Sox win...barely

A win is a win, right? After the Sox hung on to defeat Detroit 6-4 in 10 innings today, they are still sitting comfortably atop the AL Central, a game and a half ahead of the Twins. The win also ensured a series win for the Sox over the Tigers, taking three out of four in a very important series.

While I am still very happy that the Sox pulled it out and took the series, I am NOT at all happy about how it ended up getting accomplished this afternoon. This all rests squarely on the shoulders of Bobby Jenks. In case you haven't watched the Sox during the second-half, or heck all year for that matter, Big Bad Bobby just ain't what he used to be. From 2005 through last year, he was a force out of the 'pen. Once he entered the game, you could all but count on him closing it out in quick fashion, using his blazing fastball and knee-buckling curve to shut down the opposition. However, Bobby's expiration date as a closer seems to have passed, since he has been blowing games in spectacular fashion lately.

Let's just begin with the last three he has failed to close out, shall we? The first one was back on July 18 in Minnesota. With the Sox leading the Twins 6-3 entering the bottom of the ninth, it appeared as if they were primed to leave Target Field with a series split, which is really the best you can hope for whenever you play a four-game set with the Twins. Jenks had already had his shaky moments earlier in the season, but after a solid month of June, my confidence was restored in him once again. Unfortunately, that confidence was soon broken as he immediately walked the first two hitters he saw before giving up back-to-back RBI singles to Jason Kubel and Michael Cuddyer to cut the lead to one. Ozzie wisely yanked him from the game after that, but the damage was already done, as the Twins would eventually win on an Alex Rios throwing error a couple of batters later.

Even though that loss sucked, you would think it was just an isolated incident against a good team. If it was a sub-.500 team he was pitching against, it would have been game over, right? Wrong. Let's fast forward three days later to July 21 in Seattle, when Jenks entered the game after the Sox took a 1-0 lead on the Mariners in the 11th inning. Jenks coming in against a sorry Seattle ballclub that's already playing out the string? I was thinking that this would be easy work for Bobby, and a nice confidence boost as well. Once again, I was wrong though, as Jenks gave up two runs in the bottom of the 11th for the Mariners to win 2-1, and avoid a three-game sweep. Making matters worse, the Twins won earlier that night against the Indians to gain a game on the Sox. Damn, damn, damn.

So with those two incidents already in the back of many Sox fans' minds, Jenks enters today's ballgame with the opportunity to slam the door on the game, and on the series. What does he do though? After getting the first out, he surrenders a single to Don Kelly, then hits Ramon Santiago to put two men on with one out. He strikes out Austin Jackson for the second out, then gives up a three-run homer to Ryan Raburn to tie the game at four. Ryan @#$&^%* Raburn. The same Ryan Raburn who has only hit two stinking home runs all year before that at-bat. Thankfully, Mark Kotsay got Jenks off the hook in the 10th inning, as he hit a two-RBI triple off of Jose Valverde to give the Sox a 6-4 win.

How mind-numbingly aggravating have these recent struggles by Jenks been? Ozzie Guillen was nearly speechless after the game as to what to do about him. When do you EVER see Ozzie speechless?

While I can understand the loyalty Guillen might have toward Jenks, you have to wonder how much rope he'll leave for him before he decides to make a change in closers. When you're in a tight pennant race, you don't have much room to simply hope that Jenks will snap out of his funk. Those games could potentially end up being the difference between playing in October or going home. There are three other viable options for closers in the 'pen, including J.J. Putz (who already has experience with closing games), Sergio Santos and Matt Thornton. All three are hard throwers, with good off-speed pitches to keep hitters off balance. After today's meltdown, it might be time to hand the ball to one of those three to close out games instead of Jenks.

MLB.com's 2009 "This Year in Baseball Awards"

It is that time of year again, when MLB.com rolls out another edition of the "This Year in Baseball awards." The awards may not be as prestigious as the awards handed out by the Baseball Writers' Association of America, but they are pretty cool nonetheless. That's because we, the fans, get to vote for them! While there are some years when I will turn a blind eye to these, this year is different. There are a slew of White Sox candidates for these awards, and they are all worthy of having a vote this year. Without further adieu, here are your eligible White Sox candidates:

Rookie of the Year: Gordon Beckham

Even though "Bacon" did not get called up to the bigs until June, he certainly made the most out of his opportunity once he arrived. Playing at a new position (third base), Beckham handled himself admirably at the hot corner, while hitting .270, with 14 home runs and 63 RBIs in just 103 games. His "weclome to the big leagues" moment had to be on June 27, when he singled in the bottom of the ninth inning off of Cubs reliever Jose Ascanio to win the game for the White Sox 8-7.

Setup Man of the Year: Matt Thornton

Thornton proved himself to be a solid setup man to Bobby Jenks (and, at times, proved to be a solid closer, too). He finished fifth in the AL with 24 holds, while recording 87 strikeouts to just 20 walks in 72.1 innings pitched. He also finished the season with a 2.74 ERA. Not too shabby, I'd say.

Performance of the Year: Mark Buehrle's perfect game against Tampa Bay on July 23.

This has to be the only no-brainer on this year's list of candidates. Even if you are not a Sox fan, you would be a fool to vote against a perfect game. Only 18 perfect games have ever been thrown in baseball history, so it's not like you get the opportunity to vote for one every year. Sorry Paulie, even though your three home run performance on July 7 against the Indians is on MLB.com's list of candidates, it does not even come close to Buehrle's performance.

Play of the Year: Dewayne Wise saves Buehrle's perfect game on July 23.

With one out in the top of the ninth inning, and with Buehrle having already retired the first 25 men he faced, Gabe Kapler socked a 2-2 pitch to the deep left-center field wall. It seemed for certain that the perfect game, no-hitter and shutout would all be gone with one swing of the bat. However, Dewayne Wise made one of the most remarkable situational catches in baseball history. By leaping high over the wall to bring the ball back in play, juggling it, and keeping it within his possession after falling to the ground, he preserved Mark Buehrle's bid for perfection.

There you have it. Four candidates, all of whom are worthy of selection. You can vote as many times as you want, but just make sure you do it before voting ends on December 11. Thanks, and as always, go Sox!