TIME TO GET BACK TO ENJOYING OURSELVES

The excitement is back. I've sat here at my laptop for a while now getting ready to write a post breaking down the moves the White Sox have made, but it all feels so secondary. I've already shared my thoughts on the money they're giving David Robertson, and they haven't changed.

I don't like spending that much on a closer. Never have, never will. But I can live with it because I understand it.

As for the Samardzija trade, how can any reasonable fan be anything other than thrilled? You get a great starter you can slot between Chris Sale and Jose Quintana, and you don't have to give up any top prospects to do it. If the Sox can't sign Shark long term you get the draft pick when he leaves next winter. A draft pick that replaces the second round pick you lose by signing Robertson.

There. That's the analysis. Let's get to the emotions.


I'm thrilled. Absolutely, elated. This is a fantastic feeling. I don't know about you, but baseball and the White Sox are my passion. I follow other Chicago sports teams, but I don't care about the Bears, Bulls or Blackhawks. I'll jump on bandwagon as necessary, but there's no true emotional investment there.

The White Sox are my hobby. Some people fish, some golf, others join book clubs, and I obsess about the White Sox. I think I've made the right choice.

But the last couple of seasons have been hard on me. I understood what Rick Hahn and this team was doing. I realized it had to be done, but I didn't like it. In fact, I hated it.

I hated knowing the season was over by the end of June. I hated spending my July trying to figure out who the Sox were going to trade and for whom. I wanted to spend that time dreaming up scenarios of the White Sox trading for players.

August and September felt like a slow death march to the hot stove when I could dream again. Yes, there were parts of those months I enjoyed. I liked checking out the new kids, getting a sense of what's there and what it could be down the road, but it only goes so far. I prefer my September journeys to continue into October.

Magic numbers are so much more fun.

And that's why the last 36 hours or so have me feeling rejuvenated. I'm not going to overreact and pretend that Samardzija, Robertson, Duke and LaRoche equal a division title. I'm not foolish. This team still has other holes to fill and is still in an American League where it feels like every single other team is making the same kind of push.

But the message has been sent. This team wants to win, and it wants to win now. I couldn't be happier about it.

These moves do more than just improve the team. They give White Sox fans a reason to be legitimately excited again. I'll never ask for more than that.

Now I can start trying to figure out who the Sox can get at the trade deadline to put them over the top in the AL Central.