The Fighting Sox are in first place.
They fought and fought and fought. They fought the critics who said they would finish fourth and wouldn't even contend. They fought the rain and the cold early in the season.
They fought the hitting slumps. They fought the road trips. They fought the early favorites, and they fought the Astroturf infields.
A lot of the time, they fought with each other.
The Fighting Sox, as I've dubbed them, pointed a lot of fingers and called each other a lot of names. The local media ate it up, splashed it on the sports pages, and laughingly compared the Sox to the "above it all" Cubs.
Frankly, things didn't look good.
But while the Sox fought with each other in the dugout, and the offices, and the newspaper headlines, they also fought on the field. They fought through the early-game deficits and the late-inning nail-biters, and they've fought all the way to first place.
First place at the All-Star break.
Where do we go from here?
I was asked if the Sox should be buyers or sellers at the All-Star break. I've been thinking long and hard about this question since it was posed, and the major obstacle to any conclusive answer is team chemistry. Every day, Ozzie's telling us that the team is close, then they go out and start yelling at each other again.
And when Jermaine Dye is reported to be having words with someone, something has to be up.
Pitching-wise, the Sox should be fine. I wouldn't want the team to spend the boat on a big-name free agent anyway. As cold as it may sound, I want to see the pitching staff sink or swim.
Aside from that, it's difficult. Whom should the ChiSox cut loose and who should they bring in? A big bat to protect the heart of the order? A speedster with solid defense? Or a role player with intangibles, a la Geoff Blum?
I wish I could answer this question, but I have work at 9 AM. And as the All-Star Game just doesn't want to end, do it like Kirby and the Twins:
We'll see you tomorrow night!
Until then, keep waving the Pennant.
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