tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-43881228975629481212024-02-20T03:55:49.295-05:00My Cubbies . comTim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.comBlogger55125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-56787957325540830262009-05-15T14:36:00.005-04:002009-05-15T14:55:07.280-04:00Glass HousesCal Ripken apparently thinks that Alex Rodriguez owes him some answers<br /><br /><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4168718&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines">ESPN Article</a><br /><br />Okay, so I agree that the destruction of the baseball power number record books sucks. 2 days ago was the anniversary when Ernie Banks became the 9th member of the 500 home run club. There are now 25. 755 is gone and isn't coming back.<br /><br />However Gehrig's consecutive record game is also gone. I have a hard time believing that Cal achieved that record without the help greenies when his feat was accomplished in an era where amphetamines were more common than steroids were in 2000. Last time I checked greenies are both illegal and performance enhancing. Sure, greenies do not make your head grow as big as a watermelon. Sure, Cal is not a giant asshole of the likes of Bonds, Canseco or a blatant liar like McGuire or Sosa. He is in fact beloved, and I am sure the media will let him skate on this one and admire him for standing up for what is "right".<br /><br />Nonetheless I question the integrity of his grandstanding. I do not think that cheating in baseball is new or reprehensible. The reality of the situation was that enough people were doing it in 1998 that if you didn't, you were punished competitively and financially. I am not sure that most of us wouldn't cut corners in our job if 1. There were few noticeable consequences 2. Everyone was doing it. <br /><br />Let's recognize it for what it was. A different era. We liked it then. We are ashamed of it now. It should have been stopped 10 years before it did, but it was so much fun that we forgot think about it and the powers that be were making too much money to ask a question. In fact it reminds me of a stock market bust.BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-48820987792366701022009-04-18T18:37:00.002-04:002009-04-18T18:48:30.683-04:00Quote of the DaySo, I'm watching the game today and Mark Grace is announcing. He is discussing Fonzy's game winning dinger yesterday after 3 k's. Gracy says "Soriano is like a big punch boxer, you can beat him around for 7 or 8 rounds, but if he connects his hammer it's BOOM, and Christmas is cancelled"! It's was Harry esq with a twist of Madden. Gracy should come home to WGN.Cub Tattoohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03982850268690269314noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-46489326476529737062008-10-27T12:30:00.001-04:002008-10-27T12:32:04.197-04:00Once again the Onion has it right<a href="http://www.theonion.com/content/news_briefs/tampa_bay_rays_fuck_you">Onion Article</a>BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-71199342943589014842008-10-06T20:04:00.001-04:002008-10-06T20:42:44.633-04:00<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIrQoRP80Nbu4cF7wyDn5OQ2RthhlChWTweLeDRuOM4M4KycdqbDcTgu4dAfDUaT11tW9FBkF-vR9tKp2D3zTS2ekyzlDa4lNs-jv_XcvBpLLJAawrIxX-lxFIPGL-ZAIlw15r5GVCmpuz/s1600-h/100_6093+(Small).JPG"><img style="float:left; margin:0 10px 10px 0;cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIrQoRP80Nbu4cF7wyDn5OQ2RthhlChWTweLeDRuOM4M4KycdqbDcTgu4dAfDUaT11tW9FBkF-vR9tKp2D3zTS2ekyzlDa4lNs-jv_XcvBpLLJAawrIxX-lxFIPGL-ZAIlw15r5GVCmpuz/s320/100_6093+(Small).JPG" border="0" alt=""id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5254196282395730754" /></a>Cub Tattoohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03982850268690269314noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-89239504899997202412008-07-15T11:24:00.004-04:002008-07-15T11:30:42.156-04:00Virtually Unhittable<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2235Lnu7Rx5kQOJGdg0WAN8rvRmiLic0TQwNjEQQaYXCwYVDAGPQIwsHhhB64-C92-xXA5f9lSSKEEY2K8Fdd6OEL8DNkmp0Rrtjq0iK9INIUiVCiFFB9Z1pvoKSM2EL4viqQZqTSfu9L/s1600-h/rich.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg2235Lnu7Rx5kQOJGdg0WAN8rvRmiLic0TQwNjEQQaYXCwYVDAGPQIwsHhhB64-C92-xXA5f9lSSKEEY2K8Fdd6OEL8DNkmp0Rrtjq0iK9INIUiVCiFFB9Z1pvoKSM2EL4viqQZqTSfu9L/s400/rich.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5223263123822259682" border="0" /></a>I knew a little about Rich Harden, but I haven't had a chance to watch him pitch. I missed his first start as a Cub when he went 5 1/3 with 10 strikeouts. However, I just read this article on his mechanics and pitches. Check out how filthy his fastball / change-up combo is:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.baseball-intellect.com/Articles/rich-harden-trade.html">http://www.baseball-intellect.com/Articles/rich-harden-trade.html</a><br />Scroll halfway down the page to the "<span style="font-weight: bold;">Stuff</span>" section.<br /><br />I can't believe how similar those pitches look until a few feet away from the batter. No wonder this guy strikes everyone out. His stuff is bordering on unfair.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-84553493133488285892008-07-12T23:42:00.006-04:002008-07-15T11:33:09.831-04:00How Cub DNA got in my bloodHere are some thought and memories that Grand Dad Cub Fan wrote down for us. This was written by the man who is responsible for the Cub fandom in our family. This was written prior to the start of the 2008 season. - CubTattoo<br /><br />I think I started being a Cub fan about 1938-40. As far as I know my dad never listened to any Cub games. My neighbor (Johnny Kenon) would go to a Cub game and when he came home he would tell me all about the game. He had an aunt who lived in Blue Island, Illinois, a suburb south of Chicago. He would drive up to her place, then get on the commuter train and go north thru Chicago to the ballpark. He would come back the same way after the game. I went with him this way to my first Cub game. It was also my first time in Chicago. His aunt got us the tickets. I think they cost $4.00 and we rode the train thru downtown Chicago to Wrigley Field. The train would stop along the way and by the time we got to the game, the train was always full.<br /><br />At the game I remember sitting in the upper deck behind home plate. There 8 teams in each league. All teams were east of the Mississippi except St Louis. There were 2 teams in New York and Chicago. The National League teams were the Brooklyn Dodgers, New York Giants, Philadelphia Phillies, Boston Braves, Pittsburgh Pirates, Cincinnati Reds, St. Louis Cardinal and the Cubs. When the regular season was over, the team with the best record played in the World Series until one team won 4 games.<br /><br />Teams played 154 games a year. Each team played every other team in the league 22 times, 11 at home and 11 on the road. There were lots of double headers back then. They played double headers on most every Sunday and most holidays. The following day, teams were off for traveling. Teams traveled by train and bus.<br /><br />P.K. Wrigley owned the Cubs. He also owned Catalina Island off the coast of California which is where the Cubs held spring training. I don’t know when they moved to Arizona. [It was 1952.]<br /><br />The pitchers in those days worked hard and long. A lot of pitchers worked 450+ innings a season. Some had as high as 42 complete games as season. In fact, in 1926 a pitcher from Cleveland pitched a double header one day, went all the way in both games and won both games. I got my facts & figures out of a baseball book I have to compare pitchers back then with present day pitchers. Now it is not unusual for a manager to use 3 or 4 pitchers in one inning.<br /><br />When the Cub team was on the road the Sox played in Chicago and the other way around. When the Cubs played at Wrigley Field the game was broadcast on the radio like it is now. When the Cubs were on the road the radio announcer stayed in Chicago and got a feed of the game thru Western Union. The announcer then put on the air. Later the announcer started traveling with the team.<br /><br />I remember the Cubs playing in the 1945 World Series, but they lost to Detroit in 7 games. The goat was alive and well at that time.<br /><br />Players did not have agents at that time. Each player represented himself in contract talks with the club. I think they always had 1 year deals. The average salary in 1942 was $6,400. I wonder how long A-Rod would have to play to earn that much [A-Rod makes $172,839.50 / game].<br /><br />The Cubs improved a lot in 2007 over 2006 and hopefully 2008 will improve a little more, stay out of key injuries and have a little luck, maybe, just maybe they can get rid of the curse of the goat and this time next year the World Series flag will be flying high above the Wrigley Field scoreboard. 100 years is a nice round number for Cub fans and future Cub fans to remember.<br /><br />-GrandDadCubFanCub Tattoohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03982850268690269314noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-75554387604205132702008-07-09T15:22:00.004-04:002008-07-15T11:31:33.670-04:00The Chicago WayCheck out the Hardball Times <a href="http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/tht-daily-oh-yeah/#scoreboard">report on our game</a> yesterday:<br /><br />I hate Kevin Costner, but I will say that the Untouchables is probably his best movie.BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-51551106972622526942008-07-07T10:47:00.003-04:002008-07-07T11:47:35.032-04:00The Sky is Falling, the Sky is Falling!Despite taking 2/3 from the Cardinals this weekend and creating a 3.5 game lead over the Cards and Brewers, this weekend was a bad one for my Cubbies. The weekend ended last evening with news that the Brewers had <a href="http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2008/07/rosenthal-dodge.html">just agreed to a trade</a> for one of baseball's best pitchers and reigning AL Cy Young award winner, <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/s/sabatc.01.shtml">C.C. Sabathia</a>. With the boost that this will give to the Brewers, the Cubbies postseason chances aren't looking promising. I expected both the Cards and Brews to drop off eventually, but adding one of the true aces in baseball will certainly revitalize the Brewers.<br /><br />The question is, what can the Cubs possibly do to counter? There are some other pitchers out there like Rich Harden (the AL Mark Prior), AJ Burnett and Randy Wolf (who hasn't had an ERA under 4 since 2002). I like the prospect of Harden, but he's only once pitched over 128 innings in a season since his debut in 2003. I don't know anything about what kind of injuries he has had, just that he's always had one. I like Burnett as well, maybe that's the way to go. Hopefully taking him out of the AL East would have an even more positive impact on his statistics. If we do somehow have the prospects to get one of these guys, you have to ask yourself if it would be enough. No trade(s) we can make will have the impact of a guy like Sabathia (and his 2.16 ERA since April 22nd).<br /><br />The other option would be to load up on more offense, but our offense has been pretty good thus far this season.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-70550734447582509742008-06-25T10:24:00.007-04:002008-06-26T10:05:29.657-04:00I Hate Joe MorganJoe Morgan on his very best day, is a totally incompetent baseball announcer for ESPN. On a normal day, he is a self-important hack who fabricates facts on the fly, refuses to even attempt to understand the most basic ideas about baseball theory and uses his stage and baseball stature to be a vindictive prick. I could write books on why I hate Joe Morgan. The main reasons are that he hates my favorite baseball player of all time, Ryne Sandberg (snubbed him at the HOF), hates the Cubs (a rival from his days with the Reds) and he is totally ignorant when it comes to statistics, sabermetrics and apparently history.<br /><br />I watched my 1st place Cubbies beat the hell out of the 1st place White Sox this past weekend. On Sunday I got together with some of my Cubbies friends (and 1 Sox fan) to grill out and watch the game. We started up the grill around the 5th inning and it took some prodding to get the fire going. While that was happening, Baby Patterson hit his first Major League homer. I saw it happen, but missed the ensuing conversation on ESPN because I was watching from the porch. Sadly, despite my respect and admiration for Jon Miller, I typically tune-out on the audio for ESPN Sunday Night games anyway because I hate Joe Morgan.<br /><br />The thing that I missed was a comment by Little Joe that fully enrages me. Read this blog excerpt:<blockquote>In the fifth inning, when <a href="http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/EricPatterson/">Eric Patterson</a> hit a two-run homer into the wire basket that overhangs the right field wall, Morgan referred to the basket as "Banks Boulevard," and then went on to talk about how many <a href="http://sports.aol.com/fanhouse/tag/ErnieBanks/">Ernie Banks</a> homers ended up in the Wrigley bleacher baskets back in the day - the implication being, of course, that many of Ernie's 512 career homers were cheapies, and that he would have hit considerably fewer without the help of those right- and left-field baskets.</blockquote>The problem, of course, is that the baskets were installed in 1970 to keep bleacher bums from falling on the field and hurting themselves while reaching for homers. Ernie Banks only hit 7 more home runs in Wrigley Field after the baskets were erected in 1970 and we have visual confirmation that 2 of those homers did not land in the baskets. This means that at the absolute most physically possible, 5 of Ernie Banks' 512 home runs were hit in the Wrigley Field's basket. That, is probably also quite a stretch since you would be hard pressed to convince me that all 5 of the homers that we don't know where they landed, landed in the basket. It is totally conceivable that 0 of Ernie's 512 home runs ever fell in to a basket in Wrigley Field.<br /><br />It brings up so many questions, but the most prominent is, why is Joe Morgan going out of his way to slander Mr. Cub? It speaks to my suspicions that he just hates the Cubs for some reason. Actually I have several theories on that, but it could also be homer envy. Joe Morgan only hit 268 career homers, just under half the amount that Mr. Cub hit. Honestly, that doesn't really make sense either. You could probably drive yourself nuts trying to figure this moron out. Just add it to the list of utterly ridiculous things this idiot has ever uttered while being a "professional" windbag.<br /><br />thanks to: http://lavieenrobe.typepad.com/la_vie_en_robe/2008/06/basket-case.htmlTim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-63550529087191363462008-05-12T22:20:00.001-04:002008-05-12T22:21:12.954-04:00What Carlos does when He Isn't Chatting on the Net<object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/NDZPN0mjaAA&hl=en"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/NDZPN0mjaAA&hl=en" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object><br /><br />hat tip: hardball timesBudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-12833673161293229202008-04-22T17:53:00.006-04:002008-04-22T18:11:39.073-04:00Who are These Guys?!?Has the whole world turned upside down? Last night, Ronny Cedeno is taking pitches and hitting RBI singles, and today, he hit a clutch grand slam and got a curtain a curtain call! You got Felix Pie shortening his swing and hitting 3 run jacks. You got a 6.5 million dollar outfielder leading the bigs in pitches / plate appearance with an awesome OBP. You got Derrek Lee among the league leaders in OPS, and you got Aramis Ramirez on pace for 105 walks. A-Ram has a career high of 50 walks! Not to mention the favorable starts by Reed Johnson, Geovany Soto, and Ryan Dempster. How long can it last?!? Let the good times roll!!!<br /><br /><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/boxscore?gameId=280421116">Mets game 1</a><br /><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/boxscore?gameId=280422116">Mets game 2</a><br /><a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/profile?statsId=6014">Ramirez Stats</a><br /><a href="http://www.hardballtimes.com/thtstats/main/index.php?view=basic_batting&league_filter%5B0%5D=2&orderBy=ops&direction=DESC&page=1">Player Stats</a><br /><a href="http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/teams/">Team Stats</a>BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-52944295715013152008-04-02T21:07:00.003-04:002008-04-02T21:10:03.242-04:00The Sky is FallingI know it's silly to get worried this early, but I heard a stat on the radio from this <a href="www.statoftheweek.com">guy</a>. If your team loses 7 of the first 10 games, they only have a 20% chance of finishing above .500. If your team wins 7 of the first 10, there's an 80% chance they'll be above .500. We've already lost 2! I do take solace in the fact we might not have to be .500 to win the division, but I'd sure like to see a few runs.BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-65422650294799561332008-03-23T07:54:00.003-04:002008-07-15T11:34:53.110-04:00Scrawny Players<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghbNu57Ln3ewZCqqb4EpI7vzpT1ubuZ8w8C6q1j_fAxTODpkqu_5vSFJX_getNo8Y1KWDjq6-PvgC1E1GdtgtDReMuHXL9pippAuzKBI-oL_klAPpD_LedjkAobFOX-jinZo34JthKpGY2/s1600-h/MJ+QM+TJ2.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180904982199839618" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghbNu57Ln3ewZCqqb4EpI7vzpT1ubuZ8w8C6q1j_fAxTODpkqu_5vSFJX_getNo8Y1KWDjq6-PvgC1E1GdtgtDReMuHXL9pippAuzKBI-oL_klAPpD_LedjkAobFOX-jinZo34JthKpGY2/s320/MJ+QM+TJ2.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><div><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgSMg9M9xhnBDICByMFG-OX-tGaLqIuCGhPPAHNKYHSdPtz2DbeVNEZwby_ft3Uq89iw4uOISiD_I25NRvDjajgf7uGf9yccUCKi6u78qYSj6_sWcK_efvwnXaOq4E-Q0OZknwWmdocRS/s1600-h/MJ+QM+TJ_edited.jpg"><img id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5180904883415591794" style="margin: 0px 10px 10px 0px; float: left;" alt="" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMgSMg9M9xhnBDICByMFG-OX-tGaLqIuCGhPPAHNKYHSdPtz2DbeVNEZwby_ft3Uq89iw4uOISiD_I25NRvDjajgf7uGf9yccUCKi6u78qYSj6_sWcK_efvwnXaOq4E-Q0OZknwWmdocRS/s320/MJ+QM+TJ_edited.jpg" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><div>Roger is correct. By removing steroids from the game, we are turning these players into a bunch of scrawny weaklings. Take for example these 3 minor league prospects. I have studiously followed their careers since the late 1970's and have noticed striking changes in their physical appearance. Take note of the larger girth, bigger forearms and dare I say, larger heads! Stop the madness!</div><div></div></div>Cub Tattoohttp://www.blogger.com/profile/03982850268690269314noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-71775082800788549722008-03-14T13:23:00.004-04:002008-03-14T13:47:21.814-04:002nd FiddleLou is <a href="http://www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=153335&src=152">experimenting with new lineups</a>. He is batting Fonzy second to save his legs (less base stealing). I'm really unsure of the logic there, but that's for another post. I don't imagine it'll last long (unless the Brian Roberts trade goes through), but Soriano has already made it known that he's not happy. Alfonso Soriano doesn't like hitting with guys on base in front of him. What?!?!? No wonder he only knocked in 70 ribbis last year with a .560 slugging percentage. Guys on base throw him off his game:<br /><blockquote>"I never batted second in the big leagues, but the first at-bat was with somebody on base," said Soriano, who was 1-for-3. "I didn't feel very comfortable. But it's the first at-bat. I will have to make a couple little adjustments batting second because I never batted second."</blockquote>You've got to be freakin' kidding me! I support this guy all the time when BudMan rips him. I know the contract is horrible, but now we've got him and he's our guy. He's not the best player in the league, but he's a really useful guy who does hit really well. But when he says something like this, I don't even know where to start. It bears mentioning that as a whole, hitters do better with men on base because of the pitcher throwing from the stretch and the guy holding the runner on, which opens up holes in the infield.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-55753633291930613172008-03-11T18:08:00.003-04:002008-03-11T18:26:59.118-04:00Scrawny & WeakNot My Cubbies related, but amusing none-the-less. Roger Clemens (or at least his SNL likeness) says that without steroids all ball players will become scrawny and weak (like those stat geeks nobody likes). Hey, I represent that remark!<br /><br /><object classid="clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000" id="Redlasso-3aa1f483-6047-41f6-9a8e-994f67abb6ea" height="320" width="390"><param name="movie" value="http://media.redlasso.com/xdrive/WEB/vidplayer_1b/redlasso_player_b1b_deploy.swf"><param name="flashvars" value="embedId=3aa1f483-6047-41f6-9a8e-994f67abb6ea"><param name="allowScriptAccess" value="always"><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"><embed src="http://media.redlasso.com/xdrive/WEB/vidplayer_1b/redlasso_player_b1b_deploy.swf" flashvars="embedId=3aa1f483-6047-41f6-9a8e-994f67abb6ea" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" name="Redlasso-3aa1f483-6047-41f6-9a8e-994f67abb6ea" height="320" width="390"></embed></object>Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-80721225301108943492008-02-15T20:59:00.003-05:002008-02-16T04:47:23.457-05:00Bill Simmons: Keep The Faith Cubs FansBill Simmons is a writer for ESPN and a lifelong Red Sox fan. He has some <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/espnmag/story?id=3247147&campaign=rsssrch&source=bill_simmons">suggestions for Cubs fans</a>. When I was growing up, it was suggested to me by Cubs Tat that the Red Sox were the AL Cubs. Ever since then I've had a special place for them. When they collapsed along side my Cubbies in '03, I shared their pain. When they won in 2004, I was ecstatic for them. Sox fans are typically intelligent and passionate. As with a Cubs hat, you can usually chat the wearer up about baseball when you share an idle moment. They have overcome in dramatic and convincing fashion. The Cubs have a lot to learn from the Red Sox. We can do this. Just like George Michael said, you've gotta have faith.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-41430480118772302832008-02-13T20:34:00.002-05:002008-02-13T20:36:01.720-05:00Dempster's Called ShotI would prefer if he would predict a the final scores of the entire world series a la Plaxico Burress, but this <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3244658">called shot</a> aint bad.BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-5522790733416942062008-02-13T17:50:00.004-05:002008-02-13T22:00:29.565-05:004 of my Favorite WordsPitchers and Catchers <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080213&content_id=2372189&vkey=spt2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb">Report</a>. Just like that article describes, I've been waiting for this day since October 28th, when I watched my last baseball game of the year. Because it has been gone the past 108 days, means it is all that much sweeter today. Now that baseball has begun, I only have to wait a couple more weeks for the season opener. We are so close.<br /><blockquote>"That's the true harbinger of spring, not crocuses or swallows returning to Capistrano, but the sound of a bat on a ball." - Bill Veeck</blockquote>Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-90960659344015709692008-01-22T18:53:00.000-05:002008-01-22T19:01:34.509-05:00I Don't Need An Interpreter<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv-iGHgJPPdspZkIXfJC8FKxgGxv6e5FOt0Gsmgzl_1EO6tAYLNhb6M4q_P2shaSJdzIA54SyQqdxoVyW46kMDJLjlfO__KL7xgyvFfBIJ0jEtjl9qQHb-DLEurlM25IgrzjmYtbzDCE_L/s1600-h/fuku.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiv-iGHgJPPdspZkIXfJC8FKxgGxv6e5FOt0Gsmgzl_1EO6tAYLNhb6M4q_P2shaSJdzIA54SyQqdxoVyW46kMDJLjlfO__KL7xgyvFfBIJ0jEtjl9qQHb-DLEurlM25IgrzjmYtbzDCE_L/s400/fuku.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5158454447161628914" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-d_4lVIYvdkKzmkpHY1TiDUKTuJJKN_sBGyUpQDBjwlVU_fZRH3T_z0idkqawKFYoqh9ce3VOObKofJm8aQSuNJ2mjTFvjUSLa1N66vTi69pULINwCFxGSkj7m3BMQanNgUeSwuW75TqF/s1600-h/ram.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-d_4lVIYvdkKzmkpHY1TiDUKTuJJKN_sBGyUpQDBjwlVU_fZRH3T_z0idkqawKFYoqh9ce3VOObKofJm8aQSuNJ2mjTFvjUSLa1N66vTi69pULINwCFxGSkj7m3BMQanNgUeSwuW75TqF/s400/ram.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5158454992622475522" border="0" /></a><br />Holy Cow! I'm sooooo excited for the season. Check out these new advertisements for my Cubbies.<br />I got them from here: <a href="http://www.suntimes.com/business/lazare/753085,lew012208.article">http://www.suntimes.com/business/lazare/753085,lew012208.article</a>Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-31794147869296659782008-01-16T16:52:00.000-05:002008-01-16T17:22:34.338-05:00Signing pitchers like it's 1999The Cubs have made a couple moves lately. The most recent was bringing back Jon Lieber to my Cubbies for a 1 year deal. Last year they had Steve Traschel (and smartly let him walk this offseason) and this year they sign Lieber? Our pitching staff wasn't all that good back then. Back when we had both of those guys, Kyle Farnsworth was a starter! Do you remember that? Me neither. Bringing those guys back on the wrong side of 37 might not have been a good call. That being said, a lot of people think we can use some extra help at the end of the rotation. I disagree. I think Marshall can be as effective as Lieber, but I guess we'll see.<br /><br />The way I see it, we have 7 starting pitchers now: Zambrano, Rich Hill, Ted Lilly, Jason Marquis, Sean Marshall, Ryan Dempster and now Jon Lieber. I'm hoping we make a move to ship one of these guys out for something decent. My choice would be to let Dempster and /or Marquis walk. I would hope you could couple them with Matt Murton and get something decent back. Maybe a shortstop? I like Murton, but we have both corner outfielders locked up until 2011 (and Soriano beyond that). I think Murton can start in leftfield for someone. We just don't have the room. If you can't play him, get something for him.<br /><br />Another recent move was letting Mark Prior go to the Padres in free agency. I have to say I'm upset about this. I think they should have dumped the cash in good faith and tried to keep him around. You know he's going to bounce back eventually. Maybe not to the same form, but the guy's a good pitcher. I think that's one they will regret.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-81780545886907566892007-12-12T23:48:00.000-05:002007-12-12T23:53:45.589-05:00Gotta love the bat flip!His swing really resembles Godzilla (H Matsui). I love how he keeps his hands back. If our outfield is Soriano, Pie, and K-Fuk, we might lead the league in assists because this guy has also got a hose. Here is a video with some sweet highlights and a weird ass rap song in the background.<br /><br /><object width="425" height="355"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/RHH8gSQmnGo&rel=1"></param><param name="wmode" value="transparent"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/RHH8gSQmnGo&rel=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" wmode="transparent" width="425" height="355"></embed></object>BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-90308587327842553172007-12-12T11:57:00.000-05:002007-12-12T13:58:47.650-05:00The Leadoff ManThe glaring problem with the lineup posted by Tim is that there is no lead-off hitter. With the current roster, I would probably have the K-Fuk hit leadoff, DLee hit 2 and Soriano hit 3rd. The problem with this lineup is that it probably pisses off all 3 guys, but I think it makes the most sense. If other players are an accurate predition, K-Fuk is probably going to turn into a gap hitter with few ding-dongs. DLee did the same last year. So having them one-two seems ideal to me. However, it presents the problem of Soriano, whose numbers just go to piss outside of the <a href="http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/players/splits?statsId=6154&type=batting3">leadoff spot</a>. It scares me that we are paying this guy so much money when he has 115 home runs in the last 3 years, and only 41 have not been solo shots. This takes into account almost 2000 at-bats! Not a small sample size!<br /><br />So this all leads to the point of the post. The rumors are that the Orioles are going to have a fire sale, and one of their high-paid guys is <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/r/roberbr01.shtml">Brian Roberts</a>. We would probably have to throw them a bone like a Felix Pie and/or Sean Marshall, but with Roberts, I think we would have a championship quality lineup. Of course, their president is none other than Andy Mc"Fail", who is probably still buddies with Jim Hendry. Ironically Andy always said that he would bring a championship to Chicago. Now he finally has a chance that he is working in the American League!BudFanCubsManhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08232596962490568325noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-40736276400746440152007-12-11T23:47:00.000-05:002007-12-12T15:41:31.907-05:00How Would Harry Say It?<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com/images/2007/12/11/aamjhX4F.jpg"><img style="margin: 0pt 0pt 10px 10px; float: right; cursor: pointer;" src="http://pittsburgh.pirates.mlb.com/images/2007/12/11/aamjhX4F.jpg" alt="" border="0" /></a>Kosuke Fukudome is a Chicago Cub. I only wish Harry Carey was still around to butcher a name like that. In the only significant acquisition so far this offseason by the Cubs, they signed right fielder Kosuke Fukudome. Kosuke is a 30 year old, 6'0", 187 pound, right-handed throwing, left-handed hitting, on-base machine. He comes in as a free agent from the Nippon Professional Baseball League. Early reports are that he was signed to a 4 year, $48 million contract.<br /><br />Here's what I wrote about him a month ago:<blockquote>A career on-base percentage of .400 and slugging of .550 are both awesome. Obviously he won't put up numbers like that in the MLB, but an OPS of .960 last year and 1.100 the year before is pretty stellar. Some of that should translate. The Cubs need guys who can get on base and Fukudome is one of them.</blockquote>The Cubs have been obsessed with finding a left-handed hitter (rightfully so, [haha, get it? Right fully?]). There really aren't any others available via free agency. The big 3 of Rowand/Jones/Hunter are all rightys. I know Lou wants a lefty to break up the Soriano/Lee/Ramirez combo. I think Fukudome projects to a perfect 2-hole hitter. He has a little power, but mostly doubles power (think D.Lee-type power from last year).<br /><br />There has been talk that he can play Centerfield, but I haven't seen much about it. Probably not the best of ideas. That leaves Felix Pie as the everyday Centerfielder. I don't really like the sound of that. There has also been a lot of talk about getting the switch hitting second baseman Brian Roberts from the Orioles. I've always liked the guy, but DeRosa looked great last year, posting a 800 OPS from Second Base. There was talk they'd move DeRosa to the outfield if they brought in Roberts, but now I don't see where you would put him. DeRosa would need to be a corner outfielder. He doesn't have the speed/range to play center.<br /><br />Right now the lineup looks something like this:<br /><br /><table bgcolor="#dddddd" width="100%"><tbody><tr style="font-weight: bold;" bgcolor="#eeeeee"><td style="font-weight: bold;">Position</td><td>Name (Bats)</td><td>AVG/OBP/SLG</td></tr><tr><td>LF</td><td>Alfonso Soriano (R)</td><td>299/337/560</td></tr><tr bgcolor="#eeeeee"><td>RF</td><td bgcolor="#eeeeee">Kosuke Fukudome (L)</td><td>294/443/520 * in Japan</td></tr><tr><td>1B</td><td>Derrek Lee (R)</td><td>317/400/513</td></tr><tr bgcolor="#eeeeee"><td>3B</td><td>Aramis Ramirez (R)</td><td>310/366/549</td></tr><tr><td>2B</td><td>Mark DeRosa (R)</td><td>293/371/420</td></tr><tr bgcolor="#eeeeee"><td>C</td><td>Geovanny Soto (R)</td><td>353/424/652 * in AAA</td></tr><tr><td>SS</td><td>Ryan Theriot (R)</td><td>266/326/346</td></tr><tr bgcolor="#eeeeee"><td>CF</td><td>Felix Pie (L)<br /></td><td>215/271/333 * in 177 AB</td></tr></tbody></table>Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-22966973255886286062007-11-30T15:20:00.000-05:002007-11-30T16:21:54.667-05:00SS Update - Astros Save Cubs from ThemselvesThe Cardinals have <a href="http://www.stltoday.com/stltoday/sports/stories.nsf/cardinals/story/26C015840E78BB0E862573A3005C1664?OpenDocument">signed Cesar Izturis</a> and the Astros have <a href="http://mlb.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071130&content_id=2314060&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp&partnered=rss_mlb">signed Kaz Matsui</a>, effectively saving us from ourselves. I call this a shortstop update, because I think that's what the Cubs would have asked Kaz to play. Also there is the Cardinals news. The Cardinals move isn't as big of a deal because the Cubs would not have brought Izturis back for another round in Chicago. However, it has interesting implications because it likely means they will not be offering David Eckstein arbitration. That would be a great pick up for my Cubbies if they don't feel any of their young players will be solid starters this year. Eckstein has some injury issues, but having backups like Theriot and Cedeno might be an optimal situation for taking on that risk. The upside is high.<br /><br />Also, by the Stros signing Matsui, the Cubs dodged a horrible-contract bullet. Indications were that Hendry wanted Matsui, luckily they didn't spend what the Astros did. Early comments on the hot stove blogs are that the signing is an early favorite to be the worst of the off-season. The Astros reportedly gave Matsui (whose mediocrity I've discussed previously) 3 years, $15-16 million. Wow.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4388122897562948121.post-83171242185348086582007-11-20T18:24:00.000-05:002007-11-26T16:02:57.606-05:00State of the Cubs PitchingThe latest poll results on Cubs.com has Cub Fans saying <span style="font-style: italic;">the</span> major need for the team is another front-end starter. I'm not so sure.<br /><br />SP-<br />Carlos Zambrano<br />Rich Hill<br />Ted Lilly<br />Jason Marquis<br />Sean Marshall<br />Ryan Dempster<br />Mark Prior<br /><br />RP-<br />Scott Eyre<br />Bobby Howry<br />Neal Cotts<br />Michael Wuertz<br />Will Ohman<br />Juan Mateo<br />Angel Guzman<br />Kevin Hart<br />Adam Harben<br />Billy Petrick<br />Carmen Pignatiello<br />Jeff Samardzija<br /><br />CP- Carlos Marmol<br /><br />As I stated in the last post, this is part of the 40-man roster and is meant to save players from the upcoming Rule 5 Draft. That's why Samardzija and a couple other rookies are on there. I don't expect to see Jeff this year. Hopefully he can get up to Iowa and pitch well. There is no need to rush him. I hear he has been pretty solid in the minors so far.<br /><br />The Cubs pitching seems to be a couple tweaks away from great. We have 6 starting pitchers, if you include Prior, who I have heard is already out until mid-way through the season next year. Also of note is that he will be a free agent after next season. Ok, so call it 5 starting pitchers. However, Lou and Jim Hendry want to move <a href="http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/rumors/post/Dempster-moving-into-starting-rotation?urn=mlb,52815">Dempster back to the rotation</a>. So, that is back up to 6. This leaves the odd man out to be Sean Marshall. That's fine. He wasn't amazing (though I thought he was quite good) and another long relief pitcher who could make spot starts is a very useful thing to have.<br /><br />However, there seems to be a good amount of rumbling that we need another pitcher. Rumors are that we have been heavily scouting a Japanese pitcher named <a href="http://www.japanesebaseball.com/players/player.jsp?PlayerID=986">Hiroki Kuroda</a>. Not sure where we'll fit him in, but starting pitching is always good to have. I think part of the thinking here is that they want to have 2 Japanese player to ease the transition if they dip in to that market (remember <a href="http://japanesebaseball.com/players/player.jsp?PlayerID=1064">Kosuke Fukudome</a>). There were also rumors of signing Kaz Matsui to ease the transition. That would accomplish the goal, since he has played in the MLB for a couple years now and is Japanese. However, he is a 32 year old middle infielder and not all that good. Hiroki, however, is pretty good. He's a free agent now and the Cubs tried to get him posted last year to no avail. His numbers are not bad. He had 144 strikeouts to just 21 walks 2 years ago with a 1.85 ERA. That is amazing control. Last year he leveled back out, but still had 123K / 42BB and a 3.56 ERA. The ERA last year is not very good, but the other numbers are nice. We'll see how it turns out. Sounds like the Mariners are pretty interested as well.<br /><br /><span style="font-weight: bold;">UPDATE 11/26/07: Cubs sign Wood to a 1 year deal reportedly for $4 million plus up to $3 mil in incentives.</span> I think this is a great signing. With Dempster probably moving to the rotation, I think Wood has a great chance to be the new closer. Plus you are only on the hook for 1 year. Love it!<span style="font-weight: bold;"><br /><br /></span>Woody is a free agent and is getting some interest from other teams (namely Boston). I would like to have him back, but word on the street is that he would like to be a starter again. I'm not so sure that's a good idea with his injury problems (but you just never know, he could be healthy). You can say we wouldn't need him as a starter, but if he ever returned to what he once was, you would have to make room for him. People ask why we don't just cut ties with Wood and Prior to get it over with. Do you remember in 2003 when Dusty Baker said that Carlos Zambrano would be the best of the Wood/Prior/Big Z combo? A lot of people thought he was nuts. You have to remember how good Wood and Prior were back then. If they can stay healthy and get back an inkling of that dominance, they'd be some of the best pitchers on our staff.<br /><br />So, I think if you can either add a couple of arms to the pen and/or keep Dempster out of the rotation and pick up a number 3 or 4-type starter (which the Japanese guy would likely be), the pitching will be in great shape. The Cubs lead the NL in strikeouts <a href="http://www.baseball-reference.com/leagues/NL_2007.shtml">again</a> last year, as they have for every year since 2000. They also had the 2nd best team ERA, an amazing 4.04. They were the best pitching NL team that didn't have Jake Peavy. My perennial pick, Carlos Zambrano came in 5th in Cy Young balloting, despite having an uncharacteristically bad start to the season (5.62 ERA through the first 2 months). I think Ted Lilly was better than anyone could have imagined, leading the rotation in ERA.Tim Tremendoushttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13325826642262961821noreply@blogger.com0