White Sox Bullpen: Bend But Don't Break Mentality

For the second time in three games the White Sox bullpen looked primed to give away a key game at home to the Boston Red Sox.  There was Matt Thornton, looking like, well the Matt Thornton Sox fans have grown to cringe at.  Instead of trusting his dominating stuff he was trying to paint corners against a patient Boston lineup.

The result, he walks the bases loaded with one out in the seventh.  A wild pitch the inning before had already cut the Sox lead to the slimmest of margins. 

But like Friday, when Octavio Dotel served up a gopher ball in the eighth, cutting the lead to one, the White Sox held on thanks to another Dotel escape job.  For some reason the Sox right handed flame thrower seems more adept at getting out of other people's jams than his own. 

Sure in a perfect the world the bullpen would dominate the way in did earlier in the season.  But with the injury to Scott Linebrink and the promotion of DJ Carrasco to the starting rotation the Sox can’t expect to be perfect. 

It’s the old, bend but don’t break mentality.  Winning every game by three or more runs certainly is easier on the nerves of Ozzie Guillen and Sox fans. 

But what is impressive about the Boston series so far is the ability of the bullpen to knuckle down when things get tight.  Back in 2005 the Sox possessed a killer instinct.  When they had a lead late, or were in a close game, they could smell the victory.  More often than not, 110 times actually, they snatched that victory. 

Last season every time something went wrong late in a game the floodgate flew open.  Hopefully the bend but don’t break trend continues.  It’s okay to give up runs late, as long as you get the win.  With the pesky Twins not going away the White Sox will have to scratch and claw their way to division title in a way they haven’t done in the history of the franchise.

Since the onset of division the Sox have never gone down to the wire and come away with a division title.  In 1983, 1993, 2000, and 2005 they went into September with somewhat comfortable leads.  That probably isn’t going to happen this year.

It should be exciting and nerve wracking.  It is in the seventh inning on that those nerves are turned up a notch.  Here’s hoping the Sox relievers are up to the task.  They can bend all they want, but once they smell that win they need to take it.