It's like the old saying goes... "That's why they play the games"

I really hate old sayings.

I also really hate the way the Sox make me feel.

And I know I should know better by now, but I just can't stop myself from hoping and thinking that every White Sox win is going to be the one that triggers something in their heads and gets them playing the kind of baseball they are capable of playing. On paper, this is a team that should win the AL Central with relative ease and be a serious contender for the World Series. They have quality starting pitching, one of the better bullpens in baseball and enough offensive fire power from top to bottom that should scare opposing pitchers.

So here I am, all excited that the Sox just took two in a row from the Indians, putting them 2 games under .500 and four and a half out of first with a 3-game homestand against the first-place Tigers on deck, and I can't stop my feet from twitching with excitement at the mere thought of being a game and a half out of first on Thursday morning. I believe this homestand will be a winning homestand and the Sox will go on a run from now until September that will lock up the division for the first time since 2008. In fact, if I listen close enough I believe I can hear Journey in the background (and I smile.)

But in the back of my head is my logical, non-fan side yelling at me, calling me an idiot for believing that this year will be different from last. He's telling me that Adam Dunn is going to stay useless for the rest of the year and Alex Rios is going to look as confused at the plate and in the field as Forrest Gump in a strip club. I also can't seem to shake the thought that Jake Peavy is going to pull his best Atlee Hammaker imitation minutes after Edwin Jackson is traded and that the Twins will somehow find a way to win the division with a collection of guys that aren't even household names in their own homes (and then they'll get swept by the Yankees, and I'll smile).

I know I'm not alone here. There are thousands of Sox fans out there that feel just like me. We're hesitant to do what the marketing campaign says, to go 'All In'. The Sox haven't given us a reason to believe that a two-handed winning streak is possible (that's more than 5 games for the slower readers), not when their longest winning streak of 2011 is 4 games. They haven't been able to stay above .500 for more than a day since the season started and the uneasiness of Ozzie and Kenny's relationship has everyone wondering if this really is Guillen's last year on the southside.

Despite all the questions surrounding the team; despite the fact that they have so woefully underperformed through the first 100 games of the season; I still believe the best team on paper will emerge from the muck that is the AL Central and enter baseball's postseason a division winner and legitimate contender for the World Series.

And I'll smile.

~Poljak