The cure to any bad road trip (the Cubs started 1-6) is a stop in Pittsburgh to play the always rebuilding Pirates. The Cubs needed to take game one of this three game series last night and that is exactly what they did. They did a rare thing last night: combined good pitching with timely hitting(although they were only 1-9 w/ RISP) , most of the season it has been one or the other for this Cubs team.
Rich Harden had one of his better starts of the season and looked like the Harden of last season: 7IP, ER, 9H, 9K, BB. Harden scattered those 9 hits and only one of them was for extra bases. This was Harden's first win since May 12 he is now 5-4 on the season with a still too high 4.57 ERA. The team really needed this start from Harden it was good to see him step-up and deliver. The Cubs better hope Harden can keep this up, if they get back in the division race we'll need him, if we fall out of contention we can trade him. The bullpen did its job last night as well as Carlos Marmol worked a perfect 8th only throwing 8 pitches, 7 of which were for strikes. Kevin Gregg picked up his 13th save with a scoreless 9th.
The offense got things going in the second inning with men at first and second with two outs Andres Blanco came up with a big RBI single, scoring Jake Fox, and giving the Cubs the lead 1-0. In the third Ryan Theriot hit a solo-HR to left, his 7th of the season. If you would have told me before the season that Theriot would even hit 5HRs this season, I would have said you are crazy! This guy might hit 10-12, which would be a huge bonus, I hope he still tries to drive the ball the other way however, since that is his bread & butter.
Also, when is Lou Piniella going to wake up and realize that Theriot is the perfect lead-off man for this team? Alfonso Soriano had another bad night 0-4, he is dead-weight on this team right now. If he is injured put him on the DL or hide him in the line-up, the Cubs can not afford to have a gimpy lead-off man who is not producing, especially since we are having so much trouble scoring runs as it stands.
Next, in the 4ht inning, Milton Bradley hit a rocket double to left scoring Geovany Soto, this would be the last run the Cubs would score and it would be enough to win as the Cubs held on to win 3-1. Bradley had a nice game going 2-4, 2B, RBI. It is too bad he can only hit from the right side right now, he is hitting over .300 as a righty, while he is hitting about .195 as a lefty. According to reports, Piniella is going to give Milton the next two games off so that he can work on his lefty swing with hitting coach Von Joshua. I really hope they can get him going from the left side, since that was the whole reason he was brought here in the first place. Jake Fox also had a good game going 2-3, BB, R and is showing that he can play every day at third base. I have said this before but when Aramis Ramirez comes back, Fox needs to stay up with the team, and either Mike Fontenot, Ryan Freel, or Aaron Miles needs to go back to AAA. Fox is hitting .347 and is a true power threat who can play 3B or OF, he can be our Mark DeRosa for the rest of the season, occasionally spelling Ramirez at 3B or Soriano in LF. Fox also happens to be our best pinch-hitter.
Speaking of Aaron Miles, he was placed on the 15-Day DL again (thank you!) and was replaced on the roster by OF Sam Fuld. This is awesome, I hope Miles buys a horse and moves to the mountains where he can't bother anybody. Fuld is a light hitting speed guy with solid defensive skills. Supposedly he is going to start this evening vs the Pirates in place of Bradley who is being benched vs right handed pitching.
Up Next: Cubs vs Pirates at 6:05pm on CSN+ or CLTV as most of us know it. Ted Lilly (7-5, 3.41 ERA) vs Ross Ohlendorf (6-6, 4.75 ERA). Lilly is due for a good start since he has had a few bad ones of late, I expect him to win tonight, and start a little winning streak for himself just in time to pitch in the all-star game. I have never heard of Ohlendorf, he is a big right hander who lefties can hit (they're hitting .327 against him). Since Milton is out of the line-up, I would at least expect to see Micah Hoffpauir play tonight, maybe Lou will give Derrek Lee the night off? I am also not sure if the Cubs have ever faced Ohlendorf, they usually struggle against new faces. I think they can manage a few runs off of Ohlendorf though and Lilly should pick up his 8th win tonight. If the Cubs win tonight they're back at .500, again.
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Monday, June 29, 2009
Thank Goodness Inter-League play is over
I wrote a few weeks ago that the Cubs inter-league schedule could either make or break their season. I mean c'mon they were scheduled to play the AL Central, which is not exactly too impressive (it currently boasts two teams at .500 or better, and the Twins are only one game over), and 6 games with the lowly White Sox (I know they have a make-up game in Sept.). The Cubs should have had an advantage at home, where they play decently (21-13 record), but got out-NL'd by the Twins and could only split two games with the Sox. I know they did sweep Cleveland, but doesn't everyone sweep Cleveland? Plus, we can accredit two of those wins to Kerry Wood's lack of control. Then we go to Detroit and get swept easily by a better team who understands how to hit with RISP. And finally to top it off the Cubs went into the Cell for a weekend series take game one, blow game two (thanks Ryan Dempster, Carlos Marmol, and Lou Piniella), and lose their cool in game three ( thank you Carlos Zambrano). At the end of it all, the Cubs are 6-8 in inter-league play, with one game left to play. The Cubs poor showing in inter-league play may have just broken their season.
Good teams beat bad teams and for the Cubs to lose 2 of 3 to the Sox over the weekend is not acceptable. Maybe the Cubs are in reality just not a good team? Here are a few things I know about the Cubs right now:
1.) In response to Chicago Tribune Sports Writer Phil Rogers' article today: Do not trade Zambrano! I realize he is an ass, but our pitching staff is not as deep as we think it is.
Which leads me to 2.) Ryan Dempster sucks. He is 4-5 with a 4.09 ERA, over a full run higher than last season. He does lead the team in innings pitched with 99, but that is because Lou generally leaves him out there one inning too long each start, take the 5th inning on Saturday for example. Dempster also leads the team in earned runs, hits allowed, and walks. Not to mention he has allowed the third most home runs on the team. Last year Demp was a ground-ball pitcher this year he is not. He has been pitching poorly all season and I really do not see much improvement on the way. Demp had a great season in his free-agent year and the Cubs were dumb enough to believe he could sustain that kind of success. He is being paid to be the ace he pretends to be, if the Cubs have any chance of winning their division, he needs to step it up.
3.) If the Cubs are going to trade somebody it should be Rich Harden or Kevin Gregg.
4.) Ryan Freel is washed up, who did not see this coming? I mean we got this guy in a trade for Joey Gathright.
5.) Carlos Marmol is the new "Wild Thing".
6. I like Ozzie Guillen, I appreciate his candor and honesty. But he said: "Our fans are not stupid like Cubs fans, they don't know (expletive), Wrigley Field is just a bar." OK, so maybe Wrigley Field is just a bar, but I'd rather party at that bar everyday, then spend any time at that Trailer Park known as U.S. Cellular Field. Ozzie really needs to think before he speaks sometimes, at least us Cub fans do not get loaded, run on the field, and attack opposing coaches and umpires.
7. John Danks is a very good pitcher and he owns the Cubs.
8. Ken "Hawk" Harrelson is an idiot. I do not know how anyone in their right mind could listen to him call a baseball game. His whining about "bad calls" and near misses is unbearable.
Good teams beat bad teams and for the Cubs to lose 2 of 3 to the Sox over the weekend is not acceptable. Maybe the Cubs are in reality just not a good team? Here are a few things I know about the Cubs right now:
1.) In response to Chicago Tribune Sports Writer Phil Rogers' article today: Do not trade Zambrano! I realize he is an ass, but our pitching staff is not as deep as we think it is.
Which leads me to 2.) Ryan Dempster sucks. He is 4-5 with a 4.09 ERA, over a full run higher than last season. He does lead the team in innings pitched with 99, but that is because Lou generally leaves him out there one inning too long each start, take the 5th inning on Saturday for example. Dempster also leads the team in earned runs, hits allowed, and walks. Not to mention he has allowed the third most home runs on the team. Last year Demp was a ground-ball pitcher this year he is not. He has been pitching poorly all season and I really do not see much improvement on the way. Demp had a great season in his free-agent year and the Cubs were dumb enough to believe he could sustain that kind of success. He is being paid to be the ace he pretends to be, if the Cubs have any chance of winning their division, he needs to step it up.
3.) If the Cubs are going to trade somebody it should be Rich Harden or Kevin Gregg.
4.) Ryan Freel is washed up, who did not see this coming? I mean we got this guy in a trade for Joey Gathright.
5.) Carlos Marmol is the new "Wild Thing".
6. I like Ozzie Guillen, I appreciate his candor and honesty. But he said: "Our fans are not stupid like Cubs fans, they don't know (expletive), Wrigley Field is just a bar." OK, so maybe Wrigley Field is just a bar, but I'd rather party at that bar everyday, then spend any time at that Trailer Park known as U.S. Cellular Field. Ozzie really needs to think before he speaks sometimes, at least us Cub fans do not get loaded, run on the field, and attack opposing coaches and umpires.
7. John Danks is a very good pitcher and he owns the Cubs.
8. Ken "Hawk" Harrelson is an idiot. I do not know how anyone in their right mind could listen to him call a baseball game. His whining about "bad calls" and near misses is unbearable.
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Cubs lose 6-5, get swept by Tigers
The Cubs got off to a good start today as Alfonso Soriano doubled down the line to lead things off, Ryan Theriot walked, and Jake Fox hit his first career Major League home run. Little did we know that the offense was basically done for the rest of the game. The Tigers made the game close in the third when Ted Lilly allowed a home run to light hitting Ramon Santiago, a mistake to say the least. The Cubs added what I thought would be an insurance run in the 4th when Fukudome hit a triple to score Mike Fontenot (who reached on a fielder's choice).
Later in the bottom of the 4th the wheels came off for Ted Lilly. He allowed a double to Marcus Thames and then to new Cub-Killer Ryan Raburn to make it 4-3 Cubs. Then with Raburn on second Lilly gave up a home run to Magglio Ordonez, only Ordonez's 3rd of the year and first in a long time. The score was 5-4 and Detroit would not look back. Ordonez has been in a funk all season, comparable to Milton Bradley and David Ortiz. Lilly simply did not have it today: 6IP, 6ER, 10H, 6K, BB, 2HR allowed. It just was not his day, for as long as Lilly has been a Cub he has gone 3-5 good starts followed by one or two bad ones, this was a bad one, he will bounce back. Kevin Hart pitched a scoreless 7th followed by a troublesome 8th in which he allowed two hits and walked one (a questionable call on the 3-2 pitch, it looked good). He was also not helped when Andres Blanco made a rare defensive mistake and dropped a double play ball earlier in the inning. Sean Marshall bailed Hart out of the jam in the 8th striking out Curtis Granderson.
The Cubs were OK offensively today, at least they were better than they had been all series, but the pitching will not always be there to bail them out. Congrats to Jake Fox on his first ML HR, he had a nice game going 3-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, K. This guy is going to play against the White Sox, likely in all three games. I would play him at 3rd in game one with Micah Hoffpauir at DH against the right handed pitcher. Then I would DH Fox for Saturday and Sunday against the Sox's lefties. He has been hitting since he has been called up and the power is starting to come, he could replace Mark DeRosa in this line-up (Power, plays 3B, plays OF), and his defense has been better than expected. Soriano had a good game 2-4 2B, R, although his single was a blooper down in no-man's land. Fukudome also had a nice ball game going 2-4 2B, 3B, RBI. Dome had been slumping lately, so this was nice to see. Last but not least Micah Hoffpauir continues to rake as he had an opposite-field HR in the 9th off of closer Fernando Rodney, not any easy thing to do. The rally Hoff started in the 9th was not enough as Geovany Soto struck out to end the game with Fukudome standing on second.
Derrek Lee's career-high 21 game hitting streak came to an end today, he almost legged out an infield single to end the 8th. Apparently this was the second longest Cubs hitting streak of all time, only trailing Jerome Walton's 30 from 1989, when he won ROY. Congrats to Lee on the streak and his comeback this season, I did not expect it, I really hope he continues hitting this well the rest of the way. Also, can Lou Piniella please give Mike Fontenot a day off, he looks like he needs it, he did not look good today (again). At least we did not lose any ground in the division as the Mets defeated the Cardinals today, we remain 3.5 GB, manageable, but the Cubs need to get back over .500 and have 6 more road games on this trip.
Up Next: The Cubs head back to Chicago, but to the South Side, for a 3-game series with the White Sox. Tomorrow's matchup is at 3:05 and can be seen on both WGN and CSN depending on who you want to listen to. Randy Wells (1-3, 2.57 ERA) vs Jose Contreras (2-6, 5.23 ERA) is the pitching match-up. Wells is coming off of his first win, let's see if he can follow it with another one. Contreras has been pitching well of late, but I feel as if the Cubs never hit him like they should. It is going to be hot this weekend in Chicago, with temperatures in the 90s, which means the Cell should be a band-box. Hopefully the rain stays away, we already had one cross-town game postponed this season, which is one too many.
I am going out of town for the weekend, so no posts until Monday, I am sure there will be plenty to talk about after this weekend.
Later in the bottom of the 4th the wheels came off for Ted Lilly. He allowed a double to Marcus Thames and then to new Cub-Killer Ryan Raburn to make it 4-3 Cubs. Then with Raburn on second Lilly gave up a home run to Magglio Ordonez, only Ordonez's 3rd of the year and first in a long time. The score was 5-4 and Detroit would not look back. Ordonez has been in a funk all season, comparable to Milton Bradley and David Ortiz. Lilly simply did not have it today: 6IP, 6ER, 10H, 6K, BB, 2HR allowed. It just was not his day, for as long as Lilly has been a Cub he has gone 3-5 good starts followed by one or two bad ones, this was a bad one, he will bounce back. Kevin Hart pitched a scoreless 7th followed by a troublesome 8th in which he allowed two hits and walked one (a questionable call on the 3-2 pitch, it looked good). He was also not helped when Andres Blanco made a rare defensive mistake and dropped a double play ball earlier in the inning. Sean Marshall bailed Hart out of the jam in the 8th striking out Curtis Granderson.
The Cubs were OK offensively today, at least they were better than they had been all series, but the pitching will not always be there to bail them out. Congrats to Jake Fox on his first ML HR, he had a nice game going 3-4, 2B, HR, 3 RBI, K. This guy is going to play against the White Sox, likely in all three games. I would play him at 3rd in game one with Micah Hoffpauir at DH against the right handed pitcher. Then I would DH Fox for Saturday and Sunday against the Sox's lefties. He has been hitting since he has been called up and the power is starting to come, he could replace Mark DeRosa in this line-up (Power, plays 3B, plays OF), and his defense has been better than expected. Soriano had a good game 2-4 2B, R, although his single was a blooper down in no-man's land. Fukudome also had a nice ball game going 2-4 2B, 3B, RBI. Dome had been slumping lately, so this was nice to see. Last but not least Micah Hoffpauir continues to rake as he had an opposite-field HR in the 9th off of closer Fernando Rodney, not any easy thing to do. The rally Hoff started in the 9th was not enough as Geovany Soto struck out to end the game with Fukudome standing on second.
Derrek Lee's career-high 21 game hitting streak came to an end today, he almost legged out an infield single to end the 8th. Apparently this was the second longest Cubs hitting streak of all time, only trailing Jerome Walton's 30 from 1989, when he won ROY. Congrats to Lee on the streak and his comeback this season, I did not expect it, I really hope he continues hitting this well the rest of the way. Also, can Lou Piniella please give Mike Fontenot a day off, he looks like he needs it, he did not look good today (again). At least we did not lose any ground in the division as the Mets defeated the Cardinals today, we remain 3.5 GB, manageable, but the Cubs need to get back over .500 and have 6 more road games on this trip.
Up Next: The Cubs head back to Chicago, but to the South Side, for a 3-game series with the White Sox. Tomorrow's matchup is at 3:05 and can be seen on both WGN and CSN depending on who you want to listen to. Randy Wells (1-3, 2.57 ERA) vs Jose Contreras (2-6, 5.23 ERA) is the pitching match-up. Wells is coming off of his first win, let's see if he can follow it with another one. Contreras has been pitching well of late, but I feel as if the Cubs never hit him like they should. It is going to be hot this weekend in Chicago, with temperatures in the 90s, which means the Cell should be a band-box. Hopefully the rain stays away, we already had one cross-town game postponed this season, which is one too many.
I am going out of town for the weekend, so no posts until Monday, I am sure there will be plenty to talk about after this weekend.
Cubs fail to come through in clutch, lose to Tigers 5-3
The Cubs just can not seem to hit with RISP. Last night as a team they left 13 men on base and were 1-15 with RISP. I wish this was a new phenomenon with our Cubs, but it is not, it is same-old same-old, and sure enough their right back where they belong at .500. If this team ever wants get to get over .500 for good, some changes need to be made.
Here are a few of my ideas:
1. Drop Alfonso Soriano out of the lead-off spot. I know he had two hits last night, but they were both bloopers. His batting average is a pathetic .227 and his OBP is .291, both are unacceptable for an "All-Star", let alone a lead-off hitter for a .500 team. The Cubs go as he goes, and he is not going anywhere. Lou Piniella needs to face reality and drop Soriano to 5th, 6th, or 7th in the order. Ryan Theriot is much better suited to bat lead-off for this team, he gets on base, and can steal bases.
2. Do not start Mike Fontenot anymore. I like Fontenot, I really do, but right now he sucks. His average is at .228 and has been there since early April. He is showing no signs of improvement and looks like he's taking hitting tips from Aaron Miles with all the ground ball outs he is making. Keep Fontenot around while Aramis Ramirez is out, then send him back down to AAA to straighten things out with his bat. Right now he is less valuable than Jake Fox and Andres Blanco, so he figures to be the odd man out when Ramirez returns. Especially considering both Fox and Ryan Freel can also play third base.
3. Stop bringing in Aaron Heilman with a lead. Do I really need to explain this one? Seriously every time this joker comes in with runners on base they score. I wish I had the stats to show that over 50% of his inherited runners score. Last night in 1.2IP he allowed 3H and walked one, not good. He came in to relieve Rich Harden in the 6th and did not get the job done. I am tired of Heilman's act, at this point Lou ought to give David Patton more opportunities. Heilman complains that he wants to be a starter, how in the world could this guy start a game? He is terrible.
4. I was originally against trading Harden because I thought we could use him down the stretch in a pennant race. Right now however, I am not sure if this team can even make the playoffs. I am not even sure how good Harden is anymore, his line from last night: 5.1IP, 4R, 2ER, 4H, 4BB, 3K, 2HR allowed. He is not the same power pitcher he was last year and he is no longer striking guys out. Last night his pitch count got up to 109 in a little over 5 innings, which is not very good. I am not saying the Cubs have to trade him, but they should entertain the idea, and see what they can get in return. Harden is 4-4 with a 4.95 ERA this season, his best days could be behind him. Also the Cubs happen to be deep in regards to starting pitching, Sean Marshall or Jeff Samardzija could step in to replace Harden right away.
Now back to last night's game. The Cubs had plenty of men on base and everyone got a hit except Milton Bradley (who did walk 3 times) and Fontenot. Soriano, Theriot, Micah Hoffpauir, and Geovany Soto each had two base hits. Soto had a double and a HR which was very encouraging. Hoffpauir who got the start at first base made some nice plays in the field as well. Derrek Lee managed to extend his career-long hitting streak to 21 games, he also walked 3 times, he also started at DH. Besides Soto's solo-HR, the Cubs runs came when Fontenot grounded into a Fielder's Choice, and Fox hit a Sac-Fly. Fox had a lot of opportunities last night, he was 0-3 with RISP, and almost grounded into a triple play early in the game. I like Fox though and I would keep playing him, I chalk up his lack of production yesterday as inexperience. This guy will hit and drive in runs if Lou keeps playing him. The Cubs are getting their opportunities with RISP, they are just not taking advantage, eventually this has to change. Despite falling back to .500, the Cubs did not lose any ground in the division, as the Cardinals lost to the Mets.
Up next: The Cubs and Tigers end their 3-game set with a 12:05pm game on WGN. How exciting I love lunchtime baseball! Today's match-up is Ted Lilly (7-4, 3.04 ERA) vs Armando Galarraga (3-7, 5.62 ERA). All season Lilly has been our stopper (the guy who ends losing streaks) we need him to end this losing streak today. Comerica Park is perfect for a fly-ball pitcher like Lilly, I think if he is on, he will have a great start, and pick up his 8th win. I do not know much about Galarraga, but his numbers are awful, the Cubs should hit this guy, HARD! It is hot in Detroit so I would expect Lou to rest some guys from last night, such as Bradley (who could DH today), Soto, and Theriot. I expect to see Blanco, Freel, Miles, or Koyie Hill playing today. The Cubs need a victory today to stay above .500 in inter-league play and .500 overall. Not to mention it would be nice to roll into the Cell tomorrow after a win today.
Here are a few of my ideas:
1. Drop Alfonso Soriano out of the lead-off spot. I know he had two hits last night, but they were both bloopers. His batting average is a pathetic .227 and his OBP is .291, both are unacceptable for an "All-Star", let alone a lead-off hitter for a .500 team. The Cubs go as he goes, and he is not going anywhere. Lou Piniella needs to face reality and drop Soriano to 5th, 6th, or 7th in the order. Ryan Theriot is much better suited to bat lead-off for this team, he gets on base, and can steal bases.
2. Do not start Mike Fontenot anymore. I like Fontenot, I really do, but right now he sucks. His average is at .228 and has been there since early April. He is showing no signs of improvement and looks like he's taking hitting tips from Aaron Miles with all the ground ball outs he is making. Keep Fontenot around while Aramis Ramirez is out, then send him back down to AAA to straighten things out with his bat. Right now he is less valuable than Jake Fox and Andres Blanco, so he figures to be the odd man out when Ramirez returns. Especially considering both Fox and Ryan Freel can also play third base.
3. Stop bringing in Aaron Heilman with a lead. Do I really need to explain this one? Seriously every time this joker comes in with runners on base they score. I wish I had the stats to show that over 50% of his inherited runners score. Last night in 1.2IP he allowed 3H and walked one, not good. He came in to relieve Rich Harden in the 6th and did not get the job done. I am tired of Heilman's act, at this point Lou ought to give David Patton more opportunities. Heilman complains that he wants to be a starter, how in the world could this guy start a game? He is terrible.
4. I was originally against trading Harden because I thought we could use him down the stretch in a pennant race. Right now however, I am not sure if this team can even make the playoffs. I am not even sure how good Harden is anymore, his line from last night: 5.1IP, 4R, 2ER, 4H, 4BB, 3K, 2HR allowed. He is not the same power pitcher he was last year and he is no longer striking guys out. Last night his pitch count got up to 109 in a little over 5 innings, which is not very good. I am not saying the Cubs have to trade him, but they should entertain the idea, and see what they can get in return. Harden is 4-4 with a 4.95 ERA this season, his best days could be behind him. Also the Cubs happen to be deep in regards to starting pitching, Sean Marshall or Jeff Samardzija could step in to replace Harden right away.
Now back to last night's game. The Cubs had plenty of men on base and everyone got a hit except Milton Bradley (who did walk 3 times) and Fontenot. Soriano, Theriot, Micah Hoffpauir, and Geovany Soto each had two base hits. Soto had a double and a HR which was very encouraging. Hoffpauir who got the start at first base made some nice plays in the field as well. Derrek Lee managed to extend his career-long hitting streak to 21 games, he also walked 3 times, he also started at DH. Besides Soto's solo-HR, the Cubs runs came when Fontenot grounded into a Fielder's Choice, and Fox hit a Sac-Fly. Fox had a lot of opportunities last night, he was 0-3 with RISP, and almost grounded into a triple play early in the game. I like Fox though and I would keep playing him, I chalk up his lack of production yesterday as inexperience. This guy will hit and drive in runs if Lou keeps playing him. The Cubs are getting their opportunities with RISP, they are just not taking advantage, eventually this has to change. Despite falling back to .500, the Cubs did not lose any ground in the division, as the Cardinals lost to the Mets.
Up next: The Cubs and Tigers end their 3-game set with a 12:05pm game on WGN. How exciting I love lunchtime baseball! Today's match-up is Ted Lilly (7-4, 3.04 ERA) vs Armando Galarraga (3-7, 5.62 ERA). All season Lilly has been our stopper (the guy who ends losing streaks) we need him to end this losing streak today. Comerica Park is perfect for a fly-ball pitcher like Lilly, I think if he is on, he will have a great start, and pick up his 8th win. I do not know much about Galarraga, but his numbers are awful, the Cubs should hit this guy, HARD! It is hot in Detroit so I would expect Lou to rest some guys from last night, such as Bradley (who could DH today), Soto, and Theriot. I expect to see Blanco, Freel, Miles, or Koyie Hill playing today. The Cubs need a victory today to stay above .500 in inter-league play and .500 overall. Not to mention it would be nice to roll into the Cell tomorrow after a win today.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
Cubs get a taste of their own medicine, fall to Tigers 5-4 in walk-off fashion
The Cubs had their opportunities last night, they just did not finish the job. In the first inning, they loaded the bases, but only managed to get one run. Derrek Lee grounded into what should have been a double play, but he beat it out, and Alfonso Soriano scored, we did not get any more runs in the first. Then sure enough Carlos Zambrano relinquished the lead in the bottom of the first after allowing a triple to Placido Polanco (who was on the DL and was supposed to miss the series).
The game remained tied until the 6th, the Cubs had second and third with no one out, all we got was a Geovany Soto Sac-Fly to put us ahead 2-1. The Cubs would not be ahead for long however as Zambrano beaned the light hitting Don Kelly to lead off the 7th. The HBP was then followed by a Brandon Inge go-ahead HR. It is dumb mental mistakes like this HBP that prevent Zambrano from being one of the best pitchers in the league. Walking or beaning the lead-off hitter late in games almost always seems to burn pitchers, Zambrano knows better. Overall he had a pretty good start: 7IP, 3ER, 5H, 4K, 2BB. This was a quality start, but was not good enough to win. Zambrano had the chance to leave this game with a lead but could not get the job done.
Next in the top of the 8th the Cubs came storming back, Lee got things started with a single off of hard throwing Joel Zumaya. Zumaya by the way struck out Milton Bradley with a 104 mph fastball according to WGN's speed gun, impressive. Next, my boy Micah Hoffpauir got a hold of a Zumaya off speed pitch and hit a HR to deep right field to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead, and that also shut up the loser Tigers fans at the bar. Lee had another good day at the plate going 2-3 with a walk. He extended his career-long hitting streak to 20 games, his BA is at .292 and his OBP is .367. I am very excited that Lee is finally coming around, these are the kind of numbers that I have always expected out of him, this is great to see!
On to the bottom of the 9th and enter "closer" Kevin Gregg, who promptly walked a batter and gave up a two-run game winning HR to Ryan Rayburn, a .235 hitter. Way to go Gregg! He committed the cardinal sin of closers, do not walk the lead-off hitter (who again happened to be Kelly). This was a game the Cubs came back in and should have been wrapped up, instead Gregg pulled a Kerry Wood and blew it. Before the game I was commenting on how well Gregg has pitched recently, but it has really been a lot of smoke and mirrors. He is not a real closer, mainly because he can not over-power hitters or strike them out consistently. This was Gregg's 3rd blown save of the season and his 4.18 ERA is not good. If Marmol can find any kind of consistency with his location and Angel Guzman can come back from the DL and stay healthy, then I would move Marmol to closer, and use Gregg as a set-up man.
The Cubs had their opportunities early last night, but could not take advantage. Ultimately after a clutch HR, it was the pitching that let them down. Losses like last night's can be demoralizing, I am curious to see how the Cubs come out and play tonight. The Cubs are 34-33 and are now 3.5 GB thanks to a Cardinals win. No matter how many games we win in a row, we always seem to find a way back to .500, I have said it before, but this team looks a lot like a team that could finish .500.
Up next: Tonight Cubs vs Tigers at 6:05 on CSN. Rich Harden (4-3, 5.27 ERA) vs Rick Porcello (8-4, 3.54 ERA). Harden is coming off of his worst start as a Cub last Friday. He needs to rebound and come up with his best start of the season, why? Because the Cubs are facing whiz-kid Rick Porcello who was drafted out of high school in 2007, and he looks like the real deal. Porcello is a big reason why the Tigers are in first place. Hopefully he has an off night and the Cubs can get back to winning ball games.
The game remained tied until the 6th, the Cubs had second and third with no one out, all we got was a Geovany Soto Sac-Fly to put us ahead 2-1. The Cubs would not be ahead for long however as Zambrano beaned the light hitting Don Kelly to lead off the 7th. The HBP was then followed by a Brandon Inge go-ahead HR. It is dumb mental mistakes like this HBP that prevent Zambrano from being one of the best pitchers in the league. Walking or beaning the lead-off hitter late in games almost always seems to burn pitchers, Zambrano knows better. Overall he had a pretty good start: 7IP, 3ER, 5H, 4K, 2BB. This was a quality start, but was not good enough to win. Zambrano had the chance to leave this game with a lead but could not get the job done.
Next in the top of the 8th the Cubs came storming back, Lee got things started with a single off of hard throwing Joel Zumaya. Zumaya by the way struck out Milton Bradley with a 104 mph fastball according to WGN's speed gun, impressive. Next, my boy Micah Hoffpauir got a hold of a Zumaya off speed pitch and hit a HR to deep right field to give the Cubs a 4-3 lead, and that also shut up the loser Tigers fans at the bar. Lee had another good day at the plate going 2-3 with a walk. He extended his career-long hitting streak to 20 games, his BA is at .292 and his OBP is .367. I am very excited that Lee is finally coming around, these are the kind of numbers that I have always expected out of him, this is great to see!
On to the bottom of the 9th and enter "closer" Kevin Gregg, who promptly walked a batter and gave up a two-run game winning HR to Ryan Rayburn, a .235 hitter. Way to go Gregg! He committed the cardinal sin of closers, do not walk the lead-off hitter (who again happened to be Kelly). This was a game the Cubs came back in and should have been wrapped up, instead Gregg pulled a Kerry Wood and blew it. Before the game I was commenting on how well Gregg has pitched recently, but it has really been a lot of smoke and mirrors. He is not a real closer, mainly because he can not over-power hitters or strike them out consistently. This was Gregg's 3rd blown save of the season and his 4.18 ERA is not good. If Marmol can find any kind of consistency with his location and Angel Guzman can come back from the DL and stay healthy, then I would move Marmol to closer, and use Gregg as a set-up man.
The Cubs had their opportunities early last night, but could not take advantage. Ultimately after a clutch HR, it was the pitching that let them down. Losses like last night's can be demoralizing, I am curious to see how the Cubs come out and play tonight. The Cubs are 34-33 and are now 3.5 GB thanks to a Cardinals win. No matter how many games we win in a row, we always seem to find a way back to .500, I have said it before, but this team looks a lot like a team that could finish .500.
Up next: Tonight Cubs vs Tigers at 6:05 on CSN. Rich Harden (4-3, 5.27 ERA) vs Rick Porcello (8-4, 3.54 ERA). Harden is coming off of his worst start as a Cub last Friday. He needs to rebound and come up with his best start of the season, why? Because the Cubs are facing whiz-kid Rick Porcello who was drafted out of high school in 2007, and he looks like the real deal. Porcello is a big reason why the Tigers are in first place. Hopefully he has an off night and the Cubs can get back to winning ball games.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
Cubs revert to old ways, get shut out by Braves
Last night the Cubs were shut out by the Atlanta Braves, 2-0. The Cubs and Braves played this game as a make up for a rained out game from their series in early June. Ryan Dempster pitched last night and he did OK: 6.2IP, 2ER, 8H, 6K, 4BB. Dempster just can not seem to do anything good, he really hurt himself last night. In the third inning he walked the lead-off man, Diory Hernandez (who was hitting .129) on 4 pitches, Hernandez would later come around to score. I could not believe Dempster walked this guy, it would be like an opposing pitcher walking Aaron Miles. Lead-off walks are killers, they always seem to lead to runs. Dempster had 4 walks overall which is not good, until he cuts down on the walks this season, he will not win games consistently. Sean Marshall got Dempster out of a jam in the 7th and the recently called up Kevin Hart pitched a scoreless 9th. By the way, Dempster should have been taken out of the game after 6 innings. For some reason he was allowed to bat for himself in the top of the 7th despite already throwing over 100 pitches and getting in and out of multiple jams. Lou Piniella inexplicably allowed Dempster to bat for himself to lead-off an inning, trailing by one run. I am sorry Lou, but Dempster is hitting .094 and was not really all that sharp through 6 innings, why would you allow him to talk you into another inning? Dempster always manages to weasel into another inning that he does not deserve to pitch, sure enough he allowed another run in the 7th. Great managing Lou!
Furthermore, I can not believe the Cubs were shut out last night. I mean come on, they had 10 hits, but unfortunately they were all singles. They could have scored in the first inning after Ryan Theriot reached on a single, but Fukudome (who really sucks again by the way) grounded into a double-play. Sure enough, Jake Fox and Derrek Lee followed with two more singles, only to be stranded by Micah Hoffpauir. The Cubs hitters just could not get anything going against Javier Vazquez. The Cubs did load the bases in the 6th, but Lou allowed Andres Blanco to bat for himself in that spot with two outs. Bob Brenly said the likely reason why Lou let Blanco bat here was that neither Alfonso Soriano nor Milton Bradley had hit Vazquez well in the past. Blanco managed to hit the ball hard, but right at the center fielder. Lou decided to rest Soriano and Bradley before the upcoming road-trip.
On a positive note each of the Cubs' position players had a base-hit last night, with the exception of Fukudome who was 0-3. While Theriot, Fox, and Blanco each had two base-hits apiece. The bottom line though: The Cubs left 12 men on base and were 0-6 with RISP. Last night's game looked like the Cubs were still in early June, they did not look like the team fresh off of a 4-game winning streak. Derrek Lee did extend his career-long hitting streak to 19 games. For as much as I have ripped him this season, he is finally playing like I have expected him to play the last year and a half, hopefully he can stay hot. At least the Cubs did not lose any ground in the division last night, as the Mets defeated the Cardinals, keeping the Cubs at 2.5 GB at 34-32.
Also, last Friday I attended the Cubs vs Indians game. I sat on a rooftop owned by Wrigleyville Rooftops, located at 1032 Waveland. It was quite key. We were unsure if the weather would allow the game to be played, but we lucked out. They allowed us into the rooftop 30 mins before game time which was scheduled to be 1:20pm, so we went in at 1pm. The game did not get started until 2:45pm which means we were able to capitalize on the all you can drink beer deal which ran until the end of the 7th inning. This was the second best game I have ever been to (#1 was last year against the Rockies on a Friday too, when we won 10-9) coming back from 7-0 is very cool. I just had a feeling as the game went on that we were going to win. When Derrek Lee hit the game-tying HR off of Kerry Wood the place went nuts. What made it even better was that I was sitting with a group of Indians fans, poor bastards. I really do feel as if I am Lee's good-luck charm, he always comes up big when I am at the game, ironic.
My personal 2009 Cubs record: 6 and 2.
Next game I am going to as of right now: TBD.
Up Next: Cubs at Tigers at 6:05pm on WGN TV and Radio. Carlos Zambrano (4-2, 3.44 ERA) vs Edwin Jackson (6-4, 2.39 ERA). This is the first time this season the Cubs will play with a DH. Given that Jackson is a righty, I expect to see Hoffpauir start as our DH. Zambrano has been very good recently, I look for him to continue pitching well, I assume most of the Tigers' hitters have not seen much of Big Z. Jackson has been a huge surprise for the Tigers this season, if his 2.39 ERA is any indicator, the Cubs will struggle to score off of him in this game. I would expect to see a pitcher's duel tonight. I do not know much about the Tigers other than the fact that Magglio Ordonez is struggling worse than Geovany Soto or Bradley combined, and has been benched. Zambrano also needs to be wary of fellow countryman Miguel Cabrera, who is hitting .333 with 14HR, 44RBI. If the Cubs can keep Cabrera in check, they can win this series. Also, not having to face Justin Verlander in this series is a huge plus. The Cubs are 4-1 in inter-league games this season, I hope they keep it up! Go Cubs!
Furthermore, I can not believe the Cubs were shut out last night. I mean come on, they had 10 hits, but unfortunately they were all singles. They could have scored in the first inning after Ryan Theriot reached on a single, but Fukudome (who really sucks again by the way) grounded into a double-play. Sure enough, Jake Fox and Derrek Lee followed with two more singles, only to be stranded by Micah Hoffpauir. The Cubs hitters just could not get anything going against Javier Vazquez. The Cubs did load the bases in the 6th, but Lou allowed Andres Blanco to bat for himself in that spot with two outs. Bob Brenly said the likely reason why Lou let Blanco bat here was that neither Alfonso Soriano nor Milton Bradley had hit Vazquez well in the past. Blanco managed to hit the ball hard, but right at the center fielder. Lou decided to rest Soriano and Bradley before the upcoming road-trip.
On a positive note each of the Cubs' position players had a base-hit last night, with the exception of Fukudome who was 0-3. While Theriot, Fox, and Blanco each had two base-hits apiece. The bottom line though: The Cubs left 12 men on base and were 0-6 with RISP. Last night's game looked like the Cubs were still in early June, they did not look like the team fresh off of a 4-game winning streak. Derrek Lee did extend his career-long hitting streak to 19 games. For as much as I have ripped him this season, he is finally playing like I have expected him to play the last year and a half, hopefully he can stay hot. At least the Cubs did not lose any ground in the division last night, as the Mets defeated the Cardinals, keeping the Cubs at 2.5 GB at 34-32.
Also, last Friday I attended the Cubs vs Indians game. I sat on a rooftop owned by Wrigleyville Rooftops, located at 1032 Waveland. It was quite key. We were unsure if the weather would allow the game to be played, but we lucked out. They allowed us into the rooftop 30 mins before game time which was scheduled to be 1:20pm, so we went in at 1pm. The game did not get started until 2:45pm which means we were able to capitalize on the all you can drink beer deal which ran until the end of the 7th inning. This was the second best game I have ever been to (#1 was last year against the Rockies on a Friday too, when we won 10-9) coming back from 7-0 is very cool. I just had a feeling as the game went on that we were going to win. When Derrek Lee hit the game-tying HR off of Kerry Wood the place went nuts. What made it even better was that I was sitting with a group of Indians fans, poor bastards. I really do feel as if I am Lee's good-luck charm, he always comes up big when I am at the game, ironic.
My personal 2009 Cubs record: 6 and 2.
Next game I am going to as of right now: TBD.
Up Next: Cubs at Tigers at 6:05pm on WGN TV and Radio. Carlos Zambrano (4-2, 3.44 ERA) vs Edwin Jackson (6-4, 2.39 ERA). This is the first time this season the Cubs will play with a DH. Given that Jackson is a righty, I expect to see Hoffpauir start as our DH. Zambrano has been very good recently, I look for him to continue pitching well, I assume most of the Tigers' hitters have not seen much of Big Z. Jackson has been a huge surprise for the Tigers this season, if his 2.39 ERA is any indicator, the Cubs will struggle to score off of him in this game. I would expect to see a pitcher's duel tonight. I do not know much about the Tigers other than the fact that Magglio Ordonez is struggling worse than Geovany Soto or Bradley combined, and has been benched. Zambrano also needs to be wary of fellow countryman Miguel Cabrera, who is hitting .333 with 14HR, 44RBI. If the Cubs can keep Cabrera in check, they can win this series. Also, not having to face Justin Verlander in this series is a huge plus. The Cubs are 4-1 in inter-league games this season, I hope they keep it up! Go Cubs!
Thursday, June 18, 2009
Cubs beat Sox 6-5 in dramatic fashion
I can not believe the Cubs won this game today. The offense looked terrible all day until they got a rally going in the 8th inning. Micah Hoffpauir got things started with a rocket line drive that bounced off of Chris Getz, it was ruled an error. Alfonso Soriano followed this up with a single. I could feel a comeback, I was watching the game with a friend, we could sense something big was gonna happen. I had a hunch that Milton Bradley would come up with a big hit, but he did not, he struck out swinging. It was Derrek Lee who stepped up with an opposite field 3-run HR. This was Lee's biggest hit of the season and I was at the game where he it a grand-slam. The next hitter, Geovany Soto, followed Lee with a line-drive HR to left, tying the game at 5 apiece.
The stage was set for the 9th inning. Soriano made a heck of a catch in foul territory in the 9th. It was one of the few times I have really seen him hustle in the field this season. In the bottom of the 9th Reed Johnson got things started with a single up the middle. He was then sac-bunted over to second by Andres Blanco. Blanco by the way is a solid bunter, it is good to see him execute when the whole stadium knows what he is going to do. After Aaron Miles did nothing up came Soriano. Sure enough Soriano hung in there and hit a bloop single in short right-center to win the game. As bad as he has been at times this season, Soriano stepped up big in the last two innings of today's game.
The Cubs pitching was good today, Carlos Zambrano looked good again, but was probably left out there too long. Zambrano's line: 7IP, 3ER, 6H, 3K, 3BB 117 Pitches. Zambrano was not trying to strike everyone out, there were a lot of ground ball outs today. It was good to see Z get a no decision, he did not deserve a loss. Carlos Marmol pitched in the 8th and looked bad, allowing 2ER on 3 hits, at least he did not walk anyone. I am sure this was nothing too worry about either, Marmol rarely gets hit. Sean Marshall got out of Marmol's jam in the 8th and Kevin Gregg pitched a scorless 9th inning to pick up his first Cubs win.
The Cubs were lucky Ozzie Guillen pulled Gavin Floyd after 7 innings of one-run baseball and only 90 pitches. Floyd was dominant today and apparently has been on a role recently, I hope the Cubs do not have to face him next weekend. Scott Linebrink looked awful, the Cubs hit him hard for 4 runs. Then in the 9th, the Cubs got a run off of Matt Thornton who is said to be a "left-handed Marmol". Today I finally saw the old Cubs! The team that came back from down 5-1 in the 8th to win the game looked a lot like the 2008 team, who was never out of any game. D-Lee had a monster game going 1-4 with 4 RBIs. His opposite field 3-R HR in the 8th was a sight for sore eyes. Soto's HR to tie the game was his biggest hit of the season, easily. I hope this is a sign of good things to come.
Next up: The Cubs begin a 3 game series with the Cleveland Indians, weather permitting. The forecast for tomorrow: hot with temps in the mid-80s and Thunderstorms. I really hope this game does not get rained out, I have rooftop tickets. Tomorrow's pitching match-up should be a good one though. Rich Harden (4-3, 4.53 ERA) vs Cliff Lee (4-6, 2.88 ERA). Harden was good on Saturday in his first start since coming off of the DL. Lee had a slow start to the season but has been hot lately, how do you lose 6 games with a 2.88 ERA? The Cubs have been hit or miss against lefties this season, tomorrow's game should be a pitchers duel. Hopefully the Cubs can get Lee out of the game early and blast off against the Indians bullpen.
The stage was set for the 9th inning. Soriano made a heck of a catch in foul territory in the 9th. It was one of the few times I have really seen him hustle in the field this season. In the bottom of the 9th Reed Johnson got things started with a single up the middle. He was then sac-bunted over to second by Andres Blanco. Blanco by the way is a solid bunter, it is good to see him execute when the whole stadium knows what he is going to do. After Aaron Miles did nothing up came Soriano. Sure enough Soriano hung in there and hit a bloop single in short right-center to win the game. As bad as he has been at times this season, Soriano stepped up big in the last two innings of today's game.
The Cubs pitching was good today, Carlos Zambrano looked good again, but was probably left out there too long. Zambrano's line: 7IP, 3ER, 6H, 3K, 3BB 117 Pitches. Zambrano was not trying to strike everyone out, there were a lot of ground ball outs today. It was good to see Z get a no decision, he did not deserve a loss. Carlos Marmol pitched in the 8th and looked bad, allowing 2ER on 3 hits, at least he did not walk anyone. I am sure this was nothing too worry about either, Marmol rarely gets hit. Sean Marshall got out of Marmol's jam in the 8th and Kevin Gregg pitched a scorless 9th inning to pick up his first Cubs win.
The Cubs were lucky Ozzie Guillen pulled Gavin Floyd after 7 innings of one-run baseball and only 90 pitches. Floyd was dominant today and apparently has been on a role recently, I hope the Cubs do not have to face him next weekend. Scott Linebrink looked awful, the Cubs hit him hard for 4 runs. Then in the 9th, the Cubs got a run off of Matt Thornton who is said to be a "left-handed Marmol". Today I finally saw the old Cubs! The team that came back from down 5-1 in the 8th to win the game looked a lot like the 2008 team, who was never out of any game. D-Lee had a monster game going 1-4 with 4 RBIs. His opposite field 3-R HR in the 8th was a sight for sore eyes. Soto's HR to tie the game was his biggest hit of the season, easily. I hope this is a sign of good things to come.
Next up: The Cubs begin a 3 game series with the Cleveland Indians, weather permitting. The forecast for tomorrow: hot with temps in the mid-80s and Thunderstorms. I really hope this game does not get rained out, I have rooftop tickets. Tomorrow's pitching match-up should be a good one though. Rich Harden (4-3, 4.53 ERA) vs Cliff Lee (4-6, 2.88 ERA). Harden was good on Saturday in his first start since coming off of the DL. Lee had a slow start to the season but has been hot lately, how do you lose 6 games with a 2.88 ERA? The Cubs have been hit or miss against lefties this season, tomorrow's game should be a pitchers duel. Hopefully the Cubs can get Lee out of the game early and blast off against the Indians bullpen.
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