Advance apologies for today's scant Reading Room. I got on a four-hour roll of work on White Sox Outsider 2011, and as many of you would know from huge projects of any kind, when you get in a serious groove, it's best to stay in it.
South Side Sox plugs
*On Tuesday, I looked at what I learned from The Bill James Handbook 2011.
*On the subject of James, it's awfully funny how the Jack Morris-Bert Blyleven debate, which was reignited by a rather immature Jon Heyman column, is awfully similar to the circumstances surrounding Phil Rizzuto's candidacy.
*wOBA fans may enjoy Colin's attempt at making Marcel projections.
Outside my domains
*James at White Sox Observer patiently waits for Mark Teahen to become tradeable. It might be a while.
*Rafael Soriano rumors won't go away, but it's really hard to figure out how it would work in the blown-out White Sox budget. Plus, he's a Boras client, and Heyman (who has the reputation of a Boras mouthpiece) is reporting it. I'd assume the White Sox are being used.
*Scott Merkin says the Sox would be happy if Jake Peavy were back by mid-April or early May, although there is no formal timetable.
*Jim Thome wants to get paid along the lines of what Lance Berkman received (one year, $8 million). It's easy to understand his side, but the market for designated hitters has been slow going for a couple years.
*If you like my meandering historical pieces, then I think you'll love King Kaufman's look at the recent airing of Game 7 of the 1960 World Series. He's going inning by inning, watching how the game was played and digressing from there. He's done the first and second innings thus far, and I'll be reading it the whole way through.
