Guillen hopes offense finds its way on road

Posted May 10, 2009 11:00 pm

Scot Gregor

Manager Ozzie Guillen is trying to keep his composure and stay positive, but the White Sox' sputtering offense continues to test his patience.

Take Sunday's 7-1 loss to the Rangers at U.S. Cellular Field as a perfect example.

Yes, Texas starting pitcher Vicente Padilla had a nasty sinker going and he deserves credit for keeping the Sox' bats quiet.

But only 1 run on 1 hit over 7 innings?

"I don't see any life out there," Guillen said. "I know when you struggle, it's not easy to get pumped up. When you're not having a good year or you have a bad day, it's not easy to smile and enjoy this game.

"Padilla threw the ball well, but in the meanwhile I don't see any life, any push to get better. I hope it's me. I think we've got good hitters; I think we can count on them.

"But right now things aren't going our way, and that's when you've got to step it up and keep your head up and keep fighting."

While losing for the eighth time in 10 games, the White Sox managed just 2 hits overall - Carlos Quentin's double in the second inning and Chris Getz's bloop single off Texas reliever Jason Jennings in the eighth.

No life, indeed, and it was the ninth time in 30 games this season the Sox have scored 1 run or been shut out.

"We're definitely not anywhere close to hitting on all cylinders," Paul Konerko said. "We haven't all year. You just keep grinding. That's all you can say. We're not good right now and we just need to get better."

Guillen wants to see the offense open up on the upcoming road trip to Cleveland and Toronto.

"Every day we try different lineups, but when you keep putting different lineups, all of the sudden you're inconsistent," Guillen said.

"We try to keep the lineups in back-to-back days and we can't because maybe somebody's hurt, somebody's not here or that lineup that particular day didn't work.

"Making a lineup every day is kind of a tough situation, but I think we're going to hit. We have good enough hitters out there to get it going, and I expect to have a better road trip than the last road trip (1-4) we had.

"I expect better things from them and hopefully it's a wake-up call for us to start playing better baseball."

Utility man Brent Lillibridge, who started in center fielder Sunday, said the White Sox aren't catching many breaks.

"I feel like we're hitting balls right at people and after that happens we start trying to force a little more," Lillibridge said after going 0-for-4. "You start pushing and pushing and it wears down on you a little bit, especially late in the game.

"I don't think we're swinging at that many bad pitches as a whole. We've just got to trust. We've got to trust that they are going to fall at some point."

If they don't, the White Sox' season could quickly slip away.

"We need results right now; that's just how it is," Lillibridge said. "We want to string hits together, a bunch of runs.

"But you can't do anything else. I can't hit a ball harder than I can. It's part of the game. We want to be patient, but at the same time we don't want to get stuck in a hole."

Paul Konerko reacts after striking out to end Sunday's loss to the Rangers at U.S. Cellular Field. Associated Press

Scot Gregor's game tracker Sunday's grade: F. The blank look on White Sox hitting coach Greg Walker's face is worth 1,000 words. Stopped at a dozen: Before Sunday, Bartolo Colon had a 12-game winning streak against Texas. His last loss to the Rangers had been Aug. 16, 2003, when he also pitched for the Sox. He gone: Scott Podsednik missed Sunday's game to return home to Dallas to be with his wife, Lisa, for the birth of the couple's first child. On tap: If the staggering White Sox sweep Cleveland, is the ax going to fall on Indians manager Eric Wedge? Scouting report White Sox vs. Cleveland Indians at Progressive Field TV: Channel 26 today; Comcast SportsNet Tuesday-Wednesday Radio: WSCR 670-AM Pitching matchups: The White Sox' Gavin Floyd (2-2) vs. Carl Pavano (2-3) today at 6:05 p.m.; Mark Buehrle (5-0) vs. Jeremy Sowers (0-1) Tuesday at 6:05 p.m.; Clayton Richard (0-0) vs. Cliff Lee (1-5) Wednesday at 11:05 a.m. At a glance: The struggling White Sox aren't going to get much sympathy from the Indians, who have the worst record (11-21) in baseball. While being swept at home in a three-game weekend series against Detroit, Cleveland scored just 3 runs. The Sox were 11-7 vs. the Indians last season (4-5 in Cleveland). Next: Toronto Blue Jays, Friday-Monday at Rogers Centre

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