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mrschroeder08 partyvancaptain pee_callus25 Tags 2010 Preview 5 Million Dollar Black Hole AAAA Aaron Heilman Aaron Miles Alfonso Soriano Andres Blanco Angel Guzman Aramis Ramirez Arizona Diamondbacks Atlanta Braves B.J. Ryan Baltimore Orioles Bob Brenly Bobby Scales Bonehead Booing Boston Red Sox Brett Jackson Bullpen Canadian Concoction Captain Kneejerk Cardinals Carlos Marmol Carlos Silva Carlos Zambrano Chad Fox Chad Tracy Chicago Cubs Chicago White Sox Cincinnati Reds Cleveland Indians Cold War Colorado Rockies Contracts Cubs-Cardinals Rivalry Cubs sale Cubs Curtis Granderson Daniel Herrera David Patton Derrek Lee Designated Hitter Detroit Tigers Disabled list Dominance ERA+ ERROR Esmailin Caridad ESPN Sucks Eternal frustration Eternal Optimism Farewell Farney Florida Marlins Free Agency Future Gatorade Geovanny Soto Geovany Soto Gerald Perry Grades Houston Astros I-Cubs Injuries Jake Fox Jason Marquis Jason Waddell Jeff Gray Jeff Samardzija Jim Hendry Jim Wolf Joey Gathright John Grabow Jose Ascanio Kansas City Royals Kerry Wood Kevin Gregg Kevin Hart Kevin Millar Koyie Hill LaTroy Hawkins Legendary Lineup Los Angeles Angels Los Angeles Dodgers Lou Piniella Luis Vizcaino Man Crush Mark DeRosa Marlon Byrd Micah Hoffpauir Middle Infield Midwestern Bias Milton Bradley Milwaukee Brewers Minnesota Twins Minor Leagues MLB 2K9 Neal Cotts New York Mets New York Yankees Oakland Athletics October Offseason Opening Day OPS+ Payroll Philadelphia Phillies Pittsburgh Pirates Playoffs Randy Wells Rant Rich Harden Ryan Dempster Ryan Freel Ryan Theriot Sam Fuld Sam Zell Sammy Sosa San Diego Padres San Francisco Giants Sandy Alderson Sean Marshall Seattle Mariners St. Louis Cardinals Steroids Strikeouts Suckiness Tampa Bay Rays TBS Texas Rangers Tom Gorzelanny Tom Ricketts Toronto Blue Jays Trade Tribune Company Tyler Colvin Von Joshua Waivers Walks Washington Nationals WTF Xavier Nady RSS Feed One of the habits Cubs fans have adopted in recent years is quick and merciless booing. It can be directed at the Cubbies, their opponents, the umpires, and even Jeff Gordon. But today's game was one that made me chuckle. Apparently Jason Marquis was the target of today's boo birds. That darn Jason Marquis and all the damage he did to those Cubs teams. And on top of that, he ran over puppies with his car. Oh, and he's a communist. I still have to figure out how to use a sarcasm font. Now, I am not saying Marquis was great for the Cubs. He wasn't a 20-game winner, and he never got any Cy Young consideration. And while, granted, he was quite overpaid for a #5 starter, he was a really good #5 starter to have. One stat I do want to introduce here just to back this up is Jason Marquis' ERA+. (Basically ERA+ is a normalization of a pitcher's ERA vs. the league average, as well as the ballparks he pitches in, to see how he stacks up to the league. 100 is the exact average.) Jason Marquis posted ERA+s of 101 and 99. I'll take an average pitcher as my #5 pitcher any day. Not to mention the fact the dude treated innings like Pacman treats little white dots. (I also still have to figure out good figurative language.) On the flip side, I am happy we were able to trade him, and that is mainly because of the guy we have in that #5 spot this year, Sean Marshall. While I wouldn't call Sean Marshall a future ace, this guy can fill Jason Marquis' shoes. Heck I think he can easily be better than Marquis was. In 2007 (the last year he started regularly), Marshall's ERA+ was actually 116. Granted, this was in a smaller sample size, but it was still over 19 starts. He would find a spot in any major league rotation. And here's the kicker, he's making a grand total of $450K vs. Marquis' $9.875M. A #5 starter should never cost you around $10M. As for today's game, Captain Kneejerk (my alter ego) thinks maybe Rich Harden should have been traded to Colorado. Stupid bum. In all seriousness, it was nice to see Lee finally get going. It wasn't as nice to see Soriano reverting to his usual left field chicanery. Hopefully today was just a blip for Harden because he is such a devastating weapon to have when he is working. When he isn't, it is devastating to the bullpen, and I don't think Marmol can work 130 games this year. Just a hunch. Alright, that's all I got for now. Hopefully you enjoyed this, and hopefully Comrade Marquis stops punting infants. (Credit to baseball-reference.com for the stats, and foxsports.com for the salary figures.) Posted in: Jason Marquis, ERA+, Booing, Sean Marshall | ||