Bleed Cubbie Blue

No.

I did read the Magglio Ordonez possibility, don’t know how I feel about that.

I think

Maggs is a worse version of Bradley in nearly every way, except he’s not an asshole. He has lost all power, can’t hit the other way anymore, and has a worse contract than Bradley (assuming it vests).

I’m all for dropping Bradley, but it has to be for a better situation, and Maggs isn’t it.

Trading Bradley and his salary for a crappy prospect, and using the money freed up for Haren/Halladay, THAT would be worth it. That would be worth a Fox/Fukudome platoon in right, Fuld/Reed in center, and Sori in left. But that’s just my opinion.

The asshole comment is unnecessary.

section229beer - July 25, 2009 reply

bradley

he ain’t going, haren isn’t coming, halladay?….don’t see anything big hapening…..magglio is a joke,

ARTA - July 26, 2009 reply

The Bradley thing isn't happening

It’s being shot down by almost every non-Steve Stone source.

Great game to watch today. Kevin Hart did his job, and it sure seems like Aramis is getting hot. Soriano is clearly mid hot streak.

It was confirmed to me by Deep Goat.

It will be interesting to follow then

The Tigers GM seemed offended when asked if he was looking at Milton. I think the quote was “That guy would never be on my team”

Deep Goat's

track record hasn’t been awfully good. And if DG is the source on Dan Haren, he is really off base. I know of two prospect packages that the D’Backs have already turned down for Haren and they were way beyond anything the Cubs have to offer.

DG is NOT the source of the Haren rumor.

That came elsewhere.

Sullivan

Miles and the Tigers mlb guy have all said there is NOTHING there.

So its those three vs Deep Goat, Kaplan and Steve Stone

Well...

… I have heard from other sources that there’s “nothing” to the Bradley rumors.

So — take all of it for what it’s worth. Rumors like this do fly often when we get close to the trading deadline. We’ll see what actually happens.

these rumors

are why july is such a special and entertaining time

Inquirying minds would like to know

if that pitcher that you were talking about yesterday was Roy Halladay.

No, it wasn't.

Hmm.

Wow. I’d be spending all day trying to figure out who.

Yeah, you would.

Scott Downs, perhaps?

PacificCub - July 25, 2009 reply

i think

Al said yesterday that vitters wasnt being mentioned. No Vittters = no Halladay.

I still think its Kerry Wood

It's not Wood.

well then

im out of ideas. you are a crypic man Al. What player would make everyone happy yet not cost us talent like Vitters?

Is Maddux coming back?

Julian Taverez.

LOL.

Maybe it’s Grienke. I don’t know. Has to be a reliever then.

Didnt we have a shot at him a few years ago?

LOL

No.

I have heard nothing further about the deal I heard about yesterday — don’t know what that means, whether it’s on hold or not going to happen at all. I just have no idea.

Zack Duke

According to Yahoo!

Azul Cachorro - July 25, 2009 reply

say what?

par-kay

ARTA - July 26, 2009 reply

I don't think we would

ALL be happy with that trade though. Maybe it is though.

Or maybe not.

Gorzelanny and Grabow...

IMO.

Would throw up in my mouth.

and wouldn't understand why Al would think that would make

anyone VERY happy

I don't know.

Maybe it’s Josh Johnson. lol. It’s only a select amount of people that would make us all happy.

if we dumped miles and his contact in the process

we would be happy

tim815 - July 25, 2009 reply

Well Kraplan and Stone are idiots... and Deep Goat doesn't exist.

So you do the math.

Where did the name Deep Goat come from anyway?

deep throat

deep goat

I believe..

it start being used when, he who shall not be named (Brian Roberts), trade rumors started last year, if I’m wrong someone correct.

gaclaudy - July 25, 2009 reply

It's a play on Deep Throat from Watergate...

It’s obviously a made up name.

DamonBerryhillsMitt - July 26, 2009 reply

Ahhaha

No, I’m pretty sure that’s his birth name. “Obviously.” For crying out loud.

The name is "Goat"

Deep. Goat.

It’s a ‘foreign’ name.

cubmudgeon - July 27, 2009 reply

For the record

Al reported he heard something last night. This didn’t come to fruition until midday today. Despite not happening, Al heard what we heard hours earlier.

ak123 - July 25, 2009 reply

I don't think Al has specifically told us what he heard last night.

Yes, he did say DG confirmed the Bradley rumor, but I don’t think he’s confirmed that this was the trade tidbit he mentioned in yesterday’s recap, has he?

It was NOT the tidbit from yesterday.

Can you at least say

that today’s rumors (Haren, Halladay) would make us more happy than the info from yesterday?

It's all made up conjecture. Deep Goat doesn't exist.

I think he exists

I just don’t think he has any actual inside info

Neither of you is correct.

Today’s rumors would indeed make us happier than yesterday’s, if true.

Except one of those rumors was already shot down

quite hard by the other team’s GM. So……………

I think he's talking about

Haren and Halladay.

I haven't seen a link

or quote. Do you have one?

What could possibly make you happier...

Than Haren or Halladay?

ADAM LIND! ADAM LIND! ADAM LIND!

Grienke for starters.

OOOOOOOVVVVVVEEEEERRRRRATED.

2-5 since his hot start

With terrible run support...

so Randy Wells is a bust too then.

Overrated?

are you serious?

dude, dude

I never like to use this argument, but if you think Zack Greinke is overrated, you don’t understand the game of baseball.

Dude is a great talent on a terrible team.

sorry, needed to use the sarcasm font

And

Dave Kaplan lol

cubsluver22 - July 25, 2009 reply

The Tigers GM just shot this down.

Sorry, try again.

Keith - July 25, 2009 reply

It never made sense

Jim Hendry isnt going to trade a guy simply because the fans dont like him.

The Tigers have DH type players, Magglio would be a downgrade.

Bradley goes Bye Bye

I saw a post on mlbtraderumors.com earlier today about the possibility of trading Bradley to the Tigers and I got so excited. Perhaps there are some players in the Tigers’ farm teams that would be of interest to the Blue Jays or D-backs. I also think the Cubs need to acquire some bullpen help, a la Sherrill from the O’s. Hopefully one of these teams will take Heilman off our hands. We have enough young starting pitching to keep this team afloat now that Lilly and Dempster are on the DL, but acquiring Haren or Halladay certainly wouldn’t hurt. Lets hope our offense keeps playing as well as it has been.

WindisBlowingOut! - July 25, 2009 reply

and

Cubs bats put three runs on the board in the first inning, highlighted by Derrek Lee’s triple (could his awkward slide into 3B have triggered the neck spasms again?)

lou said he did it while trying to break up the DP aram grounded into

Got it.

I didn’t hear the postgame press conference. Hopefully, it’s nothing serious. That slide looked pretty weird, though.

Did he say if he should be OK?

As in to play tomorrow or Monday?

ak123 - July 25, 2009 reply

he said theyll see how he is tomorrow

Same here

I want nothing to do with an aging, past-his-prime player like Magglio.

I think the Cubs are interested

in Halladay. I think they are a darkhorse. We match up better than people think.

And he is the one of the few players I would trade Vitters for. Haren is in that select group also.

I agree.

I think Vitters can be a star — four or five years from now. Halladay is a great pitcher. Haren is 28 (turns 29 in September). Either could be a difference-maker in any rotation.

Yeah,

I think Vitters will be a star. I think if we gave him up, the worst thing that could happen is that it would be a fair trade to both teams (barring injury)

I’d be fine with that if it means Halladay would bring us a championship.

Complete game...

With 10Ks today, what a freakin’ stud.

Angels

are now giving the Phils a run for the money in the Halliday sweepstakes and they have the parts needed to put a deal together. Wouldn’t hold my breath on either Halliday or Haren.

A package of

Vitters, Marshall, and Jackson/Castro would get the Blue Jays attention.

My only issue with giving up those guys

Is that we essentially give up our future and have to pray we win it all this or next season.

Yeah.

I would not give up all three of Castro, Vitters and Jackson. But 2 of the 3 — I would do it.

I'd do that in a New York minute

The Jays will want more, I think.

Which jackson?

Tito or Marlon?

through in Fox

he be a perfect fit in teh AL

DC Cubbie - July 25, 2009 reply

I thought Phils

turned it down and are done being in this race?

ak123 - July 25, 2009 reply

Agree

I think the Cubs simply don’t have enough in their farm system to even make a serious offer for either of those guys.

The Angels are always in discussions, but barely ever pull the trigger

They got Texeira for a bucket of baseballs from Atlanta, but they seem reticent to ever move their prospects.

Was Bradley's homer

from the right or left side?

rea5661 - July 25, 2009 reply

Left.

To the opposite field.

"Just" in the basket...

Lou called it the "net"

I just

wish people would quit think Adamn Dunn is the solution to our problems.

For so many reasons thats just a bad idea

Today we won

So today…. we have no problems.
(Only if everyday could be like today)

Reddevil - July 25, 2009 reply

His defense basically negating all value from his bat is

reason number 1

the fact

that he is just as lazy in the OF as Soriano is another

That I agree with

If you unload Bradley, the best bet is to use the savings to go after one of the top three/four starters on the market Haren, Halladay, Lee and Bedard and use Reed/Fuku/Fuld as a centerfield option with Fuku/Hoff/Fox as your right field options.

Ryanocm1 - July 25, 2009 reply

Adam Dunn would be a good idea

as soon as the N.L. installs the D.H., not a second sooner.

We signed Soriano...

To play CF… just sayin’.

Soriano

is, career, a plus defender. Dunn really really isn’t.

Soriano and "plus defender" don't belong in the same sentence.

I don’t care what kind of numbers you want to show me. He’s atrocious in the field.

Joe Morgan?

Is that you?

right!

because, of course, your eyes are more correct then the facts.

Career in the outfield, Soriano has a 24.0 UZR. This year, a bad year so far, he’s got a -6.2

Career in the outfield, Adam Dunn has a -93.0 UZR. NEGATIVE 93! This year, so far, he’s a -6.8.

So. Soriano is obviously playing poorly. Dunn, everyone says, is playing well. And he’s STILL a worse defender then Soriano is!!!!

o.0

But you don't understand...

STATS DON’T MATTER, No matter what they say!

I know

I’m sorry.

UZR...

Look at why his UZR was so great.

In 06, 6.6 UZR but 6.5 was due to his arm.
In 07, 22.4 UZR but 14.3 was due to his arm.
In 08, 5.2 UZR but 4.7 was due to his arm.

Now, teams have stopped running on him, and his UZR isn’t that great.

serbianking33 - July 25, 2009 reply

SO WHAT?

then they’re not advancing the runner! How is that BAD?

You can’t say “Well, the arm doesn’t count”. Or are you someone who says “the nationals are no good, our sweep doesn’t count”?

Whoa Drew, relax...

I’m just making the point that him getting to the ball is the issue this year.

serbianking33 - July 25, 2009 reply

Him getting to the ball has always been an issue in the OF

Him dropping the ball has always been an issue in the OF and at 2B.

He’s a bad fielder. Period.

compared to....

most ML players? then yeah probably

the average left fielder? Not really, this year somewhat, but overall no.

Oy.

He was so g damn bad at 2B, that they moved him to the OF.

Now, he’s so g damn bad in the outfield, that he’s got a -6.2 UZR, is tied for the lead among all MLB OFs in errors (8 – tied with A.Dunn), an has the second worst fielding % among all OFs (.954 – Dunn is last)

My comment was not a comparison to Dunn. I simply mentioned that Soriano and “plus defender” don’t belong in the same sentence.

it's like you didn't read what I wrote.

yes, they do. His career UZR is 24.0. And even being tied with Dunn for the most OF errors, Dunn STILL has a worse UZR this year.

So you want to put THAT in Wrigley’s RIGHT FIELD???

No...we want Milton Bradley for the next 2 years.

I do.

Me too.

smash! - July 25, 2009 reply

Milton Bradley

is also a plus defender.

Maybe you don’t keep Bradley. But you do NOT replace him with Dunn. No thank you.

maybe not want

but eating a bunch of cash and giving up prospects for what won’t be a big a net upgrade, is NOT something I want.

I'm not even suggesting we get Dunn!

When did I say that?

All I said was: "Soriano and “plus defender” don’t belong in the same sentence." He’s a horrible fielder. A horrible career fielder. Hence why they moved him from 2B.

his career UZR is still positive right now.

the 2B terribleness canceled out and then a bit with OF goodness.

Pick your poison

what does more damage him muffing a few grounders or dropping pop ups to left, which would produce more runs? OF mistakes tend to be more glaring whereas IF mistakes give extra outs

UZR is in Runs

not plays.

point being?

My question was which of his flaws, IF or OF defense, would be the most damaging— with the thought that extra outs can lead to runs

I watch him play everyday. He's atrocious.

And there’s no calculation in any of these zone ratings that account for balls that he flat out doesn’t attempt to catch, or how many times he bobbles something on the ground in the corner and gives up an extra base.

He’s bad in the outfield… and you should all have no problem admitting that, no matter what these stats show.

uh

no. I don’t. His stats clearly show that he’s a good leftfielder. This year is an outlier.

And he’s STILL better then Dunn.

"STILL better than Dunn."

Well… way to raise the bar there. LOL.

unfortunately this year is...

…this year.

I’d feel a heckuva lot better if that outlier year was a few years ago.

yeah, well

we play the team we have, right?

agreed for the most part

my indirect point was though seeing as how we are now a sizable chunk of the way through this season, it doesn’t do much good to keep trotting out his career UZI’s or whatever those things are. What matters most is what’s going on this year – and this year, he ain’t looking so good.

he's looking a lot better

of late, tho.

I presume you have in-season numbers to back that up?

are there monthly (or even weekly) UZR breakdowns for this season that show a positive trend for Soriano?

Based on games I’ve seen and listening to Pat & Ron/Dave/Judd/Keith, I get no sense that his defense is improving.

Defense is hard to measure with stats.

It may get better with things like HitFX — then again, it might not. At any rate, UZR takes a long time to stabilize, and monthly and weekly totals are basically meaningless. Everything I read suggests it takes around a half-season or so of data before you can trust it.

Also, UZR fundamentally can’t account for a lot of things (difficult wind and sun conditions, for example, which can be really important for OFs), and for outfielders the range component only counts fair fly balls. The “arm score”, AFAICT, has a lot to do with how many bases the lead runner advances relative to the hitter, which is somewhat silly because the fielder has something to do with where the hitter ends up as well (if a ball is hit to the OF and a baserunner goes first to third, the OF gets more credit if the hitter goes to second than if he stops at first — it may be that in general the fielder has more control over the lead runner’s progress, but from what I’ve seen of arm calculations, it looks like they disregard the idea that the fielder has any control over the hitter’s progress).

And it’s, as far as I’ve heard, never been proven that the numbers they come up with really correspond to runs saved by defense — I’m sure they’re trying hard, but it’s flat-out hard to know. On the whole I think UZR is cool and neat and maybe useful over a long period of time.

aldimond - July 26, 2009 reply

no, I don't think

that they do UZR by month. It’s simply my personal observations; he’s moving back towards the wall, he’s making more running catches.

the question is:

how much of soriano’s value in the outfield derives from his arm? he has been among the league leaders in assists the last few years. is his UZR affected by throwing? if so, then i think it’s a bit misleading.

soriano definitely has a plus arm (see: accuracy), but he is not at all good with the glove.

buckmulligan - July 26, 2009 reply

defense includes

the arm and the glove. You can’t separate the two.

remember this is compared to the average left fielder

not exactly a position known for defensive excellence.

What part of

above zero do you not understand? Yes, Soriano stunk as a 2b. So? That’s why they moved him. They moved Rick Ankiel to the outfield. Players move positions.

Albert Pujols has moved.

I think the moved him b/c they had Jose Vidro in place

who was also an all-star secondbaseman, but incapable of playing anywhere else

Soriano led all major league second basemen in errors every year from 2001 to 2005

its a very good thing

sorianos not the second baseman for the cubs then, right?

I was just saying the Nats didnt really have cause to move Vidro either

nor could he really go anywhere else

And I was just sayin

When did errors become the be all end all

of evaluating a player?

when fangraphs first hit the web

When someone leads the league in errors for 5 years in a row

There’s OBVIOUSLY a problem with his fielding.

SackMan - July 26, 2009 reply

the statement was a career plus fielder

that is true.

Bitch about him playing poorly this year, but he’ll have to really turn up the awful to undo his career “plus-ness”

I

agree, he sucks

ARTA - July 26, 2009 reply

Maybe at LF...

But we initially signed him to play CF. I think we can agree that would’ve probably been a disaster?

well

that’s why he was moved to left.

and that was a bad idea

just like Dunn in the OF is.

San Diego Smooth Jazz Man - July 26, 2009 reply

His defense is....not so good

But for a horrible team, he is having a very, very good season. 25 HR, 70 RBI OB .403 SLG.553 BA .275…this doesn’t suck.

argh ankiel just robbed a HR

Holy Ronny Cedeno batman

Kevin Gregg’s favorite Detriot Tiger Ryan Rayburn over-slid second base.

Dan Haren?

Yeah, right. The Cubs are going to trade for the best pitcher in baseball? No chance.

Unlikely, yes.

No chance? You can’t say that. Haren has been traded twice before for a package that the Cubs could do. The best pitcher in baseball has been traded before (Santana) for a package the Cubs could do.

The best pitcher in baseball

in a pure opinion.

Can the Cubs trade for Haren? The can, but it’s a matter of how much can they give up without risking the whole future.

If Haren is available...

then I feel confident saying that there’s zero chance that the Cubs can come close to matching the packages that multiple other teams can and will offer.

Haren being available...

Could possibly lower the asking price of Halladay? Just a thought.

If only one team were shopping for a starter, then yes

but since there’s several teams supposedly on the lookout for an ace, I don’t think so.

No

because Haren is not “available” in the sense that Halliday is. Halliday is available because he will be a free agent after next year. Haren signed a four year extension last year.

I would guess

if the Cubs are talking to the Jays it’s about Scutaro rather than Halladay, but who knows. Maybe Jimbo needs to dump Bradley’s salary in order to afford Halladay/Haren.

This.

I seriously doubt we are anywhere on the Halladay radar.

If the kid, who caught the ground rule double ball, was about 8 years old...

…then, geez, do not pressure him to throw it back. I would have been thrilled when I was a youngster to have caught a ball during a game. The reaction the Wrigley Field security also sounds as if it was stupidly heavy handed. I’m not sure giving the kid another ball later is adequate recompense.

On the other hand, I do wonder, what a 7 to 8 year old was doing in a stadium alone?

eths - July 25, 2009 reply

I believe there was an adult with him, but...

… security surrounded the kid before the adult could get there. At least that’s the way it looked from where I sat, not far from where this all happened.

I don't even understand

what the point is of throwing back a ground-rule double. We don’t throw back foul balls, either. Sheesh.

+1

Villeslgr - July 25, 2009 reply

Amen

Sillyness

PacificCub - July 25, 2009 reply

I remember one time when "we" threw a foul ball back and everyone cheered.

not sure of the team, but it was an ex-Cub who hit it.

Can’t remember the circumstances either but I’m pretty sure it was either a sincere throw back because it was from a hated ex-Cub like Hundley (Dodgers) or more of a just-kidding throw back because it was a beloved ex-Cub like Maddux (Braves).

anyone else remember this?

You have to be completely

wasted to want someone to throw back a ground rule double. Drink ten beers right now, THEN you’ll get it.

see

and I just got back from the restaurant. If only I’d known!

the whole thing was BS from the bitter old man stone.

The guy is useless and should be put out to pasture. He’s a joke.

cubswin - July 25, 2009 reply

A Joke

That forgotten more about baseball than you will ever know. Shut up troll.

WayneCampbell08 - July 25, 2009 reply

Another thought

if Lou and Von Joshua put in all this work to get Bradley fixed and his swing from the LH side is back……why on earth would you ever trade a hitter like that?

His swing from the LH side is "back"?

After a handful of at-bats this week? Small sample size?

i'm not

saying its back by any means.

I can't believe

you called out everyone on the website for being stupid and then made this post.

“a hitter like that”?

well

when Milton Bradley is hitting like he can he is putting up a very strong OPS. Normally you dont deal hitters like that.

True.

But we have seen little evidence of that sort of hitting, and as I said it’s no longer “early”.

but

we have a long track record of it. I ask again, is it wiser to assume that Bradley will never again hit from the LH side or to assume that he is in a prolonged slump?

This is why I said that...

… I think Bradley is not in the right situation for him. He puts too much pressure on himself — we have seen evidence of that. Those kinds of things can prolong slumps, even to the point where they last 2/3 of the season.

maybe

I don’t put as much stock into the off field stuff as some. I think its just a matter of time before he gets his swing fixed.

In the meantime, even a partially functioning Bradley is better than the 4 headed platoon of doom mentioned today

"A matter of time"?

95 games isn’t enough?

Further, if Bradley were traded, I doubt they’d do so without acquiring another OF bat to replace him (Adam Dunn, maybe).

two things

Its still under 300 AB’s Al. That isnt very statisically siginigant. Its not nothing, but it isnt much to make a big judgement off. Espeically with hundereds more AB’s saying this will most likely correct itself.

RE- Dunn- I think us sabrmagicians have shown why on the field its not a good idea. For people who take off the field stuff into higher account like yourself, there are good reasons not to get Dunn as well

forgive the

AWFUL spelling- I have to head to the store

What "off the field" stuff regarding Dunn are you talking about?

"intangibles" probably....

since I assure CalCalender is going to go with the standard…“Dunn-is-bad-a-defense-and-will-make-babys-cry-if-he-plays-in-the-outfield” excuse.

Funny that he refers to himself as a sabermagician, and yet can’t see the advantage Dunn’s offense provides will far outweigh his below average defense. It’s like having an Alfonso Soriano that can hit for more than 2 weeks at a time.

Uh....

What statistics are you looking at that tell you that his offense outweights his defense, let alone far outweighs?

I haven’t seen any that indicate that. The closest he gets is best-case to be like a +2 or +2 WAR.

I guess I should have framed that statement...

in relation to what we’re gotten from the RF position in recent history.

I think it's obvious...

That Dunn eats kittens and punches kangaroos in his spare time.

I can live with that

Eating kangaroos and punching kittens, though – nope, gotta draw the line somewhere.

seriously, I'd recommend eating kangaroos for everone.

It’s one of the healthiest meats on this earth.

Mar-Soup-ial

i've never had kangaroo soup.

now a kangaroo burger, yessir, i’ve had a few of those in my day.

If true, this only increases his value in my eyes.

santos

go read Dunn = Morgan over at Fangraphs

should explain things nicely

or the cliff notes

Adam Dunn is = to Nyger Morgan when you factor in his defense.

Think about that

Except that small fact that Dunn has done what he's done with a bat....

~.900 OPS almost every year for 6 years

And Morgan has about one season of AB in his entire career…..so yeah…they’re EXACTLY the same player.

i can tell

you didnt bother to read that did you?

I read it...

defensive metrics are also really really imperfect and you don’t seem to want to lend ANY credence to my point either. Dunn is head and shoulders better at hitting than all our current OF’ers.

read closer.

Dave Cameron gave Morgan’s defensive stats a heavy regression based on the fact you mentioned above. So even if Morgan isn’t as good as he has shown so far, he still is = to dunn in overall value.

Look, I get it, Dunn is fun to watch. Before defensive metrics started to improve I thought his value was much higher as well. But the facts are that Adam Dunn is a historically awful OF. And RF at Wrigley is the last place he should ever find himself.

OK, I give up. I'll get a Milton Bradley Jersey...

and enjoy 2 more years of “defense”.

Get him one of these

Good idea

He’d be the only one stupid enough to actually carry it in the field.

The media questions would be the best part!

someone posted

something about how some scouts don’t think that Dunn is “a winner”. I’m not entirely sure what that means.

He is so lazy

in LF that Tom Tango of all people complained about it

thats like me giving Cedeno props for his clubhouse attitude

I don't think he's lazy...

Just… really… slow.

its been

a long running complaint about Dunn that he not only is really slow but its prone to loafing around.

Maybe he's just like an Ent...

and it takes a while for him to commit to movement.

lol

Playing for...

The Reds and Nats have probably given him a “loser” stereotype?

So playing for the Cubs should turn that around 360 degrees!

Come home Dunn...

Come home.

It's still early in his contract...

which is what we use in our valuation of him. If you’re argument is that only this year matters then maybe you could argue we need to look elsewhere and dump him for some ostensible short term upgrade.

But if we’re trying to estimate his value for the duration of his contract, than its pretty damn premature to formulate an opinion. He’s only had 280 PAs…

My implicit point...

in case it isn’t clear, is that it seems far more likely that even if Milton struggles for the rest of this season, he will probably return to normal production in the subsequent years of his contract. (That’s based off of his career norms).

we havent seen that hitter ona consistent basis all season

He's not...

And he hasn’t all year, so…

I think

I think it was an “if this is happening” statement and not an “it has already occurred”

Villeslgr - July 25, 2009 reply

The Heilman disaster caused us to use our closer yet again...

for the 3rd game in a row… neither of which were close situations at the start of the 9th inning. Pathetic.

Fortunately, Gregg threw only four pitches.

He could probably go tomorrow if needed.

We need to stop wasting him on unnecessary appearances.

It’s bad management… and, I don’t even like him, but I’m sticking up for him here.

I agree.

Let’s win in a blowout tomorrow.

Oh... please, pretty please.

Make it overcast and turn the lights on for Harden…. wear blue jerseys, and tell him to change the time on his wristwatch

dont forget shaded sunglasses

Not really bad management...

Heilman pretty much forced Lou to pull him and put Gregg into the save situation. 4 pitches and a save, I don’t think Gregg is too upset about that.

his use yesterday was bad management

Guzman had only thrown 11 pitches in the 7th.

I wanted him to go two

Heilman

should only be used in blow outs one way or another at this point.

Why don’t we see more of the Shark? Is he in Lou’s doghouse?

That's a good question.

Why have those guys (Shark, Stevens) on the team at all if they are only going to be used in 8-run blowouts or extra innings?

You’d think that Heilman could protect a 4-run lead in the 9th. If he can’t do that, he shouldn’t be on the team.

stevens

in particular has looked sharp. And F7 has looked better

Yep.

Heilman must go.

len and bob were talking about something interesting regarding Shark.

They said if Hart went 6 or 7 innings and the Cubs won that Lou and Larry were thinking about having Shark start tomorrow so they could allow Harden to start Monday Night in a night game vs the Astros. Not sure how I feel about that, but idea is intriguing.

Fine!

Can’t be much worse than Harden’s 7+ ERA in day games at home.

I really wouldn't mind...

Shark starting tomorrow, pushing Rich to Monday night.

Ugh

Until Shark gets more than 1 1/2 pitches he’s not going to survive a lineup more than one time through.

He SHOULD be used in long relief

but Lou keeps trying to make him into something he isn’t.

Yeah...a ML Pitcher.

oh snap

I can't imagine

who would think Fuld would be a full time player if Bradley was dealt ???

Well Ok I could make an educated guess but how but just having him on the roster. A tad more versatile than
Hoff with just a bit more speed & defense.

Can someone tell me if DLee is OK?

Why did he get replaced with Fox? I was watching somewhere with no volume on the TV

Neck spasms.

Damn it... the same thing as last time.

At least he didn’t miss any games after the last occurence.

The baseball gods hate us.

or a relatively old player is getting hit with the same chronic injury

neck spasms

Hoffpauir had been used as a PH in the bottom of the 6th.

Which I think is why he wasn’t out there for Lee.

Off the top of my head..

Aren’t the Dbacks experiencing a problem at 1B right now? They have Josh Whitesell / Chad Tracy playing there right now, and it’s not like either of them are the second coming. Hoffpauir anyone?

fox?

Can he play 1B?

A little bit...

He played today there, and Lou said he might get the start there tomorrow.

Lou, Lou, Lou

so when Derek Lee goes down, we use Jake Fox, and he says he might get the start there tomorrow. If that’s the case, why in the hell have we not used Fox basically at all since Soto went down?

If he was worried about not getting the backup catcher hurt, why is Fox “maybe” going to start at first tomorrow instead of Hoff?

Lou’s moves continue to confound

He said Fox...

Then he paused and said maybe Hoffpauir, I’d like Fox to get the start, but my guess would be Hoff.

Because he's saving Fox for the playoffs?

Geez… all he talks about is finding a way to get Fox’s bat in the lineup. Well… friggin do it already!

not having him be the only catcher behind Hill would be a start

The Dynamic Duo has made some terrible roster decisions this year, and that is among the top of the list

you sir, are an idiot

Orval Overall - July 25, 2009 via mobile reply

Hoffpauir?

No they would want Fox at least. Along with Vitters and a couple of other high rated prospects.

Why would they want Vitters / Fox

If they have Mark Reynolds? Obviously there’s going to be some prospects involved, but here is what I see on their team:

They are set at catcher with Miguel Montero emerging and Snyder good enough to be a partial starter / backup
1B is a black hole
2B isn’t that great, but Ryan Roberts has been doing okay
SS has Stephen Drew, set there.
3B has Mark Reynolds, he’s having an All-star caliber year
2/3 of their OF are young guys with a lot of promise (Upton / Parra). Young has not been good this year, but he’s also young.

I mean technically they have Conor Jackson on the DL but the guy has a scary illness and nobody knows how he’ll be when he finally recovers….

Because

Vitters could move over to 1st and Fox can already play 1st.

they could always move whoever to make room for Vitters

Reynolds can play 1st or 3rd, he can steal a few bases so one can assume he’s athletic enough to play a corner OF spot

You guys

don’t know what you are talking about. There is nothing scary about Jackson’s illness – recovery will be 100%, it just takes time. 1B is not a black hole, in fact, they have multiple quality options there. They just got the 1B of the future. 2B is a the real need, but nothing the Cubs could offer would be an upgrade.

Who is the 1B of the future? Whitesell?

No

Brandon Allen.

My mistake

I forgot about the Sox deal

Hoffpauir anyone?

Not sure what that question is asking. Hoffpauir is older than both Tracy and Whitesell and isn’t doing any better than them either. None of the 3 are the second coming, but maybe they can fight it out to be the third or fourth coming.

Corms23 - July 25, 2009 reply

Tracy has valley fever

Whitesell has not been doing well at all. Not saying that Hoffpauir would be great, but at least he could solve some of their issues right now. (Obviously there would be more in this deal)

Rebuttal

Whitesell hasn’t been doing well only a 7OPS+, but neither has Hoffpauir and his 82 OPS+. Also Hoffpauir is two years older than Whitesell. Neither one looks to have much of a future in the majors. Hoffpauir’s inclusion in a proposal for Haren would have no impact in making it more palatable for the D-Backs.

Corms23 - July 25, 2009 reply

typo

should be 75 OPS+

Corms23 - July 25, 2009 reply

No

Conor Jackson is the one with Valley Fever. Tracy was hurt earlier in the year, but is healthy now and is hitting well. Whitesell has not had enough ABs to make a judgement on, but every indication is that he will hit at the major league level.

Besides, the D’Backs got their 1B of the future from the White Sox a couple of weeks ago for Tony Pena. His name is Brandon Allen and he is tearing it up in AAA Reno.

That's what I meant

Tracy was a typo.

As I said below

The D’Backs already addressed 1B in a trade a couple of weeks ago with the White Sox. They got Brandon Allen, who was one of the WS top prospects. He appears to be the real deal.

I'm off.....

To meet Andre “the hawk” Dawson in person at a local Triple A game tonight. Hopefully when I get back I have a ton of autographed stuff and some new additions to the current Cubs.

cubsluver22 - July 25, 2009 reply

hmm - think I read somewhere once that a baseball weighs about 4.5 ounces

so if my math is right, a ton of autographed stuff would be around 7,111 baseballs. Not sure how many 8×10s that would be… ;-)

Where is this game you speak of?

smash! - July 25, 2009 reply

OKC Redhawks

cubsluver22 - July 26, 2009 reply

More on Haren...

He’s signed to a very team friendly deal thru 2012. The only reason the DBacks would trade him is if they get an offer that blows them away. The Cubs simply can’t do that.

Al, I know you merely said that the Cubs inquired — but I’m sure it was a very brief phone call. Haren isn’t going anywhere.

How much is that painting...

$10,000? Okay thanks bye.

Absolutely correct

Publicly, the D’Backs have said they cannot imagine that somebody could come up with a package that would entice them to deal Haren, but that doesn’t mean they wouldn’t listen.

Privately, it has been said that Dan is the closest they have to an “untouchable” outside of Justin Upton.

Folks, I have to say THIS is why I love baseball MORE than any other sport.

It’s a beautiful summer Saturday. The Cubs have already won their afternoon game. And we get to spend the rest of the day tossing around “hot stove” trade rumors involving the Cubs (my #1 team) and the Tigers (my #2) team and a host of other MLB teams, players and minor league players.

God, this is the best time of year for a baseball fan…

(…at least until the WS parade down Michigan Avenue.)

week leading up to the 31st is always one of my favorites of the year

It's a fun time. Speculation run amuck!

Hee…Hee…

Good to see another fellow Cubs and Tigers fan here

Oh yeah. Actually both are teams 1 and 1A

1984

I truly would not have ever needed to watch another baseball game if it was the Tigers and Cubs.

Well, I would’ve kept watching…but with a much lower blood pressure. :-D

I had a plan. I was going to buy a new Cubs and Tigers cap

cut each apart at the midpoint (front to back) and sew them together so it had TWO brims. Then I would rotate the cap to the front each half inning. I really was planning for a seven game series. Damn it! So close.

very cool

Maybe someday….sigh….

Maybe THIS year! You never know...

If we only had Hubbs - July 25, 2009 reply

Poor Leon

Boy do I ever agree with you on that CaliCub !

why i think the jays are scouting us

I am going to go out on a limb and say that it is scott downs. Who we gave up in the rondell white deal. Very good lefty bullpen arm. I would crap myself if we got halladay or haren. More so haren because we would have him for three more years. I just hope its not washburn. I wouldnt mind bedard. Zach duke doesnt intrigue me either.

fischisgod - July 25, 2009 via mobile reply

Downs

I watched him get blown away by Tampa today. I liked him better the 1st time around with the Cubs.

If we only had Hubbs - July 25, 2009 reply

Al's favorite trade rumor site....

states that Bradely to Tigers trade is not gonna to happen.

gaclaudy - July 25, 2009 reply

I know everyone is talking about the trades here

but how about the the cards are now tied w/ philly 1- 1 :(

desmoCubbie - July 25, 2009 reply

3-3**

yeah that's what

I meant to type…dunno how i got 1 1 out of it.

desmoCubbie - July 25, 2009 reply

unfortunately now its 4-3 on Rick ankiels home run.

Ankiel has robbed a two run home run and hit his own home run. Ankiel is plus 3 runs today. Unbelievable.

8-4 phillies now

haha its essentially the same i guess

Al, I think you have the greatest life ever.

Seriously, you freaking have sources. I want sources. I want to know who the Cubs are looking at damn it.

This site is your source...

You are now more enlightened than 99% of non-BCB Cub fans.

True! You are in the know...

and more enlightened than at least one BCBer

who, seeing as how the Cubs won today, has not been on BCB to absorb all this goodness.

He only relishes

the losses so he can “prove” his points.

Hmm. Now whoever could you be referring to? HWSNBN? Naw, not him...

I’m sensing a color. A color of wolverines…

…and a name…

Soriano only guessed right three times today.

Hack.

Call me crazy

But id rather have Dan Haren than Halladay

Me too.

Among other reasons, I keep expecting Halladay’s arm to fall off, given all those complete games.

"Crazy"

j/k

chilango2 - July 25, 2009 reply

Haren- 29, Halladay- 31

wow thats closer than I thought

It ain't gonna happen

But, just so you don’t feel bad, Haren has a history of tailing off dramatically after the ASB and he had his first really poor outing of the season the other night.

Um, yeah.

Every single day of the week. Anyone who would take Halladay over Haren is out of their mind.

Um, no.

Haren is having a career year and this is the first time he’s been even close to as good as Halladay. Maybe instead of making blanket, quasi-insulting statements you should look up some facts… such as…

Halladay has on his resume WAR’s of 8.0, 7.8, 7.6, 5.8, 5.7, 5.0 (so far this year), 4.4, 3.2. He /averages/ 5.95 WAR per season with more than 100 IP. His IP totals are 266, 246, 239 1/3, 225 1/3, 220, 141 (so far this year), among others. His average IP for a full season (30+ starts) is 239 1/3. This year he is on pace for 230 IP prorated to 31 starts.

Haren has on his resume WAR’s of 6.4, 5.7, 4.4, 4.4, and 4.7 (so far this year). He averages 4.84 WAR per season with more than 100 IP. His IP totals are 217, 223, 222 2/3, 216, 143 (so far this year). His average IP for a full season (30+ starts) is 219 2/3. This year he is on pace for 221 2/3 IP prorated to 31 starts.

I think Halladay wins.

cubsforever - July 26, 2009 reply

They are both excellent

pitchers, I’d take either one for any prospect we have, but I might a little lean towards Haren given his age, but your data showing that Halladay historically has been a little better are noted.

tomas21 - July 26, 2009 reply

Halladay

Is one of the few pitchers who are so good, durable and consistent, that they are mentioned as having a chance to get to 300 wins. Anything can and does happen to starting pitchers, but this guy is as good a bet as you can get.

vonde6 - July 26, 2009 reply

Ken Rosenthal's manner of speaking...

Makes me want to throw something at the tv.

It’s so stilted and unnatural. Ergh. Not to mention that he rarely says anything insightful…

Robothal

as he’s known, may be the best general baseball reporter around right now. He gets the stories that Peter Gammons used to get first in the 1980s.

I’ve never noticed anything wrong with his speech patterns, but to each his own on that point.

Josh Timmers - July 26, 2009 reply

Yeah...

I should have qualified my statement better. That’s what I get for writing while watching tv. I meant his commentary during games wasn’t particularly insightful. He’s an off-the-field/organizational kind of reporter and it’s always a little weird when they cut to him during the game to talk about something on-the-field. It’s not his bailiwick and it shows.

Based on his reputation, he does seem to do a good job getting scoops, etc… Though I don’t know first-hand, obviously.

And anyway, while his delivery annoys me, it’s not exactly a major criticism, all these considered. I was just being ornery while watching the Cardinals. :)

CubsWin!Oregon - July 26, 2009 reply

at this point

I could care less who we get, haren OR halladay, either one would be awesome

ohhhhhhhhh shittttttttttttttttttt

Stoney fires back at bruce miles:

In detroit for the series. Understand a guy named bruce miles believes that the whole bradley story was made up. Who is bruce miles.

lol its on

christ

Stoney is a real… dork.

Tonight's Fight Card

Harrelson v. Mariotti followed by Stone v. Miles.

I love Bruce

but I gotta go with Stoney in this one.

hopefully based on content and not style points...

Just remember

Stone has what you call, let’s say, an agenda, when it comes to the Cubs. And remember, too, he quit the job. The Cubs never fired him. He likes to stir the pot from afar. And if he’s so brilliant, why hasn’t even one of 29 other teams ever hired him? Just asking.

Bruce Miles - July 25, 2009 reply

Bruce you are the one who is right here

Stone got caught with a bad rumor and took it out on you for no reason. It was a cheap shot that you didn’t deserve. Keep up to good work and don’t worry about bitter Steve Stone as his crony Kaplan.

+1 rec'd

thanks for your input.

Thanks Bruce, Stone's agenda is clear any time he talks about the Cubs

DC Cubbie - July 25, 2009 reply

Where is the agenda

in saying the Tigers are interested in Bradley?

tomas21 - July 26, 2009 reply

The Tigers said they're not interested in Bradley

so why would Stone say they are, unless he had an agenda other than reporting truth and facts?

JohnM - July 26, 2009 reply

Music to my ears Bruce...

…and I couldn’t agree more.

Stone has always been arrogant and a bit condescending in his delivery, but this bitterness he has towards the Cubs has taken it to all new levels.

What continues to amaze me is the average fan’s perception of Stone compared to what is in fact reality and just how different it is from people that are closer to what goes on behind the curtain.

MPH73 - July 26, 2009 reply

nicey bruce nicey

lexmarklover - July 26, 2009 reply

Thanks for responding Bruce.

Your input is much appreciated.

sue369 - July 26, 2009 reply

Obligatory...

OH SNAP!!!

"snap" girlfriend!

I'll take Bruce's

word over Stones any day.

Stone is a non source for anything Cubs

just a bitter person. Stone is a joke amongst most baseball people.

cubswin - July 25, 2009 reply

What is Steve Stone doing checking up on guys he doesn't even know?

Great stuff

This is why Stone will never be a GM. Thin skinned. And he doesn’t want to work that hard or have the accountability.

Bruce Miles - July 25, 2009 reply

We love ya Bruce!

attaboy!

lexmarklover - July 26, 2009 reply

STONEY!!!!

Jimmy Rollins Grand Slam Phillies up 7-4 after that

Channeling my inner Hawk

F YEAH! HELL YEAH! YES! YES! YES! YES! YES!

dadgummit

Alexeiiiiiiiiiii!

Stoney dial 911

my right arm is numb

Employee22 - July 25, 2009 reply

And now Victorino!

HR…not Grand Slam. :)

F YEAH!

half. a. game. back.

hexcellent!

Drew

Is young Max heading to Williamsport next month?

uh

no. :D

Did you guys know that the Cubs were targeting CC last year before they got Harden?

I didn’t know that.

true

But the Brewers’ package of prospects was stronger that what the Cubs could offer.

yeah.

What WAS cool was Hendry picking up Harden the next day

Loved the timing of the deal. Talk about “it’s on”!

Any idea...

Of what we were offering?

Hendry said younger than LaPorta. Sorry that's all he said.

good thing

tossing up all those prospects for half a season

Victorino follows grand slam with his own solo blast. 8-4 phillis

both the rollins grand slam and victorino solo shot came with two outs.

this is the first time ive ever heard mccarver

say good things about derosa

Because He is CARDINAL now

Victorino goes yard too

8-4 Phillies

BACK TO BACK!!!!

You can almost hear the tears in McCarver's voice

D-BAG. A #1 Definiton

LOL

He legitimately sounds upset, which is horrible

It is as if they put Ronny on Fox. Well maybe not that bad

It was worse during the 2006 World Series

There is no way that Buck and McCarver, two obviously pro-Cardinal guys, should have been doing the national broadcast. Shit, you may as well have had Mike Shannon and Al Hrabosky reporting from the stands too.

Buck has the week off this week. He is in the clubhouse giving free rub downs for anyone willing to watch his show

sounds like a deal to me

"Bang For Your Buck", anyone?

Ewww. I feel dirty...

It was pretty ridiculous...

Though I could barely watch that series anyway…

I like listening to Mike Shannon though.

Buck and McCarver just sound pud smokers

Utley doubles to continue two out rally.

Anyone who says the Cards have the best lineup in the NL now

Must have forgot about these guys

HELL YEAH!

Why are you so pumped about the Phillies lineup?

beating the cards.

HAWK: HELL YEAH!

Wait, Al said that if Bradley is traded, we as cub fans would be happier than yesterday's rumor?

The Bradley trade scenario was all made up...

by whom? and why?

Made up by Stone and Kraplan... I won't pretend to know why they would do something so stupid.

LOL Stoney will unleash his inner flames on you

I don't think it was the Bradley rumor

he was referring to

ok.

wait so is the bradley deal made up, or no.

who knows honestly

No one knows yet

ahhh...the chaos of the trade deadline

Derosa being praised by McCarver like that makes my ass hairs curl

I feel like I'm watching this game on FS Midwest

Some starting picher news

HELL YES!

Grabow and Gorz...

Just like I thought.

maybe Duke though

duke hopefully

Grabow and Duke

That would be ideal.

ZACH DUKE ZACH DUKE ZACH DUKE ZACH DUKE

What happens when Lilly comes back?

Do you really put wells in the pen

idk

I'd put Harden in the pen

his arm might fall of without proper rest though

*off

i hear ya

Seeing Kerry Wood make the transition got me thinking.

thats probably the biggest problem if jimbo does land him

Thoughts on that.

Pavano – please no.

Duke and Davis are basically the same pitcher, but might not be bad stop gaps.

Gorzelanny has been real good in Triple-A this season but who knows how he’ll be once back in the Majors.

Bringing back Garland would be karmic retribution for the Matt Karchner debacle.

Interesting, and plausible

Although Doug Davis from the DBax would work for me as well.

ugh! Doug Davis?

why would you be remotely interested in that junkballer?

never mind

I thought it said he had a 3.15 ERA – it said 3.95.

PEAVY!!!

Unless it's Cliff Lee, I'm not sure why that blurb would make you say hell yes

None of the other pitchers mentioned are above mediocre. Duke is having a pretty good season, on the heels of 3 straight terrible ones. But none of those names (Besides Cliffy) got me remotely excited.

It does look like Deep Goat had it wrong. We might be talking to the D-Backs, but it’s not about Haren

I was channeling my Inner Hawk

Someone has a laser pointer

They are stopping the game

were they searching for Theriot's arm? ;-)

Lugo finally makes an out!

all it took was some idiot philly fan using a laser pointer.

Wow some philly fan is pointing is using laser pointer on albert pujols

game is stopped and Mcarver is about to lose it.

LOL

that was LOL to McCarver cause he's an idiot

A Philadelphia fan behaving in an ungracious manner?

I am shocked…shocked!

mcarver crying

There is no crying in baseball.

Except in St. Louis and Milwaukee.

Vermont Cubs Fan - July 25, 2009 reply

Exactly...

I’m am extremely UN-surprised. Typically Philadelphia.

They expect people in Philly to snitch?!

LOL!- “Lugo was victimized!”

to be fair he was right. and I hate both mcarver and dick stockton.

it is completely uncalled for.

the fan better watch out, lugo might go after his wife

TIM MCCARVER: DEFENDER OF FREEDOM AND RIGHTEOUSNESS

and with every soap box sermon you get a free CD!

I've never seen this before.

TLR is gonna file suit against all laser pointer production companies

"Lugo was victimized", Tim McCarver

IT IS A LASER POINTER D-BAG

Oh, Christ

McCarver: “He (Lugo) was victimized!” “It’s so cowardly”

Calm down, old man.

I hate mcarver and especially dick stockton as much as anyone.

but to be fair they are right. hitting a baseball is one of the hardest thing to do in sports. and a laser pointer on your face and in your eyes probably effects it some.

Yeah, it's dumb. I agree.

But, “he was victimized?” LOL, that’s just so over the top.

A strong wind or smelly ump could effect it some too

Batters had to contend with fans in center behind the pitcher for decades, yet still put up big numbers. Hitters now have to easy.
That’s not to say I don’t think it’s rude, and the fan doing it shouldn’t be ejected, but to act like he was anally raped as they did is ridiculous.

McCarver needs to be shot

sorry

Seriously why do

people want others to be hurt? I’ve never understood this.

mayb louslovechild works for PlayGirl and was speaking in a photographic sense???

NOT paging SWL…

um, I don't think so.

lugos wife was victimized

lugo wasnt

You have hereby been Rec'd, my friend

Lugo's wife was almost brought up on charges for MAKING THE WHOLE THING UP.

it might have been real

lugo could have shot laser pointers into her eyes to keep her quiet

But don't enabler abused wives do that kind of thing?

Down here in Indianapolis

the Miller High Life delivery guy is here, promoting the High Life, and throwing out tonight’s first pitch. Seems like a genuinely good guy.

LOL the guy that steals people's beers

common sense this is your wake up call!

that's the one.

just poured a strike across the plate.

hahahah

love the ballpark commercial

“Nothing like enjoying a Miller High Life while watching your favorite pitcher…GET LIT UP?!!? TAKE HIM OUT!!! Oh man, they can’t hear me through this thing!”

LOL that guy is so funny

He makes me laugh.

Ugh

Beer nazi. I hate those commercials.

this idiot phillies fan may have ended up hurting Chan Ho Park and the phillies.

Chan ho park was in nice rhythm and that laser pointer caused a stoppage. who knows if it threw him off. now it is 8-5 cardinals and ludwick is now up as the tying run with two outs and two on. ludwick has already gone deep today

ludwicK

wow somebody can actually hit chan ho park

I didn;t think that was possible after earlier this week.

Ludwick has just fanned

$H!T i need some counseling

…. i fell into second place in my fantasy baseball …. the shame ….. embarrassment … feels like losing a WS

No problem

Just acquire Milton Bradley.

How am I suppposed to work tonight?

Brewers v. Atlanta
Houston v. Mets

I hate work

skip

I am thinking about it

being a senior in high school now

it sucks thinking about having to go to work on a saturday night in the future

Right behind ya

I’m a junior – I can’t imagine future summers without the trade rumors, and the constant desire for the rest of the NL Central to fail. =)

Azul Cachorro - July 25, 2009 reply

don't worry

that part doesn’t go away, no matter how many saturday nights you have to work. I’ve clocked 10 hours today. At least I got to work from home.

How did that guy get Leslie Visser?

Eric Bedard

Left after only three innings in the M’s game against Cleveland…maybe he was pulled for a reason? Or maybe he’s just hurt again. Just wondering out loud.

Canadian Cubs Fan - July 25, 2009 reply

He gave up 10 runs

That could be it. lol

Actually

He only gave up 2.

Only 2 actually

But I’m pretty sure you’re just messin’ with me :)

Canadian Cubs Fan - July 25, 2009 reply

2er

I was :)

LOL

Not exactly. He threw 81 pitches… pitched 3 full innings, and only gave up 2 runs. The bullpen gave up the other 8.

9-5 phillies. phillies get that run right back

12-5

Matt Stairs is so funny. Reminds me of Randall Simon.

at one point

matt stairs was my favorite player while on the cubs, he’s the man!

he is the man!

Hmmm

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IqZDe4364BI&feature=PlayList&p=36120239542CDE62&playnext=1&playnext_from=PL&index=6

I can never watch this too many times

Matt Stairs GAY ICON

LOLOLOL

oh, stop talking!

?????

I don’t get that one.

the guy

I want him to stop talking!

Stairs ?

I think it is hilarious. Especially with his flat Canadian delivery. He clearly had no clue how it was going to come out which is what makes it so great. You can literally hear some gasps from the press as they realize that it is not going to come out the way Stairs intended it. Right up there with Ted Lilly explaining why he did not slide into Molina as my favorite youtube
baseball clip.

10-5 now

Rollins doubles.

Yes!

12-5

Double Yes!

Tigers tie it in the 9th 3-3

Jenks just blew it again

how did he do it this time?

RBI double by Granderson

how did the guy who scored get on. Walk again?

back to back singles with one out.

0-2 count double with runners on 1st and 2nd to Curtis Granderson

how did the runners on first n second get on?

Free baseball

SIngles by Thames and Inge

DFA!!!

digitalbenjamin - July 26, 2009 reply

12-5 phillies. they are pouring it on now.

Mmmm Phillies lead 12-5

I like watching this.

JAKE PEAVY!!!!!!!

BRIAN ROBERTS!!!!

Chanman25 - July 25, 2009 reply

adam lind!!!!

Oh wait… sorry
ADAM LIND!!!!!!!!

Huh

Hanson v. Gallardo in Milw tonight.

I'm more worried

About the Astros. I can’t take the Brewers seriously because of their pitching.

And yet

You can take the "stros seriously with THEIR pitching?

The Brewers ERA

Is about a half run more than the Astros.

I wouldn't measure pitchers only by ERA...

should make you feel better.

This...

I didn't say they were good

They’re a little above average, at best. I just said I’m more worried about them than I am Milwaukee.

Mets have first 2 runners on in Top of the 1st

Ok

The Astros have a very good 1-2 punch at the front. The Brewers have Gallardo, and then who?

SOUUUUP

I hope they come out with that Three Nights in August Movie

I read the book and it was pretty good. Who’s gonna play Paul Bako? Randall Simon? MIke Remlinger? Ramon Martinez?

Mark Prior?

JD Drew?
TLR?

was JD the one who hit the walk off?

La Russa friggin hated him... remember the book?

And he hated Prior too…

I remember the JD Drew thing

but refresh my memory on the hatred for Prior. was there any reason or any thing tony said publicly

i read it like a couple years ago but the only thing i have pretty good memory about was when

Dave Duncan chased somebody around and said I’m going to f**king hit you i’m not even sure actually

who was duncan chasing around and for what reason? or do you not remember?

yeah i completely forgot

Prior was such a cocky SOB

And LaRussa couldn’t stand it, because Prior was a rookie. Prior had no respect for the game. And ironically enough, LaRussa said something like, you’ve gotta pitch in this league for a number of years before you earn your own respect, because you can blow your arm out tomorrow and it could all be over.

It's a good thing

Prior never did blow his arm out.

ya just his elbow, shoulder, wrist, and his mind.

but thank god he did not blow out his arm. lol man what could have been with him. Or if Scott Boras was not Mark priors agent the twins would have maybe taken prior number one and we could have gotten Mauer at #2. Oh how history might be different but hey what you going to do.

Boras wasnt priors agent.

fischisgod - July 25, 2009 via mobile reply

because you can blow your arm out tomorrow and it could all be over.

larussa = nostradamus?

god Prior was so good that year.

I remember Prior hitting Barry Bonds in his Darth Vader elbow guard

and then walking towards Bonds with his arms out, like “What are you gonna do about it?”

Awesome.

lol talk about blast from past. Kerry Robinson

Oh yeah... talk about hate. LaRussa hated him with a passion

He never followed instructions.

WOOOOOAHHHHH

SKIP SCHUMAKER CHANGED GLOVES! THATS CRAZY

Here's a question

Is Howard a hacker? His K numbers are scary, but it is totally worth it when he gets a hold of one.

Yes...

I agree with this assessment of Soriano.

What a disingenuous load of BS

If today’s pinch-hit homer — the first PH homer of Milton’s career — was his last AB as a Cub, I wish him well.

You’ve never wished him well, why start now?

I think it’s hilarious that fans like you talk about how the Cubs weren’t the right fit for Bradley, when you’re the ones responsible for creating the hostile environment and intense scrutiny around him. Overreacting to everything negative, ignoring anything positive. Saying “Good riddance” before he’s even gone.

CalCalender said something earlier that this whole debacle has made me agree with: it’s questionable whether Cubs fans really deserve a World Series. When a majority of fans actively oppose the signing of one of the premiere switch hitters in baseball simply because he doesn’t give them the warm fuzzies, and hold that grudge this far into the season, that should really make people question what it is they’re actually cheering for.

The whole thing is really gross. If anything has ever disproven the notion that Cubs fans are the “best fans in baseball” it’s this.

We're the ones responsible for creating the hostile enviornment?

Really? Wow. Never knew I had that kind of power. Today, Milton Bradley, tomorrow… the WORLD!

Al morseo than you, but yes

Al has a different level of responsibility here as the “Editor in chief” of arguably the most popular Cubs blog on the net.

But yes, you and every fan who cheers against him in the game, booing him for every small mistake, who supports the awful sports talk radio and newspaper hit pieces against Bradley, each of you shares some very, very small part of the blame.

How do you know that I boo him?

You assume a lot. I dislike his acquisition because I believe, like Al, that Chicago is a bad fit for him. I think he tries too hard, which I respect, but I question his ability to control his temper and his willingness to change after all these years. He seems to have two settings: blame others for his own failings, or blame himself to excess for things that are out of his control.

But, despite all of that, when I’m at a game I cheer his at-bats. When I’m at home watching I hope he succeeds. It would have been great had he come in here and been the player he was in Texas. He hasn’t. I’m not sure that he ever will be. I don’t know that for sure, but I do know one thing: blaming fans like me for his conduct or lack of performance is ludicrous.

I don't think he blamed you, I think you jumped into his convo...

I too feel like many of the fans have created a bad environment for Bradley. People started booing him really early on in the season, and it’s frustrating for me so sit there and listen to it- especially when it’s before an at-bat. I have more tolerance for it when it’s after a bad play, but before an at-bat, like before today’s homer for example? Ridiculous. You’re hoping for your team to fail when you do that, and that in itself is pathetic.

smash! - July 25, 2009 reply

The point was

that he makes ridiculous assumptions about Al, myself, and others who post on this board based on our discussion of the potential trade and whether or not we would have liked to have a different player standing in RF. The personal attacks on us – questioning our intelligence, baseball knowledge, or dedication to this team – have been completely uncalled for and I stick by my assertion that the idea of fans creating a hostile environment that is the cause of Bradley’s woes, is patently ludicrous.

Personal attacks are never cool...

and I clearly don’t follow his comment history like you do, so I can’t really say I disagree with you, but in this particular thread I agree with many of his points.

smash! - July 26, 2009 reply

I've been saying it all along

Bradley isn’t that good, never was that good. He had one good year, and everyone loves him. He’s overrated.

Statistics would disagree with you

He has a 277 career average

Touche!

JohnM - July 25, 2009 reply

.277/.370/.450

And only one 20+ homerun year

Everyone expects him to do it again.

above average ISO the previous 4 years though

well above average the previous 2.

A realistic expectation would have been solidly above average, but not spectacular across the board (AVG, OBP, SLG, ISO, BB%, K%)
http://www.fangraphs.com/graphs.aspx?playerid=369&position=OF&page=4&type=full

Wow I can't compete with advanced statistical analysis like that

he got ejected in the first game at wrigley

not a good first impression imo

he got ejected

on a bogus call. Let’s remember the context.

he said before the season that he wasnt going to get himself in trouble with umps and mlb in general

that doesn't mean

that he’s gonna let himself get railroaded on a bad call, either.

did arguing somehow reverse the call?

Let himself get railroaded? There are plenty of other ways to deal with a poor call. My favorite is to shake your head and walk away, since you know arguing balls and strikes is an ejection.

he made his point

and it’s pretty clear the league agreed with him, since the suspension was reduced. If you walk away, that’s an invitation for the ump to screw up your next call too.

you really think that of those in the umpiring profession?

are you kidding?

have you been paying attention?

So anyone who walks away from a close/controversial/bad call...

…is pretty much putting a sign on their back that says “Kick me!”?

apparently Derek Lee is just begging to be kicked

because when he gets a call a disagrees with, he usually shakes his head and walk away. WHAT A SISSY!

I think Milton Bradley

has as different standard set for him.

oh please. Plenty of players walk away when they get a bad call

And plenty others argue and get ejected

It’s something that happens in baseball. Why is it such a big deal when Bradley does it?

How many others on this team have done it this year?

Besides Z?

Ted Lily was ejected for arguing balls and strikes as well.

Wreckard - July 26, 2009 reply

In a game he wasn't even in

JohnM - July 26, 2009 reply

Ted Lilly

was ejected for arguing balls and strikes in a game he wasn’t even playing in; when he was ejected, he leapt the wall to argue. Ryan Theriot was nearly ejected from a game where Quady had to hold him back from the ump after Riot was called out at second.

how many others claim it's a "conspiracy" against them

everytime a border line call goes against them.

WanderingWanderer - July 26, 2009 reply

Every time?

He said that once this year. Again, the legend of Milton Bradley grows.

Wreckard - July 26, 2009 reply

no, he's said it before. Perhaps "every time" is hyperbole

but he’s said it more than once, in fact, more than twice

WanderingWanderer - July 26, 2009 reply

and suspensions are reduced all the time

doesn’t mean they agreed with him.

This “the umps are out to get Bradley” was old after day two of the conspiracy theories

Bravo!

What hostile environment are you referring to?

The popular opinion of him on a blog? I bet you can visit the blog of any other fan base and get the same thing about the flavor of the week.

The environment of fans surrounding Bradley at Wrigley Field has generally been good, aside from his “forgetting the outs” fiasco, which drew boos from the stands. We’re no different than any other fan base. We’re there to support our to victory. Do well and we cheer you. But, perform very badly, and we boo.

Wrigley is extremely hostile towards Bradley

He was getting booed before he even had a chance to succeed.

I agree with Al on this one

Bradley’s personality just isn’t cut out for the Cubs. I think he’s an extremely talented player but mentally he just isn’t cut out for the pressure of the Cubs. He has succeeded in San Diego and Texas, 2 places where there is little or no pressure.

Even Detroit in a penant race might start to wear on him.

I was in favor of the signing, but I’ve been proven wrong, best case scenario is that he can turn it around FOR the Cubs. I’d love to see that.

because he couldnt control himself in his first AB in wrigley

You're right, he was clearly asking for it then.

he didnt give people a lot rope to work with

because he got jobbed in his first ab in wrigley

boo frickin' hoo...someone call his mommy.

Professionals grit their teeth and hit the ball harder after something like that.

professionals

call the pitch properly.

The Blame Game...from Milton Bradley

santoswoodenlegs - July 26, 2009 reply

Mets up 1-0 and cards keep pouring it on 14-5

14-5 Phiilies

2 - 0 Mets

3-0 mets

but astros and their offense has been red hot lately. there on some kind of roll esp at home. hopefully mets can add on they will need too.

who's pitching for mets?

jonathon niiese

yeah they got 2 runs off of the "king" of closers, ryan franklin

But... Berkman on the DL now

With that moustache, Ankiel looks like my 5th grade teacher

I hated my 5th grade teacher

Tigers win

Hurray!

Go Tigers. Go Tigers. Go Tigers!

Who’s YOUR Tiger?

Bradley.

Don't. Want. Him. In. Motown.

Zeke - July 26, 2009 reply

Winning 1 out of 3 from Tigers or Perfect Game?

0 out of 3

no i'm saying which one would you choose

taking one out of 3 prob.

they are 3 back now

they are 0 for 3 right?

yeah

3-1 astros. have chance for more with two outs.

In typical Cardinals fan fashion, if the Cards are losing

Let’s trash talk the Cubs.

wow took fox announcers almost the entire game to mention 100 years

very sad in a game the cubs are not playing in.

That's what Cardinals fans do though-

45% of the time they want to talk about the Cards, 55% they want to talk about the Cubs.

sounds like sox fans too

Sox fans are more 20/80

Stockton and Mcarver could not resist taking cheap shots vs the cubs one last time in their broadcast

OK thats it. McCarver you turd.

The 500 calorie a day sotry is unneeded. 100 yrs since they won 5 in a row. DBAGGGGGG

When your team is getting spanked

14-5, you have to talk about something I guess.

OK... Phillies about to close it out. 14-6 in the 9th.

Schumacker replaced Ludwick in RF earlier. Did Ludwick get hurt?

probably want to rest him

it is a blowout

then again pujols is still playing

You're supposed to say Ludwick to the 60 day DL.

Damn you

damn me indeed

Pujols doesn't need rest

He just feasts on the blood of unicorns to rejuvinate.

The Tigers GM has made some dumb moves...

… but I don’t see him trading for Bradley. Bradley’s a sourpuss, so why would Detroit want him?

I think the guy who started this rumor was looking to have a little fun. I’ll be surprised if anyone wants Bradley.

Blue Heron - July 25, 2009 reply

half a game half a game half a game

0.5 GAMES OUT!

2 up in the loss column. HELL YES!

indeed

Chanman25 - July 25, 2009 reply

:)

SA- wheet…

HELL YES!

totally

time to have a FIRE SALE! TEAR THE CLUB DOWN! SOW THE GROUND WITH LYE…

ahem.

And

sow the ground with Grub killer.

wild bill - July 25, 2009 reply

I turn on the damn Astros game

and they are talking about the damn Cubs

What are they saying?

How "losing" Lee because of neck spasms is the same as them losing Berkman

Lilly loss is a help since they will see Hart instead next week

just ignorance

Lee has been dealing with the neck spasms thing all season. Whats the most he has missed 3 or 4 days? He’s not ‘out’ by any means.

it's not ignorace, the fact that he's gone down several times

is in fact not proof that he will simply bounce back this time. You and I have no idea whether he’s out at all.

Man I understand the vitriol spewed at the Fox announcers, because it was basically two Cards homers covering a national broadcast, but just because a team’s broadcasters MENTION our team, it doesn’t automatically make them wrong

there's just not point

for them to mention the Cubs at all. Certainly not in that context.

What context? Did you even hear them?

I’m fairly certain I’ve heard Len and Bob talk about teams we are competing against, especially when one of their big players gets hurt

lee said after the game he felt fine

starting to believe

I’m actually starting to believe a little bit. I know the Reds are ice cold, but we are due about a thousand ‘breaks’ at this point. All they need is just a semblence of a respectable offense and this team should be ok.

One things for sure, I’m not scared of the Cardinals.

Yes!

Karmic restitution will be a monster, if you believe in that sort of thing. I fear nothing at this point, because we’ve lost pretty much everyone for some length of time, and those we haven’t lost have sucked for various amounts of time, and we’re 0.5 games back in the standings a week out from the trade deadline.

Let the real fun begin.

Reds trying to deal for Scott Rolen?

Intersting

Sounds kinda like a backwards move to me.

Reds

The Reds just have to accept that their team isn’t going to do it. To be in the ‘buyers’ market at this point would be a pretty big mistake for them. They have pieces like Taveras, Rhodes, Weathers, Gomes, Nix that could bring them a few prospects.

there's a few teams looking to add that probably shouldn't

despite their record, the astros probably don’t have much of a chance and the mets are pretty crazy to think they do

the Astros have exactly the same chance we do.

http://www.coolstandings.com/baseball_standings.asp?i=1

not necessarily

those are neat stats and all

but that’s basically odds. Which are not always accurate. They are the same spot we are in, therefore they have basically the same chance we do

unless you consider the strength of the team

and if the record to this date has been indicative of performance or luck. also, the potential ‘upside’ of players and odds that they perform better. it’s all basically an odds game, but its what you have to consider

do they have the same schedule we do?

Cubs
7 vs Brewers
7 vs Astros
9 vs Pirates
7 vs Reds
3 vs Cards
3 vs Nats
3 vs Marlins
6 vs Mets
3 vs Phillies
3 vs Padres
4 vs Rockies
4 vs Dodgers
4 vs Giants
3 vs DBacks
1 vs White Sox

36/66 vs .500 or better

Cardinals
9 vs Brewers
9 vs Astros
6 vs Pirates
6 vs Reds
3 vs Cubs
3 vs Nats
3 vs Braves
3 vs Marlins
2 vs Mets
1 vs Phillies
7 vs Padres
3 vs Rockies
7 vs Dodgers

37/62 vs .500 or better

uh, well

it was about the Astros, not the Cards…

Pretty similar schedule

4 VS METS
7 VS CUBS
9 VS STL
3 VS SF
9 VS MIL
7 VS FLA
6 VS ARI
8 VS PHI
3 VS ATL
3 VS PIT
6 VS CIN

37/65 vs .500 or better

Nine games left versus the Cards could either be a good thing or a bad thing

I’m shocked MLB worked it so we only play 3 games against the Cards the rest of the way

the 8 vs the Phillies and 9 vs the Cardinals makes it a pretty hard schedule

only 3 more vs PIT none vs WAS or SD

however

I am happy to see the Cards with a more difficult schedule then we have, especially when we’re two games up in the loss column.

mets up 7-1

jeff francouer homer

that acquisition pays off a bit

HALF. GAME. OUT.

this season is NOT over.

Until the next loss!

that's right.

when the Cards lose tomorrow, and we win? We’ll be a half. game. UP.

And should that happen...

… not only will the Cubs be a half game up, but they will be THREE games ahead of St. Louis in the loss column.

Man, Hill os dow to .195...let the Fox man loose

DC Cubbie - July 25, 2009 reply

I want the good ole days when Hills numbers were better than Sotos :)

I gotta believe the Cubs bring in a new catcher by Saturday, I’d be shocked otherwise.

The strange thing is that the Cubs have such a good winning % with Hill in the lineup. Its definitely not due to his hitting.

mlbtraderumors says the cubs arent looking for a catcher

good thing, no need to cough up prospects for a 2 week rental