Sox earn Piniella's praise

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CHICAGO - It's the White Sox, Cubs manager Lou Piniella said, who deserve the attention, the accolades, the admiration, the lofty praise, the national scrutiny. “Everyone looks at the Cubs - look at the White Sox,” Piniella said after the Cubs dropped a 6-5 decision to their crosstown rival at U.S. Cellular Field. “The White Sox should win that division by a half a dozen games or more, if you want to know the truth. They've got just about everything that's needed. “They've got power. They've got a good defensive team and a [heck] of a bullpen.” Sox manager Ozzie Guillen answered the way he knows best. “Oh, that's nice, thank you,” he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. Guillen said Piniella's declaration gives credence to what he's been stressing. That the Sox (45-35) are a pretty good team. “Lou knows a lot about baseball,” Guillen said. “Lou knows the game. He knows what we have. Now, coming from Lou, we should (win the division). “Coming from Ozzie, we're crazy. I'm just being honest. If I said that, people in the city would be like, ‘Oh, look at that. Another stupid thing he just said.' “Coming from Lou, God bless him, when Lou says that it gets [the media's ear].” Don't worry, we're listening. It's impossible not to listen, especially now - having won the first two of the three-game series, the Sox have clinched their first Cubs-Sox series since 2006. They also became one of the few teams to take a series from the Cubs this year. “The Cubs are a very quality team,” said outfielder Carlos Quentin, whose seventh-inning, opposite-field home run off Carlos Marmol proved the winning blow. “They have an offensive lineup, quality pitching. We went to Wrigley [Field] and they beat us up pretty bad. We're just trying to get them back now.” Saturday, the Sox won just as Piniella said they do. Power? Check. Quentin, Alexei Ramirez and Jermaine Dye went deep. Defense? Check. With the bases loaded and two outs in the third, Joe Crede saved at least two runs with a diving stab of Geovany Soto's liner. Bullpen? Check. Boone Logan, Nick Masset, Matt Thornton, Scott Linebrink and Bobby Jenks allowed three hits and struck out seven over the final 4 2/3 innings. “They're a pretty good ballclub,” Piniella said. Sox catcher A.J. Pierzynski said thanks for the compliments ... but slow down. “Apparently, [Piniella] hasn't seen the rest of our division,” he said. Despite their recent success - the Sox have won four of five - their division lead is scant. “Maybe he got a little confused with what team he was looking at [to finish first], because the teams in our division are really good. It's not going to be easy.” Perhaps, but these days the Sox, not the Cubs, look like a division leader. Saturday, the Cubs (49-32) struck out 14 times and left 10 on base. “We couldn't get that big hit,” said first baseman Derrek Lee, who went 5-for-5 in a losing effort. It's more than that, Piniella said. “We're scuffling a little bit right now,” he said. “We had chances. But ... we're not at full strength, either. We'll get there. I'm not making excuses.” He wasn't about to make an excuse for Marmol, who was lit up again. Marmol (13.50 ERA over his past four outings) got ahead, 0-2, on Quentin, but left a fastball out and up. Quentin, freakishly strong, reached out and, with a half-swing, sent the ball into the right-field bullpen 366 feet from home plate. “He's a good hitter,” Marmol said. “What can I say? He caught a good fastball.” Asked if he is worried, about Marmol, about whatever, Piniella bristled. “I'm not worried about anything,” he said, then repeated.