Cubs MLB Roster

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40-Man Roster Info

40 players are on the MLB RESERVE LIST (roster is full) 

28 players on MLB RESERVE LIST are ACTIVE, and twelve players are on OPTIONAL ASSIGNMENT to minors. 

Last updated 3-26-2024
 
* bats or throws left
# bats both

PITCHERS: 15
Yency Almonte
Adbert Alzolay 
Javier Assad
Jose Cuas
Kyle Hendricks
* Shota Imanaga
Caleb Kilian
Mark Leiter Jr
* Luke Little
Julian Merryweather
Hector Neris 
* Drew Smyly
* Justin Steele
Jameson Taillon
* Jordan Wicks

CATCHERS: 2
Miguel Amaya
Yan Gomes

INFIELDERS: 7
* Michael Busch 
Nico Hoerner
Nick Madrigal
* Miles Mastrobuoni
Christopher Morel
Dansby Swanson
Patrick Wisdom

OUTFIELDERS: 4
* Cody Bellinger 
Alexander Canario
# Ian Happ
Seiya Suzuki
* Mike Tauchman 

OPTIONED: 12 
Kevin Alcantara, OF 
Michael Arias, P 
Ben Brown, P 
Alexander Canario, OF 
Pete Crow-Armstrong, OF 
Brennen Davis, OF 
Porter Hodge, P 
* Matt Mervis, 1B 
Daniel Palencia, P 
Keegan Thompson, P 
Luis Vazquez, INF 
Hayden Wesneski, P 

 



 

Minor League Rosters
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Game 95 Thread / D’backs @ Cubs (1 of 3)

Game Chat Brandon Webb vs. Jason Marquis UPDATE: I'm sure it's been mentioned in the comments but Daryle Ward was sent to the 15-day disabled list with a strained right calf and a rotoworld blurb suggests he could be out until September. Scott Moore was called up in the meantime. Also Ryan Dempster was activated today and Sean Gallagher was optioned to Iowa. Lou apparently said he'd like to avoid using Dempster today since he's pitched the last two days on rehab assignments which makes you wonder why they just didn't wait until tomorrow to activate him. Did the bullpen guys miss his jokes so much they needed him back a day early?

Comments

Marquis? Sacraficial lamb? Will this be like the time we put Marshall out there against Ben Sheets and then Barry Zito?

I think the Cubs chances are a little better than the sacrificial lamb. The Diamondbacks are no super team. AccuScore lists the Cubs as slight favorites. Isn't this year so much more fun than last.

Arizona is not exactly a murderer's row of a lineup. Marquis has to pitch well to have chance, with Webb going today, but the D-Backs have Orlando Hudson, Eric Byrnes, and some average players. I'd take Chris Young though....

When was the last time Marquis has pitched well? Not advocating gambling in any way. But if the cubs are indeed slight favorites today. The inner John Anthony in me advises you to contact your local Bookie.

When was the last time Marquis has pitched well? How about three starts ago. He has had two bad starts in a row that came after a very good start against Milwaukee.

Dusty Baylor: Arizona is not exactly a murderer’s row of a lineup. Good point... JustanoldCubfan: AccuScore lists the Cubs as slight favorites. But come on... it's Marquis v. Webb

And Orlando Hudson is probably my favorite defensive 2B. Dude is good.

I'm getting increasingly nervous about Marquis taking the hill every fifth day. There's no doubt he's still got talent, and can turn in a very good performance. The problem is, other than the start of the season, he seems to have no ability to control and/or monitor how good he's going to be. It's all up to chance. I hope Rothschild can get him straightened out and, above all, consistent because the Cubs need him to be at least passable if they're going to make a playoff run.

Maybe this will uncover that truth about the NBA? That David Stern mandates officials to swing the outcome of games. The NBA is the WWF of professional sports leagues.

I not so fondly remember the days of Shawn Estes taking the hill every fifth day when we were competing for the division title. I'll take Marquis any day over Estes.

The Eric Byrnes proposed contract extention with D-backs has fallen through and words are getting a bit testy. If the Cubs can sweep or maybe even take two-out-of-three this weekend, don't be surprised if Arizona throws up the White Flag early and deals Byrnes in the next ten days or so. The D'backs have supposedly set a $65M (maximum) payroll limit in '08.

It's a cool(ish) day at wrigley....wind blowing in. Marquis pitches well in cooler weather...look for a good start today.

Read the preview on the Dback mvn website. Although Webb has dominated the Cubs, Marquis has also done pretty darn well. And Byrnes hasnt been able to hit him. Regardless, I am feeling more like we are the home team when we play at Wrigley which is a good thing.

In a somewhat unrelated note, President Bush to hand the reins to Dick Cheney for a day this weekend while having a colonoscopy performed. Rumors that Cesar Izturis is to perform the operation remain mostly unsubstantiated...

The problem is, other than the start of the season, he seems to have no ability to control and/or monitor how good he’s going to be. It’s all up to chance. That's what you get from a 5th starter. I hope Rothschild can get him straightened out and, above all, consistent because the Cubs need him to be at least passable if they’re going to make a playoff run. People tend to overestimate how good a pitcher needs to be. Marquis has a 4.03 ERA this season. How good is that? It's as good as an average #2 starter. That's right, Marquis has pitched like a #2 starter. That's not just good from the #4 or #5 slot, it's outstanding. But let's say his ERA slips a full run by the end of the season. Where does a 5.03 ERA place him? A 5.03 ERA makes him an above average #4 starter. Yes, last year the average #4 starter had an ERA of 5.10. So I don't think Marquis is the weak link of this team.

Espn 1000 is reporting Ward to the DL and Moore called up and playing 1b. BTW, I would have thought a NFL refree would go down before a NBA one. Just too many Superbowls this decade have been a league marketer's dream.

ESPN 1000 in Chicago reporting Dempster activated, Gallagher optioned to Iowa. Ward to 15 day DL, Scott Moore recalled from Iowa and will be at 1st base today. Supposedly, Superman (Fontenot) is batting 3rd today.

"*Knocks on W—*" In very related news W--- had a season ending setback after a Cubs fan tapped his arm.

ESPN 1000 reporting Dumpster activated, Ward to DL, Fontenot spotted 2 rbi's in today's game cuz how cool he is, S.Moore called up, Gallagher sent down, Schmidt 3/44, and N.Perez thinks your mom is hot.

Supposedly, Superman (Fontenot) is batting 3rd today. Ugh... seriously? Is A-Ram not playing?

lou's playing the "screwed up obviously ill constructed lineup = wins" card that's been working lately. i fully expect Z to lead off his next start with pagan hitting cleanup.

lol! Chifan, you beat me to it! Knocking on W is the last thing we should be doing. I say he should be wrapped in bubble wrap when he's not on the mound...

Dave, That's what Waddle/Silverman were saying on ESPN 1000 in Chicago...........got to see it to believe it. Maybe Fontenot lit up Webb in the minors, I don't know.

INJURIES/NOT AVAILABLE Az=== R. Johnson Old Age Cubs= H. Blanco Neck R. Dempster Oblique C. Floyd Neck A. Guzman Elbow D. Lee Suspension W. Miller Back, shoulder R. Novoa Shoulder M. Prior Shoulder D. Ward Calf K. Wood Shoulder Oh for the good old days when our manager blamed his lack of success on injuries

Bringing a guy (Moore) up is easy but actually putting him in the lineup at first base . . . I can't help remembering when Hendry brought Moore up last September for a look-see, when Aramis was threatening to bolt. Dusty had Moore below Mabry and Blanco on the depth chart for 1st base.

Jace — July 20, 2007 @ 10:45 am lol! Chifan, you beat me to it! Knocking on W is the last thing we should be doing. I say he should be wrapped in bubble wrap when he’s not on the mound… ...................................................................... LOL!!!!! COMEDY GOLD JERRY!!!!!! Tell me that Kerry Wood walking around in Bubble Wrap isn't the funniest mental picture EVER

Does anyone seriously think Roberto Novoa has a chance to pitch in the major leagues again with Lou Piniella running this club? If Novoa ends up coming back to the club this year, I'm giving him 7 days in the majors before Lou makes Hendry get rid of him.

"Oh for the good old days when our manager blamed his lack of success on injuries" for once the team wasnt counting on wood/prior and the bench replacements could be starters on some teams in more than 1 position. about f'n time. overkill looks good at times like this.

Maybe Fontenot lit up Webb in the minors, I don’t know. I would be pretty surprised if Fontenot ever say Webb in the minors, though right now I am too lazy to figure out if he did. Is Dempster going to be available today? They would only activate him he is was available - so if what was said above is true (that he is being activated), then yes, he would be available.

The funny thing about Novoa is this. His lack of control on the mound, causes us the fans to seek Heartburn relief. However his lack of control while driving has put him out for the year. Apparently Novoa has Zero control in anything whatsoever. Has anyone ever seen him eat? Talk to a girl? Is it possible that he has tourettes? Someone get AZ Phil on this for a Scouting report.

If the ref is Crawford, that might not bode too well for his brother the mlb ump. I know its a stretch. "President Bush to hand the reins to Dick Cheney " Didn't he do that back in January 2001?

People tend to overestimate how good a pitcher needs to be. Marquis has a 4.03 ERA this season. How good is that? It’s as good as an average #2 starter. True, but that's taking into account his excellent start to the season. He's been much worse than that since summer started.

With the crooked Ref (somewhere Mark Cuban is screaming "I told you so!!!") and Michael Vick's "hobby", Bud Selig must be praying this carries on for the next couple of weeks so steroid boy breaking the record will be back page news.

Getting back to Will Ohman for a moment. Ohman's "loogy" numbers (lefty against lefty) this season are .226 BA against and .317 OBP against. These numbers are cited by people defending Ohman but the OBP number is a bit high, inflated by the number of walks he issues. When you bring in a guy to get one batter out, do you really want his failure rate to be almost one in three? As for the BA, it's about the same as all the other Cub relievers when they pitch to lefties. Howry .230/.313 Wuertz .235/.361 Dempster .200/.344 Marmol .231/.375 These OBPs are also not great. Wuertz, Dempster and Marmol are not control pitchers to begin with and righty pitchers sometimes lose the plate when a lefty stands in. The "loogy" numbers are much better in Iowa. Rapada .130/.229 Pignatiello .136/.190 Blevins at Daytona/Tennessee: you don't want to see his splits, and I can't get them anyway since they now only show his most recent games with his new team, Midland.

It's too bad Lou doesn't like the young guys. I'd rather see a rookie called up than the Cub's going after such proven veterans as Jose Macias and Enrique Wilson. Anyways... Andrew: I’m getting increasingly nervous about Marquis taking the hill every fifth day. There’s no doubt he’s still got talent, and can turn in a very good performance. We knew this about Marquis going into the deal... sometimes he's on, sometimes he's not. Either way he takes the ball every 5 days and does his job. We knew it like we knew Jacque couldn't hit lefties or throw. None of this is a surprise. Btw... OT -- Loved seeing Jacque go 4-5 yesterday. Not only was it a 4-hit game for him, but his swing looks dialed in. If the law of averages is to rear it's head on this team, we're going to see Jacque get hot this second half, and we're going to see a ton of HR from everyone on the team.

I'm available to play first base today...just call me. What? Dusty isn't the skipper?

Is Dempster going to be available today?---They would only activate him he is was available - so if what was said above is true (that he is being activated), then yes, he would be available. Except that he pitched last night for Iowa and I'm wondering if he's ready to go in back to back appearances.

Bud Selig must be praying this carries on for the next couple of weeks so steroid boy breaking the record will be back page news. Do you really think that those stories are bigger than Bonds breaking the home run record?

Godenot 3rd?? JJ 5th? Man, I hope these hnches are right, because this is not exactly a lineup that would strike fear in many... I would be a little more comfortable playing Fox over Moore today, just because he's been in CHI for more than a couple of hours...

Vick might be close, at least over the long term. Could easily turn into OJ.

Wind blowing in at 11 mph from CF again... Is the wind gonna blow out any more? ever?

Jace — July 20, 2007 @ 11:26 am Godenot 3rd?? JJ 5th? Man, I hope these hnches are right, because this is not exactly a lineup that would strike fear in many… I would be a little more comfortable playing Fox over Moore today, just because he’s been in CHI for more than a couple of hours… ======================= JACE: Or DeRosa could play 1B.

This Cubs team that's been doing all the winning lately isn't quite the one Jim Hendry envisioned just a few months ago ... Cubs opening day lineup: Soriano CF --- ensconced in LF Murton LF --- optioned to AAA Lee 1B --- our rock at first but currently suspended Ramirez 3B --- our anchor at third Jones RF --- temping in CF Barrett C --- traded away DeRosa 2B --- now the team supersub, RF/INF Izturis SD --- traded away

Considering our lack of success at hitting HRs and our very good success stringing together hits, the wind blowing in might not be a bad thing.

Yeah, except it seems that Lou is trying to give Derosa a day off. Yesterday didn't work out so well.

"I would be a little more comfortable playing Fox over Moore today, just because he’s been in CHI for more than a couple of hours…" I think I'd rather see DeRosa over both of them, but these crappy lineups have been scoring a lot of runs the past couple of days so who knows...

No way Johann... OJ had the car chase and it was a double murder. Vick was involved in dog fighting, which definitely doesn't have the same stigma as a double murder. Don't get me wrong - dog fighting is very bad. But Vick is nowhere near the realm of OJ.

Yeah, Johann, I agree... This year has just been weird, though, as far as the wind goes. It has also been cooler than usual... Most of the games at this point of the year ordinarily would have either cross wind or blowing out...

yeah kendall could be due his first game-dropped throw/missed pop out second game did not take charge on pop up single player hurt. 3rd game ?

Lineup makes me antsy. I know JJ's had a pretty good last couple of days, but let's not pull out the jump to conclusions mat here.

Is this combo of Fontenot and Theriot really going to work in the 2 and 3 holes? They're both the same type of hitter and, while it's useful to have a guy in the 2-hole who can make things happen, you usually end up giving up outs for that kind of thing (bunts, ground balls to the right side, etc.). That's Soriano on base and then 2 outs before A-Ram comes to the plate, which isn't a very helpful situation to be in all the time.

Except Dave the Vick seems to have lots of gory details that will keep the media in ratings heaven. Electrocuting, drowning and slamming dogs to the ground when they underperformed, personally building all the the structures, it's a federal case, it's going on during the season, plus the media can talk forever about the culture of dog fighting. Also, OJ was an ex star while Vick is a currently high profile star who has done some very stupid things already. I'm not trying to equal dog fighting with double murders (although they're both horrifying) just saying this case has the potential to be a huge deal for football and much more harmful then the Bonds thing is for baseball.

I just read that he is lefty, maybe that is why he is starting against Webb

Neat... tomorrows lineup was just posted: E Patterson 8 S Moore 7 Fontenot 4 Harvey 9 Cedeno 6 Fox 3 Kinkade 5 Richie 2 Brownlie 1

Funny, Ryonx, although I think Kinkade was just released a few days ago, and Brownlie was released a month ago or so...

just saying this case has the potential to be a huge deal for football and much more harmful then the Bonds thing is for baseball. True... but then again, I don't think that Bonds breaking Aaron's record is harmful for baseball! :)

I wouldn't be playing Moore at 1B if there are other alternatives (and there is--Mark DeRosa). Moore can play 3B and LF, and while he has played some 1B at Iowa (albeit not much) and could play 1B in a pinch, he probably would need an entire ST of working at 1B before he would be good enough to start there in a major league game. And if Marquis is on (and I hope he is), there will be a lot of ground balls, and not handling slightly off-target throws at 1st base is a good way to lose a game at Wrigley when the wind is blowing in. If DeRosa needs a day off, he can get one when D-Lee returns from his suspension.

"If the ref is Crawford, that might not bode too well for his brother the mlb ump. I know its a stretch." Jacos, Crawford was on the crew of Game 5 of the 06 finals that Cuban accused of throwing the game. He also has a quick trigger when it comes to giving up T's. Currently there is a ban on updating Crawford's wikipedia page for what its worth. Adam, Moore is a SP.

Is this combo of Fontenot and Theriot really going to work in the 2 and 3 holes? Actually, I've been hoping Lou would try this sometime because Soriano is an unusual #1 in that he drives himself in a lot with HR's (leaving no one on base of course for the #2 to advance and the #3 to drive in). Theriot and Fontenot were very effective last year as Iowa's leadoff man and #2 and sticking them behind Soriano might work well.

Very Good, Phil. In a very thorough and well-backed way, you just bitched about the lineup... I don't think everyone should try what you just did... We don't anyone hurting themselves...

Dave- No I don't think it will. But I think it will group all the pro sports together in one big problem with pro sports, rather just the spotlight on Bonds. I know I'm not explaining it correctly. OJ - I can say without hyperbole that OJ murder was million times worse than Vick's. I too think its repulsive for what Vick's done, but OJ was close to Michael Jordan in popularity with all races. If Jordan was suspected in killing someone that would be bigger than OJ case.

chifan3887- Wow, I just threw Crawford's name out there because of the Duncan deal and knew his brother was an ump. I read my SI this am, and unfortunately Shagg Crawford, their father, passed away last week. Thanks for the info.

This discussion about OJ versus Vick versus Bonds is striking the same chord with me as the ESPN-sponsored "Who's Now" thing. I am staying as far away from it as I can...

I have to agree with Johann on the Vick/OJ thing. The sheer brutality of what Vick is alleged to have done and the non schilliant attitude that some players have reacted with some comparing to horse racing or deer hunting, There are also allegations by the Humane Society and PETA types that there is a strong dog fighting in the NFL is going to leave a bigger black eye on the NFL than the Juice did.

Chifan - I would hope that the only message ESPN execs take from me is that they should stop this ridiculous pop-culture tangent and go back to covering sports, which is why they were successful in the first place.

I see OJ occasionally at the golf course where I practice weekday mornings. He - and the sycophantic entourage trailing in his wake - are true pieces of work. Plus the guy has the biggest head - physically, not ego - I've ever seen on a human being.

Chifan: '“Who’s Scummier” after “Who’s Now”.' How about 'Who's Scummier Now?"

Not nearly enough complaining about the line-up to win this game!!!!

All kidding aside, that's a pretty shitty lineup with Fontenot hitting 3rd. Moore, Kendall, Marquis 7,8,9? That's 9 or the 27 outs needed right there.

A no-hitter, eh? Those are pretty historic. No-hitters, I mean. Not giving up a single hit all day. Wow. Fonzie has 11 assists? Anyone know how many the entire outfield had in 2005?

Just a gut feeling :) We’re not working any counts, so this guy is cruising. I know... Just working the curse-mojo. :) No-hitter.

Man, the Cubs' hitting approach needs to change against this guy... He's thrown 26 pitches in 3 innings!

With Fontenot on first, CBS Sportsline gamecenter says "Pickoff attempt to third." What is he, a ventriliquist? "Hey, look at me, over at third..."

Who is this Jones fellow? I remember a Jones on the team earlier this year but he really sucked.

If I was at the game I would be pounding the beer before the 8th inning came which could be about 10 minutes from now.

Come on, JJ! I can't even believe that I am actually hopeful that JJ might come through here... What a difference a week makes...

when the pimps try to get at you DROP It like its JOCK DROP It like its JOCK DROP It like its JOCK

Jacques Jones and Mike Fontento walk into a bar. The bartender is a former pitcher and says hi fellas, what'll you have? JJones says... I'll have whatever Fponty's drinking. And that's how JJ came out of his slump.

When was the last time Marquis has pitched well? TODAY! Hey! Hey!

jeez, what is going on here? jones getting a chance to play regualrly now hitting and driving runs in. can't something be done? who will the regular denizens of this site pick on if he keeps on contributing? i can just imagine the lost sleep by many becasue of this. c'mon jock! stop this decent hitting and fielding. make 10 errors and strike out 15 times in a row to make the omnisceint happy.

Marquis is a cool/cold weather pitcher...that's why he starts out so well in spring. Mark my words, he'd be money in a playoff run.

exec.knucklehead: who will the regular denizens of this site pick on if he keeps on contributing? Trolls?

can someone explain why we brought up fox? he's a first baseman right? If so, why did we bother bringing up moore? i'm somewhat confused about the fox/moore call ups. and Jason Kendal doesn't seem to want to take advantage of change of scenery.

on if he keeps on contributing? We've always got Neifi! (plan B is Eyre)

Kendall is the new Jock. Ha! Now does Kendall have to recruit somebody to take his place?

If Jones can keep hitting, I say keep him and play him in CF. Moore, Kendall, and Marquis is a terrible bottom third of the order....ouch.

I think Jock might have been uncomfortable w/ Izturis in the club house. Now that he's gone, Jock can relax and not worry about that gremlin giving unwarranted taint massages. Jock post Izturis : 6/8 at the plate

LMAO Dear god, did Augie Ojeda just bat for the Dbacks? They do realize Augie didn't even make the '06 Cub's team, right?

exec...STraw... ST.... blah blah blah blah blah blah Murton stinks.... blah blah blah blah blah blah drool monkey... blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah fargin icehole....

first off, omniscient not omnisceint. rynox, how about the keebler elf? jock a had decent year in 06 hitting and catching the ball considering a league change. throwing is a downside to say the least. it seems to me he gives 100% all the time. he is certainly better then pie for the moment taken overall. to be forthright about it, i hope he sticfks and drives in the winning run in the ninth to win the series for the cubs.

Joey Jo Jo Jr. Shabadoo: I think Jock might have been uncomfortable w/ Izturis in the club house. Now that he’s gone, Jock can relax and not worry about that gremlin giving unwarranted taint massages. Jock post Izturis : 6/8 at the plate lol!!! Does anyone still have a link to the video?

Why bring up Fox AND Moore? 1) Fox bats righthanded Moore bats lefthanded 2) Fox is a catcher/outfielder/first baseman while Moore is an infielder 3) both hit with power

let's not all jump to conclusions that every person with a strong opinion is you-know-who.... thanks...

Anyone have the score? ESPN.com has the game 2-1, with -1 hit in the 7th inning, Yahoo.com has the game 6-4 in the box score, 5-3 in the lineup and on the pitching lines, 3-2. I work in I.T., maybe I should offer my services to ESPN.com. >:-(

"Can anybody clue me in as to how the D-backs have a + .500 record?" The team went bananas in the 1st half of the season, then came back to earth immediately after the break. For having so many young players on their roster, they look like a definite contender in the future - and their farm system is still awesome, despite all the call - ups. Have to say that I love that LouPa has the cojones to actually start players just called up the day before - can you imagine the heat he'll take if any of these guys screws up in a significant way? Give the kids a chance and see how they'll do - so far can't argue with the results.

Theriot is a crispy shrimp tempura appetizer. Fontenot is a nice piece of steak. And Ramirez is the Death By Chocolate dessert.

Holy crap - Aram with a Bonds shot, against a hurricane out there - and yeah, he stood at the plate watching it go out...he can play a statue out there for all I care, as long as keeps hitting like this.

JustanoldCubfan: AccuScore lists the Cubs as slight favorites. Rynox: But come on… it’s Marquis v. Webb ...and Marquis in line for the win. 7.2 IP, 4 H. Baseball is a screwy game sometimes.

#100 Barry — July 20, 2007 @ 12:56 pm We have hitters just not great run producers Glad I was wrong!!!

Baseball is a screwy game, but boy is it nice to watch the Cubs play competitive baseball again.

7 games over .500 (51-44) it has been one hell of a month. wow. this is getting on-par with that houston season from a few years ago where they didnt get going til midseason.

crunch its been like this for 2 months, ever since the fight and Lou blowing his top.

Even though we are in line for the win, it is hard not to marvel at Webb's 16:1 groundball to flyball ratio and the game he pitched today.

"the lou blowup" "the barrett trade" "the pie callup" "the fontenot callup" we can attribute it to any hocus-pocus we want...just keep winning.

crunch: it has been one hell of a month. wow. this is getting on-par with that houston season from a few years ago where they didnt get going til midseason. I always thought the "Lou changing the culture" thing was rubbish that people said because it sounded good, but I have to admit... I'm becoming a believer.

Love the fact that we beat a top pitcher! Now if only we could solve those pesky unknown lefties...

Woo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Today was the hardest win of the series, "on paper." I can't wait for tomorrow - haven't felt like this since 2003.

Does anyone here seriously want Lou to change the closer's role right now? Howry with only 4 walks in 25 innings? Please don't put Dempster out there in the 9th, Lou.

They just interviewed Jock Jones. Man, he's a classy guy. To put up with the crap he has, he's conducted himself with the utmost professionalism.

Dont be suprised if a showboating Aram charges this DBag team the next couple of days and bite us on the ass. Damn you, Aram!!!

Umm, yeah, WPZ... Please don't get ahead of yourself... ZHL for at least another couple of weeks...

Does anyone here seriously want Lou to change the closer’s role right now? Howry with only 4 walks in 25 innings? Please don’t put Dempster out there in the 9th, Lou. Dempster has been a better pitcher than Howry all year. Dempster has had only 2 blown saves all year. I do not think I will ever understand the Dempster hate among Cub fans.

I don't want Lou to change the closer role. I want Marmol and Howry to help shut things down until Dempster coms in for the save. Them combined a Wuertz who despite some recent struggles is still pretty good forms a very nice bullpen.

How many? Last I heard he wasn't really catching any more, if at all. Anyone know of where I can find minor league defensive stats for 2007? BaseballCube only has through 2006.

So JASON MARQUIS's fine performance today lowered his ERA to 3.92 and now all five of our starting pitchers again have ERAs below 4.00

Anyone know of where I can find minor league defensive stats for 2007? Yes, are you accusing me of lying..] asshole

The Cubs are second in the NL in Runs Scored against (394). The Padres lead them by 71 runs!! (323). That is remarkable.

Yes, are you accusing me of lying..] asshole WTF? I asked a pretty simple question so that I could look up the answer to my original question (how much has Fox been catching) myself. But I guess if that makes me an asshole, so be it.

cwtp... not really sure what your problem is. I ask a pretty simple question about whether or not fox had been catching this year, and you replied with a smart ass response saying "yea... more than once." So I asked for further information, and in turn I am an asshole. You have to love some of the crap by a handful of people on TCR...

fox shows to have about 41 ab's from the catcher spot according to minor league splits. First inning.com log shows he caught on July 13th and split 1b-c duties on July 7th. Let's refrain from the name-calling....

aaronb: "But if the cubs are indeed slight favorites today. The inner John Anthony in me advises you to contact your local Bookie." Well, you might want to think about joining your local Gambler's Anonymous.

JACOS: "Dont be suprised if a showboating Aram charges this DBag team the next couple of days and bite us on the ass...." Uhhh, yeah. Right. They are going on to win the pennant and it will be A-Ram's fault. Geez...

Wuertz, Dempster and Marmol are not control pitchers to begin with and righty pitchers sometimes lose the plate when a lefty stands in. Righty pitchers sometimes don't pitch as well against lefties as they do against righties. It has nothing to do with losin the plate. It's been that way for 120 years, why you think the Cubs pitchers would suddenly buck that trend is beyond me.

Dempster has had only 2 blown saves all year. Yeah, when he blew the four run lead against the Mets, I don't count that as a blow save either. Good call.

Look... Dempster has only given up runs in five outings. 2 of those became BS, two became losses, and one he still got the save. Those are pretty solid numbers. Dempster has been very effective this year. Howry, on the other hand, has given up runs in 11 different outings.

Dempster: 1-3, 16 Saves, 3.38 ERA, 1.01 WHIP, 8.57 K/9, 3.63 BB/9, .26 HR/9 Howry: 5-4, 7 Saves, 4.27 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 7.38 K/9, 2.33 BB/9, .77 HR/9

"I do not think I will ever understand the Dempster hate among Cub fans." When did I say I hated Dempster? I just want Lou to keep going with the hot hand, and prior closer/set - up roles be damned. What's wrong with that strategy, may I ask?

Dempster was a hot hand too. Also, you aren't moving Dempster anywhere but the closer role, so what do you do with him? Dempster was working very well in the closer role, and you stick with that.

When did I say I hated Dempster? I didn't say you did, but your comment echo's a lot of other comments around here saying that Howry has been much better than Dempster, Dempster sucks, yada yada yada. I don't have a huge problem with going with the hot hand, but I think that Dempster has proven himself over the last 2.5 years to be an effective closer. Move Howry back to the role (set-up man) that he has shown that he can be very effective in (over the last few years).

dave — July 20, 2007 @ 2:23 pm Has Fox caught at all this year? ============================= DAVE: Yes. Here are Jake Fox's starts at AA Tennessee in 2007 (by position): 89 games started: 1B - 37 LF - 18 RF - 15 DH - 10 C - 9 (five starts in April, two in May, one in June, and one in July) There were also three games where Fox moved to catcher from another position (twice from 1B and once from RF) late in a game as the result of a double-switch. Jake Fox's defensive stats at catcher (2007): 3-14 CS (21%) 2 E 1 PB

Jesus, Kendall has the second worst VORP in the major leagues: Yeah, but on the NMB (Not Michael Barrett) scale, he's like a 10,000 or something. :)

"...what do you do with him?" I don't remember where I saw this article, but he expressed some sentiment for going back to a starter's role recently. Not that I agree with that, but why not a middle relief role for a few weeks? He's not the ideal replacement for Eyre, but he'd be a definite upgrade.

For all stated purposes, Lou wants Marmol to have the closing role eventually and for Dempster to move back to starting. But he said he wanted Dempster to train Marnol as the closer for now. Dempster as a starter would suck badly though, as he never showed himself capable of performing well in that role. He is pitching better then Howry this season and I simply see no reason to screw with that because on game with the Mets jacked up his stats. Howry, if you remember, sucked badly at the beginning of the year, so I'm not sure why his bad games are now forgotten about because of a hot streak, but Dempster's bad games continue to be held over him despite his hot streak before he got hurt.

Win Probability Added Marmol 1.34 Dempster 1.29 Wuertz 0.63 Howry 0.26 Ohman -0.89 Eyre -1.39 (2nd worst in the NL to Brian Fuentes) Relievers Expected Wins Added Dempster 2.050 Marmol 1.561 Wuertz 1.124 Howry 0.873 Ohman -0.686 Eyre -1.253 (3rd worst in baseball to BJ Ryan and Jorge Julio) maybe you guys were on to something about Ohman sucking :)

But again, that takes into account Ohman pitching to righties also, right Rob? Because it's certainly true that Ohman has sucked against righties.

Johann — July 20, 2007 @ 4:26 pm For all stated purposes, Lou wants Marmol to have the closing role eventually and for Dempster to move back to starting. But he said he wanted Dempster to train Marnol as the closer for now. Dempster as a starter would suck badly though, as he never showed himself capable of performing well in that role. He is pitching better then Howry this season and I simply see no reason to screw with that because on game with the Mets jacked up his stats. Howry, if you remember, sucked badly at the beginning of the year, so I’m not sure why his bad games are now forgotten about because of a hot streak, but Dempster’s bad games continue to be held over him despite his hot streak before he got hurt. ======================= JOHANN: I agree. In Uncle Lou's world, Dempster is the closer, Marmol is the closer-in-training, and Howry can close whenever Dempster isn't available. Given the choice, I would rather trade Dempster than move him back to the starting rotation, though. He's just a mediocre starter, but would probably have some value as a closer in a trade to a club that needs one. But that can be considered next off-season. . Other than moving Scott Eyre (if possible), I think I'd just keep the bullpen as it is right now. And if KW can come back, that's great, that would be another plus.

"Relievers Expected Wins Added Dempster 2.050" Having anything over 2 in WXRL when you lost almost a month of the regular season is outstanding. Dempster needs to keep the role.

OH-Man SUCKS! VA PHIL had my back last night with his post! As have my fellow Ohman haters here. However, I am thoroughly UN-impressed with Jason Kendall, too. He now is 0-3 in busting runners. A 0.0% CS rate. Dropped a foul tip today on Marquis' last batter, as well. BUT he HUSTLED to 1B! 0-CUB at the plate. Man, I want to give the guy a chance - but we're in a f-ing pennant race now. Come on, Jason!

yeah, both numbers basically take into account the situation of the game, as in pitching well in a blowout doesn't do as much for you as pitching well with the bases loaded, up one and striking out three straight. No doubt by those numbers that Ohman's cost us in some crucial situations this year. Of course last year he had a 1.16 WPA which is pretty decent (0 is average).

"Maybe this will uncover that truth about the NBA? That David Stern mandates officials to swing the outcome of games. The NBA is the WWF of professional sports leagues." If Stern had his say, the Lakers, Bulls and Knicks would naver get a bad call against them. And teams from the less than ratings strong and downright second rate cities of San Antonio and Cleveland would not be playing for the NBA championship.

if I was Terry Donaghy he should be more worried about David Stern than the mob. Oh wait, one in the same. But no kidding, you don't cross David Stern.

I'm just saying Rob that if Lou used Ohman properly (IE stictly as a LOOGY) his win probability would be far better. Having to come out and pitch against righties has hurt his numbers by quite a bit and by extension the team..

One interesting stat regarding Michael Wuertz is that so far in 2007 he has inherited 23 runners when entering a game in the midst of an inning, and only one of the 23 inherited runners has scored. That's pretty good.

"One interesting stat regarding Michael Wuertz is that so far in 2007 he has inherited 23 runners when entering a game in the midst of an inning, and only one of the 23 inherited runners has scored. That’s pretty good." And that runner who scored did so on a fluky groundball right above the foul line on the right side of the infield. It was sort of mishandled by Wuertz, too. Twice he's come with the bases loaded, no one out and twice he's struck out the side.

Inherited Scored/Total Inherited Runners Wuertz 1/23 (4.3%) Dempster 0/4 (0%) Eyre 4/10 (40%) Howry 5/15 (33%) Marmol 1/20 (5%) Ohman 7/33 (21.2%)

anyone know the league average on allowing inherited runners to score? I guess it depends greatly on the situation though. I mean coming in with a man on 1st and 2 outs is a lot different than bases loaded and nobody out.

The sports media is a joke... I've heard it two places now, CSN & WSCR... do you want to bring Wood back, even if he's throwing well, he could bring bad vibes. Me: Give me a break. He's not some enigma that represents the old era, he is what he is. If he's throwing well and able to contribute bring him on the team. If the Cub's have better options, leave him there or trade him. I guess I don't believe in that stuff.

Didn't Wuertz walk in the winning run? But anyway, I would say that Wuertz/Dempster/Marmol look great in that area and I'll bet Howry's stats were higher and have come down. And will continue to come down when he goes back to set up. And Ohman's numbers are skewed by misuse.

I too am watching the Sox/Sox game, and Boston just got completely screwed out of a 3-run home run.

I'm mad at myself for not saying this earlier...I'm happy to cheer for Jacque Jones. He's done nothing but play hard since he's been here. Some times not well, some times not smart, but he's always played hard and he's always been professional about doing his job. I'm not a booer by nature (I made one exception for Todd Hundley, that pr!ck), but I've never understood exactly why Jacque has gotten so much of it. I hope he has a great second half.

#241 - Joke? HArd to read your mind here. No quotes, icons, itals - etc. HA HA...

Yeah, I think booing of Jones has been ridiculous. I probably support trading him, but I also think he can do well somewhere.

E-man- I was doing my surly old baseball fan bit. I forgot to put the gray wig on and wave my fist. I'm glad JJ is coming along, hopefully he can do what he did in the second half next year. My lovely bride and I are going to go to the game tomorrow and try to get some tickets.

Re #525: I got that confused with the Ryan Dempster meltdown two days later.

Not that it's a huge defense of his performance so far, but Kendall didn't drop that foul tip in the 9th. It was fouled straight into the dirt and bounced back towards him.

Ozzie did a infield shift on the terrifying Eric Hinske (.202 average)and he bunted down the left field line. That's just dumb.

Bonds pops out - see that wasn't so hard. And that was Jeff f'ing Suppan, Mr. Lucky to be .500 himself. OT - why does espn classic suck the phat one lately? I mean, it's all classic American Gladiators and shit. 2 -down in the inning, still that guy on 1st. Dammnit.

Giants 6-4. Villaneuva threw a WP with the bases loaded to tie it at four. Guillermo Rodriguez (Guillermo!) with a 2 run single.

Keep it going Giants!!! p.s. there is a hilarious pictures of Gorzelanny of the pirates homepage

Cubs 2.5 back. Milwaukee loses. Shiner Bock yummy in my tummy. G'night y'all.

SF 8 Brewers 4, gotta love it... 2 1/2 games behind...and unless SD and LA both win, 2 GB in the wild card (since they start the night tied)

BTW, I want to go on record and say that I like Jason Marquis as our 5th story. Today was a Shawn Estes type start from 2003. Kudos Jason, keep it up!! Now maybe we can lull these kids to sleep with some long tall lanky soft tossing curball lefties.

4-2 phillies in the 5th. Who's now is the stupidest thing in the history of sportscenter.

Hmmm.... Erik Bedard has something special going on tonight. Currently through 5 1/3.

"If Stern had his say, the Lakers, Bulls and Knicks would naver get a bad call against them." I'll agree that while the Bulls certainly received their share of favorable officiating, you probably have forgotten about the infamous Hue Hollins, whose calls screwed the Bulls consistently and thoroughly every chance he got. The phantom foul call on Pipppen after Starks released his 3 - pointer (at the end of a crucial swing game, in the playoffs!) is one of the worst calls in NBA history. I also believe that Hollins was encouraged to seek early retirement as a result of his atrocious work - if only Froemming had received the same.

CUBS - #2 in the NL in PITCHING (starters) #1 in K's (445) and BAA .237 (yeah - without W & P!) AND #1 in W-L record with one more win than the Padres starters

It's started. I am now constantly scrounging every news source looking for Cubs news. The mania has set in. Don't let me down again, fellas.

It appears that the guy according to an AP story fixed a game bewteen the Knicks and Heat that the Knicks won and if they would have lost the Bulls would switched lottery odds with Portland, screwing us out of Oden and 6 out of the next 10 NBA titles.

Phi leads SD 6-2 and NYM is tied 1-1 with LAD both games are in the 7th, so it looks like we can gain some ground in the WC race.

More Shiner Bock's consumed, more awake than ever. Is that a porter or a lager? F' it, I'm wide awake and seeing stars. I agree with upthread djchi: Who's Now on sportscenter is so stupid it burns. Are they trying to transform ESPN into E! WTF??? Chad - Estes' CG shutout towards the end of '03 CANNOT be overlooked. I'm too f'ing lazy to look it up but it was nails. The rest of Estes' year in '03? No comment

The E-Man: CUBS - #2 in the NL in PITCHING (starters) #1 in K’s (445) and BAA .237 (yeah - without W & P!) AND #1 in W-L record with one more win than the Padres starters Gee, when your rotation isn't: Z, Rusch, Maddux, relatively unknown rookie, relatively unknown rookie you can actually get people out. I'm sorry, but the Cub's were just asking for trouble last year.

Awesome to see Jones contributing again today. For a while I got the sense that it wasn't pitcher v. Jones when he came up to bat, but Jones v. Jones. He had some inner battles going on and now he seems to be swinging well and battling the pitcher.

wood/prior/miller/rusch...and all of them got themselves injured to the point of minimal-to-no performance. the only rookie starter that stepped up was marshall...for 1 month. marmol was all stuff, no location last year...this year he's one of the most dominating pen arms. that one's still blowing me away.

Well, we do have Marshall pitching and he's pretty much a rookie, but he's doing very well! If Guzman could ever get healthy, him and Marshall would make a very nice back of the order.

Rich Hill was very good in the second half last year. I can't believe I'm sitting here cheering for Antonio Alfonsecca to get the last out in a game.

By the way, if you want to trash talk any NL East fans, the top two teams in the Central now have better records then the top two teams in the East. Not bad for a division where supposedly a sub .500 team could compete.

El Pulpo gets it done. Phillies 7, Padres 3. Final.

oh yeah, mr. hill, too. forgot about his 2nd 1/2... the pitching was just pure hell last year for most of the starting crew...the team barely had a #2/3 starter most of the time, much less worrying who's the #4/5 guys. maddux sucked except for 1 month...marmol, mateo, and guzman did nothing to contribute except for a combined 30+ game effort of some horrible baseball. rusch, prior, miller, and wood combined for like 150 innings (only 1 game started by wood, though).

"I’ll agree that while the Bulls certainly received their share of favorable officiating, you probably have forgotten about the infamous Hue Hollins, whose calls screwed the Bulls consistently and thoroughly every chance he got. The phantom foul call on Pipppen after Starks released his 3" If you're into the idea that Stearn is the puppet master of the NBA refs, then the call on Pippen fits . Largest market in the country gets a cheap call on a player from the third market. My point was, this stuff doesn't exist. Home teams get more calls, that's for sure, but no commissioner of any league wants a team from a tank town like San Antonio winning the championship. Also, Hubert Davis took the shot that Hollins called a foul on. If Starks had taken it he probably would have bricked the free throws and the Bulls would have won. I don't think it was a three either but I could be wrong. Too tired and drunk to check.

tbone, you are right, it was Hubert Davis. But it was a three and he hit all of them. Worst Call Ever

Fning Hubert Davis had a shooting range of a Daisy Air Gun, that season would have gone along way to solidify Pippen as a great player(which he was).

#283: it wasn’t pitcher v. Jones when he came up to bat, but Jones v. Jones That's a great way of putting it. I often thought that Jones had been coming up to bat with that look on his face that people get when they say "Because you know what? I'm gonna get through this, because you know what? [strike one] I'm strong, and I need to be strong, because you know what? [strike two] When people try to bring me down, I got to do what I got to do, because you know what? [strike three]..." etc. Glad to see him seemingly putting that behind him.

"If you’re into the idea that Stearn is the puppet master of the NBA refs, then the call on Pippen fits." No, I think the whole conspiracy angle is silly, it sounds like another Oliver Stone pic - I once had a work colleague that propogated that type of nonsense and I tried to reason with him by telling him that it only insulted his intelligence, but nothing got him off of that jag. But thanks for the correction on the Knicks player -I hated Starks more than anyone on that team, so it obviously colored my memory of the game.

Just doing my part to push this thread into 300 post territory. I see we have a new "author" on this site...Dr. Joseph Hecht...is he the one who goes by "Joe" in the forums?

I see we have a new “author” on this site…Dr. Joseph Hecht…is he the one who goes by “Joe” in the forums? Nope... Dr. Hecht = Cubster.

If Guzman could ever get healthy... ----- File Angel Guzman under W/P-like shattered expectations. I don't expect to see him this year of course I could be wrong since I'm working on secondary info. Based on current info from Az Phil and then reading between the lines, It looks like he's got cubital tunnel syndrome (really) which is an entrapment of the ulnar nerve on the inside of the elbow. The more common nerve compression is carpal tunnel syndrome which is a compression of the median at the wrist/palm and the surgery for that works very well. This is a different nerve (ulnar) but it is what most people recognize when the bump their elbow and get painful shocks, what is known as "the crazy bone". For Angel G, it hasn't responded to rest and they've stopped his rehab. He's getting second opinions at this point. This is the same condition Wil Ohman had causing him to miss the 2002-3 seasons. Marlin pitcher Josh Johnson currently is missing this year from it. Eric Gagne missed 2005-6 from it. The surgery for fixing this isn't small incision stuff because the ulnar nerve has to be meticulously dissected out for enough distance to mobilize it. The traditional transposition operation is to dissect and move (transpose) the nerve to a more anterior location from behind the medial epicondlye so it doesn't get compressed with repetitive flexion. The flexor-pronator muscles are adjacent to the new anterior position so there are issues with rehabbing them postop. There are other surgical approaches including removing some of the adjacent bone (medial epicondyle) and not transposing the nerve but either approach can help the nerve but weaken the adjacent muscle attachments. So this isn't a good diagnosis for a pitcher. Both Wil Ohman and Eric Gagne had to go through two operations before they made it back to mlb rosters. It's was a rough recovery road for them. here is a pic of the basic anatomy: http://tinyurl.com/2xkjgy

yes, I'm officially a TCR writer now. Thanks to Rob and the guys. I don't think I want to go by all the formal Dr moniker with each post though since I like to post as a cub fan as well...it's a bit clark kent like (well, from the Simpson's movie promos more "spider-pig" like)...so I'm thinking I'll just stay as Cubster

Congrats on the promotion to author on the site Cubster. IMO, this is the best Cubs Blog out there and you guys are all very informative and funny.

This little tidbit from the Sun-Times: Soriano has 11 assists, second in the National League to Atlanta's Jeff Francoeur (12) and the most for a Cubs outfielder since Sammy Sosa had 14 in 1998. http://tinyurl.com/ytq2gg --- I don't remember the Sammy of 98 getting so many OF assists. He had a good arm earlier in his career but the muscle bound Sammy lost his arm...I guess it was post 98 based on the above info though

Joel Sheehan of baseball prospectus still thinking Cubs over Brewers. BP link needs a subscription though http://tinyurl.com/2fmpyp The Cubs’ biggest edge is the rotation. They have five starters with ERAs in the threes, and they get a quality start most days, turing the game over to a passable bullpen...only Carlos Marmol has been genuinely dominant. The gap between the Cubs’ run differential and their record is part luck, but also reflects a bullpen that has failed them at times.

Sheehan could be wrong though...since he sees the Diamondbacks beating out the Padres/Dodgers.

Yeah, looking at records yesterday I couldn't believe that the Diamondbacks were over .500. That might be your manager of the year in Arizona, doing that with that pile of crap.

Baseball Prospectus Christina Kahrl isn't a Fontegod believer...blasphemer! "it's important to remember Fontenot's not a .500 slugger, and that he's basically just had a lot of luck on balls in play. He deserves to stick, but like Ryan Theriot, he's a nifty bit part, not a star a-borning." http://tinyurl.com/2tossb

I'm glad we have an actual doc on the site - makes the hazy reports we still get at times from the Cubs PR dept. a little easier to decipher. Given past events regarding W and P's many injuries, it can only help to clarify the situation.

from that same BP Kahrl article, look at all the cub roster transactions from 6/17 thru 7/13...very busy. Optioned OF-R Matt Murton to Iowa (Triple-A); recalled LHP Clay Rapada from Iowa. [6/13] Optioned LHP Clay Rapada to Iowa. [6/17] Activated 1B/OF-L Daryle Ward from the 15-day DL. [6/19] Acquired C-S Rob Bowen and OF-L Kyler Burke from the Padres for C-R Michael Barrett and cash. [6/20] Optioned RHP Sean Gallagher to Iowa. [6/21] Activated 3B-R Aramis Ramirez from the 15-day DL. [6/22] Placed RHP Ryan Dempster on the 15-day DL, retroactive to 6/23; purchased the contract of RHP Billy Petrick from Tennessee (Double-A); transferred RHP Wade Miller from the 15- to the 60-day DL. [6/26] Optioned RHP Billy Petrick to Iowa; recalled RHP Rocky Cherry from Iowa. [6/30] Placed RHP Rocky Cherry on the 15-day DL (strained lat); recalled RHP Billy Petrick from Iowa. [7/1] Optioned RHP Billy Petrick to Iowa. [7/4] Recalled RHP Sean Gallagher from Iowa. [7/5] Recalled C-R Geovany Soto from Iowa; optioned CF-L Felix Pie to Iowa. [7/13]

A lot of luck? Man, that's quite a subjective impression - I remember more than a few cheapies, but it's not like everything he's hitting has been bloopers or seeing - eye singles.

Baseball Prospectus' Christina Karhl hates the Kendall trade (but it's rare for her to say anything positive about the cubs): ...but when this is the decision made as far as trying to fix the club's catcher situation, when anything, even just handing the job to Henry Blanco at the end of the month, would have been better than this. http://tinyurl.com/2q3yus

Jacque Jones's assignment this month was to get some hits so they could trade him. So far so good. Let's not get carried away when Jones hits a few singles. Thirty-one GMs can't be wrong in the belief that Jones isn't worth a third or even a quarter of what he's being paid. When Jones hits his next home run, it will be his first since June 1, which was his first since May 1, which was his first. Pie was sent down at the all-star break and has hit five home runs this month. Just as a reality check, imagine if Pie was put on the trading block, instead of Jones. It would be like the line for a new Harry Potter.

I agree with the assessment on the Kendall trade - seemed like a panic move on the Cubs part.

Man, that’s quite a subjective impression - I remember more than a few cheapies, but it’s not like everything he’s hitting has been bloopers or seeing - eye singles. It has little to do with "subjective impression." It has everything to do with the fact that his BABIP is .394, which is almost assuredly unsustainable.

Pie was sent down at the all-star break and has hit five home runs this month. And how was he doing in the bigs? I am sure that JJ would tear up AAA if he was in Iowa also.

as much recent love for jones that's been passed the past couple days he's still not hitting well at all. infield dribbers/bouncers not finding gloves...a few linedrive smacks into the OF for singles/doubles. he's not driving the ball any better, he's just not finding gloves lately. better than the alternative, but he's still not looking like he was.

I agree with Dave on Pie. Isn't the PCL where Ronnie Cedeno's doing a great Honus Wagner impression?

he’s not driving the ball any better, he’s just not finding gloves lately. better than the alternative, but he’s still not looking like he was. I would agree with you about the last couple of days, but over the last couple of weeks Jones has been hitting the ball fairly decently, but right at people. If the Cubs are serious about winning this year, Jones is the best option in CF.

I would agree that the Kendall trade really doesn't improve this team much, unless you want to factor in his supposedly great clubhouse presence and leadership skills. Still, considering what we gave up to get him, and that we didn't take on much salary at all, I don't see how the trade can possibly be considered that bad.

I would agree that the Kendall trade really doesn’t improve this team much, unless you want to factor in his supposedly great clubhouse presence and leadership skills. As disussed earlier, his ABB (Anyone But Barrett) ratings are off the charts though. :)

Same lineup as Yesterday, but with Dero at 1st batting 6th, Pagan sliding down to 7th and Hill catching Hill. I wonder if Kendall and Hill are now platooning with Hill catching Hill and Z with Kendall catching the other 3.

Just a heads up, but Levine is saying several teams have inquired to the Sux about McDougal. He did not say what teams, but there have been rumors this year about Jimbo seeking relief help and he has inquired about him in the past.

#317 hits nail on head. His GB/FB ratio is still a ghastly 2.4ish. He's nubbing a lot of balls through holes. It works, but for how long?

Have a little logical consistency. The Jones fans who are coming out of the woodwork now are the same people who said he was a bargain at $5 mil. When the Cubs almost "traded" him a couple weeks ago, they were paying 90 percent of a salary that was already supposed to be a bargain. Oakland got rid of their JJ by paying most of his salary. The Cubs are still trying to get rid of theirs. If he's still here on 8/1, I'm going to break something. I'm still waiting for someone to tell me what a .360 average in the PCL, or five home runs in the PCL, are worth in the majors. They must be worth something. What do Jones's two home runs in 238 ABs translate to in PCL coinage? People said Fontenot couldn't hit in the majors. Look at his numbers, and then his PCL numbers. See much difference?

I’m still waiting for someone to tell me what a .360 average in the PCL, or five home runs in the PCL, are worth in the majors. Well... maybe we should ask Pie. He has shown that it isn't worth much. Ronny Cedeno has done the same in the past. People said Fontenot couldn’t hit in the majors. No... not really. People said there wasn't a position for Fontenot in the majors, because he plays really poor defense.

And VA Phil - when has Pie hit .285/.290 and 25 home runs in a major league season? And what is that worth?

put it this way... i think jj is more valuable on the cubs roster than what the cubs could get back in return.

"It has everything to do with the fact that his BABIP is .394" While I've always like reading Bill James, I'm not a stathead - if you could elaborate what the acronym means and how it's determined, that would be much appreciated.

if you could elaborate what the acronym means and how it’s determined, that would be much appreciated. BABIP is batting average on balls in play. League average for BABIP typically hovers around .300. Further, most players, regardless of ability, tend to hover around .300. There are some players who are consistently above the league average (Derrek Lee is one of those players), but it is incredibly rare for a player to maintain a BABIP of .394. Derrek Lee is another case this year. His BABIP is currently .410, which is way above league average and way above Lee's career average. What this means is that it would be very surprising to see Lee or Fontenot maintain their current batting average. Because they have a high BABIP, this tends to mean that they have been more lucky than good. Of course, as I mentioned, Lee has consistently had a high BABIP, but more in the .340-.350 range (at least in the last couple of years) and not the .410 range.

Recent comments

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    18-year old SS Jefferson Rojas almost made the AA Tennessee Opening Day roster, and he is a legit shortstop, so I would expect him to be an MLB Top 100 prospect by mid-season. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Among the relievers in the system, I expect RHRP Hunter Bigge at AAA Iowa and RHRP Ty Johnson at South Bend to have breakout seasons on 2024, and among the starters I see LHP Drew Gray and RHP Will Sanders at South Bend and RHP Naz Mule at ACL Cubs as the guys who will make the biggest splash. Also, Jaxon Wiggins is throwing bullpen sides, so once he is ready for game action he could be making an impact at Myrtle Beach by June.

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    I expect OF Christian Franklin to have a breakout season at AA Tennessee in 2024. In another organization that doesn't have PCA, Caissie, K. Alcantara, and Canario in their system, C. Franklin would be a Top 10 prospect. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    The Reds trading Joe Boyle for Sam Moll at last year's MLB Trade Deadline was like the Phillies trading Ben Brown to the Cubs for David Robertson at the MLB TD in 2022. 

  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Javier Assad started the Lo-A game (Myrtle Beach versus Stockton) on the Cubs backfields on Wednesday as his final Spring Training tune-up. He was supposed to throw five innings / 75 pitches. However, I was at the minor league road games at Fitch so I didn't see Assad pitch. 

  • crunch (view)

    cards put j.young on waivers.

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  • Childersb3 (view)

    Seconded!!!

  • crunch (view)

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  • Arizona Phil (view)

    Here are the Cubs pitchers reports from Tuesday afternoon's Cardinals - Cubs game art Sloan Park in Mesa:

    SHOTA IMANAGA
    FB: 90-92 
    CUT: 87-89 
    SL: 82-83 
    SPLIT: 81-84
    CV: 73-74 
    COMMENT: Worked three innings plus two batters in the fourth... allowed four runs (three earned) on eight hits (six singles and two doubles) walked one, and struck out six (four swinging), with a 1/2 GO/AO... he threw 73 pitches (52 strikes - 10 swing & miss - 19 foul balls)... surrendered one run in the top of the 1st on a one-out double off Cody Bellinger's glove in deep straight-away CF followed one out later by two consecutive two-out bloop singles, allowed two runs (one earned) in the 2nd after retiring the first two hitters (first batter had a nine-pitch AB with four consecutive two-strike foul balls before being retired 3 -U) on a two-out infield single (weak throw on the run by Nico Hoerner), a hard-contact line drive RBI double down the RF line, and an E-1 (missed catch) by Imanaga on what should been an inning-ending 3-1 GO, gave up another run in the 3rd on a two-out walk on a 3-2 pitch and an RBI double to LF, and two consecutive singles leading off the top of the 4th before being relieved (runners were ultimately left stranded)... threw 18 pitches in the 1st inning (14 strikes - two swing & miss, one on FB and the other on a SL - four foul balls), 24 pitches in the 2nd inning (17 strikes - three swing & miss, one on FB, two SPLIT - six foul balls), 19 pitches in the 3rd inning (13 strikes - seven swing & miss, three on SL, two on SPLIT, one on FB - three foul balls), and 12 pitches without retiring a batter in the top of the 4th (8 strikes - no swing & miss - four foul balls)... Imanaga throws a lot of pitches per inning, but it's not because he doesn't throw strikes...  if anything, he throws too many strikes (he threw 70% strikes on Tuesday)... while he gets a ton of swing & miss (and strikeouts), he also induces a lot of foul balls because he doesn't try to make hitters chase his pitches by throwing them out of the strike zone... rather, he uses his very diverse pitch mix to get swing & miss (and lots of foul balls as well)... he also is a fly ball pitcher who will give up more than his share of HR during the course of the season...   
     
    JOE NAHAS
    FB: 90-92 
    SL: 83-85 
    CV: 80-81 
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day... relieved Imanaga with runners at first and second and no outs in the top of the 4th, and after an E-2 catcher's interference committed by Miguel Amaya loaded he bases, Nahas struck out the side (one swinging & two looking)... threw 16 pitches (11 strikes - two swinging)...   

    YENCY ALMONTE
    FB: 89-92 
    CH: 86 
    SL: 79 
    COMMENT: Threw an eight-pitch 5th (five strikes - no swing & miss), with a 5-3 GO for the first out and an inning-ending 4-6-3 DP after a one-out single... command was a bit off but he worked through it...   

    FRANKIE SCALZO JR
    FB: 94-95
    CH: 88 
    SL: 83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 6th inning... got the first outs easily (a P-5 and a 4-3 GO) on just three pitches, before allowing three consecutive two-out hard-contact hits (a double and two singles), with the third hit on pitch # 9 resulting in a runner being thrown out at the plate by RF Christian Franklin for the third out of the inning... 

    MICHAEL ARIAS
    FB: 94-96
    CH: 87-89
    SL: 82-83
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and allowed a hard-contact double on the third pitch of the 7th inning (a 96 MPH FB), and the runner came around to score on a 4-3 GO and a WP... gave up two other loud contact outs (an L-7 and an F-9)... threw 18 pitches (only 10 strikes - only one swing & miss)... stuff is electric but still very raw and he continues to have difficulty commanding it, and while he has the repertoire of a SP, he throws too many pitches-per-inning to be a SP and not enough strikes to be a closer... he is most definitely still a work-in-progress...   

    ZAC LEIGH: 
    FB: 93-94 
    CH: 89 
    SL: 81-83 
    CV: 78
    COMMENT: Was called up from the AA Tennessee group at Minor League Camp for the day and tossed a 1-2-3 8th (4-3 GO, K-swinging on a sweeper, K-looking on another sweeper)... threw 14 pitches (11 strikes - one swing & miss - eight foul balls)... kept pumping pitches into the strike zone but had difficulty putting hitters away (ergo a ton of foul balls)... FB velo is nowhere near the 96-98 MPH it was a couple of years ago when he was a Top 30 prospect, but his secondaries are better...   

    JOSE ROMERO:  
    FB: 93-95
    SL: 82-84
    COMMENT: Was called up from the Hi-A South Bend group at Minor League Camp for the day and worked the 9th (14 pitches - only six strikes- no swing & miss) and allowed a solo HR after two near-HR fly outs to the warning track, before getting a 3-1 GO to end the inning... it was like batting practice when he wasn't throwing pitches out of the strike zone...

  • crunch (view)

    pablo sandoval played 3rd and got a couple ABs (strikeout, single!) in the OAK@SF "exhibition"

    mlb officially authenticated the ball of the single he hit.  nice.

    he's in surprisingly good shape considering his poor body condition in his last playing seasons.  he's not lean, but he looks healthier.  good for him.