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Joe Crede of the Chicago White Sox jumps onto
his teammates in celebration after winning Game Four of the
2005 Major League Baseball World Series 1-0 against the Houston
Astros at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas.
(AFP) |
Wearing a wide, satisfied smile on a face flushed
with pride, Ozzie Guillen stood
off to the side by the third base line and simply watched his White Sox
rejoice in the middle of the field.
Chicago's exuberant young manager might have enjoyed sprinting toward
that cluster of jubilant players and leaping right into the fray.
He passed.
But don't think for a moment he didn't relish this long-overdue championship as much as every
die-hard fan on the South
Side.
"People thought I was going to be jumping around my players. I have to
respect the opposite team," the 41-year-old Guillen said. "It went through
my mind to say, `I'm so glad to see my boys, my players jumping back and
forth and celebrating this.' Because it was an amazing feeling seeing them
like little kids."
Chicago completed a World Series sweep with a 1-0 victory over the
Houston Astros on Wednesday night, becoming the second consecutive set of
Sox to end a title drought that dated all the way back to World War I.
Maybe the crosstown Cubs are next. For now, the White Sox rule the
Windy City.
Their first title in 88 years certainly didn't come easily, even in a
four-game sweep. The gritty White Sox had to scratch and claw for every
win all year, and October was no different.
That's what makes their dominant run through the postseason so remarkable. With stellar
pitching, solid defense, timely hitting - and even some help from the
umpires - Chicago joined the 1999 New York Yankees as the only teams to go
11-1 in the postseason since the extra round of playoffs was added in '95.
"We went to Boston and then we went to Anaheim," Guillen said. "I told
my players the last 11 games we have to win are the toughest ones."
Going back to the regular season, the White Sox won 16 of their final
17 games. They nearly squandered a 15 1/2-game lead in the AL Central
before holding off Cleveland down the stretch, but that sure seems like a
long time ago.
"They were calling us chokers, now they can call us champions," catcher
A.J. Pierzynski said.
It's the same charming story as last year, when the Red Sox swept St.
Louis for their first championship since 1918.
(Agencies) |