10	28	7	1	0	13	2	0	2	12	.384	.410	.507	.917	37	2	2	0	1	0
2011	19	Kannapolis	SALL	A	CHW	43	174	161	11	51	9	0	0	21	0	1	12	19	.317	.368	.373	.740	60	0	1	0	0	0
2012	20	Kannapolis	SALL	A	CHW	15	64	57	6	22	5	1	1	8	1	0	2	10	.386	.413	.561	.974	32	3	2	1	2	0
3 Seasons						126	503	464	44	145	30	3	2	63	3	3	25	66	.313	.352	.403	.755	187	12	5	6	3	0
A (2 seasons)				A		58	238	218	17	73	14	1	1	29	1	1	14	29	.335	.380	.422	.802	92	3	3	1	2	0
Rk (2 seasons)				Rk		68	265	246	27	72	16	2	1	34	2	2	11	37	.293	.327	.386	.713	95	9	2	5	1	0

Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 4/22/2012.

27 up, 27 down. Phillip Humber throws the 21st perfect game in MLB history (video) [UPDATE #2]

Sox @ Seattle:

Chi White Sox	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Humber(W, 1-0)	9.0	0	0	0	0	9	0	0.63
Totals	9.0	0	0	0	0	9	0	3.10

Pitches-strikes: Humber 96-67.
Groundouts-flyouts: Humber 5-5.
Batters faced: Humber 27.

Pitch F/X for Phil Humber:

Pitch Statistics
Pitch Type	Avg Speed	Max Speed	Avg H-Break	Avg V-Break	Count	Strikes / %	Swinging Strikes / %	Linear Weights	Time to Plate
FF (FourSeam Fastball)	91.55	94	-6.17	7.01	31	24 / 77.42%	3 / 9.68%	-1.8743	0.414
CH (Changeup)	85.68	87.4	-7.68	1.20	9	6 / 66.67%	1 / 11.11%	-0.6242	0.438
SL (Slider)	84.02	85.5	1.36	-0.59	19	15 / 78.95%	3 / 15.79%	-2.5574	0.451
CU (Curveball)	80.99	85	4.75	-5.28	29	19 / 65.52%	7 / 24.14%	-2.4106	0.470
FT (TwoSeam Fastball)	91.19	93.5	-8.49	6.47	7	3 / 42.86%	0 / 0.00%	-0.2028	0.416
Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate. Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches. Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.

Inning-by-Inning Pitch Totals
Inning	Pitches in Inning	Strikes in Inning	Strike% in Inning	Cumulative Total Pitches	Pitch LWTS in Inning
1	12	8	66.67	12	-0.834
2	14	10	71.43	26	-0.877
3	11	9	81.82	37	-0.848
4	8	6	75.00	45	-0.848
5	6	4	66.67	51	-0.834
6	5	4	80.00	56	-0.871
7	12	8	66.67	68	-0.848
8	11	8	72.73	79	-0.848
9	16	10	62.50	95	-0.862

Humber’s breaking stuff was F-I-L-T-H-Y G-O-O-D today!

Congratulations to Philip Humber. Congratulations to Don Cooper too. His pitchers have 2 perfect games in the last 3 years!

Humber only started throwing a slider last year after Coop taught him:

Humber said that he didn't throw the slider until 2011, when adding it to his repertoire. Mercy–talk about a quick learner—
Scott Merkin (@scottmerkin) April 22, 2012

UPDATE: Here’s a video of all 27 outs:

More video and other stuff here.

Humber’s needed 96 pitches today. That’s the 7th smaller amount of pitches for a perfect game.

UPDATE #2: More perfect game stuff:

• James’ first look. James; second look.
• Phil Humber’s Career Profile by John Sickels.
• J.J. looks at the final at-bat of the game. So does BP’s Sam Miller.
• CSN’s Chris Kamka looks at all the White Sox perfect moments.

UPDATE #3: Even more perfect game stuff:

• Fangraphs’ Bradley Woodrum dissects Philip Humber’s wild perfect game. And Fangraphs’ Dave Cameron has a Pitch F/X dissection of Philip Humber’s new slider.

Palehose 12 [UPDATE]

Hellbreak Part 2, Page 19

Hellbreak Part 2, Page 20

UPDATE:

Hellbreak Part 2, Page 21

Chris Sale strikes out 11 in 6.1 innings (April 20)

Sox @ Seattle:

Chi White Sox	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Sale(W, 2-1)	6.1	7	3	3	3	11	1	3.50
Thornton	0.2	1	0	0	0	1	0	0.00
Crain	1.0	0	0	0	0	2	0	2.57
Santiago, H	1.0	1	0	0	0	1	0	5.40
Totals	9.0	9	3	3	3	15	1	3.34

Pitches-strikes: Sale 110-69, Thornton 8-6, Crain 12-8, Santiago, H 14-10.
Groundouts-flyouts: Sale 4-2, Thornton 1-0, Crain 0-1, Santiago, H 1-0.
Batters faced: Sale 28, Thornton 3, Crain 3, Santiago, H 4.
Inherited runners-scored: Thornton 1-1.

Pitch F/X for Chris Sale

Pitch Statistics
Pitch Type	Avg Speed	Max Speed	Avg H-Break	Avg V-Break	Count	Strikes / %	Swinging Strikes / %	Linear Weights	Time to Plate
FA (Fastball)	89.60	89.6	11.43	0.43	1	0 / 0.00%	0 / 0.00%	0.1785	0.423
CH (Changeup)	85.48	86.5	12.17	0.76	8	1 / 12.50%	1 / 12.50%	0.2029	0.446
SL (Slider)	80.65	83.6	-4.35	-4.94	49	36 / 73.47%	12 / 24.49%	-1.3660	0.474
FT (TwoSeam Fastball)	93.44	95.8	10.35	2.80	52	32 / 61.54%	5 / 9.62%	1.6964	0.408
Pitch classifications provided by the Gameday Algorithm and may be inaccurate. Pitch Type LWTS correspond to how many runs were likely to score on a particular pitch based on average run expectancy when each pitch was thrown and what happened as a result. Negative scores indicate more effective pitches. Time to Plate is the time, in seconds, that it takes an average pitch of this type to reach the plate. This is strongly correlated with velocity, but also factors in movement.

Inning-by-Inning Pitch Totals
Inning	Pitches in Inning	Strikes in Inning	Strike% in Inning	Cumulative Total Pitches	Pitch LWTS in Inning
1	12	8	66.67	12	-0.077
2	22	13	59.09	34	0.283
3	24	14	58.33	58	0.283
4	18	9	50.00	76	-0.034
5	11	8	72.73	87	-0.862
6	13	10	76.92	100	0.582
7	10	7	70.00	110	0.537

More players inside:

Nestor Molina struck out 5, walked 1 tonight (April 20)

Mississippi @ Birmingham (AA):

Birmingham Barons
Player	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	HR	ERA
Nestor Molina (W, 2-1)	7.0	6	0	0	1	5	0	3.80
Brandon Kloess	2.0	1	0	0	0	3	0	3.12

Pitches-strikes: Molina 102-70, Kloess 17-15.
Groundouts-flyouts: Molina 9-2, Kloess 1-1.
Batters faced: Molina 28, Kloess 7.

Molina has a 16 K / 2 BB ratio in 23.2 innings (4 games). Jared Mitchell went 2-5 with a Home Run and 2 K. He is hitting .298/.420/.544/.964 with 20 K and 11 BB in 57 AB.

Andre Rienzo on Baseball America’s Prospect Sheet

Man among boys section:

Andre Rienzo, rhp, White Sox: Hailing from Brazil, Rienzo spent his first two professional summers in the Dominican Summer League. From there he spent another year in the Appalachian League, one in low Class A and now he’s embarking on his second year with high Class A Winston-Salem. The 23-year-old Rienzo leads the Carolina League with 23 strikeouts and could be on the verge of a bump to Double-A after going 2-0, 1.00 in three starts, while limiting opponents to 14 hits and five walks through 18 innings.

If that happened in the past I’d say ‘Is Kenny Williams holding him back intentionally to increase his trade value?’ Not now. I don’t see any buying trades coming …