I’ve been expecting a run by the White Sox all season long. It’s hard to believe that with the lineup of stars that they have, they’re still in third place and have failed to outscore their opponents going into the last month of the season. There have been some teases like early last month when they won five straight games and moved into contention, only to fall apart once again. It’s been a consistent story of injuries, bad base running, poor defense and a lack of clutch hitting. Tony La Russa, the aging manager, has justifiably been under fire and has finally succumb to health issues. Miguel Cairo has taken over at the end of losing 10 of their last 12 games in August and falling once again below the .500 mark. 

The temporary change in management has proven effective with 4-straight wins, including last night’s 13-0 rout over the Twins. A no-hit effort by Dylan Cease was broken up in the ninth inning. The White Sox are now only 2-games out of first and a game behind the Twins, but this is where the wheels fell off in August. I’ve never felt such frustration for a baseball team than I have this season. In any other division, they would be entirely out of the pennant race. I refuse to get my hopes up and once again dashed, but fortunately there’s only a few weeks left in the season. They need to somehow maintain this hot streak and get Tim Anderson and Luis Roberts back in the lineup. May luck finally be on our side in September!

Speaking of frustration, Indiana football failed to win a Big Ten game last year. They finally ended that painful draught with a 23-20 victory over Illinois this week, even though it was an ugly win. The team got some breaks for once and can build on the momentum. Missouri quarterback transfer and new Hoosier Hero, Connor Bazelak, led the come-from-behind winning effort with the clock running out. In the case of the Hoosiers and White Sox this year, it’s better to be lucky than good.