--1B Paul Konerko was on the shelf Wednesday with soreness in his right thumb. Manager Ozzie Guillen said the hope was to have him back in the starting lineup by Friday against Toronto. "It's been there for a long time," Konerko said of the injury. "It's just a matter that sometimes it gets so inflamed that it reaches a point that even where it's one thing where it hurts after you hit a ball, it was hurting even just holding a bat. That's where you draw the line." Nick Swisher replaced him at first base, while OF Brian Anderson started in Swisher's usual spot at center field.
--C Toby Hall and C A.J. Pierzynski know how it looks. After Wednesday's latest thievery, the duo has allowed 22 of 24 baserunners to nab the stolen base. Before fingers were pointed, however, Hall defended the tandem, and did so with the backing of their manager. "If the (pitcher) is more than 1.5 (seconds) to the plate, you have to throw 1.7 to second," Hall explained. "Pudge (Rodriguez) doesn't even throw 1.7 to second. It's mathematically impossible to throw someone out if (pitchers) are slow to the plate. It's something everyone is working on here." --RF Jermaine Dye played for the second consecutive day after missing four games with a sore left groin. Dye received treatment on the injury after Tuesday's game, and again Wednesday, and he felt that it shouldn't be a problem in Toronto. Just in case, however, Ozzie Guillen said that he planned to give Dye a breather against the Blue Jays, especially with all four games on turf.
--RHP Nick Masset had a comebacker ricochet off his ankle in the fourth, but after he was looked at by team trainers, he finished that inning. Masset said afterward that the ankle was fine and he didn't expect to miss any time because of it. He likely will be unavailable until the weekend in Toronto, however, after throwing 66 pitches in the spot start.
--The Sox have an off day Thursday, but then they are not off again until May 19. Guillen said all 25 guys will be used in that span of games. "That's our schedule," Guillen said. "We have to deal with it. The backup guys will get more playing time, and there's a reason they are here. I worry more about our bullpen more than anything else. Make sure it's ready to last that long without a day off. Besides that, we have to deal with it."
BY THE NUMBERS: 12-12 -- The Sox' record through their first 24 games last season, compared to the 14-10 start this year. The big difference? At no point last season were they ever four games above .500.
QUOTE TO NOTE: "The most hilarious thing about him is he talks about himself in third person. It's like, 'Dirty 30" would do this or do that.' The whole infatuation he has with himself is funny. You don't see that many players into the fact that they love calling themselves 'Dirty 30.'" -- Sox third baseman Joe Crede, on teammate Nick Swisher.
