I don’t think Andre Woodson will be any good in the NFL, and he’s likely the QB we’d have taken. Williams is great, Forte looks good. It’s a thin year for QBs in the draft and its not worth it to take a QB just for the sake of taking a QB.
Didn’t really like what I saw in the other one. There are ways to criticize what the Cubs have done today without simply bitching.
That said, this team has failed to take advantage of numerous opportunities today. Does that mean they suck? No, it means they failed. Happens even to good teams.
that the Cubs might try to work some counts against Lannan, and that’s been largely absent. I think Lou might want to try and get everyone to just settle down and get back to what was working. THis team seems really tigh today and roping line drive around the park that seem to end up in gloves isn’t helping their confidence. Let’s get some walks and see what develops. Also, I’d like to see Lannan exit this game.
Pitchers have at least as much control over their ground ball to fly ball rate as hitters do, if not more. And pitchers know that with a guy on third and less than two outs, you want to get ground balls. It’s not like they’re putting the ball on a tee for those guys.
i'm not saying you should tell people they're being too positive, i'm saying nobody does, so why tell people they're being too negative
the problem with saying “they suck” isn’t that it’s negative, it’s that it’s illogical. my point is that there should be room for all sorts of dissent, it’s ok for sue to say “poop”, why is that not bitching. i’m most likely taking this way too seriously, but i try to look at it like the cubs are America, and we’re the People, i like to think that in america people have the right to dissent, and more to the point, it’s frustrating to me when people spend more time complaining about how someone complained than the people that originally complained.
Not cashing in RISP has historically been a problem with this club, and seeing it occur again is an ominous sign. I find it hard to accept that this year’s model is different (read: better at runs scored) when the same problems plague the team and there is no evidence to support things will change. And if that makes me Debbie Downer then so be it.
“catching breaks”, whereas the good teams make their own luck to an extent by not leaving so many on base. When the Cubs can get ‘em in consistently then I’ll start believing they can win a pennant.
April and May are the times when the pretenders look good, run off win streaks against bottom feeders and strong clubs with injuries. I want to see how the Cubs do against the cream of the crop before I start seriously thinking things are better.
He pitched well enough to win, but it’s tough to win when your team is shut out. Hitting tends to be contagious, and a lot of the Cubs are in a funk right now. Tomorrow’s day off is coming at the right time.
Having said that, they have 6 outs left to get two runs—just a bloop and a blast. I’m calling Ramy for the blast.
For the sake of the majority I’ll go back to “lurk” mode.
All things considered BCB is still a better place than NSBB…now THERE’S a fatalist’s haven if ever there was! At least I don’t call for Hendry to get the John the Baptist treatment on a daily basis!
The Cubs, even though they’ve lost 3 of 4, are still in first place. They have a much needed day off tomorrow, then a home series vs. the Brewers—and they’ve been great at home.
Also, Lilly pitched well, Wuertz’s slider looked better, Kerry looked like Kerry, and there weren’t any bad plays defensively.
Hitting is the most consistent aspect of baseball, and it’s very likely that 5 guys will get red-hot at home.
Let’s put this one in the rear view mirror and go get the Brewers on Tuesday.
The spread in talent between major league ballclubs is pretty small when you take a step back and look at it from a distance; the Nationals only look like a really bad ballclub when you compare them to other major league teams. And even then, we tend to exaggerate the difference in quality between two teams.
Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. The good teams tend to win more and the bad teams tend to lose more, but that’s over a 162 game season. In ONE game, any team in the majors, even the Giants, has enough talent to win.
It’s not a problem about “being in their heads,” or being tired, or being mentally weak, or whatever character defects the armchair shrinks like to ascribe to sheer random chance. This happens, and it happens all the time. The difference between the best and worst record in baseball last season was only sixty games of 162.
What you do is you tip your cap to the other team, and you move on to play the next game.
There are going to be games this team should win but won't.
But there will also be games they should lose that they’ll win. It doesn’t always even itself out over the season, but normally it does. So far the Cubs have won as many games as they “should have,” according to the Pythagoran theorum, so I’m not really concerned about it yet.
So, now the Bears have 6 safeties, 5 DT’s (Oshinowo, Adams, Harris, Dvoracek, and the new guy, and it’s actually 6 if you count Idonije), and 4 TE’s (Olsen, Clark, Gilmore, and the new guy). Jerry Angelo, what are you doing?
I’m not sold on Woodson, as I think he’s still pretty raw, but it would’ve been nice to see the Bears try and get Henne or Brohm.
Dvoracek was awful last season. And sure, we had six safeties, but a Venn diagram of the Bears safeties from last season that was sorted into “Healthy” and “Good” would have had minimal overlap at best.
Quarterback is not the biggest problem the Bears have right now, and without a good support system, it does not matter who is playing QB. Getting a good line and some weapons is a bigger priority. The tight end does confound me a little, but whatever.
He didn’t play. He was hurt. He was pretty good in preseason, but there’s always the competition concern there. Indict him for his health issues, but there’s no way you can say he was awful in season in which he didn’t play. the defense was bad because Lovie kept playing Archuleta and Nat Vasher and Tillman spent time hurt, not because there was a depth problem. QB is not the biggest, the biggest is that an offense predicated on play-action passing got no run production, partly because of a poor o-line and partly because the RB’s sucked. I’m glad Angelo shored up the o-line and I like the Forte pick, but drafting a DT and a S is just superfluous and silly, and I loved Stultz’ play at LSU last year. I think he is a susceptible in pas coverage as Archuleta is, though he’s a much smarter player, IMO.
when everyone was saying that we needed an OL man, but Angelo refused to get one until I think the sixth round. Look at our offensive line last season as a re
since I made no mention of him playing tackle. At any rate, he should’ve played when the season was lost, especially if they knew they were going to cut Ruben Brown. I’m not very comfortable with the idea of Metcalf in the starting lineup. The tackles, I think are upgraded now. Tait is a better RT than LT, so that’s fixed and Williams, by all accounts, should be able to step right in and start. Here’s hoping he’s not a Stan Thomas redux.
Hopefully the new thread will bring
some runs!!
LT - April 27, 2008
Not a good day for Chicago
Cubs – currently in a bad game
White Sox – might lose to Baltimore
Bears – what the hell is Angelo thinking?
Chanman25 - April 27, 2008
since I only care about one of those situations
and the game is not over yet I am not ready to say it’s not a good day….
LT - April 27, 2008
I personally am a big fan of the draft
I don’t think Andre Woodson will be any good in the NFL, and he’s likely the QB we’d have taken. Williams is great, Forte looks good. It’s a thin year for QBs in the draft and its not worth it to take a QB just for the sake of taking a QB.
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
Thought I'd join the game thread.
Didn’t really like what I saw in the other one. There are ways to criticize what the Cubs have done today without simply bitching.
That said, this team has failed to take advantage of numerous opportunities today. Does that mean they suck? No, it means they failed. Happens even to good teams.
There are two innings left. Let’s win.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Here, here.
It ain’t over til it’s over. And I don’t hear Johnny Estrada singing yet.
northsider - April 27, 2008
Thank you Al
I have been avoiding the site today, only because I knew what was being said. Thanks for being the voice of reason.
louslovechild - April 27, 2008
agreed
but I just cant get over how awful the Bears draft has been lol!
Chanman25 - April 27, 2008
The voice of reason.
sue369 - April 27, 2008
You mentioned in the pre-game
that the Cubs might try to work some counts against Lannan, and that’s been largely absent. I think Lou might want to try and get everyone to just settle down and get back to what was working. THis team seems really tigh today and roping line drive around the park that seem to end up in gloves isn’t helping their confidence. Let’s get some walks and see what develops. Also, I’d like to see Lannan exit this game.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Although...
... Lannan has walked three, and the Cubs left RISP in two consecutive innings with less than two out.
There’s the difference in this game.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Yep.
Too many left on base. That DP really sucked the air out of the team, it seemed like.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
7 left in 7 innings.
Too many.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Ick.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Should have scored 3-4 runs out of all that...
... in the 5th and 6th.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
At least.
This team seems to not get that with a guy on third and less than two outs, you need to elevate the ball.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Here's the thing.
Pitchers have at least as much control over their ground ball to fly ball rate as hitters do, if not more. And pitchers know that with a guy on third and less than two outs, you want to get ground balls. It’s not like they’re putting the ball on a tee for those guys.
cwyers - April 27, 2008
True.
But this team, apart from a couple guys, seem to have very poor pitch selection and it becomes a glaring deficiency in those situations.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
but who's the arbiter of what's bitching and what's just rationally criticizing
nobody tells people they’re being too positive, it’s just a blurry line
dogcatratcheese - April 27, 2008
Why would you tell someone they're being too positive?
For example, gary varsho’s post above is a good example of rationally criticizing.
Just saying “they suck” isn’t.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
i'm not saying you should tell people they're being too positive, i'm saying nobody does, so why tell people they're being too negative
the problem with saying “they suck” isn’t that it’s negative, it’s that it’s illogical. my point is that there should be room for all sorts of dissent, it’s ok for sue to say “poop”, why is that not bitching. i’m most likely taking this way too seriously, but i try to look at it like the cubs are America, and we’re the People, i like to think that in america people have the right to dissent, and more to the point, it’s frustrating to me when people spend more time complaining about how someone complained than the people that originally complained.
dogcatratcheese - April 27, 2008
I don't see "poop" as bitching...
... I see it as reacting to something bad that happens on the field.
It’s the difference between saying “YOU suck” and “THIS SITUATION sucks”.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Exactly.
And phrased much better than the way my comment was developing!
northsider - April 27, 2008
saying "this situation sucks" is still bitching, how is it not?
dogcatratcheese - April 27, 2008
It's not bitching.
It’s reacting to an event.
You can say, “It sucked that Theriot struck out”, which it does.
Continually saying “Theriot sucks”, what purpose does that serve?
Now do you see the difference?
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
firstly, i still say it's your opinion, your judgment that saying "this situation sucks" isn't bitching, but i agree with you
about your “theriot sucks” point, look in the last thread at the way i reacted to that EXACT comment.
dogcatratcheese - April 27, 2008
I'll have a look later.
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Because positivity makes people feel good
and negativity makes them feel bad.
californiachicagoan - April 27, 2008
Missed Chances Suck
Not cashing in RISP has historically been a problem with this club, and seeing it occur again is an ominous sign. I find it hard to accept that this year’s model is different (read: better at runs scored) when the same problems plague the team and there is no evidence to support things will change. And if that makes me Debbie Downer then so be it.
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
Too Much Still Dependent On
“catching breaks”, whereas the good teams make their own luck to an extent by not leaving so many on base. When the Cubs can get ‘em in consistently then I’ll start believing they can win a pennant.
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
Good teams take advantage of breaks.
The Cubs didn’t, for the most part, last year. This year, so far, they have—mostly.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
You mean...
... the five-game and six-game winning streak aren’t evidence of this having changed?
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
No
April and May are the times when the pretenders look good, run off win streaks against bottom feeders and strong clubs with injuries. I want to see how the Cubs do against the cream of the crop before I start seriously thinking things are better.
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
That's not unreasonable.
However, there’s nothing wrong with getting off to a good start, either. Wins now count just as much as wins in September.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Pitching Change!
IN: 45 Sean Marshall LHP
I love me some Sean.
northsider - April 27, 2008
Hope he
does well since his family is there.
sue369 - April 27, 2008
Me too.
That’s a good point, I’d forgotten that.
northsider - April 27, 2008
i stayed at the same hotel as the team last year, and saw him there with his family :)
cubs ftw - April 27, 2008
How did you spot him?
I’m impressed anyone could pick him out in a crowd.
; )
northsider - April 27, 2008
hah he was at the front desk when we were checking in
cubs ftw - April 27, 2008
Sean Marshall on
to give the Nats a taste of their own medicine. Lannan reminds me a lot of Marshall
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Are they singing sweet caroline?
“so good! so good! so good!” really grates on my nerves.
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
yes
cubs ftw - April 27, 2008
I cater weddings
for a living. I hear that song way too much.
davidalanu - April 27, 2008
Walked him.
C’mon now Sean.
northsider - April 27, 2008
They really need to keep this game at 2-0.
Got a good feeling IF they can do that.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Yeah.
That Nationals bullpen is, well, less than stellar.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
well played Sean!
JB 23 - April 27, 2008
Maybe the Cub were lookng past this game a bit,
to a couple days off and then the big series versus the Brew Crew. They need to get their heads back in it.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Agreed
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Could Be
we shall see soon enough!
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
Good boy, Sean.
A little too many 3-2 counts for my liking, but he got the job done.
northsider - April 27, 2008
We GOT THIS!!
lets go cubbies!!!
xene - April 27, 2008
Time for some runs
2-3-4
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
Nice job by Sean.
Runs! Get some runs!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Lilly looked much better today
He pitched well enough to win, but it’s tough to win when your team is shut out. Hitting tends to be contagious, and a lot of the Cubs are in a funk right now. Tomorrow’s day off is coming at the right time.
Having said that, they have 6 outs left to get two runs—just a bloop and a blast. I’m calling Ramy for the blast.
DeRoMyHero - April 27, 2008
True
In the interest of fairness, it is good to see Lilly coming around.
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
I'm holding you to that Ramy HR RIGHT NOW!!
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
My bad.
DeRoMyHero - April 27, 2008
Glad to see Lannan out of the game.
He’s thrown well this year, and the Cubs were mostly off balance.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Tell Y'all What
For the sake of the majority I’ll go back to “lurk” mode.
All things considered BCB is still a better place than NSBB…now THERE’S a fatalist’s haven if ever there was! At least I don’t call for Hendry to get the John the Baptist treatment on a daily basis!
SecondSon - April 27, 2008
LMAO
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
heck of a pitch for strike three..
JB 23 - April 27, 2008
shoot
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
This guy's a bit erratic.
Cubs need to make him throw strikes. Be patient!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
there you go! Nice AB
JB 23 - April 27, 2008
Like that?
JohnM - April 27, 2008
Exactmundo
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Time to get something cooking
californiachicagoan - April 27, 2008
Way to go Lee!
northsider - April 27, 2008
How about a HR?
And just avoid RISP all together
Shanghai Badger - April 27, 2008
haha who's listening to Ron?
Ron:what’s the word for that railroad…..thing…..ummm….?
Pat: Subway?
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
is it me or did John Rausch put on about 75lbs....?
...I remember him as a beanpole
JB 23 - April 27, 2008
Shoot.
That low pitch has been a strike all day.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
True.
This whole crew have had really erratic zones, though. MLB’s gotta do something…though I have no suggestions!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
I, for one, welcome our new electronic overlords!
northsider - April 27, 2008
HA!
Perfect! Loving the Simpsons drops!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Rats.
northsider - April 27, 2008
This guy's giving out
the Greg Maddux strikezone to everyone, for some odd reason.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
He's been consistent, at least.
When an umpire does this, the hitters have to adjust. The Cubs haven’t.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Yep.
Too bad Sori’s not playing. That pitch is his bread-and-butter!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
haha, so true.
And you know he’d like to beat Washington too.
northsider - April 27, 2008
I think this is the first time...
... in the entire time he’s been out that someone here has actually wanted him back.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
man he makes that look easy...
JB 23 - April 27, 2008
LOTSA CHANGES
IN: 34 Kerry Wood RHP
IN: 17 Mike Fontenot 2B
MOVE: 5 Ronny Cedeno SS
northsider - April 27, 2008
OUT: 2 Ryan Theriot SS
northsider - April 27, 2008
Well, let's
hope we hold them here and come back to score 3-4 runs in the 9th and hold them in the bottom fo the 9th.
Go Cubs!!
sue369 - April 27, 2008
LSA
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
I think Len
reads here. He just said the same thing.
sue369 - April 27, 2008
Maybe he has BCB up on his laptop screen!
Hi, Len!
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
He said "LSA"?
; )
northsider - April 27, 2008
LMAO
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
haha
sue369 - April 27, 2008
Wood had a nice easy inning.
Let’s go get ‘em!
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Nine pitches.
That’s all Wood needed to take care of the inning. Well played, sir.
northsider - April 27, 2008
Indeed.
Now he can pitch the last of the 9th after the Cubs take the lead.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
So he can shoot for 8 or less?
northsider - April 27, 2008
Sure!
n/t
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Wow.
Efficient inning for Kerry. Well done.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Looks like Rauch
has a VERY flat fastball, 92. Come on guys.
northsider - April 27, 2008
Yeah.
Not a lot of movement on the fastball
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Rauch has some real wacky looking tattoos.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Maybe he and Henry know the same guy.
northsider - April 27, 2008
The Cubs
look like a team that needs a day off.
Rick B - April 27, 2008
Yep.
Good thing they’re getting one.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
and the 14 nats fans in the stadium are on their feet
RightFieldSucks - April 27, 2008
D'oh!
northsider - April 27, 2008
Wow, that was a terrible pitch he struck out on.
Off to contemplate what to write in the recap.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
Cubs committed a shutout for the first time yesterday
and get shut out for the first time today.
northsider - April 27, 2008
Just wasn't our day.
Get a good rest tomorrow and get back to work on Tues.
sue369 - April 27, 2008
Ack.
An ugly swing to end an ugly game. Rest up and get the Brewers. I’m back to paper-writing. Thanks for the procrastination opportunity!
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
honestly, it looked like the cubs just played themselves, and lost, that game was all in their heads
dogcatratcheese - April 27, 2008
Had our chances today...
RISP.
RISP.
RISP.
cublessinmilwaukee - April 27, 2008
The bright side... (and there is one)
The Cubs, even though they’ve lost 3 of 4, are still in first place. They have a much needed day off tomorrow, then a home series vs. the Brewers—and they’ve been great at home.
Also, Lilly pitched well, Wuertz’s slider looked better, Kerry looked like Kerry, and there weren’t any bad plays defensively.
Hitting is the most consistent aspect of baseball, and it’s very likely that 5 guys will get red-hot at home.
Let’s put this one in the rear view mirror and go get the Brewers on Tuesday.
DeRoMyHero - April 27, 2008
Very well said.
sue369 - April 27, 2008
Look.
The spread in talent between major league ballclubs is pretty small when you take a step back and look at it from a distance; the Nationals only look like a really bad ballclub when you compare them to other major league teams. And even then, we tend to exaggerate the difference in quality between two teams.
Sometimes you win, and sometimes you lose. The good teams tend to win more and the bad teams tend to lose more, but that’s over a 162 game season. In ONE game, any team in the majors, even the Giants, has enough talent to win.
It’s not a problem about “being in their heads,” or being tired, or being mentally weak, or whatever character defects the armchair shrinks like to ascribe to sheer random chance. This happens, and it happens all the time. The difference between the best and worst record in baseball last season was only sixty games of 162.
What you do is you tip your cap to the other team, and you move on to play the next game.
cwyers - April 27, 2008
Exactly.
The old saying goes, everyone wins 1/3 of their games, everyone loses 1/3, it’s what you do with the other 1/3 that makes the difference.
Count this as the 1/3 that’s just one of those lost games.
Al Yellon - April 27, 2008
agreed, however
should have won at least another one against this team though..
Chanman25 - April 27, 2008
There are going to be games this team should win but won't.
But there will also be games they should lose that they’ll win. It doesn’t always even itself out over the season, but normally it does. So far the Cubs have won as many games as they “should have,” according to the Pythagoran theorum, so I’m not really concerned about it yet.
cwyers - April 27, 2008
In fact
This series had one of each…
techne - April 27, 2008
shit
and there goes Andre Woodson to the Giants
way to go Angelo..
Chanman25 - April 27, 2008
But we got a new DT!
So, now the Bears have 6 safeties, 5 DT’s (Oshinowo, Adams, Harris, Dvoracek, and the new guy, and it’s actually 6 if you count Idonije), and 4 TE’s (Olsen, Clark, Gilmore, and the new guy). Jerry Angelo, what are you doing?
I’m not sold on Woodson, as I think he’s still pretty raw, but it would’ve been nice to see the Bears try and get Henne or Brohm.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Our defense did suck last season, you know.
Dvoracek was awful last season. And sure, we had six safeties, but a Venn diagram of the Bears safeties from last season that was sorted into “Healthy” and “Good” would have had minimal overlap at best.
Quarterback is not the biggest problem the Bears have right now, and without a good support system, it does not matter who is playing QB. Getting a good line and some weapons is a bigger priority. The tight end does confound me a little, but whatever.
cwyers - April 27, 2008
How can you say Dvoracek was awful last season?
He didn’t play. He was hurt. He was pretty good in preseason, but there’s always the competition concern there. Indict him for his health issues, but there’s no way you can say he was awful in season in which he didn’t play. the defense was bad because Lovie kept playing Archuleta and Nat Vasher and Tillman spent time hurt, not because there was a depth problem. QB is not the biggest, the biggest is that an offense predicated on play-action passing got no run production, partly because of a poor o-line and partly because the RB’s sucked. I’m glad Angelo shored up the o-line and I like the Forte pick, but drafting a DT and a S is just superfluous and silly, and I loved Stultz’ play at LSU last year. I think he is a susceptible in pas coverage as Archuleta is, though he’s a much smarter player, IMO.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
I remember last season
when everyone was saying that we needed an OL man, but Angelo refused to get one until I think the sixth round. Look at our offensive line last season as a re
Chanman25 - April 27, 2008
What's up with Beekman, anyway?
If he’s that bad, why did Angelo draft him? And if he’s not that bad, then why didn’t he play?
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
Beekman's a guard/center...
...which was not the problem with the line last season. We needed to upgrade at the tackles.
cwyers - April 27, 2008
Not sure how that's relevant,
since I made no mention of him playing tackle. At any rate, he should’ve played when the season was lost, especially if they knew they were going to cut Ruben Brown. I’m not very comfortable with the idea of Metcalf in the starting lineup. The tackles, I think are upgraded now. Tait is a better RT than LT, so that’s fixed and Williams, by all accounts, should be able to step right in and start. Here’s hoping he’s not a Stan Thomas redux.
gary varsho - April 27, 2008
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