White Sox expert Scott Long said that they had the worst bench in the history of the World Series. Willie Harris gets a pinch-hit single and then scores the winning run to clinch the Championship. Geoff Blum, who I thought should have been left off the playoff roster, ends up hitting a homerun in the 14th inning, which gave the White Sox the lead they would never relinquish in game 3. God it has never felt better to be wrong.

On the discussion of people who were wrong, no one has a bigger, fluffier, steaming omelet on their face than Windy City Woody Paige. (Jay Mariotti) I can remember when he was a good columnist, but the Around the Horning of him has made most of his recent work a pale imitation. WCWP has for so long ripped the White Sox, including his predictions of their demise at the end of the 2005 that the World Series crown becomes even sweeter.

You know, Aaron Miles is a decent utility type player, but to think that he was all it took to obtain Juan Uribe. Can you imagine the attention that would have been heaped on Derek Jeter, if he had done the same things that Uribe did defensively during this series? The left side defense of the White Sox in 2005 was as good as I've seen since the days of Ozzie Smith and Terry Pendleton. In a Series that didn't have one standout offensive player, I would have given the MVP trophy to Uribe over Jermaine Dye, but batting .438 in the Series, it's hard to argue against Dye's selection.

It has been bandied around that the White Sox were a team of players having career years. Wrong. Not one position player had a career year. With the starting staff they have coming back, plus their extremely deep bullpen, it's hard to see how the White Sox won't be a playoff contender for the next couple of seasons. Outside of Paul Konerko, there is not one major player that the White Sox don't have an option on for 2006. It will be interesting to see what happens with the most popular Chicago White Sox during the off-season.

Since this is a site known for its baseball and music commentary, here are a couple thoughts on the performers at the World Series.
· The quartet of Michael McDonald, Wynonna, Eric Benet, and the other chick need to be stopped. Their song is like a "That's What Friends Are Four", except without talented singers being involved. Yo, Doobie Bro, it was good back on "Minute by Minute", but the blue-eyed soul mumble act is way tired. Considering that Benet was cheating on Halle Berry, before she dumped him, the guy has to be delusional. Sometimes there is no (David) justice in this world. Lately, when I see Wynonna, it makes me question if the ghost of Divine hasn't inhabited her. (of John Waters fame) I'm guessing the one group of people happy that she attended the old ballpark was the hot dog vendors.
· You know your National Anthem singers are lame, when the best performance was by Jon Secada. Were Rik Astley and Richard (Dick) Marx busy?
· I'm a big fan of Liz Phair. I'm one of the few who have liked both stages of her career. Having said that, she should not be allowed to sing in public, as her thin voice is betrayed, especially on a song like "God Bless America". She should stick to self-penned songs like "Hot White Cum", instead of jingoistic anthems.
· On the other side of the coin, Lyle Lovett is one of the greatest live acts on the planet. His rendition of the same song was pretty good, but not to the level of his normal performance, which leads me to believe that it's the song that's flawed.
· Lou Rawls? When I saw him out there, I thought I was watching the Jerry Lewis Telethon. Nice hip booking, MLB. I was half expecting Norm Crosby to come out as his opening act and do a tight 5 minute set of mispronouncing shit.
· Much has been made about the Journey song. "Don't Stop Believin'" being the White Sox official song. If you know the real story, it was always a goof that grew into a reality. What should be mentioned is that there is probably not a city in America that has more Journey fans than Chicago. (Definitely not something to brag about.) There is definitely no team in MLB that has more fans sporting a classic Perry mullet than the one's who inhabit US Cellular. From the news that has come out about Sheryl Swoopes today, I expect that the Houston Comets will adopt Journey's "Lovin' Touchin' Squeezin'" as their team's anthem.

I ripped Kenny Lofton earlier in the playoffs for wearing a suit from the Chess King, circa 1994. I know this makes me sound like ET's Cujo, but to be fair, Jeannie Zalesko doesn't dress much better. Tonight, when I first saw her, the purple felt coat she sported, mesmerized me. Note to Jeannie: I'm glad you won the Ebay auction on Prince's "Purple Rain" jacket, but maybe you wear it at a Austin Powers costume party and not on national television hosting a World Series pre-game show.

Finally, let me mention that just because the season is over, it doesn't mean that it will be slowing down here at The Juice. Look for a big announcement in the next couple of weeks, as some new things are on the horizon.