Dark Bilious Vapors

Being from Chicago usually means being a Cubs fan OR a White Sox fan, but not BOTH.

However, in my being not-of-the-normal-stripe type of Chicagoan, I like BOTH teams and can root equally for their successes and wins.

SWEEP SUCCESS: Sox make quick work of the defending champs.

WHITE SOX 5, RED SOX 3

CHICAGO WINS SERIES 3-0

"White Sox Nation?

Well, give it time. After all, when you let 88 years pass between winning a postseason series, your national profile is going to need an upgrade.

The 2005 White Sox are working on it, and the way they swept the defending World Series champion Boston Red Sox out of the American League Division Series at increasingly quiet Fenway Park on Friday said a lot about who they are.

Paul Konerko, the heart of the order and in many ways the ball team, broke a 2-2 tie with a two-run homer in the sixth inning.

Then Orlando "El Duque" Hernandez, the ageless Cuban emigre, high-wired his way through a bases-loaded, no-outs predicament in the bottom of the inning. The White Sox held on for a tense 5-3 victory, a 3-0 sweep of the best-of-five series and their first taste of postseason success since the 1917 World Series win over the New York Giants.

"We're not trying to change or undo anything that happened in the past," Konerko said as happy teammates staged an "Animal House" re-enactment in their cramped clubhouse, oblivious to many years of star-crossed history. "We're trying to be the 2005 White Sox and let's see what happens."

So far, so good. They have won 102 games this year...

Karen on 10.08.05 @ 07:24 AM CST