Excuse me, mothers of the world, but is this what the joy of childbirth feels like?
The White Sox started off hot, winning 23 of their first 33 games. That led to suggestions that manager Robin Ventura deserved a new contract. Then the Sox lost 15 of 19, falling from first to third place in the American League Central and leading to suggestions that whoever suggested Ventura deserved a new contract should be summarily executed.
Now the Sox have won two straight series against good teams, raised their record to .500 and … what? What does it mean? And how much more of this can their fan base take?
What the Sox have done to the faithful this season can’t be characterized as toying with emotions. This is attaching fans’ emotions to the back of a car and dragging them like wedding cans through the South Side.
The team is a long way from being fixed, so no one in his or her right mind is thinking the recent success will necessarily last. But there is some reason for optimism. After a bad April and a mediocre May, Jose Abreu is hitting .310 with five home runs and 20 runs batted in in June. Rookie Tim Anderson, the Sox’ first-round pick in 2013, has provided a spark in his first 16 games as a big leaguer. Chris Sale has won his last four decisions.
No doubt chairman Jerry Reinsdorf is smiling. When the Sox were losing all those games, there was a public outcry for him to do something, anything, to address the disaster-in-progress. But as is his habit, he remained inert. Now the team has started to show signs of life. It doesn’t mean Reinsdorf was right or that there was a cause and effect. It just means that the Sox are .500, which, unless something has changed, doesn’t come with an award.
What does tomorrow hold? If the season to date is any indication, probably more ups and downs. And pain. Lots of pain.
