While out of mind, Sox got back in focus

Oh, yeah, the White Sox.

I sort of remember them. Silver and black uniforms, right? Rather noisy manager. Inflatable whatever they were, dolls or middle infielders.

Seriously, it was easy to forget the Sox the past 10 days as they barnstormed out west.

All those 9 p.m. Chicago starting times from Seattle, Anaheim and San Francisco took the games past the bedtime of most respectable working stiffs.

Waking to the Sox' 7 victories in 10 games on the trip wasn't as memorable as it would have been to actually witness most of them.

So while the success was the stuff of a Sox fan's dreams, dreaming it was the best he or she could do.

Meanwhile, the Cubs were back here, mostly in broad daylight, going 8-2 to rave reviews from boffo crowds.

It seems even the bad times are good at Wrigley Field, but the occasional good times are better. (Boy, does that ever burn Ozzie Guillen's red rear.)

Anyway, perhaps the trip's tranquility was most responsible for the Sox being overlooked again back here.

The manager (Guillen, in case you forgot), his players and the rest of the traveling party were conspicuously noncontroversial and nonconfrontational out west.

Guillen didn't go on a caffeine-like rant in coffee-crazed Seattle. His players didn't prop up any slump-busting, inflatable, female dolls in Anaheim. General manager Kenny Williams didn't leave his heart on his sleeve in San Francisco.

A scouting scandal in the Dominican Republic -- maybe you heard the buzz about that latest Sox mess over the weekend -- is nothing compared to the Sox' usual domestic dysfunction.

The previous, less successful road trip to Minnesota and Toronto was when the dolls and managerial outbursts occurred.

So, did all that nonsense occur because the Sox weren't playing well, or were they not playing well because of all the nonsense?

Does Guillen attract attention sometimes to distract from the Sox' struggles, or do the Sox struggle sometimes because their manager becomes a distraction by attracting attention?

Regardless, the Sox quietly return home now to play catch-up in the public consciousness, though not in the standings.

The Sox are in first place and tonight will be hard to ignore while starting a three-game series against second-place Cleveland.

So unless something ignites another disturbing Sox disturbance this week, Comiskey Park will feature nothing more than a series for the American League Central lead.

Yes, folks, that's all, just baseball. What a novel concept.

The questions will be less about why the Sox are dysfunctional and more about whether they're legitimate pennant contenders.

The scrutiny will be over whether they can stay hot on the field rather than whether they must cool off in the clubhouse.

Mostly the focus will be on whether the Sox will stop pitching before they start hitting or start hitting before they stop pitching.

Sunday's 13 runs against the Giants notwithstanding, the Sox still have to prove they can muster a consistently productive offense to go with what so far has been terrific pitching.

The good news for now is the road trip was in restaurant terms more bread than circus and in entertainment terms more show than sideshow.

Now if the Sox can maintain that back here, their fans will be able to enjoy memorable baseball played at a decent hour.

mimrem@dailyherald.com