Felix Pie deserves better.
5.15.2008
5.13.2008
Four surprises...
1) How bad the Padres are. San Diego has consistently been one of those teams for the last five years that, despite having inferior talent, seems to hang around in playoff contention.
Not this year. They're now 14-25 and looked awful in last night's 12-3 loss to the Cubs.
I wager Bud Black might be unemployed by the end of the year.
2) Shawn Estes is still in the league. Seriously, I follow baseball pretty well, but I was certain Estes had retired like four years ago. After his struggles with the Cubs in 2003, I figured the end was near. And now I find out he's starting tonight against the Cubs. Wow.
(Note: After checking out Baseball Reference, Estes barely pitched in the majors in 2006 and 2007, spending most of that time in the Padres' minor league system. Guess you got to give the guy a little credit for working to come back).
3) The Cubs are considering signing Jim Edmonds. Let me echo what was said here, here and here: Edmonds is washed-up. He proved it in San Diego. Let's not sign another player hoping he'll magically return to his prime in Chicago.
Not going to happen. I'd rather have Felix Pie swinging at high fastballs above his head and Reed Johnson tapping back to the mound every time up than have Jim Edmonds on the ballclub.
4) Ryne Sandberg was suspended for three games, after confronting the opposing manager during a Class A game. And, apparently, it's not the first time Ryno's been in trouble. He bumped an umpire last year and has been ejected three times this year.
It's really, really hard for me to imagine Sandberg getting worked up about... anything. Wish there was some YouTube video.
5.11.2008
Quote of the Day
Quote of the day comes from Mrs. Ivy Leaguer...
We were watching the FOX broadcast of the Diamondbacks-Cubs on Saturday and Mark Grace was doing the color.
Mrs. Ivy Leaguer doesn't know who Gracie is, so I was giving her a little background. Decided to tell her the story about Gracie and the 'slumpbuster.'
For those who haven't heard it, Grace was on 'The Jim Rome Show' many years ago and said that whenever he was in a slump, he would just find the "fattest, grossest, gnarliest chick" and have sex with her. The affair was normally enough to 'bust' the slump.
So Saturday night, I was telling Mrs. Ivy Leaguer about the game (she had left for work before it was over). I said that Alfonso Soriano had gone 4-for-5 after what seemed like a month of bad games.
Her matter-of-face response: "Soriano must have banged a fat chick."
What A Series!
What a phenomenal series for the Cubs against the Diamondbacks!
* Beat a great baseball team three games in a row
* Showed some real mettle in all three games
* Got solid starting (and relief) pitching
* Came up with clutch hits from a number of different people
* Overcame deficits and bad weather
My favorite moment had to be Daryle Ward's game-winning two-run double in the 6-4 victory on Sunday.
I love the Cubs' stars. Derrek Lee, Aramis Ramirez and Carlos Zambrano are easily my favorite players because I love the way they carry themselves (Lee's class, Ramirez's workmanlike attitude and Z's exuberance). But my sentimental favorite is Ward.
Looks more like a softball stud than a major leaguer. And he can't run or play much defense.
But he sure looks like he's having a blast out there, and, boy, can he hit. I saw him play a few games this spring. Honest to God, he never got out once when I saw him. He was something like 10-for-10.
Very glad to have him on this team and loved seeing him get that ovation after his clutch hit on Sunday. Deserves it.
Confession...
I had already started formulating a bench-Reed-Johnson, give-Felix-Pie-a-chance post when Johnson smacked his game-tying two-run homer off Juan Cruz on Sunday.
Pretty impressive homer from Johnson for a couple different reasons:
1) The wind was blowing in pretty fierce. I agreed with Len & Bob; I figured only the big boppers would have a chance at a homer on Sunday. But Johnson really gave it a ride.
2) Reed's prior swings were really weak. Just a strikeout and a couple weak grounders so far that day.
(I should add that I still think Felix deserves a chance to start a full series, especially if it's against three right-handed hurlers)
Stat of the Day
The stat of the day... comes from 43 years ago.
During the rain delay Sunday afternoon, WGN showed the last inning of Cincinnati hurler Jim Maloney's 10-inning no-hitter against the Cubs in 1965. The stat line is amazing:
10 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 10 BB, 12 K, 1 HBP
Ten walks, 12 strikeouts and one hit batter.
For a total of: 187 pitches!!
Some starters now don't even rack up 187 pitches over the span of two starts!
(Note: I loved that the Reds' uniforms had the player's name below the number. Made them look very much like a company softball team)
During the rain delay Sunday afternoon, WGN showed the last inning of Cincinnati hurler Jim Maloney's 10-inning no-hitter against the Cubs in 1965. The stat line is amazing:
10 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 10 BB, 12 K, 1 HBP
Ten walks, 12 strikeouts and one hit batter.
For a total of: 187 pitches!!
Some starters now don't even rack up 187 pitches over the span of two starts!
(Note: I loved that the Reds' uniforms had the player's name below the number. Made them look very much like a company softball team)
5.10.2008
Ten Things, after the 7-2 Cubs win over D-Backs...
1) Could it be that Alfonso Soriano is finally breaking out of his prolonged slump? He went 4-for-5, scored twice, drove in a run, and provided a spark with some aggressive baserunning.
Still, not to be a downer, but there are reasons for concern:
* Fox monitored his total pitches against how many he swung at. I think it finished at 17 pitches seen; 12 swings. Not exactly ideal for a leadoff man (haven't we been over this before?)
* He doesn't look healthy running. He looks like he's compensating when he runs, so it feels more like a hopping lumber, rather than a smooth sprint.
2) Solid effort by Dempster. Give the guy credit. I didn't buy him as a starter this year (and I know I wasn't alone), but he's been a solid No. 3 man.
However, what is up with his glove during his wind-up? Is it just me or is his left-right-left freakout with his glove way, WAY more pronounced this year?
3) Hard-luck no-decision for Arizona's Max Scherzer. But the kid's a future ace. If the D-Backs can lock up Brandon Webb, Dan Haren, Micah Owings and Scherzer, they'll be a contender for many years to come.
4) How bad was the Cubs' baserunning today? Aramis' late jump from third on the Soto grounder was brutal. Reed Johnson was out by a day-and-a-half on D-Lee's potential sac fly. And Soriano's 'aggressiveness' was also inches from being FOUR baserunners thrown out at the plate in this game.
5) Carlos Marmol's stuff is flat-out nasty. He's going to be one heck of a closer one day. Soon.
6) Sure, he's been inconsistent on the hill. But it's nice to have Jason Marquis in the rotation, if for nothing more than he's a serviceable pinch runner and Lou doesn't have to burn someone else on the bench to save Daryle Ward from plodding around the bases.
7) You ever just get the feeling that a pitcher's style/wind-up/stuff is going to get crushed by a specific batter? I got that feeling when Brandon Medders was facing Aramis Ramirez. Just had this hunch A-Ram would hammer Medders. Result: RBI single smacked to right-center.
8) Randy Johnson goes tomorrow for the D-Backs. He's never, NEVER lost to the Cubs (12-0 lifetime). I sure hope that changes and that the lanky lefty gets lit up like the Las Vegas Strip. If for nothing more than he strikes me as a TOTAL TOOL.
9) How sweet would it be to sweep baseball's best team?
10) Before the series, Wrigleyville predicted the Cubs would take 2 of 3 from the D-Backs. Now I hope he's wrong!
Still, not to be a downer, but there are reasons for concern:
* Fox monitored his total pitches against how many he swung at. I think it finished at 17 pitches seen; 12 swings. Not exactly ideal for a leadoff man (haven't we been over this before?)
* He doesn't look healthy running. He looks like he's compensating when he runs, so it feels more like a hopping lumber, rather than a smooth sprint.
2) Solid effort by Dempster. Give the guy credit. I didn't buy him as a starter this year (and I know I wasn't alone), but he's been a solid No. 3 man.
However, what is up with his glove during his wind-up? Is it just me or is his left-right-left freakout with his glove way, WAY more pronounced this year?
3) Hard-luck no-decision for Arizona's Max Scherzer. But the kid's a future ace. If the D-Backs can lock up Brandon Webb, Dan Haren, Micah Owings and Scherzer, they'll be a contender for many years to come.
4) How bad was the Cubs' baserunning today? Aramis' late jump from third on the Soto grounder was brutal. Reed Johnson was out by a day-and-a-half on D-Lee's potential sac fly. And Soriano's 'aggressiveness' was also inches from being FOUR baserunners thrown out at the plate in this game.
5) Carlos Marmol's stuff is flat-out nasty. He's going to be one heck of a closer one day. Soon.
6) Sure, he's been inconsistent on the hill. But it's nice to have Jason Marquis in the rotation, if for nothing more than he's a serviceable pinch runner and Lou doesn't have to burn someone else on the bench to save Daryle Ward from plodding around the bases.
7) You ever just get the feeling that a pitcher's style/wind-up/stuff is going to get crushed by a specific batter? I got that feeling when Brandon Medders was facing Aramis Ramirez. Just had this hunch A-Ram would hammer Medders. Result: RBI single smacked to right-center.
8) Randy Johnson goes tomorrow for the D-Backs. He's never, NEVER lost to the Cubs (12-0 lifetime). I sure hope that changes and that the lanky lefty gets lit up like the Las Vegas Strip. If for nothing more than he strikes me as a TOTAL TOOL.
9) How sweet would it be to sweep baseball's best team?
10) Before the series, Wrigleyville predicted the Cubs would take 2 of 3 from the D-Backs. Now I hope he's wrong!
5.08.2008
Time to see what we're made of...
The Arizona Diamondbacks, bringing with them baseball's best record (23-12), come to Wrigley for a three-game weekend series.
Couple interesting things to note:
* There's some good and some bad in the pitching match-ups...
The good: The Cubs will miss Brandon Webb (now 8-0 after Thursday's complete game). And they will get to face Randy Johnson (how times have changed that you're now happy to see Johnson's ornery face on the hill), who barely reaches 85 MPH on his fastball these days and doesn't have that nasty slider anymore.
The bad: Chicago has to face Dan Haren, who is baseball's best unheralded pitcher, on Friday. Then they get rookie phenom Max Scherzer on Saturday. Scherzer became the apple of every fantasy owner's eye after retiring 13-of-13 batters in his professional debut. He then lost his first ever start (to the Phillies), but is still super talented with some wicked stuff.
* Don't you just hate it when former Cubs (especially pitchers) end up finding their stuff after they leave Chicago? Burned me up when Todd Wellemeyer pitched well on Sunday. And Juan Cruz has found a home in the desert. He's not among the elite in Arizona's bullpen (they tend to keep him out of the 7th, 8th, or 9th innings in games they're winning), but he has become serviceable (after being a fairly consistent train wreck with the Cubs).
* If there's an achilles heal on the D-Backs' ballclub, it's their defense. They're in the bottom third of major league baseball in fielding percentage and errors. Sadly, they're joined by the Cubs down there.
Didn't think this was a post we would have to do, but...
...who should be in the starting rotation right now for the Cubs?
Your choices:
Carlos Zambrano
Ted Lilly
Rich Hill
Ryan Dempster
Jason Marquis
Sean Marshall
Jon Lieber
Sean Gallagher
Other
My opinion:
1) Zambrano (given)
2) Lilly (recovering)
3) Dempster (run support or for real?)
4) Marquis (streaky)
5) Marshall (deserving)
I prefer Lieber as the long reliever. He's a veteran and understands the role. I don't feel comfortable bringing Hill back yet, or giving Gallagher the shot yet. My thought: let's see if Marshall can eat up some innings.
5.07.2008
Double Whammy
Joey Votto has homered three bloody times off Cub pitching today.
Not only is that depressing as a Cubs' fan (they're down 9-0 right now), but (while I was bright enough to pick up Votto on two of my fantasy teams, after seeing him hit a ton @ AA last year) Votto is sitting on my bench today in two separate leagues.
If you're going to light up my Cubs, the least you could do is help out "Sutcliffe's Beard" and "The Lollygaggers," Votto.
Honestly...
5.05.2008
Well, that didn't last long...
Jacque Jones is gone from the Tigers after 32 games.
The struggling gang from Motown designated Jacque for assignment, after he hit .165 this season and hadn't gotten a hit in 11 at-bats.
So the Jones-for-Omar Infante trade amounts to this:
- Jones to Tigers: designated for assignment
So the Jones-for-Omar Infante trade amounts to this:
- Jones to Tigers: designated for assignment
- Infante to Cubs: later traded to Braves
- Will Ohman: traded with Infante to Braves
- Jose Ascanio: traded from Braves to Cubs, demoted to AAA during spring where he is 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA and 6 saves as the closer
Works for me.
The troubling case of Alfonso Soriano
Question: Is Alfonso Soriano really worth it?
And I'm not even talking about his 8-year, $136 million contract. I'm simply talking about whether it's worth it to have him in the line-up. Because there are plenty of reasons why not.
* His insistence on hitting lead-off
Lou Pinella, being interviewed by ESPN's Joe Morgan last night, said he compared Alfonso Soriano to Bobby Bonds, who was apparently never comfortable hitting in the No. 4 hole but relished the leadoff spot, where he was a 30-30 man.
Fine. Accepting that it's okay for a $100 million player to only be comfortable hitting in one spot in the order (even though it's not okay), then Soriano should produce for that spot. But he's not. Not hitting for average. Not getting on-base. Not hitting for power. Not getting runners over or having productive at-bats. And not even stealing bases... when he finally does get on. In short, not doing ANYTHING a leadoff man (or a middle-of-the-order guy, for that matter, is supposed to do).
* His adventures in left field
We all saw the game on Friday. What a disaster. I think the hitting troubles are having an effect on his defense. Either that or his head's not in the game.
* He no longer is a 30-30 man
One of the reasons Soriano got the massive contract that he did was that he was one of baseball's few power-speed guys. He could hit 40 home runs and swipe 30-40 bags. But after his leg issues, Soriano barely runs at all. I'd be surprised if he reached 20 SBs this year.
So, instead of being similar to Alex Rodriguez, with power and speed, he's more like Adam Dunn, with some pop and a ton of strikeouts.
Although, to be fair, Dunn has a great eye and reaches base quite often. Soriano doesn't. So perhaps the best comparison is to Rob Deer.
Ouch.
* His lack of plate discipline
Soriano went to the plate five times last night. Each and every time, he was immediately in an 0-and-2 hole. Each and every time! It's a combination of bad plate discipline, a bad eye, and an inability right now to put solid contact on the ball consistently.
Really good to see that from your leadoff hitter. Way to (not) work the count and (not) show the rest of the team what the opposing pitcher has.
* All the sacrifices the team has to make for him
Lou Pinella is even considering copying Tony La Russa's strategy of batting the pitcher eighth and a "second leadoff man" ninth. The reason?
“If we used a guy who could run in the 9-hole, it might help Soriano,” said Piniella. “Yeah, the 9-hitter gets on and maybe Soriano sees more of those fastballs he likes."
Classic.
You know what would also accomplish that, without having to resort to some sort of gimmick move? Putting Soriano fifth or sixth in the order, where he can hit with men on-base. That, too, would get him the "fastballs he likes" without ruining the top of the order.
Ugh. Makes a line-up of Mark DeRosa in left, Reed Johnson in center, and a Ronny Cedeno/Mike Fontenot platoon at second look pretty attractive to me.
And I'm not even talking about his 8-year, $136 million contract. I'm simply talking about whether it's worth it to have him in the line-up. Because there are plenty of reasons why not.
* His insistence on hitting lead-off
Lou Pinella, being interviewed by ESPN's Joe Morgan last night, said he compared Alfonso Soriano to Bobby Bonds, who was apparently never comfortable hitting in the No. 4 hole but relished the leadoff spot, where he was a 30-30 man.
Fine. Accepting that it's okay for a $100 million player to only be comfortable hitting in one spot in the order (even though it's not okay), then Soriano should produce for that spot. But he's not. Not hitting for average. Not getting on-base. Not hitting for power. Not getting runners over or having productive at-bats. And not even stealing bases... when he finally does get on. In short, not doing ANYTHING a leadoff man (or a middle-of-the-order guy, for that matter, is supposed to do).
* His adventures in left field
We all saw the game on Friday. What a disaster. I think the hitting troubles are having an effect on his defense. Either that or his head's not in the game.
* He no longer is a 30-30 man
One of the reasons Soriano got the massive contract that he did was that he was one of baseball's few power-speed guys. He could hit 40 home runs and swipe 30-40 bags. But after his leg issues, Soriano barely runs at all. I'd be surprised if he reached 20 SBs this year.
So, instead of being similar to Alex Rodriguez, with power and speed, he's more like Adam Dunn, with some pop and a ton of strikeouts.
Although, to be fair, Dunn has a great eye and reaches base quite often. Soriano doesn't. So perhaps the best comparison is to Rob Deer.
Ouch.
* His lack of plate discipline
Soriano went to the plate five times last night. Each and every time, he was immediately in an 0-and-2 hole. Each and every time! It's a combination of bad plate discipline, a bad eye, and an inability right now to put solid contact on the ball consistently.
Really good to see that from your leadoff hitter. Way to (not) work the count and (not) show the rest of the team what the opposing pitcher has.
* All the sacrifices the team has to make for him
Lou Pinella is even considering copying Tony La Russa's strategy of batting the pitcher eighth and a "second leadoff man" ninth. The reason?
“If we used a guy who could run in the 9-hole, it might help Soriano,” said Piniella. “Yeah, the 9-hitter gets on and maybe Soriano sees more of those fastballs he likes."
Classic.
You know what would also accomplish that, without having to resort to some sort of gimmick move? Putting Soriano fifth or sixth in the order, where he can hit with men on-base. That, too, would get him the "fastballs he likes" without ruining the top of the order.
Ugh. Makes a line-up of Mark DeRosa in left, Reed Johnson in center, and a Ronny Cedeno/Mike Fontenot platoon at second look pretty attractive to me.
Steroids in St. Louis
One of the things that struck me watching ESPN's telecast of the Cubs-Cardinals game on Sunday night...
...there sure are a lot of people on St. Louis' ballclub whose careers have been attached, in some way, to steroids.
RP Ryan Franklin -- suspended 10 days for steroids, 2005
3B Troy Glaus -- received shipment of steroids, 2007
OF Rick Ankiel -- received shipment of HGH, 2007
Even 'The Great Pujols' has had his name mentioned in steroid discussions (although, to be fair, nothing has ever been confirmed).
Whereas the Cubs have no one on the roster who has ever been linked to steroids. And, really, no one on the roster who has even been rumored to be on the juice (except a few suggestions regarding Kerry Wood that I don't buy).
...there sure are a lot of people on St. Louis' ballclub whose careers have been attached, in some way, to steroids.
RP Ryan Franklin -- suspended 10 days for steroids, 2005
3B Troy Glaus -- received shipment of steroids, 2007
OF Rick Ankiel -- received shipment of HGH, 2007
Even 'The Great Pujols' has had his name mentioned in steroid discussions (although, to be fair, nothing has ever been confirmed).
Whereas the Cubs have no one on the roster who has ever been linked to steroids. And, really, no one on the roster who has even been rumored to be on the juice (except a few suggestions regarding Kerry Wood that I don't buy).
Will Iowa wake Rich Hill up?
It's funny. During spring training, we speculated endlessly about the starting rotation.
Marquis?
Lieber?
Marshall?
Dempster?
Who knew the biggest question mark would be... Rich Hill?
I don't know what happened.
Here's his line:
W-L 1-0
ERA 4.12
K 15
Walks 18
WHIP 1.58
It's, obviously, the last two statistics (bolded) that are most troublesome. Mostly because they are so uncharacteristic.
Let's start with walks. In 2006, Hill walked 39 men in 99.1 innings. That's one walk for every 2+ innings. In 2007, Hill walked just 63 men in 195 innings. That's good for one walk every 3 innings. Now, in 2008, Hill has given a free pass to 18 batters in just 19.2 innings. That's almost a walk an inning.
Hill's WHIP (walks + hits/innings pitched) is also troubling, again, mostly because it's so unexpected. Great pitchers usually have a WHIP between 1.00 and 1.10. Really good ones tend to keep theirs below 1.20. Hill, despite being a .500 pitcher in 2006 and 2007, showed flashes of potential with a 1.23 WHIP (2006) and 1.19 WHIP (2007).
While your win-loss record can be deceiving (depending on your run support), your WHIP is a pretty good indicator of the trouble you're getting yourself into. And Hill's WHIP over the past two seasons indicated he had the talent to be a front-line starter.
So what happened? Mechanics? Mental? Eyesight? Whatever it is, I hope he figures it out in Iowa, which, by the way, is where I think he belongs.
If he was getting whacked around by major league hitters, it'd be a different story (because even if he went down and started getting minor leaguers out, he'd still come back and wonder if he could get major leaguers out anymore).
But the strike zone in the minors is the same as in majors. Hopefully, Hill can find it there and bring it back with him to Chicago. And start returning those numbers to where they used to be.
Marquis?
Lieber?
Marshall?
Dempster?
Who knew the biggest question mark would be... Rich Hill?
I don't know what happened.
Here's his line:
W-L 1-0
ERA 4.12
K 15
Walks 18
WHIP 1.58
It's, obviously, the last two statistics (bolded) that are most troublesome. Mostly because they are so uncharacteristic.
Let's start with walks. In 2006, Hill walked 39 men in 99.1 innings. That's one walk for every 2+ innings. In 2007, Hill walked just 63 men in 195 innings. That's good for one walk every 3 innings. Now, in 2008, Hill has given a free pass to 18 batters in just 19.2 innings. That's almost a walk an inning.
Hill's WHIP (walks + hits/innings pitched) is also troubling, again, mostly because it's so unexpected. Great pitchers usually have a WHIP between 1.00 and 1.10. Really good ones tend to keep theirs below 1.20. Hill, despite being a .500 pitcher in 2006 and 2007, showed flashes of potential with a 1.23 WHIP (2006) and 1.19 WHIP (2007).
While your win-loss record can be deceiving (depending on your run support), your WHIP is a pretty good indicator of the trouble you're getting yourself into. And Hill's WHIP over the past two seasons indicated he had the talent to be a front-line starter.
So what happened? Mechanics? Mental? Eyesight? Whatever it is, I hope he figures it out in Iowa, which, by the way, is where I think he belongs.
If he was getting whacked around by major league hitters, it'd be a different story (because even if he went down and started getting minor leaguers out, he'd still come back and wonder if he could get major leaguers out anymore).
But the strike zone in the minors is the same as in majors. Hopefully, Hill can find it there and bring it back with him to Chicago. And start returning those numbers to where they used to be.
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