Questions for the Cubs

Cubs No doubt the Cubs needed to do well against the Brewers this week to show they were serious about taking the NL Central.  Well, they were up to the task and swept the Brew Crew all four games including two against two of top pitchers in the National League. 

Now that’s over, a couple questions come to mind that the Cubs themselves are probably asking themselves right now as they prepare for the homestretch. 

1.  The Cubs have just won four in a row against the Brewers at Milwaukee.  Can they compound upon that success and continue to win on the road?  Up until that series, they had a pretty miserable 21-30 record on the road.  Pretty bad considering they had the best record in the NL.

2.  Along the same lines, can Ryan Dempster continue HIS recent winning ways on the road.  He’s won two games all year away from Wrigley all year.  Fortunately, they’ve both been in the last two weeks and hopefully signal a trend. 

3.  Is Alfonso Soriano back and healthy?  His post-DL production seem to indicate so.  Since coming back, Soriano is fire.  He’s batted .343 with an OPS of 1.000.  Now if we can only keep him healthy. 

4.  Can the Cubs keep from overusing Carlos Marmol?  With the addition of Chad Gaudin and now Jeff Samardzija (who I assume is getting a trial in the bigs), the load will be lessened but Piniella will still need to resist the urge to use Marmol as the go-to guy.  When the game is tight, it makes sense.  But there’s no need to wear him out by pitching him in 6-1 ballgames.  For evidence, just look at his performances just before the All-Star break. 

5.  Finally, the coming of August brings a shift in the schedule which prompts the question, Can the Cubs beat the East Division.  They handled the West just fine, thank you with a 23-10 record.  But in August, the East Division is a-comin’ interspersed with the usual suspects in the Central. 

6.  And speaking of that brings us to my last point.  Will the Cubs dominate the Cardinals like they have in previous years?  So far, they are 3-3 against the Redbirds.  In 2006 and 2007, the Cubs have handled them well with a decent 22-13 record combined.  Despite what logic tells us, St Louis isn’t going away (yet) and they still need to be dealt with.  With two Chicago-St Louis series in August (one home and one away), this is the time to do it.

Go Cubs!

THE RICH GET RICHER

money_bag_with_dollar_sign When I was a kid I used to get excited about teams beefing up for the home stretch with deals around the trading deadline.  But now it’s all about MONEY.  BIG MONEY!  Let’s level the playing field and bring parity to baseball.  I know what you’re thinking, the Brewers, Twins, Marlins, & Rays are all still in the race.  That’s true, but there’s something wrong when teams can steal players away for next to nothing, all because of money.

Big market teams like the Yankees & the Angels can virtually get stars for nothing.  Ivan Rodriguez going to New York for Kyle Farnsworth is obsene, so is Mark Teixeira being traded to the LA Angels of Anaheim for Casey Kotchman.  You can’t laud GM’s who steal players from smaller market ballclubs.  I am not putting teams down for taking advantage of the situation that currently exists in baseball, I just wish MLB would do something to correct it.

Some of you may be wondering my take on the White Sox getting future Hall of Famer Ken Griffey, Jr. in exchange for Nick Masset & Danny Richar.  While I agree that Masset & Richar are marginal prospects at best, Junior hasn’t really done anything for the Reds this year, and the jury is out as to whether he’ll be able to play CF & help the White Sox down the stretch this year.

MLB GETS TOUGH (?) ON ROIDS

This sounds like a story out of the Heckler.  Ozzie Guillen nailed it when he asked, "Are marginally talented hispanic ballplayers the only ones taking performance enhancing drug?"  GET REAL BASEBALL!!!  No stars have ever been slammed, they just seem to disappear (Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmeiro, Sammy Sosa, Jeff Bagwell, Bret Boone).  There are still roids guys in the game, but so far they’ve somehow managed to escape the dragnet that’s only gotten minor league hispanic players thus far.

7/24/08 NEW YORK (TICKER) –

Milwaukee Brewers minor leaguer Angel Salome was suspended 50 games on Tuesday for violating the drug prevention and treatment program.

Salome is the 18th player in the minors to be assessed the minimum penalty since the start of December.

The 21-year-old catcher was hitting .318 with six homers and 53 RBI in 68 games with Brevard County of the Class A Florida State League.

7/29/08  NEW YORK (Ticker)

Tampa Bay Rays minor league outfielder Jonathan Quinonez and New York Mets pitching prospect Yeiger Sanchez both were suspended 50 games for testing positive for a performance-enchancing drug, Major League Baseball announced Saturday.

Both players, who were with their organization’s Venezuelan Summer League teams, tested positive for metabolites of Nandrolene.

The suspensions are effective immediately.

SOX t-WIN

All by myself, in the Twin Cities!  Took the Light Rail from the Mall of America, got down there as the gates opened, found a nice general admission seat about as far away from the action as you can get, out in centerfield.  Tonite I didn’t wear my glasses, I’d rather not see a win, than see the losses I saw the last two nights.  I’m not superstitious, but I know what works.  Whatever it takes!

It was time for Livan Hernandez, 8-1 at home this year, but it was the White Sox turn.  Carlos Quentin hit a solo shot just over the leftfield wall, then ripped a bases clearing, two out double, it was 5-0 Good Guys.  The Twinks scored, but then Alexei Ramirez put the game on ice with a three run jack.  Gavin Floyd held the Twins hitters at bay.  BIG BAD Bobby Jenks was brought on in the 9th to get some work in, Minnesota scored a couple of meaningless runs, despite Nick Swisher hitting the wall to grab an out in right, final score 8-3.  Now I’ve got a winning streak to keep going.

One more game tomorrow night, after the game I hop the Big Grey Dog back to the Windy City.

Home Sweet Home for Twinkie Hurlers

I was chatting with my friend Joy the Sox fan over lunch today and she passed on an interesting tidbit about the Twins (a team, by the way, she despises). 

Minnesota is currently a half game out of first place with a 59-47.   Yet, their pitching staff show a wide gap in their performance on the road and at home.  Their ERA at home is third in the majors at a nifty 3.19.  When they travel, however, it slides all the way down to 28th in the MLB at a miserable 5.52 ERA. 

You can see the splits here.

That results in a 36-19 home, 23-28 away record for the year.

HEY, YOU’RE GOING THE WRONG WAY

This trip to Minnesota isn’t going exactly as planned.  The White Sox lost again last night, lead down to 1/2 games, things are tightening up.  CLuke & his son were with me last night, but we couldn’t hang on to a 4-0 lead.  The Twinkies scored five times off Clayton Richard in the 5th, thanks in large part to Justin Morneau’s bases loaded, two out, double, that cleared the bases, and just missed going out, off the baggie in right.  My cell phone started ringing before the ball hit the wall, thought it was bad timing by the Baseball Zealot, but he was rubbing it in, as a Cub fan, Hey Buddy, Pay attention to your own game!  It should be noted the Cubbies are doing quite well in Milwaukee, distancing themselves from their 2nd place competition, beating the Brewers best two pitchers C.C. Sabathia & Ben Sheets in the first two games of their series.

OK, I’ll admit it, I’m bitter, but this isn’t baseball, or baseball as it was meant to be played.  It’s more like a pinball game with fast little gnats flying all over this fake grass surface.  Then there’s this ugly grey ceiling, with speakers (blaring out noise on every pitch), hanging down, in play, balls off the speakers are in play.

We still had a chance, had Ozzie gotten somebody up when the wheels fell off the rookie pitcher making his 2nd major league start, he only went 4 innings in his major league debut.  Also when Alexei Ramirez got on with a single ahead of Josh Fields & Toby Hall, sending him might have gotten us another run, that was when we were ahead four to zip.  BTW, Hall’s two out single would’ve scored Alexei rather than sending him to 3rd, where he was stranded.  Minnesota added an insurance run, which turned out to be the difference, as Nick Swisher hit a booming solo shot off Joe Nathan in the 9th to make the final 6-5 Bad Guys.

CLuke brought his girls to where the Sox were staying and got some autographs.  There were alot of dealers trying to get guys to sign, but the Sox were more than happy to sign for real fans, especially a couple of cute young girls wearing White Sox tees.

Soon I’ll be hoping on the Light Rail, for the 3rd game I’m on my own, just me & all my friends, hopefully I can help the White Sox salvage the last two games of this four game set.  LET’S GO WHITE SOX!

Phelps knocks in 7 for AAA Redbirds

Just the other day when I was interviewing Erik Manning of Future Redbirds we got on the topic of Josh Phelps who is now playing for St Louis’ Triple-A team in Memphis.  His ears must have been burning. 

Despite his advanced age of 30, Phelps is doing his best to make his presence known.  Monday night, Phelps had a big league night at AutoZone Park.  Hitting two three-run homers, he garnered seven total rbis for the night and was 3 for 5. 

The Redbirds pretty much needed all of his production as they won by a 13-11 margin. 

phelps Josh Phelps was a highly touted catcher for Toronto in the minors (way back when).  Before he got to the majors, knee problems forced him to move to first base but he was still considered a hot prospect.  So much so that he landed on the cover of the yearly Baseball Prospectus Handbook.  Some superstitious folk say that that was his downfall right then and there. 

He did have a promising rookie year hitting .309 with 15 homeruns and followed it up with a solid sophomore season (20 HR, .268).  But he never put in a full season and after the first two years, his numbers dipped.

Ironically, in 2005 and 2007 he did put in a few games at catcher for the Rays, Yankees and Pittsburgh. 

So now he finds himself playing for Memphis after years of yo-yoing back and forth from the majors and the minors.  In 364 at-bats, he’s slugged 20 homers and has driven in 73.  Last night was the second time he hit two homeruns in one game for the AAA Redbirds.  With Albert playing in the big club and first base (and DH) being his only marketable positions, his only hope would be to used as trade bait.

With his advanced age, sooner is better for the fish to bite.

Hopeless in Minnesota

metrodome1 My two game win streak is over!  Mark Buehrle got clubbed for 5 runs (4 earned) in five innings & Kevin Slowey had it all going on, final score seven to nothing.  The Metrodome lived up to advance billing, it sucks.  There are still three games left in the series, tomorrow’s another day, but to be honest – I’d prefer we just blow this race open, rather than have just a 1 1/2 game lead, too close for comfort.

I believe Clayton Richard makes his second big league start tomorrow night.  These Twinkies are really pesky, it seems like everybody in the lineup bats in the .310’s, with speed, and they can field.

The Light Rail is a great way to get to/from the game.  And I have an 8 hour Greyhound ride to Chicago Friday morning at 1:15 AM, leaving for Waupaca once I get in town, 4 more hours, maybe I should just use my gun and end it now.  What do male Twins/Cubs fans have in common?  They both pee in troughs, did I tell you this place SUCKS?

Shawn Roof: News from Double-A

I always enjoy getting emails especially when they come from former Illini players.  Shawn Roof updated me on his latest since he got promoted to the Tigers’ AA squad, the Erie Seawolves.

Roof is enjoying the slightly cooler weather in Erie, PA (compared to Single-A weather in Florida, at least).  However, the biggest change is everyone is that much better at the higher level.  "The defenses are unbelievable, and you really have to earn your hits."  Pitchers are learning to work the counts better too, apparently.  Roof says, "Unlike before if you’re ahead in the count you’ll see a fastball, but now you see more 2-0 curveballs, and 3-2 curveballs."

A big highlight for Roof recently was when the Seawolves got a chance to face big leaguer Fausto Carmona. 

He had a pretty good sinker and induced a lot of ground ball outs, but he sure didn’t overpower us like I thought he would, so that was cool to see that you can hang in there against guys like that.  I had a infield base hit off of him.  I hit a chopper up the middle, and he jumped up and knocked it down but I beat it out.
Shawn did have a bit of bad news.  Former Illini and Oriole draft pick Kyle Hudson is out with a broken hand.  Hud looks to be back in a couple weeks.
 
I want to say that though I relate a lot of baseball related stuff from Shawn, I should mention he never neglects to ask about me and the family.  One of the nicest guys I know.
 
Good luck Shawn!!