What You May Not Have Seen Last Night, and Open Thread: Cubs vs. Astros, Tuesday, 7/4, 1:05 CT

by Al Yellon on Jul 4, 2006 9:20 AM CDT in Recap/Game Thread

Since there's a very short turnaround again between last night's 7-2 Cub loss to the Astros, and today's holiday day game, I thought I'd combine the game summary with today's open thread -- primarily because there isn't, again, a whole lot to say about the loss.

It was typical, in other words -- too many walks (seven by Carlos Marmol), and there's no way you're going to avoid giving up runs that way; and too many Cub runners left stranded (seven), including, yet again, runners left in scoring position in the third, fifth, sixth and eighth innings.

Here's what you didn't see if you didn't see the game on TV, or weren't there:

Ronny Cedeno absolutely, positively dragged his shoe across the back edge of second base in the fifth inning. The Yahoo AP recap says that "replays showed that Cedeno's foot missed the bag by several inches", but I'm not sure which replay that writer was watching -- the replays I saw showed that Cedeno definitely got the base. Now, if this play is made, the inning is over and the score is still tied; butterfly effect most likely means that Lance Berkman never comes up with two runners on in the sixth, hitting the HR that put the game out of reach.

And that leads me to the other thing you didn't see if you didn't see the game on TV, and maybe you missed it even if you did; after the Berkman HR, CSN, for some inexplicable reason, showed a closeup replay of Will Ohman in which even someone like me, who can't read lips at all, could tell the unprintable words that Ohman was saying after throwing that pitch.

Those are likely the words that all of us would like to use to describe this unprintable season. Other blogs use those words all the time. I choose not to, even though I'm THINKING them.

Today's Starting Pitchers


M. Prior Cubs	vs.	A. Pettitte Astros


0-3	W-L	6-9
9.00	ERA	5.58
15	SO	81
6	BB	38
5	HR	18
vs. Hou	--	vs. Cubs

And so, onward we go on this holiday; Prior has not thrown well against the Astros in his career (4-4 with a 4.35 ERA in 12 starts), although he has handled the hitters on the current club pretty well.

Meanwhile, Pettitte had not defeated the Cubs at all in six previous career starts until three weeks ago at Wrigley Field. In Pettitte's last nine starts, he has allowed five, seven, three, seven, two, one, four, six and five runs respectively.

Guess which one of those nine was the one against the Cubs? I'll bet you don't even have to look it up.

It's a holiday. Enjoy. For nostalgia's sake, check out this memorable Cub 4th of July game from 1991, when they blew an 8-2 lead against the Pirates, but won when Mark Grace led off the bottom of the 11th inning with a HR, his second of the game and sixth of the '91 season (he hit only eight all that year). Also worth mentioning from that game: Barry Bonds homered off Greg Maddux, and the appearance of Laddie Renfroe, a 29-year-old non-prospect who pitched in only four games in his major league career.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

0 recs | 143 comments

Comments

happy fourth everyone!

n/t

Faith plus 1 - July 4, 2006 reply

Even more...

from that 1991 game. This is something you don't see every day:

On a bunt Varsho was credited with a single when a runner was hit by the batted ball [Bonds out at second (second)];

That must have been some bunt.

McHuge - July 4, 2006 reply

Cedeno's DP ball

That's funny. The replay I saw on Fox Southwest, looking from 3rd base towards RF, pretty clearly showed his foot passed about 6" behind the 2B bag. I saw another shot from the 1B stands, looking towards LF, that looked like he got the bag as he swept his foot past the bag. But that 3B shot removed all doubt. He missed it.

scotteboy - July 4, 2006 reply

from right field

it looked like he just touched the back of the bag with the tip of his foot as he was making the throw. Haven't seen any of the replays, but as soon as I saw that from my seat, I knew there was no DP, even if he had touched the base, as the ump was in the exact wrong position to see that.

false cognate - July 4, 2006 reply

Agreed, Sorry Al, But He Missed The Base

I saw the replay several times on the Houston feed. From the 3rd base angle, you can clearly see he let go of the ball before his foot touched the base. There's no question. Unfortunately for the Cubs it was the correct call.

BeerCub - July 4, 2006 reply

In Other Words, He Missed While He Had The Ball

BeerCub - July 4, 2006 reply

It's still a crap call

99.9% of the time the SS/2B gets the "neighborhood" call. I don't see why this ump was busting Cedeno's chops over a couple of inches.

CM Blue - July 4, 2006 reply

Well....

....did you see it? He really wasn't "in the neighborhood" with this one. His foot was parallel with the base, and it looked like he was about two widths worth of his foot away.

BeerCub - July 4, 2006 reply

Exactly.

It wasn't even a neighborhood call. He wasn't even close to the bag at 2nd base. He was at least a shoe length away from the bag. You'll never get that call from an umpire. Unfortunately what looked like a really good play as it happened was a really, really bad one, but not one that was surprising at all considering how bad this team is.

Matthew @ Bleed Cubbie Blue - July 4, 2006 reply

And To That...

...crap season aside, like it or not, it's a baseball axiom that you've more or less got to "earn" those "neighborhood" calls as you go along anyway. Even if this was a good year, with Cedeno being new, he still likely wouldn't get that call. MAYBE Furcal does, or Eckstein (having been a winning World Series SS) or the like, but probably not Cedeno, especially as far away as he was from the bag when he released the ball.

BeerCub - July 4, 2006 reply

Eckstein

who did Eckstein win the WS with?

Nice holiday banner, Al.

Bleed Cubbie Blue