Series Preview: Cubs (13-9) at Cards (11-11)

Well, its that time again. Oddly, when I was younger I didn't really get into the Cubs/Cardinals thing. I really saw the Mets as the enemy. I knew they were the rivals down the stretch as I watched in '84, and I had read about '69. The Cardinals just never resonated with me.

Then somewhere along the line things changed. I think it might have started when they hired The Genius. Never in the course of human history has someone been given so much credit for doing so many things to accomplish so little. What's more, he actually seems to believe the hype. I can just see him leaning over a slot machine, studying the arm, checking the wind, punching some numbers into a calculator, waiting for the right moment, and... PULL! Hey, I won fifty cents! I am the smartest man on the planet!

Anyway, suffice to say I'm firmly ensconced on the Cardinal-hating bandwagon now. Its funny, because if you had asked me on that Wednesday afternoon last September in the Wrigley Field bleachers, I would have said that watching Joe Borowski blow that fraud Jim Edmonds away to end the greatest comeback I've ever seen would have set me for life. Now its seven months later, and I am ready for more Cardinal blood. Let's tear them apart.

The Cardinals

CatcherMike Matheny is a veteran catcher with a cannon arm and a great defensive reputation. If he could hit he'd be a legit All-Star, but instead he carries a .631 lifetime OPS. Cody McKay, he of eight minor league seasons and eleven major league games, is the backup.

First BaseAlbert Pujols steps in for Tino Martinez this year, making for the biggest upgrade since Burger King replcaed Pepsi with Coke. Throwing out Bonds, Albert Pujols is hands-down the best offensive player in baseball. If he played a high-value defensive position, he'd be more valuable than ARod. Fortunately the Genius moved him to first base, where he's just a perennial MVP candidate instead of a perrenial MVP. His splits reveal no weaknesses. The only winning strategy is to pitch to him with the bases empty and a multi-run lead.

Second Base Maybe the best sign for the Cubs heading into this series is that Tony Womack will try to return for Friday's game. He missed the last week with a strained triceps (suffered while lifting LaRussa's ego), during which Marlon Anderson got most of the PT. Anderson is nothing special, but he's a step up on Womack whose OPSs the last four years were .691, .652, .678, and .558. Did I mention the Genius likes to lead him off?

Third Base For my money, Scott Rolen is the best third baseman in the game. He's good for a solid .900 OPS and low error totals with fantastic range, year in and year out. He had back problems in Philly and some injury issues last year, but he plays through them and is off to another hot start this year.

ShortstopLike Rolen, Renteria is another strong hitter in his prime years with a great glove at a key position. To some extent you can neutralize his bat with good right handed pitchers.

Left Field Ray Lankford is the starter in left field for the Cards. He got off to a white-hot start but has cooled since a strained hammy against Houston (5-24 with one homer since his return). Its hard to believe he can keep up this pace at 36 years old and three years removed from his last good season. He's got a career OPS nearly 200 points higher against righties.

Center Field Jim Edmonds, easily the Cardinal I detest the most, is the center-fielder. His defense is average, although his Web Gem belly flops garner loads of attention on Baseball Tonight. Offensively, he draws walks, hits for power, and hits for average. Its tough to find fault with his numbers, but at least we've got his perpetual whining to fall back on. Oh, and he hit a walkoff homer in the thirteenth to beat the Phillies earlier today. Putz.

Right Field Its an even-numbered year, so Reggie Sanders should be awful, his .321 with seven homer start notwithstanding. His speed has waned with age, but a .912 OPS with the Bucs last year proves he isn't quite done.

The Pen

Jason Isringhausen anchors the pen for St. Louis. He is strong year in and year out, combining good control and K's with an uncanny ability to prevent the home run. Counting one he allowed to Jeff Bagwell a couple weeks ago, he has given up just five longballs the last four seasons combined. Mike Lincoln and our old friend Julian Tavarez provide innings from the right side, while Steve Kline and Ray King are the Genius LOOGY specials.

Game One: Kerry Wood (3-1, 2.60) vs Woody Williams (0-2, 6.53)

Williams, who suffered some elbow tendinitis in spring training, has yet to pitch a strong game this year. Righties are lighting him up to the tune of a .925 OPS, and he has struck out just 13 in 20.2 innings. His last start was his best however, as he held the Brewers to two runs in six innings.

Game Two: Matt Clement (3-1, 2.22) vs Jeff Suppan (2-2, 3.65)

Suppan has been a reliable innings eater for years now, but when Boston acquired him at the deadline last year they were expecting him to continue the 3.57 ERA he had put up with the Pirates. Instead, he posted a 5.57 for them to pull his season ERA back toward his career norms. There's no track record of great pitching here and he's got a slight reverse platoon split for his career so he should be hittable for the Cubs on paper.

Game Three: Carlos Zambrano (2-1, 3.55) vs Matt Morris (3-2, 4.50)

This is our first shot at Matt Morris after his inflamatory comments from last September. You can understand some of his talk as sour grapes, but implying he would lie down for the Astros to try to help them win (and then allowing them six runs in five innings) was a bit much for me, thanks. Anyway, he's been an effective pitcher throughout his career, but last year saw his never sterling strikeout numbers fall some more as his homers allowed climbed. He compensated some with improved control, but you can't like the trend if you are a Cardinals fan. Winning is the best revenge, so as much as part of me would enjoy seeing a fastball bounce of his helmet, I'd rather just beat him 10-0 and call it a day.

Game Four: Sergio Mitre (1-1, 4.43) vs Jason Marquis (1-1, 3.73)

The Cards traded J. D. Drew to the Braves this winter, and part of the bounty was Atlanta youngster Jason Marquis. He's got a very good fastball but not great stuff so his strikeout numbers have lagged. He's pitched pretty well in the minors, but as of yet has not been able to convert that into major league success.

Summary

There's nothing better than beating the Cardinals. They've got to have the Great September Beatdown on their minds, so I certainly expect them to be fired up. With this much offensive talent, you've got to figure they'll be contending at some point this year, so every win here is worth double (win for us, loss for them). I think sweeping them would be nice.
posted by Scott at 12:31 AM : |

 

Win! Win! Win?

ITEM: It was poker night at the Lange residence, the next to last one before I move to the house (barring any unexpected disasters). It was a strange night, in that very little strange happened. There were no huge hands, no bad beats, no miracle boats on the flop, nothing. Just slow, steady winning, to the point where I was the only one who ended the night in the black. And you know what I found? Winning boring is just as good as winning exciting, and loads better than breaking even exciting!

ITEM: I won at poker despite being heavily distracted by USA/Mexico on TV for the better part of the evening. The US played a domestic-based lineup and played what was the A squad for the most part for the Mexicans. We took it right to them from about midway through the first half on, and created chance after chance after chance. Shots were flying off crossbars or into the goalies chest from point blank range. Landon Donovan in particular looked amazing- the best I have ever seen him, and I think very highly of him. I think he was sending a message to Freddy that he is still the top dog in US Soccer, at least till Freddy get's his driver's license.

So anyway, we are just shredding them all night long, but we can't get a goal so it looks to be wrapping up at 0-0. This is bad, partly because I want to beat our #1 rival, but also because a poker player has been ragging soccer all night long. Typical meatheaded anti-soccer garbage, you know the drill. We are into extra time, and Landon explodes down the sideline and draws a yellow card and a free kick from the corner. He fakes the cross, Bobby Convey came in from the other side and crossed, Taylor Twellman found the space, put the header on target, the goalie gave up the rebound and Eddie Pope put it away. That may have been a run-on sentence, but you will have to forgive it because there's no time for syntax when we are whipping up on Mexico!

ITEM: And then there is the Cubs. When I started this post, we led 3-2, but now ESPNEWS tells me Steve Finley has hit his third homer and its 3-3. What? Huh? How's that again? Yeah, Steve Finley. Baseball's a strange game sometimes. Sadly, espn.com and mlb.com have both stopped updating at 3-2 still, and I am not going to sit around and hope they get their act together. When I wake up tomorrow, I fully expect a Cubs win. If it doesn't happen, you can blame Dennis and his stupid commenting system.

UPDATE:Gameday started working, Alex recaptured the 9th inning magic, JoBo nailed it down and its Win! Win! Win! Wednesday at the Northside Lounge!

Also, Hee Sop hit his seventh home run.

I'm sorry, but we've got to have at least a little cynicism or whats the point of posting?

posted by Scott at 12:00 AM : |

 

Wood, Baker suspended

The aftermath of the Bucknor weekend in Cincy has been handed down from on high by King Bud. He Who Must Be Obeyed says its one game for Dusty and five for Kerry. It seems reasonable, as one game managing from the clubhouse and one start pushed back a day won't be too big a burden. Its just too bad there is no code of conduct (or better yet, a code of competence) for umpires just to even the score a bit.
posted by Scott at 5:41 PM : |

 

Dog days of April

At least we scored this time. It was a matchup of two groundball specialists, and theirs had a G/F ratio of 14/2 while ours was 2/4. End result, a second consecutive rout. About the only bright spot was Todd Hollandsworth, who drew two walks and homered in the ninth. Naturally, it was off one my roto pitchers.

The Cubs are in danger of giving back all the ground they earned in the six game winning streak. Tonight we will see Greg Maddux face a minor leaguer who has been lit up this year and never had an ERA under four in the a full minor league season. Its time to make a stand.

posted by Scott at 6:52 AM : |

 

Streak ends with a whimper

I went to bed at nine tonight because I was feeling really tired. I woke up at twelve because I was feeling really sick. After emerging from the restroom, I checked the score and felt sick again. Ok, ok, I realize its only April and its only one game and its only one loss in the last seven, but that doesn't mean I have to like it. Its probably best to just forget this game ever happened and move on to tomorrow, but I can only do that if you guys promise me Jose Macias won't ever lead off for us again. He presumably got the start since Randy Johnson is so legendarily tough on lefties, but switch-hitting Jose has a career .281 OBP against southpaws. I can go up and hit right-handed against Randy Johnson, but that doesn't mean A) I'll do better than a good hitter who is left-handed would or B) that if you were going to start me against him that I should lead off.

See how much better you can make yourself feel after a loss by ripping Dusty for something, even if there is an outside chance that the something in question might not have made the difference in the game? You should try it; its very cathartic.

posted by Scott at 12:47 AM : |

 

Cubs (12-6) at Arizona (7-11)

The Cubs head west for three in Phoenix leading up to a four game weekend set with the hated Cardinals. Our team is hot- winners of nine of eleven and looking for our first seven-game win streak since May of 2001. The opposition has struggled overall, but have managed to win three of four. Let's get to it.

Snakes in the Field

Catcher Robby Hammock, a second-year guy out of the Cesspool of the South, returned to the starting lineup this weekend after missing the first few weeks of the season with a knee injury. He had a pretty good rookie season, but his .820 OPS was higher than anything he had posted since low-A ball in 1999 so he's unlikely to maintain that level. Of course, when the alternative is a 36-year old Brent Mayne, he'll probably hold the job almost no matter what.

First Base Arizona picked up Richie Sexson at the Selig Family Yard Sale this winter. He always seems to be pounding Cubs pitching, but looking at the record he's got a .951 OPS against us- good, but not out of line with his career .875. He's hitting just .209 so far, but the power and walks are there so he'll probably come around.

Second Base Ben Sheets hit Roberto Alomar and broke a bone in Alomar's right hand last Tuesday. With Alomar on the shelf, Matt Kata is starting and hitting .404. Kata is a run of the mill switch-hitting utility infielder- kind of like a Genius utility special, except with a bit more talent.

Third Base There's been a bit of controversy at third for the D-Backs this weekend, as rookie Chad Tracy has supplanted Shea Hillenbrand as the team's primary third baseman. Hillenbrand will still get some starts against lefties, but Tracy should be getting the call against all three right-handed Cub starters. Tracy is no Hank Blalock, but he is a young batter who hits for some power, draws some walks, and is said to have a good glove. He has put up large platoon splits in the minors, so look for Dusty to go to Mercker and Arizona respond with Shea at least once this series.

Shortstop Alex Cintron's nifty .848 OPS at short last year earned him the starting job coming into 2004. He's a switch-hitter, and while last year he hit much better against righties, this year he has just two singles and a walk in seventeen plate appearances against them. He is said to have a pretty fair glove, but none of the statistical measured like him.

Left Field The desert continues to agree with Luis Gonzalez. He's slugging over .600 so far, and while age has to catch up with him eventually it doesn't seem to be slowing him down yet. He's tatooed righties to a 1.061 OPS the last three years.

Center Field 39 year-old Steve Finley might be another story though. He's hitting .197 with one homer and five RBI in seventeen games this year, and ranked at the bottom of all the metrics last year. He is a weakness to be taken advantage of.

Right Field Danny Bautista has started the season strong, posting a 1.082 OPS including a 5 for 8 with two homers in a fifteen inning game with the Brewers last week. He's really only an average player even when he is on, so I wouldn't be too worried.

The Bullpen

Ugly. Stephen Randolph has the only sub-4 ERA in the pen, and he is sporting a 2.06 WHIP. Matt Mantei was supposed to be the closer, but he's 0-2 with a 13.50 ERA. Oscar Villarael, Jose Valverde, and Mike Koplove were all nasty out of the pen last year, but they have ERAs of 6.75, 4.00, and 6.75 respectively. Arizona is desperate to find someone to step up and stop the bleeding.

Game One: Carlos Zambrano (2-0, 1.29) vs Randy Johnson (1-2, 4.08)

Its Big Z versus the Big Unit in what looks like a fantastic pitching matchup. Johnson threw a complete-game shutout last week against the Padres, but in his other three starts he has been decidedly mortal. He is still striking out more than a man an inning, but his control and homers allowed numbers have been less spectacular. There's nobody scarier when he is on.

Sergio Mitre (1-0, 2.89) vs Brandon Webb (1-1, 2.74)

Brandon Webb is coming off a scintillating rookie campaign in which he used a great sinker to post an amazing 3.44 groundball/flyball ratio. He's got a good ERA so far this year, but DIPS says he has been getting a bit lucky (he has a 2.74 ERA despite walking fifteen in 23 innings.) Sergio has been doing his very best Brandon Webb impression lately, getting groundballs and sporting a great ERA, so this looks like another interesting matchup.

Game Three: Greg Maddux (1-2, 6.35) vs Casey Daigle (0-1, 11.08)

Daigle edged out knuckleballer Steve Sparks for the fifth slot in the rotation this spring, but its hard to see why so far. He was bombed by the Cardinals in his first start, and the Rockies in Coors in his second. He recovered a bit in his third start, holding San Diego to two runs in 6.1 IP. Hopefully Maddux can show that his improvement in his last start was for real and the Cubs can help Casey learn that his was not.

Summary

This is another team a contender should beat up on, but this time the Cubs have the misfortune of running into their two best pitchers in a three-game series. Hopefully we can keep things rolling into our weekend set with the Cards.
posted by Scott at 10:54 PM : |

 

Clement dominates for sixth straight Cub win

It seems like only a couple weeks ago I was questioning Matt Clement based on a lousy spring and some iffy performances in his first couple starts. Now all of the sudden he's rolling, today striking out a career-high thirteen en route to a third straight win. He has now allowed just fourteen hits in 24.1 innings and has a league-leading .159 batting average against.

This may seem petty, but I am going to say it anyway. Clement took a no-hitter into the seventh today, and I must have heard Chip and Steve refer to that fact about eight thousand times. Now I am no mystic. I don't actually believe that mentioning a no-hitter is in progress is going to affect anything, but that doesn't mean I enjoy hearing it. It spoils the participatory fun of doing whatever ritual you are doing to try to help the pitcher to the finish line. There are plenty of ways to indicate to the viewer what is going on without actually saying it and I just wish they would choose one of those.

Put another way, I am still mad at my first girlfriend who ruined Jim Bullinger's no-hit bid back in tenth grade.

Her: Hey, he's got a no-hitter going!

*dink*

Me: $%&@#$@*%!!!

posted by Scott at 5:39 PM : |

 

Wood strong

Kerry calmed some of our fears after the 131 last week by throwing seven shutout innings and striking out nine Mets today. Granted, it was the Mets, but you've still got to like those numbers. Interestingly, Dusty went to LaTroy Hawkins with two out in the eighth and stayed with him the rest of the way. Joe pitched last night, but he's pitched back-to-back days in the past without incident. At any rate, I am a proponent of using the best man for the job and right now Hawkins is the better pitcher, so kudos to Dusty on this one.

Sammy homered, but the other seven position players combined for just five hits and one walk, so the offense has definitely cooled off. Fortunately, the rotation is starting to hit their groove and the end result is a fifth straight win.

On a sidenote, I saw legendary Atlanta sportswriter Furman Bisher speak at today's Atlanta chapter SABR meeting. He shared lots of great stories, but the only one really Cub related was the regret he voiced that Ron Santo has not been selected for the Hall yet. We also got to hear from the man who served as Ty Cobb's batboy in Cobb's last three seasons. Good stuff.

posted by Scott at 4:57 PM : |

 

Oh right, that Greg Maddux

Well, Greg Maddux finally pitched a game where you could say he was better than Shawn Estes circa 2003. He struck out eight and the Cubs won 3-1. The Cubs scored their three runs on only four hits, courtesy of homers from Alou and Walker.

I am certainly glad to see Maddux pitch better, but I'm not convinced we've seen the last of Evil Greg. Remember these Mets are a team scoring very few runs so far this year. Remember too that he pitched out of a bases-loaded, none out jam in the third, but only after loading the bases by walking Karim Garcia after having him down 0-2. It was Garcia's 70th walk in a ten-year career. The Greg Maddux I know wouldn't walk Karim Garcia if you spotted Garcia 3-0 much less spotting Maddux 0-2.

Anyway, its a win so I'll take it. Whatsmore, if you hurry and look right now before tonight's games end, it puts us all alone in first place. Magic number is 147!

posted by Scott at 8:11 PM : |

 

Tillman killed in Afghanistan

Pat Tillman, a safety for the Arizona Cardinals, walked away from a multi-million dollar NFL contract to become an Army Ranger. He died yesterday in Afghanistan. Pat Tillman gave his life so that I could play softball, watch the Cubs, and buy a house. He gave his life so some girl in Afghanistan might grow up to be a doctor, engineer, or musician instead. He gave his life because he enjoyed making the world a better place. Thank you, Pat, and every other man and woman who have risked their life for the freedom of others. You won't be forgotten. It is foolish and wrong to mourn the men who died. Rather we should thank God that such men lived. -- General George S. Patton

Pat Tillman R. I. P. 6 Nov 1976- 22 April 2004

posted by Scott at 11:26 AM : |

 

Series Preview: Mets at Cubs

I think last night's rainout was a blessing in disguise, as it allowed us to miss Pittsburgh's only good pitcher in Kip Wells while giving Kerry extra rest after his famous 131 pitch outing last weekend. It also allows the team to get home and get a good night's sleep before heading out to Wrigley for this afternoon's game with the Mets. Plus, it just wouldn't have been nice to obliterate the Pirates a third straight game. Something about kicking people when they are down and how that behavior should be saved for the Cardinals...

The Mets

The Met offense is struggling. They are hitting .243/.324/.385 and scoring just 4.0 runs per game. Throw out a big opening series with the Braves and its just 3.0 runs per game. Here's how they line it up:

Catcher- The Mike Piazza you remember is back. He's hitting .328/.381/.569 and even caught one of the six guys who have attempted to run on him. They are trying to sequeu Piazza towards first base, but until he hits two more homers to pass Carlton Fisk for the career catcher homers record, he'll spend most of his time behind the plate. When he isn't catching, Jason Phillips or Vance Wilson will get the nod.

First Base- Phillips, Pizza, and Zeile have all gotten starts at first for the Mets. Zeile is doing all right (.286/.364/.393) but Phillips has been doing his best LFH impression (.149/.286/.234). Good thing he has drawn those nine walks or that line would be really bad.

Second Base- This was supposed to be uber-tyke Jose Reyes' spot, but a hamstring injury has kept him on the DL since spring training. Ex-Cub Ricky Guttierez has filled in, hitting a robust .152/.235/.196. If Guttierez is asked to play third (see below), Joe McEwing is another possibility for second. Perhaps you are starting to see where the Mets' offensive struggles are coming from.

Third Base- Ty Wigginton has struggled at third, but he has been disabled and hospitalized after a bout of dizziness and weakness. Look for Zeile and Guttierez to fill in against the Cubs.

Shortstop- Japanese import Kaz Matsui has been a relative bright spot, drawing thirteen walks in the leadoff slot en route to a .392 OBP. The speed he showed in Japan has not translated, as he was thrown out in his only attempt to run on the year.

Left Field- Cliff Floyd started hot but (guess) hit the DL last week leaving Shane Spencer to likely face the Cubs this weekend. Spencer has been relatively hot for a Met (.310/.370/.429), but nearly cost the Mets their game last night with a Brant Brown moment.

Center Field- Mike Cameron is a terminally underappreciated player who has had the misfortune of spending a lot of time in some fairly extreme pitchers' parks. I bet on the difference between Safeco and Shea when I drafted him for my roto team, with mixed results. His batting average is low as always (.236) but he draws walks, hits for a little power, runs, and plays great defense. He may never get the credit he deserves.

Right Field- Pedro wants to know: Who is Karim Garcia? Well, he's another Yankee-castoff Met-corner outfielder. He's got some good power and he's a lefty, so Cubs starters will need to watch out for him.

The Bullpen- Braden Looper has been very strong as the closer (0.00 ERA, 4 saves), but that's about as far as this pen goes. Other than Looper, the four top innings guys have been Mike Stanton, David Weathers, John Franco, and Orber Moreno. The lowest ERA in the bunch is Weathers' at 5.40.

Jae Weong Seo (0-2, 8.00) vs Greg Maddux (0-2, 8.62)

If Greg is going to get things under control, a start against a lousy lineup and a rotten opposing starter would seem like a great time to do it. Seo will be making his second fill-in start while Scott Erickson is disabled. In his first fill-in start, he gave up seven runs on ten hits and got chased in the fifth inning. By the Pirates (sorry Rob). He was actually pretty good last year (3.82 ERA). He is right-handed but had a rather extreme reverse platoon split last year (.797 OPS against righties vs .648 against lefties) and this year (1.140/.686).

Tyler Yates (1-1, 3.86) vs Kerry Wood (2-1, 3.48)

Apparently a 4.00 ERA is considered good when you are a Met, because it was enough to get unheralded prospect Tyler Yates named best spring pitcher and inserted in the starting rotation. He's pitched well in two starts against the dreadful Expo offense and got hammered in his one start against someone else. Righties are hitting .409 off him, albeit in just those three major league games.

Al Leiter (1-0, 0.52) vs Matt Clement (2-1, 2.76)Good Matt has been slowly trying to emerge, and we could really use him against Very Good Al. Leiter has allowed just one run in three starts, but thanks to the Met offense he has just one win and two no-decisions to show for it. I am looking for good news about Leiter, but all I can come up with is at least we aren't facing their other rejuvenated ace, Tom Glavine (2-1, 1.00).

Summary

Certainly the first two games are very winnable. Sunday looks tough, but Leiter isn't Dutch Leonard so his ERA has to come back up over 1.00 at some point. Let's stay hot and pick up three more wins.
posted by Scott at 8:19 AM : |

 

Scary

I've seen at least four fellow CBA soldiers write words to the effect of "I sure would like a blowout or two" or "I asked for an easy game and here it is" or... well, you get the idea. I am tempted to step outside and ask for a million dollars. Tonight Pirate starter Josh Fogg lasted six batters (all six of whom would come around) and 0.0 innings before the mercy hook came. Are we looking like the '27 Yanks or what? This team has some offensive problems I have whined about at great length, but darned if I could point to one right this minute.

Lost in the excitement of another offensive explosion were a couple of important pitching performances. First off, Sergio dropped his ERA to 2.89 with his second top-notch outing in three starts on the year. He struck out seven and allowed just four hits in six innings of work. If he can keep producing quality starts two out of every three times out, missing Mark Prior might not be the end of our hopes after all. On the downside, Joe Borowski gave up three hits and a run while striking out nobody in the ninth. Kudos to Dusty for the way he is handling the situation, but sooner or later Joe will need to find his groove or Hawkins will need to be given the ace reliever job.

Two non-Cub notes. First, I am closing in on the new house. Part of the moving adventure will be making decisions on television (cable or sattelite), internet (cable or bell dsl), and phone service (cable landline, work cell, personal cell, bell landline, or some combination thereof). I was saying to a friend at our poker game tonight that my decision would be simplified if I didn't have to worry about losing my email my email address if I changed ISPs. I also said to him that it is a shame Google's new Gmail is months away from going live, because I would switch to them for my main email addy in a heartbeat. I'll be darned if I didn't log onto Blogger (owned by Google) to post a few minutes ago, and get a Gmail beta testing offer! I am now lange17@gmail.com! If you are so inclined, take a minute to drop me a line there and help me test it out. Thanks!

The other thing is that I am watching Bonds go for eight in a row in San Francisco tonight. That wuss Jake Peavey got two very fortunate calls to strikeout Bonds in the second and now seems determined to walk him on four pitches every time the rest of the night to make sure he doesn't get the record. With an 8-0 lead, grooving fastballs is a better strategy than walking him, so we can deduce that Jake Peavy is more interested in stopping Bonds from getting the record than he is in winning the game. Congratulations Jake, your courage is a shining example to us all.

posted by Scott at 12:13 AM : |

 

Good guys roll

On a temperate spring evening, we jumped on the home team for a big first inning and rode strong pitching and defense to a big win. I speak of course of the SCS Engineering softball team's 16-9 opening day win over last year's Engineering division champs, Haines & Gipson. We seamlessly folded a couple of newcomers into the lineup and were nearly flawless in the field (at least by our standards.) I was happy with my performance- 3-3 with four RBIs, and I caught a guy in a rundown to end the game. With a man on second and one out, the batter grounded back to the pitcher who threw to me at first. I made the putout, and came off the bag toward the runner who for some reason was edging off second in a seven run game. I ran right at him, just like they tell you, and closed ground until he committed to third base. I threw, the third baseman made the tag, and it was a textbook one-throw rundown. It may not seem like a big deal, but for a player of limited talent like myself I was darn proud.

So anyway, the Cubs won too. I know, its anti-climatic after the big softball news, but bear with me. Big Z had another fine game, allowing just one run on seven hits and two walks. He struck out only four but kept the ball in the yard and rarely was in trouble. The bats remained hot, rocking Ryan Vogelsong for the second time in a week. Patterson, Walker, Barrett, and even Alex Gonzalez homered for the Cubs.

If I had some mental discipline, I would be complaining about Carlos pitching the eighth in an eight-run ballgame, but if I complained about outings in the one-teens Dusty would have me writing about him and nothing else. Sergio goes tomorrow. Let's get him some runs and not waste another good start.

posted by Scott at 9:59 PM : |

 

Series Preview: Cubs at Pirates

You saw the Bucs last week, so this will be short and sweet. Let's get to it.

Game One: Carlos Zambrano (1-0, 1.38) vs Ryan Vogelsong (1-1, 7.20)

The official favorite Cub of Let's Play Two has been the best Cub pitcher on the year. He had his way with this Pirate lineup last Thursday, and on paper he certainly seems likely to do it again.

By contrast, the Cubs mauled Vogelsong on Wednesday. He allowed homers to Alou and Ramirez, and a total of ten hits and seven runs in three innings of work. He actually pitched very well in his first start of the year against the Phillies, so don't expect another pushover performance.

Game Two: Sergio Mitre (0-0, 4.26) vs Josh Fogg (0-2, 12.00)

That's one brilliant start and one shaky one for Mitre so far. His job is to give the Cubs a chance to win, and so far he is more or less doing just that. He hasn't been striking anyone out, but he has compensated with a lovely 3.38 groundball/flyball ratio. Give the opposing starter's woes, a quality start should mean a win.

Speaking of opposing starter's woes, you read right: Josh Fogg has a worse ERA than Maddux. He's managed nine innings in two starts, and allowed twelve earned runs on six walks, fourteen hits, and six big flys. That is not good pitching. It should be a contrast in styles, as Fogg's G/F ratio is 0.75 (career 1.24).

Game Three: Kerry Wood (2-1, 3.48) vs Kip Wells (2-1, 1.89)

This is Kerry's first outing since the 131 pitch fiasco over the weekend. Kerry has been down a couple of MPH from last year so far, but with acceptable control and good stuff, his performance has been pretty good. The Big Red C had some research that showed Kerry's performance was down in the start after a high-pitch count outing last year. I actually did similar research early last year and found no such effect. Regardless, all signs will certainly be on Kerry to see if he can bounce back from the big 131.

Even a blind organization finds a decent pitching performance now and then, and the Pirates' man has been opening day starter Kip Wells. He's had three quality starts in three outings, and he's got 20 strikeouts in nineteen innings. What's more, his manager hasn't put him through any 131 pitch death marches lately. Ok, I'll stop now.

Summary

Each of these pitching matchups looks favorable, and it would sure be nice to get hot here. I'll give you a good shortcut for determining how the series is going. Check the comments at the end of the most recent post here at the Lounge. If Pittsburgh Rob has posted, like he did last Tuesday, it means we lost. If he has vanished like he did each of the next two days, Cubs win, Cubs win!
posted by Scott at 9:56 PM : |

 

Let's go, batter up, we're taking the afternoon off

What's better than a water main break in your office building sending everyone home for the day? When all that happens on a day the Cubs are on TV in the afternoon! Within an hour of the announcement, a poker game had broken out in my living room (two blocks from work). A couple hours later I was raking in the chips as I watched Derrek Lee cap a five-run seventh with a grand slam. Matt Clement looked good, Ramirez homered again, and Todd Walker drew three walks in the leadoff slot. Pretty much the only negative was the Cubs' seventh-inning explosion came at the expense of my roto reliever, Ryan Wagner. Small price to pay, I say.
posted by Scott at 9:15 PM : |

 

Maddux, Borowski hit hard again in loss

After Friday's big win, I had the first glimmer of real optimism I've had this season. Two days and two gut-wrenching losses later, that went out the door in a hurry. Our big free agent acquisition saw his ERA jump from 7.45 to 8.62, worse than even my relatively pessimistic projection. Our closer continues to struggle- today walking two and allowing two runs as his ERA jumped from 6.75 to 9.00.

The bats remained hot, although that's probably partly attributable to a stiff outbound breeze. Sammy had two more homers, and six other Cubs had multi-hit days as well. Also, Dr. Tightpants had a good outing for once.

I guess I am trying to talk myself into thinking everything is going to be OK. I don't really think its working. Its a team built on five aces. One is pitching pretty well. A second is struggling. The third hasn't pitched this badly since he was a wild rookie for the Cubs (who else?) back in 1987. No, come to think of it, he is worse now. Three and a half runs of ERA worse. So anyway, the fourth has a manager who is vowing to take him to the next level." What on earth does that mean? The next level on the team's health insurance deductible? Oh, and lest I forget, the fifth is indefinitely disabled. No wait, wait! THIS JUST IN! MARK PRIOR HAS CONDUCTED A TOWEL DRILL! HE WAS NEAR BUT NOT ON A PITCHER'S MOUND. REPEAT, NEAR BUT NOT ON A PITCHER'S MOUND.

On top of all that, I can't go all-in without the schmo who calls me beating me on the river. I admit that's not exactly on topic, but it still fits with my overall feeling that it would be really nice if some luck would flow the right way for once. Is that too much to ask?

posted by Scott at 8:37 PM : |

 

131

Let's deal with the umpiring thing first. Umpires who bait players and/or show up players are a pet peeve of mine. If a player yells at an ump, the ump should turn the other cheek. If the player continues to yell or says something seriously personal and/or offensive, the player should be tossed. And that's it. Those are the only actions an umpire should take. No umpire should ever bait a player, and certainly no umpire should ever stalk out toward a player like Eric Cooper did to Kerry Wood today. And yet, in the grand scheme of things, the amateur job done by the umpiring crew this weekend just isn't that important. You know what is? 131 pitches.

One hundred and thirty-one pitches.

That's how many pitches Kerry Wood threw today. In a mid-April game. When the team's other star pitcher has some mystery condition and isn't going to pitch any time in the forseeable future. When you've got a bullpen full of guys, at least two or three of whom could have come in to pitch. When Kerry had allowed a homer in the seventh, a walk and wild pitch in the eighth, and a single and a walk to lead off the ninth.

Nobody knows for sure that these particular 131 pitches are going to cause an injury or loss of effectiveness. What I do know is that this manager and this organization are acting with reckless disregard for that possibility. If Kerry Wood does go down or lose velocity or lose his control, we'll deserve what we get. I have found the enemy, and it is us.

posted by Scott at 10:58 PM : |

 

Life is good

I've tried like four different intros and I am coming up with nothing. I just have no idea how to write about a game like that. Do I focus on baseball's worst umpire, a man whose strike zone varied so wildly that Argyles got to listen to both WLW and WGN shred his effort (not to mention tossing both managers for situations for which he was to blame)? Or do I talk about the never-say-die Cubs, who came back from 2-0, 4-1, 9-4, and 10-7 scores today? Or do I skip to the finish, when Sammy Sosa tied Ernie Banks with his 512th Cub homer followed two pitches later by a walk-off blast from Moises? What about Ryan Freel, catching a pop-foul bunt from Corey Patterson with a head-long dive into the fence down the third baseline, only to have Todd Walker tag up and sprint into second anyway? And then I would need to mention how just one batter later, when there is a long-fly ball to center and Wendell waves Walker from second base... to home plate (he was out by 30 feet). Hold on, maybe I should lead with our pinch-hit hero, Todd Hollandsworth, who has three hits for twelve total bases on the year.

You get the idea. It was a game that would not have been at all out of place in last year's September series with the Cardinals, and that's about the highest praise I can give a game. It was loads of fun, but I wouldn't mind at all if we could have some nice relaxing wins the rest of the weekend, at least till we can get our blood pressure back down.

posted by Scott at 12:34 AM : |

 

Are you kidding me?

Despite the best efforts of the worst umpire in baseball, the Cubs triumphed in one of the wildest games you will ever see. Sammy and Moises back-to-back. I am on my way out to see a movie, so I'll have to post more later. This is our year!!
posted by Scott at 6:45 PM : |

 

Series Preview: Reds at Cubs

These guys again? The Cubs will face the Reds for a second time in the young season. I'm a little bit too lazy to rewrite the whole preview, so just look here for the lineup breakdown. So far on the year, Adam Dunn has four homers and a 1.359 OPS to lead the way for the Red offense. Brandon Larsson is rehabbing in Louisville and Barry Larkin has a stiff forearm, so the Cubs may be seeing more of Ryan Freel and Juan Castro on the left side of the infield.

Game One: Aaron Harang (1-0, 1.50) vs Sergio Mitre (0-0, 2.35)

Harang is a hittable pitcher, even if you wouldn't know it from his first start against the Pirates. He allowed 1.3 HR/9 IP last year, and he doesn't have the stuff to strike many people out. His major asset is good control, although the joke is on him- we never get to a fourth pitch in a plate appearance anwyay! Sergio is coming off a great outing in Atlanta so here's to more of the same.

Game Two: Cory Lidle (1-1, 4.50) vs Kerry Wood (2-0, 3.75)

Lidle lived down to my harsh evaluation in the last series preview, as the Cubs jumped on him for five earned in five innings. He did bounce back against the Pirates, picking up a 3-1 win as he allowed just six hits and no walks in seven strong innings. I'd bet on the Opening Day Lidle being the real one.

Game Three: Paul Wilson (2-0, 0.63) vs Greg Maddux (0-2, 7.45)

Thanks to a rainout Wednesday in Philly, Cincy has decided to keep Wilson on regular rest and give Haynes two extra days. With the way Wilson has looked so far, you can't blame them for trying to maximize his time on the mound. I am not too impressed with Wilson's numbers- he's struckout just eight men in his 14.1 innings- so I am not too worried that we are running into Bob Gibson here. Of course, we are countering with a guy who hasn't looked much like a Hall-of-Famer himself, so it may be a war. With luck, both these guys will pitch around their career norms and we'll win going away.

Game Four: Jimmy Haynes (0-1, 8.31) vs Matt Clement(1-1, 3.60)

He's had a lousy strikeout rate for years and he sports a career ERA of 5.33. Still, supposedly free of back problems that have plagued in the past, Jimmy Haynes was touted by some as a sleeper coming into this season. Through one start though, he pretty much looks like the same old Jimmy Haynes. The Pirates chased him with one out in the fifth after he allowed eight hits, two walks, and a homer while striking out just two. I want to see Matt build on his decent outing yesterday and pick up a win here.
posted by Scott at 12:34 AM : |

 

Zzzzz

Big Z rocked the Pirates to sleep allowing the Cubs to take a 10-5 win in the rubber game this afternoon at Wrigley. Carlos struck out six in six innings and allowed just one run before leaving with a big lead. Pittsburgh scored two off Wuertz and hit two homers off Beltran, but LaTroy Hawkins came on and got the final out. Thankfully, Beltran was getting his feet wet in a game that was a rout, and not a 2-1 nailbiter in the eighth at Turner Field. Theoretically. If you know what I mean. Anyway, Alou, Barrett, and Ramirez all homered for the second consecutive day. Barrett homered a second time for his first career multi-homer game. The Pirates aren't the '27 Yanks, but they all count the same in the standings. The Reds come to town tomorrow, and I'll have a series preview up shortly.
posted by Scott at 12:03 AM : |

 

Cubs bounce back

The Cubs batted around in the third to knock out Pirate starter Ryan Vogelsong en route to an 8-3 win this afternoon at Wrigley. Aramis Ramirez blasted his first two homers of the year and Todd Walker had three RBIs. Not a bad performance, except for the fact that I had be at work. I swear if they didn't pay me there is no way I would keep going there every day.

Since I didn't get to see it, I'll try to compensate by going inside the box score a bit. First off, there's my #1 worry among players on the active roster, Matt Clement. Matt's line today looked pretty good: zero runs on two hits and three walks with seven strikeouts. On the other hand, if you add in a HBP on Bobby Hill, that's four free passes in six innings with just 56 strikes in 103 pitches. I suppose its a step forward, but I'm not really going to feel safe until he's got a few more quality starts under his belt.

Worry #2 is my boy from the 770, Corey Patterson. In the first inning, he struck out on three pitches. In the second, he flew out to center on the first pitch. In the third, he struck out on five pitches. In the fifth it was a six-pitch K, and in the eighth it was five pitches for the Golden Sombrero. Its a good thing I am skeptical of small sample sizes, or that would be a really depressing day. It makes for a 9/1 K/BB ratio so far, and that after finishing 261st out of 264 in the majors among players with as many or more PA in that category last year.

One last personal note: I've got another shocking Final Four basketball team to tell you about. That's right, the #5 seed SCS Engineering hoopsters shocked the world by defeating the #4 seed Moore Hoops tonight to advance to the Final Four. I've got no t-shirts or other merchandise in stock right now, so please hold your emails. I'll let you know if we get some in.

posted by Scott at 10:11 PM : |

 

Celebrate

The Cubs haven't lost to a talent-poor in-division foe in over 24 hours. Woo-hoo!
posted by Scott at 10:07 PM : |

 

Ugly

Well, that was about as bad as a team can look, but there is no reason to crawl out on the ledge. Greg Maddux isn't winning the Cy Young this year, but you knew that when we signed him. This offense is capable of laying the occasional egg, but you knew that too. Its certainly not a good sign, but neither does it mean any more bad things than yesterday's mauling of the Braves meant good things. Come back inside. Everything is going to be ok.
posted by Scott at 9:58 PM : |

 

Series Preview: Cubs vs Pirates

There were some ups and downs and one very long night this week, but its all evened out and the Cubs find themselves 3-3, one game behind the first-place Reds. We head to Wrigley to open the home schedule against the Pirates this Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday afternoon.

The Pirates

Catcher-Jason Kendall has survived countless trade rumors to remain Pittsburgh's starting catcher. After suffering a horrible right tib/fib fracture in the midst of his best season in 1999, he returned to post an OPS of .882 in 2000. He struggled the next two seasons (.693 and .706) to the point that the Pirates entertained the idea of moving him to left field. I can't explain how putting a struggling hitter at a position that calls for more offense is supposed to help, so forward any e-mails on that subject to Craig Biggio. Anyway, Kendall bounced back for a solid .815 OPS last year with an OBP of .399. Kendall's speed is nearly gone and he had his worst year throwing out basestealers last year at only 26.7%.

First Base- Craig Wilson and the late great Randall Simon are platooning at first for the Bucs this year. You likely remember what you get with Simon- good contact hitter with moderate power who has less value than he should because he never, ever draws a walk. Wilson swings a ferocious stick against lefties- he's got a 1.123 OPS against southpaws over his three seasons in the bigs but a mediocre .736 against righties.

Second Base- The Bucs are going with an interesting platoon at second, sharing time between right-handed rookie Jose Castillo and switch-hitting Cubs castoff Bobby Hill. Lloyd McClendon has said he is going to dole out starts to each of them depending on matchups with the opposing pitcher on any given night. I really like this approach, as it will give both guys a chance for some PT against all types of pitchers as well as creating opportunities to maximize matchups beyond the traditional L/R. Neither man has much power and neither hits for a great average. Hill draws a few more walks while Castillo is faster.

Third Base- Chris Stynes is getting the majority of time at the hot corner while being occasionally spelled by lefty Rob Mackowiak. Stynes is a utility man who has a shown a decent stick at times and a good enough glove to get by. Pittsburgh is his seventh stop in ten big league seasons though, and at 31 he is on the downside of his career.

Shortstop- Jack Wilson remains the starting SS in Pittsburgh, a fact central to the strategies of countless Hacking Mass teams. He is good but not great with the glove, and unless he finally gets his OBP up over .300 this year that's not enough to make him worth having in the lineup.

Left Field- This is where Raul Mondesi lands when the good teams don't want him anymore and a bad team thinks signing him will show they are doing something. Not that he is a bad player- he still retains some speed and some defensive value and he posted an .827 OPS last year. The fact that the Pirates' money might have been better spent elsewhere doesn't mean the Cubs pitchers can afford to take him lightly.

Center Field- Tike Redman has the job. He's a good defensive outfielder who likes to run and rarely strikes out. This is Redman's first full-time job, but he's already 27 so his upside is limited. His 42 steals in 51 attempts for AAA Nashville last year mean the Cubs will have to pay close attention if he gets on.

Right Field- J. J. Davis gets starts against lefties, but Craig Wilson will see most of the playing time in Chicago. A converted pitcher, Davis is coming off a strong .342/.554 OBP/SLG at Nashville last year.

Game One: Kris Benson (0-0, 5.40) vs Greg Maddux (0-1, 4.50)

All the attention will be on Maddux as he returns to Wrigley Field wearing a Cubs uniform. The Pirates counter with Benson, who hasn't been the same since losing the 2001 season to Tommy John surgery. He started 2003 strong, but his ERA edged up throughout the spring until shoulder pain in July caused Pittsburgh to shut him down for the year. He was mediocre in spring and in his first regular season start.

Game Two: Ryan Vogelsong (1-0, 1.29) vs Matt Clement (0-1, 9.00)

Clement is coming off a lousy spring and a lousier first start in Cincinnati. The Cubs may need to put crooked numbers on the board to win this one. Vogelsong is a righty with a fastball in the mid to high 90's. He has been a prospect for San Francisco and Pittsburgh for some time, but has not yet broken through. This year has been a different story so far though, as he put up 29 Ks and a 2.05 ERA in 26 spring innings, and blew away the Phillies in his first start last week.

Game Three: Josh Fogg (0-1, 5.40) vs Carlos Zambrano (0-0, 1.29)

Carlos was the star of the first turn through the vaunted Cub rotation, allowing a solo homer to Andruw Jones and little else in seven strong innings. Fogg brings only so-so stuff to the table, with a fastball that rarely reaches 90. He struck out just 71 hitters in 142 innings last year, a sign that he is very hittable. He is more effective against righties, holding them to a .737 OPS, 130 points lower than he allows lefties.

Summary

Not even Chairman Mao attempted this many five-year plans with this little success. There are no stars here, and precious few guys who seem likely to be even above-average. This is another team the Cubs are going to see a lot in the Central, and another team they should really be beating up on.

PS- If my friend Robert in Pittsburgh is reading this, never mind what I said. The Pirates are great and I think this really may be the year.

posted by Scott at 10:54 PM : |

 

Two out of three ain't bad

or

A dozen Easter observations from Turner Field

• I got off to a slow start this morning, so I was running around the concourse to my section as the Braves took the field. I made it up the portal in time to see Ross Ortiz's first pitch and to my seat in time for his lineout. I did not however get my scorebook out in time to see Corey launch one to about the same spot Holly hit his Friday. Not that I am complaining, although somewhere Joe Morgan probably is.
• I hated to see Derrek Lee out of the lineup today. He is one of only two truly dangerous hitters in our lineup. With an off-day coming Tuesday and assuming there was no extenuating circumstance I am unaware of, I don't see why this was necessary.
• It was fortunate that it didn't come back to haunt us, but at the time I was awfully upset with Moises' baserunning gaffe. I looked back to the runners after the ball was caught, only to see him heading back to second to retouch it. Unless he passed the bag (which he may have as I was watching the flight of the ball) there was no need to retouch, but either way he has got to leave himself time to get back to the base.
• Coming off the double play, Kerry almost immediately found himself with runners on second and third and nobody out. It looked like the pendulum was swinging toward the Braves, but then all of the sudden Kerry reared back and mowed down the heart of the Braves order- Jones, Drew, and Jones, all swinging. Marvelous performance in a big spot.
• Entering the stadium today, I got a promotional giveaway of a Kerry Wood baseball card. I made a mental note to rant about how pathetic it was that the Braves had a giveaway featuring the Cubs starting pitcher. Right around the time Kerry was striking out the side in the third, I noticed that the guy in front of me had three cards and none of them were Kerry. I pulled my giveaway out and found that I actually had a pack (Wood, Torii Hunter, and Reggie Sanders) and that it was pure luck that I had gotten Wood at all, much less as the top card in the pack. Whatsmore, the first K of the third inning was Chipper Jones, the man identified on the back of the Wood card as his "toughest batter to face." That had to be a sign, right? Four more consecutive swinging strikeouts later, I had my answer.
• That wacky J. D. Drew was trying to bunt again today. I don't think its a bad strategy exactly- if you do it in moderation maybe you keep the third baseman honest and/or get a cheap base hit every now and then. Drew seems to be using it as his preferred approach at the plate though, and that just makes no sense when you've got good power (and for that matter show no signs of being able to get any of those bunts down.)
• Between the sixth and the seventh innings, the Braves now apparently do an eating contest between two fans. Today's contestants were dressed as the Easter bunny and a chicken respectively. The bunny took a smashing victory when he shoved the entire carton of Peeps into his mouth in the first ten seconds, then rammed a foot-long hot dog with bun into his mouth on top of it. The chicken never knew what hit him.
• It was nice to see some guys who have been struggling a bit get on track thanks to the eminently hittable Will Cunnane. He very nearly gave up five consecutive homers in the eighth, with Gonzalez and Alou homering, Hollandsworth pulling a long fly ball just outside the foul pole, and Aramis and Barrett each flying out to the top of the wall.
• This game featured two more foul sac flies for the Cubs. Each one today brought heckles from Braves fans, but at least one and probably both of today's were situations were I think you have to take the out. Drew's catch Friday was the only one I thought was a flat-out bad decision, and that was the only one I didn't hear people complaining about. (Although that could have been because all the Braves fans were home in bed for Friday's.)
• Let's give Dusty some credit for bringing the timely hook for his starting pitchers this series. Today he had a chance to pinch-hit for Kerry after 105 pitches and he actually took it! Would it be too much to hope this is a new way of doing business for the Cubs?
• I am not too big on taunting the other team's fans, but the tomahawk chop is practically begging for it. As such, it was nice to see the mock chop return to the Ted for the first time since the late innings of Game Five last year.
• Finally, I'm happy to bring two wins in three tries here in my hometown. If only Dennis were holding up his side of the deal, we'd be in first place right now. But I digress... We'll be back in the morning with a series preview for the home opening series against the Bucs.

posted by Scott at 5:16 PM : |

 

Does Dusty see why drawing walks is good yet?

or

15 somewhat less enjoyable observations from Turner Field

• Plenty of people including myself have used the phrase "Wrigley Field South", but I think some guys I tailgated near today take the cake. Under their "Wrigley Field South banner, they had a four-piece brick wall, draped with ivy, with a ten-foot replica left field foul pole complete with "Hey Hey" and 353. Nice work, gentlemen.
• Your 2004 Georgia Tech Yellow Jacket men's basketball team was honored to a loud ovation before the game. After they gathered for a picture at the mound, they called Sammy Sosa over and asked him to be in a picture with them. No Braves, just Sammy. Pretty cool.
• It was nice to see Greg Maddux so effective in his return to Atlanta. What? That was Sergio Mitre coaxing ten groundouts hit to himself and Derek Lee combined? Wow.
• The first inning of Mitre's start reminded me a lot of his first inning in his first major league start here last year. Last year, a Goodwin error led to a Braves run. This time, it was a wretched jump by Goodwin on an easy liner to center leading to a Braves run. Perhaps the year in between gave Mitre the maturity to not come unravelled this time.
• J. D. Drew shows or tries to bunt for a hit more than any other cleanup hitter I have ever seen. He did it at least twice last night and twice more tonight, and thats'... well, four more times than any other cleanup hitter I have ever seen.
• The Braves have a dance team now. I thought it was entirely un-baseballlike when I saw it at Joe Robbie last October, but at least it kind of fits the motif in Miami. In Atlanta its just odd.
• At Georgia Tech sports events, the band plays the Budweiser song and the fans do the Budweiser dance. Don't ask, its just a thing. The Braves play the Budweiser song too, but for a sponsorship deal. I wouldn't normally, but with Coach Hewitt and the team in the house I had to do the dance. Forgive me.
• Pop Quiz: Which of these pitchers could the '04 Cubs make look like Walter Friggin' Johnson: A) Paul Wilson B) Horacio Ramirez C) Jaret Wright D) Antonio Alfonseca
• I realize Dusty wanted to give some of the guys who played fifteen innings a break, and I think it was a good move to give them some rest and get some lefties in the lineup against Wright. What I don't like is clustering the lefties at the top and bottom of the order. This allowed Bobby Cox to go to C. J. Nitkowski who got to retire four batters without facing a right-handed position player before calling out the crane to lower Alfonseca into place to face Sosa.
• Among Braves fans, you see mostly street clothes with the occasional Chipper or Andruw jersey. That's it. Today I saw Cubs jerseys of Sosa, Wood, Prior, Patterson, Maddux, Choi, Grace, Sandberg, Santo, Banks, and Tuffy Rhodes. Seriously.
• We held a 2-1 lead in the eighth when a woman came and sat in the chair next to me that had been empty and began changing her baby's diaper. Its not like she was solely responsible, but let's just say it wasn't an encouraging smell.
• Two out and one on and Dusty lifts the starting pitcher. A shockingly early hook by Dusty's standards, but Mitre's taken us as far as we needed. Time to turn it over to one of our several ace relievers. You can practically pick randomly and come up with a top-notch guy out of that pen. And the call is going to be for...
• Andy Pratt. Sigh. I still can't believe we gave away Juan Cruz for him, but let's go beyond that. Why go with a wild pitcher in a key situation at the end of a game just because he's got the platoon advantage? There isn't one pitcher in the Cubs bullpen I less wanted to see, and yet he gets to throw eight balls in nine pitches and give the game away. Does anyone really think Pratt/Chipper is a better matchup than Farnsworth/Chipper or Hawkins/Chipper?
• Farnsworth doesn't get totally off the hook, but its hard to blame him when you walk the bases loaded before bringing him in. And you have to give Franco credit on his at-bat- Farns gave him 13 pitches and just couldnt finish him. Tip your cap.
• Pop quiz answer: E) All of the above as well as my 89 year old grandmother Kathy. There are still too many black holes in this lineup.

posted by Scott at 12:05 AM : |

 

Todd Holly sittin' dead RED

I don't have the right mix of energy and writing talent to come up with a coherent game story, so I'm doing bullet points! Woo-hoo!

17 Observations from Turner Field

• 4:32? That was unquestionably the fastest fifteen inning, twelve pitching change game I have ever been to.
• I sat in the bleachers for BP. The Braves showed "classic Bravesvision" on the Diamondvision, a Maddux versus Smoltz matchup from July 10, 1992. Oddly, they chose the 4-0 Braves win and not the 8-0 Maddux win over Smoltz from July 5 of the same year. Anyway, a few innings into it, Clement, Wood, and Maddux were in centerfield and noticed the game. Maddux was riveted, and spent a couple innings watching the game and talking to Clement and Wood about it. I would have loved to hear that conversation.
• Kent Mercker earned unanimous boos from the BP crowd (65% Cubs fans) when he threw his glove in the air and knocked down a ball that was headed for the fifth row of the bleachers. He picked the ball up, but got booed again when he threw it back toward the infield instead of into the stands. Harsh.
• The Braves have a bit between innings where a fan tries to answer the Cingular trivia question on a Cingular cell phone. Today's contestant gave an answer, but nobody could make out what he said. After a long silence from the PA guy, the fan shouted, "Can you hear me!?" to much laughter. That's a poorly spent advertising budget if you ask me.
• Z was a bit shaky early on, but after Andruw's homer eeked over the left field wall, he turned it up a notch. Its good to see at least one starting pitcher on his game.
• My dad pointed out that second base ump Laz Diaz positioned himself about halfway between second base and Corey Patterson with nobody on base. He was a good fifty feet deeper than I ever recall seeing a second base ump.
• Speaking of umpires, Cubs batters walked away shaking their head after a number of called third strikes from John Hirschbeck. I had a horrible angle to judge the corners, but where there's smoke there is fire, no?
• Hollandsworth's bomb wouldn't have mattered without the job the Cubs did in the bottom of the eighth. Dr. Tightpants struck out Mark DeRosa before allowing a soft groundball up the middle and a bloop double down the left field line to put men on second and third with just one out. Jesse Garcia hit a soft liner to right that looked like trouble, but Sammy sprinted in and made the shoestring catch before unleashing a bullet to Barrett, chest-high to hold the runner. Farnsie then blew away Marcus Giles to end the inning. Great work, all around.
• Heading to the bottom of the ninth, at least half the Braves fans were already gone and hundreds more walked out as Smoltz walked in. The plantive voice of one five year-old following his parents down the aisle said it all- "But Daddy, they're still playing." Stupid parents.
• And what a shot that kid missed. Smoltz was clearly hurting badly at the end of last season and he's been struggling so far this year, but when he got two weak comebackers for the first two outs he was looking darn near invincible. Then Todd Hollandsworth vinced him.
• People call long homers "no doubt about it," but they're not easy to judge in person, at least for me. I almost always have to track the outfielders to see where its going to go, even on a long one. This was the exception though. From the crack of the bat there was truly no doubt at all. He just mauled it.
• Andy Pratt: wild at times, low ceiling, two outs and two walks tonight before having to be yanked mid-inning. Juan Cruz: wild at times, high ceiling, five strikeouts in three scoreless innings tonight. I am just saying.
• I love Joe Borowski, I really do, but his velocity is way down. Unless he gets it back, I think we may be seeing LaTroy Hawkins in as closer out of necessity.
• We pulled it out in the end, but between a lack of clutch hits and an excess of out-wasting bunts we sure blew some chances between innings 9 and 15. At one point in the eleventh, we had first and second with nobody out, Ramon Martinez ahead in the count 3-1, and the Braves infielders all out of position trying to play the bunt. Nearly any groundball anywhere is a go-ahead single, but we force a bunt into the ground and then hit into the DP on 3-2. Would it be so bad to let someone swing the bat every now and then?
• Wendell held Aramis at third with nobody out in the fifteenth. There is no telling what would have happened if he had been sent, but with nobody out I think it was the right move. I was surprised and pleased to see Wendell's hands up.
• What was J. D. Drew doing catching the foul ball in the fifteenth inning? Don't you have to let that drop and try to keep the game tied? Is the out worth a run there? I don't know what he was thinking, but I'll take it.
• And that's all I've got. It was lot's of fun, and so much easier on the nerves than the similarly tight playoff games I was watching last October. We're tailgating before the game tomorrow, so stop by and look for the tall guy in the Choi jersey if you are in town. (FWIW, I did order a Patterson jersey to wear this year but they had an inventory snafu and it didn't come.)

posted by Scott at 2:24 AM : |

 

Welcome to Atlanta

Despite the losses in Cincinnati, let me set your fears to rest: this wasn't me. That's right, the season isn't over yet, and I aim to go down to the Ted and see the Cubs get things in gear this weekend in Atlanta. On a sidenote, Dusty is apparently even more ready than I am- he had the Cubs team bus stop at Turner Field on the way from Hartsfield to the hotel so he and Chip could get off and attend Hank Aaron night. I am not a huge fan of Aaron's, but I certainly think it's cool of Dusty to make it to the game. He sat in with Skip and Joe, and Skip blew right past the whole "what was it like to be on-deck thirty years ago tonight when Aaron hit #715" and instead got right to the important stuff: When will Prior be back? Dusty said he is throwing with no discomfort, but wouldn't give anything on a return date. Sigh.

The Braves

Mark Twain famously said that reports of his death had been greatly exaggerated, but even he kicked the bucket sooner or later. This edition of the Braves still has some quality players, but more prognosticators than ever see the run of division titles coming to an end. The first change is behind the plate where rookie Johnny Estrada steps in for longtime Brave Javier Lopez. Estrada had a good season in AAA last year, but I don't see him matching Javy's single-season record 42 homers by a catcher. The next new face in the Braves lineup is Adam LaRoche, a rookie first-baseman who was born during his platoon partner's second professional season. The Braves might have the best tandem up the middle of anyone in Marcus Giles and Rafael Furcal, and both have solid gloves as well. Utility man Mark DeRosa is set to get most of the time at third base.

The Jones boys return in left and center, but Gary Sheffield is in pinstripes leaving ex-Cardinal J. D. Drew in his stead. Drew has All-Star talent if he can stay healthy enough to be in the lineup. Bobby Cox and John Schuerholz always manage to cobble together a cheap and effective bullpen *cough*. This year's edition is comprised of John Smoltz and a bunch of other teams' castoffs including C. J. Nitkowski, Chris Reitsma, and familiar faces Juan Cruz, Will Cunnane, and Antonio Alfonseca. Don't laugh, Alf will probably throw five scoreless innings against us this weekend.

Game One: Carlos Zambrano (0-0, 0.00) vs Horacio Ramirez (0-0, 0.00)

Ramirez is a groundball lefty who pitched respectably as a rookie last year despite iffy minor league numbers. He spent part of his offseason serving as the ace of the American team that failed to qualify for the Olympics. He was held in reserve for a single-elimination semifinal game that never happened when the American team lost 2-1 to Mexico in the quarterfinal. I don't know whose idea a single-elimination baseball tournament was, but there's not much to be done about that now.

Last year Ramirez stepped in out of nowhere as yet another Leo Mazzone surprise. His peripherals weren't anything to write home about, but with some gutty pitching and help from his defense he managed to cobble together a 12-4 record with a 4.00 ERA. He had a huge platoon split last year (.809 OPS vs righties, .585 vs lefties) which would seem to play into the Cubs hands.

Game Two: Kerry Wood (1-0, 7.20) vs Jaret Wright (0-0, 0.00)

Dusty is taking advantage of the off-day to delay Sergio's start as long as possible, a move I can't really argue with. Kerry got hit pretty hard in the opener but got enough support for the win. Jaret Wright seems like he has been around for ever but it was only 1997 when he burst on the scene with three wins in five postseason starts. Since then he struggled year in and year out including an 8.37 ERA in 47 innings in San Diego last season. He was acquired by the Braves, and naturally turned into a beautiful swan immediately as he posted a 2.00 ERA albeit in just eleven relief appearances.

Despite great velocity, its hard to see any room for optimism in Wright's numbers. His control has been poor at every stop along the road, he gives up homers, and he doesn't even strike out as many guys as you would figure with that heater. His spring was unremarkable- 4.57 ERA in 21 innings with six walks, three homers, and seventeen strikeouts. Mazzone is a miracle-worker, but you've got to think this guy is hittable.

Game Three: Sergio Mitre (0-0, 0.00) vs Russ Ortiz (0-1, 11.57)

Atlanta's twenty-game winner from last year got bombed in the spring (6.26 ERA) and in his first start he allowed six runs and was yanked in the third inning. Ortiz has never been a great strikeout or control guy, but he generally keeps the ball in the yard and gives his team a chance to win. The Mets homered twice off him in the opener, it would be nice to see the Cubs continue that trend.

Sergio will be making his third major league start. I fondly remember the first because I watched it with his family behind home plate at Turner Field, and the second because it was Ron Santo day and the Cubs were newly crowned division champs. Sergio is by all accounts a good, hard-working guy and an organizational favorite, but hasn't shown many signs of big-league talent. We could desperately use a big month from him to tide us over till Prior gets back, but it doesn't seem all that likely on paper.

posted by Scott at 9:16 AM : |

 

Reds take series

Sammy Sosa had the big offensive day but it was the Reds who jumped out to the 4-0 lead and held on for a 5-3 win this afternoon. Matt Clement allowed three walks and four runs in four innings before being lifted for a pinch-hitter in the top of the fifth. The Cubs pen combined for four innings allowing just one more run, but despite seven extra-base hits the comeback effort amounted to just three runs. I would suggest that drawing zero walks had something to do with that, but I would hate for Dusty to accuse me of not being agressive enough and trade me to another team's Blog Army.

Dennis was there for the sad sight. If he can stomach it he'll write about the experience, and either way I'll be back with a series preview on the Braves in the morning.

posted by Scott at 8:14 PM : |

 

Maddux debut fizzles

The Cubs lost 3-1 in Cincy today. Maddux had a pedestrian six innings, allowing two homers and two walks while striking out only three. Rookies Mike Wuertz and Andy Pratt were each effective out of the pen. The real story was our offense being overwhelmed by Paul Wilson, who threw seven innings allowing just five baserunners and no runs. It was our Achilles heel last year and while we are certainly improved on paper, today's performance sure isn't going to scare any pitchers. I am not sure if Dennis was able to make today's game, but if he did then he'll be in with a report. Tomorrow is Clement versus Acevedo. I would feel a lot better about things if we could get six strong innings out of Matt.
posted by Scott at 10:57 PM : |

 

Name Game

I am watching the free trial of Extra Innings (not going to pay for it until/unless I get into the new house) telecast of the Giants/Astros game from Houston. San Francisco just brought in rookie reliever David Aardsma for his major league debut, and the announcers pointed out that with his first pitch he displaced Hank Aaron from the top of the list of major league ballplayers in alphabetical order. I generally love seeing a guy make his major league debut, but its a real shame that we have lost the symmetry of having the all-time home run king being first alphabetically as well.

Aardsma just got a double play to complete a scoreless first inning. Good luck, David. Do the Aas proud.

posted by Scott at 10:31 PM : |

 

Cubs Blog Army Prediction Contest

During spring training I wrote up a little prediction contest and fouteen CBA soldiers joined Dennis and myself in entering it. I am putting up an '83 Fleer Ryne Sandberg rookie card from my collection as the prize for the person with the highest score. I'll spare you from all the rules and details, but I'll post the questions now and I'll occasionally update the projected standings, mostly as a way to tease whoever isn't doing well. For instance, on the first question, Jason Steffens predicted the Cubs would win 85 games. The Cubs are currently on pace to win 162 games, so Jason is off by 80 games, worst of any predictor in the contest. What was he thinking?! On the other hand, he was uncannily accurate when he predicted that the Cubs largest single-game run output would come against the Reds, so you have to give him that.

Anyway, here are the current projected standings through one Cubs game. Feel free to laugh at the laggards.

1	Derek Smart	The Big Red C	- 201
2	James L. Crockett	Just North of Wrigley Field	- 182
3	Jason Steffens	Clark & Addison Chronicle	- 172.5
4	Chris Yarborough	Yarbage Cub Review	- 168.5
5	Brian Hipp	Cubs Now!	- 166.5
6	Dennis Goodman	The Northside Lounge	- 164.5
7	Tim Cramm	Eamus Catulli	- 161.5
8	DeShawn Jackson	Bad Century	- 158
9	Christian Ruzich	The Cub Reporter	- 155.5
10	Scott Lange	The Northside Lounge	- 154.5
11	Al Yellon	and another thing!	- 153
12	Alex Ciepley	The Cub Reporter	- 133.5
13	Derek Berger	Let's Play Two	- 131.5
14	Bill Kelly	Rooftop Report	- 129.5
15	Chuck	Ivy Chat	- 127.5
16	Rob Letterly	The Uncouth Sloth	- 120.5

And the questions...

GENERAL (2)
1- How many games will the Cubs win?
2- What will the Cubs attendance be?

PITCHING (7)
3- What will Mark Prior's ERA be?
4- How many batters will Kerry Wood strike out?
5- How many games will Greg Maddux win?
6- How many games will Joe Borowski save?
7- How many games will LaTroy Hawkins save?
8- On what date will Greg Maddux win his 300th game?
9- What rookie will pitch the most innings for the Cubs and how many will he throw?

OFFENSE (7)
10- How many home runs will Sammy Sosa hit?
11- What will Derrek Lee's OPS be?
12- Who will have the most plate appearances, Todd Walker or Mark Grudzialanek, and by how many?
13- How many bases will Corey Patterson steal?
14- How many plate appearances will Moises Alou have?
15- Who will hit the longest Cub home run and how far will it fly?
16- What rookie will have the most plate appearances for the Cubs and how many will he have?

FIELDING (4)
17- How many double plays will Alex Gonzalez turn?
18- How many errors will Cubs third basemen make?
19- At what rate will the Cubs throw out opposing base stealers?
20- Who will lead the Cubs in outfield assists, and with how many?

BONUSES
1- What player currently in another organization will the Cubs trade for during the season?
2- What team will the Cubs have their highest single-game run total against?
3- Who will be the last Cub ejected from a game this year?
4- What Cub will place highest in the NL MVP balloting?
5- Who will throw the final Cub no-hitter of the year?

posted by Scott at 7:05 PM : |

 

Close

I am tired of coming close.

I am tired of having to ask why.

I am tired of loking for reasons and making excuses.

I am tired of saying "if" and "should" and "almost."

I am tired of losing.

The Cubs have a good team this year. Let's not come close. Let's win.

posted by Scott at 11:53 PM : |

 

Series Preview: Cubs at Reds

The Cubs open up the 2004 regular season at the GAB in Cincinnati this Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday. We are going to try writing previews for each series this year, so hopefully we can offer a bit of insight on what will unfold as the games are played.

The Reds

Cincinnati finished their spring schedule two games over .500, and got some encouraging performances from Adam Dunn (1.296 OPS with six homers) and relievers Ryan Wagner and Danny Graves (combined 0.94 ERA in 28.2 innings). Along with Dunn, Austin Kearns and Ken Griffey, Jr. have at least the potential to give the Reds plenty of power in the outfield. The infield is less exciting, with Sean Casey at first and D'Angelo Jimenez and Barry Larkin up the middle. Third baseman Brandon Larson will start the year on the DL, so the Cubs are likely to see speedy Ryan Freel (.865 with eight steals in nine tries this spring). Jason LaRue will see the majority of playing time at catcher, with Corky Miller there to fill in the gaps. LaRue throws out would-be thieves as well as anyone this side of Ivan Rodriguez in his prime, so hopefully the Cubs will be cautious on the basepaths.

Game One: Kerry Wood (0-0, 0.00) vs Cory Lidle (0-0, 0.00)

Kerry Wood, perhaps more than any other Cub, fueled the Cubs' drive to the NLCS. From August 27th against the Cardinals through Game Five against the Braves, Kerry ran off 58.1 innings of 1.08 ERA baseball over eight starts. He was hit fairly hard in the NLCS, but showed no carry-over in Mesa as he posted a 1.05 ERA in six spring starts.

The Reds counter with Cory Lidle, their $2.75M free-agent acquisition. While I had my doubts about the way the Cubs spent their money this off-season, this is a clear reminder that it could be worse. Lidle, who has never been a strikeout pitcher, saw his homer and walk numbers slide a little last year while his ERA slid a lot. The latter ballooned from 3.89 in 2002 to 5.75 in 2003. He's a righty with a bit of a reverse platoon split, a fact which may play into the Cubs hands. Like Wood, Lidle had a strong spring with a 2.65 ERA over four starts.

Game Two: Greg Maddux (0-0, 0.00) vs Paul Wilson (0-0, 0.00)

Greg Maddux was about what you would expect this spring, allowing a 3.91 ERA while walking just three batters over 23 innings. Greg has started slow each of the last two seasons (4.37 April ERA in 2002; 5.14 in 2003), so hopefully he can start out this year on track.

Maddux will face Paul Wilson, who was last seen staring up at the Ohio sky as he suffered the consequences of starting a fight with Dr. Tightpants. Kyle pounded Wilson that day, but Wilson was hit almost as hard this spring, as he allowed a .286 opponents batting average while striking out just ten batters in 29.1 innings. He's been consistently mediocre the past few years, posting ERAs of 4.88, 4.83, and 4.64 over the last three seasons.

Game Three: Matt Clement (0-0, 0.00) vs Jose Acevedo (0-0, 0.00)

I haven't seen an official announcement, but I would expect Dusty to go with Clement's experience in the third rotation slot. Clement has been having a lousy spring (8.84 ERA) and he was hammered again yesterday (four runs and no strikeouts in three innings against the D-Backs.) In the absence of injury spring stats aren't very predictive of regular season success, but with Prior out indefinitely any weakness from Clement leaves the rotation looking awfully porous.

Jose Acevedo is a young righty with out much of a platoon split. He has hopped from AAA to Cincinnati and back several times over the last few years, but has improved his control and done a better job keeping the ball in the park. He couldn't be in a better place to try to break into a starting rotation and finally stay there.

Summary

Just about every prognosticator out there has the Reds in the NL Central's second division. There just isn't a lot of talent here beyond the three outfielders and even they have their question marks. The Cubs will need to beat up on these kinds of teams if they are going to repeat as NL Central champs.

It snowed on the Cubs workout today, but tomorrow's forecast calls for a clear if cold afternoon at the GAB. Both Dennis and Vice-President Dick Cheney will be in attendance tomorrow, and I promise that at least one of them will be posting a recap of their experience here tomorrow evening. Let's get this season started right. Go Cubs!

posted by Scott at 10:37 PM : |

 

One more game

Well, my alma mater has moved to within forty minutes of their first ever basketball championship. I watched Freddy Adu's debut and the first half of the Tech game at home today, then hopped in the car and sped up to a friend's house where I had committed to serve as auctioneer for an NL roto league. I missed just the first three minutes of the second half, and fortunately the owners were kind enough to hold the auction until Will Bynum had blown past the Oklahoma State defense for the game-winner.

Its a good thing we won, because I can get this off my chest without it sounding like sour grapes: would it be possible to get someone in the media to give Tech even a tiny bit of (here comes that "R" word) respect? Mike Jarvis (failed St. John's coach) has led the pack of media "experts" who seem to be in agreement on only one thing about this entire NCAA tournament: the best team out there is whoever is playing Georgia Tech. What's worse is the CBS color announcer for each of the last two games (Billy Packer I think). He spent the entire Kansas game praising the great and wonderous Wayne Simien (4-14 for 11 points against Tech). He spent the entire game today marvelling at the genius that is Eddie Sutton. I am not saying anything bad about Sutton, but I swear he said Sutton's name at least thirty times and I never heard him mention Paul Hewitt once. Now I see why Phil Martelli got so mad.

Anyway, here's to Monday. May it be the last day of Georgia Tech's championship season and the first day of the Cubs'.

posted by Scott at 3:21 AM : |