Just when I think the Chicago White Sox can’t sink any lower, they find new ways to embarrass themselves. In addition to losing to the Milwaukee Brewers, marking their 11th consecutive loss, their arguably best hitter and their announcer managed to make themselves the laughingstock.
The Sox were trailing 4-3 in the top of the eighth inning when Tommy Pham was sent home from third on a shallow fly ball to left field. Brewers’ left fielder, Christian Yelich, known for his less-than-stellar arm, easily threw Pham out at the plate. And then things got interesting.
Tommy Pham’s Bizarre Play
Pham was essentially sent on a hopeless mission, with predictable results. One unusual aspect of the play was the path Pham took to home plate, veering so far up the line it was unclear if he was heading to the plate or the pitcher’s mound. While this is a slight exaggeration, he was notably off course.
To be fair to Tommy, the Sox haven’t had much experience rounding the bases, so the route isn’t well-trodden. However, seeing a baserunner navigate the bases like a toddler in a tee-ball game is not a good look for a supposedly major league team.
When Pham finally reached the plate, he tried to bulldoze through Brewers’ catcher, William “I have the right number of Ls in my name” Contreras, who didn’t budge. Pham then became upset, possibly due to the Brewers’ celebration or the fact he was sent on a nearly impossible play.
Pham was so irate you’d think someone had tampered with his fantasy football team. After the game, Pham reaffirmed his reputation by saying, “There’s a reason why I do all kinds of fighting in the offseason.” To paraphrase, he implied he did it to mess someone up. Given his history, that someone could be on either team. A volatile player on a struggling team leads to incidents like this.
John Schriffen’s Blunder
Even more laughable was White Sox announcer, John Schriffen. After Pham’s altercation, Schriffen remarked something like, “No matter how many Ls we have, we ain’t going to take that.” It’s unclear who “we” refers to or what “that” is. This wasn’t Schriffen’s first odd comment either.
He once suggested that the White Sox were losing because they were catching other teams at bad times, implying those teams were hot. As if that’s the issue. The remark even made Sox color commentator Steve Stone chuckle.
Considering all this, John Schriffen might be the perfect play-by-play announcer for this White Sox team, while Steve Stone seems out of place.