A Phil Rogers Sampler

Since White Sox fans rarely get their letters printed in the Tribune, some of them send copies to us, and lately a lot of those letters have been about Tribune columnist Phil Rogers. It's difficult to describe the inherent indignity of having Rogers cover your team. It's difficult because there's no way to describe Rogers' work without using words that make you sound like you're exaggerating. Columnists like Jay Mariotti get under your skin because they're petty, exploitative, and unprincipled; Rogers gets under your skin because he seems so lost at sea, as if he doesn't think about what he's writing. Sometimes Rogers is like the weather in Chicago: if you don't like what he writes, just wait a couple paragraphs and he'll write some version of the opposite. Where else in the world does a major metropolitan newspaper employ columnists who seem less capable than the average fan? Only in the Tribune. Here's a sampling of recent comments we have received about Phil Rogers:

In Rogers' column today he has the audacity to be miffed when Mike North made the comment "we" in referring to the White Sox in a Guillen interview. Imagine that, someone acting like they are in bed with the Sox.

Phil Rogers takes shots today at Ozzie Guillen for toeing the company line. For anyone who has read Phil Rogers, I don't think I have to mention that old saying — something about a pot, a kettle, and the color black.... Mr. Rogers, as you say about Ozzie, we all know who butters your bread.

Rogers rips Kenny Williams for trading for young pitchers and then in the same article takes a shot at him for trading prospects for Mike MacDougal. Kenny, you just can't win. Last month Rogers used his Sunday sports column stepping all over himself praising the Cleveland Indians for strengthening their bullpen by signing and trading for old retreads nobody else wanted. Keith Foulke (since retired), Roberto Herndandez (last seen blowing out 58 birthday candles), the Great Joe Borowski, Matt Miller, Aaron Fultz, etc....

[Rogers says] we should all question the Cotts-for-Aardsma trade because longtime Cub scouts (unnamed, of course - which makes you wonder if he didn't just make this part up) were asking how the White Sox could make such a trade. The Cubs' scouts have such a great track record that us Sox fans should all be wondering the same thing?

Phil Rogers wrote an article that was actually praising the changes the White Sox made to U.S. Cellular to make the place a "very nice place to watch baseball." Okay, that's great, the Tribune prints a three-paragraph article complimenting U.S. Cellular. But they can't write something good about the Sox and leave it at that. Directly under that article is their list of the top-ten parks in the majors and, surprise, they have Wrigley and Fenway tied as the number two parks. They can't say U.S. Cellular is a nice place without claiming Wrigley is better.

Manufactured BS: Back page, Phil Rogers lists Ozzie as among five managers "who start the season under the gun."