Blogging live from Rogers Centre….and I’m not kidding. I’m grabbing lunch at the restaurant that overlooks the outfield. The grounds crew is really working over the pitching mound, which is odd because the Argos played at Hamilton yesterday. I’ll remember this moment if pitchers complain about the mound during the game.

The White Sox expect key right-handed reliever Scott Linebrink to return from the disabled list this week, which is a development worth tracking.

This smells like a rush job to me. A week ago, Linebrink wasn’t sure when he would pitch again and, judged by the story, his pitches aren’t sharp yet. They claim they won’t use him in late-game situations right away. Really? You wonder if Octavio Dotel hadn’t coughed up a 5.56 ERA last month - that included five homers given up to tie for the most on the staff - would the White Sox activate Linebrink.

Lefthander Matt Thornton was O.K. last month, posting a 3.65 ERA. Rigthhander D.J. Carrasco has been a nice pick up from Kansas City, as he had a 2.30 ERA in August.

Still, you get the sense that Sox manager Ozzie Guillen is a little antsy about the bullpen a carrying leads into the ninth inning - even if he doesn’t say so. He should call Gardy and find out how hard he’s had it.

Guillen told me the last time the Sox were in town that he hoped the trade for Ken Griffey, Jr. would help the struggling Paul Konerko relax. It may have worked, as Konerko hit .333 last month with a 1.074 OPS. Carlos Quentin has thrown himself into the MVP debate, batting .322 in August with eight homers, 17 RBI and a 1.130 OPS. And Alexei Ramirez, their rail-thin middle infielder, batted .308 with six homers and 22 RBI in August.

It’s about time to head over to the pressbox to set up for the game. Roy Halladay is out on the field to warm up for his bullpen session - which will be the only time I see him on a mound this week.

We all know what’s on the line here. But think of how the Sox might view this race if the Twins return from this long road trip either in first place or right behind them. The Sox will have failed to take advantage of the RNC trip.

And it will soon be their turn to sweat out a road trip, as they have four games at New York, three at Kansas City, then end the trip with three massive games at the Dome on Sept. 23-25.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, September 2nd, 2008 at 1:16 pm and is filed under Random thoughts, The race. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.