Frenemies

Interesting what a little competition can do to motivate a player. Before the White Sox called up Sam Antonacci, Chase Meidroth was batting .196 with eleven hits and six runs scored. With Antonacci as a teammate (and possible replacement at second base), Meidroth is hitting .319 with 22 hits and fifteen runs scored. Last night in the first inning, leadoff batter Antonacci walked and Meidroth singled him in from the five-spot. More, please. Is anyone on the Sox competing with Munetaka Murakami? I doubt it. You’d have to be crazy to think you could outhomer Murakami, who clubbed his fourteenth in the top of the fourth last night, a two-run, 429-foot shot to dead center in a 6-0 Sox win over the Angels. Then Miguel Vargas went back-to-back with a homerun to right center. I could get used to this. Starter Davis Martin must feel the same. The righty threw seven shutout innings, recording a career-best ten strikeouts along the way, against no walks and five hits, four of them singles. On top of that, Martin needed just 85 pitches to do it all. I’m betting the coaching staff could get used to that. Oh, did I mention Antonacci went 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs scored?