Now that was worth the price of admission!
After the Cubs and Astros had played 12-plus innings, scoring only one run each on long home runs by each team's Lee (Carlos, off the batter's eye in CF; Derrek, to Waveland Avenue), and getting strong relief pitching, Alfonso Soriano said, "Enough", and even though a base hit or medium-deep fly ball would have ended the game, Sori hit Chris Sampson's second pitch to almost the same spot Carlos Lee's ball had landed in the second inning, giving Houston a 1-0 lead at the time.
The 5-1 Cubs win over the Astros was their fifth in a row, matching the season-high winning streak, and also matched the high-water mark of the season, seven games over .500. It made the home record 31-18, which is now creeping up on the great home start the Cubs had in 2008; after 49 home games last year, the record was 36-13.
And in between the two solo homers and the grand slam, there was outstanding pitching on both sides -- although sixteen walks were issued among the eleven pitchers who took the mound last night, five of them intentional. The bullpens for both teams did a terrific job, particularly Aaron Heilman (who would have guessed?), Carlos Marmol (who looked like the Marmol of old, with two called K's), and rookie Jeff Stevens, who had to be bailed out by Sean Marshall after giving up a two-out double and an intentional pass in the 11th. Stevens looked solid even while giving up a pair of extra-base hits; he struck out the side in the 10th.
Both starting pitchers were dominant last night -- apart from the homer to Carlos Lee, Carlos Zambrano nearly matched Rich Harden's gem from Sunday, allowing just four walks and a pair of harmless singles through seven innings. Had he not overextended himself a bit in the seventh inning, Lou might have left him in to throw the eighth, but at 103 pitches, Z was left in to bat for himself with the lead run on second base and two out, but he appeared a bit overanxious as he grounded into a force play on the first pitch.
Meanwhile, Wandy Rodriguez, who always gives the Cubs fits, did it again last night. Derrek Lee solved him for his long home run onto Waveland -- and if you follow ballhawk's tweets, you know that he just missed the ball; it bounced down Kenmore where "Jr. Ballhawk Mikey" came up with it. Apart from that, Rodriguez allowed only one fly-ball out (by Ryan Theriot in the first inning), recording seven K's and 13 outs on ground balls. Both teams turned two double plays in the first six innings; had Mike Fontenot not missed on a suicide squeeze play in the last of the ninth, the game would have been over in about two and a half hours.
This was becoming a game for the memory books even before Soriano's slam. Ex-Cub reliever LaTroy Hawkins, who is having a good year for Houston, started jawing at home plate umpire Mike Everitt after seeing his second pitch to Aramis Ramirez in the eighth inning called a ball. He must have made some sort of obscene gesture or used "the magic word", because Everitt walked halfway to the mound and tossed Hawkins. When have you ever seen a pitcher ejected in the middle of an at-bat? I can't remember ever seeing that before. Jose Valverde entered and got A-Ram to hit into a force play, and though he loaded the bases on two unintentional walks and one intentional pass in the ninth, he got out of it on Fontenot's missed squeeze and the fly ball Fontenot hit to Michael Bourn in CF.
Things would have become interesting for the Cubs had the slam not occurred and the game had gone longer. The Cubs used their last position player, Andres Blanco, to pinch-hit for Marshall in the bottom of the 11th. The pitcher's spot was due up second had the game gone to the 14th inning; Samardzija is 0-for-3 as a major league hitter. My guess is that Rich Harden would have been the pinch-hitter, and as Lou said in his postgame remarks, Justin Berg was warming up and would have been the next pitcher. Angel Guzman and Kevin Gregg were also not used last night, so despite the length of the game, the bullpen should be in good shape today.
As I noted above, the first eight innings went very quickly -- the pace only slowing down after the ejection of Hawkins. Still, the 3:49 game time isn't that long for 13 innings; even so, about 1/3 of the 40,794 in attendance had headed home by the time Soriano won it. I'm sure we'll hear definitively later today, but before last night, the last time I can remember a Cub hitting a walkoff slam was Barry Foote on April 22, 1980, a day on which the city of Chicago set a record for the warmest April temperature ever (92 degrees) and Ivan DeJesus hit for the cycle. I'll also be interested to find out whether Soriano's homer would be the latest walkoff slam ever hit by inning.
In the meantime, the Cubs maintained their 1/2 game lead over the Cardinals, who beat the Dodgers 6-1, and also picked up a game on the Brewers, who lost to the Nationals 14-6, giving up two grand slams to Josh Willingham.
Let's keep it going tonight. The Cubs, at last, are playing the way we all hoped they would this year.
0 recs | 631 comments
Nice walkoff Sori!
Great to see him heating up, and DLee’s bomb was awesome… Glad I stayed up late to see the whole thing. Let’s get another one tonight!
Fonzie2178 - July 28, 2009
Did Soriano get boo'd in the 11th after going 0-5?
GoCubbies34 - July 28, 2009
Soriano got booed for not running out a ground ball...
… apparently, he thought he had fouled it off his foot, but it was ruled fair.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
On TV
I thought it looked like he fouled it off too.
I think he redeemed himself :)
ak123 - July 28, 2009
Definitely!
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
What was up with Sori pointing
over toward the Houston dugout area? Was he pointing to fans or the Houston bench?
Don’t be surprised if the Astros take those gestures the wrong way and do a little bean-ball action later in the series .
I didn’t see it live, so was just curious what actually happened.
CubFanSince1970 - July 28, 2009
you mean when he just stood there for about 5 minutes after the slam?
….he will get plunked for sure.
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
C'mon...
Walk-off grand slam? Cut him some slack.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
I have to agree with JB
Walk-off or not, Soriano’s attitude is self-righteous. He stood at home plate. Yes, the outfielders ran in, the baserunners went half way, but Soriano just stood there.
As he began his walk-off trot around the base, he pointed toward the Astros dugout (supposedly at his family).
As he rounded third base, he did the “John Cena” hand wave.
Soriano can celebrate all he wants. To me, these gestures appear arrogant.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Really?
Every single team has multiple players who stare at their homers and celebrate a bit too much for some people. Get over it.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
true
and a lot of them get plunked the next at bat / next day.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Which is the biggest load of BS
It all evens out over the course of the season. I’ll bet Carlos Lee, Lance Berkman, and Miguel Tejada have all started at their fair share of homers. Pujols does it, Braun and Fielder do it, Phillips does it for the Reds, and I’d bet if the Pirates had a player capable of homering he would stare at it too.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
braun?
stares at his homers? oh, yeah. he does.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
With those
big googly eyes of his
gwood - July 28, 2009
To the posts above in this thread.
Soriano was asked about his pointing in the post game interview. He said he was pointing to his family, who were sitting there in the stands.
Fraggin Judge - July 28, 2009
Ramirez...
Admires his walk-offs and does a few hops, Lee hops after a walk-off, Kosuke has a bat flip; are we seriously going to sit here and single out Soriano and nitpick this b.s. after a huge win?
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Get over it? I have a right to my opinion. I think Soriano is arrogant
as are many of today’s spoiled millionaire ballplayers.
I’m rarely negative about any player, but Soriano’s attitude is deplorable. I think he is a great talent, but his actions, or lack of sometimes, annoy me.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
More reason for a un-rec button.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
What do you think of
Aramis Ramirez
Ryan Braun
Prince Fielder
Albert Pujols
Brandon Phillips
Carlos Lee
Miguel Tejada
A-Rod
David Ortiz
Alexi Ramirez
Ryan Howard
Dan Uggla
Hanley Ramirez
Elijah Dukes
Nick Swisher
and many many more.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
You're putting too much energy into this
There’s more about Soriano’s attitude that I dislike than standing at the plate admiring long flyballs (some that don’t clear the wall, too). My dislike of him goes back before he was a Cub. He just isn’t one of my favorite players. I’m not petitioning to bench the guy. He is a very good ballplayer.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
fair enough
my point is that, and this is for all the people who get mad about people staring at homers, every team does it. Every single one of them. Who cares. Nobody needs to get plunked in the head, nobody needs to get into a brawl, just suck it up and get him out next time.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Len and Bob
said he was pointing to his family
Grockcubs - July 28, 2009
I thought that reaction for a walk off win in the 13th was beyond appropriate.
slcathena - July 28, 2009
It wasn't "supposedly"...
At his family, it was at his family. They obviously don’t make it out too many games, and they were there right up front. It was a walk-off Grand Slam, jeez, obviously it’s not “old-school put your head down and run”, but that style of ball has been dead for over a decade.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
I agree - that style of ball is dead
but it doesn’t mean the Astros won’t take offense. Teams still plunk guys and/or throw high and inside as message pitches. So I won’t be surprised if it happens in an early, low leverage situation today or tomorrow.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
If they take that personally
don’t walk the bases loaded to get to him.
Get annoyed if he stares down a meaningless HR in a blowout…. not a walk-off in the 13th.
Allie - July 28, 2009
+1
Word. Intentional walk followed by a walk off grand slam. Totally appropriate.
slcathena - July 28, 2009
Maybe he was pointing to his family:
smash! - July 28, 2009
He was
pointing to his family. He was interviewed after the game on CSN and said his family was sitting back there
jthack - July 28, 2009
Yeah, I know- that's why I posted the photo of his family ;)
smash! - July 28, 2009
haha
gocubs526 - July 28, 2009
Oh I thought it was free kiss night?
With every home, one lady in the crowd will get a kiss from the player that hits the Homerun.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
i feel sorry for whoever carlos lee kissed
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
ha!
smash! - July 28, 2009
Maybe he was pointing at the left fielder
(Worf can’t get upset; that’s from ML2)
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
Some people will never accept him
rlpete - July 28, 2009
This is absolutely ridiculous..
cubsnlinux - July 28, 2009
It's really true.
People will bitch about anything.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
his family was at the game
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
For the rest of the month!
We can talk smack on Saturday again.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
Yeah...
The Astros will teach him for failing to play with the quiet dignity of Jose Valverde.
Wreckard - July 28, 2009
Lol
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Wow
Somehow I totally forgot about him.
Yeah you have that assclown closing out your games, there goes the right to plunk people.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
alright, that was hilarious
WanderingWanderer - July 28, 2009
Jose is a another class act.....
…I am not encouraging a plunking of any sort, just based on his drama…. it wouldnt surprise me if it happened….
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
Or Miguel Tejada.
daver - July 28, 2009
I am of the opinion that Houston has the largest percentage of unlikeable players in the division.
Maybe even in the NL.
Blue W - July 28, 2009
Great philosophical quandary
Thanks for giving me something to do for the rest of the hour. I’ll get back to you shortly.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
I look forward to your findings.
Blue W - July 28, 2009
Let's see:
Astros roster, for quick reference.
Pitchers: their starting rotation is quite unlikable. However, St. Louis’ gives it a run for its money. Piñeiro=Rodriguez. Carpenter>Oswalt. I love how Wainwright sucks, so I guess Houston comes out on top.
Fielders: Tejada and Pence are, without a shadow of a doubt, despicable. Manny is equally wretched and I have this thing for Orlando Hudson, so the Dodgers might give them a run for their money. However, Houston has Pudge and Martin is a stud, so Houston comes out on top again.
Since this is just the NL, I won’t factor the White Sox in this research, but by and large, the South Siders have the largest percentage of unlikable players.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
They have
LaTroy
Valverde
Tejada
Pudge
and worst of all Hunter Pence.
They are the least likeable team in the NL.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
And Berkman, who pretends to be mortally wounded when a high pitch hits his bat
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
yep him too
though all you need is a good thunderstorm to send him running.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
HAHAHA!
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
All of this information backs up my original statistics.
Thank you both.
Blue W - July 28, 2009
I will say, however...
… that Carlos Lee is a likeable player, always has fun at Wrigley — if the Cubs had ever signed him, he would have been a huge fan favorite.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Yeah, I kinda like Carlos Lee.
daver - July 28, 2009
For all his Cub killing
I have no issue with Carlos Lee the person, or really the player.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Yeah, I think I'd tend to agree with you there.
I probably shouldn’t confess this publicly, but I’ve kinda taken a liking to Wandy. He’s like the Little Engine That Could. Their reliever Arias looks pretty good, too. Otherwise, most of the players on that team either bug me or bore me.
daver - July 28, 2009
I'd say Manny is so unlikeable, he moves the Dodgers into first in that catagory
The Cardinals fans and I agreed in our loud booing of his every at bat.
Mike Martin - July 28, 2009
nice post Wreckard!
I believe in the expression, often used in football, “act like you’ve been there before.” that is not a comment on Soriano, but a comment on a lot of top talent in these major sports.
when you look like you are showing up the other team, nothing is gained from that, and yes, the Cubs have their share of these characters. all this unnecessary celebrating tends to show is a lack of discipline that tends to come out in other areas of the player’s game (anyone want to argue this point?)
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Act like you've been there before...
My only argument to that is, how common is a walk-off Grand Slam?
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
"the quiet dignity of Jose Valverde."
man that was hysterical—my dog is staring at me wondering why i’m laughing so loudly.
cubfever7 - July 28, 2009
If it doesn't hurt him and gets him on base, I'll take it!
CUBSfaninYANKEEcountry - July 28, 2009
He was pointing at his family...
They were in attendance last night and sitting right to the left of home plate.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Astros might not care
Good chance he might get plunked tonight, but that was an amazing bomb he hit
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
Sounds like a free base to me...
… and if last nights extra innings game showed anything, that can be of value.
Plus, with Fonzie seemingly going on one of his hot streaks, they may want to consider just putting him on base anyways.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
If you meant after the game
His family was sitting there. He was pointing to them. Hopefully Astros know that and got over it.
ak123 - July 28, 2009
Cool!
that explains it.
CubFanSince1970 - July 28, 2009
Don't forget the..
You can’t see me gesture……
adam316 - July 28, 2009
I didn't see him...
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Yeah, he did it right as he was coming to home plate.
Before he jumped in to the pile of Cubs.
adam316 - July 28, 2009
Courtesy of the Trib...
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
You gotta love the way the team celebrated this walk off...
Just looking at Guzman is priceless.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
It's great.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
I agree, it's awesome.
slcathena - July 28, 2009
And Milton...
is once again front and center in the celebration too!
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
But i thought he was an awful teammate
and a cancer
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Well after the game
he looked only somewhat happy – the jerk. Doesn’t he know that we will accept no genuine feelings from professional athletes?
DGU - July 28, 2009
Oh that's right.
Even though his grin is so big there, I say we just accuse him of faking it. He’s probably waiting to step on Sori’s ankle or something and then kick a puppy.
s/
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
Look closely at the picture
Guzman is partially blocking it, but Bradley is actually receiving a Steve Stone twitter and that’s what’s got him so happy. He’s not paying attention to the game at all.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Guzman...
looks like one of those “Waaassssuuuppp!!!” guys from the Budweiser commercials several years ago.
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
LOL
Doggie Stalker - July 28, 2009
hee-hee! It DOES!
Zeke - July 28, 2009
Just awesome.
CUBSfaninYANKEEcountry - July 28, 2009
As he was approaching third base
video link
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Who do you think he was gesturing to?
JohnM - July 28, 2009
I think
he does it to his team mates and coaches.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
Exactly
In which case, I have know idea why anyone would think it was “arrogant” since it’s obviously just a fun thing they do.
JohnM - July 28, 2009
agree
sue369 - July 28, 2009
Agreed...
It’s obviously a fun gesture between him and his teammates.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
I know I will be in the minority here but I disagree.
I’m old school. Play the game with respect. Respect yourself, your teammates, the fans and your opponents. That hand motion doesn’t. It just tees you up on the “hit parade” next time at the plate. Imagine if Bob Gibson were the Astros’ starting pitcher tonight. Sori would be beaned in the on deck circle.
To put it another way, suppose I were a fan of Michael Jackson. I hit a walk off GS and on my way between second and third, I grab my crotch and yell “Whoo!” as a “fun” way to celebrate my home run with my teammates and family and also pay homage to my favorite singer.
Is that action disrespectful? Is it different than the “hand wave”?
To me, it is not.
As I said, I’m in the minority on this one, I know. But it cheapens the game.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
If Bob Gibson played today
He would be ejected in the second inning of all his starts.
The game has changed, for better or worse. If somebody wanted to moonwalk to home thats fine with me, because every team does it.
Its one thing if we are talking about something that only one person in the whole sport does, but a good percentage of players showboat a little.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
It would be amazing to see...
Someone moonwalk home.
That said, game changed or not, I’d order hit him every single following at-bat. But it’d be pretty spectacular to see someone do it. :)
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
Well, I understand the "everyone does it" argument. But it doesn't make it right.
As a parent, I don’t tolerate it when my teenagers say it- and as a sports fan I don’t buy it either. Again, just my bias.
And doing things the right way has to start with someone. Someone has to be the grown-up.
But I fear you are correct- those days are gone in professional sports.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
Zeke, I'm old school, too
You and I are standing on thin ice here. Run. I hear the ice cracking beneath us.
BTW, I worshiped Bob Gibson as a kid. My kinda pitcher.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Gibson, Jenkins, etc. respected the game.
Too bad there are so few players now that do.
Gotta run, the ice is starting to break ;)
Zeke - July 28, 2009
I respect the old school...
But times have changed, rules (written and unwritten) have changed, resistance is futile.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Um...
… one of those involves waving a hand in front of one’s face.
The other involves crotch grabbing.
Yes, they are different. And yes, one is more disrespectful than the other. I think my mom, the FCC, and everybody else would agree.
Metaphor FAIL.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
FAIL? Well, it's open to one's interpretation. I don't represent myself as speaking for everyone else.
I understand your perspective. I just disagree with it. Fair enough.
As I said, my opinion is in the minority.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
In general, i agree with your sentiment.
I’d like to see less boisterous behavior from the players.
I just don’t think you can compare waving a hand around and grabbing one’s crotch as being equally offensive / annoying / inappropriate.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Point taken.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
I think you can
Obviously not you specifically, but I’m betting that for a sizable segment of the population, the difference between those two gestures is negligible. That could be negligible as in they’re both no big deal or as in they’re both offensive.
Baseball fans who grew up idolizing Michael Jackson probably think nothing of a little crotch-grab w/ gyration. Not sure what the FCC has to do with it. Hell, baseball players have been grabbing their crotches probably since the first time ol’ Abner slid head first into second.
As for the hand wave, it’s not so much the action as what it represents. And maybe to WWE haters and/or today’s youth, that could represent something quite offensive. I mean, extending one’s middle finger is no big physical feat is it? But what it represents certainly changes things.
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
The hand waving...
… means nothing to 95% of the world, and would confuse those who don’t follow the WWE or Soriano well enough to know what it stands for. My mom would probably assume he was playing peek-a-boo or something. Its harmless.
The crotch grab is an overt show of sexuality when done as we described.
The middle finger has its own implications as well obviously.
The latter two are more offensive to most of the rest of the world than the first, which is why one is allowed by MLB (and is allowed to be broadcast by the FCC) while the other two would likely result in disciplinary action.
There are levels here, no matter what you personally find offensive. Look at the NFL’s touchdown celebration rules… dance by yourself, cool… as a team, the flag is thrown. No props, and leave your helmet on. No using your hand to slash your throat. On and on and on.
Go to a public area and wave your hand around and gauge the reaction. Then try grabbing your crotch. Then tell me they are equally offensive.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
AJS: Perhaps the crotch grab was a less than great analogy on my part. It's detracting from my overall point.
Ultimately my point was that these acts where players are trying to draw additional attention to themselves or whatever athletic act they just performed
(jersey popping in basketball after a dunk for example) disrespect the game and the opponent.
I understand they are theater. I just don’t care for them. It lacks class.
…and with WGN’s endless promos of WWE, that 95% “non” recognition of the meaning of the gesture number is dropping fast…and I think MLB players DO know what the gesture means- if they don’t, they’ll find out from a teammate pretty quickly.
I will say this, it’s been an interesting discussion this afternoon and I appreciate that we’ve been able to do it in a mature manner. It’s not always the case as I sometimes see on BCB. Fortunately, I think those heated “you don’t agree with me, so you’re a dumb ass” debates are the exception MOST of the time ;)
Zeke - July 28, 2009
To you and me, obviously not.
I just take slight issue with what I perceive to be your intent to speak for everyone and to know what everyone finds offensive, that’s all.
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
Me? BH, I was speaking for only me. No one else...
Zeke - July 28, 2009
nope, not you.
my post was in reply to AJS. Check the threading – it can be misleading once things get indented a bit.
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
got it.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
To Zeke...
… i agree, the crotch grab point did distract from the overall issue, with which i agree with you: the showboating in general is too much. The difference between a T.O. “HOF Jacket” stunt and a Sori hand wave is big, but neither is really necessary. I do believe it’d be hard for me to resist celebrating to at least hand waving levels if i’d have just put up a walkoff granny.
And to BallHawk… i’m not trying to speak for everyone, but i do believe my opinion is widely held. In most places in our society a Sori hand wave would be ok, and a crotch grab would raise some eyebrows.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
OK. I understand. It WAS an exciting moment, to be sure...
I’m off my grumpy old man soapbox for the night.
HEY YOU KIDS! GET OFF MY LAWN!
Zeke - July 28, 2009
Everytime someone talks about "old school" players not taking showboating
It just makes me think they were thin-skinned and weak.
“He looked happy after hitting a grand slam, and that hurts my feelings. I’m gonna hit him with a ball, which if it hits him in the wrong spot on his body could end his career!”
Now, WHO doesn’t respect the game?!
Mike Martin - July 28, 2009
As I said above, we'll just have to disagree on this one.
No biggie. Just my opinion.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
I somewhat agree with that...
But I’m sure I’m not the only one annoyed by the way the Brewers untuck their shirts just before hitting home on their walk-offs….and that’s just "obviously a fun thing they do [for each other].
I can’t speak for anyone else, but my feelings on this stuff are somewhat inconsistent. I try not to let the other teams annoy me, but I don’t always succeed. It’s just part of being a fan, maybe.
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
BECAUSE YOURE JUST SUPPOSED TO RUN
ITS IN THE NON EXISTANT RULE BOOK
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
And in the same non existant rule book
is the line that says, enjoy you accomplishments but don’t show-up a guy that is throwing a ball at you around 90 MPH’s.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Also as he was coming to home plate, just like your video link shows.
Just sayin’
adam316 - July 28, 2009
you are correct, too, sir
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
We need John Cena on standby
So when moments like these happen, he can run out on the field, stand next to Soriano, and they can both proudly do the “You can’t see me.” Okay, maybe not.
adam316 - July 28, 2009
I didn't
I think he has every right to do it. He’s a huge WWE fan and loves John Cena. He got the biggest his in like 3 months for him. Let him do whatever he wants. It was the Cubs night.
ak123 - July 28, 2009
K, thank you. Do you feel better?
Did I say he shouldn’t do it? WTF?
adam316 - July 28, 2009
I think he was just stating his opinion on the matter, I don’t think that was directed at you.
Devin B - July 28, 2009
Possibly
But it was a reply to my post.
adam316 - July 28, 2009
You were the only one to bring up the “can’t see me”, and since that was what he was talking about, a reply to you was the best place to put it.
I just think fighting on BCB is stupid. Thats all.
Devin B - July 28, 2009
That's it...I'm throwing at you next AB!
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
After Heil's good inning last night....
I can’t even make the joke that you could throw better than him. If he keeps this up I’ll need new material. :)
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
Sample size!
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
I did say IF
I’m still a member of the any one named Aaron on the Cubs sucks fanclub.
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
ANAOTCS fanclub?
adam316 - July 28, 2009
Hi, I'm Maddie, and I'm an ANAOTCS.
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
How'd you know?????
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
ha ha ha.
Can I join?
slcathena - July 28, 2009
Hi Maddie!
It’s been 4 months now and every time I see those two A’s starting a name I just know bad things are going to happen…Management told me it was not feasible to DFA everyone of them in the Chicago area to the minors, I mean it’s not like anyone would miss them, am I right?
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
I like this club
because its true
nji232 - July 28, 2009
The Aaron Heilman Sucks Fanclub is still open for business
One good outing is not enough to deter us. We keep mum, but we still seethe.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
A petition to send him down for Demp seems in order to me.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Waaaaaay ahead of you, Señor Evil Twin
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
but then theres a distanct lack of notre dame in the roster
no, shark doesnt count
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
Yea it wasn't geared towards you
I was just stating my opinion. Let’s move on please.
ak123 - July 28, 2009
I hope they
get over how far up the first base line he walked after he hit the ball too.
gwood - July 28, 2009
interview after the game
he said his family was there….he was pointing to them
cozmotaylor123 - July 28, 2009
He explained that he was pointing to his family
who was at the game. He WAS NOT pointing at the Houston Dugout
desmoCubbie - July 28, 2009
I bet he gets plunked tonight on this first pitch
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Well, Oswalt's on the mound, so it wouldn't surprise me at all.
daver - July 28, 2009
but if he gets thrown out.....
That’s really taxing on the over used pen from last night.
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
They won't toss him
unless he missed with the first attempt to hit Sori and then hits him with the second attempt.
gwood - July 28, 2009
No, the Cubs strike first.
Hit a batter in the top of the 1st. Then Oswalt will retaliate in the bottom half. Either warnings will be issued at that point or Oswalt will be tossed.
If warnings are issued, then Oswalt cannot plunk Soriano (unless he hits him in the 1st, in which case the Cubs would have scored a run in the inning, so I’d take that) without being ejected.
Sure, it’s devious, but I’m a step ahead of Cecil Cooper and Roy Oswalt here.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
That's not a bad idea at all . . .
Have Demp plunk Matsui (after getting Bourne out, we don’t want him on the bases that easily, he is too fast) so that both benches get warned when Oswalt retaliates in the bottom of the inning. Great plan! ;)
gwood - July 28, 2009
That's true.
He’s good enough to make it look like a mistake, though – or at least leave open some uncertainty. What would be nice is if he plunked Soriano (without injuring him), got a warning and then plunked someone else accidentally and got tossed. All in, say, the second inning.
daver - July 28, 2009
You would lose that bet.
willie mays hayes' gloves - July 28, 2009
his family was sitting behind the houston dugout.
he wasnt show boating… the guy was pointing to his family and acknowledging them after a huge walk-off hit and a huge win… he said so right after the game in his on-field interview…. dont be so quick to jump the gun on the guy and say he’s arrogant for being excited about a freaking walk-off grand slam…
ThisIsResolute - July 28, 2009
He stood there watching it go
Even beyond pointing to his family or the slow trot, it was the 10 seconds of watching the ball leave and the flip of the bat. What was that? Just making sure that the ball left before he wasted all the engery by trotting around the bases? He want to make his bat got back to the dugout ok? He was showing up the other pitcher. Players have got plunked for less.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Perhaps, but the ball was crushed.
The Astros were practically back at their hotel by the time it hit the roof of the restaurant in centerfield. It was also the 13th inning – eveyrone was exhausted and glad the game was over. There was no reason to rush around the bases.
daver - July 28, 2009
And I agree, to a point
A slow jog around the bases; no big deal.
Giving props to your loved ones; wonderful.
Standing in the batter box and posing; maybe not too good of an idea.
Flipping your bat with the look of disgust for the pitch even trying to bring that weak crap into your wheel house; the set-up for a message.
Getting inside heat aimed at your hip to let you know that maybe you should be gracious in victory; PRICELESS!
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Screw gracious.
I’m glad to see this team finally show swagger. I’ll take the theatrics every time there is a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 12th.
PurpleLineToWrigley - July 28, 2009
or the 13th, like last night's
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Swagger good, arrogance bad
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
+1.
Zeke - July 28, 2009
Agree
I am from the old school also, however last night, Sori’s family in the house, he has had a horrible game to that point, he jacks the game winner and watches it go, and then points to his FAMILY, good for him.
Jeez this team has been struggling with bad play, and the DL, have some fun.
Go CUBS
Grockcubs - July 28, 2009
SORRY FUNS NOT ALLOWED
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
MLB stands for Must Leave Bored right?
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
prince fielder always watches his home runs
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
that's only because of inertia
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
ALOT of inertia there
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Or lack thereof.
daver - July 28, 2009
It takes him
that long to get his body to change directions. He isn’t actually watching the home run, what we see is the slow weight transfer from his back leg to his front so that he can start to first base.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Exactly!
daver - July 29, 2009
Oh yeah
I forgot about that, my friend (Card’s Fan) mentioned that he got boo’d and I couldn’t remember why.
GoCubbies34 - July 28, 2009
Great Win, Great Game
Every time games like these happen, Al, I get so jealous as to how fortunate you are to be able to attend with the regularity that you do.
Let’s go get em again!
Go Cubs. Oh, and Sori’s slam didn’t surprise me. We needed our obligatory 5 runs for the evening. :)
heine41 - July 28, 2009
I'm so happy to see this post
after 200 bazillion posts about celebrate/not plunk/not that I’m rec’ing it.
slcathena - July 28, 2009
bunting
I’m happy for the win, but it would be nice if Fonty and most of the rest of the Cubs knew how to do something they should have learned in high school.
salparadise23 - July 28, 2009
While I agree that our lack of execution on basic fundamentals at times, I can imagine how hard it would be to get a bunt down in that situation against a pitcher with so much life on his fastball
heine41 - July 28, 2009
Yeah, Valverde throws REALLY hard...
Fontenot probably still should make solid contact on it, but it’s not unheard of to miss a bunt occasionally.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
I was wondering....
how hard it would be to foul that off at least, though. Pretty big “fail” on his part. But you’re right: stuff happens sometimes.
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
but the thing is.....
Fontenot was leaning towards first when he “squared” around, almost like he was trying for an infield hit. He should have squared his body completely. Just bad fundamentals.
carmen_fanzone - July 28, 2009
I think that was a product of him waiting to long
It looked like he was trying to deceive the astros by waiting as long as possible, then when he realized he wasn’t going to get it out there he just kind of stuck the bat out and hoped he made contact.
Wad - July 28, 2009
if he squares
its a pitch out and the same result.
mdjohns4 - July 28, 2009
Bradley
the real question is what the hell was Bradley doing. He saw Fontenot miss the bunt and just game himself up instead of getting in a rundown for a second or two. it almost led to another out at third. I don’t hate bradley as much as some but that was an aweful, stupid, play.
RTGrules - July 28, 2009
Now, THIS time I'm going to defend Bradley.
In a suicide play, you’re pretty much dead meat if the batter misses the ball. That wasn’t Bradley’s fault and there was no time to get in a rundown.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Agreed...
it’s a real reach to blame Bradley on that play. He has to be charging as hard as he can for the plate and just hope that Fontenot makes contact. If he’s not, there’s not much he can do.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
and by stopping he
stalls long enough for the other runners to advance…..not a bad play at all by Milton
cozmotaylor123 - July 28, 2009
I was kinda hoping MB would charge the catcher to either try to dislodge the ball or stall for the other runners
Can’t blame the guy though.
aznsensation - July 28, 2009
As much as I hate to say it
I agree with Al, that isn’t the part I hate, that Bradley did exactly the right thing (UGH!). The play called for a sucide squeeze, the name alone should tell you right there that there is no hope if the play isn’t excuted. Fotenot bunts towards third, Bradely running home (Hoping that Fotenot bunts is hard enough on the ground to cause the catcher to go past him) and Sori is on contact to get to thrid. The only play would be to first base.
What Fotenot did is miss completely which caused Bradely to be meat on the base path and Sori was lucky not to be called out. Maybe a pitcher, well no0t Zambrano, can show Fotenot how to lay down a bunt
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Sori?
It was Hoff that slid into 3rd if that’s what you’re referring to.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
You are correct Sir.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
I can understand it's hard to bunt against Valverde
But my problem is the Cubs’ lack of bunting ability as a whole; were it not for Blanco, perhaps Harden, most of the team bunts poorly and that will catch up with a team in the long run as it did last night. I wasn’t that surprised the squeeze failed although it was brilliant in my eyes and caught Houston off guard just like they hoped. Fonty sure isn’t the only one bad at bunting, he just happened to be at the plate.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
To me
It felt like Fontenot just tried to wait a little to long to get the bat out there. I know deception is the key, but you have to make sure the bat is out in enough time to make an adjustment to the pitch.
Wad - July 28, 2009
I think you're right
Font sacrificed execution for deception. He probably could have gotten into bunting position a little earlier to give himself a better chance of putting the bunt in play.
gwood - July 28, 2009
MLB TV did a piece on it last night
Harold Reyonlds talked about the importances of getting square and “catching” the ball with the bat. Chicks dig the long ball but bunts can win the game.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
+1
He did what any runner’s supposed to do in that situation.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
shouldn't he have been
almost all the way home? That’s the point of a squeeze. I wonder if he was too close to reverse his momentum.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
Maybe...
but have you ever tried stealing home on a squeeze, wondering whether the batter noticed that a squeeze was on or if he’s going to take a full swing and decapitate you? That shouldn’t be as much of an issue on the MLB level perhaps, and they may have signals indicating that the batter understood the sign….
But it’s still disconcerting.
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
He should probably be around 2/3 of the way...
Remember – all Bradley has to do is beat the ball from bat to fielder back to catcher. It’s not like he’s trying to steal home. You have to make sure to avoid getting picked off but be close enough that you’ll beat the relay throw.
If you’re 2/3 of the way home and the bunt is laid down, you’re almost sure to score.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Bradley did his job there.....the question is why was Lou asking a LH batter to put on the squeeze?
….Fonty didnt even come close to that pitch
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
I thought
it was a great call to put on the squeeze there. Unfortunately it failed, but any sort of contact there would have won the game for us, Huston had no clue and was caught completely by surprise.
gwood - July 28, 2009
I agree, I just dont think Fonty is the guy you ask to do that.....
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
Jake Fox
Seemed like the obvious PH in the situation. Lou and his obsession with LH hitters.
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
not only was he the obvious choice
Lou had already lifted Hill for Fukudome, so Fox was going to have to enter the game anyway.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Fontenot is quicker than Fox, so he could have had more of a chance to beat out the doble play, if it got to that.
We decided last night that that was the reason they chose him. Also, the Rodriguez was all over the squeeze… he was really looking at Bradley in between signs and we all knew (sitting behind the plate and behind Ivan) that the play was coming.
smash! - July 28, 2009
what double play?
it was a suicide squeeze
WanderingWanderer - July 28, 2009
There was only one out when Fontenot bunted...
So if he pops up the bunt (and its caught), Bradley would likely have been doubled up back at 3B.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
I guess I should say "when Fontenot attempted to bunt"
As he didn’t actually bunt the ball.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Ah, just read smash!'s post... ignore my response...
as it is not applicable. nothing to see here, carry on.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Not on the squeeze, per say, but in general if he hit into a double play.
I guess it also applies to the squeeze as well though- if he laid down a bad bunt and they tried to turn 2 (home and 1st).
smash! - July 28, 2009
I think you've got it wrong
Fontenot was called on for the squeeze, I’m pretty sure. Think Jake Fox has ever bunted a ball in his life?
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
Yabbut
Just thought Jake Fox could lift a fly ball to bring home Bradley. Fox seems to be one of the better contact hitters on the team.
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
?
Jake Fox struck out in 20% of his PAs…in the minors.
He’s not exactly Yadier Molina up there.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
To be fair,
Fontenot has about the same K rate in the majors as Fox did in the minors. Not sure what the adjustment should be.
What I’m saying is Fontenot is a marginally better contact hitter who can (usually) bunt. He gives you both options.
Did he get the job done? No. Was he the right call? I think so, yes.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
I actually liked Fontentot's chances swinging away
at a high heat throwing guy with the infield drawn in. But the squeeze is an exciting, awesome play that usually works against fastball pitchers too. So I was happy with Fontenot over Fox whether bunting or not. He should have got the bat down quicker and stayed on his front foot, and maybe he would have been successful.
JohnM - July 28, 2009
How about th K rate
for the both of them in the Majors this year. Fotenot has been striking out at an alarming rate this year.
cubdreamer - July 28, 2009
21%
which is just a tad higher than his career rate.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
squeeze play on a guy who has absolutely no control doesnt make much imo
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
Also
The Astros outfield (Lee, Pence, Bourn) have combined for 23 assists this season. If the ball isn’t sufficiently deep enough, or even if it is, there’s no guarantee a run will score.
Not Bruce Froemming - July 28, 2009
I have no problem with the squeeze bunt
but Blanco would have been the best option to bunt.
cubdreamer - July 28, 2009
Yeah
but that eliminates part of the deception, assuming Lou was planning on trying a squeeze when he sent Font up there. I think if Lou sends Blanco up in that situation, that screams squeeze play because Blanco is not as good a hitter as Font.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Blanco locks you into a bunt, though.
A little obvious. He’s probably not going to drive a ball for a SF.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
I think they encode using H.264 for iPhone
The MLB At Bat app on iPhone is totally worth the $10. I’m sure I’ll have to buy it again next season (MLB At Bat 2010), but the video highlights, condensed game, and full audio streams (both home and away!) have made it the best app purchase I’ve made on my iPhone.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
woah
don’t know how this ended up here. Meant to reply to a lower comment.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
You have no idea how pissed off I was at that moment
Lou goes on and on every day about how much they want to get Jake Fox’s bat in the line-up…
Well Lou: that was the MOST OBVIOUS SITUATION TO PUT HIM IN! WTF? Seriously. Not only had you already removed your catcher from the game, but Fox absolutely mashes righties (.333). Plus, .308 with RISP. Bases loaded, one out, game on the line… and you don’t even think about using Fox? Un-friggin-beleivable. Fly ball wins the game there.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Andres Blanco
was the obvious choice, he can at least bunt, where as Fontenot can not.
tripdenten - July 28, 2009
takes the surprise element out of it if you send Blanco up there...
carmen_fanzone - July 28, 2009
I agree...
that’s the type of play that looks great when it works and terrible when it doesn’t. But all that has to happen is for Fontenot to put the ball on the ground and it’s a win for the Cubs. The squeeze play to end a game is a Tony LaRussa classic.
Great call, just bad execution by Fontenot. He has to at least foul it away from the catcher.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Great call but for me,
I wouldn’t have called it against a pitcher that was struggling to find the plate………Valverde was all over the place and that makes bunting really tough. sure you have to foul it off, but that pitch was sailing wide of the plate.
mrcubsfan - July 28, 2009
This I agree with...
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
but he called it in the right situation.
he got a fastball strike to bunt. Lou made a good call it just was not executed. and I remember in 2007 fontenot squeezing someone in the 9th inning at the cell when the game was tied at 1-1. Milton left at perfect time not giving it away and if fontenot makes any contact it is ball game over. Also at the very least mike has to foul it off.
MandMexpress12 - July 28, 2009
It was the right situation
the Astros were clueless, it would have been the perfect play if executed.
mrcubsfan - July 28, 2009
I don't know about clueless
Ron was all over it, which leads me to believe it was less than a surprise.
Villeslgr - July 28, 2009
It is a high risk
high reward play to begin with. Thrown in a pitcher who is having a hard time throwing strikes and it makes it even more risky. I just don’t like the call for that reason but it certainly would have worked had fontenot made contact.
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
true but to be fair lou called it when he got a fastball strike. pitch he was hoping for.
MandMexpress12 - July 28, 2009
Wouldn't call a suicide squeeze with one out
I might be tempted to do it with one out, but if there are no outs and the batter misses, you still have a couple of outs to play with and leave the SF as an option to win the game. If you have one out and the batter misses with the bunt, then you have two outs in the inning and no margin for error.
Ace Venom - July 28, 2009
He was just doing his job
Fontenot on the other hand couldn’t execute it.
Thank god he didn’t pop up the pitch to cause a double play.
Imagine had they won on the squeeze though? I think Wrigley would have gone crazier than from the grand slam.
ak123 - July 28, 2009
They almost caught Hoffpauir at 3B
So the double play was very close. Hoffpauir took a heckuva risk—he didn’t break for 3B right at the wind-up. If you catch a replay, you can see his legs and he doesn’t break until after Fontenot whiffs.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
That was NOT Bradley's fault, not at all.
For a guy that’s easy (for me) to dislike, that was 100% on Fontenot.
dtpollitt - July 28, 2009
agree it was fontenot's fault
but watch the tape. bradley just stops. he has plenty of time to stop and back up. even for a second. it makes a huge difference. he is not a good baserunner. and he was not going full speed.
i liked the call, too. very tony larussa. it was a tough pitch though. up a little. but really bad technique on fontenot’s part. his backside bailed bad.
RTGrules - July 28, 2009
I wonder
about the technique part because the whole point is to disguise that play, so he really can’t get into ideal bunting posture/position. Maybe there is more to it than stick your bat out and hope to hit the ball, but that seems to be all a hitter can do in a squeeze situation.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Everyone was going...
Bradley stopped, and which bought an extra second for Hoff to slide into 3rd.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
But what happens then if
Hoff thinks Bradley is trying to get back to 3rd and he hesitates long enough to get himself caught in a run down too. You can also say Bradley covered the direct path to 3rd slightly delaying the throw from Pudge.
tony412 - July 28, 2009
Easy to type sitting at your computer the next day.
Not so easy to do when you have to think all of that in about 0.5 seconds.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
hoff is going to third no matter what
its his job to get there. major leaguers don’t mess up rundowns. the lead runner gives himself up but delays as much as possible. zero chance he is getting back to third.
RTGrules - July 28, 2009
He doesn't go back...
On a suicide squeeze, you are going… it’s on the batter to do everything he can to get the bunt down; that’s why it’s such a risky play.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
The squeeze is a 100% committment, there isnt any second guessing once you go...
….it either works or it doesnt.
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
To clarify
I’m in agreement that Bradley did nothing wrong, nor did Hoff. Fonty just failed to execute. No need to second guess anything.
tony412 - July 28, 2009
Time to defend Bradley...
Fontenot whiffed on the bunt, blew his assignment, and left Bradley a dead duck out there. Not Bradley’s fault, how someone can even think it was is beyond me.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
I agree with the Bradley defense
he did a good job slowing and stopping giving Hoff enough time to get to third. Bradley’s job in that situation is to break for home plate at the right time. Fontenot’s job is the make contact with the ball. Bradley did exactly what he was supposed to do in that situation.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Bradley has to stop to allow the catcher to approach him
so that the runner on second can advance to third. Getting into a rundown freezes the other runners between bags. The catcher knows Bradley isn’t going back to third. And the hopes of the Astros flubbing the rundown are slim.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Wow
You guys are seriously debating what the runner on 3rd base is supposed to do on a suicide squeeze? Have any of you ever played or run the bases in anything other than little league? My goodness.
krummy12 - July 28, 2009
I'm not debating...a suicide squeeze is just that, suicide if the batter doesn't put the ball in play
It wasn’t a safety squeeze.
Bradley was tagged out. The runner advanced to 3rd, albeit a close play at third. Bradley could have stayed in play a bit longer to allow the runner to advance to third without a close play.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Why wasn't fukodome at 2nd after that play?
Doesn’t really matter but still seemed kind of strange.
Wad - July 28, 2009
He wasn't running on the pitch (not sure why not)
Hoffpauir was.
The reason Hoff almost got nailed was because he stopped running when Fontenot whiffed, then realized he had better get to third or else get caught in no man’s land (plus, he might not have known Fukudome didn’t run), so he had to start up again.
JohnM - July 28, 2009
We needed one run to win, and Hoff put himself on third to score that run
If Fuku gets put out trying to take second, it is a bone-headed end to the inning.
vonde6 - July 28, 2009
Thats why he attempted to steal on the very next pitch
I was making the point that he should be going on the pitch like hoff was, it was a mistake by Fukodome.
Wad - July 28, 2009
Bradley getting into a rundown does not freeze the runners.
All runners are taught to get to the next base when the runner in front of them gets into a rundown.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
how can you blame Bradley when
the man on third is not paid to think. he gives himself up and goes full speed ahead. Bradley did a GREAT job just to slow down so that we could have our man safe at third and not run into a DP.
it is the OBLIGATION of the batter to make contact NO MATTER WHAT. he has to foul off the ball at a minimum. It was lousy fundamentals by LBR to not even foul the pitch off at a minimum. He jabbed at it and did not square up. Just crappy fundamentals on Fonty’s part. It was not time to fool anyone. Once the pitcher commits, get in your best bunting stance and MAKE CONTACT, period. That is objective #1. Objective #2 is to get the ball into play.
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Because some guys
like to bitch about Bradley come hell or high water.
I swear, sometimes I’m embarrassed to be a Cubs fan.
Not Bruce Froemming - July 28, 2009
Some people just like to bitch period.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
True, that, sue,
but Bradley is a real lightning rod. Granted, he causes a lot of his own problems, but when he does something right — which is most of the time — then he deserves praise.
Not Bruce Froemming - July 28, 2009
Totally agree.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
any links to pats call??
fischisgod - July 28, 2009
Did you hear it?
Ron was going nuts!
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
I didn't
get to hear it, but agree with Fisch, if anyone has a link to their call, I would love to hear it.
gwood - July 28, 2009
+1
fischisgod - July 28, 2009
You can listen
to the whole game if you go to the multimedia section on cubs.com. It let’s you fast forward, so you can just all the way to the end and listen.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Abit OT
I tried the above link w/ my iPhone, but it doesn’t support Flash, or does it? How does the MLB AB ap work if MLB uses Flash? Obviously, I haven’t paid for the ap yet. Any help?
Kegler - July 28, 2009 via mobile
I think the IPhone can use flash
but its a special version that some apps have. Its the same thing with youtube.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
iPhone cannot use Flash
YouTube on iPhone encodes using H.264, and I assume that the MLB At Bat app does as well.
The MLB At Bat app on iPhone is totally worth the $10. I’m sure I’ll have to buy it again next season (MLB At Bat 2010), but the video highlights, condensed game, and full audio streams (both home and away!) have made it the best app purchase I’ve made on my iPhone.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Thanks
I knew they found a way to encode video a different way, I had just assumed it was a special flash.
I agree 100% on it being worth the money. Its the best thing a baseball fan can buy for their IPhone.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Thanks
I’d been putting off buying the ap, but it sounds well worth it. Any word on when Flash will become available? There are quite a few sites that use it. It’s frustrating. Thanks again.
Kegler - July 28, 2009 via mobile
I don't know about flash
But I can tell you this. I was very hesitant about buying the MLB app. It pays for itself after one day of baseball.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Apple has voiced its displeasure...
With Flash. I doubt we’ll see it on an iPhone anytime soon.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
This is correct.
dtpollitt - July 28, 2009
Probably never
In my opinion, it won’t happen. Apple has no incentive to make it happen. See this essay for a plausible reason why:
http://daringfireball.net/2008/02/flash_iphone_calculus
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Gruber knows his stuff.
dtpollitt - July 28, 2009
Excellent linky
Thanks. Great blog.
Kegler - July 28, 2009 via mobile
Flash based sites, in general, are going away.
It’ll still be used heavily for streaming video i’m sure, but in general flash sites aren’t great for the mobile environment, which is rapidly gaining a larger and larger share of web viewing.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Add that to the newer languages doing what Flash can do better...
… and its a dying language. Take Google Maps for example… built entirely on AJAX and Ruby on Rails, and every bit as powerful as a flash application with none of the proprietary implications or third party installs.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Speak english, man. JK. Sounds like you know a little about that stuff..
BleedsbluinMI - July 28, 2009
I agree
And since I also paid for MLB.TV, I get to watch any game live on the phone. It even let me watch Saturday’s game which was blacked out on EI and MLB.TV on the computer.
I’m sure that was a mistake on MLB’s part due to the newness of the service, but I’m sure not going to call and complain…
Clutch16 - July 28, 2009 via mobile
Interesting
Maybe the blackout doesn’t apply, because they assume you aren’t at home if you’re watching on your phone, and thus, unable to watch the normal broadcast.
JohnM - July 28, 2009
My connection to the broadcast (via computer)
cut off right at the crack of the bat.
Cool to hear it now.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Here
this should work.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Nice, thanks for posting.
tony412 - July 28, 2009
not working forme
fischisgod - July 28, 2009
yeah it doesn't work on my work computer
but it worked for me last night at home so it prolly depends on your computer.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Yes, yes, yes!
katie casey - July 28, 2009
MAKE IT GREEN
dtpollitt - July 28, 2009
Hmm ... Ron was a little happy, wasn't he?
Vermont Cubs Fan - July 28, 2009
Just
a little :)
gwood - July 28, 2009
Is there anyplace online that WGN puts the post-game highlights that they put together?
Been looking for it all morning… and I could not find it…
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
As far as I know... you have to go to MLB.com to see any available highlights.
I watched the walk-off a couple times late last night when I finally got home.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I wish they had audio highlights like they used too...
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
Sadly, MLB no longer allows that.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
Why not?
JohnM - July 28, 2009
Awesome, thanks.
That’s going on my iPod.
daver - July 28, 2009
Very cool.
Does anyone still have the 9th inning rally from last year against the Brewers?
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
Thanks, that was awesome!!!
sue369 - July 28, 2009
thanks
I missed the game on radio and I wanted to hear Pat and Ron on the grand slam. Thanks.
wccubfan - July 28, 2009
Listen
Listen to the 9 am news on wgn radio it will probably be replayed during the sports segment.
puckishcubsfan - July 28, 2009
when cooper called on valverde
it reminded me of ned yost (i miss him) calling on salomon torres in the eighth inning of a tie game in milwaukee last season. smacked of desparation going to a closer in the eighth. yeah, they used to do it when coop played (and yost), but that isn’t standard operating procedure now.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
Joe Torre used to do that all the time with Mariano Rivera.
But you’re right, very few managers do this today.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Funny how it works with Rivera and Valverde
but not torres. Just more beauty of Ned Yost
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Torre did it when the Yankees were winning though...
At least I think that was Tim’s point – going to a closer in the 8th of a tie game. It’s rare to see a team go to its closer in a tie game in the 8th inning.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Certainly...
When you are not the home team this is unorthodoxed. But you do see this a lot if you are the home team…maybe not in the 8th as much but definately the 9th/10th
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
Hawkins kind of forced Cooper's hand
by getting thrown out of the game in the 8th.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
TLR
has been doing that a lot this year with Franklin
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
But mostly
when the birds have lead
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
Two things
Where did Soriano’s homerun land? From the highlight, it looked (and sounded) like it hit the camera shack just beyond the lounge in center field.
This should be the video highlight of Hawkins getting tossed. Aramis’ facial expression is priceless, he looks completely confused.
Great win last night, let’s keep it going today!
gwood - July 28, 2009
Hit the roof of the lounge...
Not the camera shack that Sammy hit in ’03.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
It bounced off the top of the batter's eye restaurant.
Almost the same spot where Carlos Lee’s homer landed.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
The sound
it made was pretty neat. You can hear it on the replay, just a loud clank off metal.
gwood - July 28, 2009
I think if you put that ejection video together you see this
tale the replay from the end. The ump comes out from behind the plte and says “No more, I’m not gonna listen to this.” Then cut back to the beginning of the video, and you see Hawkins make a gesture with his hand as if to say “get back behind the plate”. That was it.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
Yeah
I think it was the gesture that got him.
Villeslgr - July 28, 2009
A lot of positives from last night...
Great win, Stevens looks really good, Z was solid (needs to cut down on walks), Lee continuing to stay hot, good Marmol is back… well worth staying up for.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Yet the game threads were almost unbearable
I don’t know why I subject myself to the threads anymore. Listening to Santo geez and moan is my torture of choice now.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
They were up and down...
People were probably just tired.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
200+ posts about Fonty's bunt attempt is *not* up-and-down
It’s ridiculously obsessive. I’m just glad the game went a few innings longer so that people found other things to talk about. Eventually.
Clutch16 - July 28, 2009 via mobile
Weee
My freshman year on the JV team for my high school I was up with a runner on third, tie game in the 7th (last inning). Coach called for a suicide squeeze. I missed it completely, but so did the catcher and we won the game.
Devin B - July 28, 2009
and if Fontenot puts the ball safely in play, he's the hero of the day
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
You are so right, Clutch
I was away for a few weeks, so I was hoping the little roll the Cubs have gotten on would make things a bit sweeter around here on the game threads. If anything, it seems worse.
I didn’t realize there were so many miserable people in the world.
Not Bruce Froemming - July 28, 2009
I don't know
I found some cool stuff on eBay while the Astros batted even if I did not buy anything. Must buy a bottle of Baileys to keep in the house for the next one like this.
Doggie Stalker - July 28, 2009
though Z had 4 walks, his WHIP was 1.00 for the 7 innings (3 hits). A couple of the walks were
guys he gave up on or he worked around (C Lee once). I think he did just fine. What starter would not take a 1.00 WHIP every time?
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Great finish to a very well pitched game
The bullpen really showed up despite argueablely the two most reliable guys not pitching.
The real lesson of last night, and this hot streak in general, is that Alfonso Soriano is extrememly important to this team. It may kill some a bit on the inside when he plays, but this Cubs team is built around two offensive players- Soriano and Aramis. Not one-both. So give the Sam Fuld stuff a break and embrace Soriano because like it or not he is key to any success regular or postseason.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
I agree they need Sori and do depend on Aramis
But this year I think you have to include Lee in there, no matter what his spot in the order is.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
You know I've been debating that
Lee clearly plays a huge role in the offense, especially this year. If he got injured we would be in trouble, but I feel we are best prepared offensively and defensively to sustain Lee’s injury before Soriano and Aramis.
I’m gonna have to work on a theory for Derrek Lee’s part of this offense.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Finally
Finally this season is becoming fun. Up until now there’s been too much angst and hair pulling and eh gaadsooks.
I think we’re in for some fun in the second half.
I want to know what you all think to the question proposed to me last night by a friend “How are the Cubs doing?”
I answered “Better but this season to this point has been a disappointment, most of us thought they’d do better but they’ve been hit with a trainload of injuries”
puckishcubsfan - July 28, 2009
I hope this rollercaster gets stuck going up
with only a few small dips and drops along the way.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
started getting fun
when the cardinals front office started panicking
tim815 - July 28, 2009
I try to avoid blaming injuries
though its definitely a factor, but when people ask, I usually say the truth; They’ve been playing bad.
I think we are finally seeing the “TEAM” come together the way Lou and Hendry may have envisioned it. I’m still curious how they tweak the team if at all, by the end of this week.
tony412 - July 28, 2009
I never thought
that with 9 guys on a team, one guy (Ramirez) could have such a huge impact. But since the All-star break (approx. return of Ramirez), the Cubs are 3rd (in the NL) in OPS, 3rd in runs scored, and 4th in OBP. All while maintaining the 3rd best ERA in the NL and best BA against.
I am surprised that in such a TEAM oriented game that one guy could have such a major impact.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Aramis has the same impact that Soriano has
2008 during Soriano injury- 16-18 .267 BA 4.4 Runs 9.2 hits
Aramis during Soriano injury- .207/.272/.446 8 HR 23 RBI
2009 during Aramis injury- 24-26 .247 BA 3.9 Runs 8.5 hits
Soriano during Aramis injury- .200/.259/.325 5 HR 14 RBI
Keep in mind how many players on the 2008 team were playing out of their minds- specfically Jim Edmonds in June that year, and how under performing many players have been this year.
Both guys have about equal impact with a prolonged absence from the lineup, it isn’t one guy its both. Thats how this team was built.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
I think this suggests that when a big bat goes down, the rest of the team presses.
And I’d further suggest that implies poor managing.
DGU - July 28, 2009
so you suggest Lou obtaining an RX for medical marijuana so the team would relax?
short of that, what could Lou do to get the team to stop pressing? this comment is as crazy as bloggers blaming Lou for Fonty executing bad fundamentals on that squeeze last night. The third baseman was so far back that anything in play scores Bradley. Everyone wants to blame Lou when it often just comes down to players executing—period.
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
You don't think a manager has any effect
on the atmosphere of a clubhouse?
Perhaps I’m daft, here, but it sounds like you are discounting the whole notion of leadership.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Nice use of
‘daft.’ A very underutilized word if you ask me.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Just limited to the British
vonde6 - July 28, 2009
I suppose my point was
that i am surprised that one player’s absence has such a profound effect on a nine player lineup. Whether the missing player is Soriano or Ramirez, as your stats aptly point out, I didn’t think that one player could/would have such a huge effect on the remainder of the team’s ability to perform.
In football or basketball, one player going down can and does have a great effect because the remaining players rely on the injured player to get the ball, catch the ball, etc. Baseball isn’t the same in that respect. Soriano’s ability to hit the ball, catch the ball, etc. doesn’t depend on Ramirez’s ability to hit the ball, catch the ball, etc, so the direct cause an effect isn’t there like it is in other sports.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Yeah I agree with you
Missing one player shouldn’t make such a difference. As DGU pointed out it probably has a lot to do with the other players pressing (didn’t bother Edmonds in 2008 or DLee this year though) and that probably is partially Lou’s fault.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Agree
about the manager’s responsibility. It is the manager’s job to get the most out of his players and put the players he has into positions where they can succeed. Lou failed at that while Ramirez was out.
gwood - July 28, 2009
and that has a lot to do with Lou crying about the injury
He sits in the press room for 2 months lamenting the loss of ramirez and using it as a crutch instead of moving on and getting the job done without him.
You can’t expect the team to be confident when their manager sits around and cries about losing one player.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
I agree Lou didn't help the situation and that had an impact
But these are professional players being paid a huge amount of money for their skill and I sure blame them as well. The whole team stopped hitting besides Lee, and they weren’t b players on a small market team that you would expect to struggle without one star.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Great thing about this win
Was that I feel like whenever Wandy Rodriguez pitches, Cubs usually don’t win the game. I came in watching tonight thinking well if they lose this one they can still win the next 3.
I have no doubt with this momentum and the hot streak they got going now that the Cubs can sweep the Astros. Can you imagine how great that would be to truly separate themselves from Astros and Brewers by the weekend?
ak123 - July 28, 2009
I feel bad
I feel bad for the guy. Can you imagine walking through life named Wandy?
puckishcubsfan - July 28, 2009
it's a nickname
his full name is Wandolomew.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
Phew...
Much better. : /
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
he's a
Waug, you see. He’s his own best friend.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
Zambrano
Really impressed with his outing last night. Carlos Lee always kills the Cubs so you just have to shrug your shoulders. I was initally worried he might come unraveled after that point but he really kept his composure. Good see Big Z pitching like an ace.
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
+1
Z stepped up when they needed him and the Granny sorta made him lost in the shuffle last night. He deserves some love for pitching a great game. When your starters pick up the slack with a few being injured it takes the pressure off the injured guy and they can come back when they are ready. It’s worked that way so far and I hope it continues with Lilly.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
hahah granny
I was wondering who got nicknamed The Granny
tony412 - July 28, 2009
Some of the boards were complaining about the game.
It’s baseball people. I’d rather see a 1-1 game go into the 13th than a 9-3 blowout, but maybe that’s just me.
dtpollitt - July 28, 2009
I agree
throw in a pitcher’s duel with some great defensive plays and that is a great game in my mind.
gwood - July 28, 2009
+1 Dan,
I was on the edge of my seat despite being extremely tired by the end of that game, it was a great battle. Blowouts get boring, even when it’s the good guys winning. It’s fun to watch the rally but after that, zzzz…….
Fonzie2178 - July 28, 2009
It was a terrific game...
… lots of tense situations, some excellent defense, great relief pitching.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
How about Jeff Stevens?
Sitting in my recliner, he looked awesome. Aggressive, attacking, great movement, speed ….everything you look for in a reliever. Could he be a key to our future in the pen? If he keeps this up, I think so.
mrcubsfan - July 28, 2009
I was really impressed
with Stevens. Great outing, if he keeps it up he will be a great addition to the pen.
Fonzie2178 - July 28, 2009
Agreed.
Stevens has a good arm and Lou likes him. That should be enough to keep him around a while.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Yet with the roster move I could see Jim and Lou sending him down just because he pitched 1 and 2/3 innings last night.
I hope I am wrong and lou does seem to like him based on his post game comments
MandMexpress12 - July 28, 2009
I suspect Berg gets sent down for Dempster.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
I thought Stevens would've been with the big club a lot sooner this year
Especially given our poor bullpen performances in certain stretches.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Glad to see Part of
the DeRosa deal contribute this year,
Fishbone2 - July 28, 2009
Would love to see Stevens
KO DeRosa the next time we play that team.
I can just see Hendry now with a smug ‘I told you so’ look on his face on the day that happens.
JFCubFan - July 28, 2009
You're comment makes me think of this
I don’t think Stevens has this in him :P
gwood - July 28, 2009
Don't mess with Farns!
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
he's one of the guys
we got for DeRosa, right?
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
You
are right
gwood - July 28, 2009
upside to that trade
already.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
Couple that with Gaub's performance thus far.
Gaub looks filthy in the minors. 8 games in AAA with a 0.87 ERA, 2:1 K/BB ratio, 7 K/9. Could be a lefty in the ’pen for the next few years.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
Gaub in AA:
26 appearances, 12.6 K/9 (!), 2.83 ERA
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
The trade
is looking better and better everyday now [that we have Ramirez back from his injury].
gwood - July 28, 2009
Oh hindsight.
If it was up to everyone here, we’d have cut Lee in May, traded everybody and anybody for DeRo, and benched Sori in early July.
And now look where we are.
I really do sometimes wonder if the reactionary nature of the internet is healthy. Not just BCB, but in general. Things that used to take extended periods of time to digest are now pondered, written about (and then that writing is analyzed) and left behind in moments.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Reactionary??? Who the hell are you calling reactionary???
(pauses and takes another swig from brown paper bag encased 40 oz bottle…)
heh, heh, heh…
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
how's the bathtub gin
i hope it isn’t rubbing alcohol
tim815 - July 28, 2009
It is an interesting question.
I think the advent of television had the same effect on the world (the most obvious examples are in war and politics); but the internet (along with 24-hour cable news) really heightens the negative aspects.
C’est la vie. We’re stuck with it, alas.
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
The greater picture aside...
… i think this site gives fans a place to get together and panic, each reading and being convinced by the other. The opinions are less informed, more poorly researched, and often with more baggage. I don’t pine for the days of the newspapers, but at least there was some standard for the words in front of your eyes then.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Now now
Blou has not posted about a game in 5 days so much of that kind of posting is gone. Even Worf is being nice..
Doggie Stalker - July 28, 2009
Everything is good now.
Its easy to be nice. :-)
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
The internet breeds
the reactionary nature because immediate venting is possible. With the newspaper, the author had to sit on his opinion for a number of hours, so he had time to cool off and likely temper his opinion, or at least temper how he expresses his opinion. With the internet, there isn’t much time between thought and that thoughts posting on sites such as this one. In a lot of cases, if people would simply close their eyes and count to ten before posting, it would likely temper some of the panic.
gwood - July 28, 2009
I'm just glad the GMs don't listen to us all of the time
See this FanPost
gwood - July 28, 2009
I'm glad they never listen to us.
willie mays hayes' gloves - July 28, 2009
he can't be good
he came over in the dero trade. he must suck, or the trade wasn’t a complete waste.
chuckle.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
I really like...
…how he worked fast. You know the fielders behind him appreciate him keeping the game moving. He didn’t waste any time between pitches, which I think is great for a pitcher.
Chadnudj - July 28, 2009
Well
I disagree in part. Stevens’ fastball is pretty straight but it’s pretty apparent that he’s difficult to pick up. He’s got an easy motion and then the ball is on you. Seeing major league hitters continually blown away upstairs shows that they aren’t picking it up out of his hand. His curveball has some downward tilt to it although he’ll need to throw it for strikes a little bit more. He was good last night for sure.
krummy12 - July 28, 2009
I agree with this
It seemed he was very tricky to pick up but once hitters got an idea of the speed of the fastball he got teed off on a couple of times. His curve does have some really good snap but it didn’t seem like it enticed hitters to swing at it when it wasn’t a strike.
However, I loved his aggressiveness and hopefully he continues to get good results.
Wad - July 28, 2009
Yeah, this sounds about right to me, too.
It was great to see all the Ks, but when Stevens got hit, he got hit very hard. Tejada especially really ripped that double into left. I read one of Harry Pavlidis’ Pitch F/X studies of Stevens recently and one of his weaknesses is not enough movement on his fastball. Let’s hope it’s something he can work on.
daver - July 28, 2009
It was a 3-1 pitch to Tejada, too.
Miguel was sitting on the fastball, me thinks. At least he didn’t elevate it too much.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
And we won
which makes it even better!
JFCubFan - July 28, 2009
It was a terrific game to watch, and despite the failure to get a run over for a number of innings
I just never had the feeling the Cubs would lose the game. Maybe that would have changed if they didn’t score in the 13th…but it just felt like they would break through even after the failed squeeze.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
I just want a win...
Whatever it takes.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
As long as I take my blood pressure pills
( which I have been doing) I love games like last night. Especially after last Wed in Philly.
Doggie Stalker - July 28, 2009
1961
As an old-timer, I remember seeing Al Heist hit a “walk off” granny against the Braves on a rainy Saturday in April 1961. It came a day after Sammy Taylor hit a two run “walk off” .
KedzieKid - July 28, 2009
Lou
Lou gave some kudos to Fox for his work behind the plate. Maybe he’ll get the start on Wed. with the day after night game scenario.
KedzieKid - July 28, 2009
How
many innings did Fox catch last night?
gwood - July 28, 2009
Came in the top of the 10th
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
You could tell
he was trying hard to get down and block anything close to the dirt. Instead of starting him, let him catch the last 4-5 innings.
mrcubsfan - July 28, 2009
Keep in mind, there are only two catchers on the roster
Starting Hill and replacing him with Fox in the 4th or 5th just for the sake of replacing him may come back to bite the Cubs if Fox goes down.
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
Agree with you there...Lou has been reluctant to start Fox obviously
So if you do put Fox in, much better to start him in case he does get injured…or has some trouble, either way you have Hill as an option plus you’ve given Hill some rest.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
But, if you start Fox at another position (RF, 3B, 1B)
And start Hill behind the plate… you’re still insured in case anything happens to Hill, cause Fox can move behind the plate.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I agree with you Sack,
But since Lou isn’t going to rest Lee, Rammy, or even MB that often it seems, it shouldn’t create a conflict with starting Fox behind the plate. Which only adds to my puzzlement Lou hasn’t gotten Fox into games more after saying we gotta get his bat in there.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Well... Fox started for DLee the other day (neck spasm).
And, he could start for either Hill or ARam on Wednesday (day game after a night game).
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Plus... MB has been getting plenty of days off (which is a whole other topic).
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Really I don't see a reason he doesn't get some starts here
He’s shown he can do it, and imagine his bat in the lineup instead of Hill.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
At least vs. LHP.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Could Lou
have stuck Fox somewhere else other than right in the front of the pitcher. By placing Fox directly in front of the pitcher, his big bat was neutralized in extras. If he had a choice, it would seem to be a poor choice to neutralize a bat that can win it with one swing.
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
Not really LHP.
His splits—small sample to be sure—suggest he hits righties better than lefties.
He did look a little befuddled by some of Stevens’ stuff. Would hate to see him catching Marmol very much.
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
His splits are little stronger vs RHP
Jake Fox
vs. Left 26 ABs | 8 RBI | .269 AVG |.300 OBP | .538 SLG | .838 OPS
vs. Right 66 AB | 13 RBI | .333 | .378 OBP | .576 SLG | .954 OPS
At any rate, why does is continue to take “accidents” to discover that Jake Fox can play adequately enough in the field anywhere we put him…. to get that RBI machine in the line-up?
SackMan - July 28, 2009
That's the troubling question.
The guy can hit (now whether that holds up for the rest of the season or into 2010 is unknown), but right now, he’s an asset to the Cubs when he is in the lineup.
I think he’s shown himself to be a hard worker, who given a chance to play, will make the most of the opportunity.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Lou constantly says "we gotta get this guy's bat in the line-up."
And, Fox constantly rides the bench… and watches Hoffpauir or Fontenot get called upon to pinch hit in key situations.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
That's what happens when he's the backup catcher.
Do you really want to see Randy Wells back there?
mykalmorgan - July 28, 2009
And that's total mis-management of the roster.
Get a friggin back-up catcher already. You’ve got two roster spots open. And, if you desperately need to open a spot up later, you can DFA someone you’re not using anyway.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Sorry to be the Debbie Downer
but he did not have to throw a runner out last night. I think the dumbest things the Astros did was sacrifice Bourn. I mean you have
maybe the fastest guy in baseball and you waste and out without trying the arm of a guy who has not had to throw out a runner in two years. Fox was fine last night but I think guys will run all over him if they have the chance.
Doggie Stalker - July 28, 2009
Might as well find out.
Houston has one guy who can run – Bourne (and maybe Matsui). They are probably the best team on the upcoming schedule for Fox to catch against.
I agree, I was shocked they at least didn’t attempt a steal with Bourne. But if Cecil Cooper wants to give away an out, I’ll take it.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Yeah, I'm surprised they didn't run on Fox, too.
Otherwise, he looked good enough to merit a start – or at least most of a game so Koyie can catch a breather and, oh yeah, we can get Jake’s bat into the lineup! Also, as Trey points, Bourne is really the only speed thread on that team. Maybe Matsui.
daver - July 28, 2009
Remember that game a few years back
where – I forget the team- Matt LeCroy was absolutely embarassed catching for the Nats?
DGU - July 28, 2009
I felt bad for him.
I’ll never forget how Frank Robinson cried during the post-game interview, he was that upset. He hated to take him out during the inning but didn’t really have a choice.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
I remember one
last year or the year before where the Red Sox let Wakefield’s personal catcher go, only to have to immediately trade for him because the replacement couldn’t catch Wakefield’s knuckleball to save his life. That catcher had a significant number of passed balls in one game as well.
gwood - July 28, 2009
Mirabelli and Bard
Mirabelli was traded away, and then reacquired when Bard couldn’t catch the knuckler.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Thank you
I could not remember their names for the life of me
gwood - July 28, 2009
totally agree.
maybe we can highlight this remark for the blogger who commented that Cecil “totally ran circles around Lou” last night when it came to managing. Let’s not let facts get in the way of opinions. ;-)
As for Fox, he did do his job. maybe Houston fears his gun. :-))
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Fox did a solid job back there.
I will continue to maintain that he could spell Hill for a game and not cost the Cubs a game. It’s worth getting his bat in the lineup.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Yah
I completely agree he should be spelling Hill on a regular basis, even though I enjoy watching Hill gun down guys like Bourne.
He dropped a couple of strikes that hit him square in the glove which makes me wonder if he could catch Marmol effectively, but thats not really an issue if he started the game as we could always bring Hill in if we had the lead late.
Wad - July 28, 2009
Right.
I’m all for using Hill as a defensive replacement late, and Lou has subbed for Fox late in games when the Cubs are ahead already.
I was surprised Houston didn’t try and run on Fox last night when Bourne led off the 13th with a single, but I won’t complain.
Fox isn’t going to embarrass the Cubs behind the plate. And trading Hill’s defense for Fox’s offense 1 out of 4 or 5 games isn’t going to kill the team.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Agreed
I thought for sure Houston would run on him. They have to make him prove he can throw someone out don’t they?
Exactly as you said though, I won’t complain either.
Wad - July 28, 2009
You would think.
Bourne (and maybe Matsui) are the only guys on that team I’d be worried about stealing a base. If Fox is catching, maybe the pitcher throws over more or maybe they go to the slide step more.
I agree, the Cubs would take a step back defensively, but I don’t think it’s a giant leap backwards, as has been suggested.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Thats a solid point
In that Houston isn’t a speedy team and would probably limit Fox’s lack of defensive skills while catching. It would at least give us an idea of how capable he is back there.
He really doesn’t look like a catcher when he returns the ball to the pitcher with that side arm toss of his and he stands up a lot more than other catchers after pitches. Its kind of funny. I did really enjoy him having a laugh after he had to throw Pence out when he dropped stevens curve ball. He is just happy to be playing, which is awesome.
Wad - July 28, 2009
He's had almost 2 years off from catching.
So there’s going to be some rust there, no doubt. But I think he’s proven to be a hard worker regardless of position, which will enable him to improve each time behind the plate – he’s been catching since he was 8, so the skills are still there, I’m sure.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
I agree
I didn’t mean to sound like I was ragging on him for not looking like a catcher, because I think he can be effective behind the plate.
I think we are both on the same page on how we would like to see fox used and in agreement on how well he could play the position.
Wad - July 28, 2009
Yeah, we're in agreement.
He’s not Koyie Hill defensively, but then again, Koyie Hill isn’t Jake Fox offensively.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
Just find a way to get him on the field more often than not please.
What so hard about it? Your RFer is seemingly taking every 3rd or 4th day off anyway. Your 3rd baseman is still working his way back from injury and could use a rest in a day game after night game (Wednesday). And, your catcher has caught the last 15 games or so, including a double header.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I don't necessarily advocate him starting behind the plate.
But, for god sakes…. use the friggin guy somehow on a daily basis. And get a friggin backup catcher on the roster so you’re not handicapped.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I agree they need to get him in there and see if he can catch a whole game, his bat making up for any weakness catching
Add to that the comments Lou made about his bat. He may be the only replacement catcher, but you gotta get him in there like Lou said, so why not do it with Hill available as a sub? If he makes big mistakes, put Hill back in. Frustrates me when Lou says one thing and does the other…maybe its good strategy before a playoff game but during the middle of the season it’s just waffling to me.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Big big win...
They get the win in a game against a guy (Rodriguez) who has consistently given the Cubs problems. And it sets up nicely for the rest of the series. Had the Cubs lost the opener, tonight’s game against Oswalt becomes much more important. If we lose the first two, we’re clawing for a split. Now, if we happen to lose tonight, there’s still a good shot at winning 3 of 4, and a a really good chance of at least a split.
And of course if we win tonight, it means we’ll have beaten their two best pitchers to open the series and have a shot at the sweep!
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
I hate Roy Oswalt
after he plunked DLee a few years ago at the end of the season when he was at the end of hte game. I thought he was a chicken shit. Anyhow, he has been an extremely hot pitcher lately, we’ll have to scrape again tonight to beat him.
mrcubsfan - July 28, 2009
Hawkins on the ejection...
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bb/6550130.html
kaseyi - July 28, 2009
Well
that last sentence will certainly cost him…
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
Nice to see he hasn't changed. Blame the umpires for your failure.
Rick B - July 28, 2009
I was thinking the same thing
kaseyi - July 28, 2009
LaTroy needs a big helping of
STFU.
thermal54 - July 28, 2009
Agreed.
As earlier mentioned, he jawed at the umpire who clearly warned him, then waved his glove at the ump and said something like said ump wasn’t worth his time to listen to. Both got him ejected. Hawkins always liked to blame his idiocy on everyone else but himself.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
you can't do his job.
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
So we've heard.
Blue W - July 28, 2009
But he CAN do yours
nji232 - July 28, 2009
I really doubt that.
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
But do you think he could tell your boss to STFU and then get ejected?!
Blue W - July 28, 2009
Surprised he didn't call "racism"
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
What?
Bildo1805 - July 28, 2009
Wow.
Wreckard - July 28, 2009
Yeah, that last sentence...wow.
daver - July 28, 2009
why do I think the exchange was not as calm as,
LaToya, “Come on, I need that pitch.”
Man in black, “Knock it off.”
Somehow or another I think there was some mention of mothers of sexual intercourse thrown in (or both). You don’t get a quick trigger for such calm chatter from 60 feet apart.
My guess is LaToya said something that rhymed with “pitch” and the ump said something different before the word “off.”
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
LaToya
FTW
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
i like
LaTrine as well.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
High point of last nights game thread...
… i was in a hospital waiting room and had a TV but no audio… the ejection made no sense to me. Clutch16 explained it as such:
Classic.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
I realize I'm thick, and the other abbreviations are easy to figure out..
But I saw ORLY last night and still don’t know what it means. I thought Oh Really…would start it off and couldn’t get beyond that.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
you got it right
it comes from the ORLY owl macro image. Google it.
false cognate - July 28, 2009
Thanks...
Never would have guessed Oh Really was all it was. Makes sense given what happened, guess I always expect bad language…though I’m sure Hawkins made up for it after getting tossed.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
ORLY?
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
I-Rod's...
reaction there is weird. Is he half-heartedly trying to block the umpire or something?
CubsWin!Oregon - July 28, 2009
I think so.
He was probably trying say something like, “Hold on, hold on…lemme talk to him.”
TOO LATE.
daver - July 28, 2009
yeah
thats my theory too
Allie - July 28, 2009
It does look that way.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
BTW, I-Rod should have been tossed for touching the ump too!
let’s get the tape to the league office!!
…maybe the ump liked where he was touched (inner thigh). :-)
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
if you're going to plunk guys for actions after their homers, there are going to be an awful lot of guys getting hit. Soriano pointed at his family. Carlos Lee pointed at the fans behind home plate end yelled at them when he crosse home plate.
Rick B - July 28, 2009
There doesn't need to be a plunking
Because I remember the Astros celebrating some walk off wins too.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
soriano also did the John Cena
taunt from wresting
fischisgod - July 28, 2009
To his own teammates
JohnM - July 28, 2009
They looked furious about it...
Even got a pie in the face for it.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Payback.
daver - July 28, 2009
That b^%#h!
Shanghai Badger - July 28, 2009
Both bullpens are depleted.
I seriously doubt Sori will get a purpose pitch tonight any time before the 6th inning, if at all. Oswalt can’t risk getting tossed early.
Clutch16 - July 28, 2009 via mobile
+1
The Cubs may have Guzman and Gregg, but they don’t want to use Gregg more than one inning, and I doubt more than 2 for Guzman…which will bring problems for an extra inning game. The Stros are in a similar situation and I doubt either club will want their starter out until the 7th at the earliest.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Marshall only threw 3 pitches last night.
Fishbone2 - July 28, 2009
+1
Lou doesn’t seem to realize he’s capable of pitching for more than a few batters, lefty or not. In games that go to extras, I would like to see him for 2 innings almost every time.
madcow256 - July 28, 2009
Hindsight, I'm kind of glad he only used him for 3 pitches.
Who knows what they’re gonna get out of Demp tonight. I’m glad Marshall can be used for a couple innings tonight if need be and if Lou will allow him to.
Fishbone2 - July 28, 2009
I'm glad because we won the game
Had we lost when the Shark was pitching 2 innings for us, I’d probably be livid that we saved Marshall. Winning tends to vindicate a lot of questionable decisions that could have gone either way.
madcow256 - July 28, 2009
only if yewsten
bats 6 lefties in a row
tim815 - July 28, 2009
Ha, right
It was so convenient when those teams we played against put out their all-lefty lineups so Lou could afford to make him the starter.
madcow256 - July 28, 2009
Marshall says:
tony412 - July 28, 2009
I agree.
Cubs can go with Guzman for 2, Marshall for 2 and Gregg for a stressful one. Let’s just hope this one doesn’t go more than 9 or 10 and we can get 5 solid innings out of Dempster. though I was initially unhappy about Marshall being used in a LOOGY role again last night, he is rested and ready to give innings—assuming Lou remembers how to use him that way. :-)
I hope this one is over in 8 1/2!!
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Amen to that!
Can I get a witness?
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
present
gwood - July 28, 2009
WHOOP WHOOP
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Jake Fox
might have caught a huge break in the top of the 10th. Rodriguez swung at a curve ball that Jake was in no position to block. Thankfully he made contact and it didn’t matter.
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
How many times a game could you say that?
I’m betting a lot
nji232 - July 28, 2009
I realize that
That was just an intense moment in the game with a runner at 3rd and no margin for error. Luckily it didn’t matter. Jake made a great play on that wild Spellcheck fastball so overall I think he did a good job
VillanuevaExperience - July 28, 2009
That one scared the crap out of me
Glad Jake had the instinct to just toss the mitt up there and snag it, or that ball is easily into the bricks.
Clutch16 - July 28, 2009 via mobile
I truly think
that if Jake hadn’t caught that pitch, Bourn would have scored all the way from second.
MOCubsfan - July 28, 2009
I think...
He did fine. He saved a ball that almost sailed way over his head, luckily he was able to snag it.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
Agree and dont forget he was catching for two rookies as well...(essentially)
…under the circumstances Fox did a great job last night.
JB 23 - July 28, 2009
every catcher
has pitches they don’t block. Sounds like Fox did fine.
drewishdrewid - July 28, 2009
I thought he was in pretty good position
If we are talking about the same pitch anyways, Brenly even stated that fox was getting ready to block the pitch before it was fouled off.
Jake’s head was down looking at the ball, arms at his sides (no gaps between his arms and torso), glove in the five hole, looked almost like he was replicating something he has been working very hard on lately.
Wad - July 28, 2009
Great win.
I was really impressed with the Cubs overall last night. Z looked terrific and kept his composure throughout. The bullpen, especially Stevens, who had 4 innings under his belt coming into last night, I thought did a tremendous job. Heilman, Marshall, Shark, the list goes on.
Fox did an admirable job behind the dish as well.
I was lucky enough to be in attendance and I have to say it was one of the best regular season games I have been to. Just an electric atmosphere and a well played game by both teams.
Hopefully the Cubs can get to Oswalt tonight and Dempster looks sharp coming off the DL.
Tangled Up In Blue - July 28, 2009
Question for those who are good at working with stats
Is there a way on baseball reference or any other site to sort stats from a specific year on?
Example: I want to see who has the best ERA in the AL since 2002, or something like that.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Last Walkoff GS by a Cub @ Wrigley
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN199308300.shtml
Was by Rick Wilkins in 1993 vs. the Phillies. Funny, he was 0-5 before his hit, too.
carmen_fanzone - July 28, 2009
Cool, how'd you find that?
all after 2 outs too.
tony412 - July 28, 2009
Mentioned on Sportscenter...
…that it was Wilkins in 93. I just looked through his game log on BR to find out which game it was.
carmen_fanzone - July 28, 2009
Thanks for finding that.
I had forgotten about that one.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
who goes down today?
or do we dl stevens/heilman?
tim815 - July 28, 2009
I reckon it'll be Berg
but who knows…
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
I'm guessing it will be Shark.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
He'd be best served by working in Des Moines the rest of the year
but again, who knows? After last night’s “little goof,” it could be Fontenot. Maybe Baker or Blanco. It’s an interesting tidbit for today.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
It won't be a position player.
The Cubs won’t carry 13 pitchers.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Correct...
It almost has to be Berg. Aside from him, we’re at the point where Piniella will sort of use all of his relievers (though Stevens appears to be moving toward Patton status).
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
What a bummer that would be for Berg,
to be called up and not get to make your MLB debut.
Hopefully, if he does get sent down, he’ll be back in September.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
Could be any of Samardzija, Berg, or Stevens...
I’d say Berg is the most likely, since he was just called up. But it depends on whether they want to keep Samardzija in the bullpen for the rest of the year or send him down to work on his pitches as a starter.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
TWHA
daver - July 28, 2009
I'd guess it will be stevens
But I’d vote for Heilman every time
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
Mid-AB Ejection
Hey Al,
Not sure, but I think it was either ‘88 or ’89 in the ALCS when the Red Sox and A’s were squaring off, and Clemens got heaved out in the early innings for mouthing some potty words at the plate umpire.
Not 100% sure it was mid-at-bat, but I think it was.
Canadian Cubs Fan - July 28, 2009
That ejection was...
… on October 10, 1990. Clemens had just walked Willie Randolph, so it wasn’t in the middle of an at-bat.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Darn it, Al!
I was just going to post a link to that game!!!!
Vermont Cubs Fan - July 28, 2009
Kevin Gregg
Didn’t Kevin Gregg come in to pitch for one batter? Or was I mistaken…
VicVega - July 28, 2009
Not last night...
The two previous games.
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
If it were groundhog day.... yes.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
He did warm up.
Which surprises me because I thought Lou said once he’s up, he’s coming into the game. Maybe that knee is 100%?
cubswynn - July 28, 2009
You know what I love...
…is the guy in the stands that stands up to boo Sori, says he’s a bum, wants him to be traded blah blah blah….and then is doing the you can’t see me gesture after the walk off.
Props to my sister, 8 months pregnant, who stuck it out all the way through. Baby boy on the way got to see a great game, I’ll be telling him that story when he get’s older!
cubswynn - July 28, 2009
She's a trooper!!
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
Yeah she was 0-2 over the last two seasons.
She wanted to hear Go Cubs Go, REALLY badly. She said baby boy was kicking along with the clapping fans (e.g. “Let’s go Cubbies,” clap clap clap clap).
cubswynn - July 28, 2009
Does anyone know if the Cubs won lastnight?
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
ha! I like this
flachimesa - July 28, 2009
I don't know but Soriano made some bad gestures
To some that is more important.
rlpete - July 28, 2009
I DONT WATCH GAME CUZ I HAZ NO TV, LOL!!!!1!!
daver - July 28, 2009
I LIKE ROY HALLIDAY
tony412 - July 28, 2009
I ♥ PV!!!
kthxbye
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
I ♥ PV 2, LOLZ!!11!!
daver - July 28, 2009
PV 4 MVP
RFOL
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
PV for Prez
ROFLBBQCOPTER
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
No more Houston please...
That’s the 3rd extra inning game in the series on the year… and the 5th walk-off in the series.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Don't we have a roster move to make soon?
Doesn’t David Patton have to be added back from the DL? Who goes down? Spellcheck? Berg?
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I think Patton
can stay on there as long as we want him to stay on there. However, if he starts a rehab assignment he has to be activated within 30 days or something like that… I suspect he will go out on an Rehab assignment on 8/2 and then be part of the expanded rosters on 9/1
TheRiot Police - July 28, 2009
According to Josh's minor league recap
Patton had a rehab start last night. Our roster is getting close to being a cluster F.
We’re using 38 out of 40 spots. And, at some point, BJ Ryan will likely be added. Plus, we’ve presumably been looking for a backup catcher via trade. So, any trade will likely include somebody from our 40-man, I’m guessing.
But, if you DFA someone… that removes them from the 40 man. Even if he doesn’t get picked up by anyone. Correct? So, we can DFA a guy like Chad Fox. Or we can include a guy like Jose Ascanio, Mitch Atkins or Jason Waddell in a trade.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Patton can stay in the minors for 29 more days...
You can only be on rehab assignment for 30 days. I believe that yesterday was Patton’s first day on assignment.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
As for the 40-man roster, yes...
we have 38 spots taken, and Ryan will make 39 when/if he’s brought to the big club. A minor move for a catcher could involve a 40-man guy or not. Any additional trade would probably need to involve someone on the 40-man, or else someone on the 40-man roster would get the ax.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Chad Fox can go on the 60-day DL....
… as soon as he gets enough service time to get to 10 years. Not sure when that will be. Once that happens, that’ll open up a spot.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Also true... although once Fox reaches the service time he can be cut...
I was under the impression that the only reason he’s still around is to get the service time.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
I agree with you.
He could just be cut after that, but the 60-day DL accomplishes the same thing.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Agreed - the only difference is that it adds cost
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Does the service time get him post-career benefits?
Is that what the big deal is?
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Yup
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
10 years of service time
is what a player needs to get their full pension.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
when are his ten years complete?
so we can put him on the 60 day dl
tim815 - July 28, 2009
He was at 9.054 years coming into the season...
I’m not exactly sure how it works, but I believe that that means he had 9 years and 54 days of service time. Don’t know whether that means he needs to last the full season or whether he just needs to last until there are 54 days left in the season.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
thanks for the answer
we can put cotts on the 60 day
tim815 - July 28, 2009
You mean Fox, right?
Cotts is just in AAA now.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Cotts had TJ surgery about a month ago.
He is done for the year and most likely next year too.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
Wow - missed that...
Can you put a guy on the 60-day DL from the minors?
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
OT, kinda
How cool must it be to have a surgery named after you. Well today well will do the SantosWoodLegs surgey, it should add 1-2 MPH on your overall speed, or how about to fix that torn legiment today we will be performing Eric Hannah on you.
Of course the flip side is having a disease named after you, ie Lou Gehrig’s Disease:
I am sorry to inform you that your son is dying from Blou’s Disease, it is a slow rotting of your brain and it manifests with people posting idiotic comments.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
It's my understanding that players earn service time
whether they’re on the 15 or 60 day DL. Is that correct?
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
i'm guessing 15 day yes, 60 day no.
otherwise, teams would 60 day guys right away. i think rickey weeks is on the 15 day.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
Teams can only move players to the 60 day DL
when their 40 man roster is full. This takes the player off the 40 man roster without releasing them.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
Yeah, there's no need for the 60-day DL until your roster is full
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
According to these sites, yes...
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2009/06/service-time.html
http://www.purplerow.com/2009/4/9/827877/mlb-transactions-part-nine-options
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Why are we so loyal to Chad Fox?
Is he Hendry’s brother-in-law or something? Seriously.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
since we are only using up 38 spots right now, what difference does it make?
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
I think SackMan is looking ahead at trade scenarios...
If we add Ryan and another catcher via trade, we’re at the 40-man limit and can’t make any other trades without involving someone on the 40-man roster (either via trade, DFA, or 60-day DL).
Given that the first trade deadline is this Friday, it’s relevant.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Because we paid a manager
who shredded Fox’s arm after he had worked his butt off to get back into the game. Check the pitch counts on these two games, back-to-back games.
DGU - July 28, 2009
In Dusty we Trusty
to ruin pitchers arms.
nji232 - July 28, 2009
Second game link
http://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/CHN/CHN200504250.shtml
madcow256 - July 28, 2009
Thanks -
Double posted the April 24 game. 45 pitches in 24 hours from a guy that had just gotten back from a major injury – and I bet Dusty still doesn’t think he did anything wrong.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Dusty doesn't think.
pitchers are disposal. ask Harang.
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
He is running an experiment
Dusty wants to see how many pitchs it will take for an arm to literally fly off.
gaclaudy - July 28, 2009
Is that similar to this exeriment?
gwood - July 28, 2009
I wish I could find
an updated spreadsheet. I can only find this one with our trades, signings, etc.
http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/files/chicago_cubs_jim_hendry.xls
Anyone know of another?
jthack - July 28, 2009
Al mentioned Ballhawks tweets....
I don’t have twitter but I have a few people who twitter saved in my favorites. I do enjoy looking up Ballhawks tweets. Gives me a snapshot of
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
He said he was "too old" to go after DLee's HR ball last night
He’s really quick-witted.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
but slow-footed...
of course it’s always a great time for a Cubs homer onto Waveland, but Lee’s homer came at a most inopportune time, lighting wise. It was still kind of dusky, twilighty, and the lights had yet not taken full effect.
So Lee smashes it, I can hear Pat & Ron go crazy on the radio, I see and hear fans going crazy in front of me, everyone’s looking up, and I’m scanning the skies back-n-forth, up-n-down. From the angle of fans’ heads, I know it’s right at me, but for the life of me I can’t pick it up.
Finally, I see it, I run up as fast as I can, reach down and try to short-hop it off the asphalt, but it just scoots under my glove and heads down Kenmore. Sigh… I’m like Harry Callahan’s partner in Dirty Harry – “Too much linguini…” ;-)
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
Thanks for sharing your adventures with us Ken
and I hope you catch 12 or 13 Cubs HR balls tonight. I’ll be following.
chilango2 - July 28, 2009
Damn...so close.
daver - July 28, 2009
I heard last night
Carlos Lee is 3 away from 300
tony412 - July 28, 2009
Uh oh. Let's hope he's not celebrating that milestone this series.
daver - July 28, 2009
Let's hope he celebrates 298 on Friday
299 on Saturday
and 300 on Sunday
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Heck, let him celebrate all of them in the same game.
as long as he hits them all after he leaves town.
Blue W - July 28, 2009
He'll be on his way to St Louis Thursday evening
Let him hit all 3 there!
SackMan - July 28, 2009
Bet that hop from the Granny of Sori's ball off the restaurant woulda been murder to catch
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
I'm thinking ballhawk's description....
…..might be pretty similar to what goes on in Adam’s Dunn’s mind on a fly ball…
Yep, almost exactly…LOL
carmen_fanzone - July 28, 2009
well, we're both left-handed...
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
something I'd otherwisxe never be a part of
Madison Cub Fan - July 28, 2009
That was one long fantastic game.
The pitching was great and Soriano hitting the GS was a perfect ending. Keep the streak going Cubs!!!
sue369 - July 28, 2009
Walk-off style
Sori is on his way back; good for the rest of the lineup. Now let’s get Soto and Lilly back soon, and this team will hit its “real” stride.
Ivan DeJesus- I loved watching this guy play way back when.
propheteer - July 28, 2009
Well, I would have bet my next home run ball that Fox would be starting at catcher tomorrow (Wed)
but now that he’s seen some action, I’m not so sure. Maybe Lou played him enough last night to placate the masses and/or media. Still…
Lefty on the mound for Houston, day game after a night game, and I think Wells is going for us, i.e. someone Fox has caught before, albeit in minors. Sounds like a perfect time for Fox to start, get a good 6-7 innings in behind the plate and then sub in Hill if the situation calls for it.
ballhawk - July 28, 2009
Too much sense. It hurts.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Why it's like...it's like...the perfect storm.
daver - July 28, 2009
Day game after night game.... sounds perfect.
Or, he can start at 3B for A-Ram on Wednesday as well.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
He could always start at catcher
and then replace Rami at 3rd just in case he needs to go back behind the plate later. That way Rami gets some rest too.
gwood - July 28, 2009
From your keyboard to Piniella's lineup card, por favor.
Bill Potter - July 28, 2009
I wouldn't be surprised if Sori got plunked by Oswalt today
The Astros probably won’t take kindly to his showboating.
Ace Venom - July 28, 2009
I won't be surprised if another 100 people bring this up
WanderingWanderer - July 28, 2009
Bring what up?
Blue W - July 28, 2009
that he might get plunked by Oswalt for "Showboating"
between this thread, and fanposts, it’s been said about 600 times
WanderingWanderer - July 28, 2009
I wouldn't be surprised if people say things like this to try to shut me up
“Oh no! It can only be said once and if someone else says it, use sarcasm to shut him up.”
That doesn’t work with me. You’re only going to encourage me to do things like this on purpose now.
Ace Venom - July 28, 2009
It's your right and I don't think anyone should be blamed for posting an opinion...
But that doesn’t stop it from getting beat to death at all.
Sandberg's evil twin - July 28, 2009
I wouldn't be surprised if Sori got plunked by Oswalt today
digitalbenjamin - July 28, 2009
and then gets EEEJECTED
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
I wouldn't be surprised if Sori got plunked by Oswalt today
…and not all of us spend 24/7 on this blog. People get too wound up on these little things. It’s the internet.
Ace Venom - July 28, 2009
Five win streak and in first place.
Where the fuck is Blou?
xene - July 28, 2009
He's waiting for the next rough patch to tell us this team is mediocre.
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
Sometimes real life intervenes, you know...
He’s been defending his position all they way through this winning streak. It can be annoying, but I don’t see him running away from the fight.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Defending it WHERE?
His position (this team sucks and should rebuilt) is now indefensible. And i haven’t seen him around.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
I don't agree with his arguments at all.
But it’s not as if he’s backed off on them. I believe you can find them restated here even after we moved into 1st place.
I’ll defend someone’s right to have a wrong opinion and I’ll defend someone’s right to take a few days off defending that opinion on-line.
DGU - July 28, 2009
Well said...
one of my least favorite things is when someone comes on a message board asking for someone to apologize for having an opinion.
Granted, I think BLou should apologize for the approach he uses to express that opinion. But he has every right to voice that opinion. And he has every right to not post immediate responses if life dictates.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
Meh...
Since the cubs took first place he’s commented like 15 times. That s a slow afternoon for the dude if the team is playing poorly. And of those comments, only this one seems to stick to his standard “Cubs suck, cards will win the division, blah blah blah time to rebuild, blah blah blah pound sand, Hendry is garbage, blah blah blah” line. Xene and SWL’s point sticks… he relishes in the teams failure, and disappears during its success.
I too defend his right to his opinion, but i detest the way he communicates it. Being a jerk to everybody and then disappearing when your predictions aren’t playing out isn’t any way to convince us.
If he has other things going on in his life, than i hope the best for him. He does seem to be an intelligent guy with something interesting to add when his hostile attitude doesn’t trip him up, and i look forward to debating with him again… hopefully with the cubs still proving him wrong.
AndrewJStone - July 28, 2009
Telling everyone on
WCG that the season is over b/c Tillman had back surgery.
Allie - July 28, 2009
BLou has turned back into a pumpkin.
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
that pumpkin will win its division by 5 games
at least
tim815 - July 28, 2009
or only win 79 games- take your pick...
Zeke - July 28, 2009
What if it's both? o.0
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
He may not be able to post here.
He made a comment yesterday that was over the top in a fanpost regarding Milton Bradley.
Al ended up doing something to him, not sure what.
I’m not complaining, you understand.
Vermont Cubs Fan - July 28, 2009
He's not banned...he's around.
santoswoodenlegs - July 28, 2009
No doubt waiting for the Cubs to lose so he can go on his usual rants.
I get tired of hearing him constantly say how bad this team is.
It’s one thing to be upset when your team loses. It’s something else to hope they lose so you can say how bad they are.
Vermont Cubs Fan - July 28, 2009
Don't visit WCG or SCH then.
He loves to hate on the Bears and Hawks whenever he can too.
My favorite was when he suggested Patrick Kane lose a fight and end up injured.
Mike Martin - July 28, 2009
White Sox just traded Brian Anderson to Boston
SackMan - July 28, 2009
I'm not quite sure what the Red Sox are doing.
They’ve traded for Chris Duncan, Alam LaRoche and Brian Anderson.
Don’t they need offense?
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
might be for a bigger trade
they just made an offer for doc halladay
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
The Red Sox have puzzled me since the off-season.
All they did last winter is sign hurt players and for some reason the talking heads thought that was the greatest strategy. Predictably Penny and Smoltz have been pretty bad for the Sox and they’re not exactly making the minimum.
Now, they’re collecting position players that have been awful this year.
The Red Sox seem like a team in trouble, they’re pitching has been shaky and their offense has gone to sleep. They appear to NEED to make a big trade or they’re in danger of not making the playoffs.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
i never understood the smoltz signing
pennys hasnt been good, but he hasnt been awful either
jesus christos - July 28, 2009
I thought the Smoltz signing was a good gamble...
he was really good the last three years prior to the injury. The Red Sox are a huge-market team and could afford to take the gamble. They basically paid $10 million to Penny/Smoltz for a year in hopes that one of the two would be a solid starter for them, with the hopes that one of the two would turn out to be awesome.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
With the bargains that were available last off-season,
wouldn’t it have made more sense to take that money and sign a player who wasn’t coming off a serious injury? I an understand taking a flyer on an injured player but not for the money they paid, particularly to Smoltz.
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
A couple of things...
1. I don’t think the money spent for Smoltz was that crazy. $5 million isn’t outlandish for a team with Boston’s budget.
2. There weren’t many/any low-cost guys who could potentially be aces. Smoltz was a guy who was coming off ERAs of 3.06, 3.49, 3.11 and 2.57 (with a season-ending injury early in the season).
Obviously, it hasn’t worked out to this point. But I don’t think it was a bad gamble. If he had come back healthy this year and given them another ace, everyone would be moaning about how they got Smoltz on the cheap.
SouthernCub - July 28, 2009
I think Smoltz would have been a better risk coming off surgery and those ERA's...
… if he were 32 instead of 42.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
Now I'm really confused.
The Re d Sox and White So swapped Brian Anderson and Mark Kotsay.
Why would the White Sox want Mark Kotsay? Is someone hurt?
cowsarecool220 - July 28, 2009
kotsay can hit, but not for power
anderson can’t hit, but will occasionally go deep. also a good glove man.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
Kotsay can't hit.
He has a .615 OPS and a .291 OBA. They’d have been better off keeping Anderson.
Al Yellon - July 28, 2009
now i'm sad
not
tim815 - July 28, 2009
I don't think they particularly wanted him...
Anderson asked to be traded and they obliged
mgrace17 - July 28, 2009
reinforcements for Pawtucket?
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
aren't the six months
just about up on the rich hill deal? he’s deciding if he’s hurt or not. they’re deciding DL or DFA. it’d be nice to get something for him. we should know very soon, correct?
they were trashing our farm system. i thanked them for fontenot.
tim815 - July 28, 2009
OT: Brett Favre staying retired...
For now apparently. Until he shows up the first day of Vikings’ camp…
CubsBullsBears - July 28, 2009
And, tomorrow he'll un-retire right. LOL.
I hope he plays. He’ll make the Vikings worse.
SackMan - July 28, 2009
no surprise.
if you read btwn the lines all summer, the vikings made it clear that they pursued favre to help sell tickets to their new stadium and favre made it clear that his bicep/shoulder was not healing well. this was all a big scam to get tickets sold. nothing more.
As a lifelong Packer fan (who has put up with all this childish behavior from Brett for years), I have said all summer that Favre was not going to sign with Minnesota. I just thought his shoulder was too messed up.
let’s move along now…
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
As a friend of Sage Rosenfels
this makes me happy.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
Did anyone else notice the jawing btween DLee and Big Z after the Carlos Lee home
run? Big Z was pissd off and after he got the come backer, he fired the ball to first at about 95 before DLee even got to the bag. DLee was none too happy and let him hear about it. I suspect you won’t see Big Z do that again.
willie mays hayes' gloves - July 28, 2009
Pat & Ron mentioned it on 720
LAcarl519 - July 28, 2009
Len & Bob did too.
sue369 - July 28, 2009
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