2005 All Things CUBS Thread

Last year he was the poster boy for anyone who claimed that pitchers had to have certain intangibles to be a successful closer. I think he blew the second most saves in baseball, posted stats that otherwise would be considered quite good out of the pen, and then all but admitted in the postseason that he didn't have what it took to be a closer. Should be a fun first few months.

I just don't see them going anywhere this year. Too many questions in the bullpen, the starters are banged up and I don't think they will score as many runs. I'd like the Cubbies to suprise me, but I just cannot see it happening unless a bunch of people have career type seasons, especially Patterson and Nomar with Wood and Prior returning to health and top form.

The Cards might be more vulnerable than ppl think, but only if Prior / Wood / Zamb manage 200 innings each.

The Reds will again hit like beer league softball team, but they cannot field or pitch. The Reds really need a new owner.

The Astros could have good starting pitching, especially if Petitte returns to form and Clemens pitches well, but their bullpen runs thin after the first couple of guys and they have some black holes in their lineup. Unless someone comes out of nowhere, they are going to have to hope to hold par until Berkman comes back and hope that Bagwell has another big season in him.

The Brewers are a mystery team, they could win 90 or lose 90 depending on how things work out.

The Pirates have a few good young players, but that seems to be said every year for the past dozen or so. Considering the great history of this team, I find it really sad to see this club in the muck for this long.

1. Macias
2. Neifi
3. N/A

Corey Patterson singles on a ground ball to right fielder Geoff Jenkins. Carlos Zambrano to 3rd. Corey Patterson to 2nd on the throw.

"Are you following the ongoing saga of the Cubs' TV broadcasters, past and present? In case you missed it, Steve Stone and Chip Caray were essentially fired after last season because they couldn't control their honesty, and they were replaced by Bob Brenly and Len Kasper. Last week on a Chicago radio show, Stone – who in case you've missed it, now works for ESPN – said, referring to the 2004 Cubs, "Most of the guys I thought we got along with, but there were a few that we didn't. One [Moises Alou] left the game [Wednesday] with a calf injury. But when you're 70, that stuff happens."

Neifi batting 2nd today for the Cubs:
OBP .125
SLG .125

Derrek Lee batting 6th:
OBP .467
SLG .522

they musta really hated sosa if they traded him for a dude they're not even going to use...free jerry hairston jr!

walker's hurt, right?

Wish I could see that Prior-Peavy matchup.

http://www.baseballthinkfactory.org/files/primer/discussion/27538/

[In Dusty's defense: Neifi's 2-2 today, bringing him up to .300; meanwhile Wood still looks junky]

29 pitches through 2 IP, 19 for strikes, 2 K, 2 H, 0 BB

Also, another Jerry Hairston sighting! (Granted, Walker's out, so he'd better be playing, but, hey, he's playing!)

"Dusty Baker has taken to rubbing holy water on the injured parts of Cubs players. This could explain why third baseman Aramis Ramirez was so adamant Tuesday that he did not have a strained groin."

Gotta love that 2nd sentence. Puts Dusty's healing touch in a whole new perspective.

"It's not like it's voodoo or something," the manager [Baker] also said.

"It's blessed. I didn't bless it. It wouldn't work if I blessed it. I just hope that my sinning doesn't negate the effectiveness of the water."

"It can't be any more painful than it was yesterday," he said. "I have an avulsion of the tendon. Basically, I ruptured the tendon off the bone. There's a few tendons that go along your groin area. There's three major muscles and one of the muscles tore away from the bone. That's what the MRI showed."

http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20050421&content_id=1023986&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb

2-4

2-4, HR, 4 RBI tonight. One field error but I'm sure it wasn't his fault.

There will be questions why manager Dusty Baker decided to open the ninth with Fox after he pitched successfully Sunday against Pittsburgh and this game was far from a save situation. Baker said he was caught off guard after Neifi Perez's three-run homer in the eighth made it a seven-run lead. Mike Remlinger was briskly warming up, Baker said, but couldn't get loose quickly enough to open the ninth.

"That three-run homer happened so quickly that nobody could get loose at that time,'' Baker said. "Foxy was the only one loose.''

But even without the Perez homer, the Cubs still would have entered the ninth with a four-run lead. Why couldn't Remlinger or Jon Leicester try to finish this game? That will be the what-if that haunts this turning point in the season. Baker already had used LaTroy Hawkins in the eighth, and he apparently wasn't going to give him two innings.

"We were getting Rem loose,'' Baker said. "But we didn't have time. ... I'm glad we won the game, but I hope Foxy is all right.''

Everybody pretty well knows he isn't. An extremely friendly guy who is accommodating to the media, even Fox refused to talk afterward when reporters approached his locker. That tells you how bad it probably is.

In the list of Dusty's stupid's in-game managerial moves, this one ranks relatively low on the outrage-meter (his justification seems believable, though I didn't watch the game to know if there was time to warm up Rem or Leicester). Oddly enough, it's the one the press seems to have been most quick to question.

Free Wuertz?

lawadamercy.

Gammons & HR both refused to cede the division to St Loo last night cuz the CARDS are fragile!

They need just freakin start DuBois. The guy is hitting over .300 with some power in limited duty. Give him a shot, they might get lucky and get a true starter out there.

I'm beginning to think the whole "lets convert Kerry Wood into a closer" idea may not be a crazy as it seems. Wood couldn't do worse than the bozos they have thrown out for the past couple of seasons and it isn't like the guy is making his way as a starter these days. Maybe a bit of time in the pen might straighten Kerry's head out a bit and get his game back together.

I can't stnad it!

I can't stnad it. Ryan Dumpster will be our "new" closer.

I'm not a Sox-loving Cub-hater, but I must say I'm enjoying this pathetic display of shittery.

oh, the humanity.

signed,

The Goat

So, anyway, you're the tying run, on base w/ no outs in the 9th inning, and your name is Jeromy Burnitz. Why the HELL are you trying to steal 2nd base?

Also, regardless of what folks think of LaTroy's effectiveness as a closer, he's probably still the best guy in their bullpen (Dempster's coveted closer "experience" notwithstanding). And Dusty's moronic jerkjob (as if anything less can be expected from the guy) is just going to make the situation worse. Maybe he shd start soaking his head in that Pope water.

Also - ENRIQUE WILSON? Dusty, Dude, Pedro Martinez is in the NL EAST.

The other day on the radio, Bob Uecker tried to claim that FORMER BREWER Jeromy Burnitz had never had a stolen base. Jim Powell looked it up and found that Burnitz has had a whole lot more SBs. Uecker just laughed his ass off.

CHICAGO (AP) -- Cubs pitcher Mark Prior left Friday's game in the fourth inning after being hit in the right elbow by a line drive hit by Colorado's Brad Hawpe.

With the scored tied 1-all, Hawpe led off the fourth and hit Prior's first pitch back up the middle. After striking Prior, the ball deflected to third baseman Aramis Ramirez who caught it for the first out of the inning.

Prior collapsed and rolled in pain on the mound. He was helped off the field by the Cubs training staff. The right-hander was replaced by reliever Todd Wellemeyer.

Prior is 4-1 this season with a 2.95 ERA entering Friday's start. He began the season on the disabled list with elbow inflammation.

... he started this season 0-2 with a 6.48 ERA in four games before being optioned to Fresno, where he was 1-4 with a 9.36 ERA.

"Once I heard I got traded to the Cubs, I was happy," Williams said. "I really didn't care who they got for me. I was just glad I was out of the Giants organization because I felt I couldn't go anywhere with them.

There's more to the story according to Giant's brass. Aside from Jerome gaining 65 pounds in all the wrong places over the past 2 years, there were rumors that Jerome refused to abandon his less than 3/4-arm delivery that he adopted post-surgery when advised by staff/trainers... in spite of his performance (and adding further strain on the elbow).

I've never heard of this guy, looks like he was drafted by the Reds, which considering how poor their pitching has been for 10 years is probably not a good sign.

DuBois is definitely not a wiz in the field, he misplayed one pretty bad last night and gave L.A. a run. I don't think he got an error, as I think Neifi did on the relay throw. If you can't make the catch, you keep the ball in front, that is basic little league play.

Zambrano really looked sharp. He is becoming an intimidating presence on the mound.

Sunday's matchup in SD looks to be a good one with Zambrano going against Jake Peavy.

The 4th complete game shutout of the day in MLB!

The Cubs have been hitting well for the past month. Hollandsworth has been really hot in the past week. Ramierez has driven up his batting avg fifty points since May 28.

I hope that toe thing with Zambrano is really minor, they cannot afford another starter to get hurt. Like last year, Glendon Rusch has been a real help to the club. Kerry Wood should be back within a couple of weeks, hopefully his stint on the DL will have straightened his problems out.

"The horses [Wood and Prior] are the horses," Baker said. "[Mitre's] not a horse yet. He's a little pony trying to be a horse. He'll be a horse someday."

Zambrano's toe must not be too bad, as he is going Friday against Pavano and the Yanks.

Burnitz so far has turned out to be a good pickup. The Cubs are only into him for a year, hopefully Jeromy will keep up the good work. It is nice having a left handed power hitter to put in the middle of that lineup.

Kerry Wood made a start last night for Iowa and he hit a triple. The Cubs are going to give him a couple more starts in AAA to shake things out before bringing him back to Chicago.

Considering how the Yanks pounded the Cub pitching, they need some pitching help ASAP.

why does this piece of shit team's thread keep receiving activity?

Karchner for Garland, baby. Matt frickin Karchner for the best pitchter in the American League. Thanks, assholes.

Off topic: what the hell is Johan Santana doing w/ a 0.93 WHIP, .210 BA, 124 Ks in 107 IP, and a 3.45 ERA? (And what the hell is Carlos Silva doing on the ERA leader board with a BAA of .299?!?!?)

The best AL pitchers have been Halladay, Rogers, Buehrle; no one else is particularly close, and anyone who thinks otherwise is likely named Kruk.

JohSan OPS 2K5: 613
CarSil OPS 2K5: 747

Oh lucky lucky luck luck.

I'd sell high on him, that career 1.40+ WHIP is gonna come back and bite hard I'm afraid.

However, John does have a point, for instance, Santana is second to Halladay in Average Game Score (ahead of Rogers and Buehrle). That's probably obvious to anyone who's been following his starts this year -- Santana's been roughed up a couple of times, but in most of his starts he's been dominant.

And it's not homers that are killing him, it's the doubles... he's allowed as many 2Bs this year as he did all of last year.

I agree; I expect Santana to be a good Cy candidate by Sept., very possibly #1. But John, you can't seriously say Santana has pitched as well as Halladay so far.

Back to the Cubs -- has anyone asked Dusty yet if he's focusing on thewildcard? Would they dare?

But seriously, what do you guys think? Even two weeks ago, I would have said that he had maybe a 15% chance of doing it, but now, I'm thinking that it's more like 30%. I know he's on an 11-game hit streak right now, but the dude is hitting over .390 in June, WTF? But the home run and RBI races are too tight right now for me to rate his chances any higher.

damn! xpost

anyone have insider? i think neyer did a piece on this today or yesterday, can we pirate it?

Bad news...Zambrano's toe injury must have him off his game, as he has gotten flattened his last few starts.

-- mark p (mark.p****...) (webmail), July 14th, 2005 10:49 AM. (Mark P) (later) (link)

last year, I would have said, "Dammit!"

now I say, "Let's just be glad he lasted this long! Now, how about that Derrek Lee?"

Garut for Dubois, that one probably end up pretty even swap. Dubois is younger and has two more years before he would be eligible for free agency, so he might have the upside, but Garut has shown more in the bigs. I'm hoping playing in the friendly confines and batting behind Lee and Rameriez that Garut might take off and start putting up some numbers like he did in stretches for the Trible all the time.

The Cubs need a real lead off hitter something fierce. Jerry Hairston Jr. has played better of late, but I just don't see him as a solution. Corey Patterson is a wreck, the guy cannot lay off anything outside. I've said it before, but I wouldn't give the guy a strike if I was pitching to him.

Good news is that the bullpen has been a bit better of late.

Nomar is looking to be back first of August, he is going to start playing some games in the minors next week. If the Cubs can keep tight in the wild card race, he could be a bit of a bonus down the strech. I'm sure Garciaparra is wanting to get on the field and try to get some things done.

not exactly leadoff material, not that dusty'll give a shit.

Neifi Perez grand slam winning home run? It is hard to believe but true.

I notice Kerry Wood is on the DL again...

Is it any harder to believe than a 14th-inning, 3-run shot by Eric Bruntlett?

BOO-YEAH!!!! GO 'STROS!!!

That Macias throw home was Giambiesque.

The ball rolled into center field, and when Jose Macias fielded it, Carlos Beltran, who was running on a 3-2 pitch, was on his way to scoring easily from first. Beltran had reached with two outs on Aramis Ramirez's throwing error, his 15th of the season. Ramirez made 10 last year.

Floyd took second on Macias' rainbow throw in the general direction of home plate. David Wright's single scored Floyd with the second unearned run in the inning.

Baker said Macias hustled and couldn't have done anything more, but Ramirez's errors are an increasing burden.

           Hustles       Hits cutoff
Macias       Yes              No
Ramirez      No               No

Lee 78.1
Pujols 76.8

We tried to tell you guys... we TRIED!

I shook my head at all the media mouths talking about his 'insurmountable' batting avg lead 3 weeks ago...

"With both Lawton and Hollandsworth gone, one after the other, one has to think that Jim Hendry has figured out that you deal with Dusty Baker as you would a 5-year-old around dangerous household chemicals - put Mr. Yuck stickers on the bottle and safely store them out of the youngster's irresponsible hands."

"He's a guy who's gotten better. I remember my old general manager Al Campanis telling me that a player doesn't reach his peak until he's somewhere between 32 or 36 [years old] and beyond, and it depends on how his legs are and his desire and if he keeps his weight down and his waistline down. I don't see D-Lee having any problem with that."
--Cubs manager Dusty Baker, on the origins of his veteran fetish (MLB.com)

That is about dead on what I thought this dog of a club would finish. Letting Sosa go didn't turn out to be much of a loss, but you got what was expected from the walking wounded of Garciaparra and Kerry Wood. The Cubs sure think Dempster is the answer at closer and while he had some nice games, he also got thumped a few times.

I just could not get excited by this years club.

I was imagining an even 81-81, so yeah.

The storyline is too perfect, under achieving whiney club fails and needs a kick in the ass from an ex-Cub who was apart of a division winning team.