The official 2008 Cubs thread celebrates a century of excellence

One year after staff ace Carlos Zambrano predicted a Cy Young Award season and World Series championship -- neither of which came true -- Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster on Wednesday predicted an end to the billy goat curse.

''I think we're going to win the World Series, I really do,'' said Dempster, whose switch from closer to starter could play a major role in how quickly his new career as a swami takes off. ''The curse? It's been 100 years. I think I'm all right saying that.''

Lilly my man

any of you guys hear any new brian roberts trade scuttlebutt? seems like a pretty dead issue from what i can glean from the b'more papers/blogs.

lollll i love this thread title dogg

I haven't heard anything new about Roberts in a long time.

They're still hoping for him on "The Mike North Morning Show" -- North is an idiot and a homer but he was sounding smart this morning for asking why everyone's all hyped up on the Cubs this year when Fukudome-for-Jones is the only improvement they've made.

Don't get me wrong, I hope the Cubs are a wild-card team this year instead of the division winner. But it'd be cool if yr boys and my Brewers slugged it out all year on a pretty much equal basis...until, y'know, September.

well, i'd have to think that giving the lion's share of starts at catcher to soto will be a pretty significant improvement, but otherwise, cubs are still pretty mediocre up the middle, i guess.

(xpost)

I think Cubs fans are excited about the offseason because Hendry hasn't done any obvious damage. He lost out on Tejada and Kaz Matsui, didn't give a big name reliever a 3 year contract, and Fukudome's OBP is a great fit.

They have something like seven starting pitchers, but that'll sort itself out.

http://homerderby.com/archives/1877

"Despite being paired with the AL East, the Cubs avoid playing both the Red Sox and the Yankees in 2008. Instead they get three series with Tampa, Baltimore, and Toronto plus their rivalry home-and-home with the White Sox (who had a down year last season). Only Toronto had a winning record in 2007. Cub fans will usually complain about Interleague unfairness, but with the Booyah network’s faves absent from the sked, they should be quiet in 2008."

The Reds have to play the Red Sox, the Yankees, and have six games against the Indians. HI DERE DUSTY WELCOME BACKS>

Third baseman Aramis Ramirez (throwing shoulder) and outfielder Daryle Ward (butt muscle) are expected to be in the lineup Thursday after missing the first five Cactus League games.

uh also outfielder Felix Pie missed a couple of days early because of a twisted testicle

http://www.any-team-can-have-a-bad-century.com/images/SHIRT.gif

On the spectrum of ball injuries, it sounds like a twisted testicle is far preferable to the intrascrotal hematoma. Following this team is like getting a free subscription to Men's Health.

or a BDSM mag.

Men's Health meets Mad Magazine.
xpost

Felix and me 2 years ago:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2346/2158826119_999c7d7492.jpg?v=0

felix <3

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/2/2e/Pi-symbol.svg/180px-Pi-symbol.svg.png

uh also outfielder Felix Pie missed a couple of days early because of a twisted testicle

Testicular torsion is a menace.

Is This a Great Game, or What?

Scott Eyre, on shifting loads when driving an RV:

"When we first took off the first morning, my Michael Barrett bobblehead slid off the counter because I forgot to tape him down," Eyre said. "He didn't break; he just got a bruise right on his cheek."

link

so how about the cubs playing part of the season at the cell on the southside?

Why are they doing that?

I'm going to catch a Pirates game at the Ivy League Club rooftops on Sheffield in April. Who's in Chicago?

Oh right I remember

There is still netting in place in some parts of Wrigley Field, to prevent concrete from falling onto the concourse.

looks like wrigley will be sold to the illinois sports facilities authority (who also own the cell) and the deal is contingent on a $250M upgrade to wrigley.

with the state involved i don't see how this could possibly go wrong.

Good old corrupt baseballIllinois politics (at least our governors don't pay for it).

"Sianis was outraged at the ejection and allegedly placed a curse upon the Cubs that they would never win another pennant or play in a World Series at Wrigley Field again because the Cubs organization had insulted his goat'"

Maybe a second half at the Zell is a good thing? Let's think positive.

the cell is a pretty decent place to see a game as long as you're not in one of the 500 sections.

Yes, I like it. They sell a good foam finger too.

Felix Pie: (Still) Got It Twisted

(ha ha ha ha ha ha)

(ha)

BTW, I have nothing but wuv for FP, and hope he can subvert Piniella's love of shitty light-hitting CFs. (Apologies if I just confused Lou P & Dusty B.)

more on pie:

Pie is suffering from what's called testicular torsion, or, in layman's terms, a twisted testicle. It happened early in camp, but Pie had the problem reduced manually, sources said, and was able to continue playing.

if he were governor of new york they'd be calling for his resignation right now.

Will it be a two-seam screw ball or a four-seamer?

as long as it's not a knuckleball i think it'll be ok.

Cubs play practical joke on coach
Players demolish car, buy coach new Nissan Xterra SUV

MESA, Ariz. -- When the Cubs came onto the field for pregame stretching on Tuesday, third baseman Aramis Ramirez yelled at Tim Buss, the strength and conditioning coach.

"Aramis says, 'Bussy, what's your car doing on the ramp?'" Buss said. "I said, 'That's not my car,' and then I said, 'That's my car.' I thought they'd lost their minds."

What Buss saw was his wife's car, a 1995 Nissan with 106,000 miles on it, turned to junk. It was parked on the ramp near the right field corner of HoHoKam Park and completely demolished. It had dents everywhere, courtesy of a few free-swinging Cubs, and the trunk was somehow rolled up. It was totally undriveable.

"It's a shame," Cubs pitcher Jon Lieber said, as deadpan as he could.

Of course, Buss had a list of suspects. He figured Lieber, Kerry Wood and Ryan Dempster were involved. Third-base coach Mike Quade was one because Buss said his "hands were more blistered than usual." Buss has a love-hate relationship with the players and staff.

Wood escaped this event unscathed?

Kevlar.

MLB.com - 2 hours ago
Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood, who appears to be the front-runner for the closer's job, was scratched from Wednesday's game because of lower back spasms.

Shrapnel.

I thought Marmol was the front runner!?

Omg KKerry looked supersharp at Hohokam today.

3 batters faced, top of the Sox order, 2K and a pop out.

Kerry Wood strikeout p0rn (hope these come out)

Looking

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2093/2353582108_166d5a76cc_b.jpg

Swinging (see the ball?)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3261/2353580860_07f2efbebb_b.jpg

Falling off

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2014/2353579468_3c764da26b_b.jpg

Fukudome is going to bat second. Big Money is dropped down to the fifth spot.

Good thinking, Lou.

Ha, well, maybe not... your 2008 Cubs opening day lineup:

R. Theriot ss
A. Soriano lf
D. Lee 1b
A. Ramirez 3b
K. Fukudome rf
M. DeRosa 2b
G. Soto c
F. Pie cf
C. Zambrano p

Lou is lucky he has Dusty in same division

Nothing quite like post-Opening Day hyperbole...

It's only one game -- one loss -- into a six-month season, but Opening Day at Wrigley Field lasted long enough to reveal at least this much about this year's Cubs:

Kosuke Fukudome? The best $48 million the Cubs ever spent.

$48 million for a 3-run homer in a losing game? And people thought the Rangers / A-Rod deal was bad!

Yeah! Red Sox are historically well known for their thrift.

Aside from that how did you enjoy "No, No Nanette," Mr. Popshots?

I have a good idea for how to use Big Money $oriano: cap, glove, sunglasses delivery service for runners left on base

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2300/2381614366_d2e2e53779_o.jpg

^^ note crossover double-fisted technique, difficulty 9.7

who is that tiny, tiny man on the right?

2008 Dirtbag All-Star Mike Fontenotwist. Derrek Leee dwarves him!

part of the outragin cajun dp combo:

theriot -> fontenot

Mike Fontenot: 5'8", 170 lbs.
Derrek Lee: 6'5", 245 lbs.

more like fotenTWAT yn?

sorry

/teeball

Felicity, I meant nothing by my comment except to LOL at the notion that one hit means the contract is already worth its weight in $$$. There's no need to bring up That Thing.

Also: 100 years nyeah nyeah :D

one hit

He had three hits and a walk. I believe all he needed for the cycle was a triple.

I would think you Sabr guys would love Fukudome.

In all seriousness, I thought Fuku was a first baseman for a while because he was always standing around there in ST.

Wow, I did not know that a first baseman can cause a balk?

More leadoff hitting fun!

Bottom 1st: Chi Cubs
- R. Theriot grounded out to second
- A. Soriano popped out to first
- D. Lee doubled to right
- A. Ramirez grounded out to third

0 runs, 1 hits, 0 errors

Bottom 2nd: Chi Cubs
-K. Fukudome walked

I really wish they would bat him 2nd.

But he's driven in 100% of the runs this year :D

So many tools, so few RISP.

why not leadoff?

That too.

Hooray, Tiny's in!

derrek lee!

"This Is Your Brain On Cubs," George F. Will, Newsweek (April 7, 2008)

Felicity, I meant nothing by my comment except to LOL at the notion that one hit means the contract is already worth its weight in $$$. There's no need to bring up That Thing.

Also: 100 years nyeah nyeah :D

-- David R., Tuesday, April 1, 2008 7:02 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Link

"The scientific literature," Grafman says, "suggests that fans of losing teams turn out to be better decision-makers and deal better with divergent thought, as opposed to the unreflective fans of winning teams."

Uhh, close but no cigar, Lou:

"I'm going to put Soriano back in the leadoff spot and move Theriot to the 2-hole," Piniella announced during his media session after an 8-2 loss to the Milwaukee Brewers that included an 0-for-4 game from $136 million left fielder Soriano.

Does Soriano have that clause that I think Giambi had that says he can't be sent to AAA?

Cubs win! Kerry gets a save!

"The scientific literature," Grafman says, "suggests that fans of losing teams turn out to be better decision-makers and deal better with divergent thought, as opposed to the unreflective fans of winning teams."

As the fan of a former perennial bridesmaid turned Lil Evil Empire, I can say without a shred of doubt in my mind that this statement is pure bunk, as I've never been able to make a decision worth a damn.

But you're winners!

can i just say that i think mattbot is a really underappreciated poster? as far as i can tell he only posts about the cubs, ever, but whenever i see this thread title i am just like "lmao i am kraken up over here~"

<3 mattbot

That lineup is so full of pain.

Soriano: 0-5, 5 LOB

Fukudome: 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI

:D Thanks, but the lols are all Lilly's.

Reed Johnson became starting CF pretty fast, huh?

Ramirez, you suck.

bump

Because this why not leadoff:

Top 10th Inning:

--Theriot walked
--Theriot stole second
--Soriano struck out swinging
Ward hit for Johnson
--Ward safe at first on fielding error, Theriot to third
Pie ran for Ward
--Pie stole second
--Lee struck out swinging
--Ramirez struck out swinging

(LOB, 2)

Then Koske leads off the 11th with a hit and of course Lieber grounds out for the third out.

Awesome, a Pirate pitcher is now pinch-hitting because they are out of bench.

On the bright side, several relievers have lowered their ERAs below 17.00 today. Good work, men!

6 unearned runs can be your friend!

Hooray for Evan Meek, the run fairy.

Cubs Team LOB - 15.

3 game winning streak!!~

fukudome looking awesome

yeah I guess I better take back my earlier statement for now. can't imagine anyone could keep up this kind of pace, but damn, dude is the scariest person in that cub lineup!

watching coach lou during the 9th was lol

Free Matt Murton.

15 LOB

Could we arrange for Soriano to take BP from Kerry on a "wild" day?

Tonight we ride on . . . Dumpster Power

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/46/145579990_7a21dd1e5d.jpg

DUMPSTER FEVER: CATCH IT!

Dempster Juice

Lick It Up!

We should get at least six innings of quality junk out of the Dumpster tonight.

Well! What's on Lou's Menu at the Cafe Platoon tonight?

A. Soriano LF $.094
R. Johnson CF $.308
D. Lee 1B $.400
A. Ramirez 3B $.200
K. Fukudome RF $.458
M. DeRosa 2B $.320
G. Soto C $.261
R. Cedeno SS $.286
R. Dempster P 1.50 ERA, 6 IP

http://www.csd.uwo.ca/~jamie/images/musical-note.gifI will come with you little girl on a magic dumpster ride.~http://www.csd.uwo.ca/~jamie/images/musical-note.gif

Good job, Ryan Dempster!

7 IP 1 H 0 ER 2 BB 5 K (ERA after today 0.69)

Cat Power's coming back

*drops stack of dishes*

http://img247.imageshack.us/img247/3304/felixca6.png

at least the bucs are making them work for it

Carlos Zambrano was really tickled when he was put in to make a sac fly.

Cool the Cubs box score is in binary tonight. All those 1s and repeating 0s. So soothing . . .

I promise never to complain about runners left on base again. Please bring back Fukudome, Pie and/or Fontenot.

^^bargaining stage of grief

On the bright side, now that someone explained FIPS and DIPS to me I now understand the true ineffectiveness of Ted Lilly!

"There's nothing wrong with that. He flipped the bubble gum thing over a little bit."
--Cubs manager Lou Piniella, on his fiery ace Carlos Zambrano, who went off during last Friday's game.

"I was a water cooler guy. I enjoyed (smashing) the water cooler more than the gum basket. I wasn't messy. The sad part about it is you look at these major league dugouts, and there are no more water coolers. Now you have to tussle with the Gatorade (jug)... I actually had to buy four or five of them. I used to have them sent to my house. If I paid for them, I wanted them in my garage. I got rid of them. I wish I had kept them. I'd be selling them on eBay."
--Piniella

I think we have Jim Bouton to thank for that? Carlos is so awesome, I loved the Barrett fight.

Currently reading "Crazy '08", about that season. So far pretty awesome!

Have you read it Felicity?

that season = 1908

Not yet. It sounds like it would be pretty interesting. That was so long ago.

Basically one anecdote after another. Also has a picture of three fingers Browns' hand. Just his hand, police lineup style.

The writing expressions from that era are amazing. In "Pitchers and Their Peculiarities," Christy Mathewson wrote about Brown that he lost most of his first finger "in an argument with a feed cutter" and that "a hot grounder carried away" most of Brown's third finger one day. Brown was brilliant in the field and "sure death on bunts," meaning it was "fatal" to try to bunt against him.

??? none of those are different at all from any expression that could be used today! or is that yr point?

"in an argument with a feed cutter" = "washing his truck"?!?!?

Murton to thread.

CHICAGO'S ALFONSO SORIANO LEFT THE GAME IN THE BOTTOM OF THE FIRST INNING DUE TO A STRAINED RIGHT CALF.

Love this little dude:

http://webzoom.freewebs.com/316sports/mike%20fontenot.JPG

Oh man, did you see D. Lee high five Fontenot and Theriot at home plate after his HR last night? For a split second I thought the Cubs had two very enthusiastic bat boys.

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20080416/capt.1bc5769766824869bc29eca8a9f3a300.reds_cubs_baseball_cxc109.jpg

The perspective doesn't capture it, unfortunately. Anyway, the point is lol at the Cubs short, French middle infield.

COME ON LOU!

4th inning (against Edinson Volquez, who's thrown 70 pitches -- 3 hits, 3 walks -- through 3):
- M. DeRosa walked
- R. Johnson singled to left, M. DeRosa to second
- H. Blanco struck out bunting foul (WHA WHA?)
- T. Lilly sacrificed to first, M. DeRosa to third, R. Johnson to second (WHA WHA WHA?)
- M. Fontenot lined out to first

Also: French fries 1 and 2 in the order? Does Lou not like offense?

Must've been the Dusty Baker Flashback 4th.

Ha -- maybe Lou went to pinch a loaf, & Dusty took over both dugouts.

Meanwhile, EV's inching up on 110 pitches with 2 outs in the 4th.

OH SHUT THE FUCK UP

DUSTY IS LETTING VOLQUEZ HIT

112 PITCHES THROUGH FIVE

FIVE RUN LEAD

PLEASE TELL ME YAHOO'S MESSED UP

OK, nvm, found my CAPS LOCK key -- Dusty let him hit to save using a pinch-hitter up 4 w/ no one on base & 2 outs. Back to bitching about Lou.

A REAL CHECKERS MATCH

Baseball, hot dogs, Felix Pie and Chevrolet. :)

never MET a sucker they didn't punch

that was a good game until the wheels came off the mets truck.

Leading the MLB in pitches per AB?

WHO ARE these guys? I like 'em.

hey, those cubbies are cute

fukudome -- 63 AB, 14 bb
soto -- 58 AB, 12 BB
ramirez -- 69 AB, 11 BB
derosa -- 60 AB, 9 BB
theriot -- 68 AB, 8 BB
lee (no patience!!) -- 77 AB, 8 BB

Carlos Zambrano was lighting up the radar gun in the 94 mph range Monday night, but the Cubs' hard-throwing ace says velocity is no longer his bread-and-butter. Ripping a page out of former teammate Greg Maddux's book, Big Z says he's now all about finesse.

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/8503/carloszambranobreaksabaod7.jpg

I wasn't aware of the Carlos Zambrano, Coffee Achiever history until last night.

did you see last night after z struck out at the plate he raised the bat like he was going to break it over his leg. len kasper almost shit his pants on the air yelling "DON'T DO IT CARLOS!!!"

Who are these guys!

they're batmen.

snicker

lol

What would you call that high-hip-fiving the outfielders do after they win?

the rump bump

These Cubs threads are great, I wish Giants threads were as filled with good humor and jovial optimism.

What would you call that high-hip-fiving the outfielders do after they win?

pretty fucking awesome/a welcome sight.

i just wish they were more active. i haven't done any work in over 3 1/2 hours, not because i'm slacking but because there's no work to do. i've worked on exactly one manuscript for a total of 8 minutes since i got back from lunch over 4 hours ago. i'm bored fucking senseless over here.

er, that was a self xpost to leee because apparently i forgot i just posted to this thread.

someone email me a jigsaw puzzle or something.

These Cubs threads are great, I wish Giants threads were as filled with good humor and jovial optimism.

They could very well finish in third place!

see? that's optimistic and funny!

It's all about lilly.gif though.

You know, I might as well park my wagon with the Cubs for the forseeable. Plus, I used to be a Chicagoan. Does Sandberg still hit second?

my brother works with a girl who was at a bar one night and ronny cedeno sent a bro over to try to get her number but she said "tell him i'm a sox fan".

"Cubs general manager Jim Hendry had long been an admirer of Johnson’s aggressive approach – this is a player who idolizes Ty Cobb – and took a low-risk gamble because the Blue Jays must pay the bulk of Johnson’s $3.275 million salary."

Reed Johnson once beat a bellhop within an inch of his life apparently.

no, he just goes into 2nd cleats high and hates black people.

zuh???

It's all about lilly.gif though.

You know, I might as well park my wagon with the Cubs for the forseeable. Plus, I used to be a Chicagoan. Does Sandberg still hit second?

-- Leee, Tuesday, April 22, 2008 2:49 PM (Yesterday) Bookmark Link

You should! Derrek Lee is your new favorite player.

thermo: those are refs to the checkered career of ty cobb, whom johnson was likened by hendry.

i'm sure reed johnson doesn't have a prejudiced bone in his body...except when it comes to the irish.

on wgn last night he said he also hates "heebs and fags".

then he slapped an 8 year old and took his popcorn.

- R. Cedeno intentionally walked

ha haaha - ok, thank you - i r dense.
i seriously <3 reed and couldn't believe he'd be prejudice against anyone.

The Cubs defense is looking incredibly good. So weird to have a great defensive right fielder after suffering through Sosa and the other stick figures.

Ronny Cedeno is so hot right now.

TripLee!

An active beard, to be sure.

DID YOU KNOW. . .

Aramis Ramirez is Manny's first cousin?

: D

Reed Johnson is now #119 on the all-time career hit by pitch leaders (84).

<3 the double steal.

: D : D <3

>: (

:) ?

X D

Do the 10,000 Ws seem Noize to you?

I gotta rethink my position on Dempster:

"I remember when we won 5,000," Cubs pitcher Ryan Dempster said Tuesday. "What an emotional day that was. We were so excited — we realized we still had an uphill climb to 10,000.

"To be on the verge of that — I've been here since the first one, and to get to 10,000, it's a long, hard struggle, and I'm looking forward to it."

Mark Newman is enterprise editor for MLB.com, and possibly brain damaged.

u PC guyz always focusing on the negatives w/ Cobb! you probly won't even admit that Rush Limbaugh and Bob Dole are funnier than Hillary Clinton will ever be, either.

hitler was a great painter too, eh morbs?

pol pot liked to make mosaics.

andrew jackson sometimes liked to curl up with a good book and a nice cup of international foods flavored coffee.

J'aime bien notre French Fries -- Theriot, Fontenot et Pié.

J'espère que Le Marquis plans avoir une bonne journée au plate avec son bat, parce qu'il ne pitch pas très bien . . . comme toujours..

Jason Marquis serving up his usual tasty beach balls:

https://www.canoeonline.net/_bin/_graphics/shop/products/152.jpg

Would you like fries with that?

uhhhhhhhhhh

I feel sad when the announcers start announcing the credits for the broadcast in the top of the ninth.

http://www.msnbc.com/c/0/75/842/10x7/twip_2002_0418_10.jpg

Howry Cow

A quarter century of listening to Lee Elia's tirade!

http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3372891&univLogin02=stateChanged

Wow, Suppan's getting lit up like a Christmas tree.

fuck! two cubs threads!

Geovany!!!!

C'mon Lou, we need to use Marmol to protect an 8 run lead? It's Lieber time!

too much offense for just one thread

Derrick "the" Turnbow Incident's outing was so full of pain and sorrow.

from chicagoist...

Unlike his past visits to the ballpark where he joined the drunks in the bleachers, this time Cuban sat in the Tribune Co.'s front row seats near the dugout -- which suggests this was more of a business trip.

incidentally, i've sat in those seats (towga used to work at 435 n. michigan) and they are scary close and completely awesome seats.

oh, they own the first four or five rows over there, i wasn't in the first row, i was 3rd but still, great seats.

Cuban has been sniffing around there for a while. I don't fully understand what the application process is but I hope MLB won't allow him to buy the Cubs.

Have any of you seen Zambrano's new ritual where he pretends to "hammer" Mike Fontenot down into the dugout and then pulls him back up by his jersey.

why wouldn't you want cuban to buy the cubs?

I don't know much about Cuban as owner of the Mavs, but Zell frightens me.

It's probably not rational. Some kind of reverse-carpet-bagging prejudice.

I just don't think he seems very baseball, Cubs or Chicago. Cuban says
he wants the Pirates. Let him have them.

I generally like Cuban and his antics on behalf of the Mavs, the Dairy Queen Lols etc., his investment blog (he talks about short squeezes and other random stuff). But sometimes he is so INCREDIBLY WRONG as in the Grokster case.

All Cuban sees in the Cubs is an incredibly undervalued asset (which it totally is). Aside from all the pastoral and the suffering blah blah, I just don't think it would be that fun to win under Cuban. The Cubs are tradition, Cuban is an iconoclast.

There is no reason why Cuban should be allowed to get the Cubs any more than a consortium led by Ernie Banks or any other number of worthy applicants. Actually I wish the City of Chicago could buy them a la Green Bay. That is one of the coolest things in sports imo.

DID YOU KNOW . . . ?

With his next home run, Carlos Zambrano will tie Fergie Jenkins for most career home runs by a Cubs pitcher (13).

-- felicity, Monday, March 31, 2008 12:13 PM (1 month ago) Bookmark Link

Tied :)

Actually I wish the City of Chicago could buy them a la Green Bay. That is one of the coolest things in sports imo.

49% of the celtics are held by the public.

which means absolutely nothing.

It's very meaningful for Green Bay. The Packers can never leave.

>: (

(8-)

t('_'t)

¯\(°_o)/¯

I love Wood, but if it were Dempster blowing these saves there would be blood.

Quite the wasted effort by Marmol but the outfielding was not so hot either.

Man what a professional rally-killer Soriano is.

i stopped off for a couple of beers at inner town pub and a guy came in LIVID about the cubs. it would have been funny if everyone there wasn't thinking "this guy is going to kill us all".

WSCR had to cancel "Who You Crappin'" today because so many people were calling in upset about the Cubs. They tried to explain to everybody that IT IS JUST ONE GAME and WE SCORED NINETEEN FREAKING RUNS YESTERDAY but people were like "It's clear this team has holes" and "No way are we winning the World Series now." Also, Terry Boers and Dan Bernstein were trying to figure out ways Soriano might just "happen" to find himself out of the lineup.

"Who You Crappin'" will be on tomorrow, don't worry.

is that the actual name!?

yeah, it's on every thursday afternoon -- they just bust people for being hypocrites or liars

A question focusing on whether Piniella thought about shifting slick-fielding center fielder Reed Johnson to left -- in place of fresh-off-the-disabled-list Alfonso Soriano -- when he inserted defensive sub Felix Pie in center during the eighth inning lit Piniella's short fuse.

''You're damn right I thought about it,'' Piniella said, his voice rising. ''You think I'm stupid or something? God ... darn it. Thought. All right. Thanks.''

^This wd be even better w/ audio, Lee Elia-style^

wow...

who you crappin?

i love it. can we have a who you crappin thread? can we?

The notoriously rowdy fans in the Wrigley bleachers not only hang signs of tribute to him in Japanese, but they also chant in the rightfielder's native tongue. Their efforts are flattering, if occasionally puzzling, to Fukudome. Placards with the Cubs' slogan IT'S GONNA HAPPEN in Japanese have been read by Fukudome to say IT'S AN ACCIDENT. And one well-meaning bleacher bum keeps yelling a phrase that translates as, "It tastes good!"

IT'S AN ACCIDENT vs. SHAWON-O-METER

IT'S AN ACCIDENT

SO WHAT

WE'LL TAKE WHAT WE CAN GET

And one well-meaning bleacher bum keeps yelling a phrase that translates as, "I hope you saved some turkey for me."

i have what is probably a stupid question. i searched for the thread where british people ask easy questions about baseball but i couldn't find it so forgive me asking a stupid question:

why do people make such a big deal about soriano (or whoever) batting in the lead-off position, if it's only guaranteed to be the lead-off position once in the whole game? i understand the importance of relative batting order in general, like why you want some batters to bat before or after other batters, but not why it matters so much who bats at the very beginning of the game.

I think I read somewhere that statistically, the leadoff man is more likely to lead off later innings than other spots in the batting order. The #9 guy, almost always the pitcher, will kill more innings than other spots in the order, putting your leadoff guy back in leadoff in a later inning.

Also it's not entirely about leadoff position in an inning. From the top of the lineup, he's more likely to get that fifth or sixth plate appearance.

oh yeah duh (re: the second point)

It doesn't help that Soriano is arguably the worst player on the team right now.

the only argument you might get from me would involve jason marquis.

Yeah, those bums should get jobs like the other 85% of humanity.

Hah! Well played.

Free Murton?

Cubs Can't Solve Cardinals

This is a brain-twister. If the "solution" isn't to walk the bases full with Pujols coming up, I'm stumped?????

ryan dempster -- 2 IP, 6 K (3 runs)

YO FELICITY!

Did you get my e-mail from a week or so ago?

I did, and every day I have been meaning to write you back.

My bad.

Ain't no thing -- I'm the master of delayed e-mail gratification. Just get back to me in 5 years or so.

Dave, you truly are a gentleman.

J. Lieber's taco lunch appears to be all u can eat:

- J. Votto homered to deep right
- A. Dunn homered to deep right
- E. Encarnacion popped out to second
- P. Bako homered to deep right

Let's discuss whether Rich Hill was really the problem with the rotation.

- J. Hairston Jr. homered to deep left, E. Volquez scored

lol

Someone check Bako's Hi-C, plz.

Haha, I just flipped on the game to a shot of the disgusted-looking, long-suffering, 1997 World Champion, former Florida Marlins pitching instructor Larry Rothschild.

Love that dude.

i forget where I was when I saw that this week was the 10th anniversary of kerry's 20K game... :(

it was tuesday, i think.

http://www.beyondtheboxscore.com/2008/5/6/481481/a-decade-and-a-dozen-dl-tr

Way to help yourself out, Ted!

loving the BBs

wtf Edmonds signing rumors?

I think he can get back to around .700 OPS as a hitter, but he is completely finished as a defensive CF.

his bat is slow as fuck though, dude looks like he's swinging underwater. it's a pretty easy pattern to see, i remember in the '04 series he looked completely lost at the plate and from there he just went downhill.

Jim Edmonds SLG:
1993 CAL .344
1994 CAL .377
1995 CAL .536
1996 CAL .571
1997 ANA .500
1998 ANA .506
1999 ANA .426
2000 STL .583
2001 STL .564
2002 STL .561
2003 STL .617
2004 STL .643
2005 STL .533
2006 STL .471
2007 STL .403
2008 SDP .233

that a pretty steep decline!

the only scouting advantage i can imagine is that if Edmonds is hitting this long fly outs in SD that at any other park would be HRs but end up dying on the warning track in PetCo.

He wasn't exactly hitting a lot of long flyball outs in Petco though.

I can't think of anyone I want on the Cubs less. I hate Edmonds, he's the answer to a question no one asked.

Marquis rounded into late-season form fast this year. In happier news, this:

<img src="http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u310/nucubs/zambranofontenotpregame.gif";>

http://i171.photobucket.com/albums/u310/nucubs/zambranofontenotpregame.gif

^^^

Have any of you seen Zambrano's new ritual where he pretends to "hammer" Mike Fontenot down into the dugout and then pulls him back up by his jersey.

-- felicity, Thursday, May 1, 2008 11:27 AM (1 week ago) Bookmark Link

Thankig U!

fotentot is so WILLING to have this happen...

In this scientific age of wonder drugs, I wonder about a guy like jim Edmonds sliding off so hard. The guy is actually just playing his age, at least traditionally speaking, which I suppose is comforting in a weird way. Then again Moises Alou hit like .341 in about a half a season of playing time last year at age 40. Alou cannot stay healthy, but that old witch can still hit.

<3 zambrano
<3 fontenot

they should clearly expand the pregame ritual into a 10-minute laurel-and-hardy-esque slapstick extravaganza

This guy.

http://z.about.com/d/baseball/1/7/v/4/-/-/cubs20.jpg

Ugh, Edmonds. Not good enough for the worst team in the NL, so why shouldn't the Cubs pick him up? I hope he gets booed.

Flying Pickle Says:
May 13th, 2008 at 3:44 pm

I have my first child due in the next few months, and I can’t envision bringing him or her into a world in which Jim Edmonds is a Chicago Cub.

------------

shea_guevara at 03:16 PM on 05/13/08

Between Soriano's hammy-tweaking little hop and Edmonds' laying out for balls he could've just as easily gotten underneath, that Cubs outfield would look like the Bolshoi Ballet.

ANOTHER CASE OF . . . DUMPSTER FEVER

http://static.flickr.com/71/175995088_335e48aa95_o.jpg

W, 8 1/3 IP, 0 R, 12 K, BB, ERA 2.35, R, RBI

HOLY SORIANO.

Some Cubbies like to take 8-pitch at bats. Some Cubbies like to hit 1st pitch home runs . . .

It doesn't help that Soriano is arguably the worst player on the team right now.

-- mattbot, Monday, 5 May 2008 16:27 (2 weeks ago) Link

http://img146.imageshack.us/img146/2485/picture2tb1.png

shame he didn't get more than a hit yesterday. only 8 games away from breaking Rogers Hornsby's consec multi-hit game streak!

: D

o_O

Will we see the Cubs debut of 23-year-old, Venezualan middle-relief heartthrob José Ascanio today?

http://mlb.mlb.com/images/2007/12/04/33EhzllX.jpg

ah, the ass can.

Yes he can! Is he bad?

i have no idea, but it's been far too long since there's been a major leaguer w/ the word "can" in his nickname.

...i can't confirm that "ass" has ever been in a nickname.

http://www.redsoxconnection.com/images/boyd.jpg

He's young anyway. Let's see his stuff.

Xp Cubs have as many wins as the Red Sox and readers of SI still don't think of them as an offense. Dangerfield.jpg

well, they do have the best run differential in the majors and talk about balance? 4 guys w/ a .400 or better obp and 4 guys w/ a .500 or better slg? granted, there's some overlap, but STILL!

Xp Cubs have as many wins as the Red Sox

when they start playing the world series in june this will be meaningful.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qk7CX1Ne4nQ

There was a nationally televised game a couple weekends ago (versus the Cardinals?) -- they had him read the Cubs' lineup like that (though it sounds more like an impersonation of Will Ferrell impersonating Caray).

I can do a mean SKIP Caray. Watch this.

(Situation: the Cardinals are beating the Cubs 25-0. The Cubs are up in the bottom of the ninth with two outs. Ryan Therior hits a bloop single.)

(Unironic, loud) "AND HERE COME THE CHICAGO CUBS!!!"

(I am not going to correct "Therior" since you can pronounce it just as you would pronounce "Theriot.")

Ryan Therior hits a bloop single.

The Chip Caray on that would be: (voice rising) "THERE'S A DRIVE!!"

And since I already posted one shirtless announcer today...

http://img339.imageshack.us/img339/7550/acaray1qw0.jpg

Bah, I meant Chip.

Skip would be more like... (not even feigning interest) "... and Theriot rounds first."

yeah I heard Dumpster do that impression during the cards game and was tres impressed

The Rycycler does magic tricks too. Does anyone know which ones?

Legit question, but humorous answers also welcome.

yesterday it was the trick of the disappearing lead!

hah!

skip is awesome, chip sux

skip: "mmmhere's chipperjones..."

skip is awesome, chip sux

this is otm, but skip is getting really old really fast. He doesn't look good this year.

Skip, motoball, Goodwill Games = awesome

http://www.facetious.org/cubnation/carloswinmeter.jpg

GIF of Soriano dropping the last out pls.

Oh THOSE guys. Yeah, I know them.

Does Lilly often throw up 10-hit games like that last one?

Drew (Chicago, IL): Why do people assume at bats equals improvement? Pie is having his swing changed because he is unable to hit MLB pitching with his current approach. Should the Cubs have a guy practice his new swing at the MLB level when he's never had success there to begin with?

Rob Neyer: (12:30 PM ET ) Really? They tried the same thing with Corey Patterson a few years ago. That worked out real nicely.

Jack (Chicago): Yeah Rob, but Corey Patterson sucks. Maybe Pie does too, but you are blaming the entire organization?

Rob Neyer: (12:36 PM ET ) I'm saying that taking a guy who's been successful in the minors and trying to change his swing usually doesn't work. There's nothing wrong with Pie that time and experience wouldn't cure, and if they try to change his swing they're just going to mess him up.

It's a goddamned good thing the Cubs signed Edmonds, his .150/.190/.150 line is leaps and bounds above what Pie could do.

yeah but there's a little something on edmonds' face that a kid like pie doesn't have. i don't know if you can see it during the day games because it usually begins to shadow in around 5 o'clock. you know what i'm talking about. grit.

cubs game today should be interesting, it's about 35 degrees colder than yesterday and the winds are at a steady 30 mph.

soto has been pushed down to the #7 hole today by the smokin hot lumber of jimmy edmonds!

Haha, well at least he's getting booed now.

great chicago fans

i would rather see 70 year old billy williams at the plate than edmonds.

i would rather see 70 year old billy dee williams at the plate than edmonds.

me too!

d-lowe is looking good early, sinker is dive-bombing the plate.

lol @ no booing soriano @ wrigley policy? is this true?

?????

it's a very tightly held secret (and ignored, after him blowing the game the other day) if it is true.

The Cubs B team is really making a game of this!

oh shit are they on now?!??

Yep, down 9-1 after 5, now up 10-9 in the 8th. My computer locked up when I tried to turn on Santo.

damn. oh well, that's one less obstacle in finding a bar to watch the celtics game tonight.

Edmonds with a homer and double. Nice to see him do something right for a change.

For Colorado, Jeff Baker is 4-4 with 4 doubles. Aaron Cook was completely cruising through 5, but then the wheels came off. Too bad Colorado has no bullpen to speak of.

Edmonds with a homer and double.

it should be noted here that there are severe winds in chicago today, cook county was under a tornado watch until 2 p.m. still windy as fuck down here in hyde park as of my 3 o'clock cigarette.

Henry Blanco homered too, conditions must be favorable.

Cubs win, who ARE these guys?

http://www.fangraphs.com/lgraphs/280530116_Rockies_Cubs_78069501_lbig.png

where u get win likelihood charts?

http://www.fangraphs.com/livescoreboard.aspx

People named Micah are good at hitting baseballs.

Our bullpen ROCKS.

Motherfuck.

can you guys lose a game seriously wtf

it is JOON so SWOON

From Riverfront Times (A St. Louis blog) in September 2007:

http://blogs.riverfronttimes.com/stlog/godhatesthecubs.jpg

Where's your Messiah now, Deadbirds?

Repent.

yeah but there's a little something on edmonds' face that a kid like pie doesn't have. i don't know if you can see it during the day games because it usually begins to shadow in around 5 o'clock. you know what i'm talking about. grit.

-- omar little, Tuesday, May 27, 2008 5:38 PM (6 days ago) Bookmark Link

soto has been pushed down to the #7 hole today by the smokin hot lumber of jimmy edmonds!

-- omar little, Wednesday, May 28, 2008 12:19 AM (5 days ago) Bookmark Link

these posts deserve a little recognition imo

I know, I lolled at those too, especially the second one.

he's making me look like a goddamned FOOL with his CLUTCH GAMER shit the last two games he's started

http://www.half-shirt.com/images/jimmy1big.jpg

he's making me look like a goddamned FOOL with his CLUTCH GAMER shit the last two games he's started

Even Neifi made like Hercules over 20+ games (once) -- shit happens, and usually ends up on the face of the dude in the dugout that doesn't realize when so-and-so gritting it up in CF should be paying to be in the ballpark.

^has already ordered his Tatis jersey

Should I drop Jody Gerut from my fantasy team for Edmonds? So torn.

they can't get him out of wrigley fast enough for me, tbh

^has already ordered his Tatis jersey

MARK WHITEN FOR LIFE (and one game)

they can't get him out of wrigley fast enough for me, tbh

-- omar little, Monday, 2 June 2008 20:46 (Yesterday) Link

. . . and into your car? Lol that half shirt. "Rowr," Hollywood.

Cubs are 100-68 since Zambrano punched Barrett.

''Obviously, it made a difference on him,'' Cubs catcher Henry Blanco said of Zambrano's yearlong turnaround. ''He started pitching good after that, and God knows the reason why, but it feels like it was better after that incident with Michael.''

Zambrano has expressed remorse over the incident since that day, and he still keeps a Barrett bobblehead on a shelf near his clubhouse locker at Wrigley.

Streak: W9

who are these guys?

Calm down, you'll have your crisis yet.

I think that Barrett bobblehead plays more often than Mike does.

if the cubs get knocked out of the postseason i just hope it's not by an expansion team or the cardinals

assuming they make it that far of course

We have 1 extra ticket for Friday. Did you see email re: Sat?

it's my gf's 35th birthday so i got dinner reservations ^_^

for friday night that is. saturday is all booked with her other birthday festivities [ /luna ]

http://weblogs.newsday.com/sports/watchdog/blog/cubs-black-cat.jpg

mom (2:06:53 PM): Cubs just tied game
OL (2:07:34 PM): what's the score now?
mom (2:07:42 PM): 3-3
mom (2:08:11 PM): walked in a run with bases loaded. then d.lee drove in another run
OL (2:09:22 PM): mom i hate to tell you this but I think you're watching a rebroadcast
mom (2:09:30 PM): oh
mom (2:09:39 PM): from when?
OL (2:09:42 PM): last night
OL (2:09:47 PM): they won 9-6
mom (2:10:03 PM): thanks for the info! : O

google maps captures someone going to lunch in wrigleyville.

The shoes on the guy with him.

pan to the left to see where they were coming from, and it wasn't the I/O.

apparently that's first base coach matt sinatro with him.

Didn't recognize him without his helmet I guess.

I don't understand this but I approve of the high level of creepystalkernutfreakyness embedded in this application.

this passes for journalism in chicago. i shit you not its on the front page of the sun-times today.

that was pretty awful. also i hate how that type of look as repped in those pics passes for "hot".

devaughny wrote:
First of all I'm very offended about this so call fair and balance new paper ad, I going to give the sport's editor a call and demand that a more fair piece be written on the diversity of this great city. Can someone tell me what's the difference between FOX new channel and Chicago New-times news paper besides one is TV and the other is print...
6/6/2008 12:50 PM CDT on suntimes.com

sometimes, not often, i hate this fucking city.

http://www.theheckler.com/news/templates/?a=1751&z=1

"The Heckler Looks Back: The 2008 Cubs," a mock retrospective by Brad Zibung in the Wrigley Season Ticket pre-season guide is actually not that far off:

June: A Bit of a Snag, But Still Tops in the Central

The Cubs manage to play .500 ball the rest of the month, but thanks to their hot start, they remain atop the NL Central with a 52-31 record. The only other real drama comes after the team's trip to Canada to play the Blue Jays. Ryan Dempster, a native Canadian, is arrested at the border after a routine customs stop catches Dempster attempting to smuggle several hundred bootlegged Rush CDs into the U.S.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3163/2563032565_872353fd4a_b.jpg

DID YOU KNOW . . .

as of June 8, 2008 the all time Cubs/Dodgers series is tied 1012 to 1012.

Grrr fucking Stub Hub is expensive. We're going to be in Chicago mid-August and I was hoping to get tickets to a game, but fucking $20 a ticket markup is making me rethink this plan.

Is it even remotely possible to get a pair of tickets from a scalper the day of closer to face value or should I just to be resigned to getting ripped off.

Yes, you can probably scalp but it will be for a price. Is the game itself sold out? There are no bad seats at Wrigley except for the obstructed view ones and Ticketmaster will tell you if so.

Another trick is to go to the box office the day of the game and see if there are any returns from the player family seats.

The game isn't sold out, but I can't seem to find two seats together on Ticketmaster. Maybe I can Ticketmaster and see if I can rangle two seats close to one another.

can *call*, ahem.

Your chances of scalping are much better for a weekday day game.

Yeah it's going to be a night game. :(

Can you believe there were no night games at all in that park until 1998?

Imagine them playing the post season at Busch or what was then Comisky?

I don't know if it's your first trip to Wrigley but I am super excited for anyone who goes there. Bring your hard hat and watch out for falling debris.

It is my first trip. My only other trip to Chicago the Cubs were out of town so I just had pics taken out front.

If TM will let you buy 2 close together you can probably convince people in the Friendly Confines to move around.

or just go the night of the game and go to a bar. usually someone is selling. ask the bartender, whomever has extras will usually let him or her know.

you mean no night games til '88. I went to that first official one! I remember nothing, other than riding on the El with my pops.

the cubs in haiku.

Chi Cubs Inning Summary
- E. Patterson flied out to center

And suddenly a new Patterson emerges.

Yep it's Corey's younger brother (really!)

Yeah, I recognized the Patterson signature toolsy weak flyout to center and toolsy weak double-play ball. It's uncanny.

At least we're going to have Micah to DH and play against the Jays.

Soriano's injury seems like a perfect opportunity for another slice of Felix Pie but hey, it's .208 Edmonds!

Matt Murton must have gotten an unlisted number.

Way to go, Neal "Greg" Cotts.

WHO MOCKS THE LUMBER OF JIM EDMONDS NOW

: O

Oh it is so super-exciting. They did this whole retro "Hey Hey" graphic on WGN in honor of Jack Brickhouse. The whole WGN throwback has been ADORABLE. Love the sox.

Someone from St. Lu told me Edmonds' nickname was "Hollywood" because he's supposedly so handsome. This cracks my LA Cub fan friend up to no end.

i know an la cub fan! and my favorite bartender friend just moved there too, but that was for her superduper well paying day job.

he should be nicknamed 'inland empire'

Edmonds had a big game the last time I publicly mocked him, too. Hmm.

i know an la cub fan!

From the sound of the crowd at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, I know about 20,000 of them.

xp yeah mattbot keep up the good work

HOW ABOUT THAT NEAL COTTS??

Braves stole one outta the Cubs playbook there.

Somebody's been studying the Ron Stilanovich videos. :)

I wonder what the all-time record for game-winning hbp is?

Those Cubs throwbacks are such great uniforms.

http://d.yimg.com/us.yimg.com/p/ap/20080612/capt.f7d665c6432d45d4bbf32d3f994ef7d8.braves_cubs_baseball_cxc106.jpg

What a day. Nice game for Woody to win.

When was the last time either Chicago baseball team lost at home?

afaik Hollywood comes from the fact that drives a sports car, dyes his hair, wears designer clothes. That don't fly 'round here.

fun fact: last week traitor Jimmy text messaged the Cards broadcasters during a game (vs the Astros) b/c they were talking shit about him. The Cubs were playing when he did it too o_O

link?

Here's a fun link for you:

http://netzoo.net/audio/edmondsreed.mp3

Ok, I found the link for Jim Edmonds responding to trash talk.

So how many Cubs make the All-Star team this year? Soto, Soriano, and Fukudome are leading at their positions in balloting, and barring late June slumps, Dempster, Zambrano, and Wood seem like safe bets for Clint Hurdle to choose. The whole infield is having a good year, but it seems like there's too much competition. Maybe Ramirez sneaks in there as Chipper Jones's backup.

Fukudome will probably be the only selection. Not sure if you pay attention to the games but Soriano's on the DL and Soto's fallen back to earth.

Soto's fallen back to earth.

.288 / .374 / .527 w/ 11 HRs is my kind of earth!

That said, he's no Ryan Doumit.

Soto's nearly 1/2 a million votes ahead of McCann.

I'm glad the actual All-Stars will enter by the 5th inning.

fukudome = too many asians on the internets

Soto OPS by month:
April 1.060
May .868
June .670

whereas McCann:

March .900
April .848
May 1.075
June .853

Unfortunately Chicago AS voters didn't get the June OPS memo while they were stuffing the BALLOT BOXES so Soto is still going to be starting the All Star Game.

Soto's March really killed him.

I think the real story here is lol Atlanta fans.

Murton up, Patterson down.

http://i70.photobucket.com/albums/i105/Rooster866/bbl_cubs_murton.jpg

It's about time.

Groan... From the Sun-Times "Cubs meet their match":

If this is a World Series preview, the Cubs might want to rush Alfonso Soriano back in time to help try to win the All-Star Game and home-field advantage in October. Because the Tampa Bay Rays are starting to look as tough to beat at their place as the Cubs are at Wrigley.

uh oh, what's wrong with Z?

The American League

i meant why did soto call time and yell for the trainer to come out after Z's last pitch of the night?

It looks like his shoulder might be hurt. They don't know yet.

lenny and bob weren't much help in figuring things out.

Scary.

In these troubled times, ask yourself: What would Mark DeRosa do?
WWMDRD

Guh.

''There was a funny pitch that I felt something in my arm, and then the last pitch that I threw in the game, I dropped my arm a lot because I couldn't go back over the top with my arm,'' said Zambrano (8-3), who was charged with the 5-4 loss to the Rays.

He's scheduled to fly this morning to Chicago to meet with team doctors and undergo an MRI.

time to revive the "are the cubs going to go all the way" poll

Yeah, Carlos Gomez of Bullpen Mechanics said this might happen with Z's arm slot. It has been changing over the years.

wtf @ Marmol

If he can't throw his slider for strikes, he's a one pitch pitcher. That series couldn't end soon enough.

Well, that went badly!

this is as good a place as any to say this, i think i've fallen in love with a ggirl who's visa is up in 10 days. why do i do this? fuck. fuuuuuck.

fuck the shit out of her dude

kevin you need a livejournal dude
good to see d lee getting back on track last night

i need a breathalyzer on my laptop. which sounds like a euphemism but isn't.

Chikev, you do it because you are a commitmentphobe. Also a Cubs fan and coping with loss is your comfort zone.

JW tried to put some ill curse like that on me when I moved away from Wburg. Luckily, it didn't work.

Chikev, you do it because you are a commitmentphobe.

this shows how VERY LITTLE YOU KNOW ABOUT ME. I can answer my own question, I do it because I make very poor deicsions.

Any else think fukudome is struggling at the plate a bit? or is it his swing that makes it appear that he's completely lost when he doesn't make contact?

maybe a little, his BA is down a tad. but i think moving him to the leadoff spot is an A+ move, good work lou. now of course he'll vacate it when alf returns but i think they should keep him in at least the #2.

I was actually wondering if Fukudome's at-bats were getting longer. I think he had one that was 9 pitches?

Hoff-POWER.

Ok, kev, next time use the rhetorical question tags. Also, WWMDRD?

MDR appears to be a favorite of the highschool girls going to the cubs game today. so i'll answer "highschool girls".

Always a time-honored coping mechanism. Speaking of Roger Clemens, maybe he'd like to manage the Mets?

Always a time-honored coping mechanism. Speaking of Roger Clemens

lolololol.

Stephen (Louisville): Let's go worst-case scenario and say Big Z is out for the year. Should the Cubs trade for A.J. Burnett (or whoever) or give Hill and/or Marshall another shot?

Joe Sheehan: Rich Hill is something like the 25th-best starter in the National League. I have no idea what he did to Lou Piniella, but he can take Zambrano's place with minimal loss in value.

isn't there the issue of him being completely unable to keep the ball over the plate during spring training and over the course of five starts this season, a problem which has continued in the minors?

That's a minor issue! Joe Sheehan sez he's 25th best so there!

A puzzling assertion, I grant you.

(HS girls otm on DeRosa btw)

isn't there the issue of him being completely unable to keep the ball over the plate during spring training and over the course of five starts this season, a problem which has continued in the minors?

Hey now -- he's gotten better!

CHC: 19.2 IP, 18 BB
AAA: 21.1 IP, 18 BB

weather must be different up in wrigleyville because there's NO wind here in the ukrainian village.

Edmonds joins Sammy Sosa and Mark Bellhorn as the only Cubs to hit two home runs in one inning.

motherfucking espn. i understand cubs/pale hose is an attractive matchup for national tv but why not choose the one from next weekend on the south side where night games are the norm? sunday afternoon without the cubs is somehow wrong.

the one next weekend will be on espn, too

http://img385.imageshack.us/img385/7572/g062308chi1cstfeed20080ou4.jpg

from the AP story

"Obviously we caught them when they had some guys that you could say were as hot as doughnut grease," White Sox first baseman Nick Swisher said. "A lot of those guys are really swinging the bats well and we weren't."

Fukudome will probably be the only selection. Not sure if you pay attention to the games but Soriano's on the DL and Soto's fallen back to earth.

I know Soriano's on the DL. Obv. he won't start.

he's out 6 weeks with a broken hand, won't be back until after the break. can't see him being selected if he can't play.

Yes I know, but he's leading in fan balloting. He will officially be named an All-Star on account of that, but Hurdle will pick someone else (like Matt Holliday or Ryan Braun or whomever) to replace him as starting outfielder. That's the way it always works. Unless the fact that he's on the DL means that the fans are going to stop voting for him, which doesn't seem likely.

didn't realize he was so far ahead in the voting. not likely to drop out of the top 3 before the voting ends.

3rd gis result for "fukudome"

http://a7.vox.com/6a00cd970085364cd500cdf3ab47dfcb8f-500pi

DeRosa still hearing about O's Roberts

Fred Mitchell | AROUND TOWN
June 24, 2008

Mark DeRosa had managed to repress the persistent spring-training rumor that Brian Roberts would be acquired from Baltimore and replace him as the Cubs' second baseman.

With Roberts and the Orioles in town for a first-ever three-game series against the Cubs beginning Tuesday at Wrigley Field, "I knew those questions would start coming," DeRosa said.

Yet he fielded the query as deftly as he would a one-hop smash to his right.

Several trade scenarios had Roberts coming to the Cubs in exchange for various combinations of players including Sean Marshall, Jason Marquis, Kevin Hart, Ronny Cedeno, Rich Hill, Sean Gallagher, Tyler Colvin and Felix Pie. Outfielder Eric Patterson's name also was mentioned in some reports.

"I have pretty much avoided those rumors my whole career. I don't put too much stock in everything that's written," DeRosa said. "But it was written about pretty much daily, so I knew it was for real.

"It's part of the game. Jim Hendry was great in talking to me and keeping me up to date on what their feelings were. I went into spring training not worrying about it. If it happened, I would deal with it at that point. But that never arose. I'm happy to be wearing this uniform and I'm happy to be playing second base."

DeRosa signed with the Cubs as a free agent in November of 2006 and batted .293 with 10 homers and 72 RBIs last season, displaying his versatility at four positions. He broke in with the Atlanta Braves in 1998 but hit his stride as a right fielder with Texas in 2006, batting .296 with 13 homers. He is hitting .285 this season and playing well defensively.

"I've worked hard, and I have a lot of confidence in my ability to play the game," DeRosa said. "I came up as a utility guy and I wasn't satisfied with that."

The Roberts rumors heated up after DeRosa underwent a medical procedure in the spring to control a rapid heartbeat.

"I never lacked confidence coming into this season—I felt like I had a good year last year," he said. "Nothing great, something I could build on. I've been in a slump as of late, and I'd like to come out of it. But the bottom line is we're winning games and I've helped the team."

LOL so happy we didn't trade anyone for Roberts. But perhaps the Cubs should trade Micah Hoffpauer or Eric Patterson for some pitching before their stats regress?

Anyone know of a bar in St. Louis where you can watch the Cubs? I'm going back home for a few months and I really want to take my Cubs-fanatic friend out a few times for a game while I'm there.

I know it's a longshot, but I figure the Cubs are such a diasporic team that I might have some luck.

are you suicidal?

Ugh.

Happy birthday, Jim.

Saw the game today in a bar with two bartenders, one a Sox fan, the other a Cubs fan. Cubs woman kept feeding me free food and booze, Sox dude kept good-naturedly ribbing me as the game went on.

It lent further credence to the idea that the only thing better than watching a game with someone who's on your side is watching a game with someone who's on the other side but isn't a dick about it.

Can a move to CF be far off?

News: Hill had an awful start for the Cubs Rookie League team in Arizona on Tuesday and might just get shut down indefinitely, the Arlington Daily Herald reports.

Spin: Hill went one-third of an inning, giving up five runs (four earned) on a hit, three walks and a hit batter. "They've actually discussed that; it might be just best to shut him down totally," manager Lou Piniella said. "I don't know if that's going to happen, but it's been discussed, yes. It's a shame, it really is. This came out of nowhere this spring and fed on itself. The amazing thing is about it is I never even realized he had a problem. I just saw him last year, and he pitched so well. Last spring, he never walked a hitter."

CHICAGO -- The Chicago Cubs were expected to announce later this week they have signed No. 1 Draft pick Andrew Cashner, a right-handed pitcher who led Texas Christian University with nine wins and nine saves.

Cashner's advisor Peter Vescovo said the pitcher had agreed to terms, but Cubs officials would not confirm that a deal was done Tuesday and said there was no official announcement.

Cashner, 21, the 19th overall pick in the First-Year Player Draft, was expected to come to Chicago this week to undergo a physical, and, if he passes, he could workout at Wrigley Field on Thursday.

As part of the deal, reported Tuesday on Scout.com, Cashner will receive a $1.54 million signing bonus, plus $75,000 that will go toward finishing school. He also will receive an invitation to big league Spring Training camp in 2009.

Vescovo told a Houston television station that Cashner wanted to get the deal done quickly.

"Rather than holding out until Aug. 14 (the day before the deadline for teams to sign their Draft picks), I will be able to get a lot of work in now," Cashner told KRIV-TV in Houston. "I'm really glad to get this done. Now I can start playing baseball. My big moment will come when I put my name on that piece of paper."

let's predicterate harden's cubs stat line:

10-3

2.94 era

1.05 whip

1-0

1.125 era

.875 whip

torn labrum

^^ real talk

CYNICS

7-3, 3.28, 1.18

my prediction:
http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/318Z6NS2VJL._AA280_.jpg

21-13, 72 Holds in 2010 and 2011

I can see him lasting into the 8th inning of, oh, say Game 6 of the NLCS.

Zambrano throwing the eephus for strikes
http://img213.imageshack.us/img213/2329/picture1hk7.png

wate 4 real? or is that just gameday misinformation?

Nope, for real. Watched it on mlb.tv with my own two eyes.

u mad

Yeah, they just showed that highlight. Carlos cracked a grin.

let's predicterate harden's cubs stat line:

Regular season or post-season?

^^^ placing the lantern next to the cow

Why, Old Bessie's way past her kicking years. And Carlos Zambrano's back and pitching really well. Did I mention Derek Lowe took a no-hitter into the Seventh? Hey, how about that opening day home run by Fukudome? We've got four and a half games on the Cardinals! And no, you can't bring your goat.

mattbot, where did you get that pitching speed and breaking ball measurement chart?

There is a project among a bunch of people, I'm not sure if they are volunteers or a company, but their mission is to go to all the games and clock and report the pitching speeds of every MLB pitch.

mlb.com gameday! its great

i dunno if thats what yr talking about though because gameday is automatic, which is why you get goofy classifications like 'cutter' on a 59 mph eephus

Oh thanks, this is cool. Yeah it was a mighty bloopy cutter.

This is Juan-Pable Montoya, a NASCAR driver from Colombia, singing the 7th-inning stretch:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=8NxDDPjYajY

Derek Lowe

...........................................?

i thought wed already established felicity is alyssa milano irl so sometimes the dodger colors are gonna bleed thru obviously

He's saying I am about to start the next Chicago Fire by jinxing the post-season so I just wanted to auto-spew out a lot of susperstitious taboo things at once.

Someone mentioned the no-hitter in progress to me last night and I was like "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooo . . . !"

The Dodgers' pitching actually has been very good lately. Koroda! ANd that bullpen.

the MAGIC of JOE TORRE

it was brought to my attention last night that i was the only one at the bar who knows how to work the remote control for the tv. the idiots were sitting there hoping i'd come in because they wanted to watch the cubs game.

drinking with inferiors indeed.

From bad to Wuertz...

When the Wuertz goes down, ya gotta have Hart.

Bob Brenly reports that Harden struck out the side "in overwhelming fashion."

His 98th (and last) pitch was 96 mph. He looked pretty good... up in the zone a lot but got away with it.

Yeah, what dip in velocity. This is looking like some ok gravy.

game not on wgn ;_;

6 day rest and pulled after 5 1/3rd.

whatever dusty.

just sayin... wonder why the extra day rest and then pull him so that the bullpen could blow up? he's being treated with kids' gloves.

do you mean just with the cubs or since he came off the dl?
he threw 96 pitches. that's the most he's thrown going back 4 starts - and even that was only 98.

Edmonds is killing me.

Jim Hendry, Star Searcher

"I have one word for Jim Hendry," Zambrano said. "Good job."

*points to heaven*

Edmonds hangs it up

lol

Both were casually dressed. Edmonds wore a T-shirt, jeans and tennis shoes.

After the mid-afternoon wedding, the couple headed for Edmonds' restaurant on Locust Street, F15teen, said Jamison's bailiff, Frank Kelly.

is it pronounced "f-fifteen-teen"?

word is it serves good steaks and 'midriff fridays' are popular with teh gayz.

Like how 5ive is "Five-ive" and Tech N9ne is "Tech N-nine-neh," yeah.

xpost

los angeles angels of anaheim

Cubs: They're still looking to add some pieces, but their top priority was filled with the acquisition of right-hander Rich Harden from the Athletics last week. Fuentes and Padres shortstop Khalil Greene are possibilities, and the Cubs are making disappointing center-field prospect Felix Pie very much available.

:(

wtf else do u need?!?

JMan (Chicago): Should I tell all Cub fans to go and ahead and jump or should this turn around?

Nate Silver: This is nothing. A blip. Four losses in five games. Assuming that they stay reasonably healthy, I wouldn't trade the Cubs' 25-man for anybody in baseball's right now.

seems the guys who need to produce have all gone into the tank at the same time. ramirez is 0 for his last 20, lee is 2-21, soto 1-19. ouch.

If this thread isn't enough, tune into tonight's game as I'm sure lilly.gif will be replayed several times. He's starting at AZ for the first time this year.

Soriano's back and Davis can't go that many innings. AZ has been running through their bullpen like it's game 7 of the WS.

Let's go Cubs!

looking forward to tomorrow's headlines

lilly is a tiger, cubs shut out dbacks 5-0

or conversely

lilly wilts, cubs crushed 12-5

but i have confidence in the first being the ultimate outcome!@

I am REALLY liking Gaudin, our third Cajun, so far.

i think he will be a secret weapon for the postseason run

Chris Young smashed two doubles last night that I thought were HR when he hit them. Both times, vivid flashbacks to lilly.gif as he streaked out of the frame stage right.

ROSEMONT, Ill. -- Steve Bartman has refused yet another offer to cash in on the moment he became the most famous -- or infamous -- Chicago Cubs fan in history.

Bartman friend Frank Murtha says that Bartman won't accept an offer of $25,000. For the money, all Bartman would have to do is attend the National Sports Collectors Convention in Rosemont and autograph a photograph taken of when he tipped a foul ball that seemed destined for Cubs' outfielder Moises Alou's glove during a 2003 playoff game with the Florida Marlins.

Bartman was vilified by Cubs fans, who thought that he helped prevent the team from reaching the World Series. Alou has made conflicting statement on whether he would have caught the ball.

Bartman has declined all offers to appear or make money off his brush with fame.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

most cubs fans i know think bartman is alright because i think they view the '03 team as using him as an easy excuse for their total failure, esp since the key players in that game (alou, a-gone, prior) kind of turned out to be bums or golden shower fetishists.

You could buy Alex Gonzalez a lot of fielding lessons with that money.

Yeah, Gonzalez should have used f***ing ERP. What part of ERP didn't he understand?

harden strikes out 10 for the third time with the cubs, this time on 87 pitches over 5 innings. don't fucking blow it sean marshall.

that trade was just...wow

i mean if nothing else, its not really fair for a pitcher of harden's caliber to be in the NL

Jason Marquis go away.

A Farnsworthesque approach with Branyan.

Lots of credit to Ted Lilly for keeping it close against red-hot C.C. Sabathia. And for saving Geovany Soto's life by cutting off the throw for a home-plate bound Prince Fielder.

Err that was Lee saving Soto's life but yeah, good game everyone including Ivan DeJesus.

Piniella's gut kinda frightens me.

i can feel it pulling me towards it

from the sun-times:

CUBS VS. SOX | Hours of ribbing allegedly escalates into attack, costing man an eye

July 30, 2008

BY DAN ROZEK Staff Reporter/dro✧✧✧@sunti✧✧✧.c✧✧

Friendly bantering between three Cubs fans and a White Sox fan at a child's birthday party (emphasis mine. -ck) turned nasty, then allegedly erupted into a brutal beating that cost a 32-year-old Gurnee man his right eye.

Sox fan Robert Steele's eye was damaged beyond repair when an attacker wearing steel-toed boots kicked him in the face during the 2-year-old's birthday party (seriously, wtf??), authorities said Tuesday. Steele also suffered a broken nose and fractured orbital bone in the July 19 attack in northwest suburban Huntley, officials said.

"It was a terrible, terrible beating," McHenry County State's Attorney Louis Bianchi said.

Three Cubs fans have been charged with felonies for allegedly attacking Steele about 10:45 p.m. after hours of good-natured ribbing about his baseball preferences became heated, Huntley Deputy Police Chief Todd Fulton said.

"It started earlier with some friendly joking about the Cubs and Sox rivalry," Fulton said. "Then it got more personal."

The atmosphere turned ugly after the Cub fans allegedly taunted Steele that Sox fans had missing teeth.

"It escalated through the night," Fulton said, adding all four men apparently were drinking alcohol during the gathering. Steele knew his alleged attackers before the party, Fulton said.

Steele's fiancee told the Northwest Herald that he planned to leave the gathering earlier in the evening but was urged by the men to stay.

"We were going to leave, but they convinced us that they were just joking around," said his fiancee, April Bieze.
One suspect being sought

Steele was hospitalized for several days following the beating -- and because of his injuries he still isn't comfortable looking at himself in the mirror, he told the suburban newspaper.

"I don't look in the mirror," Steele said. "I don't want that to affect me, to see myself like that."

He likely will need additional surgeries to repair his facial injuries and still has to be fitted with a glass eye.

Two men charged in the attack made brief court appearances Tuesday, but their cases were continued until next month.

The man accused of kicking Steele in the face, 37-year-old Boguslaw Czapla of Elmwood Park, faces charges of aggravated battery and mob action. He could receive a 5-year prison term if convicted of aggravated battery.

His brother, 31-year-old Jaroslaw Czapla of Huntley, was charged with felony mob action and battery, a misdemeanor. The party was at Czapla's home, officials said.

Both men are free on bond.

The third man, 33-year-old Maciej Trojnar of Elmwood Park, is being sought on charges of mob action and battery. He remained at large Tuesday.

from the chicago tribune:

3 arrested in Brewers-Cubs brawl at Miller Park

The Associated Press
9:55 AM CDT, July 30, 2008

MILWAUKEE - Three Chicago area men are accused of beating up a suburban Milwaukee man who police say threw a beer at their bus after the Milwaukee Brewers' loss to the Chicago Cubs at Miller Park.

Officers arrested the three Cubs fans Tuesday night on possible charges of substantial battery. The men are 25, 26 and 34 years old.

Police say the three Chicago area men got off the bus after the 24-year-old West Allis man threw the beer. The Brewers fan was cited for disorderly conduct and taken to a local hospital. Authorities say he suffered cuts to his face and had a tooth knocked out.

The 34-year-old Chicago area man also received a municipal ticket for assault and battery after police say he punched his sister in the mouth as she tried to intervene in the fight.

fun watching the second half of the game yesterday, especially the five-run sixth with the brewer's left field missing catches in a variety of interesting ways

yeah, it took a running catch at the wall by cameron to get the brewers out of that inning.

I punched my wife and cat after he hauled that in.

did anyone see that kid glove the soriano homer on monday? he did it without dropping the hotdog in his other hand.

did anyone see that kid glove the soriano homer on monday? he did it without dropping the hotdog in his other hand.

yep, that's the midwest alright.

Lol Edmonds. I will admit it, I was totally wrong about picking him up.

I hate Edmonds, he's the answer to a question no one asked.

-- mattbot, Tuesday, 13 May 2008 18:46 (2 months ago) Link

Question: WHO will be responsible for all 5 RBI in July 31, 2008's game against the Brewers?

yeah lol i almost hate to admit it but hollywood halfshirt has been a-ok

MILWAUKEE PITCHER ERIC GAGNE WAS EJECTED BY HOME PLATE UMPIRE DOUG EDDINGS IN THE NINTH FOR THROWING AT CHICAGO'S JIM EDMONDS.

sweep, bitches!

JULY, bitches!

also I punched my wife and cat after he hauled that in.

-- mattbot, Wednesday, July 30, 2008 9:41 PM (2 days ago

haha cubs fans beat their wives and children

but yeah y'all kicked our asses BUT GOOD. cubs are playing some nice baseball.

Is it even remotely possible to get a pair of tickets from a scalper the day of closer to face value or should I just to be resigned to getting ripped off.

-- Alex in SF, Tuesday, June 10, 2008 10:08 AM (1 month ago) Bookmark Link

I was there on Saturday. You should be able to scalp two -- during the week especially. The scalpers are everywhere once you step off the Red Line El train at Addison. But disregard my suggestion about buying two separate and trying to move around. The games are really sold out and the ushers are SUPER strict.

"If there's a hooker you want, it all comes down to price, right? And I think that's a better analogy."
—Mark Cuban, a bidder to buy the Cubs, on his desire to purchase the franchise.

wow - awesome.

No more Eyre!

Thanks for the tips, Felicity!

http://www.yelp.com/topic/chicago-any-tips-on-getting-same-day-cubs-tickets

Wrigleyville the neighborhood itself is a treat. You are going to love it if you like Old-timey SF.

But take the train early if you're coming by El -- the Red Line can get so packed around gametime people can't get on the cars.

Wrigleyville the neighborhood itself is a treat.

you are insane.

We're actually staying right near Wrigleyville.

hit up THE MAP ROOM for some good beer

that's no where near wrigleyville. only good bar around there is the gingerman on clark and racine, next to the metro. they've got around 100 different beers and it's the only non-sports bar for f'ing miles around. if you're venturing out of the neighborhood the map room is good but the hopleaf in andersonville is even better.

hit up THE MAP ROOM for some good beer that's not in wrigleyville~

visit DUSTY GROOVE RECORDS

DRINK OLD STYLE when in Wrigleyville. Not good beer.

there's a bar downtown i used to DJ at that has a big OLD STYLE sign and the first time i went there i was vv excited to have some but as it turns out they just have tecate.

i was at dusty groove the other day, it's near my place. map room isn't too far away either.

OLD STYLE is at least as good as your PABST BLUE RIBBON.

but it's no MILLER HIGH LIFE.

they're all pretty SHITTY

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3028/2737266924_a17b471289_b.jpg

love baseball, can't stand being around baseball fans.

my d-bag tolerance is at an all time low.

7. How do you turn a Cubbie fan into a pancake?

Throw a can of Old Style in front of a bus.

8. How do you stop bricks from falling on people at Wrigley Field?

Put mortar between them.

9. It's 2:30pm on a Wednesday. What do Sox fans and the vendors at Wrigley have in common?

Jobs.

9. It's 2:30pm on a Wednesday. What do Sox fans and the vendors at Wrigley have in common?

Jobs. Meeting with parole officers.

or just parole officers would have worked.

: D

Everyone scored, including Kerry Wood's blister.

sounds like my prom night.

Wood is continuing to receive treatment for the blister on his right index finger, which had sidelined him since July 11. He will continue to monitor it after it's completely gone.

?

apparently it's a popped blister that won't heal? it's been an open wound for almost a month or so.

: D

Hooray for Hollywood!

http://torturedfanbase.com/roster/james_patrick_jim_edmonds_15_o.html

May 15, 2008 Jim finds a new ‘like a Father’ figure in sweet Lou Piniella
May 15, 2008 Lou asks him why the hell he doesn’t use the batting stance he used when he was a cardinal and hitting the ball all over the damn place. Huh? What was wrong with that batting stance?
May 16, 2008 Jim wants to please his new ‘like a Father’ very much so he decides to change his batting stance
May 16, 2008 Jim feels whole again
June, 2008 Jim starts hitting the ball all over the damn place

Perrotto, BP:

Cubs manager Lou Piniella is close to benching right fielder Kosuke Fukudome, shifting second baseman Mark DeRosa to right, and playing Mike Fontenot at second.

that was also a suggestion from a fan on the chicago tribune sports page message board monday.

http://blog.cubhub.net/__oneclick_uploads/2008/03/erniebanks.jpg

Let's play two today!

I was at the Edmonds 2 HR game on Friday (best Cubs game I've seen in person, fwiw). I helped some drunk at the urinal trough remember the names of the Molinas, it was a real moment of Cubs camaraderie.

Pics when I get my shit together.

ok, you ever read halfway through a sentence and wonder if there's anyway it can end well? i did that with:

I helped some drunk at the urinal trough...

Good point.

Another proud fan moment were the cries of "LaGenius!" in the stands after the failed suicide squeeze.

http://bp1.blogger.com/_AjgoeKB9zAk/R19F5S_XZLI/AAAAAAAAAr8/Wqq5kSdwdvk/s1600-h/hollywood.jpg

the cries of "LaGenius!"

hahahaOL

: D

This Harden trade is working out.

the zambrano/harden/dempster front 3 is pretty dominant.

bet you didn't think you'd be saying that at the beginning of the year!

Playoff odds at 99.45%

The Reds lineup these days is no big shakes, but Harden looked really looked sharp last night.

This is the most loaded Cubs team I have ever seen. They have pretty much everything. The only question I think left is to see how Kerry Wood does down the stretch and to keep from injuries.

Catching up with Jeff Samardzija

DEROSA: Are you able to go to dinner in the city of Chicago and lead a pretty normal life?

SAMARDZIJA: Are you able to go to dinner in Chicago and live a pretty normal life?

DEROSA: Yes, very much so. I'm a happily married man with a wife and child. I'm not single with long, flowing locks, who was an All-America at Notre Dame.

I would panic if I could figure out what this means:

The Cubs have scored just six combined runs in the first six innings of their five games since the Braves sweep -- three runs before the seventh inning in the last four games.

It's saying the starters haven't been getting much run support.

last night they were baffled by bronson arroyo's 79 mph fastball.

zambrano hit another one today?

Yeah, he's got 4 on the season.

Angels lost last night, so the Cubs now have the best record in baseball.

Both the Angels and Rays, I mean. I hadn't noticed that Tampa Bay had pulled even in the AL.

Whoops-a-daisy.

"Aaron Boone comes off the bench and makes the Cubs pay dearly, he hits a double off the center field wall scoring Belliard, Harris and Flores to extend the Nationals lead to 10-5. That is now 6 earned runs scored on the Chicago bullpen. So much for the lack of a Washington offense."

http://thepage.time.com/obama-on-sportcenter/

Zambrano has a 12-game hitting streak in games that he's pitched. Qualifier added because he's gone in as a pinch-hitter twice during that span and failed to get a hit both times. Still, pretty incredible.

http://www.baseball-reference.com/pi/gl.cgi?t=b&n1=zambrca01&year=2008#0,222,223,224,225,226,228,229,230,231,232,233,235,sum

.361/.361/.611

All the players who have higher OPS than Zambrano:

Albert Pujols 1.102
Travis Hafner 1.097
Ryan Howard 1.084
Manny Ramírez 1.058
David Ortiz 1.049
Lance Berkman 1.041
Jim Thome 1.014
Jermaine Dye 1.006
Miguel Cabrera .998
Carlos Beltrán .982
Matt Holliday .973

how many of them have a higher SLG? its not really fair cuz zambrano isnt going to draw any walks

Felix Hernandez 2008: 1-1 with a Grand Slam = 5.000 OPS

also: Cody Ransom holy shit.

Felix Hernandez 2008: 1-1 with a Grand Slam = 5.000 OPS

-- Steve Shasta, Tuesday, August 26, 2008 3:06 PM (Tuesday, August 26, 2008 3:06 PM) Bookmark Link

small sample blah blah blah.

sss;dc

OMG REALLY

Zambrano's had 72 at-bats, which is a lot more significant than Felix Hernandez' one AB.

Perhaps better comparisons would be to professional pinch-"hitters" Daryle Ward (79 AB, .215) or Mark Sweeney (77 AB, .143)?

wins are over-*snooze*

good thing Z can swing the bat because he can't hit the broad side of a barn right now.

len kasper obviously has never seen steeler's coach mike tomlin.

z = hits in 13 consecutive starts, rbi in 8 consecutive starts.

Haha! That's just some nice opposite field hitting.

no win for z tonight.

cubs do not want to injure the pirates self-esteem, they're letting EVERYONE on base.

nice triple doug mienkiewiczenschnitzel.

jesus christ, neither team is capable of winning.

Too bad the Pirates didn't bring in Matt Capps seven runs ago, while they were winning. It was even a save situation!

Pat and Ron's call of the grand slam (fun starts around 3:00).

"Oh, Patrick!"

rooting for the small bears makes me feel dirrty

The Philadelphia telecast's camera work on the grand slam was great -- just Victorino.

This is a few days old, but after Cedeno booted the game-ending double play in Cincinnati, the cameras caught an exasperated Lou exclaiming "fuck me!" If anyone has that gif, we could get an early start on the 2009 thread.

http://img178.imageshack.us/img178/9837/picture1mm8.png

Magic number is 7, Salomon Torres unavailable for comment!

Nice game tonight. Happy for Big Z.

this zamboni guy's pretty good, huh?

http://farm1.static.flickr.com/32/65364425_99ef63c20f.jpg?v=0

how do you killfile in the new code?

is the Cubs' payroll low enough for Shasta?

won't someone answer his important question?

should i use my rainout vouchers to see these cub people or wait til next year?

You should see them this year.