Bleed Cubbie Blue

"Geo love" is SO. LAST. YEAR.

Get with the program girlfriend. Drop the zero and get with the hero.

Talk to the booty cus the hand's off duty?

Craig in South Bend - September 23, 2009 reply

shouldn't that be

drop the geo and get with the hero?

laidbackliam - September 23, 2009 reply

My first born will be named Derrek

Boy or girl, it doesn’t matter.

Well, my next will be Randy!

fairweather lover...

I'm sharing mine now

with Derrek and Ted. ♥

sue369 - September 23, 2009 reply

...

Hmm. Is Sue

amused by the use of the easy button on that comment?

Hey, it's not the easy button!

It’s the TWSS button!

TWIS

ISWYDT

Streak now at three, with 12 to go ...

{Dream mode="on"}

… and the Cards start a wonderful losing streak this evening!

{Dream mode="off"}

Eamus Catuli

I'll second that dream mode, but I'm leaving mine turned on.

Tangled Up In Blue - September 23, 2009 reply

I'll third the dream mode, second leaving it on.

Stranger things have happened. If not, like Al said, it’s good to see the Cubs playing this way regardless of the outcome. Hopefully it translates into a good offseason by Hendry and into a hot start next season.

Hard to say if there is any cause/effect

of what happened this week, but it’s nice to see the Cubs playing well and trying to salvage a nice ending to the season. Bodes well for next year.

I don’t know if anyone brought this up, but our favorite target of BCB, Joe Morgan, said the other night that he talked with D Lee and said all he did was lower his hands and his stroke returned. Boy, did it ever! In that regard, he said that DeRosa RAISED his hands and it helped his batting stroke. Funny how two players can do the opposite thing and get results. You gotta love baseball…

If I recall correctly, Derrick told the writers just before he

turned it around he’d been tinkering with his swing, but was going to revert to his prior technique. Immediately thereafter, what a season.

What a season indeed

no one predicted this but DLee’s season is probably the highlight of 2009. He is as locked in as any player we’ve had in recent memory. Too bad we couldn’t replay April and May.

An extension is warranted. His value at first base and infield leadership combined with his seemingly now overcoming the wrist injury should allow him to retire a Cub.

mrcubsfan - September 23, 2009 reply

D-Lee just turned 34.

A two-year extension wouldn’t be unreasonable.

I agree completely.

I didn’t think he had one month left in him like this, and he’s just rattled off 4 in a row. Whatever was wrong with him is clearly no longer a problem. I don’t see any reason why he shouldn’t be able to finish his career here.

D98 - September 23, 2009 reply

Very true.

When his triple slash stats, HR’s and RBI totals are final, factor in the perceived leadership and glove skills and there is some room for a little decline to still be ultra valuable for the next 3 years.

In three years Al

maybe the Cubs could do some strategic planning and for once have left field, right field and catcher with power number guys? Add third base to that mix too. If we ever got to that point having a 37 year old DLee at first still is not bad. If we continue to sign guys management THINKS hit with power but never do, then we need a power hitting first baseman. If our ROK catcher never returns to his power hitting days we’re in trouble. Even I can see the need to plan ahead. The problem is Soriano will be here seemingly forever at one corner outfield spot. I think Lee could retire here but there has to be some planning done.

mrcubsfan - September 23, 2009 reply

I agree wholeheartedly

Too bad Lee’s season is “wasted” if you get my meaning. If not for a few things that happened to derail the team this year, it would have been a great year and most likely another playoff appearance.

So you're saying that the 1Bs in the NL Central can hit a little bit?

Just a little, yes.

As well as that guy in the NL East.

Are the 3 first basemen in baseball in the Central?

I can’t think of any better ones

Teixeira?

Adrián González

Justin Morneau

This season DLee's been better

Overall perhaps you have a point

As for Teixeira, can’t really argue that one, though D-Lee has the higher OPS

You mean this season?

Oh, then you’ve got a point.

Idk what I mean actually

Going into the next season if you were to rank the first basemen in baseball I think I go
Pujols
Prince
Adrian/Lee/Teixeira/Morneau (in no order)

Offensive numbers alone, then yes.

If you factor in defense, Morneau and DLee are ahead of Fielder, Teixeira and AG.

I won’t even factor in the “star power” of Pujols.

I'd go...

Albert
Morneau
Teixeira
Lee
AG
Prince

Oh and don’t forget about Ryan Howard.

Howard's defense ain't up to par with the names mentioned above

In my experience and opinion. If someone can correct me, I’ll appreciate it.

No it's not.

Just throwing his name out there as probably the last guy that would be considered an elite 1B with those other guys.

Yeah, I always forget Prince isn't the greatest defender

Teixeira is good at defense, but UZR hates him for some reason (I just think it doesn’t work as well at first base). I wish I could say I’ve seen enough of Morneau to say how good he is at defense, but I’ll take your word for it.

I don’t know anything about Gonzalez’s defense because his GG last season was bc of his offense.

I’ll revise with defense to
Pujols
Morneau
Teixeira
Lee
Prince
Gonzalez

What about

Kendry Morales? He’s having a better season that some of the guys on your list.

I knew there was a name I was forgetting

He kind of sneaks under the radar despite being on the Angels, I just don’t know that his track record puts him in the elite category.

This is his first full season.

And while he’s had a phenomenal year, he’s not quite up there with the names mentioned above yet.

In response to your question, Al

“Should the Cubs sign Lee to a contract extension?”
I say, as long as he’s producing, yes. He’s had another great year, although the team hasn’t done as well as we’d all hoped. He has that leadership quality that we have taken for granted with others in the past. I’d say if you’re looking for the face of the Cubs, since Kerry Wood isn’t around any more… It’s Derrek Lee. IMHO

Quiet leadership, though

And I’m all for giving DLee another year or two, assuming the Cards lock up Pujols as its expected they will.

DLee

is a lead by example kind of guy. He lets his performance do the talking, and he leaves it all out on the field. Just the type of player you want on your team.

From Bruce Miles article on the game:

Randy Wells says he wants to pitch more than one more time this year.

“That’s it? That’s news to me,” said Wells, who improved to 11-9 Tuesday night with a 7-2 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. "I want to get as many as I can, just to show them I can handle the workload and head into next year with the confidence that I can handle the load.

“We can talk about it. Maybe I can talk him into it.”

Why not? Why not let him start Tuesday and then again the last day of the season?

Doesn't sound like he's hurting

I say let the kid pitch.

Five or six innings each in two more starts shouldn't be too tough a workload.

Me, too

I feel he earned it. He was one of the bright spots this season and he sounds like he’s got a good head on his shoulders.

Gibbon Jockey - September 23, 2009 reply

If they decide to trot him out thee again

it sounds like he’s got a good shoulder under his head.

nicely done

thou sayeth that well, friend.

you are more subtle than you get credit for

Sometimes (bad puns on hold for now).

I didn’t even notice the “thee” typo until your comment sent me back up there.

Thank you for noticing

Like my good friend, Yev Kasem, I suffer for my posts…

Next!

Keep your feet on the ground

and stop reaching for the soup.

Wait, what?

I like it.

davidalanu - September 23, 2009 reply

I agree.

That's awesome to hear.

I like that Colvin kid!

What a catch!

He was like a vacuum out there.

TWSS

You can't see it, but I'm blushing.

That's cute :)

He's going to give Fuld some competition with those web gems.

And that's a good thing for us

part of Doggie Stalker just died, with this comment

Doggie Stalker - September 23, 2009 reply

I did not see the catch

but you let me know when he starts crashing into walls and fences.

game on

Correction: Three catches!

Awesome way to end a ballgame.

On both the ones at the wall

He looked extremely comfortable with his surroundings and positioning at the fence. That impressed me a lot, as he’s had just 2 days to get accustomed to the walls at Miller Park.

I was just going to say that

watching the replay on the Braun HR takeaway, he looked like he had been patrolling Miller Park’s CF for years. I like this kid a lot.

So far so good.

Hopefully he can keep it up through these last 2 weeks and into Spring Training.

Also, his line drive out in his final AB of the night was a positive, too – Counsell was pinched in at 3B and Colvin tried to punch a liner through that side. At least he was taking what the defense gave him and tried to go the other way.

Boy, we could have used that approach a lot more this year

Agreed.

Along with putting the ball in play with men at 3rd and less than 2 outs.

Braun didn't over-react at all did he?

Dude, his eyes popped out of his head.

Oh, wait…

doofus cubs guy - September 23, 2009 reply

gotta give milton some credit here

3-0 since he left

-1

Although you’re right. We were trying to go taboo on that certain player today… At least I was :-)

Maybe he's talking about our favorite "Cubs Win" guy

We wouldn't want HIM to leave, would we?

Probably goes in the list of Top 100 Worst Cubs of All-Time

Ace Venom - September 23, 2009 reply

I second that....maybe in the top ten?

zevkalman - September 23, 2009 reply

What are the parameters for that measurement?

Who?

Some guy... what's his name?

Or something like that.

Coco Crisp?

I wondered how far I could make it into comments before I saw a mention of him

Made it 1/4 of the page. Better than expected.

Derrek Lee at the end of '09 is Mark DeRosa at the end of '10 (but with an NTC)

If the Cubs still want to get a big LH bat in the lineup, the easiest place to do that is 1B. Derrek should also have a lot of trade value on one year, if he’s willing to waive the NTC. It will be interesting to see what Jim does. If he thinks he made the right choice trading DeRosa, then he might try and trade Lee. Even if he thinks he made a mistake trading DeRosa he still might try and trade Lee, because it’s one thing to trust Fontenot and another to trust a Delgado or a Huff.

Especially if Al is right that the Cubs will give Colvin a shot at CF, then you almost have to trade Derrek Lee to get that LH bat – or trade Fukudome and seek another LH RF again.

The lefthanded bat argument is really, really tired.

I noticed that over the weekend, TLR started vs. the Cubs, lineups that had a couple of LH bats at the top of the lineup, then seven straight RH bats. Didn’t seem to stop them from winning 2 of 3.

Get hitters that can hit. Doesn’t matter what side they hit from. Last year’s “lack of LH” lineup led the NL in runs scored.

Right, I agree.

But do you think the Cubs agree? We haven’t heard what Jim’s planning on doing, I guess.

couldn't agree more

Lou needs to relinquish his lefthanded fetish.

The left handedness

stuff is over rated. Lou drives me crazy with it.

sue369 - September 23, 2009 reply

I'm hoping the ship has sailed

on the whole “we need to be more left handed” schtick. Obviously that didn’t go as planned. I’d rather keep Lee, he hits well off lefties and righties.

I see you beat me to the punch there Al.

In hindsight, it was a moronic idea

Ace Venom - September 23, 2009 reply

Agreed

I say put the best hitters in the lineup, trying to snare a left handed bat simply because he hits that way is flawed thinking, especially if you sign someone that wasn’t really what you were going for.

It's a bold notion...

…but I’m guessing Hendry would be way too trigger-shy to deal a “face of the franchise” guy coming off a career-high year. That said, Adrian Gonzalez would look awfully good batting cleanup for the Cubs. (Not suggesting a trade, just sayin’.)

My post-2010 dream...

AG in Chicago.

Unfortunately...

…AG will be a Boston Red Sox. Book it.

I already have booked it.

One can still dream.

Ditto.

If that happens,

I will thankfully be out of Red Sox Nation by the time that happens.

I feel sorry for people stuck in Red Sox territory.

Just remember we tried to trade him last offseason

He wouldn’t go for it. He isn’t going to go for it.

I don't remember hearing about this

Do you have a link? Or a strong recollection of the details?

Yeah, I'm with you on that

One or two people keep saying that on BCB, but with nothing to support it.

I think WE discussed trading him...

… but I don’t think the Cubs ever did.

I was wondering what trding Lee might bring the Cubs

He probably won’t be any more valuable than he is right now but I’d be shocked if Hendry was willing to take that risk. Lee’s a fan favorite and we know how trading other fan favorites last year worked out.

Craig in South Bend - September 23, 2009 reply

I seem to recall a lot of us saying DeRosa should be traded after last year

since it was a career year and he was only going to decline. That was clearly a mistake. Can you imagine what would happen if the same were done with Lee in trading him after his best year since 2005?

I would be keeping my Eye on the contract

situation with Pujols when he becomes a free agent which I believe is at the end of next year, rather than an extension for Lee.

cubdreamer - September 23, 2009 reply

My guess is that the Cardinals sign him to a longterm extension this offseason.

Shame he won't get A-Roid money in St. Louis

But I’m convinced he’ll finish out his career there.

I think you are right

and as long as TLR is around, the Cards will be in the thick of it every year.

I dont think they will be able to lock up both Pujols and Holiday this offseason

DC Cubbie - September 23, 2009 reply

I think that our drop-in Cards fan (Cards fan 62 or something?)

Said that they do not expect Holliday to be signed because they need to save room for the new Pujols contract.

Interesting.

If they don’t keep Holliday, they might not NEED the money for Pujols. He wants to see some commitment to winning.

As I understand, signing both Pujols and Holliday,

could keep the Cards from winning. That assumes the organization will continue with the same payroll level they’ve funded for quite a few years. (I’d say that’s pretty safe to assume.)

If that’s the case, signing both players will simply take up to large of a percentage of the payroll to realistically field a championship caliber team in the next few years. (Both players are expected to get a huge increase in salary when they sign new deals.) The Cards might actually have a better chance to win if they only sign Pujols to a huge deal. That would allow them more flexibility to build a team around him.

That’s my understanding based on an article I recently read. (Sorry, I can’t recall where I read that info.)

So technically, by signing Pujols to a monster contract in the first place....

they would be limiting their available financial resources for other players and thereby hurting their “commitment to winning”.

Depends on who those other players are, doesn't it?

Not sure if you're being sarcastic but if you're not.....

No, signing 2 players to monster contracts would seriously limit the quality of other personnaly on the team.

Only signing Pujols to a huge contract would still allow the team the flexibility

Interesting - sounds a bit like what Jimbo did last winter.

The situation with the Cardinals is a little different.

We’re talking about signing 2 players to monster contracts. Think A-Rod kind of money for Pujols and Soriano/Beltran kind of money for Holliday. That would be more than half of the Cards payroll for 2 players. How can any team win with that kind of payroll allotment?

It seems difficult to believe the Cards could sign both without increasing payroll, something they’ve been reluctant to do even with a new stadium.

Yes and no... But the result is similar

Contracts such as Soriano’s reduce the amount of “flexibility” the Cubs or any other team have, when looking for new players. Of course, the Cubs also had ownership uncertainty tacked on, which didn’t make things easier.

Changing the subject here

what say all of you about having Fox work on playing third base as a back up and part time left fielder this winter so we can try and keep his bat in the line up somehow? Or is trading him a better option?

It all depends on what the Cubs would get for him, I suppose...

If we have him work hard on his defense

and start hitting some breaking balls, I’m all for keeping him around.

We need a back up for 3rd anyway...

Fontenot wasn’t that guy. Might as well be someone who’s already part of the organization.

I thought Fox was going to also work on 2B in winter ball.

Why not? The more positions he can play, the more valuable he is.

That's right.

He seems to be built better for infield anyway. The times he did play 3rd, he did the job they expected of him, without any terrible blunders. It’d be nice to see him step it up on D.

Is that really true?

I first heard that on an ESPN broadcast but don’t recall reading that anywhere else. Considering the source, I’m skepticaly since I haven’t seen it anywhere else.

Jeff Baker is a natural 3B.

He was only moved to 2B because of Ian Stewart, Garret Atkins, Clint Barmes, etc.

Agreed.

I still see as the ideal DeRo-type guy who adds nice depth to the Cubs roster. Not sure what do do with Jake the Rake, honestly. A trade may be for the best, sad to say.

*still see BAKER as the ideal..."

*do do = to do

Maybe I should stop posting and get to work.

Thought you were simply doing a Rolling Stones

do do do do Heartbreaker thang…

Your typing is is great this morning :)

thonk yoo

I'll thonk yoo to not try that again

(just trying it out — I like it)

Scales playing over Fox

seemed like a big indication that Fox is not in the long-term plans.

And Fox didn't do much to endear himself to Piniella last night

at the plate, at least.

I'm all for it.

Jake Fox is a poor man’s Phil Nevin, minus the fixation on Oakleys. The more positions he can play, the better off the Cubs will be.

That said, I have a feeling he’ll be trade bait in the offseason, unfortunately.

I hope he doesn't get traded also.

He’s cheap. He seems like he adapts to changes in the field well. He’s a nice backup if Aramis goes down again, since we won’t have Miles around next year (fingers crossed).

Miles=addition by subtraction

Inverse is also true: Miles in 2009 = subtraction by addition

D98 - September 23, 2009 reply

Cost effective LH power PH on the bench who can

fill in at the corners and catch in an emergency? Glennallen Hill but more than LF?

An up-the-offense double switch possibility?

Makes far too much sense in the NL for it to happen.

Right.

Now we just need to remind Lou to USE him!!!!

Yes, but RH.

yep, Hoffpauir was supposed to be that LH bat.

DOH!

Not that it matters too much, but right, RH. I’m weary of the bench being all glove no bat options or the professional hitter something bland like Lenny Harris, over the hill like Floyd, or strictly a backup first baseman like Ward.

Why should the org have to go pay $2-$3M for someone fill the role Fox is made for? The guy can hit and is passable at LF and not the worst ever at RF, 3B and 1B.

I’ll choke on my own vomit when he goes to the AL and plays LF, RF, or 1B every day because he’s young enough to handle the load while the older guys DH. I get it, he’s not a great defender, but he’s not horrific.

My only concern with Fox (and I'm a Fox guy)

is that if the Cubs are relying on him to fill a pinch-hitting role, he will have to focus on hitting breaking balls this offseason.

He can crush a fastball and the hanging curve, but he’s Cerrano-esque at times against the curve. Unless the Cubs are sending him to PH solely against the Kyle Farnsworths of the world, I could see him struggling unless he adjusts to hit the breaking ball this winter.

Probably fair, but the man's stats in high and medium leverage and clutch situations

are pretty damn good, something the Cubs don’t usually feature in a PH pinch hitter.

Indeed they are.

I’m fine with Fox – I just want him to hit the occasional breaking ball, too. But give him credit – when he came up he seemed to be one of the few Cubs who understood the value of a sac fly.

A good hitter doesn't have to hit the breaking ball.

Just lay off the ones out of the zone and foul off the good ones in.

Fair enough.

Well, you can't exactly dust for vomit.

The whole Fox thing is still an enigma to me

The book on him in the minors is that his defense was bad. I saw him in two or three games at 3B where he looked not too bad. It’s been said here before, but is our minor league evaluation system really bad, or would more time on defense expose him?

If he can continue to play passable defense and be good in a pinch-hitting role, we have a place for him. Anybody know if he is slotted to play in the fall league?

You mean the Arizona Fall League?

That’s for prospects only, not guys who have played a full year in the majors.

He may be playing winter ball somewhere.

The Fall League is open to players with less than a year of MLB experience.

I believe Fox still falls under that criteria.

The Cubs did send Matt Murton to the fall league after his first season in the majors. He was called up in the middle of the season so he had met the criteria.

However, I’d guess winter ball would be a better fit for Fox. I’d guess he would face more crafty pitching that is closer to major league pitching than a bunch of kid pitchers that don’t know where it’s going.

Shame we're not in contention

Because Wrigley has missed a true MVP candidate and the chance to have the entire ballpark chant “MVP” when DLee is at bat.

ak123 - September 23, 2009 reply

This Dlee last season

We have your NL MVP

What do you mean we're not in contention?

All we have to do is win the last 12 games and have Colorado go 4-7!

(Arghhh, I’m sick.)

Dou - September 23, 2009 reply

Yet another version of The Last Minute Dream...

I would prefer a Cards collapse, which might be a tad more likely imho than four teams bowing out, but at present I’d take a wild card happily.

Eamus Catuli

Be careful with DLee

I would not give him an extension until he shows he can play at least near this level again in 2010. If Lee can hit around .290/30HR/90RBI next season, I would give him a two year extension.

It aslo concerns me that Lee has had his best two seasons as a Cub when the team is out of playoff contention, it seems he plays his best with the pressure off. If he had played this well in May and June, the Cubs could have done better with Ramirez out. At the same time, I feel Lee fares better with Ramirez hitting behind him.

Either way, great season from Lee, never saw it coming. Let’s see if he can do it again! His back/neck issues do worry me however, especially since he is 34.

I don't see how you can ding Lee for having a great season this year

that turned out to be just short. Lee turned it around and dominated when the pressure was at it’s peak and single handedly kept the team in contention until September.

That Lee had a monster year this year when it was most needed should be something to praise, not malign.

I knew this type of comment was coming.

I would like to point out that D-Lee was a big part of a WS winning team.

Rec'd to both replys

BleedsbluinMI - September 23, 2009 reply

hear, hear

Archie - September 23, 2009 reply

And that year he screwed the Cubs too. :)

KaliCub - September 23, 2009 reply

This makes no sense. The Cubs were in contention, in fact in first place for a good portion of the season.

He was producing then as well as now. It’s incorrect to look at a season’s worth of stats and say they were done while not in contention, when it has really only been the last month.

Logic fail.

Logic fail?

The Cubs were not in first place for a good portion of the season, check your math on that one. Had he hit anywhere near this level in April, May, and June the Cubs could have gotten off to a much better start this season. When Ramirez went down the team needed someone to step up and nobody did. Im not saying that’s Lee’s fault, because others such as Soto, Soriano, and Bradley did nothing either.

BleedsbluinMI - September 23, 2009 reply

He has hit near level from mid-may on.

He is hitting .408 in Sept, that is his best month average (granted the month is not over). He hit .313 in May, but had only 5 Hrs ond 19 Rbi at month’s end. The next three months were .333, .295, .318, respectively. He averaged 7 hrs and about 22 Rbi in those months. The season was not over in any of those months, and with Rami out he was getting little support offensively around him.

Now, he has gotten real hot in Sept. (now that they are out of it), but you want to dismiss all those numbers were in done in a season of non-contention. I don’t agree with that because they expected to contend and were in the running realistically til sometime in August. It would be different if there were no expectations, or if they were much farther back after May. That’s how I look at this season’s numbers.

All I'm saying is

the pressure was on in May, that was when the Cubs reached their high-water mark in terms of games over .500, and then went into a tailspin, sometime around May 15th in which they lost like 8 straight or something and to be honest, have never really been able to recover.

If you want to reward a Lee with a contract extension beyond next season, fine. I just would like to see more before committing.

Cubs retook 1st place at the end of July

thanks to DLee putting the offense on his back

I'm very dubious...

….of this whole “Player X only plays well when it doesn’t matter” concept. It seems like a “20/20 hindsight” kinda thing and just doesn’t feel right.

Aside from last year's playoffs, when the pressure was on.

And Lee was the only Cub to hit…

Rec'd

GREINKE FOR PRESIDENT

More importantly, Zach Greinke threw a great game last night against the Red Sox, a shutout of 6 IP, 2 H, and 5 K. He‘s 15-8 with a 210 ERA+, 229 K, and 220 IP. If he doesn’t win the Cy Young I’ll murder a kitten.

Dan

dtpollitt - September 23, 2009 reply

Don't take out the ignorance of the writers on a poor kitty!

I do think he’s going to win though. Greinke is certainly a great story in MLB this season.

I think he's got it now

He’s shutdown the Red Sox, Tigers, and Angels? i think it’s angels this month allowing only one run against all three of those teams.

It looks like he will get his precious 16th win too, so the idiot writers will have no choice.

Also I think he has an outside chance of getting his ERA at or under 2

right now it sits at 2.08 with 2 starts left. Idk what the math is, but I imagine 12 shutout innings in those 2 starts puts it at or under 2 which would make the Cy Young a slam dunk even if he had 3 wins

Can We trade for him?

I could name 2 that we could send to KC right away.

Icubsfan - September 23, 2009 reply

I don't think there's anybody the Royals would trade Greinke for at this point.

The Royals need a bit of power

They have a good foundation to build upon. Too bad they won’t take [Name withheld due to site policy].

Are you refering to this one?

That's a crazy flash from the past.

I had that toy when I was a kid.

Wow, what has this site come to?

For anyone to think RWW has trade value is beyond me. /sarcasm

If I were the Royals I would see what I can get this offseason

Never will his value he higher, why not see what you can get.

You could say the same about Joe Mauer

and I doubt the Twins will do anything to trade him unless it's for Miles and Heilman.

Graybar! You're back!

"Don't call it a comeback..."

I'm so happy to have graybar back! Arrrr!

Arrrrgh

Well I mean Mauer is different because the Twins are contending

The Royals aren’t, and won’t be for a few years

ARRRR!!!

The Dread Pirate Graybar seems to only like you, chilango. What’s the connection?

jesus christos - September 23, 2009 reply

I know we can't say names here anymore

but the two I had in mind are done for the season.

Icubsfan - September 23, 2009 reply

eric hanna is that you?

he can't hear your tiny letters

jesus christos - September 23, 2009 reply

WHOOPS

He did it against an East Coast team

that validates him in the eyes of many. I think he’ll win now.

So it's cool to talk about the AL Central here?

Man, the Twins are playing some of their scrappiest baseball in recent history, and that’s saying a lot. Even if they have to face the Yanks in the Divisional Series, it’ll thrill me. Another season of stupendous baseball witnessed by a selected few.

I'm from 'Sota.

And I approve of this.

dtpollitt - September 23, 2009 reply

I love watching the Twinkies play.

I’m glad there’s one playoff race to end the season. This has been the most boring September in terms of playoff races in quite some time.

I thought Peter Gammons suggestion of a 2nd wild card team was interesting. Basically, the MLB season would start 3 days earlier (on a Friday) and end 3 days earlier. That would leave the final weekend before the playoffs for a 3 game series between the 2 wildcard teams. The rest of the playoff schedule would not be affected.

So two teams would have a bye?

No bye.

Essentialy, it would be a 3 game series between the 2 wild card teams that would occur during what is now the final weekend of the regular season. The rest of the playoff schedule would be played just as in the past.

The problem with that is...

… teams don’t want to end their regular seasons on a Thursday. They want that final weekend.

A more likely scenario would be to have the two wild card teams play a single play-in game. That might work with the existing schedule.

I don't like a single game play in game

when you have just played 162. If the Cubs were the first wildcard team and had a record 10 games better than the next team, we would be really upset about them playing a 1 game play in with a team that was far inferior to them during the regular season. And justifiably so.

I could go for a 3 game play in series, but not a 1 gamer. It really makes the regular season not nearly important enough IMHO.

Archie - September 23, 2009 reply

I like a series of games

simply because that’s how baseball is played throughout the season.

madeindetroit - September 23, 2009 reply

I'm from the D

so it is only cool if you talk about the Tigers playing Yanks in the ALDS.

They always seem to make a late-season run.

Pretty impressive mojo.

I hate the word "scrappy"

Getting that win was a big step towards winning the Cy Young

Not that he didn’t/doesn’t already deserve it, But I think I read somewhere where the previous low win total for a Cy Young winner was 16. And it seems to me that sportswriter/voter types rely heavily on precedent when it comes to these kind of things.

Greinke should get two more starts (MIN, @MIN) and has a good chance of winning at least one. But even if he doesn’t, 15 wins is much easier to sell/defend than 14.

No, no, no - pick another cute animal.

We only murder kittens to boost the Cubs BABIP.

And they come in many forms...

AGH!

Save that for tonight.

Game starts at 2:05 AM local time

I am thrilled

he had such a great season and i agree with you. It is just that Lee has never produced like this with the Cubs in contention, see 2007 and 2008. That being said, 2009 was a great season for him and he was one of the few bright spots on this team. I would just be wary of giving him an extension based on a career year (see: Dempster). I just want to see Lee show some consistency and put up similar numbers next season.

He had a similar year before he broke his wrist.

Big numbers, broken wrist, wrist recovery, Big Numbers. Doesn’t read like an anomoly as much as an injury to me.

The Cubs have bounced back nicely after those two excruciating losses in St. Louis.

Plus it’s always fun to cream the Brewers

It sure is.

Not Bruce Froemming got to see a great game last night.

Hopefully, I end this season on a winning note in a few days in San Francisco.

Good luck!

Lets see now...

{CrystalBall active="True"}

I see a tall dark man in your…

{CrystalBall action=“thump” Severity="high"}
{CrystalBall action=“thump” Severity="high"}

(sometimes the stupid thing doesn’t work correctly)

I see a series of victories as part of the final 15 day winning streak…

{CrystalBall active="False"}

Standard disclaimer about crystal balls

So Wells will have Tommy John next year

Sweet…sorry any comparison to Kerry Wood

EamuCanoli - September 23, 2009 reply

Colvin made a good catch last night

But I am really hesitant to think he could play CF for us next year. The Cubs tried to make Colvin a CF in the minors for two seasons, and eventually gave up and moved him to right field. I don’t think one good series in the majors playing CF indicates that a decision made over two years that Colvin couldn’t handle CF was a wrong one.

He’s also walked twice in two games, which is good to see because there were whole months in the minors he didn’t draw two walks.

Anyway, it’s good to see Colvin having a good series, which is exactly what I wanted to see out of him. He should be given a chance to make the team next year out of Spring Training. But we need to see more of him in the majors before we throw out three and a half seasons of minor league scouting on him.

About the walks...

…is it possible that it’s just harder to draw a lot of walks in the minors because the pitchers there just serve up more hittable pitches? Colvin has looked surprisingly – and delightfully – selective at the plate so far in the majors. Of course, the sample remains quite small.

In any case, I agree that every Cubs fan should exercise all due caution of falling in love with Colvin or any September callup for that matter. Don’t get me wrong – I’m happy for him and hope he continues to do well. But it still seems like Sam Fuld should be considered a step ahead of Colvin in terms of making the majors full time.

San Diego Smooth Jazz Man - September 23, 2009 reply

Hold on there

Colvin is 24. Fuld is….28?

Sam, although it appears he should be on a MLB roster as a 5th outfielder doesn’t have the upside that Colvin has.

Colvin’s future as a possible starter is much brighter. Maybe not next year, but soon.

Colvin's

♪♫ gotta wear shades

♪♫ I study nuclear science, I love my classes... ♪♫

♫ Well I'm heavenly blessed and worldly wise I'm a peeping-tom techie with x-ray eyes ♫

♪♫ Things are goin' great...and they're only gettin' better ♪♫

how do you make those notes and hearts and things?

Is there a link to explain to those of us too unhip to know?

On a Macintosh you can use Special Characters in the Edit menu...

☞☛ But for µSoft and Linux stuff – no idea. ☚☜

http://www.howtotype.net/

The music symbols are [ALT + 13] or [ALT + 14]

Thanks for posting that link!

☺

I can always count on you, SWL ♥

☼ day, keeping the ☁s away, on my way to where the air is sweet...

can you tell me how to ☜☝☞☟ to Sesame Street?

The things I learn on BCB!

Zeke - September 23, 2009 reply

Sure, soon - but 2010 seems too soon.

Maybe have him play at Iowa next season then bring him on as a fourth/fifth OF in 2011 with the intention of having him take over for Kosuke when his contract runs out? Just spitballin’. Anything’s possible.

As I understand, that was the tenative plan for Colvin.

(Sending him to AAA in 2010 for at least part of the season.)

Of course things can always change for a variety of reasons. He definitly looks different (and much improved) from the player I saw play in some spring training games.

"tried to make Colvin a CF in the minors for two seasons, and eventually gave up "

I realize it is only two games, but he sure looks comfortable in CF now?

Makes me wonder how good the Cubs minor leagues are in defensively developing their players, and why they seem so out of sync with the major league club. If the minors have tagged him a RF’er, why did Lou immediately put him in CF and move Dome to RF?

You could also go back to the Fox confusion before he was called up. All we heard about was what he couldn’t do. Even as Aram was on the DL Iowa was playing Fox at DH, or catching, because they had “given up on him” at 3B.

I realize I only see snippets, but I don’t see a lot of creative work being done on the defensive development side.

BatCubFan - September 23, 2009 reply

I don't think anyone

thought that he couldn’t make a good catch in CF, and I think everyone thought he could play CF in an emergency (He’s not Micah Hoffpauir or Jake Fox out there). The issue was more his range. Now maybe in the majors, they do a lot better job of positioning him so he can get to the ball. I don’t know. Maybe they were wrong (Let’s hope). Or maybe it’s just a matter of luck.

I really warn against rating someone’s defense on a few spectacular plays. Derek Jeter makes spectacular plays from time to time, especially going into the hole. He still lets every ball hit up the middle go into center field.

As far as why Lou put him in CF, they want to give him a chance to show what he can do. He’s a heck of a lot more valuable in CF than in right (and Kosuke is a lot better in RF than CF.) So it makes sense for the team in a situation where the games don’t matter to let Colvin show what he can do in CF.

I’m not saying to dismiss Colvin’s chances in CF. I’m just saying to temper enthusiasm and to keep your eyes open and your mind critical for a while. On the other hand, if he screws up, don’t go out dismissing him for one play either. Defense isn’t about one play—it’s about hundreds of plays.

it still seems out of sync to me that ...

the major league team is playing him in CF “to give him a chance to show what he can do” after the minor league team “gave up” on him as a CF’er. Why is there more room for experimentation and development in the majors? That seems backward to me.

I still think Fox, and now Colvin are evidence that player development and the big team’s requirements are not being coordinated through the organization. I don’t mean to be piling on here, but I think this is another responsiblity Hendry has mis-managed.

BatCubFan - September 23, 2009 reply

His range looks pretty good.

Maybe not All-Star level, but if he can hit, then I wouldn’t be averse to giving him a platoon role in CF (if you have Johnson and Fuld on the roster as backups, you can certainly cover at least part of any defensive shortcomings).

Well . . .

I think Josh is right that it’s only 2 games.

It would be great if he could do it, though – then the Cubs could spend money elsewhere.

I think he has earned at least a spring training look.

Sure, but you can't not acquire someone in the offseason unless you think

that he has a reasonable shot of winning the job.

Unless you think you can make up the offense at some other position.

Josh....

“The Cubs tried to make Colvin a CF in the minors for two seasons, and eventually gave up and moved him to right field.”

This is the same organization that told everyone Jake Fox would give everyone Bubonic Plague if he got to play 3rd base.

You're

seeing a different Jake Fox than I am—hyperbole aside.

Craig in South Bend - September 23, 2009 reply

You're seeing a different Jake Fox

than the vast majority sees.

Why is today not a day game on getaway day?

Especially since the Cubs are on their way to San Francisco?

San Diego Smooth Jazz Man - September 23, 2009 reply

Was wondering the same thing!

AndrewJStone - September 23, 2009 reply

I think the rule only applies going west to east.

Still sucks.

Harry Pavlidis - September 23, 2009 reply

They're playing a night game in SF...

… so even though they’ll get in at 2 am Pacific time, they still have many hours to sleep.

Aw man...I thought it was a day game.

So I don't have to take a day off

For the priveledge of seeing Samardzija pitch in person. Whee.

Have fun at the game.

Thanks.

If nothing else, I’ll spend time with my parents and have a beer…

You're probably going to need more than just one...

…with Samardzija on the mound.

Are there no other starting pitchers in our minor league system that deserve a token ML start?

It’s not like this game is meaningful, and we know what kind of starter Jeff has been so far.

Well, I think most of the minor league teams are done.

Maybe Lou should start Aaron Miles just to stick it in the Brewers’ faces.

Wouldn't be much different

Than his pitching strategy in game 161 last year.

Maybe someone should break Aaron Miles' arm

Only two possible positive outcomes here:
1. His arm ends up with the magical power to throw 100mph+ fastballs, a la Rookie of the Year, or
2. Aaron Miles has a broken arm and can’t do that thing where he looks like he’s trying to play baseball.

Win, Win!

He may not be on it long enough for me to HAVE more than one

beer bong!

even though it’s milwaukee…. show them what a bleacher creature from chicago is like

I grew up in Kenosha, actually.

sorry...

my snark meter is not working right today….. just being snarky about the stereotypical bleacher denizens in wrigley.

Ah. No worries.

We’re all beer-swilling, nacho-eating slobs up here, anyway. Except Mapmaker – he doesn’t like nachos. ;-)

but....

that’s like one of the two food groups….

alcohol and junkfood!

There's always chocolate.

and pizza

and those aren't

junk food?

Good chocolate is anything but junk food.

Rec'd

ditto on good pizza...

☺

nice

On the bright side...

…this Narveson guy starting for the Brewers doesn’t seem all that imposing. He’s been pitching out of the bullpen for most of the season. This will be his third start of the season and he lasted only three innings in his first one and five in his second. Could be a slugfest.