by Jerod Morris

Mark Buehrle stepped up, and stepped up big.Â And in the process, he just may have helped the Chicago White Sox escape the vicious grip of The Curse of the Douche Bag.

I wrote this morning that it was up to Mark Buehrle to step up and save the season for the Chicago White Sox. And he did just that.

Pitching on three days rest against the Cleveland Indians at home, Mark Buehrle threw 111 pitches in going 7 strong innings, giving up only a 2nd inning solo shot, and inducing four double plays. In two of the biggest games the White Sox have played in since the 2005 playoffs, Mark Buehrle has given his team a chance to win. The Sox couldnâ€™t capitalize Wednesday night against the Twins, but they did today.

And look at who else stepped up: the captain, Paul Konerko.

Last week, I wrote â€œI think it will be some of the stalwarts from 2005 (Buehrle, Jenks, JD, AJ, Uribe) that carry us to the finish line and to another AL Central crown.â€

Obviously, I must offer my apologies to Paulie. He cranked two homeruns yesterday, and hit another one this afternoon to get the scoring going. But it has certainly been the stars of the 2005 White Sox who have enabled us to weather the storm and continue playing. Buehrle had a great start today, Paulie has erased the memories of his terrible season with two huge games here at the end, and Jermaine Dye has done everything he can to put runs on the board in support of our struggling pitching staff, adding two more RBIs today.

So whatâ€™s next for the White Sox?

We play the Detroit Tigers tomorrow, at home on the South Side. Gavin Floyd, who was our best big game pitcher throughout the summer, will toe the rubber for the Good Guys. And stepping on the mound for the Tigers? Another 2005 White Sox hero, Freddy Garcia. Garcia has gone five innings in both of his starts this season, giving up 3 homeruns when he faced the Kansas City Royals last week. As everyone knows, one of the Tigersâ€™ biggest weakness is their leaky bullpen. Without question, we will get to face that bullpen tomorrow as Freddy simply doesnâ€™t have the endurance right now to go longer than 5-6 innings, even if he is throwing well.

And remember, Gavin is 2-0 this season against Detroit, almost no-hitting them once back in April. The Tigers did chase him after four innings the last time he faced them, and Gavin was up and down throughout September, but I feel good about this matchup. I would not be surprised to see some runs scored early, but Gavin has the ability to go 7-8 innings and keep the game away from our own awful bullpen. If he can do what Mark Buehrle did today, and go seven strong before turning it over to Linebrink/Thornton and then Jenks, I like our chances.

Iâ€™ve been hard on Gavin Floyd at times this year, because his facial expressions do not always inspire confidence, but he has been our best pitcher this season. Needing a victory today we were able to turn to Mark Buehrle, who stepped up. Needing one tomorrow, we turn to Gavin Floyd. Without Mark Buehrle unavailable, and Jose Contreras lost for the season, there is no one Iâ€™d rather have throwing the ball tomorrow than Gavin.

If Paul Konerko and Jermaine Dye can continue to carry the load on offense, this is a game that the White Sox should win.

Assuming we do, that brings Minnesota back to the South Side for a one-game playoff. I am assuming that John Danks would start for us and I would think that Francisco Liriano would take the mound for Minnesota. Thatâ€™s a pretty even matchup, but this time we are the ones at home and I just donâ€™t see us losing to the Twins outside of the Metrodome in a game of this magnitude.

Today was a great day for the White Sox, and proved that this team takes on the personality of its manager and never quits fighting. Today also confirmed the wise thinking of Kenny Williams in locking Mark Buehrle up long term. We all know that Mark can be up and down throughout a season, but he almost always steps up when the White Sox need him. Mark Buehrle did what Javier Vazquez has been unable to do, and showed our young pitchers what it means to be an ace. Weâ€™ll find out tomorrow if Gavin Floyd learned from Markâ€™s example.

The White Sox won the World Series in 2005 for a reason. The reason is that Mark Buehrle, Paul Konerko, and Jermaine Dye, among others, are talented veterans who have the ability to rise to the occasion and produce in big spots. In 2008, those very same guys have stepped up and pulled the White Sox back from the brink of total implosion. I know itâ€™s a clichÃ© when said in reference to the White Sox, but this team and its fans simply donâ€™t stop believing. Thatâ€™s why I have total faith that Monday and Tuesday will result in victories and the White Sox will be playing October baseball.

And other than the Red Sox, what other team has experienced veterans like the White Sox? Just get to October boys, because 2008 still has the potential to be just as special as 2005.

We have to get there first, but Mark Buehrle, Paul Konerko, and Jermaine Dye give us all plenty of reasons to believe that we can, and will.

[tags]chicago white sox, chicago, mark buehrle, mlb, baseball, AL Central, minnesota twins, jermaine dye, paul konerko[/tags]