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I officially apologize for saying that, because it looks like the Cubs are actually going through with it. I will comment more on this later tonight, but let me say this: this is not a smart move. Moving a historically good starter in favor of two historically below average pitchers based on a few turns of the rotation is to say the least crazy. Posted in: Carlos Zambrano While the Bulls and Blackhawks trail their respective playoff series, the Cubs have taken a commanding 0-2 lead in the World Series of Underachievers. My friends, it looks like this team is making a strong push for the "Worst Team Money Can Buy" Championship. But hey, at least the stuff off the field is fun to watch. Quickly the awards: Carlos Zambrano gets today's Glendon Rusch Player of the Game award as he held his own for six innings. That and there is not much else to be happy about here. There was a three way tie for the "Hang Your Head" award. Three 0-4, 2 strikeout performances out there. In the event of a tie, the win goes to the worst cumulative effort so far on the year. Therefore (and this is long overdue) Aramis Ramirez gets it. Any day now he will come around, but right now he just looks horrible. Today's real story centers around Bob Brenly's candid comments about your favorite $19 million salaried player and mine, Alfonso Soriano. Brenly made comments many comments. One in which he compared Soriano's hustle (unfavorably) to Ted Lilly. Another where he pretty much flat out said Soriano's contract was the only thing keeping him on the field. The final blow came when Brenly said he would have yanked Soriano "long ago" for his lack of hustle. All in all, it brought back memories of the 2004 season. The first thing to mention about Bob's points is that point 2 (Soriano's salary) would handcuff him from exercising point 3 (pulling his Cadillacing butt) even if he were the manager. There is too much invested in Sori, and he still has some potential to be that offensive force. The second thing to mention is that Soriano has been in the big leagues for about a decade now. He is what he is. The Cubs knew (or should have known) what he was before baseball-marrying the man. I admit I get angry too when he does that crap, but it isn't worth this distraction yet. The Cubs have much bigger fish to fry. (Off the top of my head: 1) bullpen, 2) bullpen, 3) relief pitching, 4) the entire offense, 5) a proposal to shorten games to six innings thus eliminating the bullpen.) For the record, I think Brenly is right (and is a good commentator to boot). It is pathetic that the man is given the moon by the Cubs and he can't sprint for up to 270 feet. My worry is that there is already a ton of problems here, and distractions from the organization can't be good. Soriano is not going to change. This is the same man who said he would stop hopping in left, and the next day he was hopping all over again. The Cubs have shown they are a very unstable team two weeks into this season, and this little issue could be a spark. Now the question going forward is will that spark ignite a run, or will it send this season down in flames?* * That is probably a tad bit dramatic. Only a group of weak-minded, pathetic excuses for grown adults would let something like this adversely affect their play that much. Oh, much like the 2004 team. Posted in: Carlos Zambrano, Aramis Ramirez, Alfonso Soriano, Bob Brenly They have a combined payroll of over $270 million. They were a combined 9-15 going into Monday. Too small a sample size? They have also combined for 0 playoff wins since 2007 despite both being in the top tier of major league baseball salaries. They are the Mets and the Cubs, and they are competing in the World Series of Underachievers. And the Cubs took game 1 (since losing is more indicative of underachieving, of course) convincingly. Marlon Byrd sure didn't help that, what with his three hits. He actually got on base in the leadoff spot, and for that he earns an Eddie Zambrano Player of the Game award. He has been good for the first couple of weeks, and for the time being, center field is not a worry for the Cubs. Ryan Theriot, however, is a concern as he earns the "Hang Your Head" award. The bullpen is clear of blame when the offense only scores once, and Theriot was a big reason why that happened. I guess the best time to be super patient is when there are two strikes on you, because that is when Ryan Theriot decided to take a pitch, only to be called out looking. The final line on him was 2 strikeouts, 1 GIDP and 1 walk (intentional, to get to Randy Wells who ironically had a much better offensive game). And Castro gets closer and closer and closer. It isn't time yet, but the more this team struggles, the better chance he has of coming up from AA, where he is raking. Jeff Baker has done a good job at 2B, so suddenly moving Theriot there is not such a forgone conclusion. History says Ryan will bounce back, but that is contingent on him changing his plate approach. His best year (2008) he walked (73) more than he struck out (58). Last year, that was not the case (93 K/51 BB). This year, he is continuing that trend. Strikeouts on their own are not indicative of bad offense. But Theriot's walks are going down, and he has no power to speak of. He needs to get his eye back, or he will be the odd man out come Castro time. And finally, remember that Soriano made $117K again last night. That triple turned double really reminds me why I don't like cheering for that man. Posted in: Marlon Byrd, Ryan Theriot Back when I was young, my grandpa sat me down on his lap. He looked at me with his weathered eyes, full of wisdom. I remember what he said like it was yesterday. He said, "Boy, if you can only score 5 runs in 2 games against the 2010 Houston Astros, then you deserve to lose." Those words never rang true more than they did this weekend. First, let's talk about the first game. After scoring only one run in six innings, the Cubs had a conversation in the dug out. Blue Ivy has the exclusive transcript. Lee: Guys, you'll never guess what I just found out. Byrd: What's up, Derek? Lee: That man on the mound is in fact NOT Roy Halladay. Theriot and Fontenot: WHAT?!?! Soriano: No way. That guy can throw OFFSPEED pitches. It's got to be Halladay. Lee: No, guys. I'm dead serious. It's not Halladay. His name is Felipe Paulino. Theriot and Fontenot: WHO?!?!?! Lee: Exactly. Ramirez: So... we can hit this guy? Lee: Yea, man. We can. All Cubs: OHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH. The Cubs would score 6, and fin. And sadly, it would be one of only two innings where the offense would show up. Carlos Silva gets the Steve Trachsel Player of the Game award for not only an RBI hit, but also 7 innings with only 2 unearned runs given up. Two starts in, and he has been very impressive. I am going to call the "Hang Your Head" award a no contest for that game. Every offensive starter got on base at least once, and no pitcher gave up an earned run. That is about as impressive of a game as you will see. Too bad it is downhill from there. Roy Oswalt turned back the clock Saturday, and if Michael Barrett were there screaming at him, I would have thought it was 2004. As dominant as he was, the Astros almost pulled one from the Cubs playbook and blew it late. Alfonso Soriano's error did not hurt the Cubs in the end, and his two hits included a key double in the 8th inning comeback. For those he gets the Luis Gonzalez (He was a Cub. Remember?) Player of the Game award. For being an 0-fer in the middle of the lineup, including a key strikeout in the 8th inning comeback, Marlon Byrd gets the "Hang Your Head" award. Though Marlon has been pretty darn decent in the first two weeks this year. You cannot get too upset with him. The real aggravation came Sunday, when the Cubs could only scratch across two runs against Wandy Wodwiguez and the Astros bullpen. When you do that, you are asking to lose. Ryan Dempster won the Joe Borowski Player of the Game award for another quality outing. He has emerged as the top starter in this rotation for sure. Carlos Marmol's first blown save wins him the "Hang Your Head" award. He can't save them all, but you darn sure need to save them against bad teams. Don't give me that "Geoff Blum is clutch" crap. If he can raise his level that much in the 9th inning and beyond, then he is an idiot who cost himself millions of dollars by playing at an inferior level from innings 1-8 for his whole career. If he is capable of hitting like that at will, then he should have been a perennial all-star. Therefore I think it is more a case of him getting pitches from the Cubs bullpen that he can handle. Still, you can't help but be frustrated by the man. Pitch around him next time. And now it is on to New York to face a team a couple of days removed from a 20-inning marathon in St. Louis. I expect more maddening play from the Cubs, especially with three lefties on the mound for the Mets. Also, interesting to note that Theriot will be dropped to eighth in the new and "improved" lineup. Ignore those footsteps, Ryan. It's just Starlin Castro coming. Posted in: Carlos Silva, Alfonso Soriano, Marlon Byrd, Ryan Dempster, Carlos Marmol The three game series with Milwaukee was pretty much what was expected. Pitching was not good, and offenses were feasting. Since I am late on this post I'll be brief with my awards. Marlon Byrd wins his second Mario Encarnacion Player of the Game award. He had two hits including a two-run home run. He has shown a lot of power at the plate thus far, which is a bit surprising. Maybe Rudy Jaramillo really is that good with him. Carlos Zambrano wins the "Hang Your Head" award this time, after he avoided it opening day and had a decent game. He is pitching like he should be the one to leave when Ted Lilly returns. Obviously that will not happen, but it has not been a good start to the year for Z. Today begins a series that should be a feast for the Cubs. The Astros are even more atrocious early on than most thought, and the offense *should* continue their hot streak. Now it is time for the pitching to settle back down. Hi ho, Silva! Posted in: Marlon Byrd, Carlos Zambrano After the first week in which the eighth inning was so cruel to the Cubs, today's was a nice flip of the script. The offense had its second straight good day, and while Randy Wells had issues, facing Dave Bush and LaTroy Hawkins sure helps counteract that. If only the Cubs could face those two every day. Today Ryan Theriot earns today's Curtis Goodwin Player of the Game award. Four hits and two stolen bases from the leadoff spot really helped key the offense. I do have to note however that I was not a fan of the decision to steal in the eighth. It seemed like a needless risk that could have taken the Cubs out of a golden opportunity. But this award is given for results, and Theriot got results and helped get the Cubs over the hump. As far as the four hits go, he did it all by being Ryan Theriot. He hit four solid singles, and did not try being Babe Theriot like he fell in the habit of last year. If he and Fukudome can continue to get on base like this, it will go a long way to making this team a real contender. Of course history tells us that is not necessarily the smartest bet. The "Hang Your Head" award definitely goes to a pitcher. I was thinking Randy Wells because of 10 hits and 1 bad walk to the pitcher in 6.1 innings is pretty bad. I think Jeff Gray edges him out though, because he nearly put this game well out of reach in a pitiful Cubs debut. This is also another indictment on the win stat as he got the win today simply because the offense bailed him (and Wells) out. First, Gray gave up a hit to a man who was 0-for-the year. I know, I know: it had to be somebody. But to follow that up with two triples? You simply cannot have that. The eighth continues to befall the bullpen. Fortunately, an old friend had an even worse time of it. Say what you will about LaTroy. He is a decent reliever, and he has been around long enough to prove that point. He was put in a position that was not optimal for him (closing), and he failed. I do not begrudge him as much as other Cubs fans do, but man, there is something about facing that man. Last year he had 2 blown saves and a 6.00 ERA in 6 innings against the Cubs. After today, he has a 6.46 ERA against the Cubs since being traded away in 2005. Again, I think he is pretty quality, and I wouldn't mind having him back considering the current bullpen situation. Then again, Cubbie blue seems to be his kryptonite. Also, good to see that indeed Soriano and Soto got some licks in today. Soto especially is noteworthy with two walks and a home run. His plate approach was nice today, and with Jeff Suppan going tomorrow, Soto has a good shot to continue this. As far as Soriano on defense, well let's just say he is a DH at this point, but bless his heart he is trying. Posted in: Ryan Theriot, Jeff Gray, LaTroy Hawkins, Geovany Soto The home opener yesterday was a joy to hear. For the first time this season the offense broke out, and for at least a game, the Cubs made it look like it was 2008 all over again. Expecting that performance to be sustained is unrealistic, but it is nice to take the pressure off the pitching once in a while. The offense had a bunch of good performances, but the Jeff Blauser Player of the Game award goes to Xavier Nady. His three run home run started up the offensive outburst, and he would add another hit later. This is an encouraging sign after some reports had him not being a productive member of this team until June. He and Jeff Baker are making me like our lineup against left-handed pitching, albeit through one week. Plus with Derrek Lee out for a couple of days (possibly) and with Chad Tracy making me wish for the days of Kevin Millar (sarcasm), Nady may have positioned himself to get at least one start at first base. Let's see if he can sustain his early success. The "Hang Your Head" award was a bit harder to give out. All the position players got on base at least once, and none had any egregious defensive miscues. I will hang this one on Ryan Dempster with the caveat that he doesn't have to hang his head too much. Still out of all the choices, he is probably the player who performed the worst. His control was a bit spotty and he did give up a monstrous home run to Ryan Braun. While giving up a home run to Braun is not in and of itself shameful, I don't like Ryan Braun. Therefore if you give up a home run to him, it saddens me. Anyways, sorry Ryan. It's not like you were that bad. On the other hand, it's not like this matters much. Tomorrow could be another good one for the offense with Dave Bush on the mound. He has proven to be a pretty pedestrian pitcher. Now would be a good time for some players (*cough*SOTO*cough*) to get going. The rumor is Soriano has been threatened with a benching already as well, which is a bit eyebrow-raising. It has been pretty clear that the Cubs success is closely tied to how those two perform. I hope tomorrow is the day they finally start showing signs, and I think there is a good chance they will. Posted in: Xavier Nady, Ryan Dempster, Alfonso Soriano, Geovany Soto The eighth inning is evil. It stings the Cubs. I feel like I am writing the same post over and over again. Blah, blah, blah. Here are the awards. The Dave Veres Player of the Game award goes to Tom Gorzelanny. Five games, five starters and each win the award. You cannot ask for better starting pitching than what the Cubs have gotten (forgetting opening day) and the fact that they are 2-3 in those games is a huge indictment on the rest of this team. Now it's just a race to see if the hitting can wake up before the starting pitching comes back down to earth. The "Hang Your Head" award could go any number of places. Caridad and Grabow failed again and the 4-5-6 hitters in this lineup killed what was otherwise a potentially productive offensive day. But the $19 million man opened the gates for the Reds with his defense in addition to shutting the gates for the Cubs with his offense. Alfonso Soriano made $117,283 today (before taxes- don't forget April 15th is around the corner). That is more than many will make in a year or even two years. But with that, he gets today's HYH award, and that is priceless. Most days when you get 13 baserunners you will score much more than 1 run. Today 9 of those baserunners came from Theriot, Fukudome and Lee. They were 5-10 with 4 walks, and right behind them were Ramirez, Byrd and Soriano: 0-12 with 1 walk. It will get better for those three, and it will get worse from the top three. So what is my point in all of this? I think the offense is on the cusp of breaking out. It all comes down to when the heart of the order comes around. I will make a bold prediction that it is coming in the next series. Mark it down. Now, if only the Cubs can solve that 8th inning problem. Posted in: Tom Gorzelanny, Alfonso Soriano Well, you knew not every game would be blown in the eighth. Today John Grabow got a bit of defensive help from Derrek Lee, but he managed to preserve the lead for Carlos Marmol, who turned back the clock 2 years. I'm telling you, if Marmol goes 0-2 or 1-2 on a hitter, just end the at bat right there. A hitter who goes into protect mode against Marmol may as well be wearing a blindfold up there. You know, so far the awards have been pitcher heavy, and I thought Zambrano early on would break the streak of starters winning the player of the game award. Instead, Zambrano got stronger, pitched seven innings and earned himself the Bob Patterson Player of the Game award. That seventh inning was especially impressive, as he had clearly found his rhythm out there. So now four starters have turned in solid performances, and the pressure is now on Tom Gorzelanny to keep the streak alive. And today's "Hang Your Head" award goes to Geovany Soto. The man looks lost at the plate, and two backwards K's are pretty unacceptable. The early returns on the new lighter Soto are not good, but we are still at a point where you can call it merely a slump. Still, he needs to show something soon, or you can bet Koyie Hill will be seeing a lot more playing time. That is not a good thing for anyone. Well, maybe it is good for the guy who reattached Koyie's fingers since he can brag about how he pretty much reassembled a big leaguer. Today's final note is about the offense. It has been pretty average thus far, but I am liking Derrek Lee's showing so far. He has been very patient, and yesterday showed us he still has the power stroke. You know Aramis will get going, and maybe Soriano is starting to show up this year. If the Cubs are going to make a run, they either need the offense to go from average to good or the bullpen to go from awful to average. I feel at this point, today notwithstanding, that the former has a much better chance at happening. By the way, if someone can figure out a way to make Fukudome think it is always April, that would be greatly appreciated. Posted in: Carlos Zambrano, Geovany Soto Remember two days ago? (Even if you do not, you can scroll down on this page most likely.) I lobbied for a certain reliever to get eighth inning duties. Well I must thank said reliever for making me look stupid so soon after I made an argument for him. Though at this point, you can really make an argument for anyone in that bullpen to be the setup man. It is just that volatile. OK, award time. For the third straight day, the starter comes through, and the Jason Bere Player of the Game award goes to Carlos Silva. If there was ever more of an encouraging sign for the Cubs, this was it. Silva pitched his game. He was quick, he kept the ball down and he was effective. He is making his case for staying in this rotation when Ted Lilly returns, and I think no matter what, he has a good shot at sticking. Now to temper expectations, a man who struggled as mightily as he did in '08 and '09 is not going to magically become Cy Young. He will have bad games in a Cubs uniform. But tonight he showed that he CAN still be effective, and that was really, really important. This rotation has been impressive in the first week (so long as you exclude starters whose names begin with Z). And there is an obvious "Hang Your Head" winner tonight. I said two nights ago he would probably win his share, and tonight Esmailin Caridad looked horrible. He showed no composure when it was clear he was not getting his bread and butter pitch called a strike. It was Zambrano-esque how he showed his frustration. What's more, he was getting behind EVERYONE, and obviously that will be disastrous. Just not a good night at all. I will say, though, that I agreed with Lou's decision to make Caridad tough it out. I still believe Caridad has some good stuff, but it looks like his mind hasn't caught up. Tonight was really the first time he has faced trouble in his big league career, and he failed the mental test. I have also made a new rule for myself: be very slow to criticize bullpen decisions made by Piniella. The entire crew down there is such a crapshoot as to who will have a good outing or who will blow up. And I get that most bullpens are like that, but with all the rookie arms and wild veterans down there, this one is particularly buggy. On a positive note, D-Lee's home run is still flying. That was at least fun to watch. Posted in: Carlos Silva, Esmailin Caridad | ||