74

Let's catch up on what happened since last Sunday's edition of The Update. Not much the first part of the week due to the All-Star break. The highlight of the game for White Sox fans had to be President Obama wearing a Sox jacket while throwing out the first pitch. How cool is it that the leader of the free world roots for the Good Guys? Well, it probably would be a little cooler if he knew a touch more about our favorite team. In talking about the Sox, he referred to "Cominskey Field." The extra "n" and the substitution of "Field" for "Park" detracted a bit from the whole thing, but sales of the Sox warmup jacket are way up. By the way, the Pres says he doesn't hate the Cubs. Either more evidence of his short history as a Sox fan or a political move to avoid alienating North Side voters.

The game itself featured an inning of scoreless relief by Mark Buehrle. And the American League's victory means that the Sox will have home field advantage in the World Series. At least, they will if they get there. So, how's that going?

Well, there's a lot of talk about the team trading for Blue Jays star pitcher, Roy Halladay, to ensure the trip to the postseason. Who wouldn't want him on their team? But what do you have to give up to get him, and how long will he stay? Let's not totally mortgage the present and the future in exchange for a guy who might not be here more than 1.5 years.

Once the break was over, the Sox sprang back into action with a big win over the Orioles. Jim Thome crushed two home runs -- and seven RBI -- to lead the team to a win on Friday. John Danks was the beneficiary of the potent offense. Saturday, the Sox remained undefeated when appearing on Fox, largely on the strength of Buehrle's masterly pitching performance and Jermaine Dye's home run. The O's avoided the sweep on Sunday, getting to Jose Contreras like he was a Chicago election: early and often.

The Meat Loafing of Baltimore and the Tigers' losses to the Yankees cut the division lead to 1.5 games and the Magic Number to 74. Next, there are four games at home with the Rays, as the schedule starts to get ugly. At least, we'll find out if the Sox are contenders or pretenders. Our vote -- again, early and often -- is for contender. Go Sox!