74

Considering the White Sox were 6-0-1 in their last seven series against Oakland, a split of the four games against the A's seemed a reasonable goal -- and a split is what the Sox got. After losing the first two, the Sox used brilliant pitching performances by Gavin Floyd and John Danks to salvage the final two games of the set at the Cell. It's too hard to recap four games at once, so let's focus on where the Sox stand at this point.

At 51-37, the Good Guys are 14 games over .500, which ties their high for the season. The Magic Number is now down to 74, no thanks to Minnesota, which refuses to lose. While the lead over the Twins has shrunk to one game, the Pirhanas have played five more home games than the Sox and five fewer road games. This is significant since both teams play so well in their own parks -- 32-13 for the Sox and 32-18 for Minnesota -- and so poorly on the road -- 19-24 and 18-20, respectively.

But the important thing is that the Sox are still in first place in the A.L. Central. They've been there a total of 78 days this year, and continuously since May 17, a stretch of 51 days atop the division (as of Sunday, July 6). And they'll be there Monday as well, since it's an off day -- before the Sox hit the road for three in K.C. and three in Texas before the All-Star break. (More on the All-Star Game, later.)

Actually, it's a good thing tomorrow is an off day, as the Sox have their worst record on Mondays, having broken even in the eight games played then. (They've also racked up a 7-7 record on Wednesdays.) Being idle also provides Bobby Jenks with an extra day to rest up. Jenks had an MRI and a CT scan done on his sore upper back and the tests came back negative. (That reminds me of Yogi Berra's comment that they had x-rayed his brain and found nothing.) Jenks missed the entire Oakland series, so Ozzie was forced to use Matt Thornton and Scott Linebrink as closers. Wonder if that's why Jenks is not on the All-Star team.

Speaking of All-Stars, Carlos Quentin, who deserved the berth, made the team. Joe Crede, who didn't deserve it, also made it. And that's it, unless Jermaine Dye wins the last spot in the online voting. Based on credentials, Dye should nail down that spot, over Jason Giambi (don't let him steal Dye's spot like he stole the MVP from Frank Thomas when Giambi was the poster boy for steroid use), Jose Guillen (is he still alive, let alone playing well enough to be an All-Star?), Evan Longoria (isn't that the star of Desperate Housewives who's married to Tony Parker?), and Brian Roberts (he's the leader among the others in stolen bases and nothing else). Dye is the only one of the five hitting over .300 (.308), is the leader among the five in home runs with 19, and rarely makes errors. The question is why he was left off the list of non-online candidates in the first place. I don't like the fans getting to decide who's on the team, but since those are the rules, vote early and vote often. Go J.D.! Go Sox!